Paul and Barnabas Witness on Cyprus (Acts 13:4–12)

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Paul and Barnabas Witness on Cyprus (Acts 13:4–12)

Prepared and preached for and at Bethel Friends Church in Poland, OH on Sunday, February 23, 2025

Tony Evans writes:

The reason why we don’t do more evangelism is that we’ve lost our concern for the lost. Most people are not concerned that they are lost. They’re like the little boy at Disneyland who was enjoying Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. He was enjoying the Ferris wheel and the roller coasters. He was having a marvelous time and in the midst of the crowd got separated from his parents. When he got separated from his parents, he didn’t know that he was lost because he was having so much fun on the rides.

Satan has so constructed this world order to give you enough distractions so that you don’t know you’ve gotten lost in your spiritual Disneyland. We’ve got a world full of people who don’t know that the fun in this world and all this world is offering them—the movies, the parties, the clubs, the social relationships, the money, and the job—is all a satanic camouflage to keep them from realizing that they have been separated from God. Mankind spends so much time having fun that they don’t know that they are lost.

However, the parents of this particular child were looking for him. They knew he was lost at Disneyland. They went to an officer and told security that they couldn’t find their child. The security man led the parents to the lost child, who didn’t even know he was lost.

God wants to find lost people. We are the security guards to bring lost people into contact with the God who wants to regain fellowship with them. That’s our task in evangelism. We are the ones God has chosen to deliver this message.260,[1]

My theme today is:

Paul and Barnabas Witness on Cyprus

  1. Context-
    1. In the previous verses, the Holy Spirit told them to set apart Paul and Barnabas for the work the Lord called them to.
    2. They prayed over them and sent them out.
  2. We see the openness to God’s Word (Acts 13:4–7):
    1. Their message is well received throughout the island, especially by the governor, Sergius Paulus.[2]
    2. Acts 13:4–7 (ESV) 4 So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had John to assist them. 6 When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. 7 He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God.
    3. Now, we are getting into the geography of the book of Acts.
    4. They leave the city of Antioch and sail to Cyprus.
    5. Cyprus is an island.
    6. They go to the city of Salamis.
    7. They begin proclaiming God’s Word in the synagogues of the Jews.
    8. Notice that they always go to the Jews first.
    9. Verse 5, Acts 13:5, says that they had John to assist them. 
    10. Look at Acts 13:6: they had gone through the whole island, as far as Paphos. Paphos is the other side of the island.
    11. Now, they see this Jewish magician. There are some extra details about him.
    12. He was a Jewish false prophet named, Bar-Jesus.
    13. The NET Bible reads: Named Bar-Jesus. “Jesus” is the Latin form of the name “Joshua.” The Aramaic “bar” means “son of,” so this man was surnamed “son of Joshua.” The scene depicts the conflict between Judaism and the emerging new faith at a cosmic level, much like the Simon Magus incident in Acts 8:9–24. Paul’s ministry looks like Philip’s and Peter’s here.[4]
    14. He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence.
    15. This man summoned Barnabas with Saul (That is Paul) to hear the Word of God.
    16. Proconsuls in Acts governed a Roman province.
    17. Archaeology has turned up evidence for many of the proconsuls of Cyprus. At least one inscription bears the name “Paulus,” but he is too late to be Sergius Paulus.[5]
    18. We will see more about this man in the next few verses.
  • The opposition to God’s Word (13:8–11)
      1. Elymas’s blasphemy (13:8): This false prophet and sorcerer (also called Bar-Jesus) attempts to prevent the governor from accepting Christ.
      2. Acts 13:8 (ESV)
      3. 8 But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.
      4. Now, he is called Elymas.
      5. One source reads: Possibly Elymas is a Semitic word, as is Bar-Jesus, and “sorcerer” is its translation. In any case, true to his demonic influence, Elymas tried to keep Sergius Paulus from embracing the gospel.[6]
      6. So, now they face opposition.
      7. Acts 13:9-11 (ESV)
      8. Elymas’s blindness (13:9–11): He is blinded by the judgment of God at the hand of Paul.
      9. 9 But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him 10 and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? 11 And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.” Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand.
      10. Notice verse 9 now calls “Saul” “Paul.”

      1. Paul is filled with the Holy Spirit.
      2. Paul looked intently at him and spoke to him.
      3. “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? 11 And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.”
      4. The NET Bible points out: This rebuke is like ones from the OT prophets: Jer 5:27; Gen 32:11; Prov 10:7; Hos 14:9.[9]
      5. Verse 11, Acts 13:11, reads that this happened just as Paul said.
      6. Again, from the NET Bible: The term translated mistiness [mist] here appears in the writings of the physician Galen as a medical technical description of a person who is blind. The picture of judgment to darkness is symbolic as well. Whatever power Elymas had, it represented darkness. Magic will again be an issue in Acts 19:18–19. This judgment is like that of Ananias and his wife in Acts 5:1–11.[10]
      7. Wow!
      8. Take note, this punishment as only “for a time.” He could repent later on.
      9. Rydelnic (Moody Bible Institute) believes that Luke shows that Paul can do the same miracles with Gentiles as Peter did with Jewish people.[11]

    1. The obedience to God’s Word (13:12): The governor becomes a believer.[13]
    2. Acts 13:12 (ESV)
    3. 12 Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.
    4. The “proconsul” believed. This would be Sergius believing.
    5. One source adds:
  • The signs normally associated with conversion in Acts (baptism, reception of the Spirit) do not appear in this account of Sergius Paulus’s conversion. Possibly Luke just abbreviated his account, but it is also possible that Paulus’s belief amounted to nothing more than his being astonished at the teaching and the blindness that befell Elymas.[14]
  1. Applications:
    1. In verse 4, we see Paul and Barnabas go to work sharing the gospel. They were on mission. We must also be on mission.
    2. Do we follow through with commitments in a timely way? In Acts 13:1-3 they are commissioned, and the next verse records their departure.
    3. Do we care about taking the Gospel to those who have never heard?
    4. Do we care about evangelism?
    5. Do we have a burden for those lost?
    6. Paul and Barnabas did. They were on mission to share the gospel.
    7. In verse 5, they proclaim the gospel to the Jews first. There are several applications, but one of which is, do we care to take the gospel to our culture and people? Many times, we will go serve on mission trips far away, but missions begins at home. Yes, they traveled, but they began with their ethnicity. In Romans 10:1, Paul writes about his heart’s desire and prayer to God is for the Jewish people to be saved. He started with the Jewish people.
    8. In verse 5, we see John Mark is there to assist them. Are we comfortable to be an assistant? Are we comfortable to be an understudy?
    9. In verse 6, we see they took the gospel to the whole island. They were not satisfied with “good.” The book “Good to Great” begins with “Good is the enemy of great.”
    10. In verse 7, we see a man, Serius Paulus who wanted to hear the Word of God and they shared with him. Are we sensitive to those who want to hear the gospel?
    11. In verse 8, we see Paul confronts the magician.
    12. It says that Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit. Do we seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit? Do we seek to be Spirit-led?
    13. Paul boldly confronted the magician. Do we follow the Spirit’s lead?

Tony Evans writes:

About four or five years ago in Texas, a pilot left the motor running on a plane and somehow this plane engaged itself. It was without a pilot and took off. It was flying on its own. It stayed in the air for over ninety minutes. Then, the inevitable happened: it ran out of gas, crashed, and was totally destroyed.

For a while, you can fly on your own. For a while, you can take off and be somebody. For a while, you can act like God does not exist. For a while, you can play a little religion, but not be serious about subordinating yourself. And for a while, you can fly.

I know there are atheists, and they look like they’re flying. I know, sometimes you look at evil people and you say, How come they can be so evil and can fly so high? I know sometimes you are jealous when you look at folk who have no respect for deity and seem to be flying high. Keep watching, because sooner or later, they will run out of gas, crash, and be destroyed. When you fly your life without God in the pilot’s seat of your life, that’s what happens. That’s why the Bible says don’t be envious of the evildoers. Just because they are making money and getting ahead by doing wrong, don’t get jealous of them. One can only fly high on their own for a while, but there will come a point where they will run out of gas and will discover in an abrupt way there is a God who is Lord over the universe.264,[15]

[1] Tony Evans, Tony Evans’ Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2009), 93.

[2] H. L. Willmington, The Outline Bible (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1999), Ac 13:4–7.

[3] Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition Notes (Biblical Studies Press, 2006), Ac 13:5.

[4] Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition Notes (Biblical Studies Press, 2006), Ac 13:6.

[5] Stanley E. Porter, “Acts,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1741.

[6] Stanley E. Porter, “Acts,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1741.

[7] Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 2109.

[8] Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993), Ac 13:9.

[9] Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition Notes (Biblical Studies Press, 2006), Ac 13:10.

[10] Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition Notes (Biblical Studies Press, 2006), Ac 13:11.

[11] Open Line, Moody Radio, 02.18.2023)

chaps. chapters

[12] Stanley E. Porter, “Acts,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1741.

[13] H. L. Willmington, The Outline Bible (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1999), Ac 13:8–12.

[14] Stanley E. Porter, “Acts,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1741.

[15] Tony Evans, Tony Evans’ Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2009), 94.

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