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Acts 14:1–7
“At Iconium [Paul and Barnabas] entered together into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed” (v. 1).
Ninety miles southeast of Pisidian Antioch, on the well-known Roman commercial road called the Via Sebaste, stood the city of Iconium. Paul and Barnabas traveled there after being forced out of Antioch (Acts 13:50–51), and in today’s passage, Luke gives a record of their ministry in the city.
As they had done in Pisidian Antioch, Paul and Barnabas went first to the synagogue. They preached the gospel there, and “a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed” (14:1). Most likely, the Greeks were God-fearers, gentiles who followed Jewish monotheism but did not take on the full yoke of the ceremonial law of the Old Testament. That Paul and Barnabas preached in the synagogue demonstrates that their commitment in Pisidian Antioch to turn to the gentiles (13:46) did not mean that they would be neglecting Jews altogether.
The large number of converts to Jesus in Antioch displeased the “unbelieving Jews” in the city, and they worked to turn the gentiles who had not trusted in Christ against Paul, Barnabas, and the other Christians (14:2). One commentator says that this act of non-Christian Jews’ working to convince gentiles not to believe in Jesus indicates that those Jews perceived the gospel to be a true threat to them, since Jews and gentiles often avoided one another. Luke does not state explicitly why the Jews thought that the gospel was such a problem, but perhaps they were upset that it was taking away potential converts to the synagogue. In any case, their acts manifested the jealousy that Paul said would come over the Jews as a result of gentiles’ coming to believe in the Messiah whom the Jews had rejected (see Rom. 11:11).
The Jews were unable to convince enough people in the city to oppose the gospel, so they attempted to stone Paul and Barnabas. The missionaries fled to Lystra and Derbe, but only after having remained in the city a long time, “speaking boldly for the Lord, who bore witness to the word of his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands” (Acts 14:3–7). Note the description of the gospel as the “word of [God’s] grace.” Indeed, the gospel is a message born from the grace of God that declares the grace of God. It announces that God has provided a way for undeserving sinners to be declared righteous in His sight apart from their works, eliminating any room for boasting. All one has to do is receive Jesus Christ by faith alone, forsaking sin (Rom. 3:21–4:25; Eph. 2:8–10).
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
The gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is rooted in the grace of God and proclaims that grace toward sinners. When we share the gospel, our duty is to explain the graciousness of salvation and to call people to stop trusting in their own good works and instead to rest on and receive Christ alone for salvation. We must also preach this gospel to ourselves, remembering that we stand before God unafraid only in Christ.
For further study
- Psalm 106:4–5
- Jeremiah 31:1–6
- John 1:14–18
- 2 Timothy 1:8–12
The bible in a year
- Nehemiah 9–11
- Acts 3:11–4:22