David Bahn – Reflections

Click here for an audio version of this blog post.

Acts 13:42-52

As they went out, the people begged that these things might be told them the next Sabbath. ⁴³ And after the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who, as they spoke with them, urged them to continue in the grace of God.

⁴⁴ The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. ⁴⁵ But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what was spoken by Paul, reviling him. ⁴⁶ And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. ⁴⁷ For so the Lord has commanded us, saying,

“‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles,
    that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”

⁴⁸ And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed. ⁴⁹ And the word of the Lord was spreading throughout the whole region. ⁵⁰ But the Jews incited the devout women of high standing and the leading men of the city, stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district. ⁵¹ But they shook off the dust from their feet against them and went to Iconium. ⁵² And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

It was a cold Tuesday night in Brooklyn when we visited the Brooklyn Tabernacle. By 5:30 people were lined up outside the converted theater waiting for the 7 PM service to begin. They were yearning to be there to pray, hear God’s word, and see God at work. That’s the same spirit of yearning expressed by the people at Pisidian Antioch. They had heard Paul talk about Jesus, God’s reversal of man’s evil plans, and the promise that through Jesus they could find a peace that the would never find through Moses. They wanted more. They begged Paul and his companions to return the next Sabbath to teach them more about the hope and salvation we have in Jesus.

I’m reminded of my 1993 mission trip to Moscow, Russia. Our group visited a hospital, delivering drugs and medical supplies we had collected to be sent there. We went to the doctors lounge and opened our several large suitcases full of Tylenol, Aspirin, bandages, and other over-the-counter medications that we take for granted. Then our group split into two. Half of us took a tour of the hospital. The other half stayed in the lounge.

The doctors and nurses asked those who stayed, “Why are you doing this?”

“We want to share the love of Jesus with you,” they answered.

“Who is this Jesus? Tell us about him.”

“Here’s a Bible. It’s the story of Jesus.”

They insisted, “We don’t just want to read about him. We want to hear about him – from you!”

So they told the story of Jesus. About that time we who had toured the hospital returned. Doctors and nurses were wiping away tears. Something had obviously happened.

Then came the request (a begging of the same nature as these people at Antioch in Pisidia), “Tell us again, please. We’re not sure we heard the whole story. We want to hear it again. We want to hear more.”

So they went into a side room and shared the story again. They were begging to hear more!

When is the last time you’ve begged to hear more about Jesus? I realize we have heard it all before. We’re more in danger of dismissing this familiar old story. And that’s my point. Peter speaks of how angels long to look into the things of God (1 Peter 1:10-12). Seems to me that by now the angels in heaven might be up to speed about God’s gracious work for our salvation. But they’re intrigued by the many facets of God’s grace, and his works among man.

If we’re not yearning to learn more about God, perhaps we need to look closer at his word and discover the depth of the riches of his glorious grace. There is definitely much yet for us to learn. We don’t have to beg to learn more about Jesus. But we certainly can yearn to for a deeper understanding and knowledge of his word.