Todd and I are taking a group through our Going Around The Corner Bible Study. Last night in our discussion, Todd mentioned an event in Paul’s life that is a good reminder and an encouragement to followers of Jesus who desire to share the gospel with others.

In Acts 14, Paul and Barnabas are traveling from city to city preaching Jesus. The message of the gospel is empowered by the Holy Spirit and ignites quite a stir. Both Jews and Greeks are coming to faith, but the Jews who disbelieved stirred up the minds of the Gentiles and embittered them against the brethren (Acts 14:2). To say the least, Paul and his traveling missionary groups were always controversial.

We know the descriptions of the conflict between believers and (hostile) unbelievers was more than a simple disagreement. This was spiritual warfare. In the same way that Jesus stirred up the demons with His presence in this world, when we speak the name of Jesus, the powers of evil are disturbed.

On this occasion, the enemy works in the minds and hearts of Paul’s criticizers, resulting in serious physical violence.

Acts 14:19 – But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having won over the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing him to be dead.

Paul had two options. He could bow down in defeat, concluding that he must have taken a wrong turn on God’s path for his life and found a quieter method of living out his faith. Or he could see this for what it was – an attempt on his life by the devil, and let this audacious action against God’s child fuel his commitment to continue to serve God boldly, without apology, knowing that the devil is on a short leash and is destined for eternal punishment.

Acts 14:20a – But while the disciples stood around him, he got up and entered the city.

Like a fighter who simply won’t give up, even though it appears the odds are stacked against him, and his opponent possesses the power to do him harm, Paul trusts God to preserve his life as long as he has breath to speak the name of Jesus. He knows that his life will not end while God has work for him to do.

I imagine his friends were shaking their heads and advising him to “lay low” for a while. But Paul is unswerving in his faith. He gets up on his feet and heads right back into the battle.

Acts 14:20b-22 – The next day he went away with Barnabas to Derbe. After they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying, “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.”

Wow. We need that kind of persistent faith in the face of seemingly insurmountable, even life-threatening, obstacles. We need to be so convinced of the power of the gospel that you have to kill us to keep us quiet.

I love how this chapter ends. Paul and his companions make their way back to Antioch, completing the first missionary journey. They are surely tired, beat up, torn up, and wearing the scars of abuse by those who hate Jesus. Listen to what they do.

Acts 14:27-28 – When they had arrived and gathered the church together, they began to report all the things that God had done with them and how He had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles. And they spent a long time with the disciples.

That’s what the body of Christ does. When the world beats us up for speaking the name of Jesus, we come back together and rejoice in the power of His name. We find refreshment, renewal, and rest as we spend time with our brothers and sisters – our family in Christ. It’s a balm for our souls and refuels us for our next assignment as ambassadors of the gospel of Jesus.

Have you faced criticism for your faith?

Has your soul been “beat up”?

Have you received rejection and hatred simply because you shared the love of Jesus?

Take heart.

Don’t lose faith.

Get up off the road where they left you and head right back into the battle.

But don’t forget to refresh yourself in the company of your family. Gather the body of Christ around you and rejoice that the name of Jesus is still stirring up a disturbance in the hallways of hell as we plead with the lost to come home.