The Climax of the Incorruptible

Acts 13:1-5

1 Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of 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 Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. 4 So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had John to assist them.

Saul and Barnabas Commissioned (Acts 13:1-12)

This records the first missionary journey of the apostle Paul that began with Barnabas. From this chapter through the end of the book, you will see the Lord Jesus Christ at work by the Holy Spirit through the apostles to the uttermost part of the earth.

v. 1-3. The church at Antioch was quite notable in early church history. This was the first place that the believers were called “Christians.” Here, we find five men who are specially gifted for the ministry and labeled in a group called “prophets and teachers.” The teachers continued the apostolic function of transmitting Jesus’s message, while prophets conveyed divine revelation via interpreting the OT or giving new insights (cf. 11:27).

Notice that it says that they were serving/worshipping/ministering unto the Lord, apparently as their routine. This Greek verb (serving) was originally referred to doing public service at one’s own expense and then applied in the Greek OT to the service of the priests and Levites in the temple. The thought here is that the church serves God when it gathers together, and, since elsewhere fasting is associated with prayer, it is likely that prayer is also a regular activity of the church. This may have marked a special occasion to concentrate on serving God and receiving his guidance. They were fasting to voluntarily deny the cravings of the flesh and praying to feed the cravings of the spirit.

What a privilege we have in this? He does not need us, but He allows such communion with Him. To a church waiting on the Lord His word came.

They were open to the direction of the Holy Spirit about setting aside Barnabas and Saul for a work to which the Spirit had called them. Barnabas and Saul were confirmed in their calling after a process of fasting, praying, and laying on of hands.

To Cyprus

v. 4-12. The first stop was the island of Cyprus where Barnabas was from. How wonderful that the Holy Spirit was guiding the expansion of the Church, rather than men directing it? They used every opportunity to proclaim the message of eternal salvation through faith in Christ across the entire island.

At Paphos, there was a sorcerer, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus (means “son of Joshua” or “son of the Savior”) or Elymas (magician). The Roman proconsul, head of the local government, wanted to hear the Gospel, but Elymas opposed them. Here we have Paul’s first recorded miracle as he is filled with and led by the Holy Spirit.

To Elymas, Paul says “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord?” God’s judgment strikes him blind, and many converted due to their astonishment.

Paul’s strategy is not to rush rapidly on missionary journeys from one place to the next, leaving small groups of half-taught converts behind him; it was his general policy to remain in one place until he had established the firm foundation of a Christian community, or until he was forced to move by circumstances beyond his control.

Paul’s Address in the Synagogue (Acts 13:13-25)

v. 13-15. They cross the island to Paphos. From there they sail to Perga in Pamphylia, then enter the interior of Asia Minor (now Turkey) into the Galatian country. We are told of John Mark’s desertion but not why.

Paul and Barnabas entered the synagogue in their usual custom. What better place to start? The law was read over once every year, a portion of it every Sabbath: to which was added a lesson taken out of the prophets. Luke sets the scene by providing the essential features in a synagogue service. After the opening prayers (not mentioned here) the central act was a reading from the law, i.e. the first five books of the Old Testament; this was followed by a lesson from the prophets, and then, if there was a competent person present, a sermon related to the lessons. As their guests, they invited Paul and Barnabas to share any “word of encouragement for the people.” Paul would not miss the opportunity to enlighten them about Jesus Christ.

The address which Luke records is of considerable length and can be summed up as a historical survey designed to root the coming of Jesus in the kingly succession of Judah and to show that the career of Jesus was in fulfilment of prophecy: it culminates in an appeal to the hearers not to repeat the error of the people of Jerusalem who had rejected Jesus.

v. 16-20. He plunged into a survey of Jewish history to show that Israel was chosen by God and provided by Him with a land and with rulers. He led them out of Egyptian bondage with an uplifted arm and even “put up with” (v. 18 ESV) their bad behavior in the wilderness. Paul is alluding to the following verses to enlighten their current disbelief.

Deuteronomy 1:31-32 (ESV), “and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.’ Yet in spite of this word you did not believe the Lord your God…”

The needs of the people were cared for by the provision of the judges, the last of whom was Samuel.

v. 21-25. Saul was a king according to the will of the people, but King David was reported by God to be “A man after My own heart, conforming to My will and purposes, and who will do all My will” (cf. Psalm 89:21-26). David was such at that time, but not at all times. He was a man after God’s heart as long as he fulfilled God’s will; not when he fulfilled his own will.

The succession of rulers had come to a climax in the sending of Jesus as a Saviour. Jesus the Messiah came from His line just as John the Baptist also declared as he prepared the way. John was quick and bold to clarify that he was not the Christ and was not even worthy to untie Jesus’ sandals like a slave would.

God’s Promises Completely Fulfilled (Acts 13:26-37)

v. 26-29. Paul was bold to declare that they had the message of salvation which was in Jesus. Their rulers had rejected Jesus and condemned him to death. They had done so because they failed to recognize who Jesus was and to appreciate the significance of the prophetic witness of the OT that they read, discussed, and studied every week. Notice that they carried out everything that was written in Scripture about Jesus.

v. 30-37. Jesus was crucified, buried, and then God resurrected Him on the third day. He continued to show Himself for 40 days so that the witnesses would have plenty to talk about. God has completely fulfilled His promise.

Paul quotes from three quotations to show them in relation to Jesus’ fulfillment.

Psalm 2:7 - ‘You are my Son, today I have begotten you.’

Isaiah 55:3 - ‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings of David.’

Psalm 16:10 - ‘You will not let your Holy One see corruption.’

1. This refers to Jesus being born out of the earth anew as the firstborn of the Resurrection. 2. This is closely connected with the next quotation. This (v. 34) is a promise of the permanent dominion of the Messiah (cf. 2 Sam. 7:16), which is possible only if he lives forever and never sees corruption (v. 35). 3. When God raised Jesus from the dead He entered upon a new existence which would not lead back to death and the consequent corruption of His body.

Paul clearly makes the point that Psalm 16 cannot be applied to David himself; he served the will of God in his own generation, and died an ordinary death which led to corruption, but Jesus’ body did not suffer corruption after death.

The Greater Son as King (Psalm 2)

Psalm 2:1-7, 12

v. 1-3. This Psalm describes the opposition of the nations and their rulers to the Lord’s anointed one, i.e. the ruler of his people. It was recognized as applying supremely to the Messiah.

The initial Why sets the tone of astonishment at the senseless rejection of God’s rule and ruler. Acts 4:25-28 sees Calvary itself predicted here, with the roles of kings and rulers fulfilled by, respectively, Herod and Pilate, and those of nations and peoples by ‘the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel’, united against the Lord’s anointed (His Christ). That passage points out the quiet sovereignty of God (Acts 4:28).

v. 4-6. God laughs and ridicules. God’s response to the rebellion of the nations is to mock them, knowing that their attempts are futile and that their destiny is certain. God’s king is established by God himself, so there is no ambiguity about the legitimacy of his reign.

v. 7. The idea of begetting is purely metaphorical. In its context this refers to the way in which God legitimates the King as His Son. The term for decree is used to indicate royal protocol in order to validate the right to rule. The idea of the Davidic ruler being identified as God’s Son was made clear in the covenant that God made with David (89:26-27).

The divine utterance at the baptism of Jesus probably reflects these words. But it was the raising of Jesus from the dead which was regarded as His being brought to new life by the power of God, and hence it was possible to see the ‘begetting’ in the Psalm as being spiritually fulfilled in the resurrection.

The Messiah, who had suffered for the peoples' sin, is now rising triumphant over death which alone suggests the victory of Divine love over human hate and sin. The promise to continue the Divine covenant in the line of the kings is fulfilled above all in Jesus.

v. 12. He is the Holy One of God, David's "greater Son," and anyone standing against His rule will be crushed under the wrath of God. We should pay homage and express obedience to Him. The alternative is to perish as a result of God’s anger that could ignite at any moment.

“Aslan is a lion- the Lion, the great Lion." "Ooh" said Susan. "I'd thought he was a man. Is he-quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion"..."Safe?" said Mr Beaver … "Who said anything about safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you.” -- C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Forgiveness is Available (Acts 13:38-42)

The forgiveness of sins is necessary if we're to have fellowship with God. The conclusion of the argument is that Jesus, whom God raised from the dead, is the one through whom forgiveness of sins has become possible, and hence it is offered to the hearers. Forgiveness is less common in Paul’s writings than might have been expected (Rom. 4:7; Eph. 1:7; Col. 1:14). This is because Paul preferred the idea of justification, the legal sentence of acquittal which expresses essentially the same thought, and he used this idea especially to claim that nobody could be declared to be in a right relationship with God on the basis of his attempts to keep God’s law, as given to Moses (Gal. 2:16; Rom. 3:20–22). Only through believing in Jesus can a person be put in the right with God -- “freed from the law.”

Because of one’s personal faith in Jesus Christ as Savior, God graciously credits His righteousness to the believer. Above all, one should not miss the significance of ‘every one that believes’ (10:43; Rom. 1:16; 3:22; 4:11; 10:4, 11): this offer is implicitly for Gentiles as well as Jews. Since this is God’s universal way of salvation, Paul warns his hearers of the danger of despising God’s offer and so fulfilling the prophecy of Habakkuk 1:5 which speaks of the danger of failing to recognize what is happening as being truly an action of God. Paul applies it to the danger of failing to recognize Jesus as the Saviour sent by God.

We can either accept this and surrender to the justification offered in Christ, or never believe and just vanish away.