The Spreading Flame
Note: I encourage anyone reading this sermon to do so with an open map of Paul’s missionary journeys, available in the back of most Bibles.
Introduction: So far in our study of the Book of Acts we have covered the first decade or so of the Christian Church. From small beginnings on the Day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit came upon those praying in the Upper Room in Jerusalem, we have seen Christianity become a major movement within Judea and Samaria, even crossing the racial barrier into the Gentile population of Antioch.
As we approach the thirteenth chapter today, we are forced to return to the key verse of the whole book, namely Acts 1:8: “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” Our text today marks the beginning of the fulfillment of the third part of that commandment. Jerusalem was the locus of witness in Acts 1-7; Judea and Samaria in 8-12; now we are about to see the remotest part of the then-known world receive the Good News.
The remainder of the book of Acts, from chapters 13-28, concerns the travels of the Apostle Paul and the spreading of the flame of the Gospel. As I contemplated how best to communicate this material, it struck me that if you are like I was for so many years, you have some vague notion about some missionary journeys in Acts. You may even know that there were three of them (which is wrong, since there were actually four). And you may recall that the trips took the Gospel to Asia and Europe, but that may be where your knowledge ends.
I thought it might be helpful to spend a Sunday giving an overview of these last 16 chapters of Acts, which will provide a framework for us as we work our way through the chapters in more detail during the coming four months. Lord willing, we will wrap up our study of Acts just before Christmas.
I hesitated to do this at first because I wondered whether a survey of Paul’s missionary journeys was the kind of sermon that would stimulate godly living or produce Christian growth, which is the ultimate purpose of all our worship services, but I finally answered that in the affirmative. It is my hope today that our consciences will be stirred concerning the great task of home and foreign missions, and that we would gain a vision for what even one person who is sold out to Christ can accomplish. There are many side benefits as well, such as being encouraged by the singlemindedness of one who endured countless sufferings and rejections in the knowledge that he was doing exactly what God called him to do.
Even before the Church was founded, Jesus commanded His disciples, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” It seems that there has always been a dearth of Christians willing to obey that commandment. However, there was one man in the early church who took Jesus literally, believed implicitly the promise that Christ would be with him, and became God’s key man for beginning the movement of Christianity to the uttermost parts of the world.
The man was Saul of Tarsus. Converted dramatically following a period of bitter hostility toward Christianity, he had spent over a decade in relative solitude, allowing his brilliant mind to absorb the intricacies of Christian theology and his enormous drive to be rechanneled from persecution of the faith to espousal of the faith.
Several Sundays ago we learned that this man was recruited from his home town of Tarsus by Barnabas to help with the new Gentile mission work in Antioch. We learned also that during a major famine in Judea, the two of them delivered an offering from the Gentiles in Antioch to the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem. Now in the last verse of chapter 12 we read that Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their mission, taking along with them John, who was also called Mark. He was the son of the Mary to whose house Peter came after being released from prison. He was also the eventual author of the Gospel of Mark. He will, unfortunately, play a dubious part in the first missionary journey which we will examine in a few moments.
In the first verse of chapter 13 Luke names some of the leaders of the church at Antioch: Barnabas, Simeon, Lucius, Manaen, and Saul. It was while they were ministering to the Lord and fasting that the Holy Spirit said to the church at Antioch, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” This is the third time Saul has been “set apart.” At his birth he was set apart to God (Gal. 1:15); at his conversion he was set apart for the gospel (Rom. 1:1); and here he is set apart for specific service.
I think it is important that this call came while they were busy in ministry. There are some people who wonder why God has never called them to do anything significant, but while they are wondering, they are doing nothing. There is a clear principle in Scripture that those who are faithful in little are assigned greater tasks. It’s while Saul and his companions were faithfully fulfilling their assignment in Antioch that the Lord fingered them for the greatest missionary task in the history of the Church.
I see, however, that they were not just busy, they were busy seeking God’s will. The proof of that is that they were fasting. People don’t fast because it feels good; they do it so that they can concentrate on the things of the Lord and not miss His direction and guidance.
Now the logistics of the call of these first missionaries is worth examining, especially the fact that it had both a vertical and a horizontal aspect. I would assume that is true of every legitimate call to ministry. The vertical element is seen in that the Holy Spirit calls them and sends them, according to verses 2 and 4. The horizontal is seen in that the Church was asked to set them apart and send them away. Both are necessary. If a man in ordained but not called by the Holy Spirit, his ordination amounts to no more than the laying of empty hands on an empty head. On the other hand, if the Holy Spirit calls a man, but he refuses to put himself under the authority of, or make himself accountable to, a Body of believers, the chances are significant that he will fizzle out.
I notice a couple of other key factors in these verses. One is that Saul and Barnabas were ready to go when called by the Spirit and commissioned by the Church. There are many whom God has called to ministry who have said no. And I’m not thinking just of missionary service or pastoral duty; I’m thinking of ordinary Christians whom God has gifted to teach a Sunday School class or lead a Bible study or show hospitality, but who say “no” because it’s not convenient.
Friends, it’s always easier to say “no.” There are always good reasons for not doing what you know you should do. There’s not a person here this morning who can’t fill all of his time without taking on a ministry. The question is, “Has the Holy Spirit called me and is Christ’s Church willing to use my gifts?” If so, then the issue should be settled for the believer. Every believer should have a ministry.
So, we have Saul and Barnabas called and commissioned, and in verse 4 we find them on the move.
First missionary journey, which Paul took with Barnabas (Acts 13, 14).
It begins, of course, in Antioch of Syria, where Saul and Barnabas are ordained.
Antioch in Syria (13:1-3). From there they go a short distance overland to the Mediterranean at Seleucia and sail to Cyprus, which was Barnabas’ home. On the eastern edge of Cyprus they come to the town of Salamis, where they preach, and after traveling the length of the island they come to Paphos, the first major stop on their trip.
Paphos (13:4-12). This stop is highlighted for two reasons. First, it seems to be the place where Saul’s name was changed to Paul, for before verse 9 he is never called “Paul,” and after verse 9 he is called “Saul” only when he is himself referring back to earlier periods in his life. Second, Paphos is where Paul meets a Jewish false prophet and magician named Bar-Jesus or Elymas. This man tries to hinder the sharing of the Gospel with a Roman proconsul, and for his efforts he receives strong rebuke from Paul. His name means “Son of Jesus,” but Paul calls him a son of the Devil; he also is cursed with temporary blindness. The proconsul believes anyway, showing again that the power of God is greater than the power of Satan.
From Paphos Paul sails to Asia Minor, present-day Turkey, and stops at a town in Pamphylia named Perga.
Perga (13:13). The only incident of note that happens in Perga is that John Mark leaves Paul and Barnabas and returns home. We aren’t told why, whether because of illness, homesickness, or what, but Paul evidently believes the reasons to be insufficient, for he refuses to take him along on the second journey because he abandoned ship on the first one.
Antioch in Pisidia (13:14-52). This Antioch is straight north of Perga. There Paul employs his standard procedure—he starts at the Jewish synagogue. This is a natural place for contacts for a Jewish evangelist. As a former member of the Sanhedrin, he knows his way around the synagogue and knows Jewish doctrine like the back of his hand. He also still believes in the exhortation of Christ to take the Gospel to the Jew first. His sermon at Antioch of Pisidia, given in some detail in Acts 13, brings significant results, so much so that some of the Jewish leaders get jealous, arouse the town government against Paul and Barnabas, and drive them out of town. Paul and Barnabas shake off the dust from their feet in protest and proceed to Iconium.
Iconium (14:1-7). In Iconium, which is east of Antioch, Paul again preaches in the synagogue, again with great results. Some Jewish dissidents attempt to stone him, but he and his party escape and flee to Lystra.
Lystra (14:8-20). At Lystra Paul heals a man who had been lame from birth. This remarkable event leads to a totally unexpected result. Whereas in several previous stops Paul and Barnabas were driven out of town, here in Lystra they are proclaimed as gods. In fact, the people identify Barnabas as Zeus and Paul as Hermes, since Paul is the chief speaker and Hermes was the messenger god. When the people prepare to make sacrifices to them, Paul and Barnabas vehemently object and only with difficulty are able to restrain the crowd. Meanwhile Jews from the previous two stops on the missionary journey arrive in Lystra and instigate an actual stoning. In fact, they believe they have killed Paul and leave him for dead outside the city. God, however, miraculously raises him up and he and Barnabas proceed to Derbe.
Derbe (14:21). The only thing we learn of the stop in Derbe is that they preach the gospel and have many converts.
The return trip takes them back through Lystra, Iconium, Antioch in Pisidia, and Perga, which is remarkable in that they had just recently experienced opposition and persecution in every one of those cities. Despite that fact, however, they feel it important to encourage the new converts, and so they take the risk. Soon they are back in Antioch of Syria, where their home church is located. Verse 27 tells us that they report everything God has done with them and how He has opened a door of faith to the Gentiles. Their furlough lasts a number of months.
This, by the way, is the biblical pattern for missions. A local church commissions missionaries, sends them out, receives their report when their mission is complete, and allows them to minister at. Home while on furlough. I hardly think it was God’s intention for a missionary on furlough to run himself ragged visiting 79 different churches for two days each on furlough, as is often the case today. Rather the ideal is for the missionary to have one principal sending church, where he spends the bulk of his furlough time ministering and preparing for his next trip.
The only interruption we find in the account of Paul’s missionary journeys in the book of Acts is the fifteenth chapter, where we are told about a council that takes place in Jerusalem to deal with a major doctrinal dispute concerning the prerequisites for salvation. It is often called the …
First Ecumenical Council at Jerusalem (Acts 15)
Since we will deal in some detail with this chapter in a few weeks, I will only observe today that the decree which comes out of the Jerusalem Council becomes one of the reasons for Paul’s second missionary journey, in that, according to 16:4, Paul delivers the decree of the Council to the churches he had established in Asia during his first journey.
As an introduction to the Second Missionary Journey, let’s read the last five verses of chapter 15.
“And after some days Paul said to Barnabas, ‘Let us return and visit the brethren in every city in which we proclaimed the word of the Lord and see how they are.’ And Barnabas was desirous of taking John, called Mark, along with them also. But Paul kept insisting that they should not take him along who had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work. And there arose such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another, and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus. But Paul chose Silas and departed, being committed by the brethren to the grace of the Lord.”
A great team is broken up by this disagreement between Paul and Barnabas, but two great teams are created in its place.
Second missionary journey (Acts 16-18)
Derbe and Lystra (16:1-5). This time Paul makes a great discovery in Lystra: he finds a young man named Timothy, whose mother was Jewish but whose father was Greek. A young convert with a fine reputation, Paul desires to have Timothy join in the expedition, so he has him circumcised so that he will be able to have a more effective ministry among the Jews. (By the way, you will recall that Paul adamantly refused to have Titus circumcised, according to Galatians 2, but here he readily has Timothy circumcised. What do you believe made the difference?)
Leaving Derbe and Lystra Paul heads northwest, passing through Galatia and Phrygia and Mysia.
Galatia and Phrygia (16:6,7). For some reason the Holy Spirit forbids them to preach in these areas, so Paul tries to move on to Bithynia, immediately south of the western end of the Black Sea, called the Euxine Sea. Again, the Spirit refuses him permission, so Paul goes south instead to the town of Troas.
Troas (16:8-10). There he experiences his famous Macedonian vision, in which someone in Macedonia calls for help. Paul takes that as God’s calling to take the Gospel to Europe for the first time, and immediately he acts on that call. The first stop in Macedonia, or Greece, is at the great Roman city of Philippi.
Philippi (16:11-40). There Paul meets Lydia, a seller of purple, who is converted, and in whose house the first church in Europe meets. But the main event in Philippi is Paul’s casting of a demon out of a slave-girl. Her owners had been using this girl as a kind of freak in a side-show, and when the demon leaves, so does their source of income. This creates a riot of sorts, and the Paul and Silas are beaten and thrown into jail.
Midnight in a dungeon finds them praying and singing hymns of praise. God responds by sending an earthquake which destroys the prison and releases all the prisoners. The jailer is ready to commit suicide, knowing the capital penalty for allowing a prisoner to escape, when Paul announces that all the prisoners are accounted for. The jailer is overwhelmed and asks Paul what he must do to be saved. The answer is as succinct an account of the plan of salvation as found anywhere in Scripture, and it cannot be improved upon: “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved.” Rather than take his physical life, the Philippian jailer receives eternal life.
Thessalonica (17:1-9). There Paul preaches in the synagogue for three Sabbaths and is eventually run out of town by a mob, heading next to Berea.
Berea (17:10-14). Berea is famous for the fact that its residents were more noble than the people of Thessalonica in that they “received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily, to see whether these things were so.” What an example they are to us still today! However, the troublemakers in Thessalonica follow Paul to Berea, and he is soon on the road again, this time on his way to Athens.
Athens (17:15-34). Athens is surely one of the most fascinating stops on Paul’s missionary journeys, if not one of the most productive. Here is the hotbed of intellectualism in the ancient, civilized world. Here the great philosophers (Epicureans and Stoics) gather regularly to discuss and debate the ultimate questions of human existence. And here Paul comes to preach the Gospel. He approaches the philosophers on their own ground and brings the discussion around to the person of Christ, but when he mentions the resurrection, some begin to sneer, others say they want to dialogue again, and still others believe.
From Athens Paul goes to Corinth, about 45 miles to the west.
Corinth (18:1-17). Paul’s visit to Corinth is very significant for several reasons. First, it is his longest stop on the second journey, lasting about 18 months. Secondly, it is here that he meets Aquila and Priscilla, a Jewish couple who had been exiled from Rome and were tentmakers like Paul. Aquila and Priscilla become a key team in Paul’s ministry. Thirdly, it is in Corinth that Paul turns even more strongly toward Gentile evangelism. Notice verse 6 of chapter 18: “And when they resisted and blasphemed, he shook out his garments and said to them, “Your blood be upon your own heads! I am clean. From now on I shall go to the Gentiles.'” That doesn’t mean he refuses to witness to Jews anymore, but his emphasis from here on is more strongly than ever on Gentile ministry.
It is also in Corinth that the leader of the synagogue, a man named Sosthenes, becomes a Christian. He is beaten in Paul’s place when the proconsul refuses to let the Jews beat Paul, and he is later mentioned as Paul’s brother in the salutation of the letter of 1 Corinthians. The journey ends with a brief visit to Ephesus.
Ephesus (18:18-22). The stop in Ephesus is in the nature of a rest stop after crossing the Aegean Sea, but Paul takes the opportunity to enter the synagogue and reason with the Jews. He also promises to return if God wills, and then sets sail for Caesarea and his home church in Antioch.
Paul remains in Antioch only a short time before launching his third journey.
Third missionary journey (Acts 19-21)
Galatia and Phrygia (18:23). According to 18:23 the third journey takes Paul again through Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening the disciples as he goes. But the first major stop is Ephesus, where Paul fulfills his promise to return.
Ephesus (18:24-19:41). The first mention of Ephesus in chapter 18 concerns Apollos, a preacher there who is discipled by Aquila and Priscilla. But by the time Paul arrives, Apollos has moved on to Corinth. It is in Ephesus that Paul meets some disciples of John the Baptist who have never heard of the Holy Spirit. He baptizes them in the name of Jesus, and they receive the Holy Spirit and speak with tongues and prophesy, an incident that has important theological significance and will bear closer examination when we get to chapter 19.
Paul stays in Ephesus for two to three years, spending most of his time teaching the Scriptures in the school of Tyrannus. Extraordinary miracles are performed by him, to the extent that handkerchiefs that touched him are carried to the sick. Paul also casts out many demons, and the people come to fear demonic power to the extent that they bring their magic books together and burn them, the bonfire having a value of 50,000 pieces of silver.
Not long after this, Demetrius, an Ephesian silversmith who made shrines for the goddess Artemis, stirs up a riot against Paul because business is falling off. The town clerk succeeds finally in calming the crowd, and Paul leaves for Greece.
Greece (20:1-5). All we are told about Paul’s ministry in Greece is that it lasts three months and then he is forced out by a Jewish plot. He crosses the Aegean again and comes once more to Troas.
Troas (20:6-12). The week Paul stays at Troas is best-known for the fact that a young man named Eutychus is sitting in a third-floor windowsill listening to Paul preached. When the sermon gets too lengthy, he goes to sleep, falls out of the window, and is killed. I might, by way of application, observe that there have been many modern-day Eutychuses who have been saved by the fact that it is hard to fall out of a pew, and even if you do, the injuries are not likely to be fatal. At any rate, Eutychus is resurrected by Paul and his family is comforted greatly. (Probably embarrassed, but comforted).
Miletus (20:17-38). The reason for Paul’s stop in Miletus is that it is close enough to Ephesus to make contact with the church there without actually having to travel to Ephesus, for he was in a hurry to be in Jerusalem by the day of Pentecost. So he summons the elders of the church at Ephesus, and his farewell speech to them is one of the most pathos-filled passages in the NT.
Tyre (21:1-7). The ship goes from Miletus to Tyre, on the northern coast of Palestine, where Paul stays a week and is warned strongly by the believers not to go to Jerusalem. Another sad farewell is conducted as Paul continues on to Caesarea.
Caesarea (21:8-14). At Caesarea Paul stays with Philip the evangelist. There Agabus the prophet appears once more, this time predicting that Paul will be imprisoned in Jerusalem and turned over to the Gentiles. The believers beg him not to continue his trip, but he responds with those immortal words, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”
The third missionary journey ends in the Holy City, where Paul is received warmly by the believers, and where he reports all that God has done among the Gentiles. However, he is also told that thousands of Jewish believers are not pleased with the fact that he has allowed the Gentiles to ignore the Law of Moses, and they urge him to take a vow and show his continued allegiance to the Law of Moses. In perhaps the most controversial act of his great career, Paul does so, but that does not prevent the trouble it was designed to allay.
Fourth Missionary Journey (To Rome) (Acts 21-28)
Jerusalem (21:27-23:31). In the interest of time, we must address this very briefly. Paul is not in Jerusalem more than seven days before he is arrested under charges made by foreign Jews visiting the city. He is allowed to defend himself, but the crowd becomes so bloodthirsty that he has to be brought into the soldiers’ barracks for his own safety. When the Roman authorities prepare to beat him as part of an interrogation, he protests that he is a Roman. So instead of a beating he is brought before the Sanhedrin, where he tries to defend himself again. However, the Pharisees and Sadducees get into such an argument that the Roman commander has to return Paul to the barracks. Learning of a conspiracy by 40 men to ambush him, Paul is spirited out of Jerusalem at night with the help of 200 soldiers, and he is sent to Caesarea, the Roman capital of Palestine.
Caesarea (23:32-26:32). Chapters 24-26 concern Paul’s appearance before three different rulers in Caesarea—Governor Felix, his successor Governor Festus, and King Agrippa. Each chapter provides a stirring account of Paul’s fearless witness, as well as some fascinating insights into the characters of these rulers. During the several years he is in Caesarea he is kept under house arrest most of the time. When Festus threatens to return him to Jerusalem to stand trial, Paul appeals to Caesar. Agrippa later claims he would have released Paul had he not appealed to Caesar, but it is difficult to know whether that is true; after all, he is the same man who murdered James and tried to murder Peter.
Shipwreck (27:1-44). Paul boards a ship for Rome and the 27th chapter contains the account of his voyage and a shipwreck on the way. Despite the complete destruction of the ship all the passengers survive with Paul’s help, and holding on to planks or cargo, they wash up on the shore of Malta or Melita, a small island just south of Sicily.
Malta (Melita) (28:1-10). There Paul is bitten by a viper but suffers no ill effects. He also heals the father of Publius the leading man on the island, who is deathly ill. During his three-month stay there, the island people bring all who have diseases and he cures them. Eventually, however, a ship is found to take them on, and after several intermediate stops Paul arrives in Rome.
Rome (28:14-31). Little is known of his stay in Rome, which is only briefly discussed in the last half of the last chapter of Acts. Nothing is said of the probable fact that he is released, travels to Spain, and is imprisoned in Rome a second time, eventually to be executed by Nero. What we are told is that even while under house arrest, he continually witnesses of his faith, both to the Jews and to the Roman guards. The book ends abruptly with these words, “And he stayed two full years in his own rented quarters, and was welcoming all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all openness, unhindered.”
Conclusion: What conclusions should we draw from this amazing story of “The Spreading Flame?” Let me suggest a couple briefly:
1. Achieving God’s major objective means somebody has to go. We can’t all be witnesses just in our own neighborhood, although we should be at least that. We can’t all preach through our lifestyle in the business world. We pastors can’t all have churches in the United States. Some have to go to the uttermost part of the world, for the task has not yet been finished. Could it be that God wants one of us to go? Are we close enough to Him, serving Him and seeking His will, that we would even be able to hear the call if it came?
2. When we walk in obedience, it doesn’t mean we’ll be preserved from trouble. Total surrender doesn’t come with money-back guarantees, but it does come with promises of sufficient grace and reward for faithfulness.
3. There is no better (or safer) place to be than in the center of God’s will. And no one can tell you what that is except God Himself.
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Missionary journeys of Paul
The Jerusalem Council