It Was Necessary

Scripture: Acts 13:44-52

44 The following week almost the entire city turned out to hear them preach the word of the Lord. 45 But when some of the Jews saw the crowds, they were jealous; so they slandered Paul and argued against whatever he said. 46 Then Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and declared, “It was necessary that we first preach the word of God to you Jews. But since you have rejected it and judged yourselves unworthy of eternal life, we will offer it to the Gentiles. 47 For the Lord gave us this command when he said, ‘I have made you a light to the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the farthest corners of the earth.’” 48 When the Gentiles heard this, they were very glad and thanked the Lord for his message; and all who were chosen for eternal life became believers. 49 So the Lord’s message spread throughout that region. 50 Then the Jews stirred up the influential religious women and the leaders of the city, and they incited a mob against Paul and Barnabas and ran them out of town. 51 So they shook the dust from their feet as a sign of rejection and went to the town of Iconium. 52 And the believers were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. (Acts 13:44-52 NLT)

Almost the entire city, Jews and Gentiles alike, showed up for “church” to hear Paul’s message. The Jewish leaders were jealous and slandered Paul and disrupted the gathering by arguing against whatever he said! So Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that we first preach the word of God to you. But since you have rejected it and judged yourselves unworthy of eternal life, we will offer it to the Gentiles.”

Paul and Barnabas didn’t waste time trying to force a closed door open. They didn’t argue endlessly with people who had already made up their minds to oppose them. Instead, they redirected their energy toward the Gentiles—the people whose hearts were wide open and eager to listen. When they were “run out of town” they shook the dust off their feet as an act of release, and moved forward filled with joy and the Holy Spirit!

I wonder if sometimes we spend our emotional energy trying to convince people whose hearts and minds are closed, while missing the people right next to us who are starving for love, community, and truth. Are we wasting energy on “closed doors” or dead-end arguments, and is God asking us to pivot toward an open door instead?

Prayer:

Father, Please give me wisdom to discern where You are already moving. Help me to invest my energy where hearts are ready, rather than fighting battles you haven’t called me to fight. May I be an instrument of your peace among the people I encounter.