Acts 13 reminds me of two types of leaders. There are those that inspire and elevate everyone around them; and others that incite and escalate by using differences to manipulate. Today’s chapter is about recognizing the difference. We begin at the thriving church in Antioch filled with “prophets and teachers”. God spoke to the believers there, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them”. Saul was called to teach and preach God’s Word, and from this point on, he tirelessly follows that calling. The church members prayed for them, and “sent them off”. Saul and Barnabas sailed to Cyprus, and there “they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues”. Saul, now using his Roman name Paul, will first preach to the Jews in every new town he visits. Together, they traveled through the island until they reached the town of Pathos. There they met a “false prophet” called Elymas the sorcerer. He opposed the visitors, and “tried to turn the Roman proconsul from the faith”. Dividers always isolate their targets. Paul spoke directly at this deceiver, “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery”. Perhaps to symbolize his spiritual darkness, Paul declared, “You are going to be blind for a time”. As the sorcerer groped around looking for someone to lead him, the Roman proconsul believed, “for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord”. Friend are you isolated?
Paul and his companions continued their journey, and on the Sabbath, “they entered the synagogue and sat down”. The leader of the synagogue read from “the Law and the Prophets”, and then turned to the visitors. “Brothers, if you have a word of exhortation for the people, please speak”. There seems to be a scarcity of people able to inspire and truly lift up others. Encouragers elevate individuals with a shared vision.
Paul began his sermon with the history of the Nation. He took them from “Egypt” through “the wilderness” into “Canaan”. He spoke of the “judges”, and finally of “David their king”. Paul reminded them that God called David, “a man after My own heart”. Then Paul gave them a new assurance, “From this man’s descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as He promised”. He taught them that Jesus was the Messiah; explaining that Jesus was executed for crimes He did not commit. They “laid Him in a tomb. But God raised Him from the dead”. Paul connected the old and new promises, “What God promised our ancestors He has fulfilled for us… by raising up Jesus”. Paul concluded, “Through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you”. And he gave them a renewed hope, “Through Him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses”. He did not point to himself; instead, Paul urged them to place their faith in the righteousness of Christ! The message of grace resonated with the people, “On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord”. But those in power “were filled with jealousy”. Seeing their power slipping away, “They began to contradict what Paul was saying and heaped abuse on him”. Beware of those that insult and ridicule for selfish gain. Paul and Barnabas did not argue. “Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles”. Notice the contrast; those who received the message “were glad and honored”, and “The word of the Lord spread through the whole region”. Those that clung to power “incited” violence, and “stirred up persecution”. Always look at the results in the lives of the followers. Encouragers inspire in unity; “the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit”. My friend, are you an Elevater, or and Escalater?