Context No. 3176 of 4322 · Acts

Acts 13:1-11: in context

1Now in the assembly that was at Antioch there were some prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen the foster brother of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2As they served the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Separate Barnabas and Saul for me, for the work to which I have called them.” 3Then, when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. 4So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia. From there they sailed to Cyprus. 5When they were at Salamis, they proclaimed God’s word in the Jewish synagogues. They also had John as their attendant. 6When they had gone through the island to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew whose name was Bar Jesus, 7who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of understanding. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul, and sought to hear the word of God. 8But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. 9But Saul, who is also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fastened his eyes on him 10and said, “You son of the devil, full of all deceit and all cunning, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? 11Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is on you, and you will be blind, not seeing the sun for a season!” Immediately a mist and darkness fell on him. He went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand.

In the church at Antioch, as the prophets and teachers are worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit says, set apart Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them. So, after more fasting and prayer, they lay hands on them and send them off. On Cyprus a sorcerer, Elymas, opposes them, trying to keep the proconsul from the faith, and Paul, filled with the Spirit, rebukes him, and a temporary blindness falls on him.

Two things. The first missionary journey begins in worship: the church is worshiping and fasting when the Spirit speaks, and they respond with still more prayer before sending. God's mission is launched from a praying, worshiping community, not a strategy meeting. And on Cyprus, Elymas actively tries to keep a seeker from the faith, and Paul confronts him. Those who deliberately obstruct others from coming to God set themselves against God's own work. And the blindness given to Elymas, mirroring Paul's own on the Damascus road, may itself be a mercy, a call to his own turning.

Is my involvement in God's work rooted in worship and prayer, and am I careful never to be one who obstructs another's path to God?

Sources

Acts 13:2: "The Holy Spirit said, Separate Barnabas and Saul for me, for the work to which I have called them."
Acts 13:3: "When they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away."
Acts 13:10: "Will you not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?"