Contrasting Receptions

Introduction

When is the last time you had a gospel-conversation with someone? When is the last time you inserted the gospel into a regular conversation? How did it go? Did the other person realize what you were doing? Did they agree or disagree? Were they glad you brought it up? Or were they angry or indifferent?

If you can’t remember the last time you shared the gospel with someone, why has it been so long? Do you know the gospel well enough to talk about it? Have you professionalized or programmatized evangelism to the point where you’re not sure how to do it without a special occasion or a formatted program?

In our passage this morning, we’re going to read about the continued missionary efforts of the Apostle Paul and his companions. When we were last in Acts, Paul and Silas were beaten and imprisoned in Philippi, but they were not deterred from their mission in the slightest. They intended to preach the gospel far and wide and to see churches established and strengthened. Miraculously, Paul and Silas had been released from prison, and they were traveling on to the next town, after “encouraging the brothers” in Philippi before they left (Acts 16:40).

This morning, we’re picking up that storyline, and now Paul and his crew are headed to Thessalonica. Let’s read this fascinating passage together, and let’s consider what we might learn and apply in our own context today.

Scripture Reading

Acts 17:1–15 (ESV)

1 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. 2 And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.”

4 And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women.

5 But the Jews were jealous, and taking some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd. 6 And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, 7 and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.” 8 And the people and the city authorities were disturbed when they heard these things. 9 And when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

10 The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue. 11 Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.

12 Many of them therefore believed, with not a few Greek women of high standing as well as men.

13 But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was proclaimed by Paul at Berea also, they came there too, agitating and stirring up the crowds.

14 Then the brothers immediately sent Paul off on his way to the sea, but Silas and Timothy remained there. 15 Those who conducted Paul brought him as far as Athens, and after receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they departed.

Main Idea:

Evangelism is both practical and supernatural, and it will sometimes provoke people to all manner of hostilities, but the gospel is the message that converts sinners and establishes and grows churches.

Sermon

1. Contrasting Receptions

The first point of my sermon is to note that our text is arranged as it is on purpose. This, of course, is true for every word in the Bible, but the arrangement or structure of the text is sometimes so significant that it should dramatically affect our interpretation of a passage. Luke has compiled the book of Acts in such a way so as to tell a story – the story of the beginning and the expansion of New Covenant Christianity in the world – and in our passage this morning, Luke has put two episodes side-by-side in order to draw our attention to the contrast.

A. Luke’s previous use of contrast

1. Barnabas v. Ananias and Sapphira

a. At the end of Acts 4, “the full number of those [in Jerusalem] who believed were of one heart and soul… There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds… and laid it at the apostles’ feet… Thus… Barnabas… sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet. But [chapter 5, verse 1] a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and with his wife’s knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles’ feet” (Acts 4:32-5:2).

2. Jews v. Gentiles

a. In Acts 13-14 Luke writes about Paul’s and Barnabas’s missionary efforts in Antioch, in Iconium, and in Lystra.

i. In Antioch, “the Jews incited the devout women of high standing and the leading men of the city, stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district” (Acts 13:50).

ii. In Iconium, “unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers;” and they even planned to “mistreat… and to stone” Paul and Barnabas to death (Acts 14:2, 5).

iii. In Lystra, the Gentile crowd tried to worship Paul and Barnabas as Hermes and Zeus (Acts 14:11-13). Of course, Paul and Barnabas would have none of that, and they ended up “preaching the gospel” there and making “many disciples” in Lystra (Acts 14:21).

B. Contrasting Thessalonica with Berea

1. So many parallel connections!

a. Both begin with Paul preaching and teaching in the “synagogue.”

b. Both episodes have Paul “reasoning” with and “examining the Scriptures” with fellow Jews.

c. Both towns see “not a few” women of “high standing” in the community “persuaded” to “believe” the gospel.

d. When “many” are converted in each town, “the Jews” from Thessalonica “stir up the crowds” or “form a mob.”

e. And both episodes conclude with the local converts staying behind to continue following Christ without Paul.

2. So, what is the contrast we are supposed to see here?

a. Why did Luke tell the stories of these two episodes so similarly?

i. One might answer by saying that Luke wants the reader to know that not all Jews rejected Jesus as the Messiah.

· This is certainly true… and the Jews in Berea are an example of “many” Jewish converts (v12).

· And let’s not forget that the “thousands” converted on the day of Pentecost, as well as those “being saved” daily and “added” to the church in Jerusalem were all Jews… at least for a while (Acts 2:41, 47).

ii. I think we see a more emphatic answer… especially in v11.

· “Now these Jews [i.e., those in Berea] were more noble than those in Thessalonica…” (v11).

* The word translated “noble” is εὐγενης, literally good birth or well born.

* These are contrasted with the “wicked men of the rabble” (v5) or “bad characters from the marketplace” (NIV84) or “lewd fellows of the baser sort” (KJV).

1. The word translated “rabble” (ESV) or “marketplace” (NIV84, NASB) is the word for loafer or idler.

* This theme of contrasting those of better and worse quality is even highlighted in Luke’s description of the converts.

1. In both towns there were “leading” women (v4) and those of “high standing” (v12).

iii. Therefore, the contrast is not between Thessalonica and Berea (per se), but between two different ways of hearing the gospel.

2. Evangelizing the Religious (v1-3 and 10b-11)

As I already pointed out, both of the episodes recorded in our passage begin with Paul preaching and teaching in a “synagogue” (v1-2, 10), “reasoning” (v2) with both Jews and Gentiles about who Jesus really was and is – “the Christ” (v3). This was the same message Peter preached on the day of Pentecost (Acts 3:36), and it’s that message which defined the early Church. Friends, Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ, the Messiah of old… He’s the one sent by God to die for the sins of all those who would look to Him and trust Him for forgiveness… And He’s the one God raised from the dead, who will never die again, and who will raise from death to life finally and fully everyone who repents and believes.

To be clear, friend, the same Jesus who came to die will come again to judge every sinner. You must repent (turn from your sin and unbelief) and believe (or trust or pledge your allegiance to) the Lord Jesus Christ… or you will die in your sins, and you will go to hell forever (Jn. 8:24). If you want to think more about this, then just keep listening to the rest of this sermon, and we can certainly talk more after the service… just come find me or some other Christian in the room.

A. Starting on common ground

1. The synagogue

a. As Paul had done from the beginning, he went where his Jewish brethren gathered to read the Torah and consider religious matters.

i. “immediately” after his conversion, “he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, ‘He is the Son of God’” (Acts 9:20).

ii. When Paul and Barnabas “arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues” (Acts 13:5).

iii. Paul “went on from Perga and came to Antioch in Pisidia. And on the Sabbath day [he] went into the synagogue” and preached a message that centered on Jesus Christ forgiving sin and superseding the “law of Moses” (Acts 13:14, 38-39).

iv. So, it’s no surprise when we read that in Thessalonica and in Berea Paul began his evangelistic efforts in the synagogue.

2. The Bible / the Scriptures

a. Note also the method – he “reasoned… from the Scriptures” (v2).

i. Specifically, Paul was “explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ[or Messiah] to suffer and to rise from the dead” and that “This Jesus… is the Christ” (v3).

ii. Luke doesn’t give as much detail about the message in Berea, but he does say that the Jews there “examined the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so” (v11). What things?! …The same things Paul was explaining in Thessalonica! Jesus is the Christ who had to suffer and rise from the dead!

B. Evangelizing religious people in our own culture

1. Where do your friends and family talk about spiritual matters?

a. Does this happen at work? school? home? birthday parties? holidays?

b. How might you facilitate more spiritual conversations with your co-worker? your classmates? your spouse? your kids? your friends?

c. Why not invite someone to simply read the Bible with you and talk about it?

2. Start with the Scriptures!

a. Everyone is on a spiritual journey… and everyone is a theologian. Our life experiences and feelings don’t have any power whatever to bring life to a dead sinner’s heart.

b. The Scriptures, on the other hand, are those “sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation” (2 Tim. 3:15)… The Scriptures are “the living and abiding word of God” which cause sinners to be “born again” (1 Pet. 1:23)… The Scriptures are “living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword” (Heb. 4:12).

3. But don’t just start with the Scriptures… Reason from the Scriptures

a. Brothers and sisters, we of all people should know how to open the Bible and explain it.

b. Most of us will never be able to explain the finer points of theology, and that’s perfectly fine… But every Christian should know the basic storyline and major biblical themes and doctrines.

i. If you don’t know that stuff very well, then let’s not pretend… and let’s make a plan to grow.

· The word-ministry of this church is your all-access pass to a guided tour of the riches of God’s word.

* Multiple pastors and fellow church members are ready and eager to grow alongside you in the knowledge of Christ… jump into a life group, invite a church member to read the Bible with you, come to Bible studies on Wednesday nights, and be sure to soak up what you can each Sunday… but don’t stop there!

ii. Reason from the Scriptures with your co-worker, your classmates, your spouse, your kids, and your friends.

4. Focus on the person and work of Jesus Christ

a. There is so much to learn from the Scriptures – the Bible gives us an entire worldview – but focus on Jesus with your friends and family who think of themselves as religious or even just spiritual so that God (by His grace) might grant them true repentance and faith.

3. The Secondary Goal of Evangelism (v4 and v12)

After Paul spent time – at least 3 weeks in Thessalonica – explaining the gospel from the Scriptures, Luke tells us that some of the hearers were converted! Among the converts in Thessalonica were “many… devout Greeks” (v4). These were the same sort of folks as Cornelius in Caesarea (Acts 10:1-2, 24) and Lydia in Philippi (Acts 16:14). Earlier Luke called them “God-fearers” or “God-worshipers.” They were Gentiles who aimed to know and worship the God of the Jews, so even these Gentiles had the sort of common ground starting point that we just talked about. And, from the way Paul writes in his two letters to the church there (1 and 2 Thessalonians), it seems that most of the converts were Gentiles.[1]

In Berea, Paul also took time to explain “the word” of the gospel, such that the Berean Jews “examined the Scriptures daily” (v11). The result was that “many of them” were converted (v12; cf. v11). With these Jewish converts, there were “not a few Greek women of high standing as well as men” (v12).

In both episodes, missionaries arrived with the goal of evangelism, the gospel was taught, and people were converted. With this third point of my sermon, I’d like us to consider how our passage helps us see that conversion is one goal of evangelism, but it’s not the first or primary goal.

A. The secondary goal of evangelism

1. Defining our terms: Evangelism

a. Mack Stiles’ says that evangelism is teaching the gospel with the aim to persuade.[2]

i. His expanded definition is “teaching (heralding, proclaiming, preaching) the gospel (the message from God that leads us to salvation) with the aim (hope, desire, goal) to persuade (convince, convert).”[3]

· I’m going to use Mack’s definition for our vocabulary today, because I think it’s good and easy to remember.

· I’m arguing:

* the primary goal of evangelism is to teach the gospel.

* the secondary goal of evangelism is to persuade the hearer to believe and throw his/her lot in with Christ.

2. The aim to persuade

a. All modern translations translate the word the same in v4. They read, “some of them were persuaded…” (v4). The KJV translates the word as “believed” (v4).

i. The KJV translators were simply doing a little interpretive work for us, because the meaning is the same – there were some in Thessalonica who had heard Paul explain that “Jesus… is the Christ” (v3), and they were “persuaded”… they came to “believe” it was so.

b. Friends, the gospel will certainly make you feel, but in the gospel of Jesus Christ you are not being required to emote!

i. The biblical response… the right response to the gospel is not a feeling… but repentance and faith.

· Repentance is turning from your sin and from your unbelief.

* We must all repent! We should not only feel sorry for our sin; we must be actively turning away from it.

· Faith or belief can be a confusing word in our present culture, and this is the way Luke described the response of those converts in our passage this morning, so let’s take a minute to explain it a bit further.

* Christians have found it helpful to think about evangelism and faith/belief in terms of three distinct-but-necessary categories.

1. Knowledge – the stuff we need to know

2. Assent – acknowledgment that the stuff is true

3. Faith – entrusting ourselves to Christ

ii. This kind of faith is surely a goal of our evangelism! And we must aim to persuade! We must urge our hearers to believe!

· But this is our secondary goal… and it can never be the measure of our evangelistic success… because only God can grant this sort of faith; we cannot conjure or create it.

B. The primary goal of evangelism

1. Teach the gospel

a. Our primary goal in evangelism should always be to teach the gospel… to do it faithfully (biblically), clearly, persuasively, consistently (we must practice what we preach), and regularly.

i. This means we must know the gospel well enough to teach it… and we must know where and how to teach it from the Bible in order to prevent adding our own wisdom to it or subtracting some of the bits we find harder to say or to require.

b. Remembering that evangelism is both practical – we can and must do our part in teaching with the aim to persuade – and supernatural – that God ultimately grants spiritual life to those He chooses – will help us avoid the pitfall of sentimental popularity.

i. Friends, if we believe the gospel, then we know it’s genuinely good news, and we want others to believe it too.

· And yet, with many good intentions, Christians can sometimes make a positive response the first priority of evangelism, but this will inevitably conflict with what I’m arguing should really be our first priority – teaching the gospel.

· In order to draw a crowd or keep a friend, churches and Christians will avoid teaching the hard points of the gospel.

* If we’re not intentionally keeping our priorities in line, we will speak little of sin, we’ll use vague language, we’ll make excuses for our loved ones, we’ll downplay the urgency of repentance, and we’ll blur the lines between Christians and non-Christians.

c. But, friends, sometimes faithful evangelism will provoke people to hostility… and that’s what we see in our passage today.

4. Jealousy, Hypocrisy, and Accusation (v5-9 and v13)

The message of the gospel, and the fact that some people were being persuaded to believe it, offended the culturally religious Jews and also to the politically religious Gentiles in Thessalonica. In v5, Luke says “the Jews were jealous,” so they went to the marketplace and gathered up some “wicked men of the rabble [to] form a mob.” Apparently, a man named “Jason” had been hosting Paul and his crew at his house, and that might even have been where the Thessalonian church had started gathering, because that’s where the mob went to find them (v5).

Then Luke says, in v6, “when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers [i.e., other Christian converts] before the city authorities.” And with no small irony, the Jewish leaders who had stirred up a mob of degenerates and “set the city in an uproar” (v5) accused the Christians of “turning the world upside down” (v6). Specifically, they said that the missionaries and all of the new converts “were acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus” (v7). At this, both “the people” and “the city authorities” were “disturbed” (v8). But apparently Jason was a shrewd man, because he was able to pay off the Roman authorities in order to buy their freedom (v9).

Now, in Berea, Luke doesn’t give all the details, but it seems that the Jewish leaders of Thessalonica came there too with the same sort of jealousy and accusations… “agitating and stirring up the crowds” against the Christians (v13).

I want to consider with you this morning the cultural and political opposition we see here… and the religious fervor that both demonstrate when push comes to shove. I want to argue that no one is actually godless; no one comes to the church or the school or the job site or the office or the town square or the national halls of politics without worshiping. Everyone lives in alignment with a sworn allegiance to some deity or deities and to some behavioral standard.

A. Culturally Religious Jews

1. The Jewish religious system

a. The Jewish religion of the first century permeated all of life.

i. It marked where you lived, how you worked, and what you did for play.

ii. It defined your family ties, your dietary habits, and the clothes you wore.

iii. It arranged your daily, weekly, and annual routine.

iv. And it organized your societal structure: who are the leaders, who are the insiders, and who are the outsiders.

B. Politically Religious Gentiles

1. The Roman political system

a. So too, the Roman political system permeated all of life.

i. The stark division between religion and politics that many in the West have been pushing for over the last several decades is a modern invention… And I say “decades,” not “centuries,” because there has never been a true separation between religion and state.

· Many European nation-states still have a state church – Scotland, England, Germany.

· Many Middle Eastern nations are overtly Muslim – Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq.

· Even those places in the world where the state seems to be completely antagonistic to all religion, there is no question that the ideology in place is nothing short of religious – just look at the Communist Chinese Party.

C. Gospel confrontation

1. The gospel confronts all other claims to authority and demands that our ultimate allegiance be sworn to Jesus Christ as King.

a. The accusation we see in v7 is not wrong. Christians were saying “there there is another king, Jesus.”

i. In fact, the early Christians, sometimes sporadically and sometimes officially, were condemned in Roman society throughout the first, the second, and the third centuries.

ii. Christian conversion was declared in baptism, when the new convert would confess his/her belief in a basic set of doctrines – like what we have in the Apostles’ Creed – and in sum he/she would proclaim “Jesus is Lord” (Ιησούκύριος).

iii. This was in direct opposition to the Roman phrase, “Caesar is Lord” (Καισαρκύριος), which was stamped on Roman coins, economic and political documents, and recited during pagan Roman ceremonies.

b. And so too was the accusation in v6 not wrong. Christians were turning “the world upside down.”

i. Every government ought to align itself with the biblical mandates for government:

· It should protect human dignity and life (Gen. 9:1-6).

· It should maintain civil order, punishing bad behavior (Rom. 13:1-4) and creating the sort of environment in which Christians can live faithfully and sinners may hear the gospel proclaimed freely (1 Tim. 2:1-4).

ii. Every church ought to align itself with the biblical mandates for assembled Christians:

· Churches should clearly mark off the who and the what of the gospel – these are our members, and this is what we believe (Matt. 16:13-20, 18:15-20, 28:18-20).

· Churches should be led by qualified men[4] who teach, oversee, and shepherd the members according to Scripture (Acts 20:28; 2 Tim. 4:1-2; Heb. 13:17; 1 Pet. 5:1-5).

iii. Every home, every individual, every society, and every institution is affected by the claim that Jesus Christ is King… and everyone is under divine obligation to submit.

· And this sort of talk will sometimes provoke people to all manner of hostilities. In Thessalonica and Berea, it was a mob of agitators using societal and political pressure to put a stop to the message.

· But Christians are not to respond in kind.

5. Local Christians Left Behind (v10a and v14-15)

In both Thessalonica and Berea, when the opposition heats up, Luke says, “the brothers immediately sent Paul” away (v10, 14). Luke even uses the same wording, which is another example of the pattern here! Now, if you only read these 15 verses, you might conclude that Paul is running away to save his hide. But having read (in Acts) the sufferings Paul has already endured (and you could read the fascinating biography Paul gives of his sufferings in 2 Corinthians 11 this afternoon), one can hardly charge the Apostle Paul with cowardice or self-interest.

Furthermore, the two letters Paul wrote to the church in Thessalonica shortly after his departure from them clearly show that there was a thriving church left behind. So, the opposition we see in our passage this morning did not stop the gospel, nor did it dismantle the church… Why, then, does Luke conclude each episode with the same sort of phrase about “the brothers” sending Paul away?

I think there are at least two reasons, and I’d like to draw this message to a close by focusing in on them.

A. Paul is the focus of gospel expansion.

1. Luke’s intention is to tell the story of how the gospel spread.

a. The gospel did not spread by military conquest.

b. The gospel did not spread by political coups or appointments.

c. The gospel spread – the kingdom of Christ spread – by evangelism.

d. And the Apostle Paul was the tip of the spear of evangelistic efforts where Christ had not as yet been named in the first century.

i. From Acts 12 on, Paul is Luke’s focus for the completion of Jesus’s commission in Acts 1:8: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

B. The gospel normally works/acts through regular, indigenous people.

1. Though Paul and his missionary team left Thessalonica, there was still a thriving church there, who continued in faithfulness to Christ and even became exemplary among the churches in Macedonia more broadly (1 Thess. 1:6-10).

2. In Berea too, Paul left behind a church of converts, many of whom will forever be known as the “nobler” Jews who “received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily” (v11). There is no more mention of these Christians in the Bible, except for one Berean man, named “Sopater,” who traveled with Paul for a while (Acts 20:4).

3. And throughout history, up through to our own day, the vast majority of those who have come to faith in Christ, those who have been built up in the faith, and those who have persevered in faith to the end have done so in-and-by the ministry of everyday Christians in everyday local churches.

a. The Apostle Paul was a lightning rod for gospel preaching and worldly opposition, but the churches he helped establish upon the message of the gospel kept on living faithfully, teaching regularly, and aiming to persuade those within their reach that Jesus really is the Christ – the only Savior-King.

Conclusion

Brothers and sisters, today we’ve considered a passage that teaches us just how practical evangelism is. We all can and must teach the gospel to those we know and love. We’ve also been reminded today that the gospel message confronts all of our societal and political and cultural assumptions, and we know that not everyone is happy to hear that Jesus is King. May God help us to teach the gospel faithfully and follow Jesus courageously, even if those around us break out in hostilities against us and our message.

And finally, our passage today has reminded us that the gospel truly is the power of God to save sinners… It is the gospel that converts sinners, and the gospel establishes and grows churches. May God help us to believe that’s true, and may God help us to do our part as well as help us to trust Him to do His.

Endnotes

[1] Paul wrote to them, for example, “you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God” (1 Thess. 1:9). This is an apt description of Gentile conversion, since Gentiles were those who commonly embraced idolatry, whereas Israel was unique in the world for knowing and serving the formless and true God. [2] J. Mack Stiles, Evangelism: How the Whole Church Speaks of Jesus, 9Marks: Building Healthy Churches (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2014). 26. [3] J. Mack Stiles, Evangelism: How the Whole Church Speaks of Jesus, 9Marks: Building Healthy Churches (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2014). 27. [4] The biblical qualifications for pastors or elders are especially articulated in 1 Timothy 3:1-7. One explicit passage that excludes women from the office of pastor or elder is 1 Timothy 2:12-15. Many other passages also contribute to the qualifications for church leadership.

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