Based on Acts 13:42-52 (New King James Version)
“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.’’ Now 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. But 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.”
Why is there such a difference between people in the way they react to God’s Truth? In today’s passage, we saw different people react in different ways. We see the disciples, the religious Jews, the gentiles, devout and prominent women, the chief men of the city, and also the multitude. And within all of that, there were reactions, some determined in their faith in Christ, others that did believe as well, but we see these religious Jews that did not want to believe, these devout and prominent women and chief men of the city that did not believe either, and also a great number of people, possibly a great part of the multitude that is mentioned that did not believe as well, because a mass of people expelled the disciples, not just a few individuals. At the very least, the devout and prominent women, the chief men of the city, and part of the multitude maybe did not have the same sentiments of the religious Jews, but they had enough unbelief to be influenced by evil. What is it that determines these different reactions?
The first point that we could see is whether God is the one that determines this. And it can be clearly said that God is not the One that determines if a person is saved or lost, no matter how much many people may argue for general predestination. It can be argued that the Word of God gives the opportunity to believe that certain people through history may have been predestined for perdition, but that relates to only a very select group of people, not to all humanity. To start touching on this topic, God did not make everlasting fire for man. That was not His intention, as it is written: “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.’” Matthew 25:41. God’s intention was always to try to save the world, all of humanity, and the everlasting fire was originally prepared for the irredeemable, for the devil and his angels (fallen angels or demons), but not for man. The Word teaches us that God so loved the world, which includes all mankind, without exception, and He loved it in such a manner that He gave His only begotten Son, as it is written: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. The Word deepens even further in that God desires for all to come to the knowledge of the Truth when He teaches us that we should even pray for all men, as it is written: “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” 1 Timothy 2:1-4. And there is much more than can be cited that helps conclude that, “…there is no partiality with God”, and that He desires for all to be saved. So then, we cannot blame God for people’s unbelief.
Who then decides whether they believe or not? And the answer is: the person; you. Each human being determines whether they desire to believe or not. It’s as simple as that. Every human being has the power of free will, and that is the reason for why this place that we know exists, with all of its imperfections and problems. The world is just the prelude to the eternal, the place where everything is decided, whether a person chooses to believe and live forever or not. So then, this place and what we do in it is supremely important. We should not live in this world irresponsibly, because during all of this, you are determining with your actions what finally will happen with you in eternity. In this part of today’s Word is where we can focus so we can see a certain detail where it says: ‘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. So then, a person judges themselves unworthy of everlasting life, by rejecting Christ and His Truth. This is the great error that many commit, thinking that God has to change His process, what was eternally established, to accommodate people’s opinions and whims, that finally, God has to justify their evil and say that the wrong they do is right. It’s like saying: “I don’t want to climb the mountain, but I want to stand at its peak, so, I want for the mountain to come to me and place itself underneath my feet so I don’t have to do anything”. It sounds ridiculous, but that is what is being demanded from God Almighty, the One that did create all things including the mountains in this world, and even more, He created the universe. And so, it is not God that has to accommodate Himself to man, but rather, it is man that needs to conform to God and to His Truth. That is the decision.
So then, what is it that produces decision in every person, whether they decide to believe or not? That is between the reason of a person, of desiring to understand the overwhelming and irrefutable proof that God is God and that we need to obey Him, and the sin that dwells within us, that is also part of every person. It’s an internal battle and there can only be one victor. There are no ties. And the Word teaches us that the person that overcomes the sin that dwells within them is the one that will inherit the things of God, as it is written: “He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” Revelation 21:7-8. So, you should ask yourself, “Does what I understand about God and His Word command more within my life, or does my cowardness, my unbelief, my abominations, etc. command more in my life?” “What is my reaction to Christ, the very thing that judges me worthy or unworthy of everlasting life?” Lord bless! John