Proclamation that everyone has the same human nature in need of the Living God.

Acts 14:13-18

Click for a description of the mark of the beast.
Click for a description of the image of the beast.

“Then the priest of Zeus, whose temple was in front of their city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates, intending to sacrifice with the multitudes.” Acts 14:13

In the previous post on Acts 14:11-12, Paul and Barnabas were thought to be the gods Zeus and Hermes by the people of Lystra. Now, they want to honor and give great dignity to Paul and Barnabas by sacrificing animals to Zeus among the multitudes of people. In today’s culture [which is global], anyone who serves the beast that gives them what to speak, do, think, and feel are given honor, respect, and a great sense of dignity. Even so, the person is not the focus of the great respect, but the god within them is the focus of that honor. This is like behavioral modification, where positive feedback [honor, respect, dignity, etc.] is given for allowing the god with power over physiology to speak and live through a person. Negative feedback is given for those who refuse to give place to the god that wants to live and speak through them. Jesus says this, “How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?” John 5:44

“But when Barnabas and Paul heard this, they tore their clothes and ran in among the multitude crying out and saying, “Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men with the same nature as you, and preach to you that you should turn from these useless things to the living God…” Acts 14:14-15a

Paul and Barnabas were so frustrated and flabbergasted that they tore their clothes at seeing what the multitudes were doing. They ran into the multitudes of people, who were sacrificing to their god to give great honor, dignity, and respect to them. Paul and Barnabas wanted the multitudes of people to know that they were not gods, but flesh and blood people like everyone else.

Honoring any other [or angels] over honor for God the Creator is not to be done,

“As Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet in reverence. But Peter made him get up. “Stand up,” he said, “I am only a man myself.” Acts 10:25-26

“I fell down to worship at the feet of the Angel who had been showing them to me. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll. Worship God!” Revelation 22:8-9

We followers of Christ are scrutinized for not taking compliments well because we want our Lord Jesus to be glorified. Today’s culture expects a person to welcome praise and compliments which are really praise and compliments to the false god giving people what to think, feel, say, and do. Rejection of those compliments is like a rejection of the customs and values of the community culture.

Paul and Barnabas preached that the false gods that the multitudes serve were useless in face of the Living God. As followers of Jesus Christ, our message to today’s culture is that the god they serve is useless in the eyes of the Living God.

We are all spiritual people within our flesh and bone body, with the same human nature, and we know that life comes in the Spirit not by the beast that gives people what to speak, do, feel, and think. That is what our born-again testimony is all about. The letter kills but the Spirit gives life. We know that the forgiveness of sin, through Jesus Christ, leads to embracing the presence of the Holy Spirit, which leads to eternal life. The beast with power over physiology opposes the presence of the Holy Spirit living within the spirit and conscience. Starving the spirit and conscience of the Holy Spirit lays the foundation for the beast to give people what to speak, feel, think, and do. Eternal life beyond the grave is not in their belief. “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord…” Acts 3:19

 “…who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all things that are in them, who in bygone generations allowed all nations to walk in their own ways.” Acts 14:15b-16

The living God is He who is the Creator of heaven, earth, the sea, and everything else. The god of this world may have power over physiology but has not lifted a finger in the creation of the universe. It’s one thing to be able to give people what to think, feel, say, and do, but quite another to be the Creator of all. Those of this world serve the creation instead of the Creator, “…who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.” Romans 1:25

In “…bygone days…” refers to the days before God made Himself available to whoever believes in Jesus Christ. In those bygone days, the Jewish people had exclusive access to God through the laws of Moses, and all non-Jewish people/Gentiles, were those outside the family of God. In those days, people without the law of Moses, all the nations surrounding the Israelites, were walking in their own ways.

Today, God gives every person on this planet the choice to go their own way or to live for Him through Jesus Christ. Jesus says, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:13-14

“Nevertheless He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.” Acts 14:17

Even in the days before Jesus Christ, when the Israelites had exclusive rights to God through His commandments, God provided for all nations. Even for the nations not part of the Jewish family of God. God did good for all nations by giving rain, fruitful harvests, and hearts filled with food and gladness.

“And with these sayings they could scarcely restrain the multitudes from sacrificing to them.” Acts 14:18

Even after Paul and Barnabas spoke all these words, the people of Lystra still wanted to celebrate, rejoice, and give sacrifices to Paul and Barnabas as if they were gods. Likewise, no matter what we say about God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, today’s culture, which is global, will insist on driving forward to give credit to the god that gives them what to speak, think, feel, and do. We are living in the days when the Holy Spirit is being taken out of the way and people are honoring one another as a community culture, a global culture. “How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?” John 5:44

Part of the process of sanctification, our walk of Holiness, is to create in us a spirit and attitude that glorifies God, “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.” 1 Corinthians 1:31 “But let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,” says the Lord.” Jeremiah 9:24

Paul and Barnabas had the power of the Holy Spirit working through them in the name of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit was scarcely able to restrain the multitudes. This is prophetic for when the Holy Spirit is scarce in the world and on the verge of being taken out of the world. Pretty much where we are today with the multitudes of today’s atheistic culture. The Holy Spirit restrains lawlessness, and when He is taken out of the way, then lawlessness is unleashed. “For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.” 2 Thessalonians 2:6-8 Click here for a post on the lawless one.

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“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,“
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’”
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:11