Acts 13:38-52

REACTING TO THE GOSPEL:

How People May Respond When You Share the Good News

Sharing the good news of Jesus Christ is a challenging task in our world today. People are generally well informed about the different faiths and ideologies through education or the internet. There exists a smorgasbord of values and beliefs that individuals tend to mash together to form their own faith system. In a context like this, what kind of reaction can we expect from people when we share the good news of Jesus?

            On our recent trip to Arizona, Sharon and I were quite set on seeing the Grand Canyon. We had traveled from the southeast corner of the state to Sedona and so, tired of driving, we chose to go on a tour of the Canyon. We imagined a busload of tourists, but to our surprise our guide showed up with a Suburban and said we were the only two who had signed up.

            Dave Reed, our guide, was a real character. He had us laughing throughout the day and often stole my camera to take pictures of us (One time when we returned to the suburban, Dave was reclined and doing knee exercises. He said he was calming himself to breathe in and out at the same time. I said, "Really?" He said, "No, I just made that up."). Dave lives in Sedona, a New Age town with psychic readings, crystals, and native spirituality.

            When I first learned that we would be alone with Dave, my first thought was “I wonder if I will be able to share the gospel with him?” I quietly prayed that I might bring Jesus into our discussion sometime in the day. Then I wondered how he would react to our faith in Jesus. Our conversation with Dave will come up again in this sermon as a means of illustrating how people may respond to the gospel.

            In Acts 13 we are introduced to the first missionary journey featuring Paul and Barnabas. As a template for future missions, Paul and Barnabas made it a habit to visit the Jews in their synagogues first before preaching more widely. Coming to Pisidian Antioch, they are asked to bring a word to the synagogue gathering. Paul begins with a history of Israel and brings it around to Jesus. We want to look first at his gospel presentation and then the reaction of the people.

Sharing the Gospel Concisely

Paul’s address to the synagogue appears to be short. He tells them about being chosen through Abraham and moves quickly to David. Then in vv. 26-33 he recounts the passion of Christ, how no one recognized him as the Messiah and asked for his death on a tree, but how God raised him from the dead.

            The punch line of Paul’s sermon comes in vv. 38-39 (read). Here he uses five words that will become the power words of his letters to the Romans and the Galatians: sin, faith, justification (“freed”), law, and grace. The message is simple and the choice is stark. God’s promise to Israel is fulfilled through Jesus crucified and raised again to life. Through him there is forgiveness of sins. Obedience to the law does not bring justification (removal of sin) because no one could obey the law perfectly – it ends up condemning you instead. Through Jesus there is justification for all who believe.

            This was the extent of the gospel Paul preached. We find it to be concise and to the point. Writing to the Corinthians Paul summed up the gospel in a nutshell (read 1 Cor. 15:3-4). Whatever else we may add to the gospel by way of explanation or testimony, the core truth is Jesus dying for our sins as the Son of God with God raising him from the dead for our justification.

            Post-modern attention spans are short. You need to make your point quickly or you will lose your audience (with any subject). I knew that if I was going to share my gospel values with Dave I had to be concise. I didn’t know how to begin, to be honest, and so I waited.

            At one point, Dave must have asked some questions about us. I shared that we were Mennonites – that surprised him considering our dress and manner (and the fact that we gave him a gratuity). Then I broke my own rule and confessed that I was a pastor (I avoid this because of the walls that might go up). To my surprise it opened up a door. I shared that we were “evangelical” Mennonites and explained that it meant we were gospel-believing Christ-centered followers of Jesus. The impact of Jesus’ death and resurrection came easily into the conversation.

Responding to the Gospel with Enthusiasm

When Paul shared this gospel truth with the Jews of Pisidian Antioch, they received the news with enthusiasm. A synagogue might have 40 solid members and the interest of this little group was raised. Three words pop out in vv. 42-43: begged, followed, urged (show on slide).

            This synagogue of Jews was a tiny island in a sea of paganism. So a word of scripture like this intrigued them. The people begged Paul and Barnabas to come again next Sabbath and to share more of the Christ. But to think that Paul and Barnabas just sat and waited from Sabbath to Sabbath before teaching again is mistaken. They will have taught all week so that Jews and devout converts (Gentiles who worshiped Yahweh) followed them. What excited them was the talk of grace, the freedom from the strictures of the law, and they urged them to keep talking about grace.

            Let’s not confuse enthusiasm or curiosity with faith. Our listeners can be politely interested in what our faith means to us. They will ask questions and even affirm us in our beliefs. That does not mean acceptance of Christ.

            There are basically four types of reactions to the gospel: Mockers who scoff at the gospel and excuse it as a gospel for weaklings; Skeptics who say “prove it to me” and want all the intellectual data before deciding to believe in Jesus; the Shamed who feel they have too many horrific things that they feel that Jesus could not forgive them; and the Seeker who wants to hear more.

            Dave was interested. But in the eleven hours we spent with Dave I could tell that he was living in a sea of choices. He didn’t believe in the power of crystals, but he and his wife had chosen to be married by an Indian medicine man. He accepted many of the truths I shared with him, but with caution. For Dave there were many ways to God, or shall we say enlightenment, and that clouded Dave’s ability to see the truth of Jesus solely. That’s really what we are dealing with as witnesses of Christ. We are encountering people who are well-informed with a variety of options; they affirm us in our beliefs but reserve the right to believe what they will.

Responding to the Gospel with Hostility

After a week of teaching in Pisidian Antioch, almost the whole city showed up at the synagogue to hear Paul and Barnabas. Those 40 Jews suddenly found thousands cramming to hear the evangelists. Many prominent synagogue members had marked seats reserved for them. Imagine the ire that was raised when they found Gentiles sitting in their seats. Imagine the jealousy aroused when the good news they thought was for them is now available to these “others.”

            So we read, “But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what was spoken by Paul, reviling him” (13:45). One of the marks of true evangelism is that those who are affected by it are divided. They are either for it or against it. Neutrality is just not possible when the exclusive claims of Jesus are presented.

            For these Jews, pride was a stumbling block. The gospel robs people of any grounds for boasting. Jealousy follows since the Jews wanted everyone to stay in their system of works, to validate their way, and to affirm their status as the “religious” ones. Grace threatened all of that, grace through one man, Jesus Christ.

            Dave remarked that he wondered why we call it “the Living Bible.” I used his own illustration of the Grand Canyon. He said that you can see the Canyon thousands of times and it always looks different. The Bible is living because you can read Isaiah 53 today and see one thing, read it again next week and see another truth. The Canyon doesn’t change just how we see it. The Bible doesn’t change either.

            Then in our discussion of the merits of different faiths, I referred to the living Bible. I said, “Jesus claims exclusivity when it comes to salvation, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but through me.’” Dave didn’t like that; he wasn’t hostile but you could see he was rattled. He resisted a little, but I said, “Dave, I didn’t say that – Jesus did.”

Responding to the Gospel with Joy

The Jews rejected the good news of Jesus as quickly as it had percolated their interest. “Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles” (13:46b).

            Note that they judged themselves unworthy of eternal life – they rejected the good news. It wasn’t taken from them; it was not withheld from them; it wasn’t hidden from them. They decided the good news was not worth the cost.

            But the Gentiles rejoiced! The way was opened to them to believe in Jesus the crucified and risen Lord and to receive eternal life. I can’t imagine the party that ensued.

            Here, though, we find a curious phrase related to their joy and belief, “and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed” (13:48b). Some would firmly state that this is a reference to divine election. Divine election is the belief that God chooses (appoints, elects) who will hear and believe the good news and be saved. Both John Stott and F.F. Bruce, solid commentators, reject that theology and suggest that when these Gentiles believed that they were immediately written into the Lamb’s Book of Life.

            While I and this church believe in the free will of the person to believe in Jesus apart from some sort of predetermined plan of God, I think there is a mystery in election that we don’t understand this side of heaven. God chooses us, and we choose him. It is a divine mystery. Jesus said that none come to him unless the Father draws him (John 6:44), and later in Acts 16, Luke writes that the Lord opened Lydia’s heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul (16:14). Yet I remind you that in this chapter the Jews have the mental, emotional and spiritual power to reject God. It is truly a mystery.

            The joy in this mystery is the joy of somehow being chosen by God to be saved through Jesus Christ. If he had not chosen us we could not be saved at all. For Paul says in Eph. 1:5 “In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ according to the purpose of his will.” Does God choose us? Yes. Do we have the freedom to choose God? Yes. Hallelujah! And thank you to the Jews for making it possible for us to hear the gospel.

Did Dave become a follower of Jesus after our conversation? No. Did I fail in my sharing of the gospel? No. God answered my prayer in giving me an opportunity to talk about Jesus to Dave. He gave me gentleness and wisdom to share with Dave without being annoying or obnoxious.

            What I am encouraged by in this interaction is that conversion is God’s job, not mine. It is the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the seeker. We are responsible for proclaiming the truth. What God does with those words is up to Him. But it was an affirming experience nonetheless.

            How will people react to the good news when we share it? We really have no idea. I don’t think people are as hostile as we imagine. They can be quite affirming when we talk about Jesus (hot topics are another issue – we did not talk about homosexuality – my aim was to talk about Jesus).

            What we may be afraid of is that the gospel will be offensive to our conversation partner, so we try to take the offense out of it. We make it safe and palatable and boil it down to “if you’re unhappy in life, try Jesus. He will make you happy. Don’t worry about your sin.” But that is not the Gospel. Augustine pointed this out a long time ago: “If you believe what you like in the gospel and reject what you don’t like, it is not the gospel you believe, but yourself.”

            The gospel confronts us with our sin. It also offers to every sinner the grace of God through Jesus Christ if we believe in him as the just substitute for sinners.

            Will Dave one day believe in the Son of God? I pray that he will. And I pray that I may have more opportunities to share the good news of Jesus and be content to let him do the converting.

                                                                        AMEN