Ep 414 – Acts 13:1-12

What happens when godly leaders, compelled by the Spirit of God, send out godly men to do the work of God? Incredible things. That is what we see happen in Acts 13:1-12. Saul, better known to us as Paul, gets tag-teamed with his friend Barnabas, and sent out on the first of three missionary journeys that he will take. These two were called by God, but commissioned and sent out by the leadership of the local church in Antioch. There was a clear sense of calling on these two men’s lives and a unified consensus among the local leadership that they should be sent, even if it ended up negatively impacting the church in Antioch. And in this section of verses, we are going to see God continue to redirect the efforts of the church, driving them further and further away from the central hub of Judaism, the city of Jerusalem, and into the world dominated by Gentiles. The very first convert Paul and Barnabas will have the joy of seeing will be a Roman government official. And we will see this Gentile radically juxtaposed to a so-called Jewish prophet who saw the message of Paul and Barnabas as bad news, not good news. He would reject their offer of salvation through Jesus Christ, losing his sight as a result. But the Roman proconsul would have his eyes opened and his life changed forever.