Acts 14 Studies

For those who may wish to ‘study’ this chapter, the following simple resources are provided for you. Each chapter is divided into a number of studies and each study or passage has a simple four-Part, verse-by-verse approach, to help you take in and think further about what you have read.

Passage: Acts 14:1-7

1 At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Greeks believed. 2 But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the other Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. 3 So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders. 4 The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles. 5 There was a plot afoot among both Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to ill-treat them and stone them. 6 But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, 7 where they continued to preach the gospel.

A. Find Out:

1. Where did they go, what did they do and with what effect? v.1
2. Yet what did the Jews do? v.2
3. But what happened nevertheless? v.3
4. With what consequence? v.4,5
5. What did Paul & Barnabus do therefore? v.6
6. What did they do there? v.7 

B. Think:

1. Check your map to see where they went in today’s passage.
2. What strategy are Paul & Barnabus still using?
3. How is the Lord clearly with them?

C. Comment:

Having been thrown out of Pisidian Antioch and gone down to Iconium, another major town of the area, the two apostles again made for the synagogue. Despite having been rejected by the Jews in the previous town they still go to those with whom they are most familiar. It seems that there were both Jews and Gentile converts who believed, yet some of the religious Jews refused to believe and sought to stir up the others against the two men. Yet because there is obvious response to them, the two continue on there for some time, preaching and performing signs and wonders, having impact in the whole city! 

     However, there is both acceptance and rejection and those who rejected them plotted to physically abuse them. The answer was simple: leave! This they did and moved on to the next two cities in the region and carried on preaching the Gospel.    

What are the lessons here? First, keep on preaching to your own culture or “people group” until they reject you. Second, expect acceptance and rejection. Third, when rejected just move on to the next people group who will listen. Fourth, don’t be put off by rejection but keep preaching the message to whoever will listen.   

D. Application:

1. Keep sharing the good news with whoever will listen.
2. Don’t be surprised or put off when some people reject what you are     saying, just keep on with others who will receive you

Passage: Acts 14:8-20

8 In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth and had never walked. 9 He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed 10 and called out, ‘Stand up on your feet!’ At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.

11 When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, ‘The gods have come down to us in human form!’ 12 Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker. 13 The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them.

14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: 15 ‘Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them. 16 In the past, he let all nations go their own way. 17 Yet he has not left himself without testimony: he has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.’ 18 Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.

19 Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. 20 But after the disciples had gathered round him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.

A. Find Out:

1. Who was there listening? v.8
2. What did Paul see? v.9
3. So what did Paul say and what happened? v.10
4. What was the response to this? v.11-13
5. What did the apostles do & how did they describe God? v.14-18
6. What then happened? v.19,20

B. Think:

1. What seems to have been the key to the man’s healing?
2. How did that not help the Gospel?
3. How is the crowd shown to be utterly fickle? What does it teach us?

C. Comment:

A spectacular healing takes place. How? What do we learn from what happened? First of all, the man had faith; the Holy Spirit was obviously stirring him to believe (“faith comes from hearing” – Rom 10:17), God had obviously spoken to him. At the same time the Holy Spirit gives Paul the understanding that the man has faith, that God wants to heal, so all he has to do is speak a word of faith and the healing comes, a simple act of God. What was the key? Two men heard God!

We sometimes think that power healing is all that is needed to open the doors of belief in evangelism, but this episode shows that that is not always so. The superstitious crowd go to worship them, and it is only with great difficulty that they manage to get them to stop.

Very shortly afterwards, it seems, religious Jews from the previous towns turn up and quickly turn the crowd against them. Never rely upon “public opinion”, it can so easily and quickly change, only rely upon a work of God. Note in passing that this town must have had very powerful occultic forces working in it with the temple of Zeus there, no wonder that there is a spiritual blindness in the crowd that is so easily turned against the apostles. But also note that that didn’t stop the Lord doing a powerful miracle there.

D. Application:

1. God’s will producing faith, is behind all miraculous healings.
2. Even such a miracle is sometimes not enough to release belief.

Passage: Acts 14:20-28

20 But after the disciples had gathered round him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.

21 They preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, 22 strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. ‘We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,’ they said. 23 Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust. 24 After going through Pisidia, they came into Pamphylia, 25 and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia.

26 From Attalia they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been committed to the grace of God for the work they had now completed. 27 On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles. 28 And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.

A. Find Out:

1. What happened at Derbe? v.20,21a
2. Where did they next go, doing what? v.21b,22
3. What did they also do in each town? v.23
4. Where also did they go to? v.24-26
5. What did they do when they returned home? v.27
6. How long did they stay there? v.28

B. Think:

1. Check your map for each place.
2. What seemed to be their objective in going back to each place?
3. Why might that have been risky?

C. Comment:

Derbe was the last new place they went to on this trip and there the Gospel successfully enlarged the kingdom of God. “Then they returned”. Those three words are the signpost for all church planters. Yes, they returned home but first they returned to the churches they had founded. Various things had to be done. The churches had been established and they had had to leave prematurely in each case. So what did they do?

First, they strengthened and encouraged the churches to remain true to the faith. They established them in the truth and exhorted them to remain in the truth. Establishing basic doctrine was the first step.

Second, they appointed elders to look after the churches. Providing pastoral oversight was the second thing.

Third, they committed them to the Lord or, if you like, they just left the churches to get on with God’s help alone. They trusted in the Holy Spirit to mature and develop these churches. They are God’s churches, not Paul’s.

When they arrived home, they shared all that had happened. They were accountable to their own local church.

D. Application:

1. Church pioneers lay foundations by God’s leading.
2. After foundations are laid, they leave the church to grow itself, simply    bringing occasional encouragement.