DEATH TO LIFE

DEATH TO LIFE

Paul and Barnabas continue on their journey without John Mark, and they travelled down to Iconium and preached in the synagogue there, and many of the Jews and the Greeks believed.

ACTS 14:1. At Iconium, Paul and Barnabas went together to the synagogue and preached with such power that many—both Jews and Gentiles—believed.
We will read a little further on (vs 21 below) that when Paul returns to Iconium on a later journey he finds that Timothy was one of the first fruits of that original ministry in Iconium, where Timothy lived with his mother Eunice and his grandmother Lois. (Acts 16:2, 2Tim 3:10)

4. But the Jews who spurned God’s message stirred up distrust among the Gentiles against Paul and Barnabas, saying all sorts of evil things about them, but the Lord proved their message was from him by giving them power to do great miracles. But the people were divided.
And when Paul and Barnabas learned of a plot to incite a mob of Gentiles, Jews, and Jewish leaders to attack and stone them, they fled for their lives, going to the cities of Lycaonia, Lystra, Derbe, and the surrounding area, and preaching the Good News there.

There did not seem to be a definite strategy of the spreading of the word of God. It was what it was, so they were led by The Holy Spirit to the surrounding regions in Lystra and Derbe. God was not going to allow severe persecution to stop his purpose and power from happening no matter what appeared to be happening to them - as we shall shortly see in a most dramatic and compelling way. 

In the meantime…
8. At Lystra they came upon a man with crippled feet who had been that way from birth.
He was listening as Paul preached, and Paul looked intensely at  him and perceived  he had faith to be healed. So Paul called to him, “Stand up!” and the man leaped to his feet and started walking!
The witness of faith – This is an example of how faith meets faith. Paul firstly had faith that the power of God was present and active. While he was looking at that crippled man with eyes of faith, that man was looking to God with eyes of faith. Their faith met and God knew the man’s prayer and Paul spoke God’s answer - and the man stood up and walked. The same thing happened to Jesus when a woman was looking to Jesus in her need believing she could be healed and reached out and touched his garment, and faith met faith. Jesus felt the healing power flow from him to the woman – faith can perceive faith.

When the listening crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted (in their local Hittite dialect), “These men are gods in human bodies!” They decided that Barnabas was the Greek god Jupiter, and that Paul, because he was the chief speaker, was Mercury! The local priest of the Temple of Jupiter brought them cartloads of flowers and prepared to sacrifice oxen to them at the city gates before the crowds.
14. But when Barnabas and Paul saw what was happening, they ripped at their clothing in dismay and ran out among the people, shouting, “Men! What are you doing? We also are men with the same nature as you, and preach to you that you should turn from these useless things to the living God, who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all things that are in them, 
16 who in bygone generations allowed all nations to walk in their own way. Nevertheless He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.” So Paul and Barnabas could scarcely restrain the people from sacrificing to them!

The myths and legends of the Greek gods were all about strange ‘beings of renown’ who assumed human form whenever they wished and visited the earth. This was also a belief amongst the Egyptians and also the Hindus. (See Gen 6:4)

Paul was preaching here to people of an ancient culture, so they spoke about the God of Creation who controlled all the elements of the earth and worked them together according to his design and purpose. This was different to preaching to Jews, where he would speak about the Jewish patriarchs like Abraham and Moses and David, reminding them of their covenant as a Nation with God. His emphasis here to these pagans of Lystra was similar to how he preached to the Greeks in Athens on the Hill of Mars. (Acts 17) where he spoke about the God of creation who determined the boundaries and bloodlines and appointed times and purposes of all the nations of the earth.

19. Yet only a few days later, some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium (where they had fled from) and incited a mob of people to stone Paul to death. They then dragged Paul out of the city deeming him to be dead (nomizo – to deem something to be what it appears to be - the rule of action prescribed by reason - it is what it is). 20However, when the disciples gathered around him, he rose up (anistemi - to raise up from the dead – as it was said of Lazarus and Jesus ) and went into the city. And the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe.
21. After preaching the Good News there and making many disciples, they returned again to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, where they helped the believers to grow in love for God and each other. They encouraged them to continue in the faith in spite of all the persecution, reminding them that they must enter into the Kingdom of God through many tribulations. 
Paul and Barnabas also appointed elders in every church and prayed for them with fasting, turning them over to the care of the Lord in whom they trusted.

24. Then they travelled back through Pisidia to Pamphylia, preached again in Perga, and went on to Attalia. Finally they returned by ship to Antioch, where their journey had begun and where they had been committed to God for the work which was now completed.
Upon arrival they called together the believers and reported on their trip, telling how God had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles too. And they stayed there with the believers at Antioch for a long while.

Looking at that stoning to death event again… nomizo and anistemi in verse 19.
This could have been the time that Paul left his body, as he recounts later in a letter to the Corinthians. ‘This boasting is all so foolish but let me go on. Let me tell about the visions I’ve had, and revelations from the Lord. Fourteen years ago…
(This event in the Book of acts was around the time between 39 and 44 AD and when he wrote the second letter to the Corinthians it was around 56 to 58 AD –so there’s fourteen years in there somewhere) 
… I was taken up to heaven for a visit. Don’t ask me whether my body was there or just my spirit, for I don’t know; only God can answer that. But anyway, there I was in paradise, and heard things so astounding that they are beyond a man’s power to describe or put in words (and I am not allowed to tell them to others). 
On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses— though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth; but I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me in my life and my message.
I will say this: because these experiences and revelations were so tremendous, God was afraid I might be puffed up in pride by them; so I was sent a messenger from Satan as a thorn in my flesh, to hurt and bother me and pierce my pride’ (2 Cor 12:1-7).

So for Paul he would have understood that the power of Jesus was not only about resurrection – it was about death and resurrection. Just because someone believes in the doctrine of resurrection it does not necessarily mean that the power of resurrection is flowing in that person’s life. That power is expressed in us when we are challenged to die to something that we realise is working death in us. We can choose to die to what that is in our body and soul and rise up in the life of Jesus working in us.

When Jesus died on the cross he knew that he would be resurrected and he told people. Jesus did not and could not fight for his life on the cross. He had always surrendered control over his own life overcoming the struggle of the soul and the spirit and we see his willing surrender in the garden of Gesthemane, and he stayed alive until the life of his spirit left his dead body. He committed his spirit into his Father’s hands and when he had done that he was resurrected. His body was raised up (anistemi)on the third day but he was given resurrection life in his spirit when he committed his spirit into the Father’s hands. 'into Your hands I commit My spirit (paratithemi – to place alongside). His life was not lost but placed alongside Father’s life.

The spirit life of humanity was joined to the resurrection life of God through Jesus.
Colossians 3:3 you are dead and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 
How can Paul say ‘you are dead’? – How can he say ‘dead to sin and alive to God’ (Romans 6:11) It is because Jesus became our death and our resurrection – all we do is receive repentance to life and have faith in his life working within us. It is called the simplicity of Christ – so simple yet such a hidden mystery! ‘hidden with Christ in God’ but waiting to be found …whoever loses his life for me and because of me will find it. (Matthew 16:25) 

That is something that has already happened and yet it is waiting to happen.
That is a mystery of something hidden waiting to be revealed. 
It means that what is waiting for us is to place our spirit in faith alongside the Spirit of God (paratithemi) and our spirit comes alive and out into the open. Our death is dying to the life of our soul being in control and our spirit is set free into resurrection life. The hidden life can be found and our faith releases it.