Grace Bible Church Gillette, Wyoming

2. Perga was a small city on the southern coast of Asia Minor. The mountain of Lycia laid to the west, the foothills of Pisidia to the north, and the Tarsus range to the east.

B. Pisidian Antioch

1. [14] Pisidian Antioch (not to be confused with Syrian Antioch) was located some 155 miles north of Perga.

2. It is possible that Paul and Barnabas were requested by Sergius Paulus to go to Pisidian Antioch. It is probable that Sergius Paulus had estates and relatives in Pisidian Antioch and may have sent a letter of introduction.

II. THE DESERTION FROM THE MISSION (Ac 13:13b)

A. In regard to John Mark, Luke simply states that he “left” (apochōreō - put distance from, depart, withdraw) Paul and Barnabas and returned to Jerusalem (cf. Ac 13:13-14).

B. No reason for John Mark’s departure is explicitly given in the NT. Later in Acts, when Barnabas desired to take along John Mark, Paul insisted that he should not go because he “had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work” (Ac 15:38). “Deserted” is the Greek word aphistāmi which at times is stronger than apochōreō and can mean “desert” or “fall away” (leave with intention, Lk 8:13;1Ti 4:1). However, it can also be synonymous (Lk 13:27 cf. Mt 7:23) or with good intention (Ac 12:10; 19:9). The most we can conclude is that Paul did not approve of John Mark’s intentions for leaving.

C. There are various views on why John Mark deserted, but Scripture is inconclusive.

1. He was disillusioned with the change of leadership from Barnabas to Paul. This seems doubtful because Barnabas sought out the apostle called by Christ (Ac 11:25).

2. He was accustomed to wealth and comfort and therefore fearful of the physical dangers of the trip (cf. 2Co 11:26). However, the physical dangers were everywhere and commonplace in that day.

3. He was homesick for his home in Jerusalem as well as his mother (Mary, Ac 12:12). This is a weak argument with no substantiation.

4. He was fearful of the persecution for the gospel. But, while persecution was always present, there was no special account of persecution until after they reached Pisidian Antioch (Ac 13:44-51).

5. He was spiritually immature but prompted by Barnabas to go along. While this seems reasonable, no information is recorded (Ac 12:25).

6. He was distrusting of the emphasis of the gospel to the Gentiles. Indeed, the message of the gospel to the Gentiles was slow in gaining acceptance (Ac 11:3 cf. Ac 15:1). John Mark also had recently witnessed the conversion of Sergius Paulus (Ac 13:12-13). But even though this is the most natural and supported view, it does not seem likely that John Mark would not have known the intentions of Paul and Barnabas before they left.

D. What we do know is that whatever intentions caused John Mark to desert the ministry, he later overcame them and became “useful” to Paul (2Ti 4:11).

III. THE DISCOURSE IN THE SYNAGOGUE (Ac 13:15-25)

A. On the Sabbath (Ac 13:15-16)

1. In Ac 13:14 we read that Paul and Barnabas continued to fulfill their calling by the Holy Spirit even though John Mark had left. When they arrived at Pisidian Antioch from Perga, they visited a synagogue on the Sabbath.

2. [15] In the synagogue, there was the usual reading of the Law and the Prophets. It would have been preceded by the recitation of the Shema (Dt 6:4), along with other prayers, in the usual Jewish liturgy. The reading would have been followed by teaching or explanation of the Scriptures by someone of the leaders choosing. After a closing blessing, the service would have concluded.

3. The synagogue officials asked Paul and Barnabas if they had any word of exhortation for the people. This opened the door for Paul to share the gospel with them as well as give the first of his three recorded mission sermons in Acts (Ac 13:16-41; 14:15-17; 17:22-31).

4. As one of his most detailed sermons, this sermon could be broken into three parts: (1) The Preparation for the Savior (16-25), (2) The Rejection of the Savior (26-37), and (3) The Appeal to Receive the Savior (38-41).

5. [16] Paul’s audience, as he addressed them, was Jews (“Men of Israel”) and Gentiles (God-fearers and possibly Proselytes cf. Ac 13:43).

B. God Chose the Fathers (Ac 13:17a)

1. [17a] The preparation for the Savior first began with the initiation of God’s “choice” (eklegō - select for oneself) of a people, namely the “fathers” of Israel (Dt 4:37; 7:6).

2. Paul covered, similar to Stephen, the redemptive history from Abraham to Jacob.

3. Then through Joseph, Israel sojourned to the land of Egypt and became a “great” nation (Ge 46:3 cf. Ex 1:12, 20; 5:5).

C. God Delivered Them from Egypt (Ac 13:17b)

1. [17b] However, God’s people were placed into bondage and servitude after the time of Joseph (Ex 1:8).

2. Yet God did not forget His people but delivered and “led” them out of bondage with a mighty and “uplifted” (hupālos - raise high, exalted) arm (Ex 6:1; 12:51; 13:14).

D. God Put Up with Israel in the Wilderness (Ac 13:18)

1. Because of Israel’s lack of faith in God’s mighty hand to deliver them, they were forbidden to enter the Promised Land for “forty years” (Nu 14:34; 32:13).

2. During that time, God put up” with them in the wilderness. The word for “put up” is tropophoreō (bear or tolerate) but according to some manuscripts could also be trophophoreō (carry or nourish). The difference is one letter (pi or phi) and changes the whole meaning. Both concepts are true (cf. He 3:17-18 and Num 14:22), but Dt 1:31 supports the idea of God’s care for Israel.

E. God Gave the Land of Canaan as an Inheritance (Ac 13:19)

1. Under Joshua, God led Israel to “destroy” (kathaireō - take down, overthrow, destroy) seven nations in Canaan (Dt 7:1).

2. This was God’s land promised to Israel and was divided as their inheritance (Jos 14:1ff; Nu 26:53-56).

3. God sustained Israel through 400 yrs. of bondage, cared for them through 40 yrs. in the wilderness, and provided victory for them 10 yrs. in Canaan, total 450 yrs.

F. God Gave Judges over Israel (Ac 13:20)

1. Then God gave judges to Israel who were the military and government leadership of the nation (Jdg 2:16).

2. There were twelve judges (not counting Abimelech) in seven periods until God raised up Samuel the prophet (1Sa 2:35; 3:20).

G. God Gave Saul as King (Ac 13:21)

1. The time of the kings began when the people asked for a king, rejecting God as their king (1Sa 8:6-7).

2. Yet God gave them Saul for a king who was identified as “a man from the land of Benjamin” (1Sa 9:15-17). He was the son of Kish, and reigned for forty years.

H. God Raised Up David as King (Ac 13:22)

1. God rejected and “removed” Saul when Saul rejected the word of the Lord (1Sa 15:23).

2. In his place, God raised up David, the “son of Jesse” (1Sa 16:1, 13). David was described by God as “a man after God’s heart” (1Sa 13:14). This expression characterized one who “does all God’s will.”

3. Though David sinned, he repented of his sins (Ps 51 cf. Ps 32; Ps 38). Though David was not perfect, God pronounced to Jeroboam, “you have not been like My servant David, who kept My commandments and who followed Me with all his heart, to do only that which was right in My sight.” (1Ki 14:7-8)

I. God Fulfilled His Promise of a Savior (Jesus) (Ac 13:23)

1. God promised David that his descendant would remain on the throne (2Sa 7:13-14).

2. Contained within the Davidic Covenant and line, was the promise of the Messiah who would be “Savior” (sōtār - deliverer, source of salvation, Mt 1:1).

3. This Savior was brought to Israel and His name was “Jesus” (Heb. Yehoshua, “Yahweh saves,” Mt 1:21 cf. Jehovah Mōshayah, Is 60:16; Is 43:11).

IV. OBSERVATIONS AND APPLICATIONS

A. Always be ready for ministry and ministry opportunities.

1. John Mark departed from his ministry opportunities and sometime believers do also for various reasons. Paul on the other had no idea that he would be asked to speak in the synagogue. However, he was ready to deliver a powerful sermon on the redemption in Christ.

2. Believers are God’s servants. We are in His ministry no matter what our occupation. We are there for ministry opportunities. When ministry opportunities arise, we are expected to fulfill them, not depart from them.

B. Believers ought to be described as people after God’s heart.

1. With the Holy Spirit in the heart, the believer desires to do God’s will moment by moment.

2. We still have our sinful nature and the Scriptures reveal an opposition in our hearts. Therefore, we must, through the Holy Spirit, continually make steps of obedience in each and every circumstance, which includes ministry opportunities (Gal 5:16-17).

C. Continue to do God’s will, even after disappointments.

1. No believer is without sin and failure. They are always grievous and at times mortifying. Even David, the man after God’s heart experienced this.

2. But in spite of sin and failure, every believer must continue to do God’s will. God’s will then consists of confessing our sin, purposing to walk in obedience, and purposing to fulfill every ministry opportunity.

D. Jesus the Savior is the culmination of history.

1. The philosophy of Atheism boils down to, that if there is no God, then there is no purpose. If there is no purpose, then there is no life, only purposeless death.

2. Paul has displayed that there is a purpose in history because God is in control of history as well as the future. God had a purpose in history and it all culminated in Christ dying on the cross for our sins for salvation.

3. Therefore, since God exists, there is purpose, purpose in history, and purpose for life. But this purpose is only found in the Savior.

Grace Bible Church · 4000 E. Collins Rd · PO Box #3762 · Gillette, WY · (307) 686-1516