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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
When Paul and his companions had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue.
As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah,” he said.
Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women.
Acts 17:1-4
This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Sharing the Gospel and making Christian disciples anywhere and everywhere is at the heart of the church's mission. It’s that way because the Savior of the world commanded it be so.
Thus, there should never be a time when Christ believers aren’t proclaiming and exclaiming the name of Jesus. After all, there would be no good news to share without Him.
Throughout the Book of Acts up to our message today, we have seen this proclaiming and exclaiming of Jesus take center stage through the work of the apostles commissioned to carry on His work. The most prominent through Acts (and then in many epistles that comprise the remainder of the New Testament) is the Apostle Paul.
As we finished up Acts 16, you’ll remember that Paul, along with his fellow apostle Silas, had gone through persecution and punishment while in Philippi. Having driven out a spirit from a slave girl in the name of Jesus, the slave owners fabricated a story about the apostles causing uproar in the city and dragged them in front of the city magistrates with the accusation. Not providing Paul or Silas the opportunity to testify and defend themselves, the magistrates ordered the apostles to be beaten and then jailed.
While in their cell, you’ll recall that a great earthquake shook the jail at its foundation, causing the cell doors to open and shackles to come off the prisoners. Afraid that everyone had escaped, the jailer was about to commit suicide when Paul intervened, calling out to ensure the jailer they were still there. Immediately, the jailer came to Paul and Silas asking how he might be saved and after receiving the Gospel message, the jailer and his entire household believed and were baptized.
When daylight came, the jailer received word that he was to release the apostles but Paul wasn’t about to allow the magistrates to get off that easy, having unjustly punished both he and Silas. So he demanded that the magistrates come and escort them from Philippi themselves, making sure the authorities knew that he and Silas were both Roman citizens. Knowing that it was unlawful to exact severe punishment on their own, the Roman magistrates went to Paul and Silas, apologizing for their actions before asking the apostles to leave the city. The scriptures told us that Paul and Silas did depart Philippi after sharing some final fellowship with Lydia and her household.
So what happened next?
We find out in the opening verses of Acts 17 where we read how the apostles and their companions “passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia” before coming to Thessalonica “where there was a Jewish synagogue”. Thessalonica was where the Thessalonians lived and later on in the New Testament, we have two letters that Paul had written to the Christian church there.
Well, as was his custom, the scriptures tell us that “Paul went into the synagogue” and reasoned with the members from the scriptures “on three Sabbath days”.
What reasoning did Paul share?
Well, we know it was the Gospel, of course, and when the Gospel is being shared, Jesus will always be proclaimed and exclaimed. In support of this assertion, we read where Paul explained and proved that Jesus was the Messiah and that He “had to suffer and rise from the dead.” Paul told the synagogue congregation:
“This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah.”
Any Jew would know the words of the prophets and what they had to say about the coming of the Messiah. Most Jews believed that God was sending someone to deliver them from the hands of their Roman oppressors. This Messiah would liberate them. In holding this attitude, they had it partly correct.
For God indeed was sending the Messiah to deliver His people from oppression but it wasn’t from human bondage. Rather, the Messiah would come to deliver all people from the captivity of sin, sin that had them destined for God’s eternal judgment and torment. This Messiah was Jesus, who died on the cross to bear the penalty that all mankind deserved and then rose on the third day to new life, making the way for others to follow Him into glory. It was this Jesus that Paul proclaimed and exclaimed.
Did his Gospel work on the Sabbaths in Thessalonica bear fruit?
Well, the scriptures tell us that “some of the Jews were persuaded” as well as “a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women”. They all came to Christ and joined Paul and Silas as the Christian church was established in Thessalonica. Solid momentum had been established as Jesus was proclaimed and exclaimed but as we will see in tomorrow’s message, opposition would rise up to challenge the ministry work being done.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
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