使徒行傳 17:1-22 認真尋求真道
- 馬克牧師
- Jun 6, 2024
- 8 min read
Updated: Jun 25, 2024
帖撒羅尼迦的騷動
1 保羅和西拉經過暗妃坡里、亞波羅尼亞，來到帖撒羅尼迦，在那裏有猶太人的會堂。 2保羅照他素常的規矩進去，一連三個安息日，本着聖經與他們辯論， 3講解陳明基督必須受害，從死裏復活；又說：「我所傳與你們的這位耶穌就是基督。」 4他們中間有些人聽了勸，就附從保羅和西拉，並有許多虔敬的希臘人，尊貴的婦女也不少。 5但那不信的猶太人心裏嫉妒，招聚了些市井匪類，搭夥成羣，聳動合城的人闖進耶孫 的家，要將保羅、西拉帶到百姓那裏。 6找不着他們，就把耶孫和幾個弟兄拉到地方官那裏，喊叫說：「那攪亂天下的也到這裏來了， 7耶孫收留他們。這些人都違背凱撒的命令，說另有一個王耶穌。」 8眾人和地方官聽見這話，就驚慌了； 9於是取了耶孫和其餘之人的保狀，就釋放了他們。
使徒們在庇哩亞傳道
10弟兄們隨即在夜間打發保羅和西拉往庇哩亞去。二人到了，就進入猶太人的會堂。 11這地方的人賢於帖撒羅尼迦的人，甘心領受這道，天天考查聖經，要曉得這道是與不是。 12所以他們中間多有相信的，又有希臘尊貴的婦女，男子也不少。 13但帖撒羅尼迦的猶太人知道保羅又在庇哩亞傳神的道，也就往那裏去，聳動攪擾眾人。 14當時弟兄們便打發保羅往海邊去，西拉和提摩太仍住在庇哩亞。 15送保羅的人帶他到了雅典，既領了保羅的命，叫西拉和提摩太速速到他這裏來，就回去了。
保羅在雅典
16 保羅在雅典等候他們的時候，看見滿城都是偶像，就心裏着急； 17於是在會堂裏與猶太人和虔敬的人，並每日在市上所遇見的人，辯論。 18還有伊壁鳩魯和斯多亞兩門的學士，與他爭論。有的說：「這胡言亂語的要說甚麼？」有的說：「他似乎是傳說外邦鬼神的。」這話是因保羅傳講耶穌與復活的道。 19他們就把他帶到亞略‧巴古，說：「你所講的這新道，我們也可以知道嗎？ 20因為你有些奇怪的事傳到我們耳中，我們願意知道這些事是甚麼意思。」（ 21雅典人和住在那裏的客人都不顧別的事，只將新聞說說聽聽。）
我們今天讀了《使徒行傳》第17章前半段。昨天我們聊到保羅在腓立比這個地方，首先開始把福音傳進了歐洲。有尊貴的婦女呂底亞信了主，並且她的一句話改變了那個受苦的使女，趕走了她身上的鬼。然而，這也引起了保羅遭受了一場牢獄之災。
接下來，保羅他們來到了帖撒羅尼迦這個地方。再次碰到了一些不信的猶太人。他按照規矩，在會堂中間，按著聖經，這時候都只是舊約，跟他們辯論，講明基督必須受害，並且從死裡復活。也證明了耶穌就是基督。他的講道大有能力，很多希臘人信了，也有很多尊貴的婦女也都信了。
我們在保羅的身上會看到和耶穌很像的遭遇。他們二人都是講解真理，分辨正道。很多人聽了真理，也都信服，並且漸漸加入到基督教之中。但是我們看到攔阻基督教擴張的最主要力量，竟然都是猶太人 – 殺死耶穌的是猶太人而不是羅馬人，逼迫保羅的大多數也都是猶太人而不是羅馬政府，反而是羅馬政府在一路上有保持公正公平，並且尊重保羅而且按著他羅馬公民的身份保護他。這不禁讓人感到相當諷刺。同為被交托上帝話語的猶太人，出現了兩派人馬，而這兩派人馬完全無法和諧共處，保羅一路上不斷受到同族的危害，比羅馬人給的逼迫更多出許多。而且猶太人不只是逼迫保羅，所有收留保羅或是幫助保羅的人他們都一同逼迫。甚至不惜造謠，說謊，一如他們逼迫耶穌，殺害耶穌時候捏造罪名，到後來卻無法自圓其說，只能用最低級的手段 – 暴力 - 趕走保羅。
保羅離開帖撒羅尼迦，到了相隔差不多一百五十公里的庇哩亞這個城，保羅同樣在這裡宣教，讓很多人相信。而這些人有求知的態度，就算一開始不認同，但他們天天查考聖經，要確認保羅所說的東西到底對還是不對。這個態度是相當重要的。
當我們在學習一個新的信仰的時候，我們應該去思考並且查考這個事情。其實，基督教的信仰是單純的，不是單單聽傳道講什麼就信什麼。我們應該自己去讀聖經，並且去理解、了解和思考。
身為牧師，我最擔心的並不是一天到晚提出問題的人，而是不願意讀聖經的人。如果你不自己跟上帝建立個人的關係，這個信仰就終究只是一個擺設，沒有屬於你。任何一段關係都包含磨合和掙扎，跟上帝的關係也是一樣。但願我們能夠不斷尋求，勇敢提問。牧師不一定能夠回答你所有的問題，但是上帝可以。所以，勇敢發問吧。
接下來我們看到這些帖撒羅尼迦的猶太人不甘心保羅繼續在這邊分享福音，他們甚至派人追到庇哩亞，要來迫害保羅並驚動眾人。所以這時候，保羅不得已只好離開這裡，往雅典去。而其他人呢，則稍後來到雅典與他會合。
最令人擔心的人並不是那些自己不信的人，而是那些已經有信仰偏差，甚至還想要繼續宣揚偏差信仰給其他人的人。這種人就像耶穌所說的，不僅僅是自己擋住了天國的門，別人想要進去他們還要攔阻。這種人要受加倍的處罰。
因此，當我們在分享信仰時，我們必須謹記，是否符合聖經的原則，是否符合真理的原則。勤於讀聖經，禱告，了解教會的歷史，教義的來由。這是身為基督徒不斷進步的重要關鍵。
接下來保羅被趕到了雅典，在那邊又會碰上什麼事情呢？我們明天繼續使徒行傳下半段，感謝各位的聆聽。
In Thessalonica
1When Paul and his companions had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah,” he said. 4Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women.
5But other Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. 6But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: “These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, 7and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.” 8When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. 9Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go.
In Berea
10As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. 11Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. 12As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.
13But when the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, some of them went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up. 14The believers immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea. 15Those who escorted Paul brought him to Athens and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.
In Athens
16While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. 17So he reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. 18A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. 19Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? 20You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we would like to know what they mean.” 21(All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)
Today we read the first half of Acts chapter 17. Yesterday, we talked about how Paul, in Philippi, first brought the gospel to Europe. A prominent woman named Lydia believed in the Lord, and her words changed the life of a suffering servant girl, casting out the demon that possessed her. However, this also led to Paul being imprisoned.
Next, Paul and his companions arrived in Thessalonica, where they again encountered some unbelieving Jews. As was his custom, Paul reasoned with them from the Scriptures—at that time, only the Old Testament—explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. He proclaimed that Jesus is the Christ. His preaching was powerful, and many Greeks believed, including many prominent women.
In Paul's life, we see experiences similar to those of Jesus. Both of them explained the truth and discerned the right way. Many who heard the truth believed and gradually joined the Christian faith. However, we see that the main force hindering the spread of Christianity was the Jews—not the Romans who killed Jesus, and most of those who persecuted Paul were Jews, not the Roman government. In fact, the Roman government maintained fairness and justice, respected Paul, and protected him as a Roman citizen. This is quite ironic. Among the Jews, who were entrusted with the word of God, there were two factions that could not coexist harmoniously. Paul faced more danger from his own people than from the Romans. Moreover, the Jews not only persecuted Paul but also those who hosted or helped him. They even resorted to false accusations, just as they did when persecuting and killing Jesus. When their accusations failed, they resorted to the lowest means—violence—to drive Paul away.
Paul left Thessalonica and went to Berea, about 150 kilometers away. In Berea, Paul preached the gospel and many believed. These people had a noble character; they examined the Scriptures daily to see if what Paul said was true. This attitude is very important.
When we are learning about a new faith, we should think critically and examine the matter. Christianity is simple; it is not about blindly believing what the preacher says. We should read the Bible ourselves, understand, and think about it.
As a pastor, I am not most worried about those who constantly ask questions but about those who are unwilling to read the Bible. If you do not establish a personal relationship with God, this faith will remain superficial and not truly yours. Every relationship involves adjustment and struggle, and our relationship with God is no different. May we continually seek, ask questions boldly. A pastor may not be able to answer all your questions, but God can. So, ask boldly.
We see that the Jews from Thessalonica were not content with Paul continuing to share the gospel. They even sent people to Berea to persecute Paul and stir up the crowd. Thus, Paul had to escape to the coast and head to Athens. The others later joined him in Athens.
The most concerning people are not those who do not believe, but those who have a distorted faith and want to spread their false beliefs to others. These people are like what Jesus described, not only do they block the way to the kingdom of heaven for themselves, but they also prevent others from entering. Such people will receive a double punishment.
Therefore, when we share our faith, we must be cautious, ensuring that it aligns with the principles of the Bible and the truth. Be diligent in reading the Bible, praying, and understanding church history and the origins of doctrines. This is the key to continuous growth as a Christian.
Next, Paul was driven to Athens. What will he encounter there? We will continue with the second half of Acts tomorrow. Thank you all for listening.
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