ACTS  13

1 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 for which I have called them.

 3 So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on then 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.

6 They traveled through the whole island until they come to Paphos. There they met a Jewish Sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 

7 who was a attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul a intelligent man sent for Barnabas and Saul  because he wanted to hear the word of God

8 But Elymas the sorcerer for that is what his name means oppose them and try to turn the proconsul from the faith.

9 Then Saul who was also called Paul filled with the Holy Spirit looked straight at Elymas and said.

10 You are a child of the devil and a enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deciet and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?

11 Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun. Immediately mist and darkness came over him and he groped about seeking someone to lead him by the hand.

12 When the proconsul saw what had happened he believed for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.

 13 From Paphos Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia where John left them to return to Jerusalem.

14 From Perga they went on to Pisidian , antioch. On the Sabbath they entered the sysagogue and sat down.

15 After the reading from the law and the prophets the synagogue rulers sent word to them saying brothers if you have a message of encouragement for the people please speak.

16 Standing up Paul motioned with his hand and said men of Israel and you Gentiles who worship God listen to me!

17 The God of the people of Israel choose our fathers he made the people prosper during their stay in Egypt with mighty power He led them out of that country.

18 He endured their conduct for about forty years in the desert.

19 He overthrew seven nations in Canaan and gave their land to His people as their inheritance.

20 All this took about four hundred and fifty years. 

 21 After this God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet.

22 After renovingSaul He made David their king. He 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 mans desendants 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 completeing his work he said Who do you think I  am? I am not that one. No but He is coming after me whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.

26 Brothers 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 condemming Him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read everyt 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 writen about Him they took Him down from the tree 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 Jerysalem. They are now His witnesses to our people.

32 We tell you the good news what God promised our fathers.

33 He has fulfilled for us their children by raiseing Jesus as it is writen in the second Psalm You are My Son today I have become your Father.

34 The face that God raised Him from the dead never to decay is stated in these words i will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.

35 So it is stated elsewhere You will not let Your Holy One see decay.

36 For when David had served Gods purpose in his own generation he fell asleep he was buried with his fathers and his body decayed.

37 But the one  whom God raised from the dead did not see decay.

38 Therefore my brothers I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.

39 Through Him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by 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, form I am going to do in your days that you would never believe, even if someone told you.

42 As Paul and Barnabas were leaving, the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next sabbath.

43 When the congretation was dismissed many of the Jews ant devout converts to judaism followed Paul and Barnabas who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.

44 On the next sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord.

45 When the Jews saw the crowds they were filled with Jealously and talked abusizely against what Paul was saying.

46 Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly we had to speak the Word of God to you first. Since you rejected and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life we now turn to the Gentiles.

47 For this is what the Lord has commanded us i have made you a light for the Gentiles that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.

48 When the Gentiles heard this they were glad and honored the word of the Lord and all were appointed for eternal life believed.

49 The word of the Lord spread through the whole region.

50 But the Jews incited the God fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stired up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and expelled them from the region.

51 So they shook the dust from their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium.

52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

You are a child of the devil and a enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord. Acts 13:10

Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. Revelation 22:15

Thomas J. Grace

BLIND AS I WAS BLIND

1 In the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers the people were filled with the Holy Spirit and willing to accept and practice the gifts of the Spirit. Simeon, Lucius and Manaen who was a foster brother of Herod Antipas the tetrarch who was the Herod who killed John the Baptist. He may have told the story of Herods thoughts about John and other events that the king was responsible for.  Simon may have carried the croos for Jesus Luke 23:26 As they led Him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. We do not know of anyone else that was on the road as Jesus was going  to the  site to be crucified. He might have heard and seen many things on that road that have not been told in the gospels. Because of his knowledge of the castle and the prison Manaen would have been one of Herods suspects when Peter escaped from his prison.

     2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting the Holy Spirit speaks to the prophets of the church. Seperate for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them. This is the first message of someone elses work that is given to prophets and not to the people who will do the work. Barnabas and Saul certainly could have received this message but there must have been a need for others in the church to hear the word of God concerning His plans for their work. This also tells us that the prophets were willing to trust God to deliver a message that they might not enjoy because it would mean their brothers would soon depart from them. The words work they were called for imply that Saul and Barnabas knew their mission had more work than could be accomplished in the church at Antioch.

     This second party prophecy if  it had been delivered to the church in Jerusalem when Peter went to the home of Cornelius would have solved many of the problems Peter faced when he returned to Jerusalem. Perhaps Barnabas and Saul had prayed for someone in the church to receive such a prophecy as Gods evidence of what they should do. They already knew what they were called to do Acts 9:15 Go! This man is my choosen instrument to carry My Name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for My name. This message was also delivered by Ananias to Saul but was given this way to convince Ananias he would be safe while he visited Saul in Damascus.

      Now they would consider this prophecy their orders to move out to the other cities that the Spirit will direct them to.  3 They once again fast and pray the church places their hands on them. The church would lay their hands on Barnabas and Saul and pray for their safety as they would go to new places and face new dangers. We can be sure that Barnabas and Saul would pray for the elders, teachers and prophets who will now be the leaders of the church.

      4 They are sent on their way by the Holy Spirit who had sent the message to the church to send them away. The Spirit has acted now twice to remove them from the church and to choose their destination. They go to Seleucia  and sail to Cyprus the hometown of Barnabas.  Now each man Saul and Barnabas have spent some time together in each others hometown. 5 In Salamis they proclaim the word of God in the Jewish Synagogues and John Mark is with them as a helper. John Mark will write the gospel of Mark which may have been the first gospel writen. John Mark would have been a young man at the time of Jesus arrest. Mark 14:51 ,52 A young man wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus.When they seized him, he fled naked, leaving his garment behind. John Mark was also the cousin of Barnabas who was not a unknown person when he first appears in Acts 4 to sell some property and give the money to Peter. If the Pentecost took place at Marys house the mother of John Mark it is most likely that both John Mark and Barnabas were present on the day of Pentecost. 

     They traveled and preached the gospel as they moved acroos the island and came to Paphos. Here they will meet the second sorcerer we are told about. He is a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus also called Elymas  7 who is a attendant to the proconsul Sergius Paulus. The proconsul sent for Barnabas and Saul he must have heard what they were doing and saying in other parts of the island and he wanted to hear the word of God.  8 Elymas the false prophet opposed Barnabas and Saul and tried to turn Sergius Paulus from the faith.  He would claim that Barnabas and Saul were false prophets and caused Jewish believers to disobey the law of Moses.

     In Samaria Simon the sorcerer  who did use magic Acts 8:11 They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his magic. Simon did not oppose Philip and wanted to believe and be a part of the church. When Peter spoke to him about several problems Peter said you are full of bitterness and a captive of sin. Simon replied Acts 8:24 Then Simon answered, Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.

       Elymas has no intent to believe in Christ or listen to anything Barnabas or Saul would have to say. 9 Then Saul also called Paul filled with the Holy Spirit to give him this power and to protect him also from the demons that must have been in Elymas.  Peter did act against Ananias and his wife Sapphira that caused their death now we see a second time the Holy Spirit will act to disable someone. Was this man a great threat to the faith that this judgement is being brought on him. Paul looks at Elymas and says, 10 You child of the devil and enemy of all that is right. You are full of deceit and trickery. Will you will never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?  Paul declares he does have some form of direct relationship with the devil and sees no hope for this man to be saved. 11 Elymas the hand of the Lord is against you. Paul does not declare that it is he who has decided or the one who is taking action against Elymas but it is God who has judged him and is taking the action that is best. You are going to be blind and for a time will not see the light of the sun.

     Paul once blind for three days would understand how terrible this would be for this man. Elymas would fear that all those he mistreated would soon be able to attack and kill him. Elymas was blind and groped around and was seeking someone to lead him by the hand. Just as in the desert Paul had to be led to Damascus by the men with him.  12 When Serguis Paulus saw  how Elymas was over powered and made blind with no power to harm or defend himself he believed and was amazed at the teaching of the Lord.

     It must be known that while all the apostles were persecuted and put to death that this power to harm or kill their enemies was never used to protect or defend them. There must have been a heavenly knowledge about the magic and sorcery that this man used that presented a danger to the church that had to be prevented.  Jesus had been tempted by Satan three times while he was in the wilderness after forty days Jesus cast out many devils demons and evil spitits this would heal and free many people. Jesus did not meet a sorcerer as Peter and Paul had they must have hid themself or left town when they heard that Jesus was nearby.

     13 Next they sail to Perga where John Mark leaves them and returns to Jerusalem. This doesnot please Paul and will later divide Paul and Barnabas later when Barnabas will want to bring John Mark on another journey.  14 They leave Perga and go to Pisidian Antioch and entered a synagogue there to worship and pray. In every city Paul and Barnabas would go to the synagogue first before they would speak to the Gentiles. They would be aware that they had a message about Christ that would be contrary to the choice and decision already made by most of the synagogue rulers who believed the Sanhedrin had acted properly concerning the death of Christ. 15 After the reading of the law and the prophets the synagogue rulers invited them to speak. Brothers if you have a word of encouragement for the people speak. The synagogue rulers here may have been aware of Paul and the message about Christ he spoke about everywhere. They do not make any attempt to stop his speech.

     16 Paul addresses the group men of Israel and you Gentiles this has become very common  to have Gentiles as regular visitors at the synagogues. This was not possible for Gentiles to enter the temple in Jerusalem.  17 The God of our people Israel choose our fathers, Paul identifies himself with the people and history of Israel.  While in Egypt God allowed our people to grow and prosper and with His mighty power led them out of Egypt. 18  For forty years God endured their conduct in the desert which at many times there were acts of rebellion, idol worship, and other forms of unbelief against Moses and against God. 19 God overthrew seven nations in Canaan and gave the land to our people as a inheritance. 20 All  this took four hundred and fifty years then God had judges to rule over the people until Samuel the prophet. We can be sure that Paul had spoken about  Abraham, Moses, Aaron, Joshua and Samson and many others which Luke had recorded in the testimony of Stephen in Acts 7  21 Then the people asked for a king and God gave them Saul who ruled for forty years. Just as they were in the desert forty years King Saul would rebel and disobey God for forty years. 22 After God removed Saul as king He made David their king as God said  1 Samuel 13:13,14 I have found David son of Jesse a man after My own heart; he will do everything I want him to do. 23 From Davids descendants God has brought the Savior Jesus Christ to Israel as God had promised.  God needed to promise a Savior because man could not obey Him and His law. 24 Before Jesus began His ministry John the Baptist was preaching that people must repent and told people that the Savior was coming in the world now. John 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, Look the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. Will there be such a person again in this world to warn and prepare us before Jesus returns once again. Revelation  11 speaks of two prophets that will be in the world and will preach day and night, and will have power from God to do miracles. 25 John the Baptist would deny that he was the Christ and tell that he is unworthy to untie His sandals. 26 Children of Abraham and God fearing Gentiles it is our message now in our lifetime that this message has been sent. We are the people and generation that the Savior has lived with us.

     27 The rulers in Jerusalem did not recognize Jesus as their Savior we must not make the same mistake in our life we have to learn the scriptures that prove that Jesus is our Savior. We must believe in Him and then learn the scriptures that prove He is coming back.  Paul seems to be seperateing the Jews present from the Jews in Jerusalem at the time Christ was crucified. Maybe some siting there were present in Jerusalem for the Passover holiday and did know about some of the events that did take place. It is possible that some of them did become believers in Jerusalem before they returned home. 28 Even though they required false witnesses and accused Jesus of things He did not say or do they still asked Pilate to have Him executed. Both men Herod and Pilate stated they see no cause for the death of this man. Luke 23:13-15 Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, and said to them, You brought to me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined Him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against Him. Neither has Herod, for he sent Him back to us; as you can see, He has done nothing to deserve death.

     The ruling people even Herod a Jew himself were ready to release Jesus while the Sanhedrin would not accept anything but a death penalty. In their view if Jesus was now released all the people would consider Him to be the true Savior. 29 After they crucified Him and did all that was written about Him He was whipped and beaten, they would mock and curse Him while on the cross.  Now Joseph and Nicodemus took Him off the cross and carried Him to the tomb of Joseph where no one had ever been placed. John 19:39,40 He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who had earlier visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of Myrth and aloes, about seventy five pounds. Taking Jesus body the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. this was in accordance with the Jewish burial customs.  Had Nicodemus remembered the words of Christ from their meeting  as he watched Jesus on the cross. John 3:14,15 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life. Nicodemus left that night without understanding the message of Christ but at the cross it may have been all made clear to him.

     30 God raised Jesus from the dead.  God performed the act to raise Jesus from the dead and Christ made the choice to return back to this world. Just as Jesus had made the choice to be born into the life he knew would end with Him being crucified he now chooses to come back to life for us. 31 For forty days Christ was seen by the apostles and many others several times and proved that He was alive in the body. He appeared ten times and was seen by five hundred when He ascended the final time to be with God in Heaven. 32 This was what God had promised our fathers that a Savior would come into the world and be a sacrifice for their sins.

     33 The resurrection was a promise that God had made for our salvation and that His Son would not see decay that Jesus would be the first that God would raise that made it possible for God to raise us. Romans 8: 11 And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you,  He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through the Spirit who lives in you. 33  Psalm 2:7 You are My Son today I have become your Father. Now with Christ we have also become sons.  Romans 8:16,17 The Spirit Himself testifies with our Spirit that we are Gods children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs of God and coheirs with Christ, if indeed we share with the sufferings in order that we may share in His glory. 34 Gods promise that He had made to David that was written in Isaiah 55:3 I will give you the Holy and sure blessings promised to David. The life of Christ is all the promises that God had made in the scripture and the others will be complete when Christ returns. 35 As in Psalm 16:10 You will not let Your Holy One see decay. That He would not remain in the grave because He never did sin He should not see decay.

     36 David when he died was placed in a tomb where his body did decay like all men. 39 The law could not complete our salvation only the true sacrifice of Christ a Lamb without blemish would justify our forgiveness before God. Jesus was the only sacrifice that God could accept for our salvation. Jesus is the only sacrifice that we may accept as our Savior that will forgive our sins.  Romans 3:24 And are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Romans 5:1 Therefore since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.  40 Beware that what the prophet has said does not happen to you. 41 Habakkuk 1:5 Look you scoffers, wonder and perish, for I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if someone told you.

     This will be true again in our time as God has made the plan for the final days that even when you know all the scriptures about the return of Christ God has kept some of the events from us to amaze the whole world in His final call for all to repent and believe in His Son Jesus Christ.  

     42 Now Paul and Barnabas are outside on the street we are not told of anyone that believed their message inside the synagogue. But outside the people invited them to come back on the next Sabbath to speak to them again. The people wanted to hear their message while the synagogue rulers do not comment on their message. Paul based on the law and the prophecies that did declare the suffering and death of Christ  seemed to make a defense for the actions taken in Jerusalem by the Sanhedrin.  It would seem that the rulers in Jerusalem were currupt before they knew of Jesus. Jesus often spoke of them Luke 11:52 Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.  If they loved the prophets as they claimed they would have known about the birth of Christ and would have had thirty years to clean their house and prepare themselves for the work of Christ. King Herod certainly knew about the birth of Christ and did his best to kill Jesus while He was only a baby. The Sanhedrin must have heard the very same story that Herod heard. They did not follow the star to Bethlehem or send anyone to see the child born that would be their Savior. 

     They had another chance to understand the prophets that they read every Sabbath when they heard John the Baptist declare who Jesus was. They choose not to believe in the past prophets or the living one John the Baptist and all they witnessed as Jesus spoke and healed and performed miracles that each time they would deny and sometimes punish those who Jesus had healed.  43 Many of the Jews and converts came and followed them outside the synagogue and Paul and Barnabas urged them to continue in the grace of God. They must have been believers in Christ that had come to this city and joined the synagogue when they arrived.  44 The next Sabbath the whole city gathered to hear Paul and Barnabas speak about the Lord. It was a revival for all the Jews and Gentiles were both seeking the word of the Lord.

     45 The Jews became jealous of the crowds that came to hear the gospel, they may not have invited Paul to return and speak but the crowd was demanding that they be allowed to speak.  Within in one week the people had shared the message they had heard with all their friends and neighbors and urged them to come out and hear Paul speak. The Jews began to speak abusively about Paul and what he was saying. They would deny the claim that Jesus is the Savior and claim that Paul has left his faith and was there to decieve them. 46 Because of the trouble the Jews had created Paul and Barnabas declared we have come to our own people first but now that you have rejected Christ and do not consider yourself worthy of eternal life we will now teach the Gentiles. Paul first addressed the Jews there as seperate from the Jews in Jerusalem who rejected Jesus but now sees that they are the same.

     Whatever the reason or cause they were the same because they would not believe and had rejected Christ and were doing their best to stop others from hearing and believeing also.  Whatever the resson cause or excuse may be all unbelievers are the same before God, the Sanhedrin, those who shouted crucify Him and all who persecuted the apostles and the church then and now. All unbelievers will be equal before God at His time for judgement there will not be good unbelievers and bad unbelievers. 47 Paul declares his command from the Lord I have made you a light for the Gentiles that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth. Paul had a command that he recieved from God when he first believed to go to the Gentiles with the message of Jesus Christ. 48 The Gentiles were glad to hear that they had been choosen to hear the gospel, they honored the word of the Lord.  Paul had a new audience one that was eager to hear and believe, people he could minister to pray with and teach. He would baptize them in water, and with the Holy Spirit. They would recieve and practice the gifts of the Holy Spirit and know Jesus Christ as their own Savior. The Gentiles would be free from the law they had been taught in the synagogue.

      49 The word of the Lord spread through all the region because the Gentiles now could speak to the whole Gentile people there who might not have gone to a synagogue to hear a message about God. Paul and Barnabas would teach those brought to them and a whole church of believers would be formed.  This was the first time Paul and Barnabas had seperated themselves from the synagogue and did see God work in the Gentiles as He would have worked with the Jews. 50 The Jews who observed all that Paul and Barnabas were accomplishing in their city would not recognize this as a work of God. They met with the God fearing women and the leading men of the city. They stirred up trouble and persecuted Paul and Barnabas and they were expelled from the region. In Jerusalem when the Jews persecuted the Church there was a large group of Jews that did believe in Christ, in this city there was no fully organized support system for Paul and Barnabas to help protect them as they went from city to city.

     51 Just as when Jesus sent out the twelve apostles on their first journey without Him with them He sent them out two by two  and gave them this direction. Luke 9:5 If people do not welcome you shake the dust off your feet when you leave their town as a testimony against them. This would be a sign that they have rejected Gods message.       52 The people were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit while Paul and Barnabas were forced to leave the Gentiles there were remaining faithful to the Lord and continued to make new disciples of Jesus Christ. Paul and Barnabas will travel to Iconium and begin again to share the gospel with new people.

     They will soon face greater danger and threats than they had ever experienced before as they bring the gospel to people who are still living and believeing in the pagan gods. We are sure that the Christians who sent them out from Antioch have not forgotten them and may have heard some of the news of the work they are doing. They certainly are still praying for both of them and the work they are doing and may be sending suppplies to help support their work with reports of what the Lord is doing in their church.

CHRIST LOVES YOU. AMEN. COME LORD JESUS