5. Proclamation of the word
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When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God.
Acts 13:5
The last in a series of insights from Acts 13 on the nature of missionary-missional-mission work.
The whole book of Acts confirms that there is no mission without the proclamation of the God's word. Here's Schnabel's reflections on Acts 13.
Missionary work is focused on the proclamation of God’s word. Paul and Barnabas proclaim God’s word in the synagogues of Salamis (v 5), and they proclaim it in Paphos. The conversion of the proconsul Sergius Paulus [ed. the highest ranking Roman official to convert in the NT] demonstrates that the “word of God” that they proclaim is the “teaching about the Lord” (v 12) ie, the proclamation of the fulfillment of God’s promises in Jesus and of salvation through faith in Jesus as Israel’s Messiah and the Savior of the world. This focus is confirmed by Luke’s extensive summary of Paul’s sermon in the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch (v16-41).
If the word is not central to your missionary-missional-mission work, give up now.
Assignment: Read through Acts and identify references to the dynamic word of God. Look for how the word grows, spreads and multiplies. Discover how the word, despite opposition, never takes a backward step. See how, as the word spreads, disciples are made and churches are multiplied.
Let the word do the work.
