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Bro. Otis Fisher
Where chapter 14 this week, having skipped it last week, it was written in A .D. 45, that goes way back, about 10 years or so after our Lord left, 15. And it came to pass in Iconium that they went both together into the synagogue of the Jews and so spake that a great multitude of both Jews and also of the Greeks believed.
The Southern Baptist for the last five years has printed all of the sermons for the preachers. If you desire, you can subscribe to this service and won't have to study anymore. They send out a book for a year that has all of the sermons in it, Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night.
All you have to do is memorize them. I wondered for some time as we would visit and go to a church on Sunday why we always heard the same sermon that was at home. This is why you hear so many little sermonettes.
But here, 45 years after A .D. 1, no such fraud as that was perpetrated here. Paul and Barnabas used simple language and the correct use of it. The difference being that they spoke from the heart. Therefore, the message can reach the heart.
And it did. Yet, the success was due to the Holy Spirit changing the belief of many hearts. Do you understand that, Joy? As they spoke from the heart, it changed the heart. But the Holy Spirit was at work changing the beliefs of the hearers.
His word must be taught in power of the Holy Spirit. No other way. Not in the wisdom of man, such as mail order sermonettes. But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles, mere heathens, and made their minds evil-affected against the brethren.
The unbelieving Jew. These Jews caused the Gentiles to not believe Paul. The reason behind all of this was to keep Paul and his group from becoming puffed up. You wouldn't think that God was behind that, would you?
But he was. The Lord always has a way of keeping the focus on him, not on man. Even today, he has not changed. Long time, therefore, abode they speaking boldly in the Lord, which gave testimony unto the word of his grace, and granted signs and wonders to be done by their hands.
Now, Dennis, let me ask you a question. How is it that Paul here could work a miracle? All right. Russell, was that power to work miracles always present in the apostles? That's right. The miracle-working power was by God at certain times to do certain things.
Usually, the miracle was to authenticate that what they said was true. No apostle could of himself work a miracle. This power was not resident in the apostles at all times. It was only now and then imparted the miracle was called for.
Verse 4,. But the multitude of the city was divided, and part held with the Jews and part with the apostles. Now, can you imagine, Dennis? Here's a city that part of the people sided with the disciples, and part of them with the apostles, and part of them with the Jews.
What were the Jews? What did they believe? That's right. The Jews treated the apostles as false teachers, and their miracles as unwelcome burdens. And many of the people held with them, while the others, who had not hardened their hearts against the truth, felt the force of it.
And being without prejudice could easily discern the miracles to be the work of God. Therefore, held with the apostles. Verse 5,. And when there was an assault made, both of the Gentiles and also of the Jews and their rulers, to use them despitefully and to stone them, they were aware of it, and fled into Lystria and Derbe, cities of Lycona, and unto the region that lieth around about.
They made a desperate attempt, of these heathen rulers, and the rulers of the synagogues, take note of how the word will unite even enemies, to use them despitefully, to expose them, bring them into contempt, and make them appear as monsters, or movers of sedition, and then to stone them.
Opposition to the plain, sharp, spirit-filled Bible teaching will come from where, Joey? That's right. From the denomination. I hesitate to call it a church. But you're right, from their leaders. They're more interested in the program, than in the church.
And to not want any to disturb, disturbing talk of unbelief and predestination, they don't want that. The elect, so forth. They're more concerned about the institution and programs from which come their salaries, prestige, security, rather than being concerned about the souls of men.
That's right. So right. And there they preached the gospel, wherever they went. They were always ready. They were always employed in their master's work, just as we should be, not just on Sunday. And there sat a certain man at Lystria, impotent in his feet, he had clubbed feet, being a cripple from his mother's womb, and never had walked.
From this I got the idea that we're all lame from birth, spiritually, until God imputes His grace. Nine. The same heard Paul speak, this cripple man, who steadfastly beholding him, and perceiving that he had faith to be healed, said with a loud voice, stand upright on thy feet, and he leaped and walked.
Now, someone tell me, how did faith come to this man? Well, that's always true, because that's the source of it. But Greg, how did he get a hold of it? Well, that's true. Thou, you got to it. That's right.
He heard Paul. He heard the words of Paul. Now, Paul did not impart faith to him. It came from God. But he, you have to hear the word. In Romans 10, 17. Turn over to that quickly. Dennis, read it when you get there.
That's a method God has for salvation. You cannot be saved until you hear. And you hear by the word. And the word is produced by God. Now, ten. Said with a loud voice, stand upright on thy feet, and he walked.
Now, seeing here the picture of salvation. In Psalms 34, 7. The angel of the Lord encamped round about them, that they fear him, and delivered them. The angel of the Lord encamped round about them, that fear him, and delivered them.
Just until now that the angel, that singular, camped round about. Plural. How do you account for that, Russell? That's Psalms 34, 7. I can't. Eleven. And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Lyconia, the Greek dialect, the gods are come down to us in likeness of men.
That has a small g on it. Now, Dennis, what are they getting ready to do? That's right. That's right. And they called Barnabas, Jupiter, and Paul, Mercurius, because he was the chief speaker. Then the priest of Jupiter, which was before their city, brought oxen and garlands unto the gates, and would have done sacrifice with the people.
Now, most of the cities were fenced or walled, and they would have one getting in and out place or two. But at the main gate, there stood a statue of the God that was over these people. Which, when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard of it, they rent their clothes and ran in among the people, crying and saying, Sirs, why do you these things?
We also are men of like passion with you and preach unto you that you should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven and earth and the sea and all things that are therein. Now, we got a lesson here.
Can anybody get out of that a good illustration or lesson of this whole incident? Greg, you see any lessons in there? That's true. God does not need the services of man. He doesn't need the lies of man.
God has put honor upon you by making you one of the elect. You do not need to seek honor from the world. 16. Who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways? Now, the word nation refers to Gentiles.
He governed them. Well, let me ask you this. The Jews had the law. That governed them. What did the Gentiles have by his providence, which controls everything? The Jews had the law. The Gentiles had providence.
They didn't have the law. 17. Nevertheless, he left not himself without witnesses in that he did good and gave us rain from heaven, this is Paul speaking, and fruitful seasons filled our hearts with food, filling our hearts with food and gladness.
Joy, what about this giving of God? Does the provident, providential giving? Is he ever short? What is the difference, Fred, between a sufficiency and my want? Sometimes it's not as much. Well, he never, he gives only what is sufficient.
His bounty forbids men to waste. 18. And with these sayings, scarce restrained they the people that they had not done sacrifice unto them. And there came thither certain Jews from Antioch. Boy, they're following Paul every place.
Starting from the beginning, they begin to follow and disrupt. They came from Antioch, Iconium, who persuaded the people, and having stoned Paul, drew him out of the city, supposing that he had been dead.
Now, let's talk about these people a little bit. They are a group that believed Paul. They were in the group that were celebrating and wanting to offer sacrifice for them. But what about the stoning? Dennis, how can you account for that from the same people?
That's so true. I can see the Jews behind them stirring them up. I cannot get a picture of the Jews throwing the stone as long as they got the people to do it. Well, is that not like the public? All you have to do is just steer them one way or the other.
Well, do not be moved by the world's flattery. Don't be discouraged by its persecution either. These people went from having Paul be a god to stoning him for dead. We have too many church members today in the same lack of fortitude.
Unfortunately, not this group. Don't be under the persuasion of the last person to whom you spoke. Twenty. Howbeit, as the disciples stood round about him, he rose up and came into the city, and the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe.
Now, right here we have evidence that a child of God is immortal until his work is finished. Greg Hesbop, Paul's work wasn't finished. There's no such thing as a worldly, popular preacher and a faithful to the word preacher.
All of that cannot be found in one book. Twenty-one. And when they had preached the gospel to that city and had taught many, they returned again to Lystria and to Iconium and Antioch, confirming the souls of the disciples and exhorting them to continue in the faith and that we must, through much tribulation, enter into the kingdom of God.
Why is tribulation necessary? I'd rather just go straight into the kingdom of God. It's good for us. I wish I could remember that when I'm in the middle of it. Well, they certainly had tribulation. Now, Paul knew it was wise to confirm.
He went back to confirm. Russell, why would Paul backtrack to confirm the churches? That's exactly what you see. It's your head being filled with everything is of little use unless your heart's confirmed.
To continue in the faith is to produce obedience of the soul. And when they had ordained them elders in every church and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord on whom they believed.
And after they had passed through Poseidon, and came to Pamphylia, and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down in to Attila, then sailed to Antioch, from whence they had been recommended to the grace of God for the work which they fulfilled.
And when they were come and had gathered the church together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles. Now, they come into the city where they were a long time ago, and they rehearsed everything that God had done with them.
What's that mean, Joy? Why would they have to do that? We're living in a fast communication, very fast communication. No other war has been fought like this with us being right in the middle of it. They had no newspapers.
They didn't have the radio. They didn't have television. So if I heard a distant city, somebody would have to come. This is why Paul rehearsed everything in their ears. He was playing the part of news, of them being there.
So many things have come about in our world that we take for granted. We never think about it, or if we do, it's very briefly. Fred can too. When things were not like that, we hardly knew what was going on in the next county, let alone around the world.
We grew up in a semi-isolated area. Yet, if our forefathers would be brought up to date, they would have thought that it was fantastic. And now we've gone to the computer. Everything is instantaneous.
I suppose someday that the computer will be passé, but not now. And there they abode a long time with the disciples. It was about five years that they spent there. Now, you've heard Chapter 14. Do you have any statements, anything you'd like to add, any lessons you learned, or want to learn?
Yes, you're right. That's exactly right. And things that we take for granted in the medical world, a thousand years ago, they would have considered a miracle. I go this week to have my artery in my leg expanded.
A few years ago, that couldn't have happened. Hardening of the arteries, they call it. I grew up with that statement. All right. Anything else? Well, we're a little bit early, but that's all right. Dennis, dismiss us, please.