NTBT

Lecture #15
Dr. Hoke

I have not posted a NTBT lecture in a while and am now posting again. I will pick up here with
Paul’s Preaching in Dr. Robertson’s notes. Be sure and read his notes fully. I am summarizaing
and adding some thoughts of my own as lectures. But these lectures are not meant to take the
place of reading Dr. Robertson’s notes. They form a book he is about to publish and I owe a
great debt to him for his efforts.

Paul’s Preaching

Since Paul is the apostle who most took the gospel to the uttermost part of the earth, it is only
fitting that Luke should spend much time on Paul’s preaching and missionary ministry. Luke
walks the reader through Paul’s three missionary journeys. What we are interested in here is
his preaching and the sermon from Acts 13 is fairly typical.

Acts 13:16-41

As we look at this sermon let us bear in mind that, although Paul was very well trained as a
Jewish rabbi, by identifying with Jesus Christ he has alienated his fellow Jews. Paul gave up
everything to follow Jesus. Also bear in mind that he preaches a message few would have
understood and almost no one had an interest in Jesus the Messiah. So, Paul’s approach is very
important. As we shall see, he did not preach himself; nor did Paul draw attention to himself.
He simply aimed at making Christ known.

So, let us look at the content of Paul’s gospel. I will walk you through it bit by bit, showing Paul’s
main points and areas of concern. Also bear in mind that Paul would have said more than Luke
recorded here. If you read this sermon aloud it only takes a minute or two. So, Paul said a lot
more. But Luke’s concern is to list the main, key points. These Paul would likely have
embellished, producing a much longer sermon.

“So Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said:

First, we should ask where is Paul when he preached? The context indicates that he was in
Psidian Antioch, a long way from Jerusalem or the land of Canaan. It was in Asia Minor where
some number of Jews had migrated probably hundreds of years before. As such, this is the
spread of the gospel into areas where it had never gone before. The Jews would probably have
heard something of Jesus, as some of them would have been there several years before when
Jesus was crucified. Or, even if they had not been there, word of Jesus and his crucifixion would
have reached their ears. Either way, Paul is proclaiming the gospel to people who likely have a
little knowledge of Jesus, but do not really know the gospel message.
Why did Paul stand up? It was the tradition and also he wanted to get their attention. However,
one can preach sitting down as Jesus did at times. The main thing is to get the people’s
attention so that they will listen to the gospel message.

“Men of Israel and you who fear God, listen.

Notice Paul’s audience. They are Israelites or those Gentiles who have joined the Israelite
religion. In other words, these are religious people.

17 The God of this people Israel chose our fathers and made the people great during their
stay in the land of Egypt, and with uplifted arm he led them out of it. 18 And for about forty
years he put up with them in the wilderness. 19 And after destroying seven nations in the
land of Canaan, he gave them their land as an inheritance. 20 All this took about 450 years.

Here Paul reminds them of God’s faithfulness to form them as a people. They only exist
because God chose them, formed them, and set them up in the land of Canaan.

And after that he gave them judges until Samuel the prophet. 21 Then they asked for a king,
and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. 22
And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and
said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’

Here Paul summarizes hundreds of years of Israel’s history to stress the key point which leads
to his gospel message. Paul shows that they chose an unwise king, but God gave them the best
king. They all loved and admired king David. But David was more than their great king. It was
through David that the Messiah was to come.

23 Of this man's offspring God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised. 24
Before his coming, John had proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. 25
And as John was finishing his course, he said, ‘What do you suppose that I am? I am not he.
No, but behold, after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.’

Here Paul gets right to the point with Jesus as the Savior who came from David’s line as God
had promised. Paul also mentions John the Baptist, showing that John was Jesus’ forerunner
who came to point to Jesus as the Savior.

26 “Brothers, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, to us has
been sent the message of this salvation. 27 For those who live in Jerusalem and their rulers,
because they did not recognize him nor understand the utterances of the prophets, which are
read every Sabbath, fulfilled them by condemning him. 28 And though they found in him no
guilt worthy of death, they asked Pilate to have him executed. 29 And when they had carried
out all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree and laid him in a tomb.
Please notice again that Paul addresses Jews and God-fearers. He also takes them to where it all
happened--in Jerusalem. Also notice that Paul is not hesitant to remind them of what the Jews
had done to Jesus, even remarking that they had fulfilled Scripture by condemning him. He also
shows them that the Jews in Jerusalem who condemned him did not understand the Scriptures
regarding Messiah. In addition, Paul shows that Jesus had done no wrong and was not guilty.
Still, they instigated the Romans to execute Jesus. Here Paul simply records the events as they
happened. As I have said, I’m sure he said a lot of other things to go along with these main
points.

30 But God raised him from the dead, 31 and for many days he appeared to those who had
come up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses to the people.

Notice “But God.” This makes for a great sermon title! The Paul makes is that although the Jews
had Jesus executed God raised him from the dead! God overcame the evil man had done to
Jesus. Man took Jesus’ life; God raised him up again. Not only that, but there are plenty of eye-
witnesses who are telling of Jesus’ resurrection.

32 And we bring you the good news that what God promised to the fathers, 33 this he has
fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus, as also it is written in the second Psalm,

“‘You are my Son,

34 And as for the fact that he raised him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, he
has spoken in this way,

“‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings of David.’

35 Therefore he says also in another psalm,

“‘You will not let your Holy One see corruption.’

Notice here that Paul appeals to the Hebrew Scriptures to prove his point. He is not offering
them some NEW RELIGION. It has been there all along in their Bibles and now fulfilled in the
person of Jesus the Messiah.

36 For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and
was laid with his fathers and saw corruption, 37 but he whom God raised up did not see
corruption. 38 Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man forgiveness
of sins is proclaimed to you, and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything 39
from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses. 40 Beware, therefore, lest what is
said in the Prophets should come about:

41 “‘Look, you scoffers,

Here Paul points them to the fact that while David was buried and decayed, Jesus rose again
from the dead and ever lives. Then he shows them that Jesus provides a forgiveness for sins
that the Mosaic Law could never give them.

Verses 42-43 provide the result of Paul’s powerful preaching: “42 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.”

Then the Jews persecute Paul and this is what follows: “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,

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.”

Dr. Robertson summarizes Paul’s preaching as follows:

(1) he went into the “Judean” synagogue on successive sabbath days. By following this method,
Paul could build on the foundation of the traditions of the old covenant scriptures that already
existed among “Judeans” and proselytes from the nations.

(2) He “dialogued with them from the scriptures”, suggesting that he engaged in interactive
discussion based on passages from scripture rather than depending on pure monologue.

(3) He was [literally] “opening and demonstrating” ( διανοίγων καὶ παρατιθέμενος )the truth
about the good news to his hearers. In this regard, Paul was following the same methods used
by Jesus, as indicated by the appearance of one of these same words in the narrative describing
the interchange of Jesus with the men on the road to Emmaus: “Did not our hearts burn within
us, when he opened (διήνοιγεν) to us the scriptures” (Luke 24:32; cf. v. 45). In addition,
Matthew uses the second word defining Paul’s methodology [“demonstrating”] to describe
Jesus’ teaching by parables (Matt. 13:24, 31). So Paul’s method of communicating the gospel
followed closely the pattern of Jesus the Christ.
(4) He taught that it was “necessary for the Christ” to do certain things. Context indicates that
this “necessity” arose in part because of the previous declarations of the old covenant
scriptures, but also because of the kind of work necessary to accomplish redemption for
sinners.

(5) The particulars of this “necessity” were that the messiah must “suffer” and “rise from the
dead.” These two elements are consistently represented as the core of Christ’s work
throughout the new covenant scriptures, beginning with the teaching of Jesus himself. The
death and resurrection of the Messiah capture the essence of the new covenant gospel.

(6) “This Jesus, he is the Christ!” The straightforward identification of Jesus as the promised
messiah was a consistent part of Paul’s proclamation. Clearly in Paul’s preaching, Jesus and
Jesus alone was the Christ of God, and no one else should be expected to fulfil this role. (7)
Paul was in the habit of “announcing” or “proclaiming” Jesus as the Christ to his hearers. Even
though he regularly entered into dialogue with his audience, he also declared with Apostolic
authority God’s truth concerning the identification of Jesus with the Christ of God.

End of lecture