Acts 14 - First Time Out
Acts 14 - First Time Out
Here is Acts 14, we read about Paul’s first ministry trip. Think about your first time doing anything. Maybe you can remember your first time riding a bike, or first time driving a car, your first kiss, or the first time you told someone about Jesus. Firsts, we only have them once. What happens when the first time we attempt something, and it goes horribly wrong?
I recall the first time I went Parasailing. It was the summer of my senior year in High School, and my best friend Troy’s father just stared a Parasailing business on Lake Travis outside of Austin, Texas. Troy’s father Terry needed to get some practice with his new boat and learning how to take people Parasailing, so I was a willing first rider. I jumped in gear, and up I went, flying high above the lake and was loving the views. Terry, the boat driver, was learning how to run in figure eight to keep the wind just right and to make sure the Parasail would stay up in the air. The boat was making a turn, and the conditions turned a bit, the wind died down, and the boat lost just enough speed for my parasail to lose the lift it needed. I was quickly approaching the water, and the boat was not able to correct in time. All the slack from the long Parasailing rope was laying in the water, and the boat driver reacted by giving the boat full speed to try and get the parasail back into the sky. At just about the time I came crashing into the water, and the parasail started to fill with lake water, the boat was taking off quickly, and the slack in the rope was tightening rapidly. The problem was, my leg crossed the rope line, and when the boat removed all the slack in the line, I was then pulled underwater with my leg wrapped around the rope and pulled for what felt like an eternity. I was in the middle of a speeding boat and a full parachute filled with water being drug underwater, and it was frightening. This was my first time parasailing, and thankfully I was not injured, I just ended up with some rope burn on my leg, and I lost some expensive sunglasses. But this first-time experience for me was pretty terrifying.
As we read today in Acts 14, we read about Paul’s first ministry trip with Barnabas. This trip was way more terrifying than my experience parasailing. P & B started in Iconium, preaching, and teaching, so effectively, the scriptures tell us a great number believed. This stirred up trouble, and they were ran out of town with death threats, and they fled to Lystra. Here we read;
“In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth and had never walked. He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed, and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.” - Acts 14:8-10 NIV
What happens next was pretty nuts, honestly. The crowds that saw this radical healing thought P & B was reincarnated, Greek gods. They thought Barnabas was Zeus, and Paul was Hermes. Because of this craziness, the town started bringing sacrifices to them and were attempting to worship them and idolize them.
P & B wanted none of this! They had every opportunity to milk this, play into the hands of the people for profit and earthly honor, but they did not do that. They did the opposite.
“Friends, why are you doing this? We, too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them.” - Acts 14:15 NIV
What at one moment was worshiping P & B quickly turned into a pretty horrific and terrifying experience for them. The crowd turned rapidly against them, and they punished them severely.
“Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead.” - Acts 14:19 NIV
Remember how we started this? Recalling your first-time experiences, right. Here we are reading about Paul's first missionary trip, his first time out of the nest, and here we have Paul stoned nearly to death and drug outside the city to die. And on that note, many Biblical scholars believe Paul did die and was brought back to life. I am not sure, but never the less we have Paul here stoned to death or too near the end on his first mission trip.
What is the right response from Paul here? A near-death experience, was it time to pack it up and play it safe? Not even close, check this out.
“But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.” - Acts 14:20 NIV
Paul got up and went back into the city! WHAT?!? Can you imagine what the people thought? Paul was not going to let anything, even death, move him off his mission, his calling. Paul was a bondservant of Christ, and he was called to a mission that was much greater than himself.
“They preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.” - Acts 14:21-22 NIV
My experience crashing into the water, and then drug by a speeding boat while attached to a parachute full of water pails in comparison to being stoned to death, or near death. They were both seemingly near-death experiences, but Paul’s was connected to a mission and calling much greater. His words here are heavy and not super easy to digest; We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.
As we sit with this and let that settle into our spirt, I think it's worth considering what would have happened if Paul called it quits. If this first ministry experience that nearly killed Paul pushed him to say I’m done. Well, pretty much we would not have the rest of the Book of Acts, and a huge chunk of the Bible would not exist. Paul, got back up and pressed on, and he understood his calling, and the mission God put on his life. This same calling and purpose has been placed on our lives as well. We must go through many hardships, and there is going to be pain and persecution as we follow Jesus. When the going gets tough when our first experience isn’t what we hoped for, let us remember Paul’s experience.