The book of the acts of the apostles tells us a curious fact that happened when Paul and Barnabas preached the word of God in the pagan city of Lystra, during the first missionary journey.
Paul, while teaching the word of God, performed a prodigy in front of the crowd that listened to him, by curing a paralytic from birth, the pagans interpreted this fact as thinking that Paul and Barnabas were gods in human form.
This fact shows that idolatry is a mixture between ignorance and heresy. Ignorance because idolaters do not understand that everything comes from the wisdom of God, wisdom that manifests itself in different ways, through prophecies, signs, wonders, miracles, or even in the simplest things of nature. And heresy, because false gods bring false teachings, heresy is essentially the teaching of error. Although the account in the Book of Acts is presented in a very simple and naive way, the Kingdom of God as a doctrine is openly opposed to these forms of oppression, and this is one of the reasons of why the preaching of the gospel is so important.
In this way the Book of Acts tells us how was the reaction of the people of Lystra to the miracle of the apostles:
"When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, ´The gods have come down to us in human form! Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker. The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them.
But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: ´Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them. In the past, he let all nations go their own way. Yet he has no left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.´" Acts 14:11-17.
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