A Sabbath Sermon of Salvation

The core of the apostolic message of salvation is Jesus’ death and resurrection. This is evident throughout the book of Acts as Jesus’ witnesses spread this message to the ends of the earth. Let’s look at one example of this from the ministry of Paul in Pisidian Antioch (Acts 13). We’ll see that Paul’s Sabbath sermon shows how the death and resurrection of Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promises of salvation. We adapted the following notes from the IVP New Testament Commentary.

The Word of Salvation: Christological Fulfillment (Acts 13:26–31)

With greater intimacy (brothers) Paul readdresses his audience, proclaiming the promise’s fulfillment. To us, as opposed to the patriarchs, this message of salvation (literally, “the message of this salvation”) has been sent by God (not simply from Jerusalem; compare Lk 24:49; Gal 4:4, 6).

The central events of the kerygma, Jesus’ death and resurrection, now come into view. Paul emphasizes three features of Jesus’ death: its cause, its character and its reality.

1. Cause.

Inhabitants of Jerusalem, ignorant of Jesus’ messiahship and of the Scriptures (NIV does not represent this parallelism), fulfilled those very Scriptures by condemning him to death and making sure Pilate carried out the sentence. Though they were immediately culpable, ultimately God ordained it. He had planned it long ago and declared it through the prophets (Acts 2:23; 4:28; 3:17–18). It came to a complete fulfillment (Lk 12:50; 18:31; 22:37; 24:44). The people’s ignorance was not simply a lack of knowledge but “a false understanding, a false path in knowing and thinking” that led them to turn away from a relationship to God in Jesus Christ (compare Rom 10:3; 2 Cor 3:14–4:6).

One of the great ironies of our sinful human existence is that religion can make us blind to the true way of salvation. Even years of studying the Bible can leave us without understanding of the liberation Christ desires to bring. The experience of the people of Jerusalem in Jesus’ day must ever stand as a warning to the religious.

2. Character.

Some fault Luke for not presenting Jesus’ death as a substitutionary atonement. Yet critics fail to take into account that when Luke notes Jesus’ death as an innocent sufferer, he is presenting the objective conditions of vicarious atonement. For unless his death was a waste, a perverse miscarriage of justice, Jesus had to be suffering the penalty for someone’s sins.

So here Paul maintains Jesus’ innocence: no proper ground for a death sentence. Pilate declared as much three times during the proceedings (the charges—Lk 23:2, 5; the governor’s judgment—Acts 23:4, Acts 23:14–15, Acts 23:22; compare Acts 3:13–14). Jesus even received a proper burial (compare Lk 23:53, 55). At the same time Paul portrays Jesus’ suffering as that of a criminal—he was condemned by the Jews, who requested a Roman execution for him, and he was crucified (hanging on the tree was a cursed death; compare Gal 3:13/Deut 21:23; Acts 5:30; 10:39).

3. Reality.

To mention Jesus’ burial is to affirm the reality of his physical death, a truth on which many ancient and modern heresies stumble. Note how later Paul recalls it as an essential of the gospel (1 Cor 15:4).

As Paul proclaims Jesus’ resurrection he emphasizes its divine origin: God raised him from the dead (compare Acts 3:15; Acts 10:40; Acts 13:37; Rom 10:9; Gal 1:1; Eph 1:20; Col 2:12; 1 Thess 1:10). He highlights its supernatural character when he says that Jesus “appeared” to those who had accompanied him from Galilee (compare Gen 12:7; Judg 6:12; Luke 1:11; 24:34; Acts 2:3; 7:2; 9:17; 26:16). He stresses the resurrection’s historical reality.

Eyewitnesses had opportunities to see Jesus over a period of many days (compare Acts 1:3). They were in a good position to identify him, since they had been part of his ministry band and had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem (compare Acts 1:21–22; Acts 10:40–41). Theophilus and inquirers into Christianity’s credibility in any time or place are given assurance once again that the central events of its saving message can stand, indeed invite, the test of public scrutiny.

Check Out the IVP New Testament Commentary

If you’re interested in learning more about this fascinating sermon, then check out the IVP New Testament Commentary. You can read the rest of the commentary on this passage (and the rest of the New Testament!) in this readable commentary written for anyone wanting to dig deeper into the message of the New Testament.