The assembly sat in silence, heads bowed in prayer and meditation. The Church at Antioch was a large one; many Jews and many Gentiles had come together to constitute a healthy and active Christian fellowship. Under the wise guidance and instruction of their Elders, Barnabas of Cyprus, Saul of Tarsus, Simeon, Lucius and Manaen, they were making rapid progress in the knowledge and practice of the Christian faith. Already they had implemented one of its main obligations in sending a generous gift of money to their less fortunate brethren in Jerusalem threatened by famine. Barnabas and Saul had been their ambassadors on that occasion and now, that mission accomplished and the messengers returned with their report, the Church was considering what outward activity their Lord would have them next undertake. So they sat, as they had done for more than a few meetings, quietly listening as first one and then another rose to expound their views and outline their proposals. Afterwards they joined in prayer for guidance toward a right decision or silently considered the things that had been said.

The extension of the work of the Gospel was in all their minds. The injunction left by their ascending Lord as a commission binding upon His disciples until the end "Go … into all the world, and preach the Gospel to the whole creation" lay before them, a challenge not to be ignored. Barnabas had told them of his own native country of Cyprus, lying only a hundred miles across the sea opposite their home city, unevangelised, waiting for Christ. Saul had spoken of the wider Roman world, the provinces of Asia and in Greece dotted with cities and towns the homes of God-fearing Jews and pagan Gentiles, a widespread field of missionary endeavour waiting to be harvested. The occupations of life were forgotten and every other obligation even to the taking of food and rest and sleep was reduced to the minimum in the intensity of their seeking Divine guidance. Thus they fasted and thus they prayed, until at last the thoughts of the many began to channel into one agreed direction. The light commenced to dawn and they knew that the power of the Holy Spirit of God was at work within them all leading to a clear perception of the Divine will. So they discerned the voice of the Holy Spirit directing them to commission Barnabas and Saul, their well loved and trusted elders, with John Mark as companion and assistant, to the first missionary enterprise ever to be organised.

It was perhaps natural that Cyprus should be the first objective. Barnabas was senior of the two, in length of Christian service and possibly in age, and Barnabas would naturally have thought of his native land. Saul was very soon to take the lead, but at this time he was evidently following. The name of Barnabas in Acts narrative always precedes that of Saul until the incident at Paphos, that now was imminent. So they sailed the hundred miles across the blue sea. They were the forerunners of all those Christian adventurers who in after times were to traverse the seas of the world to take the Gospel to strange and unknown races of people that before had walked in darkness and sat in the shadow of death.

The work seems to have started on a minor key. Landing at Salamis, the capital city of the island and its chief port, they preached in the synagogues of the Jews. There is no record of the results; perhaps there were no results to record. Old associations die hard, and although their mission was equally to Gentile and Jew it is, perhaps, to be expected that they would tend first to associate with those who at least worshipped the same God, and attempt to build upon that common basis. Be that as it may, there is no record of a Christian church community being established in Salamis. Jews and Gentiles - in that busy port and market of exchange between ships from west, east and south, between Rome, Antioch and Alexandria - were busy making money. They could not pay much heed to these three travelling preachers who spoke of giving up all for Christ's sake and devoting life to His service. The rest of their ministry in the island provinces is summed up in one sentence in Acts 13. 6 "And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos".

That was a land journey of about one hundred ordinary miles, the entire extent of Cyprus from east to west. In all that journey, wherever and to whoever they preached the Word of Life, there seems to have been nothing of sufficient moment for Luke to record. It was only upon arrival at the last place of call, the town of Paphos, that they seemed to find a flicker of interest.

Sergius Paulus was the Roman pro-consul, or governor, of Cyprus, and therefore the most important political figure, responsible directly to the Emperor for the administration of the country and the preservation of law and order. Nothing is known in history regarding this man although an inscription has been found at Soli in Cyprus giving his name and rank. Luke calls him a 'prudent man', meaning that he was a wise and just administrator. Rome did produce such rulers as well as corrupt ones like Pontius Pilate and Felix. News of the missionaries having reached his ears, the governor invited them to his residence with the object of hearing what they had to say.

Upon keeping the appointment Saul found that he was not going to have things all his own way; there was a rival already in the field in the person of Bar-Jesus, a soothsayer, a Jewish renegade. The word "sorcerer" in the Authorised Version is the same as that used for the three wise men in the Nativity story and does not imply the practice of magical arts so much as foreseeing the future and being well versed in "other-worldly" knowledge. It is clear that Sergius Paulus was already to some extent under the influence of this man, and he, having no intention of conceding his position to the newcomer, entered objection to Saul's teaching.

The miracle performed at this time by Saul, the first of many during his life's work, must have profoundly impressed the witnesses. Following his stern denunciation, one in which the would-be magician was openly branded a child of the devil, the unhappy man was smitten with near blindness and reached out for someone to lead him. It is evident that the infliction was of a temporary nature only. Saul's words indicated that, but it in no way mitigated the evidence of Divine displeasure. The astute Roman rapidly realised his mistake in giving credence to this charlatan and as quickly professed faith in the teaching brought by one who gave this convincing evidence that he was in truth a messenger of God Most High. But that was all. The pro-consul became a believer, but nothing is said about any general acceptance of the message at Paphos, as is recorded of other places visited. It does not seem as if any decided success attended this visit, despite the impression produced by the miracle. In fact the really noteworthy circumstance associated with Paphos lies not in the realm of conversion at all, but in the change of Saul's name to Paul.

No one knows how or why this change came about. At this point in the narrative (Acts 13.13), Saul as a name is dropped and never resumed. From now on the Apostle is always referred to as Paul. The Hebrew name Saul is an understandable and obvious one for a child born into the tribe of Benjamin, the tribe which gave Israel its first king. 'Paul' in the New Testament is the Roman Paulus, which is said to mean "least", and the Apostle's adoption of the name is suggested to have been a token of his humility. There does not seem to be much substance in that suggestion. Others have surmised that Paulus was his family name, a kind of surname, but there is no evidence to support that hypothesis either. Much more likely is that Saul, realising his life's work was going to take him increasingly into the Gentile world, and coming into contact here at Paphos with the Roman,

Sergius Paulus, formed the impression that this Roman name, so like his own, would be a better one by which he might be known to the Gentiles, and without more ado decided to make the change. The coincidence of its occurrence just at the time he found himself associated with a man named Paulus seems to be too much of a coincidence not to hold some connection.

So Paul "and his company" left Paphos and sailed nearly two hundred miles across the sea to Perga on the mainland, in the Roman province of Pamphylia. It was whilst at this town that John Mark decided to leave them and return to Jerusalem. No reason is given for his action; it is evident that Paul was considerably displeased for it was many years before he was willing to accept Mark as a co-worker again. Had Mark's motive merely been to avoid the continuing and increasing trials of the journey he would most likely have returned to the home church at Antioch. It was to Jerusalem that his steps were turned where there was a rising tide of persecution, now afflicting the Christians in Judea. He may have felt it his duty to be in a better position to protect his mother Mary, and so he returned to be with her.

There does not seem to have been any spectacular success at Perga. A little community of Christians was formed, for Paul visited them on his way back, but after Mark's defection there is nothing more said about Perga. Paul and Barnabas were soon on their way again. A long trek of a hundred and twenty miles over the mountains lay before them and at its end was Antioch of Pisidia, a place about which they hoped great things. It is to be noted that there were two Antiochs, the city of that name in Syria from which Paul and Barnabas had started, and this one in the province of Pisidia which lay many hundreds of miles distant. Both places became the seats of flourishing Christian churches. Up to date, this first missionary journey had not yielded any really spectacular result. In no case, either in the various towns of Cyprus, nor yet in Perga, is there any statement of the formation of a Christian church. Small communities must indeed have been left, for later visits were made both by Paul on the mainland and Barnabas in Cyprus. It is probable that all the Apostle had to show for his labours up to this point were small communities who were prepared to accept the message he brought them. Perhaps even this very minor achievement was part of the Divine provision for Paul. He was to learn that the work of the Lord flourishes best with small and insignificant beginnings, and that "not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit" the purposes of God are executed.

But the dawn was growing brighter. At Antioch in Pisidia, the Apostle to the Gentiles was to meet the first of those searching experiences which combined both acceptance and rejection. The joys of widespread conversion and the sharpness of bitter opposition were to become so much a part of the pattern of his life hereafter.

AOH