How to Be a Biblical Missionary (Acts 14)

The PursueGOD Truth Podcast

Welcome back to the podcast! Today we’re going to spend some time studying Paul’s first missionary journey, answering the question: What are the marks of a Biblical missionary?

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Today we’re going to spend some time studying Paul’s first missionary journey. Tracing his travels through Acts, we can break his travels into three parts:

• First Missionary Journey (Acts 13-14): Paul, along with Barnabas, traveled through Cyprus and parts of modern-day Turkey, including cities like Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe.
• Second Missionary Journey (Acts 15:36-18:22): This journey began after a disagreement with Barnabas. Paul traveled through regions of Asia Minor and then to Europe, including cities like Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, Athens, and Corinth.
• Third Missionary Journey (Acts 18:23-21:17): Paul revisited many of the places he had previously established churches, such as Galatia and Ephesus, and continued his ministry in Macedonia and Greece.

Today we’ll answer this question: Q. What Are the Marks of a Biblical Missionary?

• Today we’ll identify Three Marks.
• First: What is a missionary?
• Defn: A “sent one” who goes to a different culture to share the good news about Jesus.
• “Missio” means to be sent. Implication: sent on God’s mission.
• In the case of Paul & Barnabas: sent by the Holy Spirit, but through the local church (13:1-3)
• Comes from Great Commission:
• Matthew 28:19 (NLT) 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
• Why does this question matter?
• Not all missionary efforts are biblical!
• Our church: do these missionaries actually make disciples?
• Think of it like an investment…
• Goal: make money
• If it didn’t make money, would you keep investing?
• At some point, NO!
• Back to biblical missions:
• Goal: make disciples
• If it didn’t make disciples, would you keep investing?
• Example: missionaries in Spain
• Living like they were retired
• No fruit, no disciple-making
• Our church: evaluating our investments
• Individually, too

So let’s get to the text, the first-ever Christian mission

• To discover Three Marks of Biblical Missionaries
• Three things that were true back then
• They’re still true today

Mark 1: Biblical missionaries proclaim the gospel. (14:1-7)

• Easy to forget this and make the focus “doing good” for society
• Some famous missionaries and their humanitarian impact:
• John Eliot (1604–1690)
• Known as the "Apostle to the Indians," Eliot was an English Puritan missionary who focused on converting Native Americans in New England.
• Eliot advocated for the rights of Native Americans, often opposing colonial injustices and working to protect their interests.
• William Carey (1761–1834)
• An English missionary known as the "father of modern missions," Carey was a key figure in the founding of the Baptist Missionary Society and dedicated his life to spreading Christianity in India.
• He advocated for social reforms, such as the abolition of practices like Sati (the burning of widows) and the promotion of education for women.
• David Livingstone (1813–1873)
• A Scottish missionary and explorer, Livingstone is known for his extensive travels in Africa.
• Exploration and Mapping: His explorations helped map large parts of Africa, providing valuable information about the continent's geography.
• Anti-Slavery Advocacy: Livingstone's writings raised awareness of the horrors of the slave trade, influencing public opinion in Britain and contributing to the eventual abolition of slavery in many parts of Africa.
• Healthcare and Education: He established missions and medical clinics, promoting education and healthcare in local communities.
• But each of these missionaries had the same focus: sharing Jesus
• Impacting culture was a byproduct of this, not the main focus
• This is the first mark of biblical missions
• Comes from Jesus himself:
• Acts 1:8: “you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere…”
• Compare Matt 28: go make disciples of all nations”
• Survey of Paul’s first missionary journey:
• Acts 13:38-39 (Pisidian Antioch) “Brothers, listen! We are here to proclaim that through this man Jesus there is forgiveness for your sins. Everyone who believes in him is made right in God’s sight - something the law of Moses could never do.”
• Acts 14:1 (Iconium) “...Paul and Barnabas went to the Jewish synagogue and preached with such power that a great number of both Jews and Greeks became believers.”
• Acts 14:15 (Lystra) “...We have come to bring you the Good News that you should turn from these worthless things and turn to the living God…”
• As seen in ch 13 and 14:
• Some people respond joyfully to the message of Jesus,
• while others respond antagonistically
• That’s not up to the missionaries
• Their part is to share the good news about Jesus
• Humanitarian impact is good, but it’s not ultimate.
• Biblical missionaries must proclaim the gospel
• That’s the first mark we see from Acts 14

Here’s the second one:

Mark 2: Biblical missionaries contextualize the gospel. (14:8-20)

• Every culture has its own context.
• Explain what culture is: how a group uniquely organizes its normative behaviors and ideas
• Thailand: don’t pat a child on the head;
• Malaysia & India: don’t eat food with left hand; etc. (google it)
• Ethics and values are part of culture: what a society assumes is good & right
• Can’t assume people everywhere think like we do / value what we value
• Acts 1:8 = “in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
• On surface, it looks like a geographical expansion
• Partly it is, but more significantly, a cultural expansion
• Jerusalem → my hometown
• Judea → the region surrounding: culturally similar
• Samaria → geographically near, but culturally distant
• Ends of the earth → geographically and culturally distant
• Worldview is also part of culture: what is assumed about reality, including role of supernatural
• In the missionary journey of Paul and Barnabas, this crossing of cultures is marked by the inclusion of Gentiles along with Jews
• Last week (ch 13): Paul preached to the Jewish community in Antioch of Pisidia
• When the Jews began to oppose their message, Paul and Barnabas turned to the non-Jewish people
• From now on, we see a deliberate outreach focus on non-Jewish people
• IOW: Paul & Barnabus seeking to communicate with people NOT like them
• As missionaries cross the barriers of culture, the challenge of communicating the gospel increases, so MISSIONARIES CROSS THE BARRIER OF MISUNDERSTANDING (14:8-20)
• People who are presented with the gospel (or any message) make sense of what they hear in light of what they already believe
• You can see the misunderstanding in (8-13)
• In other situations, healing underscored the message of Jesus (see v.3)
• But in this case, the healing interpreted in light of cultural understanding of God
• Paul knew what to do → frame the gospel starting with those peoples’ worldview
• (Verses 14-17) - didn’t start with Jewish scriptures, as he did in Pisidian Antioch
• Would have made no sense to these rural pagans
• Started with common ground of natural revelation: the God who made everything, who provide common graces like rain and crops
• Examples from cultures where Alpine sends missionaries?
• Note: contextualizing the gospel shouldn’t change the gospel

Acts 14:8-10 (NLT) 8 While they were at Lystra, Paul and Barnabas came upon a man with crippled feet. He had been that way from birth, so he had never walked. He was sitting 9 and listening as Paul preached. Looking straight at him, Paul realized he had faith to be healed. 10 So Paul called to him in a loud voice, “Stand up!” And the man jumped to his feet and started walking.

• Jesus, Peter, now Paul.
• Why? To legitimize their message.

Acts 14:11-13 (NLT) 11 When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in their local dialect, “These men are gods in human form!” 12 They decided that Barnabas was the Greek god Zeus and that Paul was Hermes, since he was the chief speaker. 13 Now the temple of Zeus was located just outside the town. So the priest of the temple and the crowd brought bulls and wreaths of flowers to the town gates, and they prepared to offer sacrifices to the apostles.

• Greco-Roman culture: lots of gods and legends
• (Pillar New Testament Commentary) Since the people were shouting in the Lycaonian language, the missionaries were at first unaware of the honour that was being paid to them.

Acts 14:14-17 (NLT) 14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard what was happening, they tore their clothing in dismay and ran out among the people, shouting, 15 “Friends, why are you doing this? We are merely human beings—just like you! We have come to bring you the Good News that you should turn from these worthless things and turn to the living God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. 16 In the past he permitted all the nations to go their own ways, 17 but he never left them without evidence of himself and his goodness. For instance, he sends you rain and good crops and gives you food and joyful hearts.”

• Notice what Paul is doing here: contextualizing the gospel
• To a Jew: “Good News” in context of OT promises to Abraham
• To a Gentile: “Good News” in context of God’s generosity in general
• In both cases there’s a call to faith and repentance
• Faith in a good, sovereign God
• Repentance: turning from sin to God
• (Pillar New Testament Commentary) What we have here is not evangelism in the normal NT sense of proclaiming Christ and his saving work. However, it is a biblical foundation for evangelism in a culture where fundamental presuppositions about God and nature and the meaning of human existence need to be challenged.
• That’s what we try to do in The Pursuit series:
• Lesson 1: God is for you, not against you
• Lesson 2: The Bible can be trusted for truth
• Lesson 3: Biblical principles are the foundation for a moralistic worldview.
• These three lessons provide a foundation for sharing Jesus with people in post-modern world
• Then we go on to the basics of the gospel:
• L4: What is sin?
• L5: Who is Jesus?
• L6: Responding in faith
• Paul is laying the foundation for sharing the basics of the gospel
• But they don’t have ears to hear it…

Acts 14:18 (NLT) 18 But even with these words, Paul and Barnabas could scarcely restrain the people from sacrificing to them.

• He shared the gospel
• But he couldn’t make them receive it
• Section ends with Paul getting stoned and drug out of the town
• But he gets up and moves on to the next town

So we’ve seen two marks of biblical missionaries so far:

• They proclaim the gospel
• They contextualize the gospel

And here’s the third thing we notice in the text:

Mark 3: Biblical missionaries make disciple-makers. (14:21-25)

Acts 14:21-23 (NLT) 21 After preaching the Good News in Derbe and making many disciples, Paul and Barnabas returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch of Pisidia, 22 where they strengthened the believers. They encouraged them to continue in the faith, reminding them that we must suffer many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God. 23 Paul and Barnabas also appointed elders in every church. With prayer and fasting, they turned the elders over to the care of the Lord, in whom they had put their trust.

• Went back to cities where preached the gospel
• Took steps to strengthen and encourage the new believers there
• Discipled them: taught them about the nature of God’s kingdom / how to live as Xian
• In this case: how to handle suffering
• Appointed elders in every church → leaders to care for the people
• “Church” implies: believers were gathered into a specific community
• Paul and Barnabas were itinerant, but no missionary will be anywhere forever
• The goal is to develop a church that is not dependent on outsiders
• The “Three-Self” ideal: Self-governing / Self-supporting / Self-propagating
• IOW: a church that is making disciples who make disciples who make disciples
• Sometimes this means establish disciple-making churches
• Share example from Victory church: “make one disciple”

Close:

• We’re all called to all three of these things, not just missionaries.