Footsteps #22

From Cyprus, Paul and his companions sailed to Perga, in Pamphylia, on the southern coast of modern Turkey. Before they moved on to Pisidian Antioch, Luke reports two significant incidental changes: Paul becomes the leading figure (up until here, Barnabas always is mentioned first) and Luke stops using Paul’s Jewish name (“Saul”) and starts referring to him only as “Paul” (Acts.13:9). This is probably because from now on Paul finds himself mostly in a Greco-Roman environment. Acts.13:13 records John Mark’s going back to Jerusalem. We are not informed in the texts themselves of the reason for John Mark’s desertion. Mark was young and probably faced with fear and got discouraged because of the hardship ahead of them; he returned to Jerusalem. God never promised it would be easy. On the contrary, Paul knew from the very beginning that his service for Jesus would involve much suffering (Acts.9:16), but he learned to rely entirely on God’s power, and in that lay the secret of his strength (2Cor.4:7–10).

Acts.13:16–41 contains the first of Paul’s sermons recorded in the NT. It was not, of course, the first sermon Paul gave, and there is no question that it represents only a brief summary of what he said. The sermon is divided into three main parts. It begins with shared beliefs about God’s election of Israel and the kingship of David (Acts 13:17–23); this part is intended to establish a point of contact with his Jewish audience. Next, it presents Jesus as the fulfilment of God’s promises of a descendant of David who could bring salvation to Israel (Acts.13:24–37). The concluding part is a warning against rejecting the salvation that is offered through Jesus (Acts.13:38–41). The climax of the sermon is vs38, 39, which enclose the core of Paul’s message on justification. Forgiveness and justification (setting the sinner right before God) are available only through Jesus, not through Moses’ law. This passage does not say that the law has been revoked. It only highlights its inability to perform what the Jews expected it to do; namely, justification (Rom.10:1–4). Such prerogative rests solely with Jesus Christ (Gal.2:16).