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Bibles to Acts chapter 13. Acts 13, we find ourselves in 
the first missionary journey of the Apostle Paul. Barnabas 
is with him, John Mark is with them. This is from chapter 13, 
verse 1 to 14, 28. It was conducted in 80, 47, and 
48. It covered a span of about 1,400 
miles. They first go to Cyprus, and 
here we see then they end up in the region of Antipasidia. and there they go into a synagogue 
to preach the word of truth. So beginning in chapter 13, at 
verse 13, I'll read. Now when Paul and his party set 
sail from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia, and John, 
departing from them, returned to Jerusalem. But when they departed 
from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the 
synagogue on the Sabbath day and sat down. And after the reading 
of the law and the prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent 
to them saying, men and brethren, if you have any word of exhortation 
for the people, say on. Then Paul stood up and motioning 
with his hand said, men of Israel and you who fear God, listen. 
The God of this people Israel chose our fathers and exalted 
the people when they dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt. And with an uplifted arm, he 
brought them out of it. Now, for a time of about 40 years, 
he put up with their ways in the wilderness. And when he had 
destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, he distributed 
their land to them by allotment. After that, he gave them judges 
for about 450 years, until Samuel the prophet. And afterward they asked for 
a king, so God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the 
tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. And when he had removed 
him, he raised up for them David as king, to whom also he gave 
testimony and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man 
after my own heart, who will do all my will. From this man's 
seed, according to the promise, God raised up for Israel a Savior, 
Jesus, after John had first preached, before his coming, the baptism 
of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John was finishing 
his course, he said, Who do you think I am? I am not he. But 
behold, there comes one after me, the sandals of whose feet 
I am not worthy to loose. Men and brethren, sons of the 
family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, to you 
the word of this salvation has been sent. For those who dwell 
in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not know him, 
nor even the voices of the prophets which are read every Sabbath, 
have fulfilled them in condemning him. And though they found no 
cause for death in him, they asked Pilate that he should be 
put to death. Now when they had fulfilled all 
that was written concerning him, they took him down from the tree 
and laid him in a tomb. But God raised him from the dead. 
He was seen for many days by those who came up with him from 
Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses to the people. 
And we declare to you glad tidings, that promise which was made to 
the fathers. God has fulfilled this for us, 
their children, in that He has raised up Jesus, as it is also 
written in the second Psalm, You are my Son, today I have 
begotten you. And that He raised Him from the 
dead, no more to return to corruption, He has spoken thus, I will give 
you the sure mercies of David. Therefore, he also says in another 
psalm, you will not allow your Holy One to see corruption. For 
David, after he had served his own generation by the will of 
God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption. 
But he whom God raised up saw no corruption. Therefore, let 
it be known to you, brethren, that through this man is preached 
to you the forgiveness of sins, and by him everyone who believes 
is justified from all things from which you could not be justified 
by the law of Moses. Beware, therefore, lest what 
has been spoken in the prophets come upon you. Behold, you despisers, 
marvel and perish, for I work a work in your days, a work which 
you will by no means believe the one were to declare it to 
you. So when the Jews went out of the synagogue, the Gentiles 
begged that these words might be preached to them the next 
Sabbath. Now, when the congregation had broken up, many of the Jews 
and devout proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking 
to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. On the next 
Sabbath, almost the whole city came together to hear the word 
of God. But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled 
with envy, and contradicting and blaspheming, they opposed 
the things spoken by Paul. Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold 
and said, it was necessary that the word of God should be spoken 
to you first. But since you reject it and judge 
yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the 
Gentiles. For so the Lord has commanded 
us. I have set you as a light to the Gentiles that you should 
be for salvation to the ends of the earth. And when the Gentiles 
heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. 
And as many as had been appointed to eternal life, believed. And 
the word of the Lord was being spread throughout all the region, 
that the Jews stirred up the devout and prominent women and 
the chief men of the city, raised up persecution against Paul and 
Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. But they shook 
off the dust from their feet against them and came to Iconium, 
and the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, 
we thank you for your written Word. We thank you for this record 
of the planting of the churches in the very first century. We 
thank you for the apostolic ministry and the preaching of the cross. 
And God, help us now as we consider this sermon in Pisidian Antioch. I pray that we would know of 
our own sin and that we would know of that righteousness that 
comes through Christ our Lord, how we praise you for Him, for 
His life of obedience to the Father, His death as substitute 
and sacrifice on the cross, and the fact that He was raised the 
third day, all the things specified in this sermon by the Apostle. 
And we know, Lord God, and understand so wonderfully that forgiveness 
comes not because we work for it or because we have earned 
it, but because of grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ 
Jesus alone. And we would pray that even now, 
in this congregation and throughout this world, that as your gospel 
goes forth, it would run swiftly and be glorified, that more and 
more people would come to know that forgiveness of sins that 
comes freely by God, and that, Lord, you would be glorified 
in the salvation of sinners and in the sanctification of your 
people. So fill us now with your Holy 
Spirit. Please forgive us for our transgression. Wash us in 
that precious blood of Jesus And we pray in his most blessed 
name. Amen. Well, as I said, this is Pisidian 
Antioch. Paul and Barnabas left the church 
in Antioch. That Antioch was in Syria. They first go to Cyprus, and 
now they go to this region, this province called Pisidia. And 
there is a place called Antioch, and there was a synagogue that 
they go in to preach the gospel. So I want to look at two things 
this morning. We're not going to get all the way through this 
sermon. We're going to look first at the arrival at Pisidian Antioch 
in verses 13 to 15. And then secondly, the preaching 
of Paul in the synagogue at Pisidian Antioch in verses 16. to 25 this 
morning, and God willing, we'll take up the rest of the sermon 
in the coming weeks. But with reference to their arrival, 
again, notice they first go to Cyprus. That's what we saw last 
week in verses 4 to 12, and now they leave from there. And notice 
that Paul now has preeminence in the writing by Luke. Verse 13 tells us, now when Paul 
and his party set sail from Paphos. Now, Barnabas had been a Christian 
longer. Barnabas had been known by the 
church in Jerusalem longer. Paul was relatively new in terms 
of his addition to the church, though it had been about 14 or 
15 years. Nevertheless, he is the one upon whom the spirit 
of God shines the light in the latter half of the book of Acts. 
So here beginning in Acts 13 to the very end, the emphasis 
is upon Paul and these missionary journeys that he's engaged in. 
And then we notice that John Mark departs from them. We've 
already met John Mark in chapter 12. We see that he went with 
them on this missionary journey. The text doesn't specify why 
he departed. The commentators do, and they 
tell us a lot of reasons why it may have been that John Mark 
left them, but I don't wanna do that because I don't wanna 
sully his reputation. Later on, he is restored, but 
in this instance, what he did was wrong. The apostle Paul tells 
us, or told Barnabas in chapter 15, that he didn't want to take 
John Mark on the second missionary journey because John Mark had 
departed from that. But as I said in the epistles 
later on, you see that there is a familiarity and a love between. Paul and Mark. But in this instance, 
he departs from them. He no longer continues along 
with them. And then they arrive at Pisidia 
in Antioch, according to verses 14 and 15. They departed from 
Perga. They came to Antioch in Pisidia 
and went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and sat down. 
I would suggest that this demonstrates the wisdom of the apostle Paul. 
This is a place where there are persons gathered who have a religious 
interest. What better place to go than 
to place like that to preach Jesus Christ and Him crucified 
and resurrected. So the apostle makes this sort 
of his custom as he goes into various cities, he goes first 
to the synagogues of the Jews, and there it's not just the Jews 
that he is targeting, but he's also calling Gentiles to faith 
and repentance. Remember that he is, in the first 
place, the apostle to the Gentiles. So some have said, well, it's 
odd that he would go into these synagogues of the Jews. Well, 
just because he's the apostle to the Gentiles doesn't mean 
he's going to neglect his own countrymen. He wants Jews to 
come to saving faith as well. But in the synagogue that was 
gathered together on that day, there were both Jews and Gentiles, 
as the text demonstrates or evidences for us. And then notice in verse 
15, what happens. And after the reading of the 
law and the prophets, this was common practice in the synagogue. In fact, church worship is more 
patterned after synagogue worship than temple worship. Temple worship 
was about incense. It was about sacrifice. It was 
about instruments. It was about a lot of pomp and 
show. But in the new covenant, worship 
is simple. and worship in the church, as 
I said, is more patterned after a synagogue where persons would 
come together, there would be leaders in the synagogue, they 
would read passages of scripture, there would be a sermon or an 
exhortation from that, there would be the chanting of some 
psalms, there would be the sorts of things that we try to engage 
in as the gathered church. Well, here we see in verse 15 
that there was a reading of the law and the prophets. for the people, say on. Now this 
is curious. Why would they ask Barnabas and 
Paul if they had any word of exhortation? And as well it's 
curious because of course Paul is going to have a word of exhortation. You're asking a preacher if he 
wants to preach. You're asking a man if he has 
anything he wants to address with reference to religion to 
a body of people gathered together to consider religion. Perhaps 
they knew who Paul was. Remember, he was Saul of Tarsus. He was a Pharisee of Pharisees. He was one who studied under 
the feet of Gamaliel. He was an accomplished Pharisee 
and a religious leader in his own right prior to his conversion 
to Christ. So perhaps they saw him, perhaps 
they had known Barnabas, and so they say to them, men, do 
you have any word of exhortation that you would like to share 
with us? Again, it's just an open door in providence for the 
apostle to stand in a place that is already in opposition to the 
Lord Jesus Christ. Now Paul's gonna get to stand 
up in their midst using their own law and their own prophets, 
showing how Christ is the inevitable end of that law and prophets. And that is precisely what he 
does. That brings us to the preaching 
of Paul in the synagogue, and this is all of chapter 13, verses 
16 to 41. So I want to sketch it for you 
as we begin. First, he sketches Israel's history 
in verses 16 to 22. There's a particular reason why 
he does this. He wants to show that their history 
or their prophetic scriptures inevitably lead to the Lord Jesus 
Christ. So that's what he does in the 
first instance. Secondly, he highlights the arrival 
of Israel's Messiah in verses 23 to 25. He then takes up the 
crucifixion of Israel's Messiah in verses 26 to 37. And then 
he ends on an exhortation to believe on Israel's Messiah in 
verses 38 to 41. And then the last section from 
42 to 52 shows us the responses by Jew and Gentile to this sermon 
that he preaches in the synagogue in Pisidi and Antioch. So let's 
look first at this sketch of Israel's history. This is not 
unique to the Apostle Paul. Peter does something similar 
when he preaches in Acts chapter 3. We saw in great detail how 
Stephen does the same thing in Acts chapter 7. Remember they 
charged Stephen with blasphemy against this holy place, the 
temple, and against the law of Moses. So he appeals to their 
history, to their scripture, to show that it wasn't him that 
had departed, but rather it was them. And brethren, that is Paul's 
point as he sketches their history. He shows that the law and the 
prophets find their terminus in the Lord Jesus. He is the 
focus. He is the reason. He is why Moses 
wrote. He is why the prophets wrote. 
It's not Paul that has missed this, but rather it is them that 
has missed this. And that's why he starts with 
a sketch of Israel's history. Notice that he issues this call 
to hear in verse 16. Paul stood up and motioning with 
his hands said, men of Israel and you who fear God, listen. 
That's how we know there are two groups. Men of Israel and 
you who fear God. Steve read in Acts chapter 10, 
verses 2 and 3, describes Cornelius as one who feared God. You see 
that in this very sermon itself. He makes this distinction between 
the men of Israel and those who fear God. They were Gentile proselytes 
to Judaism. They were those who were enamored 
with the God of Israel. There were those who were curious 
about the God of Israel and therefore would attend to the synagogue 
on the Sabbath to hear the lessons, to hear the teaching and the 
preaching. And so he appeals to both of these groups. And 
then notice this sketch of the history. He reviews both law 
and prophets. Now, some have suggested the 
various readings that most likely had occurred in the synagogue 
at this particular time. And that Paul's message, at least 
this sketch of Israel's history, is consistent with what they 
heard read. In other words, Paul understood, he knew the Old Testament. He knew it very, very well, having 
been a Pharisee, but now as a Christian, he has the proper hermeneutic. 
He knows how the law and the prophets point forward to the 
Lord Jesus, and that's one of the things that he wants to emphasize 
in the hearing here. And then notice in the first 
place, with reference to this review of the law in verses 17 
to 19, he highlights God's election of Israel. He highlights God's 
election of Israel, and I submit that everything he says in this 
brief section, from verses 17 to 22, leads inevitably to Christ 
and God's election of Israel. We have considered that several 
times in our studies in the book of Genesis. God chose the fathers. He chose Abraham, Isaac, and 
Jacob. It wasn't because they were stellar 
individuals. It wasn't because they were righteous 
individuals. As we have seen in our study, 
even having come to the God of Israel, they still had their 
issues. They still had their shortcomings. They still had 
their sins. But nevertheless, God purposed 
that from these men, the Messiah would come. And the seed is absolutely 
crucial in terms of that promise made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. So the choice of the fathers 
refer to those patriarchs, but then the choice of the fathers 
include Israel as a whole. There are several instances in 
the Old Testament, in the law, the first five books of Moses, 
where God highlights his choice of Israel. In fact, he says in 
Deuteronomy 9, I didn't choose you because you were more numerous. 
I didn't choose you because you were more righteous. I didn't 
set my affection or my love on you because there was anything 
affectionate or lovely in you. He does this in Ezekiel chapter 
16 as well, when he rehearses the history of that nation. He 
says, when I came to you, you were like one writhing around 
in their blood. And I said to you, live, live. 
It was God who conferred blessing on them, not according to merit 
on their part, but according to grace on his part. It is sovereign 
grace that brought Israel into this place of God's redemptive 
favor. And the apostle highlights that 
reality that God chose this people, Israel. Then he highlights the 
fact that God delivered Israel. Notice in verse 17b, "...and 
exalted the people when they dwelt as strangers in the land 
of Egypt, and with an uplifted arm he brought them out of it." 
So you see what he's doing? He's expounding the law. He speaks 
concerning the choice of the patriarchs. He speaks concerning 
the choice of Israel. He speaks concerning the deliverance 
of Israel at that time of Exodus. And he uses that metaphor of 
the powerful arm of God most high. You see that in the book 
of Exodus, in Exodus chapter 6. You see this reference that 
it wasn't, again, their ingenuity. They didn't launch some plan 
of attack. They didn't figure out a way to cripple Pharaoh 
and his armies, and they would escape over the fence. No, it 
was God who delivered them. It was God through the plagues. 
It was God through the death of the firstborn. It was God 
who vindicated his people and released them from that place. 
And so Paul is sketching their history. He's gonna show how 
it terminates upon the Lord Jesus Christ. He mentions thirdly, 
God's forbearance, God's patience, God's nourishing of Israel. Notice 
in verse 18, it says, now for a time of about 40 years, he 
put up with their ways in the wilderness. You see the sketch 
of Israel's history. He chose them, they went into 
bondage, he delivers them through his power, and then he endures 
them for that 40 years of wandering. Now the verb here, there's a 
variant. It could be he endured them, 
which almost sounds negative, but the rest of scripture highlights 
that aspect. Psalm 95 in Hebrews 3 tells us 
that God endured them. In other words, their lack of 
faith, their lack of obedience, their lack of doing what they 
were supposed to do, provoked in God this forbearance or patience. He didn't just cut them off. 
But it might also be akin to the verb that's used in Deuteronomy 
chapter 1. In Deuteronomy chapter 1, in 
verse 31, God through Moses says, And in the wilderness where you 
saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son 
in all the way that you went until you came to this place. 
Likely, that's the emphasis here in Paul's sermon. God chose, 
God delivered, and God sustained, God carried, God nourished, God 
was your protector, God was your defender, God was the one that 
kept this people together. Why did God keep them together? 
Because in the fullness of the time, God sent forth his son, 
born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the 
law. If the people had been breached, if the people had been decimated, 
if the people had been destroyed, then humanly speaking it would 
have shipwrecked God's promise of salvation by Israel's Messiah, 
even Jesus Christ the Lord. So it's crucial that he not only 
elect them, It's crucial that they don't die in captivity in 
Egypt, and it's also crucial that He sustains them in the 
wilderness, that He carries them the way that a man carries his 
son. That language in Deuteronomy 
131 is so beautiful. I love the way it is specified 
there, and I think at times it is a challenge to us to see God 
in that capacity. There's tough things that happen 
in our lives, and we conclude that God has put us down, and 
He is not taking care of us right now. God is always taking care 
of us. God is always sustaining us. If we, by grace, have believed 
on Jesus Christ, then God the Lord has said, I will never leave 
you, nor forsake you. He's not here for a time, and 
then gone. It's not that in the midst of 
trial, or in the midst of affliction, or in the midst of hardship, 
God has left us alone. What's that declaration of David 
in Psalm 23? Yea, though I walk through the 
valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. Why? Why 
does he say that? Because thou art with me. See, 
it's not the case that God brings him to the valley of the shadow 
of death and says, okay, you've got to go this on your own. You 
just try to make it to the other side. And once you're victorious 
and you get to the other side, then I'll receive you unto myself. 
No. Though I walk through the valley 
of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, because God is 
with me. His rod and His staff, they comfort 
me. We need to get that perspective 
as the people of God. He doesn't abandon, He doesn't 
forsake, He doesn't leave us to ourselves, but He is there 
with us in the midst of the fire, and affliction, and hardship, 
and trial, and difficulty, and every bad thing we can possibly 
imagine. The thought that God has put 
us down for a while, or the thought that God is not going to tend 
to us, or the thought that God is somehow finished with us for 
a time, and He'll come back to me when everything is great, 
is really an offense with reference to the Bible's doctrine of who 
God is. See, God is our God in the midst 
of the rain. God is our God in the sun. God 
is our God in the midst of the misery of snow. God is our God 
in good times and in bad times. He never ceases. He never stops. He never forsakes us. He never 
turns his back on us. And this is precisely Paul's 
point. and how it leads in redemptive history to a consideration of 
Jesus Christ our Lord. So God elected, God delivered, 
God bore with Israel. And then notice, in terms of 
the review of the law, God's provision of the land in verse 
19. Remember the promise made to 
Abraham. It was twofold. There was seed and there was 
land. God was faithful in terms of 
his land promise. God was faithful in terms of 
the provision of the land. And that is precisely what Paul 
is saying in verse 19. And when he had destroyed seven 
nations in the land of Canaan, he destroyed their land to them 
by allotment. What's his point? If God was 
faithful in the provision of the land, which Paul says he 
was, then God is faithful in the provision of the seed, which 
he was. And it's the Lord Jesus who the 
Jews in mass were rejecting and were turning their backs on. 
But this is Paul's point. Land promise fulfilled. seed 
promise fulfilled. As he moves to verse 23, we'll 
see it just a moment. He says, from this man's seed, 
according to the promise, God raised up for Israel a savior, 
Jesus. Land and seed were crucial in 
terms of old covenant promise. The fact that God fulfills the 
one means the fact that he fulfills the other. And those seven nations 
are specified in Deuteronomy 7, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, 
and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, 
and the Jebusites, just as God promised. So again, just stepping 
back for a moment and seeing how the apostle deals with this. 
That's another thing we need to consider in times where it 
may seem as if God's withdrawn from us. Perhaps the confession 
study is still a bit in my head, but we considered why there are 
challenges to assurance of grace and salvation. And the confession 
specifies a few things, but one of the things it says is, when 
God withdraws for a time from us. In other words, we don't 
have that sort of felt-ness with reference to our relationship 
to Christ. Well, brethren, there are strategies 
and tactics and maneuvers that the people of God, in the history 
of the people of God, have utilized in such times. In the first place, 
we are never to doubt the goodness of God to His people. You settle 
it. When Asaph opens up his heart 
in Psalm 73 to tell us, but as for me, my foot nearly slipped, 
he starts with this axiom, God is good to Israel. That's axiomatic, 
and you are never to forget that. Secondly, it is very helpful 
to understand that when God enters into relationship with us, he 
will never leave us, he will never forsake us. But then a 
third helpful thing, in those seasons where it seems as if 
God has withdrawn his smile, we remain faithful. We keep going. We recall and rehearse the great 
acts of God in history. Again, the Psalms of Asaph are 
a great reference here, because the heathen essentially were 
desecrating the very temple of the living God. And God doesn't 
come and just smash their teeth and run them out of dodge. So 
what does the psalmist, what does Asaph do in those occasions? 
He remembers the exodus. He remembers God's victory with 
his people in the history of the world. And the same obtains 
for us here and now. If you are going through a season 
where it seems as if God has withdrawn himself from you, the 
very first thing you need to understand is that it's not true. 
God doesn't withdraw. God doesn't hide himself. God 
may, for a time and for some lessons that we need to learn, 
do that, or at least practically it feels that way. But as well, 
we need to remain faithful, rehearsing, recalling, meditating upon, musing 
on the very promises of God and the acts of deliverance that 
he's engaged in with reference to his people. This is our responsibility. It's not to lay down on the couch 
and hope that God will just snap his cosmic fingers and make everything 
great. And now we can serve him again. 
I think at times as Christians, we show ourselves to be fair 
weather fans. As long as my team wins, I'm 
going to root for them. But when they're not winning, 
I'm not going to root for them. Believers can evidence something 
of that. Well, I don't have the felt sense of God. I don't have 
that conscious smile of God. So I'm not going to read my Bible. 
I'm not going to pray. I'm not going to go to the church. 
Maybe God is trying to inculcate in you more of a desire to do 
those things. Through a due use of those ordinary 
means, it may be the occasion where God's smile breaks through 
those dark clouds and you see it again in all of its fullness. 
Not us. If God isn't blessing, if God 
isn't conveying, if God isn't smiling upon us 24-7, we conclude 
he's gone. We de-God God quicker than anybody's 
business. We conclude that, well, whatever 
I had, it wasn't good because it didn't last. Brethren, if 
God has entered into saving you, It is to the uttermost. It is 
always. He is not going to let you go. 
It is a blessed reality, a biblical religion, that when God begins 
a work in us, He will complete it unto the day of Christ. But 
you know what is never guaranteed? You know what's never guaranteed 
in Scripture? Is that as saved men and women, 
every day will be your best day ever. That's search, finding. You know, the onus is on the 
health, wealth, prosperity idiots to pony up and show where the 
Bible actually does promise that every day is going to be great. There's just certainly some days 
that aren't great. There's just certainly some days 
that are hard. There's days that are difficult. There are trials. There are afflictions. There 
is disease. There is death. There is emptiness. There is pain. There's all that 
stuff. Why? Because we live in a sin-cursed 
world. And when God saves us, He doesn't 
put a, you know, a shield around us. Wherever you go, it's only 
ever going to smell like roses. Wherever you go, people are only 
gonna give you money. Wherever you go, you're gonna 
skip. Wherever you go, you're gonna whistle. Wherever you go, 
it's gonna be like the best day ever. That is absolutely foreign 
and contrary to what scripture tells us. The best men and women 
in the history of the faith are evidenced in Hebrews chapter 
11. What did some of them get? Isaiah the prophet got sawn in 
two. Brethren, it wasn't his best day ever, the day he got 
sawn in two. My point is, is that God is faithful. My point is, is that God is good 
and he doesn't renege on his goodness when it seems to us 
that he's hidden his smiling face. He's there! We need to 
continue to believe that, and we need to have that rock-solid 
confidence that even in the midst of trial, and affliction, and 
hardship, and suffering, and calamity, God the Lord is our 
strength. God the Lord is our portion. 
God the Lord is our lot. What's he say to Abraham in Genesis 
chapter 15? I am your shield, your exceedingly 
great reward. Isn't that a beautiful description 
of who God is and what God is to us? You'd think from then 
on in the account of Abraham, There'd be no problems in that 
brother's life. He would just soar through life 
on the wings of eagles soaring above the clouds. No, he still 
had issues. He still had problems. He still 
had difficulties. We've met now with the apostle 
Paul, a man who covered 10,000 miles in terms of his service 
to the Lord Jesus Christ. I don't mention that as if it's 
somehow meritorious. I mention it as it ought to be 
observed. This brother went to, went for 
everything to preach Christ and him crucified throughout the 
then known world. Brethren, if he does all that, 
he must be favored by God and one upon whom God's smile rests. Yeah, but he still had issues. 
He still had problems. He still got beat. You see it 
on this first missionary journey. He stoned and left for dead because 
they thought he was gone. That's the service of God. It's not always marked by and 
punctuated by bluebirds attending us. I guess what I'm trying to 
suggest is that Christianity is not a Disney movie. It's not 
a Disney experience. It's not simply a life that is 
filled with unicorns and fairies and wonderful things. No. There's hardships, and there's 
heartaches, and there's affliction, and there's, at times, feelings 
of desperation and destitution. But that doesn't change God. 
I, the Lord, do not change, He says through the prophet Malachi. 
So Paul, preaching from their law, highlights in verse 19, 
God is faithful in terms of the land promise. So then when we 
get to verse 23, he indicates that God is faithful with reference 
to the seed promise. But before he gets there, he 
not only has reviewed the law, he reviews the prophets in verses 
17 to 22. You see what they read. They read Law and Prophets in 
the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch, according to verse 15. They then 
asked Paul and Barnabas, men, do you have a word of exhortation 
to speak to the people? Paul motions to them to be silent 
and to pay attention. Why? Because we're dealing with 
the most important thing ever, namely your forgiveness, your 
justification, your salvation. That's why Paul motions with 
his hand and he tells them to listen, to pay attention. If 
Paul was teaching calculus, if Paul was teaching English, if 
Paul was teaching history, there probably wouldn't be that grave 
or that serious of a concern on his part. But he's preaching 
the Messiah. He's preaching the Christ of 
heaven and earth. He's preaching the one in whom 
alone there is forgiveness. So he moves from the law to the 
prophets. And in verses 17 to 22, he highlights 
the judges and the kings. Not all of them. Again, he's 
linking their history, sketching their history to show how it 
inevitably led to this one Jesus of Nazareth. So in verse 17, 
The God, I'm sorry, verse 20, please forgive me, I jumped in 
my head, I looked at the different text here. Verse 20, and after 
that he gave them judges for about 450 years until Samuel 
the prophet. The judges given to Israel. If 
I were to ask you, what is the book of Judges about? I'd love 
to hear the various answers. I think sometimes people would 
say, well, the Book of Judges is about Ehud, that left-handed 
knife maker that killed Eglon. Remember Eglon? He was quite 
a rotund man. And when Ehud plunged that knife 
in, the flesh of Eglon sort of encompassed it all. So you got, 
you know, Ehud. He's a strong man judge. He puts 
that knife in that man's gut. That man says, he says, I have 
a message from God for you. Oh yeah, he sure did. It just 
happened to come with a point, and it was going to go into his 
belly. That's the reality. And we think of Gideon. What 
do we think about Gideon? Gideon was a mighty man. He managed 
to put down Midianites with a small army, right? You think of Samson. You think about Jephthah. You 
think about these various judges in Israel. You know what the 
book of Judges is about? It's about the salvation of God. 
It's all about salvation. Each of those judges typifies 
for us the Lord Jesus Christ. Judges 2.16 specifies the very 
reason why God gave judges. The Lord raised up judges who 
delivered them out of the hand of those who plundered them. 
That's the point of the book of Judges. Yahweh is salvation. It's all about God liberating, 
delivering, freeing, vindicating His oppressed people when they 
are under the hands of godless men. That's the message of the 
book of Judges, and the Judges are Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Barak, 
Gideon, Tola, Jer, Jephthah, Ibsen, Elon, Abedin, and Samson. Samuel himself also functioned 
as a judge, as 1 Samuel tells us, but as Paul highlights here, 
he's a prophet. Now, if you were to ask the question, 
you said he expounded the law in verses 17 to 19, and now he's 
expounding the prophets in verses 20 to 22. Judges and Joshua and 
1 and 2 Samuel are called prophets. Those are the former prophets, 
and the latter prophets are Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and then the 
12 minor prophets. So that body of literature in 
the Hebrew canon is referred to as the prophets. We call them 
historical books. Now they certainly relate history, 
they certainly tell us about these particular men, but it's 
theological history. It's prophetic literature. It's 
teaching us something about who God is, who his people are, and 
how he vindicates them, and how he delivers them when they're 
under foreign oppression. how in the midst of Philistine 
oppression, he raises up a Samson and he sends that Samson upon 
his way to do great damage to the Philistines with that jawbone 
of an ass where he takes out a thousand of them in one exchange. That is the deliverance wrought 
by God. And each of those judges typifies 
pictures for us, demonstrates the great redemptive work of 
our Lord Jesus Christ. But he doesn't stop at the judges. 
He then highlights the monarchy or the kings of Israel in verses 
21 and 22. He says, and afterward, they 
asked for a king. So God gave them Saul, the son 
of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin for 40 years. I think 
you all remember that scene or incident. 1 Samuel chapter 8, 
what do the people of Israel say? Give us a king so that we 
can be like all the other nations. Samuel gets upset about this 
and he cries out to the Lord and the Lord says to him, Samuel, 
they're not resisting you, they're resisting me. Now it was always 
the case that there would be a monarchy in Israel. Deuteronomy 
17 specifies particular duties and responsibilities for the 
kings of Israel. The first one being, you know 
what the king does when he gets appointed or anointed? He has 
a big party. He, you know, gives money to 
his constituency. He pays off the donor class. 
No! The first thing the king of Israel 
was supposed to do was to take out his ink pen, take out several 
sheets of blank paper, and write for himself the law of Yahweh. 
Imagine if they actually had done that. Humanly speaking, 
if every king of Israel, every king of Judah, had actually done 
what was specified in Deuteronomy 17. They actually towed the line, 
obeyed God, wrote out that law, and meditated upon it day and 
night. It would have been a whole better sort of situation, obviously, 
than what happened in terms of the history of Israel and Judah. 
But all that notwithstanding, the problem in 1 Samuel 8, was 
that we can be like the nations around us. It wasn't monarchy. It wasn't kingship that God necessarily 
condemned. It was this desire to look like 
the heathen around them. And so, of course, Samuel tells 
them, this is the kind of king it's going to be. You think you've 
got problems now? Wait until this king comes along. 
Brethren, it was pretty prophetic for the rest of human government 
subsequent to that. There's going to be high taxation. 
He's going to recruit the best talent from your own families, 
for his own, you know, bakers, and for his own life, and his 
own benefit, and his own comfort. Samuel tells them it's not going 
to be a great sort of a situation, but nevertheless, they want this 
king. So we enter into 1 Samuel chapter 
9, and who is it? It's Saul. It's this man Saul 
that is chosen by God to be the king in Israel at that particular 
time. But it doesn't stop there. Notice 
in verse 22. And this is, again, the link. 
It's where he's going. David. Why David? Because from 
David he goes to David's son. That's the logic of his sketch 
of Israel's history at this point. God chose, God delivered, God 
nourished, God vindicated, God blessed, God gave the land, God 
has given the seed, and he's given these judges, he's given 
these kings, and now he comes specifically to David. And notice 
how he treats David in verse 22. And when he had removed him, 
that's Saul. Why did he remove Saul? Again, 
I'd love to really ask this question because we went through 1 Samuel 
in our Bible studies on Wednesday night, and I'd love to see if 
everybody remembered that information. Saul had his issues, didn't he? 
I mean, he reigned for 40 years, so he did some things right. 
Now, if you compare the text in 1 Samuel and you compare other 
reference, you'll say, wait a minute, it doesn't say 40 years. Most 
scholars accept or suspect that it speaks concerning the reign 
of Saul consistent with Samuel, that collectively there was a 
40-year period there. People get more involved in the 
numbers here. I've done a little bit of search 
on that. Didn't seem like it's absolutely crucial to the presentation 
of the material. But if you have questions in 
terms of the numbering system afterward, then may I just suggest 
read John Gill, because he'll sort you all out on any questions 
of numbers anywhere in the Bible, because he seemed to have an 
affinity for that. If he hadn't been a biblical scholar, he sure 
should have been a math teacher, because he knows numbers. Actually, 
there's not much he doesn't know when you read his commentaries. He was a very skilled and gifted 
exegete. But Saul, in 1 Samuel chapter 13, violated the regular 
principle of worship. Samuel said, I want you to wait 
here for me. When I return, then we'll do 
what we're going to do. Well, Samuel was a bit late getting 
back, so what does Saul do? Saul sacrifices to Yahweh. Now, Samuel doesn't come back 
and say, you know, good job. Good job, Saul. You were an innovator. You were creative. No, it's in 
that context where God, through Samuel, says, I'm going to tear 
the kingdom away from you. That was a fundamental misstep 
in the life of Saul. And then there was the episode 
in 1 Samuel chapter 15. God says to Saul, go in and utterly 
destroy the Amalekites and kill Agag, the king of the Amalekites. 
So Saul says, okay, sign me up, that's what I'm gonna do. So 
he goes on this incursion, he spares Agag, and he spares all 
the livestock. But of course he reports dutifully 
to Samuel, I've done everything the Lord commanded. So Samuel 
says, well, why am I hearing these oxen and why am I hearing 
these sheep? If you had done what you were 
supposed to, I would not hear this. And God, through Samuel, 
brings the heat to bear upon Saul. It's in that context, in 
1 Samuel chapter 15, where disobedience is as the sin of witchcraft, 
according to God's holy word. And so in that instance, he's 
told once again that the kingdom is being removed from him. And 
then in 1 Samuel chapter 28, the incident with the witch at 
Endor. God was silent with reference 
to Saul. God didn't communicate to Saul 
because Saul had already sort of forfeited his place as king, 
and he had forfeited his place as the rightful head of the kingdom. And so when there is this silence 
from God and they've got to go to battle against Philistines, 
what does Saul do? He consults a witch at Endor 
to get divine guidance to go into battle. Well, it shouldn't 
surprise us that he and his sons die on Mount Gilboa. shouldn't 
surprise us one bit because he's acted completely contrary to 
the God of heaven and earth. And so that's the point in his 
statement concerning David. Verse 22, and when he had removed 
him, he raised up for them David as king, to whom also he gave 
testimony and said, I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man 
after my own heart, who will do all my will. So the reign of David is consistent 
with the plan of God in the raising up of Jesus. Now the backdrop 
to verse 22 is 2 Samuel chapter 7. It is the Davidic covenant. The backdrop to 2 Samuel 7 or 
more passage that shines further light is Psalm 132 that our brother 
read at the outset of worship, and then Psalm 89, which we sang 
in the midst of worship. All of these things rehearse 
God's promise to David that from David's line, from David's seed, 
God would raise up a king. And that king would sit at the 
right hand of God Most High, and that king would reign and 
rule over all things forever and ever, world without end. 
Amen. In other words, it was a promise to David in 2 Samuel 
7 concerning Messiah. David wants to build a house 
for God and God sends the prophet Nathan and says, I'm going to 
build a house for you, David. And by that, he doesn't mean 
a nice place with paneling and with a lot of storage space. 
He means a dynasty, a dynasty of kings will succeed David terminating 
in that one who comes in the fullness of the time. This is 
a conflation of texts. What we find in terms of the 
quotation, I found David, the son of Jesse, a man after my 
own heart. That is a combination of both 
1 Samuel 13, 14, and Psalm 89, 20. 1 Samuel 13, 14 says, the Lord has sought 
for himself a man after his own heart. Again, that was on the occasion 
of that breach of the regulative principle of worship. Saul undertakes 
to worship, perhaps thinking he's gonna be congratulated by 
Samuel, and Samuel says, absolutely, positively not. Saul there seals 
not only his own doom, but he seals Jonathan, because there 
would have been a dynasty from Saul, and Jonathan would have 
been the heir to the throne ultimately, but because of a lousy father, 
Jonathan suffers as a result of that. And then notice in Psalm 
89, specifically in verse 20, I have found my servant David 
with my holy oil, I have anointed him. So just to slow it down 
for a moment and say this, he sketches Israel's history to 
bring him to this point. Bach says it this way, this speech 
develops Israel's history in detail phase by phase until it 
reaches David. It then leaps over 1000 years 
of Israel's history to go directly to the promise of the son of 
David who will deliver the nation. This is Paul's point in the sketch. How does Paul in his wisdom address 
these Jews who have more than likely heard of this Jesus of 
Nazareth, that have more than likely rejected this Jesus of 
Nazareth. Does he just pop in and say, 
look, I'm going to tell you all about Jesus of Nazareth? He does 
that, but he shows how their law and their prophets leads 
him there. I think this is going on in the 
book of Acts. I've said it on a few occasions. 
There's not only a transfer of leadership. We're moving from 
these rulers of the synagogue and these chief priests associated 
with the temple to the apostles. They're the leaders of God's 
kingdom on earth. So that's obvious in the book 
of Acts, but also hermeneutics. Now before you say, I don't want 
to hear another big word, Tough. You're going to hear a big word. 
Hermeneutics simply means, how do we interpret things? Hermeneutics 
is a system, a theory of the way that we interpret. It's not 
confined to the Bible, though it's called sacred hermeneutics 
when we apply it to the Bible. But Shakespeare has a hermeneutic, 
a way that you approach the interpretation of that literature. There's a 
theory, there's rules, there's things or principles by which 
you maintain in order to successfully exegete a passage that you're 
looking at. Well, with reference to hermeneutics, 
the Jews are absolutely, positively wrong. If your hermeneutic leads 
away from Jesus Christ, then it's wrong. But if your hermeneutic 
leads to Jesus Christ, then you're right. Now, you could be wrong 
in a whole host of other things, but the point is this. Why the 
law and the prophets? to point Israel to Jesus. Why the law and the prophets? 
To demonstrate God's faithfulness to Israel until the time of the 
coming of Jesus and that faithfulness will even be reasserted and reinforced 
and reinvigorated. So the apostle highlights with 
this connection to David, the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Notice the arrival of Israel's 
Messiah in verses 23 to 25. He speaks of him as the seed 
of David. Verse 23, from this man's seed, 
according to the promise, God raised up for Israel, a savior 
Jesus. And just the wisdom of Paul here. 
First thing he doesn't say is, I'm going to tell you all about 
Jesus. But he does. He is telling them all about 
Jesus from their law, from their prophets. And again, some have 
taken pains to try and figure out what the reading of the law 
and the prophets would have been on that particular day. Suffice 
it to say they read from the law and the prophets. Whatever 
Paul is speaking in terms of law and prophets, it's consistent 
with what they've heard. And now he wants to make sure 
they understand that the purpose behind those readings, the purpose 
behind those writings, are to testify concerning Israel's Messiah, 
namely this Savior, Jesus. And that's The point, the purpose 
of the apostle in the synagogue is to set forth Christ as the 
one in whom all the promises of God are yea and amen. He is 
laying down the gauntlet in terms of interpretation of scripture. 
He is saying to any and all that if you miss Jesus in the law 
and the prophets, you have not read the law and the prophets 
the way they were supposed to be read. You've heard the old 
adage, I think it was Luther, that said every text in the Bible 
leads us to Jesus. Now some have abused that and 
have seen things that are a bit odd and weird, but the overarching 
effect of that statement is accurate. The Law and the Prophets testify 
concerning Jesus. What's Jesus say in Matthew chapter 
5? Remember the buzz about Jesus is going about. People are hearing 
now that he's a teacher. People are probably wondering, 
especially religious leaders, what does he think about the 
Old Testament? What does he do with reference to the Old Testament? 
What's he saying in Matthew 5, 17? Do not think that I came 
to abolish the law and the prophets. I didn't come to abolish, I came 
rather to fulfill them. So the law and the prophets studied 
properly by the power of the Holy Spirit will always produce 
an understanding of who Jesus is. So he highlights the Savior 
of Israel, and then he points to the testimony of John the 
Baptist. Now, Peter does the same thing 
in his preaching, and this may be a means by which Luke is telling 
us that Paul is no different from Peter. See, Paul's conversion 
was a bit different from Peter. Paul's being brought to the Savior 
was different in terms of pomp and show and ceremony and power 
and glory and demonstration, all of that, but his message 
was the same. Peter makes the David-Jesus connection 
in Acts chapter 2. Peter sketches the history of 
Israel in Acts chapter 3 to show how it comes to fruition in the 
person and in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is essentially 
Luke, with Paul saying that what Paul is doing on these missionary 
journeys is no different. He has the same spirit, he has 
the same understanding, he preaches the same Christ, and therefore 
every single one of us ought to give him heed, ought to pay 
attention, ought to listen to him. But he points to John the 
Baptist, again Peter does this in Acts 10 at verse 37, but he 
highlights, and this is again part of the sketch of Israel's 
history. If I were to ask you what was John's position, I'd 
hope you'd say he was an Old Testament prophet. Because that's 
exactly what he was. He wasn't an Old Testament prophet. 
Now he lived in a unique sort of transition period. The prophet 
in the Old Testament, say Jeremiah or Isaiah, were looking way ahead 
in terms of what they described concerning Jesus. John the Baptist, 
however, functioned in the same manner. And he highlights two 
things about John the Baptist. First, he speaks concerning his 
baptism of repentance. And then secondly, he highlights 
John's testimony concerning the preeminence of Christ. Notice 
in verse 24, after John had first preached before his coming, the 
baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. Again, 
this is something they would have known. This is something 
they would have understood. This is something the contemporary 
audience would have had in their wheelhouse and such that Paul 
is saying, this is God's purpose and plan. John functioned according 
to the prophet Isaiah. John was that forerunner. John 
announced the coming Messiah. Bach again says he, John, was 
the bridge between the promise and realization of the promise, 
the last link in Israel's history before the Messiah came. So he's 
fundamental and crucial. You don't just leave John the 
Baptist out of a discussion of Old Testament history or of God's 
redemptive work in history. John is crucial. But then he 
highlights that John isn't the focus. Verse 25, and as John 
was finishing his course, he said, who do you think I am? 
I am not he, but behold, there comes one after me, the sandals 
of whose feet I am not worthy to lose. They thought John chapter 
one, not John the Baptist chapter one, but John the apostle writing 
about John the Baptist in John chapter one. You gotta keep your 
Johns clear and distinct. But with reference to that, John, 
when he comes preaching, some say, are you the Messiah? And he says, no, I'm not the 
Messiah. In fact, the Messiah is so glorious. He is so wonderful. He is so 
awesome. I'm not even fit to loosen his 
sandal straps. I can't touch him. I can't go 
near him. John also says in John 3.30 that 
he, Christ, must increase, but I must decrease. And I've preached 
on that before. And one of the things that I 
pointed out is that he doesn't say he must increase while I 
increase a little bit, or he must increase while I stay status 
quo. No, for John the Baptist, he 
must increase and I must decrease. In other words, Christ is altogether 
lovely and chief among 10,000. And when Paul invokes, or rather 
references, John the Baptist, he wants to make sure that no 
one thinks that John is the center of salvation history. No, John 
says, I am not worthy to loosen his sandal straps. He is the 
center of salvation history. Commenting on John's humility, 
Calvin says, for though God's servants have their dignity, 
yet being compared to Christ, they must all be nothing, that 
he alone may excel. As we see all stars vanish away, 
that they may give place to the brightness of the sun. And then 
Bach in terms of the actual appeal to John. He says the humility 
and submission of John are highlighted here. in part to make the point 
that John is not the center of the story of God's activity, 
but rather Jesus is. So that's the exposition. That's 
what Paul does. He comes into their synagogue 
to tell them about Jesus. But he comes into their synagogue 
to tell them about Jesus in a manner that is consistent with their 
own history and their own scripture. He appeals to their law and to 
their prophets to show the faithfulness of God Almighty, to highlight 
that that God, that Yahweh of Israel, promised to send a Messiah 
and that Messiah has arrived. The seed of David is Jesus Christ. He's the one preached by John 
the Baptist. He is the one heaven sent by 
God most high for the salvation of Israel. And that's why I sort 
of split it up here, because I was sure y'all didn't want 
to go past 1230. But notice in verse 26, He moves 
from the arrival of the Messiah to an explanation now of the 
Messiah. And he gets more personal in 
verse 26. Men and brethren, sons of the 
family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, again 
those two groups, Jew, Gentile, to you the word of this salvation 
has been sent. See, his purpose and plan isn't 
simply to say, I'm better at understanding the law and the 
prophets. My hermeneutic is superior and you're all messed up. That's 
not his point. His point is that they come to 
Jesus. His point is, is that they look 
to Jesus. His point is that they believe 
in Jesus. His point is, is that they end 
this life of being under the wrath and fury of God to entering 
into the fullness of joy. That's Paul's point. That's the 
focus of the apostolic preaching. It's not to impress people or 
dazzle people with knowledge and information, but it's rather 
to present to them the glory of the Savior in all of His ability 
to save to the uttermost all who draw nigh unto God through 
Him. So he makes this statement in verse 26, he starts to hone 
in on it, and then he explains, describes, amplifies, or exegetes 
the significance of the person and the work of the Lord Jesus 
Christ. And then that brings him, as I said earlier, to the 
application in verse 38. Therefore, let it be known to 
you, brethren, that through this man is preached to you the forgiveness 
of sins. He doesn't want to walk out of 
the synagogue in Pisidi and Antioch, have people slapping him on the 
back saying, wow, that was a spin on the law and the prophets I'd 
never heard before. Wow, the way you wove that all 
together and showed how it connected with Jesus was pretty stellar 
on your part. No, he wants to walk out of that 
synagogue knowing that there are sinners saved by the grace 
of God, cleansed in the blood of Jesus, knowing the forgiveness 
of sins and a justification they could have never secured by obedience 
to the law of Moses. Paul's heart. That's Paul's desire, 
and that's the heart and desire of anybody and everybody who 
preaches this gospel. It's not so that their names 
can be exalted, but so that the name of Christ can be exalted. 
We need more men that are like Paul, and more men that are like 
John the Baptist. Not men who are so full of themselves, 
and men who are building their own kingdoms, and men who are 
working on their own celebrity. We need men to give way to the 
exaltation of the Lord Jesus Christ. And that is precisely 
what you see both in the Apostle Paul and in John the Baptist, 
whom he preached in this particular sermon. Well, in conclusion, 
two thoughts, and then we go. First, the Old Testament background 
concerning Christ. Guess what I'm gonna say at this 
point. Those of you who know me will know that I'm about to 
say this. Read your Old Testament. I always say read the Bible, 
and by that I mean all of the Bible. You don't just pick and 
choose. You get these red-letter Christians, 
as if Numbers 5 isn't the Word of God. I think there's been 
some things that have damaged Bible reading in our day. I think 
the business of only publishing New Testaments. It's kind of 
half a book. It's a great half of a book. 
I'm not going to deny that. And certainly it's better than 
no half of a book. But brethren, the New Testament flows out of 
the Old Testament. The very identification of old 
and new. See, we only like new today. 
We don't want to buy an old car. We want to buy a new car. So 
given the opportunity, Christians don't want Old Testament. They 
want New Testament. But brethren, the Old Testament 
is all about Jesus. And as far as I can tell, nobody 
in Scripture ever said, okay, this is what you're supposed 
to call this, this is the Old Testament, and then this is the 
New Testament. That was something man did, and 
I'm not saying man who did that is the worst possible specimen 
of a man on the face of the earth, but it does hinder a holistic 
approach to the entirety of Scripture. Brethren, Christ is all over 
the Old Testament. Christ is in Genesis. Christ 
is in Leviticus. Christ is in Exodus, Numbers, 
Deuteronomy. Christ is all over the Old Testament. So if you love Christ, you're 
a believer in Christ, you will love the Old Testament. You will 
read it, you will survey it, and you will find that it affords 
great benefit and great comfort to the believing soul. We reflected 
on that on Wednesday night in our studies in Genesis. In many 
ways, the Old Testament is the Christian life lived. Certainly you have specimens 
of that in the New Testament in terms of the people of God, 
but you don't have large swaths of New Testament history being 
devoted to the day-in, day-out goings-on in one particular family. Even to the point of finding 
wives, even to the point of marrying wives, even to the point of seemingly 
being abandoned by God. All of that stuff is there. And 
those who read with an understanding of who Jesus is, as the sort 
of interpretative key with reference to the Old Testament, will find 
that it yields great benefit and great comfort to the believing 
soul. Christ is all over the Old Testament. In fact, doesn't he say this 
in John 5? You search the scriptures, for 
in them you think you have eternal life, but these are they which 
testify of me. You see, Genesis, all of it, 
it's all about Jesus. The patriarchs, Israel, were 
chosen as the people from whom Jesus Christ would come. Why 
the wives? Why the seed or babies? Why that instance where Jacob 
and Leah and Rachel and Bilhah and Zilpah are making a multitude 
of babies? Is it because Isaac was the first 
patriarch to take seriously that mandate to be fruitful and multiply? 
Well, it might show us that by way of a corollary, but the purpose 
is Judah. The purpose is Levi. The purpose 
is the 12 tribes. The purpose is that body from 
whence Christ, the Messiah, would come to Israel. The Exodus from 
Egypt is the great typological paradigm for redemption in Jesus. Do you know that John's gospel 
is sort of structured around three Passovers? Why is that? Because John is telling us that 
in Christ we have Exodus. It's interesting, in Luke's gospel, 
when Jesus is on the Mount of Transfiguration, and Moses and 
Elijah appear to him, what do they talk about there? They talk 
about Jesus' decease, or his departure, or literally, his 
exodus. Why is that? Because in Christ, 
we have an exodus that is anti-typical of what they experienced in Egypt. We have the wilderness wanderings 
demonstrating God's forbearance in their grumblings and in their 
whinings and in their complainings, but also His nourishing, His 
care for. If God is going to take care 
of His people for 40 years out in the wilderness, He's going 
to take care of you for the next 40 days, I'd like to think. He's 
going to take care of you for the next 40 years. God doesn't 
start and then stop. He's not like men. All of this 
points us forward. The conquest and division of 
the land was another part of the promise to the patriarchs. 
And what does the land of Canaan ultimately typify? It typifies 
our life in heaven, that heavenly Canaan, wherein we sit in the 
marriage supper of the Lamb. The judges function typically 
with reference to Jesus. When you read the judges, think 
Jesus Christ. When you see Samson there with 
that The jawbone of the ass. When 
he's striking these Philistines, think about Jesus. That's what 
you're supposed to think about. It's the victory of God liberating 
his people. The monarchy was typical of the 
coming king who would forever rule over his people. And the 
line of David was absolutely crucial to that. Without David, 
there's no Messiah. If you learn one thing today, 
I hope you learn that you're going to go home and read your 
Old Testament. But then, in terms of the preaching 
of the Apostle Paul, we've covered this. I'm going to just quickly 
go. He showed wisdom in going to the synagogue. He exhorted 
them to listen. We miss that sometimes. It's 
perfectly legitimate to demand a hearing when we're talking 
about the things of God. If I was going to come up here 
and say, you know, I had a great week this past week on Thursday. I 
had some sermon prep. You could fall asleep until the 
cows come home, and I'll salute you doing it. But if the preaching 
is accurate, if it's exegetically correct, if it is a presentation 
of Jesus Christ and Him crucified, you need to pay attention. You 
need to listen. I think it was Samuel Davies. 
Was it Samuel Davies? He was preaching. And one in 
the audience was a nobleman. It might have been, I want to 
say it was an instance where there was monarch in the presence 
of this preacher and he started falling asleep. And he said something 
to the effect that when a lion roars in the wilderness, the 
beasts of the earth take heed. He essentially said, if I've 
come here to share my own thoughts or to share my own experiences 
or to share my own thing, Go ahead and have a nap. When the 
lion roars, the beasts of the field are to take heed. I think 
that's significant. Paul doesn't preach simply for 
the exercise of preaching. Paul preaches to be heard so 
that these people can hear, believe, and be saved. As well, he displays 
a thorough understanding of law and prophets. He demonstrates 
how law and prophets inevitably lead to Jesus Christ and not 
away from him. He courageously does this in 
a place that is opposed to him. When we get to the end and the 
fallout from this, Gentiles are begging that he can preach again, 
and the Jews want to run him out of the city. There is opposition 
to Jesus Christ, and Paul is very keenly aware of that, and 
yet he stands up in the midst and he preaches. And he exhorts 
the hearers to believe on Jesus for salvation. That's the point. Verse 38 brings it home, and 
this is what I'd like for all of you to consider. Therefore, 
let it be known to you, brethren, that through this man is preached 
to you the forgiveness of sins. If you are in your sins today, 
if you have not come to God through Jesus, if you are justly liable 
to the wrath and fury and punishment of God, I want you to hear what 
Paul says, that through this man is preached to you the forgiveness 
of sins. How do we ever conclude that 
God really doesn't want to save sinners? God only sort of saves 
a handful of sinners, and He does that in a way that He's 
not really bountiful in this. Who was the one that raised up 
for Israel a Savior? Jesus. It was God. God takes 
the initiative. God sends the son of his love. 
God comes to redeem his people from their sins. In the second 
person of the Trinity, God is pro-salvation. If you have been taught the opposite, 
then may I say to you, listen to Acts 13.38. Let it be known 
to you, brethren, that through this man is preached to you the 
forgiveness of sins. your idolatry, your blasphemy, 
your Sabbath breaking, your insubordination, your murder, your adultery, your 
theft, your lies, your covetousness. There is forgiveness through 
Christ Jesus the Lord. Why will you die? The prophet says, Ezekiel says 
to the nation of Israel, turn and live. Well, let us pray. Father, we thank You for Your 
Word, and we thank You for the Lord Jesus Christ. All the Bible 
sets Him forth in His beauty, in His majesty, and in His power 
to save. And I pray that all of us would 
have that conviction, even now, that all of us would be looking 
to Him in faith, that all of us would know that forgiveness 
of sins that is most blessed and most wonderful and most glorious. God, I pray that you would plow 
up hearts, bring that conviction for sin, and set forth Jesus, 
that one who is altogether lovely and chief among 10,000. And we 
pray this in his most blessed name. Amen. Well, let's close 
our service by standing and singing number 500.