The Unhindered Harvest Acts: The Unhindered Harvest

Review…the Gospels Old Testament fulfilled The coming of Messiah (Jesus) The life and ministry of Jesus The death and resurrection of Jesus

Review…Acts Great Commission initiated The coming of the Holy Spirit The actions of the Holy Spirit

Review…Acts The actions of the Holy Spirit Within the world Within Christian (individual) Within Christians (collective)

Gospels and Acts Selected narrative events Selective for a purpose Never exhaustive Always enough

Acts 13:4-12 A cameo of what is to come An apologetic of good will A demonstration An example to follow

Acts 13:4-7 So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia and from there they sailed to Cyprus.

When they reached Salamis, they began to proclaim the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews; and they also had John as their helper.

When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they found a magician, a Jewish false prophet whose name was Bar-Jesus,

who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God.

But Elymas the magician (for so his name is translated) was opposing them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.

But Saul, who was also known as Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fixed his gaze on him, and said,

“You who are full of all deceit and fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease to make crooked the straight ways of the Lord?

“Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and not see the sun for a time.”

And immediately a mist and a darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking those who would lead him by the hand.

Then the proconsul believed when he saw what had happened, being amazed at the teaching of the Lord.

The Occasion Ministry on the island of Cyprus The plan was simple: Proclaim Jesus

The Conflict Influence from a false prophet Desire of a sincere man Opposition from a false prophet

The Result Judgement was rendered Against his character Against his name Against his desires

Go back to the Old Testament, and discover its teaching about false prophets, as to the nature of the sin...as to the judgment that fell upon them…Bar-Jesus…was a Jew trafficking with unholy things..."

"...Paul uttered those strange, startling, burning, scorching words, because Sergius Paulus was in danger.

The severest words of the Bible, Old and New Testaments, are reserved for those who stand between men and truth, for those who stand between men and God."

"...this man...was standing in the way, or attempting to do so, of the soul of a man finding truth, and finding life. That was the reason of the fiercely burning fire." (Morgan, pp. 316-317)

The Result Judgement was rendered By God’s holy mercy Blindness to reveal darkness

The Result The word of God was received Miracle confirmed Faith founded on God’s word God’s word is decisive in man’s soul

“Contemporary Christians may wish for such demonstrations of divine power to remove obstacles to faith and enable conversions today. But it should be remembered that even in Acts they are rare…

The overall message of Acts is that the work of God is advanced in the world by Spirit-filled messengers who proclaim the gospel faithfully and boldly.” (Peterson, pg. 383)

Reaping the Harvest Any danger is mere distraction Proclaim Jesus God sets us up God closes the deal Reaping the Harvest

2nd Timothy 4:1-2 I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom:

preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.