Paul’s Role in the Church

Narrator: Ivona Gentwo
Duration: 4min
 •  3 min. read  •  grade level: 8
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Perhaps we might open our Bibles to Acts 11:19-2519Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen travelled as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to none but unto the Jews only. 20And some of them were men of Cyprus and Cyrene, which, when they were come to Antioch, spake unto the Grecians, preaching the Lord Jesus. 21And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord. 22Then tidings of these things came unto the ears of the church which was in Jerusalem: and they sent forth Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch. 23Who, when he came, and had seen the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. 24For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith: and much people was added unto the Lord. 25Then departed Barnabas to Tarsus, for to seek Saul: (Acts 11:19‑25). There is something significant there. The moment the Gentiles begin to accept the gospel, this man of God who was full of the Holy Spirit — this man Barnabas —instinctively feels that the man who is needed to fill in right here is Saul of Tarsus. No doubt he was guided by the Spirit of God in those thoughts, so he goes to Tarsus, gets Saul, brings him to Antioch, and, in verse 26, “it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people.” That is characteristic of Paul: “With the church.” How his name is linked all the way through Scripture with that precious ministry — Christ and the church. So here, early in his ministry, he is at Antioch spending a whole year with the church. Something also significant comes out here: “The disciples were called Christians first in Antioch” — Christians! You do not get Christianity recognized as a definite and new thing until you find it under the ministry of Paul down at Antioch far removed from Jerusalem. From here on Peter’s leadership is rapidly eclipsed by that of Paul, save for a single crisis which arose later in connection with the Gentiles and their relationship to the law. But even there it was not Peter but James who gave the mind of the Spirit in the final decision. In Acts 12, we hear Peter saying, “Go show these things unto James, and to the brethren. And he departed, and went into another place” (vs. 17). That is the last we hear of Peter’s formal ministry. But what do we find in the next chapter, chapter 13? “Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul” (vs. 1). Yes, here Saul is right on hand in the church at Antioch and is selected to carry the gospel to the Gentiles. Moreover, he is the one used in a typical way to set aside the Jew under judicial blindness. “Then Saul  .  .  .  filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him” (vs. 9). Here we get the mystical intimation that Paul is the one to give the final word as to apostate Israel. Thus they were given over to judicial darkness so that they will not be able to find their way for a season; that season is going on at the present day.
This reminds me of when I was a boy and used to go to Sunday school and study under the International Sunday School lessons: six months in the Old Testament—those beautiful stories, such as Joseph in Egypt and David and the giant — and six months in the New Testament. We learned the precious story of the life of our blessed Lord. It was valuable, and I thank God for those things. I came from a home where I did not get these things. But the point I am making is this: We never made an excursion into the epistles of Paul, unless it was to wrest some verse out of its context and get a temperance lesson. We were not given the faintest idea of the grand outline of the ministry committed to Paul. Paul was neglected. That is what one is trying to emphasize in tracing this great servant. God raised him up in this definite line of ministry, and woe to the one who neglects Paul. He is going to be emaciated in his spiritual life; he will be out of communion with the mind of Christ.