I. INTRODUCTION
A. Saul was called to the missionary life, (Acts 9:15; 26:17).
1. Communicated directly to Saul, (Acts 22:17-21).
2. Referred to himself as the Apostle to the Gentiles, (Gal. 2:8; Rom. 11:13, Gal. 1:16; Eph. 3:8).
B. The church was beginning to realize that its responsibilities were beyond Jerusalem, Judea, and the Jews.
1. The idea that Christians are bound to send the gospel into all the world dates back to the Great Commission, (Mt. 28:16-20).
2. The process of "missions" continues on today Rumania for example.
3. To send evangelists into unenlightened areas of the world is a part of letting our lights shine.
C. Paul and Barnabas set out on their missionary journey with the right attitude the gospel is for all, (Gal. 3:28; Col. 3:11).
D. When spreading the gospel from nation to nation, barriers will exist to hinder the effort. Some of these barriers will be difficult to overcome, but Christianity has the inherent ability to overcome them.
II. DISCUSSION
A. The barriers that exist between nations that could hinder the effort to spread Christianity.
1. Nationality itself the things that constitute the separation of different nationalities, such as: land, language, and racial barriers; different manners and customs; diverse economies; and opposing views on the arts or even war. Any new religion claiming to be the universal religion must overcome these barriers.
a. The Jews divided the world into two parts, the Jews and the Gentiles.
b. The Greeks on the other hand divided the world into the Greeks and the Barbarians.
c. As recently as 200 hundred years ago the Chinese considered the world made up of the Celestials (Chinese) and "the others."
2. Social rank these barriers exist within a nation as well as between nations: the rich and the poor; the learned and the ignorant; the slave and the free; and those of royal blood and those of the peasantry. Often within an echelon of social rank, a group will rise up thinking themselves better than their neighbors as regards their spirituality. They will come to believe that rank, liberty, property, salvation, and power belong to them and to them alone. They (so they believe) are God's chosen people!
3. Race a barrier that even in our society: civilization, culture, education, and religion have not been able to overcome.
4. Religions Each nation holds dearly to its own religion or in the case of the United States its lack of a religion. Many believe that their religion is just for them and not to be spread universally. Therefore they are not interested in a religion coming from another country (state, area of the country, part of the world, etc.).
B. The difficulty overcoming these various barriers.
1. Convincing those of the favored class to accept their fellow citizens as their equals in spiritual matters. This was a problem among the Savior's own Apostles. He taught them that the gospel was for all men, and was to be preached unto all the world.
a. The example of the Syrophoenician woman, (Mt. 15:26).
b. Peter's need for further revelation, (Acts 10:14,15).
2. Man is generally unwilling to receive religious instruction from someone they see as their social inferior. In the Apostolic times the Jew was regarded with hatred and contempt by the Greeks and the Romans, yet they are the very people that God chose to bring the gospel into the world.
a. Would a master learn from his slave, or a priest from a layman?
b. The Apostles were generally below those of other lands in things such as: social position, the arts, science, and literature, yet God sent them to elevate the people with respect to religion.
C. The ways which Christianity can surmount these obstacles.
1. By revealing that all mankind are one race in God's eyes, (Acts 17: 26).
a. We are descendants of one couple, Adam and Eve.
b. "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God." *
c. Jesus is called the "Son of Man." *
2. By showing that Christ is the Savior of us all.
3. The hope of the eternal home is open to all.
4. The plan of salvation is the same for all.
5. We all possess the same God-given rights, such as: sunshine, tides, winds, stars, air, and the products of the earth.
a. Christianity will lead us to civil,social, and religious equality.
b. The Christian missions of Saul began a new era in the history of man. "You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free." *
D. Final thoughts under Christ there are "no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the household of God." * Our ancestors for the most part were heathen Gentiles who worshipped idols of wood, stone, or metal. The gospel was preached to them, it raised them from their low condition and availed us the opportunity to learn it in relative safety. It is now our responsibility to spread the gospel and allow it to elevate our friends, neighbors, and families, both at home and abroad.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
1. Find the scriptures for the quotes in the lesson (see *'s above).
2. In today's world what do you feel is the greatest obstacle that we must overcome to spread the gospel.
3. Pick one of the five ways listed in which the obstacles to Christianity can be surmounted and expand on it or come up with a way of your own.