Tag Archives: Paul and Silas

AFTER THE SEQUEL…HEAVEN MEETS HELL – 27

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“The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus. When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper.”

Following the leading of the Holy Spirit, the first port of call for these two unseasoned missionaries, Barnabas and Saul.  was the island of Cyprus. 

First detail…they went to the synagogues. You have to admire their courage. Despite their calling to preach the gospel to the Gentiles, Saul and Barnabas went first to the Jews. It had to be because the good news was always for God‘s own covenant people first and then the Gentiles. It seems there was no opposition to the gospel from these Jews. Perhaps they were more open-minded than their counterparts in Israel. 

Second detail…John Mark! Obviously, Barnabas included him in the party. However, like Lot in Abraham’s story, John Mark eventually became a liability according to Paul, and caused a rift in the partnership. 

Next detail…Elymas, the sorcerer. 

“They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. 

Why Paphos?

“Paphos is a historic coastal city in southwestern Cyprus, renowned as the mythical birthplace of Aphrodite and a major UNESCO World Heritage site. Historically, it was a vital religious center for the goddess’s cult and served as the island’s capital during Roman times. It boasts ancient ruins, including mosaics and the Tombs of the Kings.” (Source: Google AI)

None other than a henchman of the devil himself…and his name? Bar-Jesus! What a deception! The son of Jesus? Nothing could have been farther from the truth. 

In the hotbed of pagan worship in the capital city of Cyprus, this imposter was in league with the devil and claiming, according to his name, to be a son of Jesus, using Satan’s power to gain attention and influence. Quite comfortable in this environment, he was both a sorcerer and a false prophet. 

“The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith.”

Elymas was not comfortable in the present of Jesus. He clashed with his superior, the proconsul. by trying to oppose them and block the missionaries from speaking to his boss. He wanted none of this Jesus-thing!

“Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.” Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭13‬:‭4‬-‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Paul quickly assessed the situation. This was war! The battle lines were drawn. Unfortunately for Elymas, he was up against more than he bargained for…! Paul, on the learning curve, in the power of the Spirit, spoke the word that changed everything. Here was a demonstration of the power of the kingdom he and Barnabas represented…the power of the spoken word. 

Elymas became blind, exactly as Paul had declared. His evil heart exposed, Paul spoke darkness over him…the darkness of unseeing eyes that mirrored the darkness in his soul. 

Well! That did it! The proconsul was convinced…not because of the judgment on Elymas but because of the truth about Jesus. 

“When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭13‬:‭12‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Luke did not divulge the content of Paul’s message to the Roman officer but, together with God’s power through the spoken word, he was convinced and believed the truth. 

What a battle! What a victory!  

Paul was learning to use the power of the Word of God and the kingdom of which he and Barnabas were representatives. Their equip equipment was infallible. 

So, another seed planted…another soul won…another branch of God’s kingdom established on an island in the Mediterranean  sea! The flame was burning in the Roman Empire and would soon spread, against all odds, throughout the known world. The power of the gospel is unstoppable!

To be continued 

THE BOOK OF ACTS – ATTITUDE DETERMINES OUTCOME

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ATTITUDE DETERMINES OUTCOME

“Along about midnight, Paul and Silas were at prayer and singing a robust hymn to God. The other prisoners couldn’t believe their ears. Then, without warning, a huge earthquake! The jailhouse tottered, every door flew open, all the prisoners were loose.

“Startled from sleep, the jailer saw all the doors swinging loose on their hinges. Assuming that all the prisoners had escaped, he pulled out his sword and was about to do himself in, figuring he was as good as dead anyway, when Paul stopped him: ‘Don’t do that! We’re all still here. Nobody’s run away.'” Acts 16:25-28 (The Message).

Paul and Silas had every reason to be angry. They had been falsely accused, unjustly treated, brutally beaten without a trial, thrown into a maximum security cell and shackled in leg irons like criminals, and that for releasing a slave girl, a nobody from demonic oppression! Where was the justice in that?

They could have been just as mad at God. They were serving Jesus. They had given up everything for Him, hadn’t they? They were deserving of better treatment than that. Why did He allow it to happen to them? Why didn’t He protect them?

Can you hear your own voice mouthing these objections? The voices of your family, your friends? ‘Why me? What have I done to deserve this? Where was God in all this?’

Paul and Silas couldn’t sleep. Their backs were torn and bleeding; their legs were fastened in heavy iron shackles; the floor was cold and hard; the air was dank and smelly. They had two options — stoke the fires of anger and bitterness or pray and sing away the hours until daylight. It all depended on their attitude.

They knew that suffering was included in the package and they were also aware that, no matter how tough it was for them, Jesus suffered more. They could be angry with God, but that wouldn’t get them anywhere. The Israelites got mad when things were tough, and the consequences were not what they bargained for; God was angry and they felt it! Paul and Silas weren’t about to follow their example.

These men were steeped in the Word of God as devout Jews. It was as much part of them as their breath. They prayed it, they sang it, they lived it, every day. How natural for them, then, to fill the long, cold hours with the Word that was so precious to them! Where would they turn in their distress? To the psalms which so accurately expressed how they were feeling right then.

Others before them had suffered and trusted God, and written, prayed and sang about it for their own comfort and for the comfort of those who followed them. These two men unashamedly proclaimed their trust through the words of men who had gone before them. And the other prisoners marvelled. It was not cursing and complaining that they were hearing but praise and confidence in a God they did not know.

God also heard — and responded with earth-shaking results! How could He leave His servants in that situation when He had opportunity to show the whole jailhouse what He could do for those who trusted in Him? Would He have done the same for them had they spent their time moaning about their plight? I think not.

It’s easy to trust in God when the sun is shining and the birds are singing. Real faith is only valid when the light goes out and we can see nothing. What’s inside is only revealed under the pressure of unbearable circumstances. Why does God allow things like this to happen? He wants us to know what’s inside.

Paul and Silas passed their test with flying colours! And God gave them their reward — more freedom and greater confidence in the God who proved Himself to be utterly trustworthy.

No Pushovers

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NO PUSHOVERS

“At daybreak, the court judges sent officers with the instructions, ‘Release these men.’ The jailer gave Paul the message, ‘The judges sent word that you’re free to go on your way. Congratulations! Go in peace!’

“But Paul wouldn’t budge. He told the officers, ‘They beat us up in public, and threw us in jail, Roman citizens in good standing! And now they want us to get out of the way on the sly without anyone knowing? Nothing doing! If they want us out of here, let them come themselves and lead us out in broad daylight.'” Acts 16:35-37 (The Message).

Hey, Paul! I thought you were supposed to be meek and humble, and take abuse without complaining, like Jesus did.

Why did Paul pull rank on these judges? Should they not have simply left quietly as though nothing had happened; turned the other cheek as Jesus taught His disciples?

Is that really what He taught? Does Jesus want His disciples to be jellyfish, pushovers?

What exactly did Jesus mean when He said, ‘Turn the other cheek’? If someone slapped another person on the right cheek, it was meant as an insult. To slap him on the right cheek, he had to use his left hand which was considered unclean because the left hand was used for toilet purposes. To turn the other cheek meant that he had to slap the other person with his right hand, forcing him to acknowledge that they were equals.

When Israel was rescued from slavery in Egypt, they had to unlearn centuries of abuse from their Egyptian masters in a new society where they were free. God built into their constitution and culture a new way of life where He taught them to treat one another with human dignity, recognising that every person was created in the image of God.

God hates oppression of any kind and, in the case of Paul and Silas, the Roman judges differentiated between Romans and Jews. They got the Jewish end of the stick because their oppressors hadn’t taken the trouble to carry out their job properly. Paul wanted the Roman judges to acknowledge their unjust treatment by publicly escorting them from the prison where they had been publicly humiliated by the treatment they had received.

Good for you, Paul! It was a lesson these arrogant Romans would not easily forget. Perhaps they were saving someone else from being treated as they had been treated.

“When the officers reported this, the judges panicked. They had no idea that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens. They hurried over and apologised, personally escorting them from the jail, and then asked them if they wouldn’t please leave the city. Walking out of the jail, Paul and Silas went straight to Lydia’s house, saw their friends again, encouraged them in the faith, and only then went on their way.” Acts 16:38-40 (The message).

Apparently, although this kind of behaviour was common practice, it was not Roman policy. The judges were using their position of power to abuse Jews whom they despised. If the authorities got to hear about it, they were in big trouble. Mistreating non-Romans was bad enough but mistreating Roman citizens, Jews or no Jews, was serious.

They not only personally escorted Paul and Silas out of jail, they also wanted them out of the city because they were a source of embarrassment to them. Having got the justice they deserved and taught these men a lesson, Paul and Silas reported back to Lydia who was their hostess and must have wondered what had happened to them, encouraged the fledgling believers and then went on their way as requested.

But it was not the last that Philippi had seen of them. There was a baby church to nurture and Paul had no intention of abandoning them, judges or no judges.