Luke/Acts for Beginners, this is lesson number 21, Paul's Second Missionary
Journey, Acts chapter 15, verse 36 to chapter 18, verse 22. So we left off at
the scene where the Apostles and elders in Jerusalem had diffused an extremely
divisive situation by sending a letter to the church in Antioch. And if we
recall correctly, the church at Antioch was made up of both Jews and Gentiles,
Jews and Gentiles who were converted to Christianity. And so the church
in Jerusalem sent them a letter instructing them that contrary to
certain teachings they had received, they did not need to be circumcised before
they could become Christians. This particular idea had been promoted by
Jewish Pharisees who had converted to Christianity, but wanted to impose their
former Jewish legalism on these converts, or on Gentile converts to Christianity.
Their idea was that in order to become a Christian, which was an offshoot of
Judaism in their mind, you needed to keep the Jewish law. And the most obvious sign
of this was the Jewish rite of circumcision. This false idea was
repudiated by the leaders in Jerusalem and they informed the brethren of their
decision and advice by letter, delivered by Paul and Barnabas and Silas and
Barsabbas. Their decision also confirmed and approved the work that Paul and
Barnabas had done among the Gentiles, and gave it legitimacy among the brotherhood;
otherwise, there would not have been a second or third missionary effort.
Could you imagine if this had, if this teaching had been confirmed by the
leaders. The leaders in Jerusalem would have ruined the work among the
Gentiles. After delivering the letter to the church, Luke writes that Paul,
Barnabas, and now Silas remained in Antioch teaching the church there,
probably reinforcing the ideas that were sent in the letter and
undoing some of the doctrinal confusion caused by the teachers of the
circumcision. This problem would continue to plague the early church, because Paul
speaks of it again in Galatians five, verse 12, and in the letter to the Colossians,
chapter two, verses 11 to 17. So now we begin Paul's second missionary journey
in Acts chapter 15, somewhere around 49 to 52 AD and begins
with dispute, actually, a dispute. After a time in Antioch, Paul proposes that he
and Barnabas return to the field in order to strengthen the churches that
they had planted on their previous journey. Barnabas and Paul have a
disagreement at this point over bringing Barnabas' cousin John Mark with them.
The issue is settled as Paul chooses Silas to work with him, and Barnabas
takes John Mark under his wing and returns to the work in Cyprus, his
original home. Remember the first missionary journey, that's the first
place they went, he and Paul and Barnabas and John Mark, they went to
Cyprus first. It was a kind of friendly territory, if you wish. So Barnabas
takes John Mark and goes back to Cyprus to continue the work. Now this is only
speculation, but it seems that Paul had outgrown the mentor relationship that he
had with Barnabas, and Silas was a more suitable partner for him at this point
in his ministry. John Mark on the other hand, still affected by his failure to
keep up on the first missionary journey, but willing to try again, was in need of
a good teacher and a mentor, and he had one in Barnabas. Through God's
providential care this incident that threatened to break up one team of
missionaries, actually produced two teams. And we know that John Mark went on to
serve both Paul and then Peter in later years, and ended up writing one of the
Gospels, the Gospel of Mark. That was John Mark who did that. So we move
ahead to chapter 15, "And he was traveling through Syria
"and Cilicia, strengthening the churches. Paul came also to Derbe and to
"Lystra. And a disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who
"was a believer, but his father was a Greek, and he was well spoken of by the
"brethren who were in Lystra and Iconium. Paul wanted this man to go with him; and
"he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those parts, for
"they all knew that his father was a Greek. Now while they were passing
"through the cities, they were delivering the decrees which had been decided upon
"by the Apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem, for them to observe. So the
"churches were being strengthened in the faith, and were increasing in number
"daily." So we see that the objectives at the beginning of this second journey are
twofold: one, to read and explain the letter sent by the Apostles
concerning the circumcision business; and secondly, to strengthen the faith of
these young Christians in the churches that Paul and Barnabas had originally
planted. They also add Timothy to their number, who was probably given the tasks
originally done by John Mark. Note that despite championing the right of
Gentiles becoming Christians without the obligation to be circumcised,
Paul goes ahead and circumcises Timothy, whose father was a Greek and a
non-believer. This was necessary, not for Timothy to become a Christian, he was
already a Christian, but it was required to enter synagogues where Paul preached,
since uncircumcised men were not allowed entry into a synagogue, and it was known
that Timothy's father was a Gentile. So to avoid any problems he
circumcised Timothy. Another episode now in chapter
16, beginning in verse six, let's read that, it says, "They passed through the Phrygian
"and Galatian region, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak
"the Word in Asia; and after they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia,
"and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them; and passing by Mysia, they
"came down to Troas. CA vision appeared to Paul in the night,
"a man of Macedonia was standing and appealing to him and saying, 'Come over to
"Macedonia and help us.' When he had seen the vision immediately he sought to go
"into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them."
So from their starting point in Antioch in Syria to Troas is approximately 785
miles. There's like a line there, in the book of
Acts. They were here and they went there. We don't realize the distance
covered. Luke describes the trip in a few verses, but their overland route could
have taken them several months. The Roman Road system at the time permitted fairly
safe travel. And people like Paul walked some 15 to 20 miles a day. They would
stay in inns, or homes of friends, or synagogues. Aside from their work in the
churches they established the first trip, much of their journey was a failed
attempt to go eastward. They were trying to go east
to Asia. The Spirit preventing them, that Luke mentions, could mean a variety of
setbacks or obstacles that prevented them from successfully preaching the
gospel in that region. It could be a washed out bridge or no available
synagogues, illness, lack of finances, perhaps a message in a dream or a vision.
In some way the Holy Spirit was preventing them from doing
their work towards the East. Once they had headed wast and arrived at the
coastal city of Troas, Paul has a vision that finally provides the direction that
they are seeking. The dream is general in nature, come to Macedonia. No
more details of who or where or how, but Paul's faith is strong enough to act
based on this limited instruction. And so, he arrives at Philippi. So in his vision
Paul saw a man of Macedonia calling out to him for help.
So Paul and his companions, they set out from Troas and they head for this city
of Philippi, which was a leading city in the Macedonian region. Once there, they
seek out a place where Jews might gather, so that Paul might find an
opportunity to preach. So let's take a look at Acts chapter 16, it says,
"And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to a riverside, where we were
"supposing that there would be a place of prayer; and we sat down and began
"speaking to the women who had assembled. A woman named Lydia, from the city of
"Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshipper of God, was listening; and the
"Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by God. And when she and
"her household had been baptized, she urged us, saying, 'If you have judged me to
"be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and stay.' And she prevailed upon us."
So with these baptisms the church is established in Philippi. In Acts 16:16 to
24, we're not going to read that, but in the following verses Luke describes an
incident that resembled what took place in Cyprus during the first missionary
journey. There, Paul struck blind a sorcerer who was trying to hinder his
work. In Philippi he casts out an evil spirit from a girl who had been
following them about and drawing attention to their ministry. Paul, not
wanting a witness from a girl possessed of an evil spirit, quiets her by casting
out the spirit. Of course, this led to a riot stirred up by the girl's handlers,
who made a living using her adult skills, not adult, but occult skills. Paul and
Silas are then dragged before the judge, they're beaten and then put into prison
with their feet locked in stalks. The only difference here was that their
imprisonment was not caused by the Jews this time. And so, we get to Acts chapter
16, we'll read this section beginning in verse 25, it says, "About midnight Paul and
"Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God
"and the prisoners were listening to them, and suddenly there came a great
"earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken; and
"immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were unfastened.
"When the jailer awoke and saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was
"about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoner
"had escaped. But Paul cried out with a loud voice saying, 'Do not harm yourself,
"for we are all here.' And he called for the lights and rushed in, and trembling
"with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas, and after he brought them out, he
"said, 'Sirs, what must I do to be saved?' They said, 'Believe in the Lord Jesus and
"you will be saved, you and your household.' And they spoke the Word of the Lord to
"him, together with all who were in his house. And he took them that very hour of
"the night and washed their wounds, and immediately he was baptized, he and all
"his household. And he brought them into his house and set food before them, and
"rejoiced greatly, having believed in God with his whole household." I want you
to notice that the jailer had some knowledge of the faith, because the
earthquake and the fact that none of the prisoners escaped moves him to ask the
same question that the crowd on Pentecost Sunday asked Peter.
In other words, brethren what shall we do? Well, how are we going to be saved?
Luke records only a summary of what Paul taught him, which in a few words was that
faith in Christ would save him, but notice that the very first thing the
jailer does after confessing his faith is to submit to baptism, just like
the crowd at Pentecost. Now Luke doesn't mention Paul teaching the jailer and his
household about baptism, but the fact that this is the first thing he does
after acknowledging his belief tells us that he was taught about this as part of
the Gospel message. Now an interesting postscript here, that we read about
all the way to verse 40, an interesting postscript is that when the
magistrates sought to release them quietly, Paul reminds them of his Roman
citizenship and the illegal manner in which they were treated and he refuses
to go unless publicly released by the judges themselves. And of course he
didn't want someone to accuse him of escaping from jail in some future attack
on him, accusing him of being an escaped convict. He wanted to make sure
that it was very public that he was being released properly by the
magistrates. And so the judges release him
publicly and legally. He leaves the jail, he pays a farewell visit to Lydia, and
moves on to another location to preach the gospel. This other location
would be Thessalonica, and we'll read about that beginning in chapter 17.
There's the location of Thessalonica in relationship to Philippi.
So we read in chapter 17, "Now when they had traveled through Amphipolis and
"Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews.
"And according to Paul's custom, he went to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned
"with them from the scriptures. Explaining and giving evidence that the Christ had
"to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, 'This Jesus, whom I am
"proclaiming to you, is the Christ.' And some of them were persuaded and joined
"Paul and Silas along with a large number of the God-fearing Greeks and a number
"of the leading women. But the Jews, becoming jealous and taking along some
"wicked men from the marketplace, formed a mob and set the city in an uproar and
"attacking the house of Jason, they were seeking to bring them out to the people.
"When they did not find them, they began dragging Jason and some brethren before
the city authority, shouting, 'These men, who have upset the world, have come here
"also, and Jason has welcomed them; and they all act contrary to the decrees of
"Caesar, saying that there's another King, Jesus.' They stirred up the crowd and the
"city authorities who heard these things. And when they had received the pledge
"from Jason and the others, they released them." So do you notice a pattern here?
First Paul arrives at a city and he finds a place where he can preach; and as
takes place in every place that he preaches, some people believe and others
don't. The believers follow Paul and desire more teaching. And then some of
the disbelievers cause trouble for Paul. Paul then leaves or escapes and the
cycle repeats itself in another location. So despite the trouble, however, a church
is planted in the city of Thessalonica. He moves on to the city of Berea, in Acts
chapter 17, verse 10 to 14. Berea is the exception to this
cycle that proves the rule. Here the Jews are eager to hear Paul and to consider
everything according to the scriptures. Many of them are converted, along with
Greek proselytes to Judaism. Unfortunately this fruitful work is
upset as a familiar cycle is repeated. This time, however, it is not the Bereans
who cause the trouble, but Jews from Thessalonica who come over to disrupt
Paul's ministry among the Bereans. They spirit him safely out of town, leaving
Timothy and Silas to continue the work among the Bereans for a time. After his
time in Berea Paul makes his way to the great city of Athens. Let's read a little
bit about what takes place there in Acts chapter 17, beginning in verse 15. "Now
"those who escorted Paul brought him as far as Athens and receiving a command
"for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they left. Now while
"Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was being provoked within him as
"he was observing the city full of idols. So he was reasoning in the synagogue
"with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles and in the marketplace every
"day with those who happen to be present, and also some of the Epicurean and Stoic
"philosophers were conversing with him. Some were saying, 'What would this idle
"babbler wish to say?' Others, 'He seems to be a proclaimer of strange deities,' -
"because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection. And they took him and
"brought him to the Areopagus, saying, 'May we know what this new teaching is, which
"you are proclaiming, for you are bringing some strange things to our ears, so we
"want to know what these things mean.' (Now all the Athenians and the strangers
"visiting there used to spend their time in nothing other than telling or hearing
"something new.)" Now what is interesting about Paul's time in Athens is that no
church was planted upon his arrival and his early preaching in the synagogue.
Luke only records that Paul reasoned with the Jews and the Gentile converts, but there's
no mention of anyone believing or being baptized. And there is no mention of any
responses as a result of this preaching in the public square early in his
ministry there. Instead, Luke records the invitation and the speech that Paul
delivers at Mars Hill. This was a significant event,
because it was his first and most direct contact with the elite philosophers and
thinkers of that day. The speech would be the most important showcase of Christian
ideas and gospel message to the pagan mindset gathered in one place. So first,
let's get a little background about Mars Hill. Mars Hill is a Roman name
for a hill located in Athens. In Greek it was called Hill of Ares, the God of War,
known to the Romans as Mars, and thus the name Mars Hill. This is the modern
view of it, as you can see. Now the Areopagus was the Supreme Council or the
upper council, a body of elected officials. They were elected for life,
very much like a judge on the Supreme Court here in the United States. And
these judges met in this location. These men were the great and famous of Athens
who gathered to hear cases dealing exclusively with homicide, but also to
hear the newest ideas in philosophy, religion, and other areas of human
thinking and knowledge. And so on that day they were gathered to hear this new
religion, this new teaching, as befitting the rich and powerful, who are, in every
generation, usually the first ones to come into contact with new and visionary
ideas. So this is Paul's first speech to a large influential and completely pagan
audience. He will not argue his case from the prophets or the scriptures, as he has
done with the Jewish audiences. Very interesting how he approaches. So let's
go back to the text, verse 22, it says, "So Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus
"and said, 'Men of Athens, I observed you are very religious in all respects,
"for while I was passing through and examining the objects of your worship, I
"also found an altar with this inscription: To an unknown God.
"Therefore, what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you, the God who made
"the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heavens and earth, does not
"dwell in temples made with hands, nor is He served by human hands, as though He
"needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath in all
"things and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the
"face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries
"of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him
"and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and
"move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, for we are also His
"children. Being then the children of God we ought not to think that the Divine
"Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art or the
"thought of man. Therefore, having overlooked the times of ignorance God is
"now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has
"fixed the day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man
"whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the
"dead." I want you to note that Paul bases his speech on their notion of God,
not a Jewish notion of God, their notion of God, which was pantheistic. In other
words, they had many gods. Paul's first objective is to move them from the
concept of many gods to the concept of only one God. Next he explains that this
one God is the source of everything that exists, and is not dependent on man nor
is His nature human or material. His following point is that God requires
certain things from His creation, including man, and at some point will
judge the world, something that his audience of judges could relate to. And
then finally he introduces Christ and His resurrection, but he is not able to
finish, because they cut him off at this point.
So let's just keep reading, "Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead,
"some began to sneer, but others said, 'We shall hear you again concerning this.' So
"Paul went out of their midst, but some men joined him and believed, among whom
"also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others
with them." So up to this point of his speech, up to the point of
resurrection, Paul's speech was well received, since the points he was making
demonstrated a logical and superior way to think about divine beings. For example,
one God versus many gods; an all-powerful God versus their idea of demigods of
Greek mythology; a God who creates man versus their idea of man creating God;
and a God who dispenses justice rather than human beings dispensing justice.
So Paul's image and teaching about the true God
is immediately superior to what they had understood to this point, however, they
balked at the idea of the resurrection of Jesus, because although they believed
in an afterlife for the soul, they considered the flesh evil and a
hindrance to the journey of the soul, which was released from the material
body at death. The idea of a human body resurrecting from the dead, something
accepted by faith, seemed ridiculous and useless to them, since their
afterlife belief centered on the soul getting out of the body in which it was
trapped. They believed the soul was trapped in the body and the flesh was
evil, and finally the soul was released. So to have the body resurrected,
for them was just one step too far. They dismissed Paul, but not before
two prominent people and other individuals believed and followed Paul
for more teaching, showing that God's Word and His message is never returned
empty. And so we move on, or Paul moves on, to the next city, which is Corinth. And
we'll read in chapter 18, begin there, it says, "After these things
"he left Athens and went to Corinth, and he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of
"Pontus, having recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius
"had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. And he came to them and because he was
"of the same trade he stayed with them. And they were working, for by trade they
"were tent makers. And he was reasoning in the synagogue every sabbath and trying
"to persuade Jews and Greeks." So Luke includes a fascinating glimpse into the
everyday life of Paul, how he got around, how he financed some of his travel, and
the conditions in which he lived. Aquila and Priscilla, his wife, are - Priscilla, the
wife of Aquila, are introduced here and we will see them again a little bit
later on in the narrative. Note also Luke's attention to historical
detail. He mentions not only the city that the three of them are in, the
city of Corinth, but also a time marker as well. We know that Claudius expelled
the Jews from Rome. We know this historically. And we know that Claudius
reigned from 41 to 54 AD. So we keep reading in Acts chapter 18,
"But when Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul began devoting
"himself completely to the Word, solemnly testifying to the Jews that Jesus was
"the Christ. But when they resisted and blasphemed, he shook out his garments and
"said to them, 'Your blood be on your own heads. I am clean. From now on I will go
"to the Gentiles.' Then he left there and went to the house of a man named
"Titius Justus, a worshiper of God, whose house was next to the synagogue.
"Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord with all his
household. And many of the Corinthians, when they heard, were
"believing and being baptized. And the Lord said to Paul in the night by a
"vision, 'Do not be afraid any longer, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for
"I am with you, and no man will attack you, in order to harm you, for I have many
"people in this city.' And he settled there a year and
"six months, teaching the Word of God among them."
So Paul stays in Corinth for an 18-month period after the Lord encouraged him to
remain there and continue teaching and preaching. Several prominent Jews are
converted, as well as Gentiles, but when the Jews resisted and blasphemed, Paul
shifted his efforts to the Gentiles. And he's encouraged to continue doing so
after the encouragement of the Lord. He's also preaching full-time, now that
Silas and Timothy have come to help him. So now they're working, they're providing
resources so he can give himself over to his preaching ministry full-time. Well,
after a long period of uninterrupted ministry the old cycle of opposition
from the Jews will again begin, and Paul is arrested. The judge will release Paul,
seeing that this is a civil case, rather, this is not a civil case, but a religious
dispute. And so we'll jump forward to Acts 18, Acts 18:18, it says, "Paul, having
"remained many days longer, took leave of the brethren and put out to sea for
"Syria, and with him were Priscilla and Aquila. In Cenchrea he had his hair
"cut, for he was keeping a vow. They came to Ephesus, and he left them there. Now he
"himself entered the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. When they asked
"him to stay for a longer time he did not consent, but taking leave of them and
"saying, 'I will return to you again if God wills,' he set sail from Ephesus. When he
"had landed at Caesarea he went up and greeted the church and went down to
"Antioch." So Luke writes that Paul continued ministering after the trial,
but after a year and a half he felt that it was time to return home. He brings
Aquila and Priscilla with him and he leaves them in Ephesus where he spends
very little time, but he promises to return. And we'll find out later that
Ephesus becomes a very important center for evangelism to that area. Paul
finishes his second missionary journey by greeting the church at Caesarea,
which was the port of entry located there, and then made his way north to his
home congregation to report on his trip. And of course, he's been away a couple of
years, to get some well needed rest. All right, well, we're going to
stop here in our textual study and maybe draw a couple of lessons that we
can see through this narrative here. I think some pretty practical things,
not just kind of theological lessons, but just practical lessons for everyday
Christian living. For example, it's possible to have a dispute in the church
without having a division. Go back at the beginning of the
section we studied today. The disagreement between Paul and Barnabas
is rather typical in the church, isn't it? Two brothers really invested in the work,
disagree on how to proceed. Here's a situation where Satan could drive a
wedge between these two men, that could start a complete division in the church.
Note, however, that there was no division and no one quit the church. I believe
that they brought their problem to the church leadership for a resolution.
In Acts chapter 15, verse 40, it says, "But Paul chose Silas and left, being
"committed by the brethren to the grace of the Lord." Luke mentions this
to underscore that the church was aware of and blessed the resolution that they
had come to as far as continuing with the work, that Barnabas will go
one way, Paul would go the other. The church blesses Paul's continued ministry
with Silas. My point here is that we should bring church matters to the
elders, when there are disputes or offenses. This is both a good way to seek
resolution and it guards against division and the breaking of fellowship
over petty things. Lesson number two, you don't know the
last step before you take the first step. Paul was looking for direction
after the door of opportunity closed for his preaching in the eastern regions.
His prayer, Lord, show me the way. Give me some direction. The Lord answers this prayer
by telling him that Macedonia needs help. Well, that's
helpful, but think for a moment, at the time Macedonia was a region of
approximately ten thousand square miles, and its main city, Philipi, had a
population of maybe 10 to 20,000 people. Talk about finding a needle
in a haystack. It's just come over to Macedonia, it's like come over to
Canada, from here in the States. Come over to Canada. It's huge.
However, Paul knew that the direction was west and not East, and the territory was
Macedonia. He trusted the Lord for further directions when they would be
needed. For now, he demonstrated his faith by leaving Troas and heading for
Macedonia. Now, we've just read that he eventually found the city and the people
and the work when he needed to find the city, the people, and the work, exactly
where God was leading him to. Some people, they're not going to take
the first step in following the Lord, unless He shows them all of the
following steps to reach the goal, but that's not how
it works. That system there, that's called walking by sight. I've got ten
steps to take to get to the goal, and the Lord has shown me steps 1 to 10.
That's walking by sight, that's not walking by faith. And that's not how the Lord
works. Usually the first step is the step of faith, and then God will not show us
the next step or the final step until we take the first step of faith.
We like to play it safe. We like to cover our bets. We like to reduce the risk, not
launch out unless success is guaranteed at the starting gate. But a life devoted
to Christ sometimes requires us to obey Him first by taking a first step of
faith, before He reveals the next step or the final step.
If the Lord calls you to something, you can be sure of two things: one, if He's
the one calling, you will have to walk by faith in order to answer that call;
and number two, if He is the one calling, He will provide everything that you will
need in due time, if you're ready to answer His call. Okay, so a couple of
lessons that we can draw from Paul's experiences. This is the assignment for
the next lesson, number 22 in our series, reading chapter 18:23 to chapter 21, verse 14.
Thank you for your attention and we'll see you next time.