SERMON: DEFINING BELIEF (Acts 15:1-21 and Philippians 3:1-4a)

 

Naylor Community Christian Church

Naylor, Georgia

 

I.  Introduction

            -- turn in Bibles to Acts 15:1-5

 

Acts 15:1 Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the believers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question. 3 The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the believers very glad. 4 When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.

 

5 Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses.”

 

-- I am sure most people here are familiar with the name Vincent Van Gogh – he remains a world-renowned painter – and even if you are not a lover of art, you have heard of Van Gogh and may even be able to recognize some of his paintings – and, of course, he is famous for having cut part of his own ear off during a mental breakdown following an argument with his roommate, the painter Gauguin -- which was later immortalized in his painting, “Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear

-- but the one thing you may not know about Van Gogh was that he began his working career as a missionary in 1878, which was a requirement to enter the ministry and become a pastor

-- for six months, Van Gogh served as a missionary to the poor coal miners of Belgium – and after that time, he was to be evaluated by the church’s leadership to determine whether he would be ordained into full-time ministry and be allowed to serve as a pastor

-- “There was just one problem with Van Gogh’s desire to become a pastor—in the view of many respectable church leaders, he took the example of Jesus a bit too seriously.” – instead of maintaining the dignity that the leaders thought he should display, Van Gogh “chose not to put his confidence in his credentials, education, or the fact that he came from a celebrated family of ministers”

-- “Van Gogh gave away most of his clothing and possessions, and rather than ministering from the clean confines of the church building, he worked alongside the miners in the tunnels -- He also shunned the comfortable housing provided to him by his church and instead lived in a filthy hut like those he came to serve” – he literally became one with those he ministered with

-- and this did not sit well with the church leaders – “in nineteenth-century Holland, pastors were held in high regard -- They were the leaders not just of the church but of the whole community -- and they were among the most educated men in society -- Therefore, they carried themselves with a dignity appropriate for their exalted status”

            -- so, when Van Gogh’s six-month assignment in the mines was complete, these leaders rejected his application for ordination because they felt he did not portray the standards of the office – in conduct – in dress – and in his preaching

            -- in all honesty, the clergymen weren’t merely rejecting Van Gogh – they were protecting themselves and preserving their own reputations – to have someone look and act like Van Gogh would demean their profession and diminish them in the eyes of their congregants – “In the end, they weren’t thinking about what would honor God, advance his mission, or help the poor miners of Belgium. They were focused on themselves.”

            -- “in a way, the church authorities who rejected Van Gogh closely resembled the religious authorities who rejected Jesus for not meeting their cultural expectations of a rabbi and prophet.” – and they closely resembled the certain people that we read about in Acts 15, who condemned the Gentile believers for not looking like them – for not being circumcised or following the law handed down by Moses

            -- rather than focusing on the evidence of God’s spiritual blessings in the life of these Gentiles, these men believed the Gentiles must first become Jews in appearance and conduct before they could be saved through Jesus¹

            -- this issue was the first great controversy in the church of Christ – and Acts 15 describes the great council that was held to discuss this issue and come to a decision on what is required for someone to be saved

 

            -- this morning, as we are continuing on in Part 3 of our sermon series through the Book of Acts, we will be looking at the controversy about Gentile believers and the decision of the church leaders in regard to defining true belief in Jesus

 

II.  To Circumcise or Not (Acts 15:1-40; Philippians 3:1-11)

            -- look back with me now at Acts 15:1 and let’s start our study on this subject

 

Acts 15:1 Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the believers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.”

 

            -- verse 1 defines the crux of the issue – as Luke says here, “certain people” came down from Judea to Antioch and told the Gentile believers in the church that if they were not circumcised – and, by implication, if they did not follow all the laws and customs of Moses as handed down to the Jews – they could not be saved

            -- these men who pushed this viewpoint became known as Judaizers – for they believed that only Jews could be saved – and if the Gentiles were to receive salvation, they must first become Jews

            -- and just so you know, this issue was not limited to the church at Antioch – for we see Paul dealing with Judaizers and their teachings in several of his letters, most notably in Philippians, which we will look at later

 

            -- before we dive into the issue of what is required for Gentiles to be saved, let’s first discuss what the big deal is with circumcision and why these Judaizers held this practice in such high regard

            -- as Skye Jethani points out, “The symbol of circumcision begins in the Bible with Abraham. God promised he would be the father of innumerable descendants, but Abraham and Sarah were elderly and barren.

“When Sarah heard the Lord’s promise, she thought it was so ridiculous that she laughed. In response to her laughter, God said, “Is anything too hard for the Lord?” -- Of course, Abraham and Sarah did have a child, but it was clear that the birth of Isaac wasn’t natural --The old, barren flesh of Abraham and Sarah alone could not have conceived him -- God had done something special -- something miraculous – [and] the sign of circumcision was given to Abraham and his descendants to remember this [miracle and the] supernatural fulfillment of God’s promise”²

-- as part of God’s covenant with Abraham, He directed that all male children be circumcised on the eighth day as a permanent reminder of the miracle of Isaac’s birth and the supernatural fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham – and thus, circumcision became the law for the nation of Israel as a sign of their covenant with God

-- later, God gave the nation of Israel additional laws and customs that were handed down through Moses as part of His continuing covenant with the Jewish people – some of these laws were given to offer temporary atonement for sin while pointing the people to the Messiah, who would come to atone for the sins of the world once and for all time – other laws and customs were given to help separate the people from the pagans around them, and to keep them faithful to their God and Savior

-- but the funny thing about laws and customs and symbols of faith is that sometimes, these symbols take on a life of their own – what becomes more important than remembering and following God in faith is adherence to the symbol – in essence, the symbol becomes an idol that takes the place of God – and that is exactly what was going on with the practice of circumcision with the Jews in the time of Christ and the early church

-- so, these Judaizers came to Antioch and found these Gentile believers in Christ – who were part of the church and were worshiping God alongside the Jews – and when they found out they were not circumcised, they lost their minds

-- they laid down the law to these new believers and pronounced, “If you are not circumcised, you cannot be saved” – if you don’t have this physical sign – this symbol of faith – on your body, you are not part of the church

“in other words, in order to be fully accepted by God, one had to first be fully Jewish. Only then could you be part of the community of Jesus, the Jewish Messiah.”²

 

-- verse 2-4

 

Acts 15:2 This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question. 3 The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the believers very glad. 4 When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.

 

 

-- Paul and Barnabas were not going to sit by and allow this heresy to come into the church and corrupt the new Gentile believers – they were steadfast in their teaching that salvation came by grace through faith – that nothing else was required – not circumcision – not following the Law – not becoming a Jew

– Jesus had done everything required for salvation – and our only part was to believe in Him and put our faith and trust in His atoning death on the cross

-- they had sharp disagreements with these Judaizers, and finally, the church decided to appeal to the Apostles in Jerusalem for a decision – they sent Paul and Barnabas, along with several other believers, to Jerusalem to consult with the Apostles – and, of course, the Judaizers tagged along

 

-- verse 5-6

 

Acts 15:5 Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses.” 6 The apostles and elders met to consider this question.

 

-- what do we do when we have a theological concern in the church? – we do the same thing that the church in Antioch did – we take it to the leaders – and in our case, we review what the church has taught on the issue over the last 2000 years

-- our church derives from a Wesleyan heritage – and because of that, I want to introduce a concept to you that will help inform your thinking and research on matters of theology and church practice

-- there is this principle in the Wesleyan tradition that we call the Wesleyan Quadrilateral – despite the name, this is not a trick football play – rather, it is a guide on determining what authorities we turn to when theological questions come into consideration

-- Quad means four – and through Wesley’s writings and sermons, scholars have come up with the four means by which we are to evaluate theological questions – these four are given in order of priority

– first, we have Scripture, for it is to God’s word that we must rely on as our primary resource for determining the truth of a matter – the next is Tradition, and this does not mean the tradition of the local church – this is referring to the tradition of church history – of what has been taught and agreed upon by the church of Christ since its founding – third, Reason – taking the issue and reasoning an answer based on Scripture and Tradition and common-sense – and, fourth, Experience – what has been the experience of Christians throughout history in regards to this issue – Scripture – Tradition – Reason – Experience – these make up the Wesleyan Quadrilateral

-- and what we see here in Acts 15 is the church at Antioch relying on these guiding principles to come up with the answer to this issue of circumcision and conversion of Gentiles to Jews for salvation

 

            -- verse 7-12

 

Acts 15:7 After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: “Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. 8 God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. 9 He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. 10 Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear? 11 No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”

 

12 The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them.

 

            -- after the leaders had discussed the issue for some time, Peter finally got up and began to speak – he told of his experiences with Cornelius the Centurion that we read about in Acts 10 – about how the Holy Spirit came upon the Gentiles after they had received Jesus and put their faith and trust in Him for salvation -- and then Paul and Barnabas stood up and offered similar stories

            -- their whole point was that God had affirmed the faith and salvation of these Gentiles without requiring anything else – they didn’t have to be circumcised first – they didn’t have to go through the process of converting to Judaism and start following the Jewish laws and traditions first – the Holy Spirit had come upon them in the same way He had come upon the first believers on the day of Pentecost – and that proved that there was nothing required for salvation except faith in Jesus – as Peter says in verse 11, “we believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved”

 

            -- that’s what this all comes down to – that’s what this whole discussion revolves around – what is required for salvation? – not only for the Gentiles, but for everyone

            -- the word of God – as received by Peter directly from the lips of Jesus and written in the Old Testament Scriptures – and the experiences of Peter, Paul, and Barnabas and the obvious acceptance of the Gentiles by God through the sending of the Holy Spirit – confirmed that salvation was by grace through faith only – not by works or anything else – to include circumcision

            -- requiring anything else – making someone take up a symbol or sign like circumcision – requiring them to follow a law or tradition or practice – was anathema – it went against the word of God and the clear teaching of Jesus and the experiences of the apostles with the Gentiles

            -- the point Peter, Paul, and Barnabas are making here is that, not only is circumcision not required for salvation – but circumcision cannot save – contrary to what the Judaizers were teaching

 

            -- hold your place here and flip over to Philippians 3:1-4a

 

Philippians 3:1 Further, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you. 2 Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh. 3 For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh— 4a though I myself have reasons for such confidence.

 

            -- Paul makes the same passionate declaration here in Philippians as he confronts the Judaizer’s continuing efforts to make Gentiles convert to Judaism and be circumcised in order to be saved

            -- these are the people he is referring to in verse 2 – he calls them “dogs” – “evildoers” – “mutilators of the flesh” – now, you need to understand that Paul is not trying to just call them names here when he calls them a dog

            -- the term “dog” was used by the Jews to describe anyone who was not a Jew – a dog was a Gentile – a dog was a pagan – a dog was anyone who was not part of the covenant with God through Abraham -- it was a term of derision, but it named a specific group of people

            -- when Paul calls these Judaizers “dogs” here in verse 2, he is basically saying that these people were not true believers and were not part of the church of Christ, because they were mandating other practices and requiring adherence to the Law of Moses in order to be saved

            -- the Judaizers called themselves, “the circumcision” or “the circumcised,” to make it clear they were Jews who adhered to the Law – by using that term, they were saying that they – and only they – were saved

            -- but Paul says in verse 3 that these people are not truly circumcised, because their circumcision was physical only – it was done by hands of men – it was not the circumcision of the heart – and that the believers in Philippi and the other churches who believe in Jesus through faith and faith alone are the true circumcision because they have been circumcised internally through the Spirit

            -- in other words, the Judaizers were putting their faith in the symbol of circumcision – not in the atoning death of Jesus – as Skye Jethani wrote, “rather than trusting in God, the people began to put their trust in circumcision itself. They lost sight of what the symbol meant and began to believe circumcision by itself was powerful; a sort of magical mark that guaranteed God’s blessing and inclusion within his chosen people. In other words, circumcision ceased to be a symbol of trusting God’s Spirit, and it became yet another way people put their trust in their own flesh—literally.”

            -- but Peter, Paul, and Barnabas – referring to the clear word of God and their experiences with the Gentiles – made the case before the council in Acts 15 that the Judaizers were wrong – trusting in a symbol – trusting in circumcision – could not save – it was believing in Jesus in faith through grace that saved a person

           

 

            -- look back at Acts 15:13-21

 

Acts 15:13 When they finished, James spoke up. “Brothers,” he said, “listen to me. 14 Simon has described to us how God first intervened to choose a people for his name from the Gentiles. 15 The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written:

 

16 “‘After this I will return

    and rebuild David’s fallen tent.

Its ruins I will rebuild,

    and I will restore it,

17 that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,

    even all the Gentiles who bear my name,

says the Lord, who does these things’—

18     things known from long ago.

 

19 “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20 Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. 21 For the law of Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.”

 

            -- this James is the brother of Jesus – and it appears that he has assumed the leadership of the church in Jerusalem at this point

            -- after hearing the discussions and the arguments from both sides, James announces his decision, which was fully accepted by the council as the answer to the question of what is required for salvation by the Gentiles

            -- he affirms that the Gentiles are saved by grace through faith, just as the Jews had been – this was confirmed by the sending of the Holy Spirit upon them by the Father

            -- they were not required to be circumcised – they were not required to become Jews – they were not required to follow the Law of Moses

 

            -- but to unify this church that was comprised of believers from two different backgrounds – Jews and Gentiles – it was recommended that the Gentiles follow four rules

            -- these requirements were given -- not as a precondition for salvation -- but as a consideration to their Jewish friends

– first, they were to abstain from eating food polluted by idols – second, they were to abstain from sexual immorality – third, they were to abstain from the meat of strangled animals, which still had the blood within them – and fourth, they were to abstain from associating with blood, in general

            -- these four rules were derived from the Law of Moses and were related to faithfulness to God and to the sanctity of blood and its role in covering sin

            -- the laws that God gave Moses were intended to keep the nation of Israel separated from the world and faithful to Him – they were given to keep them from turning to idols and mishandling the sacredness of blood

            -- eating food dedicated to idols was a normal practice in the pagan world, but this would have been a stumbling block to the Jews – so, the council told the Gentiles to stop doing this – we see this issue come up again later in Paul’s epistles to the church at Corinth

            -- maintaining sexual purity and keeping the marriage bed holy was a sign of faithfulness – faithfulness to your spouse – and faithfulness to God – for marriage is a picture of our relationship with God

            -- this requirement to abstain from sexual immorality also included turning away from the common pagan practice of including sexual acts as part of religious services, which was linked to the idolatrous worship of other gods

            -- the concerns with blood have to do with the shedding of blood for atonement – for the covering and forgiveness of sins – according to the law of Moses, the blood was to be offered to God as part of a sacrifice and to atone for their sins – so, the handling of the blood was carefully restricted in the Old Testament

            -- it was common for Gentiles in this time to strangle animals and then drink the blood as part of religious ceremonies – so, this requirement is put in place to prevent the Gentiles from introducing this practice into the Christian church – additionally, it was forbidden for Jews to eat animals that had not been cleaned properly and had their blood drained before cooking, so if the Gentiles did this it would offend the Jews

 

            -- the goal with these requirements for the Gentiles is unity in the church – just as the church council in Jerusalem had ruled against forcing the Gentiles to take up religious practices that were not required and that would be a stumbling block in their faith – the council is asking the Gentiles to do the same for the Jews – to not participate in religious or cultural acts that would present a stumbling block for the Jews

            -- each side – Jew and Gentile – were asked to be aware of their cultural differences – and to abstain from acts that would be stumbling blocks for the others – all in the name of unity and in light of their common faith in Jesus Christ

 

III. CLOSING

            -- so, what can we learn from this discussion about circumcision and the requirements of salvation for Gentiles that we can apply today?

            -- I think one of the most important lessons to glean from this passage is to be careful to not elevate signs and symbols to the place of idolatry, which is what the Judaizers had done with the practice of circumcision

            -- they had forgotten the reason behind the act of circumcision – and had made an idol of the act – concluding that physically modifying your body in this way made you holy – when in fact this was only to be an outward sign of an inward grace

            -- what was important was not the physical act, but the spiritual change that it represented – the Judaizers had forgotten that

 

            -- it reminds me of the story of the newly married couple who were cooking their first big meal together – the wife was preparing a ham for baking, and before she put it in the oven, she cut off both ends

            -- her husband asked her why she did that, and she said, “I don’t really know.  But my mother always did it, so I do it, too

            -- she called her mother to ask why she cut the ends off the ham before she put it in the oven – her mother said, “My mother always did that, so I just started doing it too, and I passed it on to you” – she said, “Let me call your grandmother and find out why we do this – what the reason behind it is”

            -- so, the mother called the grandmother and asked, “Why did you always cut the ends off the ham before you put it in the oven?”

            -- the grandmother replied, “That’s simple – my baking pan wasn’t big enough for a whole ham, so I had to cut off the ends to make it fit”

 

            -- just because something has always been done this way or because it is a symbol that has religious value, doesn’t mean it should continue or be elevated to a level of importance above what it stands for -- “when that happens, they cease to be instruments that remind us to walk in the power of the Spirit and instead become idols that tempt us to walk in the power of our flesh”²

-- “The fact that Paul dismisses circumcision as a powerless mark when originally it had been a powerful sign of God’s Spirit is important. It shows us how easily we can put our trust in signs and symbols themselves, rather than in the God to whom they were intended to point us.”²

 

-- and this is not true only of signs and symbols – it can be actions that we are required to do or not do – for instance, in some Christian communities, we are told that we have to dress a certain way to be saved – we are told that we have to vote for a certain political party – or to keep our children out of public schools – or to not drink, smoke, or chew tobacco – or to avoid going to secular movies or listening to secular music

-- and it can involve religious practices – such as what type of baptism is required – whether worship can only be with hymns or whether it can be contemporary praise songs – whether musical instruments can be used in churches – and who can baptize or offer communion

-- in most of these cases, we are creating idols of cultural practices and elevating adherence to the rules above faith in Jesus – that is exactly what the Judaizers were doing – and that is what the council in Jerusalem agreed was wrong

            -- what is more important than circumcision of the body or following cultural rules or norms is circumcision of the heart – faith in Jesus and in His atoning death on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins

            -- the physical doesn’t define our faith – it’s about what’s on the inside and the spiritual change that happens there – as Kenny Chesney sang in one of his songs, “Her mama wants to know am I washed in the blood or just in the water”

            -- it doesn’t matter how long you were held under the water when you were baptized, for being washed in the water doesn’t save you – what saves you is the blood of Christ and your belief in Him for salvation and eternal life – by grace, through faith

 

            -- so, don’t put your trust in circumcision or baptism or that cross around your neck or that little Jesus fish on your car – put your trust in Jesus and Jesus alone – for it is only through Him that we are saved – and no other way

            -- let us pray

 

 

 

 

1 Modified from Skye Jethani, 31 July 2026 Devotional, Impressive Ministry and Impressive Flesh

2 Skye Jethani, “With God Daily Devotionals”

SERMON: FOLLOW THE LEADER (Acts 11:19-26; Acts 13)

 

Naylor Community Christian Church

Naylor, Georgia

 

I.  INTRODUCTION

            -- turn in Bibles to Acts 11:19-26

 

Acts 11:19 Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. 20 Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. 21 The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.

 

22 News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. 24 He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.

 

25 Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.

 

            -- One of the greatest scientists of all time was Albert Einstein – even though Einstein did most of his work in the early part of the Twentieth Century, he is still a household name today – recognized for his intelligence, wisdom, and ground-breaking scientific theories – and back in his day, he was a legend – everyone knew him and knew of him – and when he would go somewhere, people would instantly recognize him

-- after World War II, Einstein settled down to teach and do research at Princeton – the story is told about the time he left Princeton on a train for a speaking engagement at a city on the other side of the country

-- as the conductor made his way down the aisle checking tickets, he found Einstein totally engrossed in his work – he had papers spread out on the seat and was reading and completely focused on his research – the conductor stopped and asked for Einstein’s ticket so he could punch it

-- Looking up in shock, Einstein realized he didn’t know what he had done with his ticket – he started frantically searching his coat pockets and then his briefcase – gently, the conductor said, "We all know who you are, Dr. Einstein. I’m sure you bought a ticket. Don’t worry about it."

-- But as the conductor moved along, he looked back to see Einstein on his hands and knees searching under the seats for his ticket -- the conductor walked back -- "Dr. Einstein, please, don’t worry about it. I know who you are."

-- Exasperated, Einstein looked up and said, "I, too, know who I am. What I don’t know is where I’m going."¹

 

-- how true is that for us today? – there are a lot of us who don’t know where we’re going or where we’re supposed to be – whether that’s in this life or in the hereafter – but this should not be the case for Christians, because we have the Holy Spirit within us who leads us and points us to the place where Jesus wants us to go

 

            -- this morning, we are continuing in our sermon series in the Book of Acts – as I noted earlier, I have divided our study into four main sections – Part 1 was The Humble Beginning of the Church and covered Acts 1 through the first part of Chapter 8 – it was in this section that we learned of Christ’s mandate to the church in Acts 1:8 to carry the gospel to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth – and we saw how the coming of the Holy Spirit empowered the early Christians with a bold message, bold prayers, and bold hearts

            -- the Second Part was called, “Unexpected Gospel Growth,” which covered Acts 8 through 12 – in this second part, we learned that the term unexpected growth did not only apply to growth in numbers, as we saw the church begin to grow with more and more people coming to faith in Jesus -- but also that the growth in the early church was unexpected in terms of who responded to the gospel – it was in this section that we saw the first Gentiles come to a saving knowledge of Christ, to the astonishment of Peter and the other leaders of the church, who initially thought that salvation was only for the Jews

            -- this morning, we are starting on the third section of our study in the Book of Acts – and this will be the longest section in our series – it is called “The Mission Continues” – and covers Acts 13 through 21 – it is in this section that the focus of the Book of Acts shifts back to Paul and his missionary journeys throughout the Roman Empire, as he fulfills Jesus’ command to carry the gospel to the ends of the earth

 

            -- when you begin a journey – whether that’s a trip by train to the other side of the country like Einstein – or whether that’s to carry the gospel to the ends of the earth or to your neighbor or coworker – it is always good to have a plan – to know where you are going – to know who you are going to follow

            -- I read one time about a missionary who was traveling in the Middle East years ago – this is before they had roads and cars – and the only way to travel was by camel – he hired a guide to carry him out to this town where he was scheduled to speak

            -- the guide led him out to the edge of the desert – and he looked around – and there was nothing but sand and dunes as far as the eye could see – there were no landmarks – there was nothing but sun and sand

            -- unhesitatingly, the guide headed out across the sand in a straight line – the missionary wasn’t so sure about following – he called out, “Do you have a map so that we know where we’re going?” – the guide looked back and said, “I am your map” – and continued on

 

            -- this is what the Christian life should look like as we follow where the Spirit leads – our lives should look like that childhood game, “Follow the Leader” -- except rather than following a charismatic pastor or influential politician – rather than following the pattern of this world and imitating the way people live today -- we follow the Holy Spirit as He leads and guides us and the church to accomplish Christ’s mission on earth today

-- the big theme for today as we go through this passage together is “where the Holy Spirit leads, you should follow” – and that’s just what we will see as we look at the missionary journeys of Paul and his companions

 

II.  Scripture Lesson – Paul’s First Missionary Journey

            -- look back with me now at Acts 11:19 and we’ll begin there – I know we’re backing up some in the Book of Acts, but we need to look at this passage so that we will have the context and the background for the rest of the story of Paul’s first missionary journey

 

            -- Acts 11:19-21

 

Acts 11:19 Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. 20 Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. 21 The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.

 

            -- so, as a reminder of how we got to this point, persecution broke out against the Christians when Stephen was stoned to death by the Jews for proclaiming Jesus as the Messiah – the Sanhedrin authorized people like Saul to go out and arrest Christians wherever they could find them and throw them into prison – so, a lot of the Christians scattered – fleeing Jerusalem into Judea and Samaria and other places

            -- if you remember, we talked about how God allows persecution and trials and troubles into our lives to move us from our comfort zones – from our comfortable lives and the comfortable communities where we live – to the place where He wants us to go

            -- sometimes, that is a spiritual move – as trials and troubles mature us in our faith and help us grow closer to Jesus in our relationship with Him – sometimes, as in the case of the Christians who were in Jerusalem at the time Stephen was martyred, it means a physical move

            -- but the main take-away from this is that the Spirit allowed the persecution to come at that time so that the gospel would be carried into the regions around Jerusalem – and that’s what we read here in these verses – that as they carried the word to both Jews and Gentiles in places like Cyprus and Cyrene and Antioch – the people were responsive to the message and many believed and turned to the Lord for salvation

 

            -- verse 22

 

Acts 11: 22 News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch.

 

            -- remember Barnabas, right? – he was the one the early Christians called the Son of Encouragement – he was one of the men that the Apostles selected to help with the food distribution to the widows in the church – and he was the one who sought out Saul after his conversion experience on the road to Damascus

            -- when Saul was in Jerusalem, Barnabas stood up for him before the leaders of the church and affirmed Saul’s faith – this is the same Barnabas – and since the church had such faith in him and in his maturity as a Christian, they sent Barnabas to Antioch to find out whether the reports of unexpected growth in the church there among both Jews and Gentiles was truly occurring

 

            -- verse 23-26

 

Acts 11:23 When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. 24 He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.

 

25 Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.

 

            -- so, Barnabas gets to Antioch and sees how the Spirit has been moving in both the Jews and the Gentiles – the church is growing and he encourages them in their faith – and then Barnabas does something that would change the world forever – Barnabas left Antioch and rather than going back to Jerusalem to report on what he has found, he headed to Tarsus, looking for Saul – why?

            -- this is one of those cases where we have to read between the lines – where we’re not told the answer in black-and-white – there is a reason why Barnabas decided to go to Tarsus

            -- this is a clear example of a godly man responding to the prompting of the Holy Spirit – I have no doubt that it was the Spirit who put Saul in Barnabas’ mind – and who convinced him to go to Tarsus and get Saul and bring him back

            -- we’ve all probably experienced something similar – how many times have you been going through your day, when all of a sudden – out of nowhere – you think about someone you haven’t thought about in years – and you feel like you need to pray for them – ever had that happen?

            -- that happens because the Spirit has put that person in your mind and on your heart – and that’s what happened with Barnabas and Saul – so, Barnabas left Antioch and went to Tarsus and found Saul, and brought him back to the church – where the two of them continued to teach and preach and help the fledgling church grow and mature in the faith

            -- while they were there, a prophecy came to the church and they felt like they needed to take up a donation for the believers in Jerusalem – once the money was collected, Barnabas and Saul went to Jerusalem to deliver the offering

 

            -- skip over to Acts 12:25

 

Acts 12:25 When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission, they returned from Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.

 

            -- so, Barnabas and Paul delivered the offering to the elders of the church in Jerusalem – and then they returned to Antioch along with John Mark – John Mark was Barnabas’ younger cousin – the author of the Gospel of Mark

           

            -- Acts 13:1-5

 

Acts13:1 Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.

 

4 The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus. 5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper.

 

            -- the important thing I want you to see from the events of Acts 11 and Acts 12 that we looked at and these verses here in Acts 13 is how the Holy Spirit was active in the early church

– not only did the Spirit reach out to these communities through His prevenient grace – leading the people to respond in faith and turn to Jesus for salvation – not only did the Spirit cause the church to grow both numerically and ethnically and in maturity – but the Spirit was always present as the leader of the church – guiding and pointing and directing the people in what they needed to do and where they needed to go

-- it was the Spirit that led people like Barnabas and Saul to go the places they needed to be – to find the people they needed with them in order to fulfill the mission of Christ – and this will be the pattern throughout the entire Book of Acts

 

            -- it was not happenstance that the elders of the church in Jerusalem sent Barnabas to Antioch – or that Barnabas felt led to go to Tarsus and search out Saul – or that the church in Antioch decided to send their offering to Jerusalem through their teachers

            -- nor was it happenstance that John Mark joined them and traveled back with Barnabas and Saul to Antioch – where their mission trip awaited

            -- no, this was all the act of the Spirit – moving and leading and guiding the Christians in fulfillment of the calling of Christ – this is an act of “Follow the Leader” – this is an act of being faithful to follow the prompting and direction of the Holy Spirit

 

-- sometimes, the Spirit spoke internally – as He impressed upon individuals to go from place to place or to find other people that He wanted to have help in the ministry – and sometimes the Spirit spoke externally through prophets or through situations – as when He led the church in Antioch to take up a donation for the believers in Jerusalem and then here in verse 2, where the Spirit spoke to the prophets and told them to set Barnabas and Saul apart for the work to which He had called them

-- and I want you to get this – I want you to know this – the Holy Spirit still works in the same way today – He speaks to us through our prayers – through the Word – through the church – and through events – the Holy Spirit still leads us and directs us down the paths He wants us to go -- the key, though, is being open and receptive to His word

-- we have to make sure that we are taking time to hear from Him in our lives today – that we are getting away from the cacophony of life – that we are getting away from the chaos and the distractions and the noise of the world around us – and that we are getting into a place where we can hear His small still voice and respond to His direction and His guidance when He speaks

 

-- this whole year, we’ve been progressing through what it means to be receptive to the Holy Spirit – we looked at the spiritual gifts and spiritual disciplines – and then we transitioned into this study in the Book of Acts, where we see the presence of the Spirit leading and guiding the early church and the early missionaries, such as Paul and Peter and Philip

-- that is what we should be seeing in our churches today – that is what we should be seeing in our lives today

-- this lack of spiritual presence – this spiritual malaise that we find ourselves in – is what caused John Wimber to ask the people in the church after he got saved, "When are we gonna do the stuff? – when are we going to do the stuff that I read about in the Bible?”

-- if you remember, I told you that Wimber had been reading about the miraculous conversions -- the healings and the deliverance from sin and the other miracles that took place in the early church as recorded in the book of Acts – the same passages that we’ve been looking at now for several weeks

-- but instead of seeing signs and wonders, Wimber saw no sign of life at all -- no sign of anything that would make him wonder -- that would leave him speechless -- that would draw people in from all walks of life

-- all he experienced in the church was the deadness of the ritual that he had just sat through -- and his heart broke to know just how much of God was missing

 

-- as we’re looking at these stories from the Book of Acts, we need to be asking ourselves why we aren’t seeing the stuff happen in our church and in our lives that we are reading about here in these pages

-- and we need to make a change in our lives so that we reach the place that the early church was at – where they were open to hearing the Spirit speak – both internally and externally – and where they moved in response to the Spirit – as He spoke – as He led – as He pointed them the direction He wanted them to go

-- that’s the whole purpose of this study – that’s the whole reason we are here – to fulfill the Great Commandment and the Great Commission and to be the hands and feet of Jesus in our community today

-- and that starts when we remember the Holy Spirit is our leader and we listen for and hear His voice and we follow Him where He leads

 

-- look at what happened here in these verses – the Spirit told the church to set Barnabas and Saul apart for the work He had called them to – and the church did just that – they laid their hands upon Barnabas and Saul – and they sent them off

-- immediately, the two of them were sent on their way by the Holy Spirit – they went down to Seleucia – which is a port city just outside of Antioch – and they got on a boat and they left, heading towards Cyprus

-- once again, this is an act of the Spirit leading and guiding Barnabas and Saul – for it was the Spirit that sent them across the Mediterranean Sea to Cyprus instead of another direction

-- and keep that in mind – as we look at the three missionary journeys of Saul/Paul – when the Bible tells us that Paul went to this city and then left and went to another city – that is not Paul deciding where to go – that is Paul responding to the call of the Spirit and following the lead of the Spirit to the next place of ministry

 

-- so, as the Spirit led and directed them, Barnabas and Saul left Antioch, got on a boat in Seleucia, sailed to Cyprus, where they taught and preached their way across the whole island – eventually, they made their way back to the mainland by sailing to Perga and then they traveled north to Pisidian Antioch – where they spoke in the synagogue at the invitation of the synagogue leader

-- skip down to verse 16 – I know we’re running short on time, so I’m going to run through this pretty quickly

 

-- verse 16-33a

 

Acts 13:16 Standing up, Paul motioned with his hand and said: “Fellow Israelites and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me! 17 The God of the people of Israel chose our ancestors; he made the people prosper during their stay in Egypt; with mighty power he led them out of that country; 18 for about forty years he endured their conduct[a] in the wilderness; 19 and he overthrew seven nations in Canaan, giving their land to his people as their inheritance. 20 All this took about 450 years.

 

“After this, God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet. 21 Then the people asked for a king, and he gave them Saul son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years. 22 After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.’

 

23 “From this man’s descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised. 24 Before the coming of Jesus, John preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel. 25 As John was completing his work, he said: ‘Who do you suppose I am? I am not the one you are looking for. But there is one coming after me whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.’

 

26 “Fellow children of Abraham and you God-fearing Gentiles, it is to us that this message of salvation has been sent. 27 The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath. 28 Though they found no proper ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed. 29 When they had carried out all that was written about him, they took him down from the cross and laid him in a tomb. 30 But God raised him from the dead, 31 and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to our people.

 

32 “We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors 33a he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus.

 

-- skip down to verse 38-41

 

Acts 13:38 “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. 39 Through him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses. 40 Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you:

 

41 “‘Look, you scoffers,

    wonder and perish,

for I am going to do something in your days

    that you would never believe,

    even if someone told you.’”

-- I know this was a long passage – but it’s here in this place in the Bible for a reason – and it’s for that reason that I read it all to you this morning

 

-- when Paul first visited a new city, the Spirit always led him to speak first at the synagogue to the Jews who gathered there every Sabbath for worship – it’s a reminder to us that the Jews are still God’s chosen people – it was through the Jews that God gave us the Law and His word – and it was through the Jews that the Messiah came to die for the sins of the world – God is not done with the Jews – and He still reaches out to them with the good news of salvation through Jesus

-- and this passage that we just read was the same message that Paul shared in all the synagogues when he had the opportunity to speak there – this is the only place where we’re going to see that in the Book of Acts – it was given to us at this point – at the start of Paul’s first missionary visit – so that we would know what message the Spirit gave Paul to share as he was led from place to place

-- so, keep these verses in the back of your mind – when you read in the Bible about Paul going to a city and speaking in the synagogue, this is the message he shared right here

 

-- as we read here, Paul stood up in the synagogue and began to speak, sharing with the Jews gathered there the history of the Jewish people and their relationship with God – this is something that all of them would have known – this was the foundation of their faith and their heritage – of their very way of life – so, why does he do this?

-- couple of reasons – first, he’s emphasizing that he is one of them – they stand on common ground – they have a shared heritage – he is a Jew, just like them – with the same background and faith that they all have

-- and second, he is building on that foundation of faith to show them that Jesus was the promised Messiah – and that Jesus had come to save the world by dying on the cross to set them free from every sin – to offer them a justification that they were not able to obtain under the law of Moses – Paul is saying here that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law – and that salvation is only through belief in Him

-- and finally, Paul is laying out before the Jews a map – he is showing them the direction that the Spirit wants them to go – he is calling on them to respond to the prompting of the Holy Spirit in their lives

-- they can choose to follow the path of their forefathers – the same path that led their forefathers to reject God and clamor for a king to lead them – the same path that led them to kill the prophets and reject God’s word throughout the Old Testament -- or they can follow the way of Jesus by responding to His word and turning to Him in repentance of their sins – trusting in Jesus for eternal life

 

-- what we see here in these verses is the same message and the same choice that Paul lays out before all the people that he will visit during his three missionary journeys

-- it is a message that the Spirit has given him – and it is in obedience to this message and the calling on his life that Paul follows the Spirit and goes where He leads him and tells everyone he meets the good news of salvation and eternal life through Jesus

-- this is what we are going to see throughout the Book of Acts as we continue on in our study and as we follow Paul along on his three missionary journeys – so, as we go through this, always keep in mind the Spirit’s presence in Paul’s life – leading him and guiding him and directing him down the paths that he is following – a reminder to us that where the Spirit leads, we must follow

 

-- before we close, I want to share with you one more truth about following the Spirit in our lives – anytime God moves in our lives – anytime we hear His voice and follow His path – we will always run into opposition because we have an enemy who seeks our downfall

-- Satan does not want us to follow God or to lead others to follow Him – and Satan will come against us and against our church to keep us from doing what God has called us to do

-- we see an example of this in Paul’s life here in Acts 14 – I don’t have time this morning to go in depth into this – so, let me encourage you to read this on your own later today – just let me summarize the two attacks that Satan employs here against Paul

 

-- first, when Paul and Barnabas make their way to Lystra, Paul heals a crippled man through the power of the Spirit – when the crowds saw the miracle, they thought that Paul and Barnabas were gods that had come down to earth in human form – they called Barnabas Zeus, and they called Paul Hermes, because he was the chief speaker

-- the priest of Zeus brought bulls and wreaths to the city gate to offer as sacrifices to them – and they began bowing down to Paul and Barnabas in praise and worship

            -- as Greg Laurie points out, this was an inward attack on them by Satan – Satan was trying to tempt Paul and Barnabas to accept the praise of the people

– popularity and a desire for recognition and honor can be more dangerous to a person’s soul than physical persecution – many have fallen for this temptation and become inflated with pride, to their downfall – remember the story of Herod from last week?

-- pride goeth before the fall – and just as Satan succeeded in having Herod’s pride result in his downfall, he tries the same thing here with Barnabas and Paul

-- but unlike Herod, Barnabas and Saul reject the praise and worship and rebuke the people for doing so, pointing them instead towards God and telling them to worship Him

 

-- the second attack from Satan came a short time later – this was an outward attack that came first in the form of slander and threats and ended up with actual physical harm

-- many of the Jews that Paul and Barnabas had preached to in Pisidium Antioch and Iconium rejected their message – and Paul and Barnabas had been led by the Spirit to other cities

-- the Jews from these two cities followed Paul and Barnabas to Lystra – and they spoke out against the missionaries and turned the crowd against them – they stoned Paul to the point of death and dragged his body outside the city

-- just as an aside, I think this is the moment when Paul was caught up to the third heaven in Paradise and was given spiritual visions, which he mentioned in 2 Corinthians 12 – he may have actually died or he may have just been severely wounded – we don’t know

-- but Luke tells us that the disciples gathered around his body that was dragged outside the walls of the city – and then Paul got up and went back into the city – so, he survived the stoning in some fashion – and continued to minister as the Spirit led

-- as Paul said in verse 22, “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God”

-- opposition to the gospel and to the ministers of the gospel will always come when we seek to follow the Spirit’s leading – so, be aware of that and don’t be surprised when it happens – our call is to remain faithful and to trust God and to do what He says, regardless of the cost

 

-- after his stoning, Paul and Barnabas left Lystra for Derbe, where they remained for a time – and then they retraced their journey – going back to Lystra, Iconium, and Pisidium Antioch and finally sailing back to Antioch

-- all along the way, they met with the Christians and the churches that they had founded – strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith

 

III.  CLOSING

-- in closing, I want to share with you an account I read from a pastor who went to Europe in 1982 as a missionary – it was his first time going out of the country to carry the gospel and minister to others, but he felt that this was where the Spirit was leading him

-- the church he attended threw a going away party for him the night before he was scheduled to leave – at the party, this girl showed up that no one in the church knew or had ever seen before – she was just there

-- she came up to this missionary and handed him a plaque that read, “Being filled and led by the Spirit may take you to places you never planned; but the will of God will never call you where the grace of God cannot keep you.”

-- the missionary received the plaque with gladness and carried it with him on his travels in Europe – he concluded his message by saying that neither he nor anyone else in that church ever saw that girl again – and he remains convinced that she was an angel sent by God to bear him a message from heaven

 

            -- those words on that plaque sum up our message for today – “Being filled and led by the Spirit may take you to places you never planned; but the will of God will never call you where the grace of God cannot keep you”

            -- the Spirit is calling us today – and if we want to be the men and women that He is calling us to be, then we have to be open to hearing His voice and responding to His call in faith

            -- Jesus said the Holy Spirit was to be our guide and our counselor – He would empower us to live out the faith that we proclaim – He would fill us with His very presence and manifest His power in us through spiritual gifts

            -- we must be open and willing to follow the Holy Spirit wherever He leads – doing so will lead us to places we’ve never dreamed of before – and some of them may be scary – our faith will certainly be challenged – but God’s grace will keep us safe – and we will experience the stuff that we read about here in the Book of Acts

 

            -- so, if you’re tired of just reading about the stuff here – if you’re tired of just coming to church and going home and doing nothing more – then spend some time today with the Lord – ask Him to speak to you – to guide you – to reveal to you the path He wants you and this church to take – and then get up and go

            -- we don’t know what road lays before us – we don’t know where our mission might be -- it might be next door – it might be the next town over – or it might be another country – we just don’t know – but one thing is certain -- until we are open and willing to do what He says, nothing will ever happen

            -- so, as we close, let us ask God to speak to our hearts – to open our eyes and our ears to the vision He has for us – so that we might make a difference for Him in this community as we follow where He leads

            -- let us pray

 

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1 Modified from illustration in sermon, “Led By The Holy Spirit,”by Bill Burress -- https://sermoncentral.com/sermons/led-by-the-holy-spirit-bill-burress-sermon-on-forgiveness-in-jesus-165066

2 Modified from sermon “As The Spirit Leads” by Mark Schaeufele