‘THEY STAYED’

Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on February 1, 2023 under AM Bible Study |

AM Bible Study Group: February 1, 2023 from Acts 14:1-7

Theme: Faithfulness to the gospel requires that we remain steadfast in the face of opposition for as long as possible.

(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).

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Over the past few weeks, we’ve been learning the details of Paul and Barnabas’ first missionary journey. And already, we’ve begun to see a pattern in their work.

First, when they’d come to a new city, they would go immediately to the synagogue and preach. This is because the gospel of Jesus Christ is ‘for the Jew first’ (Romans 1:16). And when the Jewish people rejected the gospel, the missionaries would only then go to the Gentiles—who would receive it gladly. And then, when the Jewish leaders became jealous of the influence that the gospel was having over the Gentiles, they would seek to forcefully drive the missionaries out of town. And when that happened, the missionaries simply went to the next town and repeated the cycle.

This is very much like something that the Lord Jesus taught His apostles. He was about to send them out—not to the Gentiles, but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. They were to go to a town, stay in one house at a time, and minister from there to the town in His name. And before He sent them out, He warned them that theirs would not be an easy ministry. They would often meet with hostility along the way. He told them;

“And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet” (Matthew 10:14).

That’s what the missionaries were experiencing in the Book of Acts. Wherever they went to preach, there would be some who would gratefully receive the gospel, and there would be others who would fiercely reject it. The message of Jesus’ gospel has a saving effect; but it also seems to have a dividing effect. And in that very first commission, Jesus went on to tell His apostles;

“When they persecute you in this city, flee to another. For assuredly, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes” (v. 23).

And that’s what we’re now seeing happen in the story of the Book of Acts. The missionaries Paul and Barnabas had just gone to Antioch in Pisidia; and they immediately went to the synagogue. Paul preached a very clear message of the gospel to them in Acts 13:16-41. He not only made the message clear; but he also clearly appealed to his Jewish listeners to receive it and believe it. But when the Jewish leaders began to speak against the message, Paul and Barnabas turned and offered it to the Gentiles—who received it gladly. And then, when the Jewish leaders stirred up the people and ‘raised up persecution’ against Paul and Barnabas, they shook the dust off their feet and departed to the next town—leaving a brand new church in the city of Antioch.

And that leads us then to Chapter 14; and to the next town that they went to. It is Iconium—about sixty miles southeast of Pisidian Antioch. Luke tells us in verses 1-7;

Now it happened in Iconium that they went together to the synagogue of the Jews, and so spoke that a great multitude both of the Jews and of the Greeks believed. But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brethren. Therefore they stayed there a long time, speaking boldly in the Lord, who was bearing witness to the word of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands. But the multitude of the city was divided: part sided with the Jews, and part with the apostles. And when a violent attempt was made by both the Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, to abuse and stone them, they became aware of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding region. And they were preaching the gospel there (Acts 14:1-7).

We see the same kind of pattern occurring here. But there’s an additional element to the pattern that is made particularly clear to us in this story. They didn’t leave as soon as opposition began to develop. The opposition caused them to stay even longer and commit to the work even more resolutely. They only left when it got to the point that it became a danger to their safety and to their lives.

And so; this passage has something to teach us about being steadfast as witnesses for our Lord. We may not be sent out as missionaries—as Paul and Barnabas were. But we are all Jesus’ ‘ambassadors’; and we are placed by God in situations in which He calls us to be His faithful witnesses. When opposition to the gospel begins to arise, we may be tempted to immediately quit—or perhaps move on elsewhere. But the example of these bold missionaries shows us that the mere arising of opposition alone does not mean that it’s time to quit. Instead, it’s time to ‘stay put’ and keep on being Jesus’ witnesses for as long as possible—and only move on when it becomes absolutely necessary to do so.

As Paul’s and Barnabas’ example shows us, faithfulness to the gospel requires that we remain steadfast in the face of opposition for as long as possible. Even when things got hot, they stayed—not out of belligerence or arrogance, but out of obedient trust in the Lord who sent them.

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So then; let’s look at this passage in more detail. In Acts 13:51, we’re told that they went to Iconium. And now, in verses 1-2 of Chapter 14, we see how it came to be that …

1. THE OPPOSITION AROSE (vv. 1-2).

Verse 1 tells us how they followed their usual pattern. We’re told, “Now it happened in Iconium that they went together to the synagogue of the Jews …” Even though they suffered trouble for preaching the gospel in the synagogue in Antioch, they nevertheless honored God’s established pattern Iconium for the spread of the gospel. God loves His precious chosen people; and so it was to the Jews that the gospel must go first. And as verse 1 also goes on to tell us, they “so spoke that a great multitude both of the Jews and of the Greeks believed.” The gospel was successful; and just as it says in 13:48, “as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.”

But then, another part of the pattern began to show itself. We’re told in verse 2, “But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brethren.” To say that they “stirred up” the Gentiles meant that they “raised up” controversies against the Gentiles who were believing. It’s the same thing that they did to the believing Gentiles in Antioch in 13:50; where we’re told that they “raised up” hostilities against the missionaries. And to say that they “poisoned their minds against the brethren”, it meant (literally) that they ‘corrupted their psyches’ against those who were believing. It may have been a lot like what the sorcerer Elymas had been trying to do to the ruling governor of the island of Cyprus in 13:8; as he was “seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith”.

Now; this, it seems, was not to the level of persecution or physical threat against the missionaries yet. It was only at the level of opposition, and hindrance, and just plain ol’ trouble-making against the gospel. But it must have been frustrating to the missionaries. Such opposition may come in many forms today; and from many sources. But we can be sure of it: Whenever the gospel is faithfully preached—and especially when it is beginning to be believed and to change lives—then the devil will raise up opposition to it. He will send his own ambassadors to spread false doctrine, or to set up hindrances, or even to stir up suspicion against the preachers and those who believe.

Now; we shouldn’t be surprised by this. But neither should we acquiesce to it. When the devil begins to raise such opposition to the gospel, it’s a sign that it is becoming a serious threat to his territory. It’s working! And so, as we read on, we find that …

2. THE MISSIONARIES WERE STEADFAST (vv. 3-4).

Verses 3-4 tell us what the missionaries’ response to the growing opposition was: “Therefore they stayed there a long time, speaking boldly in the Lord, who was bearing witness to the word of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands.” Notice the details:

First, we notice that they didn’t leave. They “stayed there a long time”. How long they stayed isn’t told to us. But it must have been long enough for the believers to grow strong, and for the devil’s initial opposition to be frustrated. We see this often in the life and ministry of Paul. In Acts 18 that, when Paul’s preaching ministry in Corinth caused fierce opposition to arise from among the Jewish leaders, we’re told, “So Paul still remained a good while …” (or literally, “many days”; Acts 18:18). When a riot arose in Ephesus because of Paul’s preaching, and the whole city gathered together in the main city theater to chant their opposition, Paul had to be restrained from going in to the people (Acts 19:30-31). And so; here in Iconium, he and Barnabas wouldn’t quit.

Second, we notice what they were doing while they stayed. They were “speaking boldly in the Lord”. They held back nothing; but exercised courage—declaring the gospel even more faithfully and confidently in the face of the opposition. In Galatia, when false brethren came to Jerusalem to seek to bring the believers under subjection to the law, Paul said that he and the other apostles “did not yield submission” to them “even for an hour, that the truth of the gospel might continue” (Galatians 2:5).

Third, we notice that the Lord “was bearing witness to the word of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands”. The Lord was miraculously confirming His word as it was being preached by His faithful missionaries. The city of Iconium was in the regions of Galatia; and this may have been what Paul talked about in Galatians 3:5, when he spoke of “works of miracles” that had been done in their midst. In Acts 4—in the face of opposition to the gospel—the disciples prayed and said;

“Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus” (Acts 4:29-30);

and in response to their faithfulness, the Lord did so! He did so in Iconium too. We don’t have the right to demand that signs and miracles be done. That’s up to the Lord. Our job is to stay at our post and faithfully preach the good news—trusting that the Lord will validate His message as He sees fit.

Now; the two missionaries stayed at it. They didn’t leave. That didn’t mean, however, that the opposition stopped. In fact, we read in verse 4 that the multitude of the city became split down the middle; “part sided with the Jews, and part with the apostles.” This is in keeping with what the Lord Himself once said;

“Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division. For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two, and two against three. Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law” (Luke 12:51-53).

The fact that division happens is a grievous thing. But not even this should be allowed to silence the gospel. Like the two missionaries, we need to “stay”—steadfast to our call for the sake of the salvation of souls. When it had become a physical threat, these missionaries faithfully obeyed the Lord and left to go elsewhere; but since, before then, it had not yet fully broken out as a direct physical threat, then it was right for them to stay where the Lord had sent them, resist the opposition, and continue their ministry.

Now apparently, there does indeed come a time to leave. But this didn’t mean that the Great Commission of our Lord had come to an end. Nor was their departure an indication of cowardliness. It only meant that, under the sovereign guidance of the Lord …

3. THE GOSPEL TRAVELED ON (vv. 5-7).

Verses 5-6 tell us; “And when a violent attempt was made by both the Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, to abuse and stone them, they became aware of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding region.” Our Lord’s instructions—in that passage in Matthew 10—was that when the people to whom His ambassadors were persecuted in one city, they were to flee to another. Perhaps the clearest sign that it’s time to move on is the fact that we have to ‘flee’. These missionaries weren’t to stop preaching, however; but were rather to assume that the threats of violence were how God was leading them to the next place to preach.

As we will see, the opposition didn’t stop in Lysrta. In fact, it broke out in a frightfully violent way. And yet, as we’re told in verse 7, “And they were preaching the gospel there”; and continued to do so until they were forced to flee again.

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Now; we too are ambassadors for Christ. And it may not be that we are called upon to face the kind of violent opposition that Paul and Barnabas faced. But we can expect that there will be opposition to the message of the gospel that has been entrusted to us. And indeed, it may at times become more than just ‘opposition’. As Paul said to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:10-12;

But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra—what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me. Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution (2 Timothy 3:10-12).

But Paul and Barnabas’ example shows us not only that there is a time to leave; but that also there is a time not to leave. There’s a time to stay and dig in further. May God help us to remember that faithfulness to the gospel requires that we remain steadfast in the face of opposition for as long as possible—trusting that He will work through that faithfulness in His good time.

AE