Acts 13:1-12

Here we see the inevitable and clear shift of the Gospel to the Gentiles, the beginning of Paul’s missionary journeys.

LOOK AT MAP. This is no short term journey. He establishes churches. Leaving back others to carry on the work.

Interestingly we should note that this is the first time the Saul, the great persecutor of the church who was miraculously converted is called Paul. Paul’s focus and strategy would be to focus on major cities within the Roman providence. Such is the case as he and Barnabas sent out by the church with the aid of John Mark who is one of the gospel writers, and who later causes quite a controversy and disagreement between Paul and Barnabas. Paul’s strategy when he goes from town to town though is primarily to the Gentiles he follows the “to the Jew first and also the Greeks” principle. The synagogues become the center and platform for the preaching of the gospel and then out to the gentiles.

The lesson to be learned about the early church and the sending of men off commissioning them with he Gospel is that not only did the Lord set apart B and S by the power of the Holy Spirit, but the church sent them out.

God’s Call is through the Local Church.

When I was in college, I went with my church out in Kansas City on a short term missions trip to Pueblo, Mexico. We were there helping with some projects at a local church we were associated with. While we were there we also go to do some site seeing. I was amazed as we went around and to some of the local catacombs and sites where the Aztec Indians had their ancient religious sites. But what really stuck me was syncretism of the Catholic church in this region. The worship and integration of the sun god in thier religion. Syncretism is the blending of religions. When Catholicism reached South America natives were baptized but there was a blending of the cultures and instead of putting away their idolatrous practices they just incorporated them and worship their god’s as saints. We see this even in our so called Christianity today in Santeria that is the worship demons disguised as Roman Catholic Saints. There is unitarianism, there is new Age Christianity, Scientology, all of these are the blending religions.

This chapter proceedes chapter 11 where the the cerermonial aspects of the law were done away with such as the the laws surrounding foods and laws of circumcision.

CHRISTIANITIES CONFLICT WITH A CONJURER

To be clear the Lord has not changed. God has and always will hate idolatry. Not just they type of idolatry that we see in the Old Testament where people make for themselves gods of wood, stone and metals, but the worship of anything other that the Lord God. Any thing can be an idol. When we find satisfaction or pleasure in anything else other than God it is idolatry.

The gospel is not a culture in and of itself, it is a culture within the culture. It is not meant to be confined to geographical boundaries. DEFINED BY THE DEITIES THEY WORSHIP. For example Aphrodite is associated with Corinth, Artemis with Ephesus. People criticized Christianity because it destroys the worship of idols. i In one sense Christianity was at odds with the Graeco-Roman culture, it did not require fancy temples, it did not require extensive and elaborate ritual, nor animal sacrifices, nor priests , not any of theses things. They met in homes, and

Colossians 3:16–23 ESV

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them. Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,

This is infact one of the reasons that Christianity was not tolerated within the Graeco-Roman world, it was not syncretist. It stood at odds with the pluralistic society of gods. Christians could have easily gotten along, if they would have dropped the whole “you shall have no other god’s before me” commandment. They could have their Jesus they could even worship Him as long as He was not exculsive. Paul would often times use things in the culture to point to Christ. None is more glaring than this magicial name BarJesus. Son of one who saves. And yet later we see that Paul likely using a play on words calls him son of the devil. He was a false prophet saving no one but leading them astray. Elymas would not have been concerned at this type of sycretism he would likely have even embraced it. He might have even gotten all the more richer for being able to conjure up more spells and sold more magic potions or trinkets in the name of this Jesus. It would have been good marketing and good business.

Its not different for us today. Christianity sells. People love it they will buy it all day long. There is only one problem, its not the Jesus of the bible, its not a Jesus that can save, it is a plastic, manufactured, slap some paint on it sell it for 5 or below type of Jesus, that would never demand anything from you. You can put him in your pocket and when you are feeling down you can take him out an put him on the mantle and worship him along side of all the other gods you have fashioned.

Isn’t it tempting to see God like we want him to be, rather than how he has revealed himself? In an interview with Parade magazine, the musician Elton John said, “I think Jesus was a compassionate, super-intelligent gay man who understood human problems.”

One of the easiest ways to commit the sin of idolatry is to remake God in our image. For culture’s view of God, see Parade magazine. For an accurate view of God, see the Bible.

HE WILL NEVER TELL YOU TO GIVE UP

That is why the gospel is always at odds with the culture, He asks nothing from us but faith in Christ and yet he will demand everything from us. It transforms cultures because it transforms one heart at a time.

John came to make straight the way of the Lord, to remove every barrier every obstacle that stands in the way, through the message of repentance and faith. Elymas sought to make that path crooked once more by keeping the people enslaved to thier sin and idolatry.

Stroy of Game we would play as a kid obstacles.

God opened the eyes of the procounsel and blinded the eyes of Elymas

Selina Hastings Countess of Huntington was famous for saying “thank God for the letter “M”

1 Corinthians 1:26 ESV

For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.

the occult takes what is God’s and scyretises it disguses it, to make it seem like something good and something beneficial. Occult take Jesus and makes Him close enough to send people to hell who think they are going to heaven.