The Unavoidable Division Text: Acts 14:1-7
Introduction: The Gospel Sword
We live in a soft and sentimental age. Our generation prizes unity above truth, comfort above conviction, and a placid consensus above all else. The prevailing spirit of our time insists that the highest virtue is to get along, which really means that the highest virtue is to say nothing of any substance whatever. In the realm of religion, this has produced a therapeutic, declawed, and neutered gospel, a message designed not to offend anyone, and which consequently is powerless to save anyone. It is a gospel of niceness, a call to a bland spiritual harmony where lions and lambs lie down together, not because the lion has been transformed, but because the lamb has been eaten and everyone is pretending not to notice.
Into this treacly fog, the book of Acts marches with heavy boots. The apostolic gospel is not a peace treaty with the world; it is a declaration of war. It is not a call for a group hug; it is a summons to surrender to the rightful King, and this summons necessarily divides. Jesus Himself told us this would be the case. "Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword" (Matthew 10:34). This sword is the Word of God, and its purpose is to divide. It divides truth from error, light from darkness, life from death, and history into B.C. and A.D. It divides the hearts of men, and as we see in our text today, it divides entire cities.
The events in Iconium are a case study in how the gospel works in a fallen world. When the Word of God is preached faithfully, the result is not a uniform, city-wide revival. The result is a schism. A line is drawn, and everyone is forced to choose a side. This is not a sign of ministerial failure. On the contrary, it is the unmistakable mark of apostolic success. When the gospel does its work, it creates a crisis, and the ensuing division is simply the sorting of the sheep from the goats. A gospel that divides no one has converted no one.
The Text
Now it happened that in Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews together and spoke in such a manner that a large number of people believed, both of Jews and of Greeks. But the unbelieving Jews instigated and embittered the minds of the Gentiles against the brothers. Therefore they spent a long time there speaking boldly with reliance upon the Lord, who was testifying to the word of His grace, granting that signs and wonders be done through their hands. But the multitude of the city was divided; and some sided with the Jews, and some with the apostles. And when an attempt was made by both the Gentiles and the Jews with their rulers to mistreat and to stone them, they became aware of it and fled to the cities of Lycaonia, Lystra and Derbe, and the surrounding region; and there they continued to proclaim the gospel.
(Acts 14:1-7 LSB)
The Potent Word (v. 1)
The mission begins, as was Paul's custom, in the synagogue.
"Now it happened that in Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews together and spoke in such a manner that a large number of people believed, both of Jews and of Greeks." (Acts 14:1)
Notice the cause and effect. They spoke, and a large number believed. The power of God is resident in the Word of God. The gospel is not a set of helpful suggestions or spiritual platitudes. It is, as Paul says elsewhere, "the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes" (Romans 1:16). They "spoke in such a manner" that people believed. This doesn't mean they employed some clever rhetorical trick or a slick marketing strategy. It means they spoke with the anointing of the Holy Spirit, with clarity, with authority, and without compromise. They preached Christ crucified and risen, the stumbling block and the foolishness that is in fact the wisdom and power of God.
And who believed? "Both of Jews and of Greeks." This is crucial. The gospel demolishes the dividing walls that men erect. In the ancient world, the primary division was between Jew and Gentile. But the cross of Christ creates a new humanity, where "there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised... but Christ is all, and in all" (Colossians 3:11). The new and ultimate dividing line is not ethnic, or cultural, or political. The only division that will matter on the last day is this: believer or unbeliever.
The Inevitable Backlash (v. 2)
Where God sows wheat, the devil is quick to follow with tares. The success of verse one directly causes the opposition of verse two.
"But the unbelieving Jews instigated and embittered the minds of the Gentiles against the brothers." (Acts 14:2 LSB)
Mark the nature of the opposition. It is not a calm, reasoned, intellectual disagreement. The unbelieving Jews did not host a debate or publish a dissenting pamphlet. Their response was spiritual poison. They "instigated and embittered" the minds of the Gentiles. Unbelief is not a passive state of neutrality; it is an active, hostile, and evangelistic force. It seeks converts. The devil is a slanderer, and his children follow in his footsteps. Their primary weapon is not logic, but malice. They aim to make the Gentiles' souls bitter, to sour them against the sweetness of the gospel and the fellowship of the saints.
This is the serpent's ancient strategy, straight from the third chapter of Genesis. He cannot refute God's Word, so he attacks God's character and maligns God's people. He whispers lies to stir up resentment and hatred. We should never be surprised when this happens. When you preach the grace of God, you will inevitably provoke the malice of the devil. If you are suffering no such opposition, you should be checking to see if you have left the barracks and actually entered the battle.
The Courageous Response (v. 3)
The apostles' reaction to this bitter hostility is entirely contrary to the wisdom of our age.
"Therefore they spent a long time there speaking boldly with reliance upon the Lord, who was testifying to the word of His grace, granting that signs and wonders be done through their hands." (Acts 14:3 LSB)
The first word here is "Therefore." It is a hinge. Because they were being slandered, because minds were being embittered against them, therefore they stayed. They did not tuck tail and run. They did not form a committee to soften their message. The opposition did not cause them to retreat; it caused them to dig in. They stayed "a long time," and they spoke "boldly."
Where did this boldness come from? It was not from their natural temperament. It came from "reliance upon the Lord." True Christian boldness is not a function of personality; it is a fruit of faith. It is the supernatural confidence that comes from knowing you are on the King's errand, speaking the King's message, under the King's protection. And the King backed them up. The Lord Himself was "testifying to the word of His grace." How? By "granting that signs and wonders be done through their hands."
Note the order carefully. The signs and wonders were not the message; they were the divine testimony to the message. The message was primary, and it was "the word of His grace." The miracles were God's exclamation point at the end of His sentence of grace. They were God's own "Amen" to the preaching of the apostles, confirming that this message was indeed from Him.
The Great Schism (v. 4)
The result of potent preaching and satanic opposition is not consensus, but conflict.
"But the multitude of the city was divided; and some sided with the Jews, and some with the apostles." (Acts 14:4 LSB)
The Greek word for divided here is schizo, from which we get our words schism and schizophrenia. The city was literally rent in two. The gospel, when faithfully preached, acts as a spiritual fault line. It reveals the pre-existing cracks in a society and forces them open. It compels a choice. There is no neutral territory, no Switzerland, in this conflict. You either side with the world, the flesh, and the devil, or you side with the apostles and their King.
This is the scandal of particularity. The gospel does not offer a buffet of spiritual options. It presents one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one Name under heaven by which men must be saved. This exclusive claim is profoundly offensive to the pluralistic spirit of the age, both then and now. But a gospel that does not divide sinner from sin, and believers from the world, is no gospel at all. The church is an ekklesia, a "called out" assembly. Called out from what? From the world that is perishing.
The Prudent Retreat (v. 5-7)
Boldness must be tempered with wisdom. The apostles were courageous, not suicidal.
"And when an attempt was made by both the Gentiles and the Jews with their rulers to mistreat and to stone them, they became aware of it and fled... and there they continued to proclaim the gospel." (Acts 14:5-7 LSB)
They stayed through slander and bitterness. They remained through public division. But when a concrete, murderous plot involving the civil authorities was formed, they fled. There is a time to stand your ground, and there is a time to live to fight another day. This was not cowardice; it was shrewd stewardship of their apostolic mission. They were not fleeing the gospel; they were fleeing to preach the gospel somewhere else.
And that is precisely what they did. "They fled to the cities of Lycaonia... and there they continued to proclaim the gospel." The persecution in Iconium did not silence the Word; it simply decentralized it. The devil's attempt to stamp out the fire in one city only succeeded in scattering the embers to ignite new fires in others. This is God's divine judo. He uses the enemy's own momentum to accomplish His own purposes. The mission is not tied to one location. The pulpit is portable. If they will not hear you in Iconium, shake the dust off your feet and preach the kingdom in Lystra and Derbe.
Conclusion: Our Iconium
We must not read this as a mere historical account of someone else's troubles. We live in Iconium. Our culture is increasingly embittered against the brothers. The orthodox Christian faith is increasingly seen as a threat to the public order. We are told that our convictions about life, marriage, and the exclusive claims of Christ are hateful and divisive.
To this, we must say, "Yes, of course they are." The gospel is divisive. It divides good from evil, truth from lies, and the kingdom of God from the kingdom of man. We must not be surprised when the world hates us; we should be surprised when it does not. We must not be ashamed of the division our message causes, for it is the necessary prelude to salvation.
Our response must be the same as that of the apostles. When faced with hostility, we must speak with greater boldness, relying wholly upon the Lord. We must understand that our task is not to make the gospel palatable, but to make it plain. And we must be wise, knowing when to stand and when to move on, but never, ever ceasing to proclaim the gospel. For it is this divisive, offensive, scandalous Word of grace that is the only power of God to save a divided and dying world.