Acts 13-14 - Receiving and Rejecting

So today I am playing catch-up from yesterday, so I am reading two chapters. Both chapters are descriptions of Paul and Barnabas in their early journeys. They went from city to city, explaining the Scriptures and pointing to Jesus as the Messiah. I am still amazed, but shouldn't really be, that everywhere they went they were met with a large number of people who were receptive to the gospel and believed in Jesus. Yet there were also a few who rejected the teaching. In each city there were those who received and those who rejected.

Acts 13 - Acts 14

1. What stuck out to you from this passage?

Things have not changed much in 2000 years. The gospel message is the same, the proofs of Jesus as Messiah are the same, and people are still receiving and rejecting Jesus. What stood out to me is that even though there were these two groups emerging in each city, the group that received Jesus as Messiah was not out to dispose the Jewish leadership. Paul and Barnabas were not teaching the people to hate the Jewish leaders or stone them or persecute them. In fact Paul and Barnabas were speaking this message of sin, grace, and salvation to them as well as everyone else. On the flip side, in every city, the group of Jewish leaders who rejected the gospel ALWAYS began to "plot", to "win the crowd over", to "mistreat them and stone them", to be motivated by "jealousy", to "stir up persecution against them." I really hope that this is the way it is today as well.

2. How does this relate to any other Scripture I know?

This is an interesting correlation, but as I read these two chapters I noticed this repeated act of preaching and teaching, followed by persecution and rejection. It reminded me of reading the book of Judges, where the people would turn away from God and worship other "gods", then God would allow the nations to rule over them and mistreat them, then the people would return to God and cry out, then God would rescue them, and they would repeat the whole cycle.

3. What does this mean for my life?

As we teach and preach the gospel, I pray that we are more like Paul and Barnabas (and Jesus) offering life and salvation, and receiving both acceptance and persecution. I pray, like the early apostles, that we would teach and preach the Bible with boldness in a way that is winsome and inviting to all people. I also pray that we would be willing to accept both the fruit of the gospel and the persecution that might come with it.

4. What questions do I have about this passage?

In Acts 13:48, there is an interesting concept of those who responded to the gospel favorably, and it states also that "all who were appointed for eternal life believed." I know there are some who strongly believe in predestination and others who believe in the freedom of all to reject or receive. This is one of the incongruences of Calvinism and Arminianism. But the more I read the Bible I tend to see both appearing all over the place. Each "side" can find verses to support their point of view and sound convincing, but I'm leaning more and more toward realizing that somehow both are true and a part of the mystery of how God works. Maybe that's a cop-out answer, but it's how I feel. (That was more of an observation/wondering than a direct question.)

Anyone is welcome to post any comment about the reading or about my response. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

In Christ,
Dan