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BIBLE
STUDY LESSON
For
the week beginning Sunday October 16, 2016
PAUL AND BARNABAS IN ICONIUM
Acts 14:1-7
When Paul and Barnabas
left Antioch of Prisidia they traveled 90 miles to the ancient city of Iconium,
which was located in a Roman province in south central Asia Minor called
Lycaonia. The citizens of Iconium were primarily Phrygian and like the people
of Phrygia, Lystra, and Derbe, they spoke in the Lycaonian language, or,
dialect.
While in Iconium, Paul
and Barnabas went into the synagogue together and preached with great power,
and a large number of both, Jews and Gentiles, were converted to CHRIST from
Judaism. However, the anti-CHRIST Jews who spurned GOD’s message went about
stirring up distrust among the Gentiles against Paul and Barnabas. They begin
to say all kinds of evil things about them.
However, despite this
opposition, Paul and Barnabas stayed for a long time in Iconium boldly
preaching and teaching about JESUS and the grace of the LORD. And GOD, through
HIS divine help, proved their message was true by giving them power to do
miraculous signs and wonders before the people. However, despite the apostle’s
powerful works, the church remained divided in their opinion as some sided with
the anti-CHRIST Jews, and some sided with the pro-CHRIST apostles.
Consequently, a mob of
Jews and Gentiles banded together and conspired to stone Paul and Barnabas to
death. However, the two apostles learned of their plot and fled farther into
Lycaonia to the cities of Lystra and Derbe and began to preach the Good News
about CHRIST there.
PAUL AND BARNABAS IN LYSTRA AND DERBE
Acts 14:8-20
After arriving in Lystra,
Paul and Barnabas came across a lifelong cripple who had been born with his disability
being in his feet. The cripple man was listening as Paul preached JESUS to the
crowd who had gathered to hear them.
Here in this passage we
see Paul and Barnabas, preaching JESUS to a crowd of pagans, who lacked any
Jewish background whatsoever, that they could appeal to, and yet, even in this
atmosphere, Paul was able to take notice of this cripple man and realize he
already had enough faith to be healed. And so Paul called out to the cripple
man and commanded him to stand up. And the man jumped to his feet and started
walking.
When the crowd saw what
Paul had done for the cripple man, they shouted aloud in their own local
dialect, (a language that he and Barnabas could not understand), “These men are
gods in human bodies!” they said. And so they had foolishly demised that Paul
was the Greek god Hermes, because he was the chief speaker, and Barnabas was
the Greek god Zeus.
There was a temple that
was already built for Zeus worship, located just outside the city of Lystra,
and the priests of that temple, and the people of Lystra began bringing oxen and wreaths of flowers,
and prepared themselves to give sacrifices to Paul and Barnabas at the city
gates.
The worship of the idol
gods Zeus and Hermes in that area can be traced back to an age-old legend about
the two gods coming to earth in disguise, and none of the residents of Lycaonia
were willing to show them any hospitality. Finally, an old peasant couple by
the names of Philemon and Baucis took them in. As a result, this couple was
made the guardians of the temple of Zeus, and when they died, they were turned
into two great trees by the idol god. The rest of the people of Lycaonia were
killed for refusing to lend hospitality to the two gods. This time the highly
religiously superstitious people were determined not to make the same mistake
as their predecessors had.
When Paul and Barnabas
heard about what the people were planning to do, they tore their clothes in
dismay, and rushed down to stop them. They explained to the crowd that they
were only human, just like them, and that they only came to preach the Gospel
of CHRIST so that they might refrain from just such idol worship and worthless
things. Even after the pair explained certain facts about GOD to them, they
could scarcely restrain the people from trying to sacrifice to them.
About that time some
Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium and turned the worshipful crowd into a
murderous mob, and they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city and left
him for dead. The next day Paul and Barnabas left Lystra for Derbe where they
hoped that they could, perhaps, preach to a more rational, less hostile
audience.
PAUL AND BARNABAS RETURN TO ANTIOCH OF SYRIA
Acts 14:21-28
In Acts
14:21-28, we see that, after preaching the Good News about CHRIST to the people
of Derbe and making many disciples, Paul and Barnabas return to Antioch of
Syria, the missionary branch of the early Christian Movement. It had been a
mission that was very successful, despite the severe persecutions and rigors of
their travels by land and by sea. And even though Paul had been nearly stoned
to death in their initial visit to Lystra, near the end of their journey, they
persisted in their charge from the HOLY SPIRIT, and he actually got up and went
right back into Lystra, before returning back to their base at Antioch of Syria.
Barnabas and Paul (Saul) were sent out by
the HOLY SPIRIT to serve and to grow the Church of our LORD and SAVIOR, JESUS
CHRIST, and it is in that same SPIRIT that we Christians operate today when we
commit ourselves to the work of CHRIST. The early church had many struggles and
persecutions, and Barnabas and Paul warn of that fact to the Church, at the end
of this maiden journey. They also encouraged the believers to continue on in
the faith, and reminded them that, in order to enter into the kingdom of GOD,
we, like JESUS, must go through many trials tribulations along the way.
During their maiden missionary journey,
Paul and Barnabas appointed many elders, and planted and established many branches
of the Christian Church along the way. There was also much praying and fasting
done, before turning those men over to GOD, WHO was faithful to empower them in
every area of their ministry.
When Paul and Barnabas had arrived back at
Antioch, they called the Church together and told the congregation about all of
the things that GOD had done for, and with them on their trip, including how HE
had opened the doors of faith also to the Gentiles in every city and town that
they visited.
A Sunday school lesson by,
Larry D. Alexander
LARRY D. ALEXANDER- Official
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