A Principle Found in Acts 13/16-41

There’s a pattern to the apostles’ preaching. We saw it once in Acts 10:34-43 as Peter spoke with Cornelius and his family and friends. And we see it again as Paul and Barnabas preaches to the people in the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch. It’s a pattern we can (maybe even should) follow today when sharing the gospel with others.

Both Peter’s and Paul’s/Barnabas’ message start by addressing where the people are at in their spiritual life. They addressed what the listeners already knew and related those things to the gospel (Good News) message. In Cornelius’ situation Peter started with all the happenings in Jerusalem – Jesus’ witness, the crucifixion, the resurrection, the persecution of the disciples, etc. Cornelius, as a God-fearer, would have been interested in hearing about this things. So Peter started with the known interests of those particular people. In the same way, Paul and Barnabas started with what the people in the synagogue in Antioch would already know about. For these Jews and God-fearers, Paul and Barnabas went through the history of Israel highlighting places where God had told Israel to share the message (and the Scriptures) with all nations. The people knew the Scriptures and had a basic understanding of history of Israel. Paul met them where they were at in their spiritual lives.

We, too, must get to know the people with whom we would like to share Christ. We need to know where their interests are, what they know about the Scriptures and Christ (if anything), and what their general beliefs about spirituality and religion are. We need to know these things so we can meet them where they are and begin our message someplace that will be meaningful to the listener(s). This often takes some time, but is well worth it to share a message that will be meaningful to someone who does not (yet) know Christ.

Next, Peter, and Paul and Barnabas, presented a clear picture of Christ; what He had said, what He had done, and what His message was all about. Both used Scriptures or histories that portrayed Jesus as the promised one from of old. They mentioned His life and many of His acts while on the earth. They shared why they follow Him. They shared how Jesus fits into the bigger picture. They acquainted the people with the character of Jesus and with how He met all the conditions set forth in the Old Testament for the Messiah. They gave as clear of a description of Jesus as they possibly could.

Then, finally, to cap off their sermons, they described and explained and gave witness to the resurrection of Christ. This was a key point in the gospel presentation. Without the resurrection, there would be no point to a Messiah. Without the resurrection, there is no salvation. It’s in the resurrection that the hope of eternal life can be found. We need to make sure we also share about the resurrection. It’s not just a passing thought. It’s central to what Jesus Christ has done for us – He’s conquered sin and the death that comes to mankind. That happens because the resurrection happened. We must not leave it out of our sharing. That’s where our hope is founded; the hope of eternal life.

So, to summarize, our gospel messages need to start with where our listeners are at, share Christ clearly and fully, and include the resurrection as it is the starting point of our hope.