"And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ."
Acts 17:2-3
Part 1
Today: Paul’s Gospel Preaching was to the Jew First
Our passage today is taken from the Book of Acts. This incident happened during the second missionary journey of the Apostle Paul. He is consistently seen as a faithful preacher of the Word of God. As we will see, he will spend his first three Sabbaths in Thessalonica with the Jews in their synagogue. Reading through Paul’s encounter there, we will find that some of the Jews believed his message. And a great many of the Greeks (Gentiles) and influential women believed. Most Jews did not believe his preaching, and they caused problems and stirred up trouble in the marketplace. Their claim,
“These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also” (1 Thessalonians 17:6).
These preachers of the Gospel are seen as “troublemakers” by those who did not believe in Jesus Christ’s message. Another scripture version says it this way,
“‘These men have made trouble everywhere in the world, and now they have come here too!'” (1 Thessalonians 17:6 – HSB).[1]
Some things never change. Today, in many parts of the world, Gospel preachers are still looked upon with suspicion and labeled as pests. There is often a cost to the faithful messenger who shares the Gospel.
“And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them.”
Paul passionately believed that his countrymen, the Jews, deserved to hear the Gospel message first. This is why he visited the synagogues first.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16).
With each stop he made as he traveled, this seems to be his habit. In Damascus,
“And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God” (Acts 9:20).
“And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister” (Acts 13:5).
“But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and sat down” (Acts 13:14).
“And three sabbath days reasoned with them.”
Paul is patient when giving the Gospel message to those who have not heard it before. He presented the Gospel for three weeks running in their synagogue. Paul “reasoned with them.” It was not just a monologue that Paul gave them with no opportunity to speak or ask questions. He “conversed” and held a “discourse with [them].” Some may have “argued,” but he “discussed” Jesus Christ with all of them who would listen (see Thayer).[2]
“Out of the scriptures.”
These words are so vital! We, believers, need to remember that our testimony must include and share God’s Words when we witness. Paul put no confidence in his ability to debate,[3] but his trust was in God’s Word. This is where the power of the Gospel is. And it is only the Gospel that has the power to change the human heart. As we have seen in Paul’s words already, “the gospel of Christ… is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth” (Romans 1:16b). We who have the “gift of gab” need to be especially careful when presenting the Gospel. If not, we may depend upon our “great ability to speak” rather than “God’s power to save.”
Paul, a Master of the Scriptures, used the Word to make and prove his statements. He did not rely on his oratory, but on God’s power, as he “reasoned out of the scriptures.” He did not fear their “hard questions” about Jesus or God’s Word. Come back tomorrow as we look at how Paul opened the Word of God to teach doctrine to sinners.
Quote: “God is not intimidated by such hard and testing questions, nor is he unable to answer them. But we must come with the right kind of skepticism—not the kind that refuses to believe anything at all, but the kind that is committed to believe only what is really true”[4] (Philip Graham Ryken).
[1] HSB is the Harvest Study Bible from Harvest Ministries, Guam.
[2] J.H. Thayer, Thayer’s Greek Definitions, the electronic version in eSword.
[3] “Apologetics” is needful in our witnessing, but apologetics has never saved anyone. The Gospel, in God’s Word, has the only power to save.
[4] Ryken’s quote is from his book, King Solomon: The Temptations of Money, Sex, and Power. Downloaded: Wednesday, April 7, 2021. From: https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/christian-apologetics.