Title: Paul's Sermon in Vidia / Acts 13:13-41
Contents
Paul's sermon in Vidia / Acts 13:13-41
When Paul and his companions arrived in Antioch, Pisidia, they entered the synagogue on the Sabbath. The synagogue is a place where Jews gather to worship God. Today's text is a sermon the Apostle Paul preached in the Jewish synagogue in Antioch, Pisidia.
1. The introduction to Paul's sermon is "God sent a Savior as he promised" (verses 17-23).
This is the introduction from verse 17. God chose the Israelites. You and I have been chosen by God. You and I were not chosen by God because you and I have a good family, knowledge, and something superior to others. I don't know why, but I believe that God chose me and you because he loved me. So we have nothing but to be grateful for.
Also, God rescued Israel from Egypt and trained them in the wilderness for 40 years. Because they could not carry out God's work as the chosen people with the slave spirit, the negative nature of dissatisfaction, and the passive nature that they had when they came out of Egypt, they were trained to throw away their sins. After 40 years, under the guidance of Joshua, he entered the land of Canaan and lived without a government or king for 450 years, under the rule of judges.
After that, when they asked for a king, he anointed Saul the son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, to be the first king. However, Saul's initial humility disappeared and he became proud. They disobeyed God's word and acted in excess. Therefore, God abolished him. Instead, he anointed David, who was tending sheep outside of Bethlehem, and made him king.
David was a man after God's own heart. The word united does not mean that David was without sin. King David was weak as a human being, but he waited for God to the end and served only God. You and I have weaknesses. However, when you do your best to look and serve God alone, God will say, "You are a man after my own heart."
God said, "I will do all my will" through David. This word means that in the genealogy of David, He sends the Son of God to accomplish the work of saving souls who are lost in sin and go to hell. In other words, God will work out the salvation of our sinful lives through the descendants of David.
According to the Bible, when Bartimaeus, the blind man, called to Jesus, he said, "Jesus, Son of David! Have mercy on me!" And when the Syrophonic woman also called to Jesus, "Jesus, Son of David! Have mercy on me!" called. It means, “You are the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament.” After all, the introduction of Paul's sermon reminded us of the fact that the Messiah would come as a descendant of David by reading the Old Testament.
2. The main point of Paul's sermon is, "As prophesied in the Bible, Jesus died on a tree and rose again the third day" (verses 24-37).
In verses 24-25, it says that John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus before Jesus. There is no one in Israel who does not know John the Baptist. They came out of almost every town and were baptized by John the Baptist. To the Jews at that time, John the Baptist was a great figure. But Paul insisted that John the Baptist was only a messenger of Jesus.
In verses 26-29, the Jews gather in the synagogue on the Sabbath to read and listen to the rabbis preaching. But their eyes and ears were closed and their hearts were closed, so they knew that the Messiah would come as a political Messiah. As a servant of the Passion, we did not know that He would come as a sacrifice on the cross for our sins. It was because their eyes were blinded from reading the Bible.
In Psalm 22, David prophesied about Jesus' suffering, saying, "A crowd surrounded me and pierced my hands and feet." This prophesied that the Messiah would die by being nailed to his hands and feet. And it is prophesied that the punishment of the cross will be severe, saying, "My tongue is stuck to my teeth." Not only that, but also the words that he cried out on the cross, “Eli, Eli, Lama, Sabachthani” are recorded. It is also prophesied that the Roman soldiers will divide Jesus' garments by lot.
Jesus did not come to be served as the Messiah. “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.” He told his disciples, "The Son of Man will go up to Jerusalem and be caught by the chief priests and scribes, and be crucified to death. And on the third day he will rise.
Verses 30-37 are an argument for the resurrection. He said, 'The resurrection of Jesus is a historical fact, and there are countless people who have witnessed it, and it is a resurrection that has already been prophesied in the Bible.' Verse 35 goes on to say, "Therefore he said to the other side, 'You will not let your Holy One suffer corruption'. This is a verse that Peter also quoted while preaching. This is a quote from Psalm 16:10. David died and rotted. Therefore, David was not talking about himself, he was not prophesying about any prophet or a specific king, but about the Messiah who would come after him. It is a prophecy that Jesus, the Son of God, will come to this earth to die on the cross for the sins of mankind, torn His flesh and shed His blood, accomplish the work of redemption, and then rise from the grave on the third day. As such, the main point of Paul's sermon was that the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ on the cross were fulfilled as prophesied in the Old Testament.
3. The conclusion of Paul's sermon is, "If you believe in the Lord Jesus, your sins are forgiven and you are justified through Him."
Verse 38 says, “Therefore, brethren, you know that through this man the forgiveness of sins is preached to you.” No matter how much we cry, no effort, no effort, no good deeds, no cultivating the way, no one sin can be washed away no matter what religion we believe, but through Jesus, anyone’s sins are forgiven. We human beings cannot fly even 5 meters. But once inside the rocket, you can pierce the atmosphere and travel through space. Through the Lord Jesus Christ, our sins are forgiven.
No one can deny that the toxins of all the sins of Adam and our ancestors run through our blood. Regardless of my will, our ancestor Adam sinned, so we who were in his loins all became sinners. This is original sin. We have the blood of original sin. Since Adam polluted the river of life, all of us who drink from that river will eat and drink the polluted water of sin. David confesses, "I was born in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me."
The nature of sin is serious. We need to know that the invisible root of sin and the nature of sin are more serious than the visible theft, fraud, violence, rape, and murder. What you see is just the tip of the iceberg. The root of the invisible root of sin is ruining all mankind just as the root of acacia ruins a mountain. But one man, Jesus Christ, took away our sins.
Edison invented electricity through the crystallization of hard work, dedication, sweat, and tears, as Edison failed over and over. Just as one man invents electricity and then millions of people benefit from electricity, one Jesus on the cross ripped his flesh and poured out his blood to atone for our sins, so that through him all sins are forgiven.
From Genesis to Revelation, the content of the consistent message is the blood of Jesus Christ. If you read the Old and New Testaments, the blood of Jesus is drawn like a diagonal line. Just as a mother pours out her blood to give birth to a new life with her life as collateral, so the blood of love shed on the cross flows like a river to all the earth to be saved in every nation, tribe, and tongue. However, the prophets in the Old Testament prophesied that there would be many who would not believe this gospel.
The content of the apostle Paul's sermon was 'Jesus is the one prophesied in the Old Testament. His cross and resurrection have already been foretold, and we are the witnesses. If you believe in Him, your sins are forgiven and you are justified. But there will be some who do not believe.' Everyone! It is by the grace of God that we have come to believe. I hope that you will become those who believe and obey to the end.