Our summer series deals with the life and missionary trips of a man named Saul, better known as the Apostle Paul.

Over the last 9 weeks we have been covering the life and missionary journeys of the Apostle Paul. We have seen a remarkable transformation from the Saul whose goal started out to totally destroy the followers of Jesus, to now being one of the most important contributors to the Christian faith.

As we have seen this build up to the launch of Paul’s journey to spread the Gospel, last week Pastor Josh shared a key beginning as Paul preaches in Antioch of Pisidia. We realize though, it was not all smooth sailing, because they are eventually kicked out of the city.
In fact, we have seen Saul experience a lot of adversity since his encounter with Jesus.

Adversity/Opposition/Persecution

Often we have very little control over what happens to us, but we do have control over how we respond to it.

When faced with persecution or adversity, how well have you responded to it?

This morning we will look at how Paul responded to adversity to help us on our journey. We will be dealing with the first seven verses of chapter 14 in the book of Acts.
Acts 14:1-7

1. Practice COMPANIONSHIP with fellow believers.
Acts 14:1
Proverbs 27:17

This journey wasn't meant to be taken alone. We need to take advantage of the support system God has placed in our lives.

2. Take COURAGE because He is with us.
Acts 14:2-3

In the face of opposition, we can have confidence that the Lord is with us every step of the way. We see that the Lord validates Paul and Barnabas to the people.

Deuteronomy 31:6
Matthew 28:20

We stay the course because we know that even if we can’t always see exactly what God is doing in that very moment, it is our responsibility to do what He has asked us to do. And we don’t have to be afraid to do it, because He is with us. We remain faithful, because He is faithful.

3. There comes a time to CONTINUE on.
Acts 14:4-7

At some point it usually becomes apparent that a person is not ready or willing to receive the Good News. We have to ask ourselves if we are really being a good steward of our time and resources if we continue to invest heavily into those whose heart is not open. We can be bold and stand firm,
giving our best, but there will still be those that will reject the gospel.

We're seeing Paul and Barnabas following what Jesus had instructed.
They understood that there are others who are open and willing to listen and receive the Gospel.
Matthew 10:23

Persecution hurts and adversity can tempt us to just give up and quit, but that adversity can be a very important tool to future success.
James 1:2-4

The challenge for us today is to Do It Anyway! The results are totally worth it.
James 1:12