“Cyprus: Conflict and Victory”

Acts 13

1 Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. 3 And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.

4 So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus. 5 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.

6 And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus: 7 Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. 9 Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him. 10 And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? 11 And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season.

And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand. 12 Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord.

13 Now when Paul and his company loosed from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia: and John departing from them returned to Jerusalem. 14 But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and sat down. 15 And after the reading of the law and the prophets the rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, saying, Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people, say on.

16 Then Paul stood up, and beckoning with his hand said, Men of Israel, and ye that fear God, give audience. 17 The God of this people of Israel chose our fathers, and exalted the people when they dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt, and with an high arm brought he them out of it. 18 And about the time of forty years suffered he their manners in the wilderness. 19 And when he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Chanaan, he divided their land to them by lot. 20 And after that he gave unto them judges about the space of four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet.

21 And afterward they desired a king: and God gave unto them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, by the space of forty years. 22 And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave their testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will.

23 Of this man’s seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus: 24 When John had first preached before his coming the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. 25 And as John fulfilled his course, he said, Whom think ye that I am? I am not he. But, behold, there cometh one after me, whose shoes of his feet I am not worthy to loose.

26 Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent. 27 For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him. 28 And though they found no cause of death in him, yet desired they Pilate that he should be slain. 29 And when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree, and laid him in a sepulchre. 30 But God raised him from the dead: 31 And he was seen many days of them which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses unto the people.

32 And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, 33 God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. 34 And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of David. 35 Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

36 For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption: 37 But he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption.

38 Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: 39 And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses. 40 Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets;

41 Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you.

42 And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath. 43 Now when the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God.

44 And the next Sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God. 45 But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming.

46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. 47 For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth.

48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.

49 And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region. 50 But the Jews stirred up the devout and honourable women, and the chief men of the city, and raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts. 51 But they shook off the dust of their feet against them, and came unto Iconium. 52 And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost.

Introduction about Cyprus:

Cyprus, from the word pronounced kupros, meaning copper. South of Turkey and East of Syria (and Antioch where 11:26 the believers were first called Christians). In the news again (24 April 2004) because of 75% vote of Greek southern part to reject joining the EU).

People from there called Cypriots (northern Turkish and southern Greek). Cyprus’s location in the far east of the Mediterranean has made it a key target for neighbouring empires for thousands of years. Raiding route, imperial outpost or colonial military base – occupying forces, from the Hittites to the Romans and the Crusaders to the British, have all had their own uses for Cyprus, some leaving more of a legacy than others. The island is said to be the birthplace of the ancient goddess of love, Aphrodite, and her cult thrived under Roman rule until eventually being overtaken by Christianity. Muslims (Ottoman Empire) forces invaded in 1570.

History of Paul & team travelling there:

. vs 1: Luke names five prophets and teachers in Antioch. They were Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been raised with Herod) and Saul. Their names showed that they came from a wide variety of social and ethnic backgrounds. Barnabas is mentioned first by Luke, as he was the apostolic delegate and a leading figure in the Jerusalem church (9:27; 11:22-30). We already know him as a Levite from Cyprus who lived in Jerusalem (4:36-37). More than this, we know him as “a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith” (11:24).

Simeon

had the Latin nickname Niger, or “the Black.” His name was Jewish, so it may have been his dark complexion that earned him the name “Black.” The nickname may have been given to distinguish him from all the other Simons in the church, such as Simon Peter. According to church tradition, may have been the same Simon of Cyrene (Luke 23:26) who carried our Lord’s cross to Golgotha–though we cannot at all be certain about this. According to Mark 15:21, his sons Alexander and Rufus, were well known among the Christians of Rome

Lucius

had a Latin name. It’s possible though not certain that he was a Gentile. He is said to have come from Cyrene in North Africa. Perhaps he was of the Cyrenian group that first preached the gospel of salvation to the Gentiles of Antioch (11:20).

Manaen

was the Greek form of the Hebrew Menahem, which means “comforter.” (Barnabas’ name was said to mean “Son of Encouragement” in Acts 4:36.) Manaen is singled out as having been “brought up with Herod the tetrarch” (13:1). This would be the Herod of the Gospels, whom Jesus once called “that fox” (Luke 13:32). As mentioned earlier, this Herod was responsible for the imprisonment and death of John the Baptist (Mark 6:14-28). If Manaen was a childhood companion of Herod, then he would have been his “foster-brother.” (two boys who were brought up together, one should attain honor as a Christian leader, while the other should best be remembered for his inglorious behavior in the killing of John the Baptist and in the trial of Jesus!)

vs 2: “Separate for me” – to be used of God you need to be separated from sin.

This was the first “overseas mission” and venture in Roman Empire turf to the Gentiles. Notice that Paul is not a “lone ranger” (inkomo edla iyodwa) but submitted to the church’s authority. Saul/Paul vs 9: Saul of Tarsus is referred to here as Paul (his Roman name and more “user-friendly” in the Roman Empire)

Two named cities are Salamis and Paphos.

In Paphos (a city with known for immorality) we meet the Roman proconsul Sergius Paulus and his assistant (magician advisor) Bar-Jesus (literally, “son of Jesus”) and Elymas the sorcerer.

In spreading the Gospel one also encounters the resistance of Satan. He is right there to try and spoil God’s work.

“Wherever there is likely to be great success, the open door and the opposing adversaries will both be found. If there are no adversaries, you may fear that there will be no success. A boy cannot get his kite up without wind, nor without a wind which drives against his kite.” (Spurgeon)

He was the pyschic hot-line, similar to consulting the occult for soccer and political results. Just as Peter had encountered the infamous Simon Magus in Samaria (chap 8), so here on Cyprus, Paul encounters Bar-jesus, another magician and false prophet, who was some kind of popular magician, and who as a “so-called” prophet claimed to be able to reveal either God’s will or predict the future – all for a small fee, of course. (There are those who do all in their power to resist the Gospel and will try and prevent others from receiving it.)

Sergius Paulus was very impressed. His heart was inclined toward God, and the battle for this soul was almost won. But then a court sorcerer named Bar-Jesus stood up and began arguing with Saul.

Indeed, Paul’s words to Barjesus are uttered while Paul was “filled with the Holy Spirit,” and as such he announces to Barjesus that God’s judgement was coming upon him in the form of an immediate though temporary blindness. Interestingly enough, this is the same judgement that had come upon Paul while he had been on the Damascus road.

Some judgements visible

and some are hidden penalties.

The announcement of judgement serves as a witness to the proconsul, since Barjesus the pagan prophet, who supposedly can see all, is now himself struck blind. In a great irony, as a result of Barjesus’ blindness, the proconsul’s eyes are opened and now he sees the truth and embraces it.

Just as the devil used somebody to try and keep Sergius from the faith so too he will use somebody or something to keep you from Christ (and coming to church). When the truth is heard satan tries to discredit it. Jesus explained this in the parable of the seeds: “And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts” (Mark 4:15).

Dr. J. Vernon McGee says: Probably the sorcerer had been doing some fancy tricks by the power of Satan. In that day a false prophet could probably heal and perform other miracles by the power of Satan. Paul has his authority from the Lord Jesus Christ. He absolutely dominates the sorcerer by his message of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Sergius Paulus comes to the light [of Christ]. He has been in spiritual darkness but now [he] believes [in Christ] and is astonished at the doctrine of the Lord

Dr. Kurt Koch, the German writes: I was in Liberia [in Africa]…After I had spoken, a seventy-year-old man came to see me for counselling. The missionary warned me that this old man was a much-feared sorcerer, who was nicknamed “the Country Devil.” He was the president of the sorcerers in Liberia. I felt uncomfortable having such a man with me for counselling. But I was in for a surprise. The sorcerer said forthrightly, “I want to confess my sins and become a Christian.” Then he began to reveal all the [sinful] things he had done in his life. He had no difficulty in accepting forgiveness and deliverance through faith in Jesus Christ. The missionaries had prepared the ground excellently. Without the ministry of these faithful witnesses of Jesus on the mission field, the sudden conversion of this old sorcerer, who was so clear about what he was doing [turning from sin and believing in Jesus] would not have been possible (Kurt E. Koch, Th.D., Occult ABC, Literature Mission, Germany, 1983, p. 333).

“Then the deputy [Sergius Paulus]…believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord” (Acts 13:12). When he saw what had been done: What was it that the proconsul saw?

i. He saw the courage of Paul. Here was a man of conviction, bold in his belief, and willing to make a stand for what he believed.

ii. He saw the just result of Elymas’ sin, physical blindness corresponding to his spiritual blindness. If only we would see more of the trouble sin gets people into, we might run after the things of God a little harder!

As amazing as the miracle of Elymas’ sudden blindness was, the Good News the proconsul heard from Paul was even more amazing.