Evangelism in Acts 13: Paul speaks in the synagogue

Engage Your World Evangelism Podcast

Evangelism in Acts 13 is the twelfth episode in our series looking at the evangelistic encounters found in the Book of Acts. In this episode, Matt and Joshua focus on a fascinating encounter Paul and Barnabas have with Jews while sharing the message of the Gospel in the synagogue.

In the first section Acts 13, Paul and Barnabas are summoned by the proconsul of Salamis, Sergius Paulus. However, they were opposed by a magician and false prophet named Bar-Jesus who wanted to keep the proconsul from the faith. Paul is filled with the Holy Spirit to call out the false prophet and then miraculously to make him blind for a time. After this the proconsul believed in the teaching of the Lord.

The bulk of the chapter then focuses on the speech that Paul gives after being invited to share in the Synagogue. We see Paul integrate several of the elements of the GOSPEL acronym while doing Evangelism in Acts 13. He masterfully weaves the context and content of the Gospel by starting with the choosing of Israel as God’s people and touching on major points of Jewish history leading up to death of Jesus. Paul then explains that in condemning Jesus to death on a cross, the people both misunderstood the prophecies and ended up fulfilling them. Yet this was the plan of God and in the resurrection, Jesus is vindicated as the one identified in the messianic prophecies.

When we developed our training approach for Engage 360, we did not focus on what verses can be used to explain the Gospel. Instead, we looked to the Bible and asked the question, “What did they actually do?” Below is the summary of their approach.

• G: Gauge your audience
• O: Offer common ground
• S: Shift to Christianity and the Gospel
• P: Provide evidence
• E: Explain the Gospel
• L: Leave with a clear next step

After listening to our podcast on Evangelism in Acts 13 and the death of Herod, if you would be interested in our team coming to your church or group to provide more training on biblical evangelism and how to apply it today, please fill out our contact form.

To access all past Engage 360 Podcasts click here.