Acts 13:1-12 - Set Apart & Sent Out
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Introduction
Introduction
The Person of the Holy Spirit supplies the power for missions.
In Acts 1:8 Jesus said...
8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
In Acts 13 Christians begin to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth, and just as Jesus said, the Holy Spirit supplies the power.
[ILLUS] Things don’t work well when they don’t have power.
{4Runner not shifting correctly because of bad batter}
{Changing ballast in the kitchen light; no light from the light switch because the power was off}
{TVS in church not working because equipment was fried; every troubleshooter saying, “Step One: Make sure it’s plugged in.”}
Things don’t work like they’re supposed to when they don’t have power.
That’s true in cars, lights, TVs, and missions.
Missions refers to all the church does to make disciples of all nations as Jesus commanded.
Missionaries are those sent out on mission by the church to make disciples in other places.
Here in Acts 13:1-12 we see the first missionaries on the first part of their first mission.
[AIM] This morning I want us to marvel at the Holy Spirit as He empowers these witnesses to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth.
And this morning I want us to seek the Spirit’s leading. Who knows, the Spirit might just empower one of us to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth.
[TS] We see the Holy Spirit take three ACTIONS in this passage…
Major Ideas
Major Ideas
Action #1: The Holy Spirit sets apart the missionaries for the mission (Acts 13:1-3).
Action #1: The Holy Spirit sets apart the missionaries for the mission (Acts 13:1-3).
1 Now there were at Antioch, in the church that was there, prophets and teachers: Barnabas, and Simeon who was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then, when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.
[EXP] In v. 2 the Holy Spirit gave the order to set apart Barnabas and Paul for the work to which He was calling them. Other men are mentioned. Although the only thing we know about most of them is what’s mentioned here, they were prophets and teachers, all leaders in Antioch Church. Anyone of them would have been a good choice as a missionary from our perspective, but the Holy Spirit choose Barnabas and Paul.
So, how did these church leaders become aware of what the Holy Spirit was setting apart Barnabas and Paul? Did the Holy Spirit speak audibly?
Probably not, but the leaders of Antioch Church still heard the Spirit nonetheless. Their spiritual ears became sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s voice as ministered to the Lord and fasted.
To minister to the Lord is to worship and serve the Lord.
Some translations say they were worshipping the Lord, but perhaps the most literal translation is that they were serving the Lord.
To fast is to abstain from eating to focus on prayer.
They were eliminating the distraction of food to emphasize spiritual pursuits like worship, service, and prayer. That emphasis on spiritual pursuits made them more sensitive to the Spirit’s leading.
[ILLUS] It takes the disciplined practice of spiritual exercises to get better at hearing the Spirit.
{choir practicing in the choir room so people can get better at hearing and following their parts}
With practice everyone gets better at hearing their part.
It’s that way with hearing the Spirit.
[APP] It takes the focused practice of worship, service, fasting, and prayer to get better at hearing the Spirit.
One reason we don’t hear the Spirit is because we are too busy being distracted by the things of this world.
Perhaps we keep ourselves distracted because we are afraid the Spirit might call us to do something uncomfortable.
I don’t want to be distracted any longer.
I want to hear from the Spirit.
I want my ears to be tuned to His voice.
If he leads me into the uncomfortable, so be it.
[TS] After hearing from the Spirit, the church in Antioch fasted, prayed, and laid their hands on Barnabas and Paul as a sign of solidarity with them.
They would hold the rope as the Spirit sent out Barnabas and Paul to the mission field.
That brings us to the Spirit’s second ACTION in this passage…
Action #2: The Holy Spirit sends out the missionaries on the mission (Acts 13:4-5).
Action #2: The Holy Spirit sends out the missionaries on the mission (Acts 13:4-5).
4 So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 5 When they reached Salamis, they began to proclaim the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews; and they also had John as their helper.
[EXP] Barnabas and Paul were set apart by the Spirit, and then they were sent out by the Holy Spirit.
If they had wanted to remain in the encouraging confines of the church in Antioch, they could not, because the Spirit had sent them out.
If they had wanted someone else to be sent out instead of them, it wasn’t possible, because the Spirit had sent them out specifically.
The Holy Spirit was in charge.
And being sent out by the Spirit, the Spirit told them where to go and what to do on their mission.
Along with John Mark as their assistant, they went from Antioch to Seleucia, the main sea port near Antioch.
From there, they sailed to Salamis, a port on the island of Cyprus.
That’s where the Spirit sent them.
When they arrived in Salamis, they went to the synagogue, the local meeting place of the Jewish people, and they began to proclaim the word of God to the Jews.
This would become Paul’s practice on every missionary journey. He would go to the Jews first and then the Gentiles.
But it started because that’s what the Spirit told them to do.
The Spirit told them who would go.
The Spirit told them were they would go.
The Spirit told them what they would do.
The Spirit was in charge.
[ILLUS] The Spirit is still in charge today.
{seminary advertising church planting tract, “Do church your way!”}
[APP] As followers of the Lord Jesus, we don’t get to do anything our way. We must do everything His way, the way of His Spirit, the way of the Holy Spirit that He has sent to us.
The Holy Spirit was in charge back then.
The Holy Spirit is still in charge now.
[TS] He sends out.
He commands.
It’s our duty to carry out His orders.
But to do that, He must empower us.
That brings us to the third ACTION of the Spirit in this passage…
ACTION #3: The Holy Spirit fills up the missionaries on mission (Acts 13:6-12).
ACTION #3: The Holy Spirit fills up the missionaries on mission (Acts 13:6-12).
6 When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they found a magician, a Jewish false prophet whose name was Bar-Jesus, 7 who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the magician (for so his name is translated) was opposing them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. 9 But Saul, who was also known as Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fixed his gaze on him, 10 and said, “You who are full of all deceit and fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease to make crooked the straight ways of the Lord? 11 “Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and not see the sun for a time.” And immediately a mist and a darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking those who would lead him by the hand. 12 Then the proconsul believed when he saw what had happened, being amazed at the teaching of the Lord.
[EXP] Barnabas and Paul are led by the Spirit to Paphos on the island of Cyprus where they meet a magician, a Jewish false-prophet, named Bar-Jesus, which means ‘Son of the savior.’ His Greek name was Elymas, which meant ‘the magi’ or ‘magician.’ He was an advisor to Sergius Paulus, a Roman proconsul or governor.
Because Sergius Paulus was an intelligent man, he wanted to hear the word of God as taught by Barnabas and Paul.
Sergius Paulus wanted to hear the message about Jesus.
Barnabas and Paul surely told Sergius Paulus about how the Savior that God promised long ago finally arrived in Jesus of Nazareth.
They surely told him about the wonders that Jesus did that proved He was the promised Savior.
They surely told him that Jesus had paid the price for his sins by laying down His life for Sergius Paulus on the cross.
They surely told him that Jesus rose from the dead so Sergius Paulus could be made right with God through faith in Jesus.
But before Sergius Paulus could respond in faith, Elymas tried to turn him away from Jesus.
Filled with the Holy Spirit, Paul saw Bar-Jesus for what he was, a deceiver, a fraud, a son of the devil rather than a son of the savior; he was an enemy of righteousness, an enemy of God.
This wicked magician was the opposite of one like John the Baptist.
John the Baptist prepared people for Jesus by calling them to make straight the ways of the Lord.
This wicked magician was trying to keep Sergius Paulus from Jesus by making crooked the straight ways of the Lord.
Filled with the Holy Spirit, Paul said the Lord would blind Elymas for awhile, and immediately he was left groping in the dark.
When the proconsul saw what happened, he believed.
Elymas may have been blind, but Sergius Paulus had his spiritual eyes opened by the Holy Spirit, and he was amazed at the teaching of the Lord.
How did Paul have such boldness in this encounter? How did he have such insight? How did he know that Elymas was going to be blinded?
It was because He was filled with the Spirit.
[ILLUS] It was the Spirit that filled Paul who did the work.
{Playing balloon game with the kids; Balloon squirming through the air, “My balloon shot over there...” but it was the wind inside that moved the balloon}
[APP] In the same way, it’s the Spirit inside that moves the missionary.
How can we be filled with the Holy Spirit?
First, we must believe on Jesus for salvation.
It is only by the Spirit that we can call on Jesus for salvation. If we have believed on Jesus for salvation, we have been and will always be filled with the Holy Spirit.
Second, we must walk with Jesus in sanctification.
While we will always be full of the Spirit if we are true Christians, we grieve the Holy Spirit when we don't walk in holiness; and when we grieve the Spirit, we do not experience the power of being filled with the Spirit.
In other words, when we are walking in sinfulness rather than holiness, the Spirit likely won’t use us in powerful ways.
[TS]…
Conclusion
Conclusion
Every Christian is a missionary on a mission field.
Wherever you are or wherever you end up in life, the Spirit wants to fill you and use you to do great things for the glory of Jesus in that place.
But some Christians are set apart and sent out on a specific mission.
Is that you? Is God calling you to be a missionary on mission in some other place?
How would you know unless you listen for the Spirit’s voice?