EPIPHANY
3
January
27-29, 2018
Pastor
Timothy J. Spaude
Text:
Acts 13:1-12
“SET APART FOR THE WORK OF THE LORD!”
Acts 13:1-12
(NIV 1984) “In the church
at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger,
Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and
Saul. 2While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy
Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have
called them.” 3So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed
their hands on them and sent them off. 4The two of them, sent on
their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to
Cyprus. 5When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the Word of
God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper. 6They
traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a
Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 7who was an
attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man,
sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the Word of God. 8But
Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to
turn the proconsul from the faith. 9Then Saul, who was also called
Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, 10“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? 11Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are
going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the
sun.” Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking
someone to lead him by the hand. 12When the proconsul saw what had
happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.”
“What’s with all the names?” beginning
and long time Bible readers say the same thing, feel the same way. In this
reading it’s not so bad. Just Barnabas, Simeon, Lucius, Manaen and Saul. But
sometimes in the Old Testament you really hit a buzzsaw. Genesis 10. But the
names are important. The Holy Spirit put them there for His reasons. One of
them certainly is to teach us that God’s love and care, His plans and purposes,
do not stop at the collective level of nations or families but extends to the
very individual. Yes, they extend to you. What wonderful news from God we get
as His word shows us we are set apart for the work of the Lord!
Before we get to us, let’s look at
others. The Book of Acts is the history of the early Christian church. It
teaches us how God chooses to do His work after Jesus completed the work of salvation.
God would use people. All kinds of different people. “In the
church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called
Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the
tetrarch) and Saul. 2While they were worshiping the Lord and
fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work
to which I have called them.” Saul and Barnabas were set apart for the
Lord. Two very different people. Barnabas had a very good reputation and a good
past. He was a Levite from the island of Cyprus whose given name was Joseph but
was called Barnabas because he was an encourager. He was generous too. And
Saul, well, you know Saul, whose other name was Paul. His past was horrible. He
had been the church destroyer, heartlessly dragging men and women to prison
leaving children parentless. Yet both were set apart for the work of the Lord.
For them it meant some travel. “So after they had fasted and prayed, they
placed their hands on them and sent them off. 4The two of them, sent
on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to
Cyprus. 5When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the Word of
God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper.” You can
see the journey they had to make. Service to the Lord is not always easy. There
are sacrifices to be made, work to be done. And the messages you send aren’t
always well received either. “They
traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a
Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 7who was an
attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man,
sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the Word of God. 8But
Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to
turn the proconsul from the faith. 9Then Saul, who was also called
Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, 10“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? 11Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are
going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the
sun.” Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking
someone to lead him by the hand.” More names. Individuals to God. A proconsul,
like a governor, named Sergius Paulus. A
false prophet named Bar-Jesus called Elymas after his profession. One needed
some bad news.
Some of you know that our daughter
Anna has entered a nursing program. We have discovered that one of the
downsides to this pursuit is she knows a little too much. Over Christmas
vacation she was warning us of bad habits and alerting us to possible
conditions. “Daddy,” she said, “I’ve diagnosed you with halitosis.” “Nonsense!”
I said, “My breath doesn’t stink to me at all.” Oh, and for the record I don’t
snore either. I have never ever heard myself snore. But I can have bad breath,
a sort of holy halitosis and so can you, as did Saul and Barnabas. Words that
stink to others when you proclaim the truth. And yet those same words that
stunk to Eymas were sweet to Sergius Paulus. “When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was
amazed at the teaching about the Lord.” Did you catch that? He wasn’t
amazed at the immediate blindness of Elymas, he was amazed at the teaching of
the Lord.
And that’s why it is so important for
every one of us here to understand that we are all set apart for the work of
the Lord, each in our own way. Now the Devil will try to distract and make you feel
worthless and unimportant and that if you aren’t called pastor or teacher you
are not doing the work of the Lord. I’ve heard some sisters say, “Well I’m just
a mom.” I know of mom who never got paid for all the work she did once she got
married but who brought her children up knowing Jesus and collectively between
them they have proclaimed to the teaching of the Lord to tens of thousands and
she was just a mom. I know of some dairy farmers who said our cows need us we
can’t do church work but you can so we will pay you a lot of money for a little
work so you can speak for us and they were just farmers. I know of a brother
who has said I’m not good at speaking but I know how to invest what does the
church need? And he is just a retiree. I know of a sister who has placed
mission work in her will and she is just a widow. And now you see the beauty of
how God works in His church. Each one set apart for the work of the Lord. Some
have come with good reputations some with bad. Some of you children today might
be ones who seem to always find yourself in trouble at home or at school and
yet the Lord is going to wash your past away like He did with Saul and he has
plans for you because He has set you aside for the work of the Lord. Once you
have received the call to faith you never again be just a cop or just a doctor
or just a teacher or just a grandma or just a kid or just a retiree. Open your
eyes. You have set apart for the work of the Lord. Opportunities will be there,
the most obvious and often overlooked are right there in your own home and with
your own relatives and your friend group. Sometimes your words spoken in love
to correct your children or your student or your parents will be holy halitosis
and they will be mad at you and angry with you but to others those words will
be sweet as they believe and are amazed at the teaching of the Lord.
That’s what all the names are about.
Individuals. Loved by the Lord. Known by the Lord. Gifted by the Lord the way
He wants. Doing different things that are important like tending cows or
bandaging knees or making wise and profitable investments or counseling a
pregnant woman. Each individual name with another name. Believer in Jesus and
with Him you can never be just an anything. You’ve have been set apart for the
work of the Lord. Amen.
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