Acts: Go & Be Chapters 10-18Chikamu

What is this passage saying?

The jealous Jewish men followed Paul and Barnabas to Lystra. They stirred up the crowd to stone Paul. Tony Evans writes this about these verses. “Human devotion can quickly turn to animosity when it’s not tethered to truth. The crowds that hailed Jesus as the Messiah were shouting for His crucifixion a few days later.” The town stoned Paul so brutally that they dragged him out of the town thinking they had killed him. But Paul was not dead- he rose and walked right back into Lystra. In verses 20-24 Paul and Barnabas go to Derbe to finish the work God had called them to through the Holy Spirit. In Derbe they do what they had been faithfully doing- sharing the Gospel and making disciples. After their work was done, they revisited all the towns they had been too and strengthened the disciples with these words, “We must through many tribulations enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” this phrase carries great weight when the man who is speaking to them might still have been healing from a near death stoning. Paul and Barnabas start Churches in these towns with elders and commit them to the Lord and then they return to Antioch. The task given to them was completed. The men were reunited with their Church and praised God for all that He has done through the disciples. What a sweet reunion that must have been. We see in Paul’s future writing how he would invite people to come see him or he would say how he longs to see other followers of Jesus that he had crossed paths with. Christian community was a staple of the early church. Christian community is blessing from God to His people- it is meant to be a safe place for us to praise God for what He is doing.

What is this passage teaching?

Churches are being planted like crazy! The Lord is multiplying the efforts of the disciples. He called them to go, so they went. He emboldened them to share the Gospel, so they did. The Holy Spirit worked in the lives of the listeners and the number of Christians is growing outside of Jerusalem. No man can thwart the plans of God- it’s not even a contest. As we enjoy our aerial view of the lives of the disciples, we enjoy our confidence in the unmatched abilities of God. Why would we fear- we know the ending, the Lord is going to be victorious. And we know the true is same for us today, we just get so stuck in the present we forget God has given us an aerial view of the end. He wins and we get to be with Him. We dedicate our lives to worrying about things that don’t matter in eternity. Hardships in this life are meant to point us to God. My momma always says in the face of trails, “these things only make me long for heaven.”. The early Church is dedicating their life to what Jesus so clearly called them to do, and the blessings they are reaping are internal and eternal. Chapter 14 ends with the disciples rejoicing in what God is doing. We don’t read they bad mouthed the Jews for all the mean things they did. Hardship and trails were expected- Paul’s encouragement to the new believers was, “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.” They knew they signed up for hardship when they surrendered their lives to Jesus, so why waste breath on commiserating. They were once again eyewitnesses to the glory of the God of the universe, and that’s all they wanted to talk about.

How do I respond?

Do not forsake the gathering of believers. Don’t allow excuses supplied by the enemy to keep you away from Christian community. When you are among believers be a blessing to other believers not a distraction. The purpose when we Christians gather is to give God glory. Time with other believers should be an encouragement as you walk this life. Life is life- only God can help you make sense of it. Everyone on earth experiences hardships. Do not be defined by them, give them to the Lord and watch how He will bless you with joy and peace, as you wait for heaven.