“Now when they had
passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there
was a synagogue of the Jews. And Paul
went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them
from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that it was necessary for the
Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead and saying, ‘This Jesus, whom I
proclaim to you, is the Christ.”…And when they could not find them, they
dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting,
‘These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also.’”-Acts 17:1-3, 6 (ESV. Read Acts
17:1-9).
Still
in his second missionary journey, Paul and his companion Silas traveled from
Philippi to Thessalonica, capital of Macedonia, a journey overland on the
Egnatian Way of about 94 miles. They
passed through the cities of Amphipolis and Apollonia, which were about a day’s
journey apart by foot; but they did not remain in those locations. Thessalonica was a large city with a
population of about 100,000. It had a
natural harbor and was also on the main east-west and north-south trade routes. In his epistle to the Thessalonian church,
Paul wrote later of his stay with them: “we
had boldness in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in the midst of
much conflict” (I Thes. 2:2). Thessalonica was a free city and had its own
rulers called “politarchs.” Religiously,
the Greco-Roman pantheon (many gods, idolatry) was practiced, as was
emperor-worship and Egyptian cults. Enough Jews lived in the city for a
synagogue to be built there. It was to
this Jewish worship center that Paul and Silas went on three successive Sabbath
days to teach and preach, proclaiming the Christ prophesied in the Old
Testament. Some of them (referring to
Jews) believed, “a great many of the
devout Greeks, and not a few of the leading women” (v. 4). It would seem by the account that Paul only
remained three weeks in Thessalonica.
However, his letter to the church indicates a longer stay in the city (I
Thes. 2:9, and 5:12). A man named Jason
was host to the missionaries and they lodged in his house. Paul also worked to
make his own way during the time he was in the city, plying his trade of
tentmaking (I Thes. 2:9; I Thes. 3:7-10).
Paul probably used every opportunity, even while he worked, to teach the
people about the Lord Christ.
But
when things were going well, persecution arose.
A mob was formed “wicked men of
the rabble” incited by jealous and discontented Jews. They went to Jason’s house, seeking the missionaries,
but could not find them. They dragged
Jason and some of the believers before the city council (the politarchs),
making the accusation that they were acting against the Roman Emperor by
claiming another ruler, “king Jesus.” In the charge against Paul and his team,
the rabble and dissenting Jews were actually paying the missionaries a great
compliment: “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here
also!” (v. 6). To be called “World Changers” is indeed to
take notice of the impact of the message they proclaimed and the way of life
believers led that set them apart as different and changed from the general
populace that continued to follow idolatry, or, in the case of the Jews, the
strictures of the law. Jason and those
arrested with him had to, as we would say, pay bail as security before they
were released. This meant that Paul’s
team would have to leave Thessalonica since his Jewish opponents would continue
to stir up trouble. In I Thessalonians
2:18, Paul called this “Satan’s hindrance.” A church grew up in Thessalonica and
Paul’s labors there bore lasting results for the kingdom of God. He and Silas were faithful to their calling;
indeed they had changed the world of many in Thessalonica.
Oh,
that we might be “world changers” wherever we are—light and yeast and
salt—permeating our environment with the good news that Jesus saves.
People-to-people, Christian-to-non-Christian, can make a difference as the Holy Spirit leads and empowers us to
be faithful witnesses. Let us pray to be world changers.
“The best place for
us to be missionaries is wherever we are,” carries great challenge and truth for each believer.
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