Paul’s 3 Missionary Journeys
The apostle Paul was a man zealous for the Lord above all. He is known as one of the most key and important people not just in Christian history but all of history. Paul, with the power of the Spirit given to him by Yahweh, had spread the gospel of the good news of Jesus Christ all over Rome, parts of Asia Minor, and Europe. He established many churches and wrote many letters. Although he was persecuted many times throughout his life and ministry, he never once gave in and continued to preach until his execution. Paul had three main missionary journeys, the first can be found in Acts 13-14, the second in 15-18, and the third in 18-21. It is important to go back and revisit these journeys that Paul took and take a dive into one of the most important, if not the most important, journeys in all of history that would change the course of humanity forever.
Introduction to Paul: Apostle of Christ:
Paul is one of the most studied and admired humans in all of history. Christian and non-Christian historians alike share the same question and admiration for Paul. Who was Paul of Tarsus, and what did he accomplish, or appear to accomplish, in his life? Was Paul a man who really existed? And if so, was he truly who the Bible states he is? Or was he merely a con artist who managed to change the course of human history?
These are all great questions that have been answered over the years, but I am not here to talk about the validity of Paul of Tarsus. In fact, there is no reason for me to question his validity, as it already exists, and he is who the Bible says he is. I am here to explain one of the most important, if not the most important, events in all of human history. Paul’s three missionary journeys.
Paul’s First Missionary Journey:
Paul’s first missionary journey can be found in Acts 13-14. For some context, this takes place in the years 46-48 AD. Paul and Barnabas had recently returned to Antioch from their trip to Jerusalem, where they had preached, and during that time, Peter was being held in prison by King Herod. Who, not too long before that, had James, the brother of Jesus, executed by sword (Acts 12). However, shortly after Herod was puffed up with pride and the crowd praised him as if he were a god, he was struck down by Yahweh and died. Acts 12:24-25 states, “But the word of the Lord continued to grow and to be multiplied. And Barnabas and Saul returned when they had fulfilled their mission to Jerusalem, taking along with them John, who was also called Mark.”
Acts 13 states that while many Christians were gathered at Antioch serving the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit came and spoke. “While they were serving the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set Barnabas and Saul (Paul) apart for Me for the word to which I have called them.’” -Acts 13:2. The scriptures say that Paul, Barnabas, and Mark went out to Seleucia and from there they sailed to Cyprus. Acts 13:5 states, “When they reached Salamis, they began to proclaim the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews; and they also had John as their helper.” It records that they went through the whole island as far as Paphos and encountered a false prophet by the name Bar-Jesus. He has called to meet with Paul and Barnabas to hear the word of God. However, this man wanted nothing to do with repentance or actually hearing the true word of the Lord. He sought personal gain and thought of the miracles as magic to be used for profit. Paul, being led by the Spirit, had discernment over Bar-Jesus (or as the scripture also refers to him as Elymas) and called him out for being a deceitful fraud and a son of the devil. He states to his face that Elymas doesn’t want anything to do with actually repenting or hearing the word, but rather wants personal gain in his magic business. Yahweh, in that moment, blinded Bar-Jesus, and the people he was with were amazed at what the true God of the universe had done.
After this, Paul and his companions set out to sea again, this time leaving Paphos and coming to Perga in Pamphylia. However, Mark had decided not to come with them on this journey and returned to Jerusalem. More than likely due to the heavy persecution they were enduring and going to endure. After Paul and Barnabas had left Perga, where Mark left them, they went to Pisidian Antioch and preached the gospel to the Jews in the synagogue on the Sabbath. At first, the crowd loved what they had preached and begged them to come to the following Sabbath day and speak.
However, the Jewish religious leaders caught wind of this news and headed to see what the commotion was about. It was here where Paul and Barnabas would be persecuted and contradicted by the religious leaders so much that Paul outright rebuked the Jews and declared to turn to the Gentiles and preach to them the good news that the Jews were turning away. The Gentiles were ecstatic while the Jews were outraged. Paul and Barnabas “shook the dust off their feet in protest” and left to go to Iconium. (Acts 13:51)
At Iconium, Paul and Barnabas preached the gospel to Jews and Greeks; however, the unbelieving Jews embittered them and persecuted them. Not all were against Paul and Barnabas, though. The scripture states that the city was divided. Many believed Paul and Barnabas, but many also defied them. Unfortunately for Paul and Barnabas, the mass number of unbelievers resulted in violence, and decided to stone them. Fortunately, though, Paul and Barnabas became aware of what the people were plotting and fled to Lycaonia, Lystra, and Derbe. It would be here where they would continue to preach the gospel to the masses. It would also be here where Paul would heal a man at Lystra who had been disabled since birth. However, when the man was healed, the crowd noticed and declared Paul and Barnabas gods. They claimed Paul was Hermes and Barnabas, Zeus. Many of the priests of Zeus wanted to offer sacrifices to Paul and Barnabas, but when Paul and Barnabas heard about everything, they were in anguish and tore their robes (a sign of complete and utter disgrace and anguish). They cried out, stating that they were not gods but merely servants of the one true God. Paul would use this moment to preach yet again, but this time the Jews had caught up to them from Antioch and stoned Paul almost to death.
Many, including the disciples, thought he was dead, but Paul simply rose back up, returned to the city to get Barnabas, and they left for Derbe. After preaching to the city, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the disciples they had made, claiming, “It is through many tribulations that we must enter the kingdom of God.” They appointed elders in the churches and prayed and fasted with them until the Lord called them to move. They would eventually arrive in Pamphylia, where they would preach in Perga and go down to Attalia. From there, they returned to the church in Antioch to tell the news of their mission and all that God had done. They would spend some time with the disciples before Paul’s next missionary journey.
Paul’s Second Missionary Journey:
Paul’s second missionary Journey takes place in 49-51 AD and begins at the council in Jerusalem. Where Paul had returned to find that some men from Judea were teaching that to become a Christian and be saved, one must first be circumcised according to the custom of Moses. Paul and Barnabas would have a heated argument and debate with these men over the topic of works-based salvation. Here, the disciples urged Paul and Barnabas to get the apostles and elders' help concerning the issue. After much debate, the apostles sided with Paul in that one doesn’t have to do anything to earn salvation. It is a gift from God, and no amount of works could ever make someone earn it.
After some days, Paul had decided he wanted to return to the cities in which he preached the years prior and spoke to Barnabas about the matter. However, it would be here where they would come to a disagreement. Barnabas wanted to take Mark, but Paul was of the opinion that Mark was a liability since he had deserted them in Pamphylia. This disagreement went so sour that Paul and Barnabas separated. Barnabas had decided to take Mark with him to Cyprus, while Paul chose Silas to go with him through Syria and Cilicia.
Paul and Silas would eventually reach Derbe and Lystra, where they would meet a young disciple named Timothy, who was the son of a believing Jewish woman and whose father was a Greek. Timothy was well spoken of by the other disciples in the region. Paul had decided he wanted to take Timothy with him on his journey and circumcised him for the sake of the Jews in the surrounding area (note this does not in any way contradict the argument of faith-based salvation. Paul didn’t do this out of a worry of salvation, clearly by his decision to take him with him, but this was for the sake that those around him wouldn’t falter.)
“They passed through the Phrygian and Galatian region, after being forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia; and after they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.”
Paul had experienced a vision or dream in which he felt the Spirit call him to Troas, so there he went to Troas instead of Bithynia. They would set sail for Neapolis and begin preaching to the women who had assembled on the riverside. It was here that the first European convert would happen, a woman by the name of Lydia. Overjoyed by the Spirit and her newfound hope and faith in Jesus Christ, she invited them to stay with her and baptize her and her household.
On the route back to the place of prayer where they had preached, they encountered a slave woman who was possessed and being used by her masters for fortune-telling and profit. They rebuked the demon, freeing her from its grasp by the power of the Holy Spirit, but when her masters found out, they dragged Paul and Silas into the marketplace to the authorities and demanded that they be thrown into prison. Paul and Silas would be thrown into prison, where instead of being taken over by anxiety, they prayed, worshipped, and sang out to the Lord.
Suddenly, an earthquake hit and set both Paul and Barnabas free. The prison guard in charge of everything witnessed this and decided to take his own life as he would rather die than face the punishment of Rome for letting prisoners escape. However, right before he could go through with his plan, Paul called out to him, telling him not to harm himself and preaching the gospel to him. Here, the jailer gave his life to Christ and was baptized by Paul, and invited them into his home to save and baptize all in his household.
After this, Paul and his companions travel to Thessalonica, where Paul would once again preach in the synagogue of the Jews. However, just as before, the Jews became angry. So much so that they gathered some of the worst of the worst men from the marketplace, just to form a mob against Paul and his companions. Everything got so hectic that it forced Paul and his friends to flee overnight to Berea. Where, yet again, Paul would preach the gospel in the synagogue of the Jews. Interestingly, there was a much different outcome. The people there were much more open-minded and accepted what Paul had to say, and were even overjoyed. Both Greeks and Jews were in awe. Though many of the Jews from Thessalonica had found out about what Paul was doing in Berea and headed there to stir up the crowds and get them to turn on Paul.
Paul would flee to Athens, where he would wait for Timothy and Silas to catch up with him as he left them back in Berea, where they were safe until he sent word for them to come to Athens. While Paul was awaiting Timothy and Silas, he couldn’t help but notice all the idolatry going on in Athens. He eventually would go and preach to the Greeks there. Some believed and joined him, while some scoffed.
After Athens, Paul and his companions head to Corinth, where they would stay for a year and a half. It was here that Paul met Aquila and Priscilla. Paul would once again preach in the synagogue, trying to reason with the Jews and the Greeks, but when they kept resisting, Paul had had enough and let them be, stating, “Your blood is on your hands.” Shortly after this, he met a man named Titus who lived next to the synagogue and was friends with the leader, Crispus. They would listen to Paul as he proclaimed the gospel, and here, the Lord came to Paul in a dream, motivating him to keep going and keep preaching the good news.
A little while after, the Jews rose against Paul and brought him to the judgment seat of Gallio, the proconsul of Achaia. They were determined to get rid of Paul and have him punished for preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. Gallio, however, did not care in the slightest about religious matters. He declared that if it was not a matter of crime against Rome, then he did not want any part of it.
After Paul had fled, he set out for Ephesus, where he would leave Priscilla and Aquila and go to Caesarea. He would go to Jerusalem and greet the church, then head back down to Antioch.
Paul’s Third Missionary Journey:
Paul’s third missionary journey began in Ephesus and spanned from 53-58 AD. He was visiting some disciples and found out that they didn’t even know what the Spirit was. Paul briefly told them about the Spirit and then baptized them in the name of Jesus. After this, he would return to preaching in the synagogue for three months. As much as Paul tried to convince the Jews about the kingdom of God, they once again turned from him and persecuted him. About two years go by, and God is working extraordinary miracles through Paul. It appears that he was so popular that even some of the Jewish exorcists tried to use Jesus’ name to cast out demons. However, it would not work. The scriptures state that the demons knew Jesus and Paul, but did not know the Jewish men who merely used Jesus’ name and did not actually know Him. This stirred up a lot of commotion but also grew the gospel’s popularity.
Paul spent three years at Ephesus, where he would work extremely hard. During this time, Paul writes his famous letter to the Corinthians and sends missionaries from Ephesus to Colossae and Laodicea. Paul had done so many great miracles and works by the power of the Holy Spirit that when he eventually decided to leave for Macedonia and Greece. The city stumbles and falls into turmoil. A riot breaks out, and Paul ends up sending back some of his workers just to calm the city.
After all the uproar Paul sets for Troas, where he will give a late-night sermon that causes a young man to fall out of a window and die. Paul does something extraordinary: he raises the young man from the dead. Cementing himself as one of the greatest Biblical historical figures.
Paul will leave Troas and pass through Macedonia, where he will write his letter to the Roman church and to the Galatian church. Paul makes one last stop at a city called Miletus. He avoided Ephesus and called the church leaders and elders to him. It would be here where Paul would state that he knows where the Spirit is calling him and that it will lead to his eventual arrest and death. The people knew what he was talking about and wept and embraced him. Paul himself stated that they would not see him again and reminded them of what the Lord had said, giving them courage and strength before he set off. He set off to Jerusalem to be with the apostles for Passover one last time. They tried to convince Paul not to return to Jerusalem, but Paul rebuked them, stating, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” They finally concluded and ended with “The will of the Lord be done!”
When Paul came to Jerusalem, he began telling the brethren all about what the Lord had done and what He is doing all around the world. They informed him of the things going on in Jerusalem and how there has been a misunderstanding of what Paul has been doing. Paul decides to listen to the brethren and takes a Nazarite vow while celebrating the Passover feast. As Paul is in the temple, he is seized and beaten by soldiers. He is arrested and taken to Caesarea and put on house arrest.
It would be from here on out that Paul would be in the barracks overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. He had all the materials needed to write or record anything. However, he decided to take a break for two years before working again. He would get back to working under the Lord and be handed over to Rome. He would live out the rest of his days living for the Lord and eventually be executed by Emperor Nero.
The Importance of Paul’s Journeys:
It is important to remember Paul’s journey and just how much it impacted human history. Paul, moved by the Holy Spirit, is an amazing example of what it means to truly devote one’s life to Jesus. It’s also a great example of the fact that it doesn’t matter what background someone has or what they’ve done in the past. Like Paul of Tarsus, the Lord can and will use anyone who submits to Him and loves Him in ways many cannot even fathom. Paul is without a doubt one of, if not the most important and influential, historical figures in history, only below Jesus. He wrote a good portion of the New Testament and is proof that the Lord can do extraordinary things through someone who submits to the Spirit. This is what it truly looks like to be completely and utterly surrendered to the Lord. “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” -Paul of Tarsus. (Philippians 1:21)
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