Lessons from The Book of Acts - Part 2: To the Ends of the Earth

By Jeremy Groves

Paul first enters the scene in Acts Chapter Seven as a zealous Pharisee who condoned and even supported the persecution, arrest, and death of Christians.

As events continued to unfold, we saw him encounter Jesus on the road to Damascus. This encounter, where Paul, then known as Saul, was struck blind and heard the voice of Jesus, was a profound moment in his life.

It was a moment of divine intervention, where his zealous persecution of Christians was halted, and he was transformed into one of the most influential apostles within the New Testament narrative.

Paul is credited with writing most of the New Testament letters, all of which were written to the churches worldwide at the time.

Through the Acts narrative and the letters he wrote, we catch a glimpse of the revolutionary faith and power that Paul embodied, even among his peers.

This is not an unattainable standard for our day. Paul's humility and trust in our worthy King are qualities we can adopt.

If we embrace the same heart posture, we can witness even greater wonders and kingdom advancement in our day.

The purpose of God bringing forth the book of Acts is to provide a testimony, a model, and an invitation for the Church of every age to step into the greater works, ensuring the Kingdom of God is established on Earth as it is in Heaven.

In this second part on lessons from the Book of Acts, we will focus on the narrative of the second half of the Book of Acts, where the Church displayed great missional success and Kingdom advancement through the power of the Holy Spirit.

We will also draw out the theological and missional breakthroughs we can celebrate and learn from for our day.

Before that, I would like to share how this section of the biblical narrative has deeply impacted, influenced, and transformed my way of thinking and living, just as it can for you.

Christianity Reborn

The Book of Acts has deeply influenced my journey with Christianity. I grew up in a form of Christianity that I now see as dry and impotent.

However, the life and fruit I have witnessed in my current years of ministry, shaped by the teachings of Acts, surpasses anything I experienced in the first twenty years of my life.

The Book of Acts has been the most impactful area of Scripture that has shaped my understanding of Church living and practice.

Seeing what was possible through the apostles and believers of the first century, who carried the power and love of God to their world at the time, and the effect they had on so many lives has deeply impacted me.

It has led me to a place where I am not satisfied with anything less in my Christian experience.

I will settle for nothing less from my brethren because it is available to us all. If just a few of us grab hold of the truths in this wonderful account, the world will be won, and the Great Commission will be fulfilled quickly.

I have heeded the call from the pages of the Book of Acts, and I will not fail to take action to follow Jesus wherever He sends me to bring the Kingdom of God on Earth as it is in Heaven.

The First Missionary Journey: Acts 13:1-14:28

The first twelve chapters of the Book of Acts narrative recount the rapid expansion of Christianity from an upper room in Jerusalem, where the Holy Spirit descended upon those gathered there.

This divine intervention marked the beginning of the Church's mission, and their successive partnership with the Holy Spirit as they echoed the message of King Jesus everywhere they were sent.

The nucleus of the Church spread from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria until finally, the center of God’s plan to bring the message of Christ to the Gentiles settled in Antioch.

As we pick up in chapter thirteen, we see the leaders of the Church in Antioch praying and fasting, no doubt crying out for the Gentile mission's movement to continue spreading to the rest of the world.

Their prayers were answered, and the Holy Spirit witnessed to them that Saul and Barnabas were to be set apart for His plan and purpose.

The Church leaders faithfully obeyed and laid their hands on Saul and Barnabas, releasing them into the harvest field that God had prepared for them.

The plea of the Antioch leaders was answered, and the Holy Spirit witnessed to them that Saul and Barnabas were to be set apart for His plan and purpose.

The Church leaders faithfully obeyed and laid their hands on Saul and Barnabas, releasing them into the harvest field that God had prepared for them.

Saul and Barnabas set out for Cyprus, where they encountered their first roadblock on their journey in the form of a sorcerer named Bar-Jesus.

Bar-Jesus, also known as Elymas, attempted to resist the Word of God, but the Holy Spirit was about to reveal that He meant business.

Full of the Holy Spirit, Paul echoed the pronouncement of judgment upon Elymas, Acts 13:10-11, with this outstanding cry:

“You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.” (NIV, 1973/2011)

This event led to the salvation of the proconsul, and after a successful stay in Cyprus, they headed to Pisidian Antioch.

However, John Mark left the traveling party and returned to Jerusalem when they were stopped in Perga.

This would later drive a wedge between Paul and Barnabas. The enemy had already begun to counterattack.

When Paul and Barnabas arrived in Pisidian Antioch, they shared the Word of the Lord with the people of the synagogue there, even sharing God’s desire to graft in the Gentiles.

It became Paul’s practice to go to the Jews first in every city he visited. The people within the synagogue were astounded at their teaching, asking them to share more with them.

The Jewish leaders and even some high-status women became jealous and incited persecution against Paul and Barnabas until they were expelled from the city.

They rejoiced in the seeds that had been sown and continued in the joy of the Holy Spirit to Iconium, where they saw much fruit among the Jews and Greeks.

Paul and Barnabas then landed in Lystra, and after performing a miracle, they were touted as gods.

They, in response, preached the Gospel and exalted the faithful King Jesus, but some dissenters from Iconium and Antioch stirred up the crowd against them to the point Paul was stoned and left for dead.

Paul, however, was not dead; he was raised, and he and Barnabas fled to Derbe.

They won many disciples in Derbe and then returned to their mission's base within Antioch of Syria, strengthening the newborn disciples in the previous cities they had visited.

With the conclusion of Paul’s first missionary journey, I want to highlight a few missional and theological considerations that stood out to me.

Firstly, the Holy Spirit is the Lord of the Harvest. Before their mission journey, the Holy Spirit called for Paul and Barnabas to be set apart for His purpose.

This implies that the Holy Spirit led and empowered them to go to the cities they did, protecting and providing for them along the way.

In the context of the Gospel's missional advancement, we also see that God does not play around, as evident in His dealings with the sorcerer Elymas in Cyprus.

God will turn what the enemy means as a roadblock in your path into a platform for your advancement.

I love what Dr. Peter Wagner wrote about God’s victory over darkness in his book, “The Book of Acts: A Commentary,”:

“God’s power prevailed, and the sorcerer became blind for a period of time. The event, of course, was public, and the news would have spread far and wide in a short time. Jesus Christ would be seen by many to be the true Lord over Paphos and all of Cyprus.” (2008, p. 271)

The explosion of the Kingdom of God to the Gentiles warranted a council of Church leaders to seek God on how to best handle the new converts who are not inherently Jewish or familiar with their traditions and laws.

This took place in Acts 15:1-21. It concluded with the Gentile Christians needing to follow a few rules to protect their purity and that they would not be held to the same standard as the Jews.

Paul and Barnabas, as well as a few other chosen men, were sent to Antioch to disseminate the rulings of the Jerusalem council to the Gentile believers.

This event sets the stage for Paul’s second Journey.

Paul’s Second Missionary Journey: Acts 15:40-18:22

After a sharp disagreement between Paul and Barnabas over taking John Mark, they went their separate ways instead of embarking on a second journey together.

Paul chose Silas, a respected prophetic leader, to accompany him. Paul and Silas traveled to Lystra after stopping in Syria, Cilicia, and Derbe to strengthen the believers.

Lystra is where Paul discovers Timothy, who would become a spiritual son to him, and brings him along on his journey.

Paul, Silas, and Timothy headed for Phrygia and Galatia, preaching the Word of God. After this, they headed to Troas after the Lord did not allow them to enter Bithynia.

In Troas, Paul had a vision of a Macedonian man begging him to come. After deliberation, they believed the Holy Spirit was calling them to go there.

Paul and his companions sailed for Philippi, an influential Roman colony in Macedonia. They began preaching the Gospel and won Lydia, a local merchant, to the Lord.

She would later become an influential Christian leader in the region.

Paul and his companions had drawn the ire of the local demonic rulers operating there, binding the people in darkness.

After a confrontation with the demonic ruler, who was cast out of a local fortune teller, the ousted merchants set the city in an uproar that ended in Paul and Silas being thrown in prison.

After the Roman authorities realized they were Roman citizens, they were released.

Paul and Silas encouraged Lydia and the believers in the Lord and then traveled to Thessalonica.

In Thessalonica, they once again saw tremendous fruit when they proclaimed Jesus the risen King until persecution from jealous Jewish leaders drove them out of the city.

They even pursued them into Berea after Paul and Silas had deposited the Kingdom of God there.

Paul and his companions end up separated as Paul heads to Athens, where he encounters a mixed response from the intellectual society as they struggle to receive the Gospel.

Paul then traveled to Corinth, where he met Priscilla and Aquila.

After a season of ministering in Corinth, he experienced great fruit and encountered Jewish resistance, which refined his focus on the Gentiles.

He then left for Ephesus, accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila. His short time in Ephesus would lay the seeds for a revival to be reaped in his next mission’s journey.

Paul then left Ephesus, promising to return if it was God’s will, and headed to Jerusalem to spend time with his brethren before returning to his home base in Antioch.

This would mark the end of his second journey.

On Paul’s second journey, we see how God makes divine appointments, connects believers, and lays a foundation for future work.

I have had God weave several such relationships in my life. Priscilla, Aquilla, and Timothy all play vital roles in the coming revival of Ephesus.

As Paul’s second journey unfolds, we see God's sovereignty on display. Whatever your opinion, Paul’s second journey was wrought with spiritual warfare.

I believe God protected John Mark from what was to come, and Barnabas's compassionate side was trying to push something with a redemptive motive.

While his heart may have been right, that wasn’t necessarily in God’s plan, there was more to the story.

I believe Silas accompanying Paul was vital for the prophetic insight he could provide in the coming warfare and the prophetic direction needed to navigate it.

Dr. Peter Wagner seemed to echo this in “The Book of Acts: A Commentary” by writing:

“Paul realized that his future ministry would involve more strategic-level spiritual warfare, although he had no way of knowing at that time of his coming encounters with such principalities as the Python spirit in Philippi or Diana of the Ephesians, and undoubtedly many others that Luke leaves unrecorded. For Paul to move into enemy territory with a team member who was timid and who might question the wisdom of Paul’s approach, if indeed this describes John Mark, clearly would have been unwise. I would like to suppose that, in calmer moments, Paul and Mark would have agreed mutually that Mark simply was not among those called of God to Paul’s particular kind of evangelistic ministry.” (2008, pp. 342–343)

His second journey was the most important for Gospel advancement because it laid the groundwork for his third.

We will look at that next.

Paul’s Third Missionary Journey: Acts 18:23-21:26

Paul’s third and final mission journey proved to be the pinnacle of his ministry.

I believe the seeds he had sown throughout his first two journeys and the lessons he learned laid the foundation for the explosive revival to come, which would shake the known world.

Paul leaves his mission base in Antioch again and heads for Phrygia and Galatia to strengthen the churches.

At the same time, the stage is being set in Ephesus with the arrival of Apollos, a man whose passion for Scripture will silence the foes of the Gospel once Priscilla and Aquilla take the time to introduce him to all Jesus had set out and done to inaugurate the new covenant of the Spirit.

Paul then arrived in Ephesus, and his first order of business was to see that the new believers in Christ were baptized into the power of the Spirit.

Paul continued to preach in the synagogues, but despite resistance, he preached for two years in the temple hall of Tyrannus until all of Asia had heard the Word of the Lord.

The revival began to spread, and many believed.

Unusual and extraordinary miracles started taking place, and satan was dethroned with the outbreak of mass repentance of sorcery and the occult, accompanied by the burning of their spell books.

Paul was about to leave for Jerusalem when a great riot broke out.

Some merchants who made their living from making idols began trying to turn the people against the Christians because of the profit they were losing.

After the riot was disbanded, Paul left for Macedonia and then traveled to Greece.

After spending some time there, he altered his travel plans due to a plot against him and traveled back through Macedonia, strengthening the believers along the way until he arrived in Troas.

Paul shared his heart with the believers in Troas, ministering all night. A young man fell asleep while listening to Paul and ended up falling to his death.

Paul promptly went to the boy, where the Holy Spirit moved through him to raise him from the dead.

This greatly encouraged the believers; Paul bid farewell and headed to Miletus, where he would meet the Ephesian elders.

He poured his heart out to the Ephesian elders in Acts 20:18-35, saying:

“You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia. I served the Lord with great humility and with tears amid severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents. You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus. And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace. Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears. Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing. You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ” (NIV, 1973/2011)

After what could have been argued to be the most heart-wrenching moment in the Book of Acts, Paul gives a tearful, heartfelt goodbye to the men and women he likely led to the Lord and raised up into leadership, bestowing his final blessing and apostolic commission upon them.

Paul then set out from Jerusalem, stopping along the way to say goodbye to his brother and sisters.

They continually urged Paul not to go to Jerusalem, even prophetically, through a man named Agabus, but Paul would not be shaken.

His sights were set, and destiny was before him, and he is not a man to back down from what he believes his Lord has called him to do, no matter the cost.

Paul eventually arrives in Jerusalem, marking the end of his third journey.

Wow. Divine breakthroughs marked Paul’s third journey amid persecution and demonic resistance.

A prophetic progression is evident throughout Paul’s three missionary journeys.

The first was God revealing His eternal purpose and plan to include the Gentiles and to establish a missional mindset in His Church.

During Paul’s second journey, we see God laying the seeds of revival throughout his travels, culminating in a revival at Ephesus, where all of Asia heard the Word of God.

This marked the fulfillment of Paul’s missional assignment given to him in Antioch.

He was now to enter the heart of Rome, the center of power at that time.

This three-step progression can be seen throughout our lives as we follow the Lord.

In due time, we will always reap a harvest as we are faithful to God’s leadership and direction.

I love Dr. Peter Wagner’s take on the Ephesus revival in “The Book of Acts: A Commentary” when he pens:

“Acts 19 is my favorite chapter in Acts. If the book of Acts truly is “A Training Manual for Every Christian,” as I contend it is, no chapter in Acts could be more helpful for learning principles of evangelism and could be more encouraging regarding potential results for those willing to move into enemy territory by the power of the Holy Spirit!” (2008, p. 448)

Paul’s Journey to Rome: Acts 21:27-28:31

Paul is met with hostility as he returns to Jerusalem from the religious leaders, accused of teaching against the Jews and their laws.

They stir up the city against him, and the Romans arrest him.

Paul asks them to speak to the Jews, and he thoroughly exposes the deep-seated racism within Jewish culture when he mentions God’s heart for the Gentiles.

The Jews wanted Paul dead, and after learning that Paul was a Roman citizen, they took him into protective custody.

The next day they brought him before the Sanhedrin so that they could understand what he said, which angered the crowd enough to want to kill him.

Paul proclaimed his faith in the resurrection as the reason he was there, pitting the Sadducees and Pharisees against each other.

The gathering grew so violent that the Romans feared for Paul’s life. They took him back into protective custody.

The Lord then spoke to Paul, commissioning him to declare Him in Rome as Paul had faithfully done in Jerusalem.

After learning of a plot against Paul’s life, the Romans sent Paul to Governor Felix in Caesarea under the protection of the Roman government, where Paul could be tried in a safe environment.

Paul went on trial before Governor Felix, and it was inconclusive because the Governor was expecting Paul to bribe him, so he ended up leaving Paul in prison as a favor to the Jews until Governor Festus succeeded him.

The Jews took advantage of the change in leadership and asked Governor Festus to transfer Paul to Jerusalem; however, they were unsuccessful in their request.

Governor Festus held a trial in Caesarea, during which Paul gave a heartfelt defense culminating in an appeal to Caesar.

Paul’s case would be handed over to the Emperor to decide.

Before Paul’s departure to Rome, King Agrippa visited Governor Festus and desired to see and hear Paul for himself.

After a persuasive exposition of the risen Lord Jesus, the Governor and King Agrippa concluded that Paul had done nothing wrong; however, he had already appealed to Caesar.

Paul then boarded a ship with other prisoners bound for Rome, and along the way, a severe storm caused them to be shipwrecked.

Paul had interceded for them, and the crew’s life was saved as they crashed onto the shores of the Island of Malta.

After a miracle in which Paul survived a venomous snake bite, the door was opened for the Gospel on the island to the extent that healings were plentiful.

Divine favor had come upon Paul to the point that his entourage was given all the supplies they needed to travel to Rome.

Paul then arrived in Rome, where he continued to proclaim the truth of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, to the Roman people.

He was granted favor by the Roman authorities, which allowed him to live independently with a soldier to guard him.

Thanks to this man's obedience, the Gospel continued to advance, echoing throughout the ages to our modern day.

God let us see the conviction of a man possessed by God who, in the face of voices telling him not to go, stayed true to his convictions.

Favor followed him as he was on trial, and God defended him, allowing Paul to be established in the heart of Rome for his next assignment.

This is where the Book of Acts ends and where our story begins. What will we do with what we have seen on these pages?

Dr. Peter Wagner caught the revelation God is revealing through the Book of Acts in “The Book of Acts: A Commentary,” when he exhorts us by writing, “to the degree that we use Acts as our missionary training manual, that possibility can become even more readily a reality!” (2008, p. 496)

I will highlight a few key areas in the Book of Acts that I believe today's Church can benefit from.

The Book of Acts for Today

The three areas I believe the Church of today can benefit from most in our modern context are a re-establishment of a sincere and full dependence on the Holy Spirit for missional power and direction.

As well as a missional unity formed in the throes of spiritual combat that endures, and finally, a missional mindset that will stop at nothing to advance the Kingdom of God until the whole world reflects heaven.

We have gotten too comfortable in our expensive steeples, sending money to fund our buildings instead of a mission movement.

We have replaced our dependence on the Holy Spirit with a logic-driven, programmatic approach to missions, which has produced dismal results overall.

A programmatic approach has the potential to be highly effective if it is inspired by the Holy Spirit rather than our own reasoning.

Lastly, we have forgotten our Lord’s cry to be one as He is one.

We have divided ourselves into many streams and entered familial combat instead of spiritual combat.

We must return to our first love, let go of trivial differences, and set our hearts on what He burns for.

If we do that, we will shake the world again.

Lessons from the Book of Acts - Part 2: To the Ends of the Earth

The Book of Acts has radically changed my life. I will not stop until everything on these pages is demonstrated in my life and more.

I will not allow one drop of Jesus’s blood to be wasted on my life. I will give my life to advance the Kingdom of God and glorify my beautiful Lord Jesus.

Studying the Book of Acts and the yielded life of Paul has sealed and assured me of that all the more. World, get ready; our King is coming.

References

Holy Bible: New International Version. (2011). Zondervan. (Original work published 1973)

Wagner, C. P. (2008). The book of acts: A commentary. Chosen Books