Serious Gentile Territory

Acts of the Apostles (28)

Introduction

We are now accompanying Paul on his first missionary journey, together with Barnabas and their associate minister, John Mark. Now remember the theme of the book of Acts—that being the spread of the gospel from Jerusalem, at one end, to the uttermost parts of the earth on the other. We are engaged in the arduous process of incorporating the Gentiles into the Christian church, and we have now come to the first giant step. 

The Text

“Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away . . .” (Acts 13:1–13).

Summary of the Text

We begin with a description of the leadership at Syrian Antioch, made up of prophets and teachers. There was Barnabas, an encouraging man we already know. There was a black man named Simeon (his nickname gives him away). Lucius was from Cyrene, located in the eastern part of modern-day Libya in North Africa. Manaen was likely a nobleman, having been raised together with Herod the tetrarch. And of course there was Saul (v. 1).

As they ministered before the Lord (the word is leitourgeo, from which we get liturgy) and were fasting, the Spirit directed them to set apart Saul and Barnabas for the mission work He was calling them to (v. 2). So they fasted and prayed some more, ordained the two men to the task by laying hands on them, and sent them off (v. 3). Seleucia was the port city for Antioch, so they went there and then sailed for Cyprus (v. 4), which was sixty miles west, and was where Barnabas was originally from (Acts 4:36). Arriving at Salamis, the main port of Cyprus, on the east side of the island, they preached in various synagogues, and John Mark was their associate minister (v. 5). Paphos was a city on the southwestern coast of Cyprus, and when they arrived there they encountered a sorcerer, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-jesus (v. 6). This false one was somehow attached to the Roman proconsul named Sergius Paulus, an intelligent Gentile who was open to the gospel (v. 7). But Elymas (also named Bar-jesus) opposed his interest and tried to turn him away from the faith (v. 8). So then Saul (or Paul) was filled with the Spirit, fixed his eyes on him (v. 9), and called him a bunch of names (v. 10). He said that Elymas was filled with trickery and villainy, a child of the devil, and an enemy of righteousness. “When are you going to stop your perversions?” And then, with a word, Paul struck him blind for a season, and Elymas began groping in a dark mist, looking for a hand (v. 11). So Sergius Paulus, suitably astonished, believed in the Lord (v. 12). They then left Cyprus, sailed north to the city of Perga in Pamphylia (modern Turkey), and John Mark abandoned them there, returning to Jerusalem (v. 13).     

A Gentile Cold Call

To date, the book of Acts has been slowly inching toward the deep end. We can hear the overture of this theme in the sermon of Stephen to the Sanhedrin—God was not going to be safely contained in or by their holy box. But the initial forays are all Jewish adjacent. The Samaritans are included, but they were at least partly Jewish (Acts 8:14). The Ethiopian eunuch was saved, but he had just been worshiping in Jerusalem (a clear God-fearer), and then he had the good grace to disappear back to Ethiopia (Acts 8:39). Then there was Cornelius, a Roman centurion, but he was a God-fearer also, and had a reputation as such among the Jews (Acts 10:22). So he was included also, but there was some disputing over that. The road was starting to get bumpy.

The conversion of Sergius Paulus was the first recorded Gentile convert straight out of paganism. When Saul and Barnabas were ministering in the synagogues of Cyprus, in Salamis, John Mark was right there, serving as their assistant. But then when they presented the gospel to a man who up until ten minutes before had had a sorcerer as part of his entourage, this was a bit much for John Mark. He headed back to Jerusalem at the first opportunity.

John Mark did not leave the mission because he was a sissy. At the very least, he had some sympathies with the Judaizers, and was uncomfortable with the radical steps that Paul was taking. After the Jerusalem Council decided the issue, John Mark submitted to that decision . . . but Paul was still dubious. We will see the results of that shortly.   

Saul Becomes Paul

This significant moment—going straight to a Gentile as a pagan Gentile—is where Luke starts calling Saul Paul. Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles (Rom. 11:13; 1 Tim. 2:7; 2 Tim. 1:11), and as we accompany him as he is discharging that office, we start going by his Gentile name. Paul goes by Paul for the remainder of Acts. The only time the name Saul is used after this is in a reference to the first king of Israel (Acts 13:21), and in Paul’s testimonies where the Lord calls him Saul (Acts 22:7; 26:14), and when Ananias does (Acts 22:13). Paul is the great apostle to the Gentiles, which we recognize through the name we use for him. But again, it is not that Saul is his non-Christian name. It is his Jewish name. Paul is his Gentile name.   

Ethnic Challenges, Theirs and Ours

It is the easiest thing in the world to be suspicious of people who are different, and this includes suspicions created by trivial differences—clothing styles, how many spices they use to flavor the food, and so on. But it is also the easiest thing in the world for liberals to pretend that this is the nature of all ethnic differences by definition, and consequently it is the reason they insist that ethnicity (and citizenship and borders and so on) shouldn’t matter to anybody at all, for any reason.

But ethnic differences can be adiaphora (as noted above), with some cultures using a lot more nutmeg than is proper. At the next level up, differences can be substantive, but not overtly moral (education, literacy, artistic, language, etc.). And then there are also ethnic differences that are directly moral. Complicating matters somewhat, in the first century, there were also some old covenant/new covenant issues, issues which were scriptural, but not necessarily moral (e.g. bacon).

When the Jerusalem Council made their definitive determination, one of the things they required was that the Gentiles avoid fornication (Acts 15:29). And remember that the new members class at Corinth had to contain the reminder to stop visiting prostitutes (1 Cor. 6:15). But because people are the way they are, these three levels get all jumbled up together, such that some people start thinking that being loose about nutmeg is a dog-whistle for being loose about fornication. 

So keep your eye on the ball—