Acts 14:8-18 *
In
the name of Christ Jesus, dear friends:
“God has come down to us in
human form.” This is a thought that has probably entered
the minds of many different biblical figures. A group of shepherds could not
keep this information to themselves when angels told them about the
world-changing event that had just taken place in a stable in
Mary
and Joseph knew it to be true from their personal experience, as they raised a
child who was perfect in every way. This
fact became obvious to the disciples who saw water turned into wine, storms
stilled and countless people healed of sickness and disease. And can there be a more powerful witness than
Lazarus, who on command walked out of his tomb alive after four days in the
grave (John 11)?
We
don’t fit into the same category, at least not exactly. We haven’t seen God face to face. We were not alive when Jesus walked on this
earth. We were not eyewitnesses of his
miracles. But we can speak with the same
confidence. God’s inspired Word
convinces us that these events really happened.
God’s Word tells us that God was and is still directly involved in the
lives of his people. And so with the
shepherds and the Wise Men and Mary and Joseph and the disciples and many other
witnesses, we too can testify that…
This
simple message was the same message that two missionaries, Paul and Barnabas,
carried with them to the city of
II. The crowds confused this message
III. Paul and Barnabas proclaimed this message
Paul
and Barnabas didn’t exactly arrive at Lystra by accident, but the way they came
to the city was probably not part of their original itinerary either. The Holy Spirit had set apart these two men
to reach out to the Gentiles with the gospel.
So they embarked on what we now call Paul’s first missionary
journey. Their travels took them into the
The
problem was that many others rejected the message. In
What
is amazing is that this intense opposition did not discourage the missionaries
at all. They did not give up. They were not intimidated. They “continued
to preach the good news” (Acts 14:7). Circumstances
dictated a change in plans, but it was not a setback. Instead, God used these troubles as an
opportunity to spread his Word in new places.
“In Lystra there sat a man
crippled in his feet, who was lame from birth and had never walked” (8). When Paul and Barnabas came
to Lystra, it is likely that they went where the people were, the marketplace. And it would not have been unusual to find a
lame man in the area begging for money from those who passed by.
We
are not told in so many words, but we can infer that this man’s life had not
been easy. He had never taken a
step. That meant he had to depend on
others for everything. The message of
these newcomers must have caught his attention because we are told that he was
listening to what Paul was saying.
Little did he know that God was about to change his life forever.
“Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed…” (9). The Holy Spirit was doing his work. The Word Paul preached produced results. Paul could see that this man who had been
lame from birth had faith. This was
nothing less than a miracle.
This
first miracle was followed by another.
Paul “called out, ‘Stand up on your feet!’ At that, the man jumped up and began
to walk” (10). This healing was not
a process. It did not take a few minutes
to take effect. Paul’s words produced
immediate results. The man who had never
walked immediately sprang to his feet and began to move around.
Can
you remember your first steps? It is a
very important day when a child takes that first step, both in the child’s life
and in the life the parents. Some
parents are fortunate enough to see it happen.
Some are even lucky enough to catch the moment on tape. But there is no way that we can appreciate
that event the way the lame man did.
That day was the best day of the lame man’s entire life, but not
necessarily because he could walk.
As
if a miraculous healing was not enough, that was also the day when he was
introduced to his Savior. Paul shared
with him the good news about Jesus, how Jesus was true God, how God became a
man to save us from our sins, how Jesus died on the cross to rescue us, how
Jesus rose victorious over death on Easter morning. The lame man believed the message, and the
Lord showered him with spiritual and physical blessings.
None
of us can remember when we took our first steps. And few, if any of us, can remember the day
we took our first spiritual steps either.
For most of us, God created faith in our hearts when we were little
babies. Even though we can’t remember our
conversion the way the lame man did, what God has done in our lives is no less
miraculous. The Holy Spirit has given us faith to believe. He has brought us from death to life.
Unfortunately,
what was true for the lame man and what is true for us is not true for
everyone. The crowds that witnessed
Paul’s miraculous healing in Lystra did not believe. They confused the message.
God
performed two miracles through Paul, but the crowds could only see one of
them. Based on what they saw, they came
to the wrong conclusion. The once
crippled man who now stood before them was proof that there was something
special about Paul and Barnabas. But
instead of listening carefully to their message, they chose to worship the
messengers.
“When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in
the Lycaonian language, ‘The gods have come down to us in human form!’ Barnabas they called Zeus,
and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker” (11, 12). These
superstitious people believed that the gods of Greek mythology had descended
from above. They reasoned that only the
gods could heal people. Therefore, these
men must be gods. Barnabas they called
Zeus, the head of the gods. And Paul
they labeled Hermes because he did most of the talking.
“The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the
city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd
wanted to offer sacrifices to them” (13).
For some reason, the gods had chosen to come
down to Lystra. The people didn’t know
why, but they did know that this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. And they wanted to make the most of it. They prepared to worship these gods the only
way they knew how.
In analyzing this
account, the sin of the people of Lystra is obvious. They were guilty of open idolatry. In the first commandment, God declares: “You
shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3). But the crowd had little regard for God’s law and little understanding
of who the true God is.
We who are gathered here
today do not have to worry about the sin of idolatry, at least not open
idolatry. We don’t bow down to wood and
stone. But when God looks at our lives
under the microscope of his law, what does he see? Is the first commandment perfectly in tact? Or is it broken to bits?
It is possible to make a
case for the people of Lystra. They were
isolated. They were superstitious. When they heard the gospel from Paul’s mouth,
they were probably hearing about Jesus for the first time. They had seen a miracle. They were confused. Based on their very limited knowledge, they
were only trying to come up with some kind of explanation.
What is our excuse? We know the truth. We know who Jesus is. We know what Jesus has done. We have places where we worship. We have Bibles in our homes. Still, we confuse the message of Jesus. We put people before God. We put possessions above God. We put personal pleasure in the place of
God. Our idolatry may not be out in the
open, but it is just as real and just as damning. And there is no excuse.
Paul and Barnabas did
everything in their power to set the record straight with the people of
Lystra. And thankfully, our God shows
the same kind of love and patience with us.
Paul and Barnabas were not gods, but the people of Lystra were not
totally wrong either. God had indeed
come down to earth in human form. It was
the task of the two missionaries to proclaim that message.
When Paul and Barnabas
saw what was happening, they had three choices: do nothing, leave town, or try
to stop the crowds. The first option was
not an option because they could not let themselves become objects of
worship. The second option, however,
might have been appealing. Why risk
personal harm, especially after such a close call in Iconium? How could two men stop such a large crowd
anyway? Why not get out while the
getting was good?
Why not? Because that would have\ gone against
everything they wanted to accomplish.
Paul and Barnabas were missionaries called by God and sent out by God. They did not see the crowds of people as a
danger to be avoided, but as a great number of souls to be saved.
So they did the only thing they could do. They tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd and shouted: “Men, why are you doing this? We too are only men, human like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them” (15).
Paul knew that the gods
of the Greeks were worthless. Paul knew
that these people were doomed if they did not turn to the true God, the living
God who creates and preserves all things.
With no regard for their personal safety, Paul and Barnabas boldly
proclaimed the message of Jesus.
How did God reward them
for their efforts? Some people came from
Later Paul would write to
the Christians at
Now ask yourself: What if
Paul had played it safe and left town?
Or what if Paul had packed up and went home? Then it would be very likely that he would
have never come to know a young man from Lystra, a man who later became a close
friend of Paul, a man who eventually became a co-worker with Paul, a young man
by the name of Timothy. And if Paul had not
reached out to Timothy, then his successor Timothy would not have reached out
to others, and only God knows how many people would have never heard the good
news and believed.
I am Paul. You are Paul.
We are all Paul. God enlists all
of us to proclaim the message of Jesus. Sometimes
God may call us to suffer for his name, but no matter what happens
God promises that he will bless our efforts.
And God has given us the most amazing news to share. As we proclaim the message, only God knows
how many people will hear the good news and believe.
This is the message we
have to proclaim. God himself has come
down to us in human form. God became a
man to save us. Jesus died on the cross
to free us. And with ascension only four
days away, we are reminded that Jesus has returned to heaven to prepare a place
for us. Amen.