“GOOD NEWS THAT DIVIDES”
ACTS 13:42-52

I. Introduction
If the Gospel of Jesus Christ is such good news, why does it cause so much opposition? Why is it so often the cause of conflict and even anger? Why is it that the good news of the gospel seems to divide more than it unites? Because it does! But why does it divide? Could it be that – when it is preached in its entirety – the gospel tells people the truth about them-selves? Could it be that – when it is preached in its entirety – the gospel exposes the sin, the self-righteousness, and the lost condition of all who hear it, and then demands that they respond to it? Those who hear the gospel are left with only two options – they can receive Christ or they can reject Him.

In Romans 1:16 the Apostle Paul introduces the gospel and says that, “…it is the power of God for salvation…” The Greek word translated “power” is “dunamis,” from which we get the word, “dynamite.” The gospel is not about how you can make a bad day better. It is not about how you can be happy and prosperous in this life so that all of your personal, social, financial, and medical problems are solved. The gospel is about the difference between the joys of eternal life in heaven and the horrors of eternal death in hell.

Thus the Gospel of Jesus Christ – and the entire Word of God – is so powerful. And it is why the gospel can cause an explosion of negative emotions against both the message and the messenger. And explosions separate things. Explosions do not unite, explosions divide.

And it isn’t just the Gospel of Jesus Christ that separates and divides. The entire Word of God separates and divides. Look at the verse in the upper right hand corner of your bulletin.
*Hebrews 4:12
12 “For the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

Think about this for just a moment. What is it that separates you from the person you were before you came to saving faith? It is the gospel! And what is it that separates you from this lost and dying world? It is the Word of God! If you think that’s an over simplification, or a bit of an exaggeration, just ask yourself this – “Where would I be without the gospel and the Word of God?” You would still be lost in your sin and united to this fallen and dying world. But, if you are a true Christian, you have been separated from this world.

This is why the gospel divides. It divides, and separates out, all those whom God has called to be His children. Listen once more to some of what Brett read to open the service.
*Matthew 10:34-36 (Jesus speaking)
34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth;
I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. (What did we just read in Hebrews 4:12?)

“For the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (By the way, doesn’t John 1:1 tells us that Jesus is the Word of God?)

35 “For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
36 and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household.”

Luke actually uses the word “division.”
Luke 12:51-52 (Jesus speaking)
51 “Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? I tell you, no, but rather division;
52 for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two, and two against three.

The gospel is good news. It is the news that the most evil and vile sinners can repent, be forgiven, be saved from condemnation, and become children of God. Could there be better news than that? It is good news, but it is good news that divides. When it is preached, it inevitably brings conflict. This is not new. The preaching of the gospel has brought con-flict from the beginning in Acts 2.

Peter’s sermons in Jerusalem brought about the apostles’ persecution, but thousands came to faith in Christ. Stephen’s sermon before the Sanhedrin led to his martyrdom, but the gospel went out into Samaria and people believed. Paul preached the gospel in Damascus and throughout the Roman Empire. He was opposed everywhere he went, but churches were established, and the NT was written.

In this morning’s text in Acts 13, we will see that pattern continued. In Pisidian Antioch Paul and Barnabas will preach the gospel and it will divide the crowd. And as is the case everywhere the Gospel of Jesus Christ has ever gone, some will hear it and receive it and come to saving faith. But most will oppose it and reject it and walk away.
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II. Review
Last week, in Acts 13:13-14, Paul and Barnabas had arrived in Pisidian Antioch (#15 on your map). They went immediately to the synagogue. Since Paul (still known as Saul of Tarsus) had been taught by the most famous and respected Jewish teacher of that day, Gamaliel, and since he had been a prominent Pharisee in Jerusalem, the leaders of the synagogue asked Paul if he had any word for them. He did!
He proceeded to remind the Jews of their history, going all the way back to their Egyptian captivity and how Moses had led them out of slavery and to Promised Land. He reminded them of the failures of King Saul and the successes of King David. He told them of God’s Messiah and that He would be descended from King David and be the One to bring salvation to Israel. He told them that Jesus was in fact that promised Messiah, and that God had pro-ven it by raising Him from the dead (Acts 13:30).

Finally, Paul quoted the OT Prophet Habakkuk, who had long ago prophesied…
*Acts 13:41
41 “Behold, you scoffers, and marvel, and perish; for I am accomplishing a work in your days, a work which you will never believe, though someone should describe it to you.”

What an amazing prophecy!
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III. Text
And that bring us to this morning’s text in Acts.
*Acts 13:42-52 (Please stand with me in honor of reading God’s Word.)
42 And as Paul and Barnabas were going out, the people kept begging that these things might be spoken to them the next Sabbath.
43 Now when the meeting of the synagogue had broken up, many of the Jews and of the God-fearing proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking to them, were urging them to continue in the grace of God.
44 And the next Sabbath nearly the whole city assembled to hear the Word of God.
45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, and began contradicting the things spoken by Paul, and were blaspheming.
46 And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the Word of God should be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it, and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles.
47 “For thus the Lord has commanded us, ‘I have placed you as a light for the Gentiles, that you should bring salvation to the end of the earth.’”
48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.
49 And the word of the Lord was being spread through the whole region.
50 But the Jews aroused the devout women of prominence and the leading men of the city, and instigated a persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove
them out of their district.
51 But they shook off the dust of their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium.
52 And the disciples were continually filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

Notice that the initial reaction to Paul and Barnabas seems quite positive.
*Acts 13:42-43
42 And as Paul and Barnabas were going out, the people kept begging that these things might be spoken to them the next Sabbath.
43 Now when the meeting of the synagogue had broken up, many of the Jews and of the God-fearing proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking to them, were urging them to continue in the grace of God.

The message actually intrigued both the Jews and the proselytes (Gentile converts to Judaism who had been circumcised), but there was no immediate response to what Paul had said. They wanted to wait and hear more the next Sabbath. But what if there was no next Sabbath? What if the Lord took one of those who seemed to be interested before the next Sabbath?

There was a time in my life when I thought like that. “Hey, I’m young and healthy. I don’t need any of that ‘Jesus stuff’ now. Some day after I’ve sown my last wild oat, after I’ve seen the world, had all my fun, spent all my money, and find myself old and sick and tired, then maybe I’ll think about ‘getting saved.’ But not now. I’ve got all the time in the world.”

But what does the Scripture say? It says, “…behold, ‘now is the acceptable time,’ behold, now is ‘the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2b).’” And it says, “Today if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts… (Hebrews 3:7b-8a).” And in Luke 12 Jesus told this parable.
Luke 12:16b-20a
16b (He said,) “The land of a certain rich man was very productive.
17 “And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’
18 “And he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store my grain and my goods.
19 ‘And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink, and be merry.”’
20a “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you…’” (back to Acts 13)

In the first part of Acts 13:43 it seems that some of those who had heard Paul’s message were so intrigued by it that they didn’t want to wait until the next Sabbath. Whether they believed the gospel or not is unclear. But it is clear that they were interested enough to ask questions. You can imagine what an encouragement such a reaction would be to Paul and Barnabas. So they urged these men to “continue” in God’s grace.

“Continue” here means to persevere in the faith. If they were true believers, they would persevere because perseverance is one of the marks of genuine salvation. In John 8:31 Jesus said, “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine.” (abide is live, stay, continue, persevere)
The antithesis of that is this – “If you do not abide (live, stay, continue, persevere) in My word, then you are not disciples of Mine.”

You all know people who profess to be Christians, but there is no indication that they really are. They heard the gospel and said they believed it. But months, years, and even decades later, their lives remain unchanged. They never “continued” in the faith. They never abided in Christ, and so, they were never His disciples. Yet they think they are Christians because they “believe” in Jesus. But James 2:19 tells us such belief is no different than that of the demons. You can be sure they “believe” in Jesus. But their lives haven’t changed either.

One of the greatest tragedies of modern evangelicalism is that churches are filled with peo-ple who’ve been told they’re saved because they’ve “accepted” Jesus, or they’ve “made a decision for Christ.” But what does that mean? What does it mean if their professed faith in Christ leaves them unchanged? What does it mean if they continue, not in Christ, but in an unregenerate life? The fact is that those who remain unchanged were never changed in the first place. The fact is that those who do not continue in the faith were never Jesus’ dis-ciples in the first place. Someone may say, “How sad. They must have lost their salvation.”

But that isn’t the case at all. True Christians do not lose their salvation because true Chris-tians cannot lose their salvation. They cannot lose their salvation because both God the Father and God the Son keep it for them. Thus they continue in the faith.
John 10:27-30
27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;
28 and I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand.
29 “My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.
30 “I and the Father are one.”

The point is that you can’t lose what God keeps! (back to Acts 13)
*Acts 13:44-47
44 And the next Sabbath nearly the whole city assembled to hear the Word of God.
45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, and began contradicting the things spoken by Paul, and were blaspheming.
46 And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the Word of God should be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it, and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles.
47 “For thus the Lord has commanded us, ‘I have placed you as a light for the Gentiles, that you should bring salvation to the end of the earth.’”

The Jews and proselytes did come to hear Paul and Barnabas on the following Sabbath.
And so did much of the rest of the city. But the Jews thought the good news of the gospel – even if it were true – was only for them. After all, they were convinced that unconverted Gentiles were little more than dogs deserving none of Israel’s blessings. So when they saw that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was beginning to draw outsiders, they decided it must not be true. Besides, why would God sent the Messiah to provide salvation for the hated Gentiles?

Such an attitude was not uncommon, or even new among the Jews. In 760 B.C. God sent Jonah to Nineveh to preach repentance. But he refused to go. Why? He was afraid that they might actually believe the message and come to saving faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Jonah hated the Gentiles so much that he did not want God to save them. But he finally obeyed God and went. When the Ninevites did repent, Jonah wanted to die.
Jonah 4:1-3
1 But it greatly displeased Jonah, and he became angry.
2 And he prayed to the LORD and said, “Please LORD, was not this what I said while I was still in my own country? Therefore, in order to forestall this (read “disobey You”) I fled to Tarshish, for I knew that You are a gracious and com-passionate God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, and one who relents concerning calamity. (read “and You might actually save the people I hate.”)
3 “Therefore now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for death is better to me than life.”

Can you imagine hating someone that much? In Acts 13:45 the Jews – even though some of them may have said that they believed Paul and Barnabas – denied the message and claimed it was a lie… just so the Gentiles wouldn’t believe it and come to faith in the Jewish Mes-siah. These men were willing to blaspheme God just to keep the outsiders out. So again I ask, “Can you imagine hating someone so much that you would speak out against God?”

In v. 46 Paul and Barnabas stood against them and spoke a fundamental truth that would be reiterated in the NT. “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first.” The gospel was for Israel first? Of course it was. Israel was God’s chosen nation. Israel was God’s channel for the Messiah, the Christ. Jesus came to Israel first.
Matthew 15:24b (Jesus speaking)
24b “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
Acts 3:26 (Peter speaking to the Jews)
26 “For you first, God raised up His Servant, and sent Him to bless you by turn-ing every one of you from your wicked ways.”
Romans 1:16b (Paul speaking)
16b …to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

Any Jew who knew his own Scriptures (OT) would have understood that God’s salvation was not exclusively for Israel. Paul and Barnabas affirm that in Acts 13:46. “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first…
(but) since you repudiate it, and (by doing so) judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles.”

Let me paraphrase – “God has offered you a priceless gift, the gift of eternal life in His Son. But not only have you rejected His gift, you have blasphemed His name. Therefore, God will offer His priceless gift to others. In fact, He will offer it to those whom you hate. So there!”

In the next verse (v. 47) Paul and Barnabas quote the Prophet Isaiah. “I have placed you (Israel) as a light for the Gentiles, that you should bring salvation to the end of the earth.” (In John 10:16 Jesus said He had “other sheep” that He would bring into the fold.) However, here in Pisidian Antioch the Jews are rejecting the word of God. Worse still, they are blaspheming God in the process. Again, this should be no surprise because John 1:11 says, “(Jesus) came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.”

Please understand that it doesn’t matter whether you are a Jew or a Gentile. If you reject the Gospel of Jesus Christ, you are judging yourself unworthy to receive eternal life. God offers eternal life to all who hear the gospel, but He forces it on no one. If you reject His offer, nei-ther you nor anyone else can blame Him for your fate.

Acts 13:46-47 teaches and illustrates the core biblical truth of human responsibility. Those who are unworthy of eternal life are unworthy because they refuse to believe the gospel and come to Christ. They may think their religion can save them, but Jesus said it cannot.
John 5:39-40
39 “You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is these (very Scriptures) that bear witness of Me;
40 and you are unwilling to come to Me, that you may have life.”

It is in this unwillingness to come to Jesus, that people judge themselves unworthy to receive the gift of eternal life. And yet, this truth in no way negates or even alters the truth of God’s sovereignty in the salvation of those whom He chooses to save. This apparent contradiction is no contradiction at all. The infinite mind of God understands it. But the finite mind of man cannot understand it. It is beyond the ability of the human mind to fully comprehend and resolve it. Listen to theologian J. I. Packer as he addresses this…
“The particular antinomy (defined as an apparent incompatibility between two undeniable truths) which concerns us here is the apparent opposition between divine sovereignty and human responsibility, or between what God does as King and what He does as Judge. Scripture teaches that, as King, He orders and controls all things, human actions among them, in accordance with His own eternal purpose. Scripture also teaches that, as Judge, He holds every man responsible for the choices he makes and the courses of action he pursues.”

Therefore, God acts as the righteous Judge against those who have already judged them-selves to be unworthy of eternal life in Acts 13:46.
But how does God act as the sovereign King? We see that in v. 48.
*Acts 13:48-49
48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.
49 And the word of the Lord was being spread through the whole region.

Therefore, God acts as the sovereign King for His chosen ones, His elect, those whom He has predestined to salvation from before time began. They will hear the good news of the gospel, they will believe and receive it, and they will rejoice and glorify God. The statement in v. 48 that, “…as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed,” is among the clear-est and most definitive statements in all of Scripture regarding the sovereignty of God in sal-vation. Next week, before we move on to Acts 14, we’ll take the time to look deeper into that statement, and stand in awe as we delve into the infinite mind of God.

What took place in v. 48 – genuine salvation, rejoicing, and glorifying God – just naturally led to v. 49. “…the word of the Lord was being spread…” If you have come to know Jesus, you just naturally want others to know Him too, don’t you? That is God’s plan. And just to be clear, there is no other plan. God uses those He has saved to tell those He intends to save.

That’s evangelism! Evangelism leads to salvation, and salvation leads to evangelism and evangelism leads to salvation and… you get the idea. Listen, that’s how the Church of Jesus Christ has been built for the last two thousand years! As I said, there is no other plan. This is what we have been called to do. This is why we are still here.

But while we are still here we will face opposition – the very same kind of opposition that was faced by the new Christians in Pisidian Antioch.
*Acts 13:50-52
50 But the Jews aroused the devout women of prominence and the leading men of the city, and instigated a persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove
them out of their district.
51 But they shook off the dust of their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium.
52 And the disciples were continually filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

We know that when the gospel is preached some will come to saving faith, but most will not. Most of those who will not will simply ignore it and walk away, but some of them will turn on you. They will not be indifferent to you or your message; they will hate you for it, and they will look for ways to persecute you. Do you remember what Jesus said about that?
John 15:18-19
18 “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.
19 “If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

There is never a shortage of those who hate the Lord Jesus and His message of salvation. In Pisidian Antioch it was the religious women in the synagogue and the prominent men of the city. Years later, in 2 Timothy 3:11, Paul will tell his young protégé Timothy that he suf-fered, not only in Antioch, but in many other places as well. In fact, everywhere Paul went there would be persecution. But everywhere Paul went some would come to saving faith.

But for most of the Jews in Pisidian Antioch the sad reality was that they refused to believe. They rejected their Messiah. So Paul and Barnabas left the city and did what Jesus had instructed the seventy disciples He sent out back in Luke’s gospel. He said…
*Luke 10:10-12
10 “But whatever city you enter and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say,
11 ‘Even the dust of your city which clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you; yet be sure of this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’
12 “I say to you, it will be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city.” (back to Acts 13)

In Acts 13:51, Paul and Barnabas, having done what God had called them to do, left the city of Pisidian Antioch and set out for Iconium. And in v. 52 we’re told that they left behind new believers who were “filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”
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IV. Conclusion
What can you take from all of this? Take this: The Gospel of Jesus Christ is good news that divides. It certainly divided the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch. And it eventually divided the whole city. The gospel divides because the gospel is an offense.

But today, much of the professing church is bent on preaching an inoffensive gospel. May I say that that is an oxy-moron, a contradiction in terms. An inoffensive gospel is not the gos-pel at all.

The Word of God says that all are guilty before God, their good works are useless, they’re dead in their sins, and they’re bound for eternal destruction in hell. Worse still, they can do nothing to save themselves. How can that be made inoffensive? It cannot.

But the good news of the gospel is that the lost can be forgiven, redeemed, saved, and be made children of God. If you’ve heard the good news of the gospel, please don’t reject it. God’s offer of eternal life still stands. Turn to Christ, confess your sin, ask Him to save you, and He will.

May God help us all to be like Paul and Barnabas, knowing the truth, boldly speaking it, and rejoicing as we watch God glorify Himself in the salvation of the lost.

~ Pray ~