It came to pass in Iconium, that they, Paul and Barnabas both went to the synagogue to speak and a big crowd of Jew and Greeks believed. But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the Gentiles. They stayed there a long time talking boldly about the Lord’s grace, and they showed them many signs and wonders. But the people of the city were divided, part of them were following the Jews and part were following the apostles.
Both the Gentiles and Jews with their rulers, joined up together to attack the apostles and planed on stoning them. They found out about it, and ran off to Lystra, Derbe ad Lycaonia and the surrounding region where they preached the gospel.
A certain man sat in Lystra who couldn’t use his feet, he had been born cripple and never walked. He heard Paul speak, Paul perceived that he had the faith to be healed. Of course you need faith to be healed. Paul told this guy to stand up on his feet. The guy leaped up and walked. When the people saw what Paul had done they lifted up their voices saying “The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men”
They called Barnabas, Jupiter, Paul and Mercurius, because he was the chief speaker. The priest of Jupiter who was in front of the city gates had brought oxen and garlands to be sacrificed for the people.
When Barnabas and Paul heard about they tore their cloths, and ran through the crowd crying out “Sirs, why do you do these things, we are men with similar passions, and we’re telling you to turn away from these vanities and turn to living God who made heaven and earth and the sea and everything in the sea. In the past God was tolerant of all nations doing their own thing. Even so he showed himself to you, doing good, giving you rain and fruitful seasons, and filling our hearts with food and gladness."
After they said these things they could barely restrain the people from sacrificing to them. Wow people are fickle and dumb in the bible. Along came certain Jews form Antioch and Iconium, provided an even more persuasive argument.
Which considering how dumb and fickle these people are, could have been as persuasive as “Hey you people listen to me, now believe me and follow me!”
Well these new folks convinced the crowd to stone Paul and they dragged him out of the city limits presuming he was dead. But he wasn't so the as the disciples stood around him he got up and he went to Barnabas to Derbe.
When they had preached the gospel to the city of Derbe they returned to Lystra and Iconium and Antioch, urging them to continue in the faith, and after a lot of work and trouble enter the kingdom of God. When they confirming the souls of the disciples, and ordained all of the elders in the churches and prayed with them and fasted. The praised them to the Lord who they believed in.
After they had Passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia, and preached the crowd in Perga, and went down to Attalia, and sailed to Antioch, where they worked to recommended the grace of God. When they came together they practiced what God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith for the Gentiles. The disciples stayed with them a long time.
I swear this whole book has been nothing more than people saying, hey believe this, follow it. I'm just not convinced, maybe it's because my heart's black, or because I didn't go into it already believing in it which seems to be what you need to do... I don't know.
ReplyDelete