Acts 13:44-52

    On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and talked abusively against what Paul was saying.

 

    Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: "We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. For this is what the Lord has commanded us:

 

  " `I have made you a light for the Gentiles,

    that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.' "

 

    When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.

 

    The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. But the Jews incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. So they shook the dust from their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium. And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

 

The first Sabbath that Paul and Barnabas spoke there in Pisidian Antioch, they went to the synagogue to tell Jews the good news. It seems likely that they went back to the synagogue on this Sabbath, too. After all, why else would they wait for the Sabbath, the day when the Jews would rest from their work and gather in synagogues to hear the Scriptures and talk about them?

 

But “almost the whole city” was there. And we know that this crowd must have included non-Jews. Why else would the Jews have become jealous?

 

But they did. Good news from God, they thought, should be for their ears only. God didn’t care about those wretched non-Jews! If Paul was saying that God cared about non-Jews, then Paul must be lying! And so they spoke out against Paul, trying to oppose the gospel that they had eagerly received only one week earlier. They opposed the good news Paul brought simply because he offered it to non-Jews, too.

 

So Paul and Barnabas answered boldly and ironically. They told the Jews that the good news that Jesus Christ saves sinners was intended first of all for them – the Jews! The irony? The Jews rejected it and “did not consider themselves worthy of eternal life.” This is ironic because the Jews clearly thought that they were worthy people, more worthy than the non-Jews around them. They clearly thought they were the only people God might want to save. But in rejecting good news simply because it was offered to people they considered lower than themselves, they were rejecting eternal life from God – something far higher than themselves. They did not consider non-Jews worthy to associate with them, so they did not consider themselves “worthy” of eternal life. The two went hand-in-hand. The Lord Himself had said so, as Paul and Barnabas pointed out.

 

And the Gentiles did what the Jews should have done. They responded to the good news with gladness. They honored God’s word. And all who were appointed for eternal life believed! Gentiles! Non-Jews! Appointed for eternal life!

 

Just as the Scriptures had said, the word of God spread through the region, offering salvation to the ends of the earth. But the Jews opposed it so forcefully that Paul and Barnabas had to leave, shaking off the dust from their feet as an act of judgment that should have terrified the Jews (Matthew 10:14-15; Luke 10:10-12). But Paul and Barnabas left Gentiles behind full of joy and the promised Holy Spirit. Good news for non-Jews!

 

Father, thank You so much for being so open. People that I am tempted to hate, You love. People I would rather not know, You invite into Your family. Father, may I be like You. Open. Inviting. Loving. May I not be jealous, fiercely guarding my relationship with You and afraid that it will be less special if others share in it, too. My relationship with You is not special for being unique, for being the only relationship any human has had with the God of the universe. It is not special because of me or any other human. It is special because it is a relationship with You. May others have such a special relationship, too. May I be self-less, introducing more and more people to You. May I realize that I never have to worry that You will have less time for me simply because others know You, too. You are limitless, and You are not bound by time. I can only handle so many relationships because I only have so much time to invest in people, but You are so expansive and powerful and capable that You could have a good relationship with all 7 billion people on the planet at the same time and not invest any less love in me. Thank You for Your unlimited love, Your unlimited goodness. Thank You for extending Your love even to me, a non-Jew. Thank You for filling me with joy and with the Holy Spirit.