By Jay T. Robertson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Christian Studies, University of Mobile
THE GOSPEL MESSAGE
Acts 13:26–39
Acts is the unfolding story of the people of God, filled with the Spirit of God, engaging in the mission of God. The Book of Acts teaches us that the purpose we have as the Church is to glorify God by making disciples through the gospel, in community, on mission.
The life-changing reality we learn in our Scripture this week is that every follower of Jesus needs to learn to live as a missionary where God has them. As we intentionally look for opportunities to share the gospel, we can expect to face opposition.
Having sailed from Cyprus to Perga, Paul and Barnabas traveled to Pisidian Antioch in Asia Minor. In the synagogue Paul was invited to share a word of encouragement. Acts 13 records this first and longest sermon of the apostle Paul. Paul’s sermon had three parts: Jesus is the culmination of history, Jesus is the fulfillment of prophecy and Jesus is the justifier of sinners. Let’s examine our core passage.
Crucified (26–29)
The salvation that had been promised in the Old Testament and proclaimed by John the Baptist has now come to the people in Pisidian Antioch. Paul anticipated and answered two questions that might have arisen in the minds of his hearers. The first question was one Jewish people have wrestled with from apostolic times until now: If Jesus is the Messiah, why did the Jewish leaders fail to recognize Him as such? Paul declared that it was because of their hardened, sin-darkened hearts. The so-called Scripture experts failed to understand its teaching.
Paul then answered a second question that would have arisen: If the Messiah was rejected, does that nullify God’s plan? Absolutely not. Jesus’ crucifixion fulfilled Old Testament prophecies. The cross was God’s Plan A from the beginning. Jesus’ death by crucifixion fulfilled many different prophecies. God looked upon hopelessly sinful people and sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, God in human flesh, to bear His wrath against our sin on the cross.
Resurrected (30–37)
Of all the proofs that Jesus is the Messiah, His resurrection from the dead is the greatest. As evidence for the resurrection, Paul cited the fact that for many days Jesus appeared to those who had come up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. There were more than 500 witnesses (1 Cor. 15:6), including Paul himself (1 Cor. 15:8).
Paul concluded this section on the resurrection by showing how the resurrection fulfilled three specific promises God had made in Scripture. Psalm 2:7 declared the Messiah’s sonship. The resurrection magnified and glorified Christ’s sonship. A second promise, from Isaiah 55:3, came true when God raised Jesus from the dead. A dead Messiah could not have been the channel for “the holy and sure blessings” God had promised to David and his posterity. The third promise comes from Psalm 16:10. The Holy One of God will not see corruption. David died, was buried and saw corruption. Jesus, however, was raised up by God and did not undergo corruption.
Proclaimed (38–39)
If we’re going to live as missionaries where God has us, we must proclaim the gospel faithfully. The gospel is the good news that the just and gracious God of the universe looked upon hopelessly sinful people and sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, God in human flesh, to bear His wrath against sin on the cross and to show His power over sin by resurrecting Jesus from the dead so that everyone who turns from their sin and believes in Jesus will be reconciled to God forever.
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