Journey Through Acts (Part 8) Series

The Journey: Following Jesus through Acts (8)

Scott Bayles, pastor

Scripture: Acts 14:8-20

Blooming Grove Christian Church: 8/13/2017

As most of you know, we’re eight weeks into a ten-week journey through the book of Acts. As I’ve said before, our goal is to follow in the footsteps of those who followed in the footsteps of Jesus. The book of Acts is all about the birth of Christianity and the birth of the church, so by learning from the examples of these early disciples, we can hopefully figure out how to do church the way God intended and, even more importantly, follow Jesus more closely on our own spiritual journey.

Last week, we talked about a major turning point in church history—the conversion of Saul, also known as Paul. Saul started off with this unshakable conviction that Christianity must be destroyed at all costs. But then he had an unexpected confrontation with Jesus and a previously unknown believer named Ananias which led to an uncommon conversion. Immediately, Saul started preaching the Good News of Jesus in synagogues of Damascus. And everyone who heard him was amazed.

The Bible says Saul’s preaching became more and more powerful, and the Jews in Damascus couldn’t refute his proofs that Jesus was indeed the Messiah. That doesn’t mean they all became believers, though. After a while some of the Jews plotted together to kill him. They watched the city gates around the clock so that whenever he left town, they could surprise him, kill him and stash the body outside of the city. Saul caught wind of their plans, though. So, during the night, some of the believers lowered him in a large basket through an opening in the city wall so he could escape the city unnoticed.

From there, Paul returned to Jerusalem. There he tried to join the local believers, but they were all afraid of him. They didn’t trust him one bit. Until, that is, Barnabas took him under his wing. He introduced Saul to the apostles and stood up for him, told them how Saul had seen and spoken to Jesus on the Damascus Road and how in Damascus itself he had laid his life on the line with his bold preaching in Jesus’ name. After that he was accepted as one of them.

In chapter 10, another major event takes place. An angel of the Lord visits the Roman officer, Cornelius, in a vision. He tells Cornelius to summon the Apostle Peter, who also received a vision. When Peter arrives, the Holy Spirit descends on Cornelius and his whole family, unveiling the next stage in the expansion of the church: God wants the Gospel to go to the Gentiles. This sets the stage for Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles.

In Act 13, the Holy Spirit calls Paul and Barnabas to this special task. Thus, Paul and Barnabas begin their missionary journeys. First, they journeyed to the island of Cyprus and preached from town to town across the entire island. Then they sailed to Pamphilia and made their way to Antioch, then on to Iconium—all the while preaching and teaching the Good News of Jesus to anyone who would listen. Everywhere they went some people believed in Jesus, but others became hostile and chased Paul and Barnabas out of town under the threat of death.

Midway through chapter 14, they arrive in Lystra—a Greek city with an interesting claim to fame. This is where I’d like to catch up with Paul and Barnabas, so if you have a Bible or an app on your phone, open it to Acts 14, where we find a curious and somewhat comical series of events.

I’d like to explore this story in four segments, beginning with the miracle.

• THE MIRACLE

It seems like everywhere the Apostles go, something miraculous happens. Lystra was no exception. Our story begins abruptly:

“While they were at Lystra, Paul and Barnabas came upon a man with crippled feet. He had been that way from birth, so he had never walked. He was sitting and listening as Paul preached. Looking straight at him, Paul realized he had faith to be healed. So Paul called to him in a loud voice, “Stand up!” And the man jumped to his feet and started walking.” (Acts 14:8-10 NLT)

Right off the bat, you might notice some similarities between this miracle and the one Peter performed in Acts 3. If you remember, in Acts 3 Peter healed a disabled beggar by the Beautiful Gate in Jerusalem. In both instances, the disabled man was described as crippled from birth, which means the local townsfolk would know beyond the shadow of a doubt that this person had a lifelong physical ailment that couldn’t be cured. Both healings also include the steady gaze of the apostle and the exuberant response of the healed man. It’s likely that Luke intentionally included this story in Scripture in order to parallel the earlier story, placing Peter and Paul on equal footing, and cementing Paul’s status as an Apostle.