Life Come to Lystra (Acts 14:9-32)

It must have been a pleasure for Luke to write about the activities of Paul and Barnabas in the First Missionary Journey that Paul engaged in. They visited so many places, and in each of them so much took place. Obviously, Luke could only highlight some of the incidents. From the time the apostles spent in Lystra, Luke records three incidents that we can call the sign, the sermon and the stoning.

The authenticating sign

We are not told where the miracle of the healing of the crippled man occurred, but it was probably in a synagogue because it happened during an address given by Paul. If that was the context, then it is likely that Paul would have been speaking about what the Old Testament predicted the Messiah would do, and one of those activities was to perform miracles to authenticate his mission. We are to remember that Jesus, although he is in heaven now, still functions as the Messiah, which means that if he wishes to perform a miracle he can do so, and he may still do so at times.

It seems obvious from the account that this man was suitable to be a witness to the fact that Jesus was working through his servant Paul. Paul was an apostle and he was able to do certain signs that revealed he was approved by God. Sometimes, the sign was an act of judgement, as what happened to Elymas when Paul and Barnabas were in Cyprus. At other times, as here, the sign was an act of grace.

Luke highlights several features that we should observe. First, the man had an obvious problem that everyone could see. Second, he paid attention to the message of Paul. Third, his faith was connected to what Paul was explaining, which could indicate that gracious sign of authentication is performed in someone who has become a believer. Fourth, Paul wanted the miracle to happen in a public place and did it in such a way that all could hear what he was doing. Fifth, the man was fully healed.

The attempted sacrifice

Healings occurred elsewhere during Paul’s ministry, but they did not bring about the response that happened in Lystra. The reaction can be explained by a superstitious belief that was held locally. It was claimed that at some stage in the past, the gods Zeus and Hermes had paid a visit to the city, but the inhabitants had not recognised them, and they had moved on. Obviously, the locals now assumed that the two gods had paid another visit which should be celebrated by a parade, followed by a sacrifice at the temple to Zeus.

Instead of being pleased with the response, Paul and Barnabas made urgent efforts to stop the sacrifice from happening. Moreover, we can see that they knew what to say, and also knew the best place to say it, which was in the middle of the crowd. There would be no point in shouting at the crowd from a distance. Luke probably recorded their words because they are an example of what to say to pagan people engaged in their forms of idolatry. So what did Paul and Barnabas say and do? We can identify several points.

First, they were emotionally involved about the possibilities of the situation. The citizens were about to do something that the apostles regarded as terrible. They could have said what is the harm in a parade and a feast of celebration after the animals are killed. But that is not what they thought. The reason for their response was the honour that should be given to God. And if it meant that they had to purchase some new clothes after tearing in distress what they were wearing, it was a small price to pay in order to get the inhabitants of Lystra to see what was happening.

Second, they asked the citizens to consider why they were doing what they were doing. This may seem unimportant, but I wonder if it is something that is missing from our evangelistic methods. Usually we launch into our message and don’t ask listeners to think about their activities. When someone asks this kind of question, it immediately tells listeners that the words of the speaker are in some way relevant to them. And often they will consider why they are doing what they do.

Third, Paul and Barnabas stressed the common humanity they all shared. It was an asset to say in a synagogue that the Lord had blessed the Israelites throughout history and used them in various ways for his glory. But such a message could give the impression that Paul and Barnabas imagined that their ethnic identity gave them a degree of superiority. Instead, they emphasised that they were humans together. The apostles did mention one difference and that was that they had a special message for people.

Fourth, Paul and Barnabas pointed out that the gods worshipped by the people were vain things. The idea behind that description is that they were weightless, with no real substance. This is not surprising to us because we know that they don’t even exist. Yet it must have been a shock to the listeners to hear their idols so dismissed by individuals who could perform amazing miracles.

Fifth, the thrust of the special message was that they could know God. So what did they say about him? They stressed that he is the living God, that he is the Creator, that he is the God of providence, and that he is kind to his creatures by sending them harvests. No doubt, a great deal could be said about those details, indeed books have been written about each of them. Having said that, there is nothing unsuitable in stating those features of God in such short phrases. For now, I will mention one detail for each of those features of our God.

As the living God, he is eternal, without beginning. As the Creator, we see his power in bringing into existence all the various areas of the created order. As the controller of providence, he is the sovereign and he showed his sovereignty by allowing the nations to go their own ways (the implication of this decision is that he no longer leaves them there). As the One who provides good things for his creatures, we see that it is the goodness of God that leads people to repentance.

Sixth, the people were exhorted to turn away from their idols and move towards the living God. In saying this, the people were being called to repentance, and they were also being informed that the living God is approachable. Of course, Luke is only providing a summary of what was said, and he is not suggesting that Paul and Barnabas did not mention Jesus and his death on the cross and his subsequent resurrection and ascension.

The awful stoning

It is not clear when this stoning of Paul took place. Perhaps the Jews from Antioch and Iconium had arrived before or during the time that Paul and Barnabas were speaking to the crowd and they used the opportunity to arrange for an execution. Or maybe the stoning occurred at a later time. Our interest should not really be on when it took place, but what did it reveal. There are three details that we can note.

First, we see in the energy of the Jews from Antioch and Iconium the determination they possessed to destroy the gospel. Of course, we see in them something similar to what Paul himself had done before his conversion when he travelled from city to city to crush the church. We should not forget that their opposition was really against the Messiah who had come to them as the Saviour. But they rejected him, his message and his servants.

Second, we that the stoning gave the opportunity to the new converts to stand up for Jesus. It would have been easy for them to leave Paul since it looked as if he was dead. Yet brotherly love filled their hearts for the one who had brought the gospel to them. So the hateful act against Paul became the opportunity for the new believers to display love.

Third, sometimes Jesus can provide renewed strength to his disciples quickly. If we had been stoned, it is not likely that we would be setting out on the next day for a long walk. Yet since Paul was able to do so, he must have recovered rapidly. His determination to go to another place also shows us his desire to bring the good news of Jesus to other places.

Some lessons

In looking at the three incidents in Lystra, we can see that God can turn any situation into one in which his people can learn about him. We would think that a lifelong invalid, a crowd intent on false worship, and a stoning would not be suitable locations for considering the abilities of God. But each of them was, and I suspect the same can be said for the places we will find ourselves.

Another lesson is that we don’t have to focus only on the judgement of God in order to bring the gospel call to sinners. Paul and Barnabas spoke about the goodness of God as they tried to get the people of Lystra not to engage in idolatry. We should mention the provisions of his common grace as well as the details of his saving grace.

A third detail is that one can say a lot about God in a few words. None of the features of God mentioned by Paul and Barnabas is beyond human understanding, and it is lovely to observe how straightforward they were when speaking about him. It is good to be ready to say something about God when someone gives us the opportunity to do so.

Fourthly, it should be our aim in all situations to ensure that all the glory goes to God. Paul and Barnabas could have kept quiet when the crowd thought they were the cause of the healing. Instead, they insisted on ensuring that the name of the Lord was honoured even by those who did not, at that time, know very much about him.

Fifthly, we should contrast ourselves with the inhabitants of Lystra who were so prone to idolatry. How different has been our background! We have known the truth about God for many years, probably most of our lives. Because that is the case we are not liable to confuse a creature for the living God. But have we used our privileges concerning the gospel and become believers in Jesus as our Saviour?