Transcript

One Sunday, sitting on the side of the highway waiting to catch speeding drivers, a State Police Officer saw a car puttering along at 22 MPH.

He thought to himself, “This driver is just as dangerous as a speeder!” So he turned on his lights and pulled the driver over.

Approaching the car, he noticed that there was five older ladies inside, two in the front seat and three in the back, wide-eyed and white as ghosts.

The driver, obviously confused, said to him, “Officer, I don’t understand, I was doing exactly the speed limit! I always go exactly the speed limit. What seems to be the problem?”

“Ma’am,” the officer replied, “you weren’t speeding, but you should know that driving slower than the speed limit can also be a danger to other drivers.”

“Slower than the speed limit? No sir, I was doing the speed limit exactly! Twenty-two miles an hour!” the old woman stated a bit proudly.

The State Police officer, trying to contain a chuckle explained to her that “22” was the route number of the highway, not the speed limit. A bit embarrassed, the woman grinned and thanked the officer for pointing out her error.

Then the officer asked with concern, “But before I let you go, Ma’am, I have to ask, is everyone in this car OK? These women seem awfully shaken and they haven’t muttered a single peep this whole time.”

She replied, “Oh, they’ll be all right in a minute, officer. We just got off Route 119.”

This woman was following the wrong sign for what speed she should go. And many in the church trust and follow spiritual leaders who are giving them the wrong information.

But like the Bereans we need to verify from the Scriptures that what we are being taught and how we are being guided is the truth of God’s Word.

In this session, we are going to address the question, “What is a Berean?” The ministry where I serve is called the “Berean” Bible Society.

And we receive many questions as to what a Berean is from those who call in or sign up for our magazine, or when we place orders and give the name of our organization, or even when a delivery driver stops in to drop something off.

But this gives us many opportunities to talk about the Scriptures and explain what our ministry is all about. Acts 17:10-12 explains what a Berean is.

Acts 17:10-11: “And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.

“These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind…”

In Acts 9, Paul had to flee the persecution of those in Damascus under the cover of night. Here, for the second time in his ministry, Paul had to flee a city under the cover of night, the city of Thessalonica.

Following a riot in Thessalonica, the brethren in Thessalonica sent Paul and Silas away “by night unto Berea.” Berea is a city of Macedonia located about 50 miles southwest of Thessalonica, 320 miles north of Athens.

Berea was “off the beaten path” and not on a main route. The city lays in a remote region on the eastern slopes of the Vermio mountain range.

So the first answer to the question: What is a Berean? is that they were people from a city called Berea in Macedonia in northern Greece.

It’s like us who live in Wisconsin, we are called Wisconsinites, or sometimes even Cheeseheads. The people who lived in Berea were called Bereans. And the city of Berea still exists today under the current name of Veria.

But the reason some ministries such as ours are called “Berean” is because of the Berean’s attitude toward the Scriptures, and their respect and love for God’s Word.

When Paul came to Berea, he followed his usual habit of going “into the synagogue of the Jews.” He would do so, because there he would find Jews and devout Greeks who had an interest in spiritual things and some knowledge of God’s Word.

The synagogue was a good jumping off point for Paul in a new location.

But because of the Jew’s rejection of Jesus Christ and Paul’s message of grace, going to the synagogue also was hazardous and would often lead to persecution for Paul.

But in spite of the Jewish resistance and antagonism to his message, this didn’t stop Paul from continuing to go to the synagogue first in each new town he visited.

Previously, in the synagogue in Thessalonica, Paul had found a noble-minded audience, but Paul states in verse 11 that in the synagogue of Berea, the Bereans “were more noble than those in Thessalonica.” By stating that they were MORE noble, Paul is saying that the Thessalonians WERE noble in their response to the Word of God.

We see that in 1 Thessalonians 2:13 where Paul wrote the Thessalonians, “For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the Word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the Word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.”

In this passage, Paul stated how he was overjoyed and filled with gratitude to God at the way the people in Thessalonica had received the Word, that when they “received the Word of God” from Paul’s preaching, they received it “not as the word of men” but as it was in truth, the Word of God.

Paul was deeply grateful that the Thessalonians recognized the true nature of his preaching and teaching that, by the Spirit, he was proclaiming God’s Word to them.

Paul was thankful that they had swung open their hearts and embraced it warmly as God’s truth. They didn’t believe it was the “word of men,” or just the word of Paul, or something he had made up or concocted, but that it was the very Word of God.

And as a result, Acts 17:4 says, “some of them [the Jews in the synagogue, that is] believed, and…of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.”

Both the Thessalonians and the Bereans “received the Word,” but what made the Bereans “MORE noble” is that they did so “with all readiness of mind.”

And also what made them “MORE noble” is that they went the even further step in that they “searched the Scriptures daily whether those things were so.”

The Bereans received the Word, but then checked it out for themselves to make sure it was so. This is what made them “more noble” than the Thessalonians.

So as to our question we are addressing, “What is a Berean?” we’re going to give three answers to this question with letter “R’s” to help you remember. First, a Berean is one who RECEIVES the Word with all READINESS of mind.

A Berean is one who is open-minded for truth. The Bereans had an openness to the Word preached to them. They had an anticipation, an expectancy to learn and grow.

The Greek word translated as “received” means to welcome a friend or guest into one’s home with open arms, minds, and hearts. It means even going beyond normally expected gracious hospitality. The term was often used of welcoming honored guests and meeting their needs with special attention and kindness.

This was the attitude the Bereans had with the friend, the honored and welcome guest of the Living Word of God as it was proclaimed to them.

The Word of God, the Word of Truth, the Word of Life, the Word of the Gospel, the Word of the Cross was received with open arms, minds, and hearts as an honored guest.

And there was a readiness to hear and receive the Word. “Readiness of mind” speaks of eagerness, rushing forward, of a state marked by enthusiastic interest.

Out of their respect for the Word and their desire to receive it and learn the truth, they eagerly rushed forward, they leaned in, as it were, to receive what was taught from it.

These people did not immediately close their eyes to further light. On the contrary, they gave Paul an enthusiastic, interested hearing, listening with open minds to what he had to say. The Bereans listened with rapt attention and absorbed the teaching of the Word.

Their eager acceptance was like the Psalmist in Psalm 119:33: “Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end.”

There was an eager interest in the Word and readiness of mind to be taught and receive more truth by the Bereans. And nobility is ascribed by the Holy Spirit to this state of mind.

A Berean attitude is a humble understanding that there is always room for refinement and growth in one’s knowledge of the Word of God. Having a ready mind is to allow our minds to be open to understand what we didn’t understand before.

Founder of Berean Bible Society, Cornelius R. Stam says of this important quality of receiving the Word with all readiness of mind: “How sorely this Berean lesson is needed in the professing Church today! So many among God’s people, yes, and even among their leaders, lack this quality of true spiritual greatness.

“Their first thought is to conform to accepted beliefs rather than to conform to the written Word of God.

“Their desire to stand well with the popular leaders is greater than their desire to know the truth and to make it known. They would rather be orthodox than Scriptural.”

Often people are close-minded to more light from the Word. Many refuse to open their minds to the truth of rightly dividing the Word of truth, or of a dispensational understanding of God’s Word and that we are living during the dispensation of grace.

They will not consider the truth of Paul’s separate and unique apostleship from the twelve, and God’s message for us the Body of Christ found in his letters.

So many would rather hold firmly to the long-held traditions of men and their denomination.

And they refuse to open their minds to God’s twofold purpose in His Word: God’s program of prophecy with Israel and His program of the mystery with the Body of Christ.

And that, because of unbelief, God’s program with Israel was temporarily suspended, and God raised up the Apostle Paul to reveal a previously unknown program for the Gentiles.

Following this program, after the Rapture, God will turn again to Israel and fulfill everything He has promised them in His Word.

This is the key that unlocks the understanding of the Scriptures and its proper application. Believers need to be made aware of this message from the Word.

The spirit of a Berean is one of readiness of mind to eagerly receive the Word and the truth, but then to always go back to the Scriptures to see if it is so.

And this is how we WANT people to be with the message of grace that was revealed to Paul: to be open-minded to it and then go the Scriptures, because it is clearly and plainly taught in the pages of God’s Word.

Acts 17:11: “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.”

So as we continue to answer the question, “What is a Berean?” first, a Berean is who RECEIVES the Word with all READINESS of mind.

Second, a Berean is one who RESEARCHES the Word. Not only did the Bereans receive the Word, they researched the Word.

They were eager but not gullible. They had an open mind but also a cautious heart. And they were not willing to accept what Paul said just because he said it.

And the reason that they researched the Word, is that, for a Berean, the Scriptures are our first and final authority in all matters of our faith and practice.

The Bereans would not accept Paul’s teaching without checking for themselves. The Bereans’ attitude was, “Are these things so? Does this man teach the truth? We need to search the Scriptures to find out.”

Dave Branon writes, “’A deadly jungle spider has migrated to the US and is killing people.’ This was the story sent to me and to others on my friend’s email list. The story sounded plausible, the email had lots of scientific names and real-life situations.

“But when I checked it out on reliable websites, I found it was not true, it was an Internet hoax. Its truth could only be verified by consulting a trusted source.

“A group of first-century believers living in Berea in Macedonia understood the importance of confirming what they were hearing.

“As they listened to Paul, they wanted to make sure what he was saying was the truth, and so they consulted the most trusted source, the Word of God.”

When Paul went to this synagogue in Berea, we can be sure that he taught them the same things from Scripture that he had shortly before in the Thessalonian synagogue.

Verses 2-3 of this chapter state, “And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures,

“Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ.”

As Paul reasoned with the Bereans out of the Scriptures, and he opened the Scriptures to them and taught how Christ needed to suffer and die, and that He would rise again, the Bereans realized that they needed to personally verify that.

They listened intently to Paul and considered what he said, but they would not concede until they checked the Scriptures themselves that the truth had been preached. They had the spirit of Isaiah 34:16: “Seek ye out of the Book of the Lord, and read.”

The strength of the Bereans was that they kept close to the Word. When confronted with some doctrine they hadn’t heard before, they gave it an interested hearing, but then “searched the Scriptures daily whether those things were so.”

If the Scriptures agreed with what Paul taught them then it was accepted. But had they found anything in Paul’s message which contradicted the Scriptures they would immediately and wisely have rejected it.

They did so, because the Bible is our only authority, our only guide, it is a book of truth by which we determine what is true and right.

The Bereans encourage individual, personal Bible study. The Bereans were open-minded to truth, yet, and stop and think about this, they would not accept the word here of even an apostle of God, the Apostle Paul, without subjecting what he said to personal examination of the Scriptures.

And for this the Holy Spirit commends them and calls them “noble.”

The Bereans teach us that it doesn’t take a theologian or a pastor or teacher to interpret the Word of God for us. The Bereans believed they could open the Scriptures themselves and read, study, understand, and discover the truth from the Bible. And God has given each of us the Holy Spirit to help us understand His Word and to apply it.

For these noble Bereans, it was not man’s word which they were to act upon, but God’s revealed Word. Thus, when Paul came to them, speaking to them from the Scriptures, they eagerly listened. But they did not let Paul do their thinking for them.

The Bereans saw themselves as individually and personally responsible before God to search out Paul’s teaching from the Scriptures, and to see if it was consistent with the revelation of the Bible. And like the Bereans we are to do the same today.

And every preacher should expect and want his teaching to be so examined, and he should thank God for those who do it. It actually is a troubling sign if a preacher resents examination of his teaching by his hearers.

Personally, I would never knowingly mislead you, but that doesn’t mean I’m not capable of doing so, because I am fallible and not perfect. It’s important that you be like the Bereans and go back to the Word to verify all I say and teach, because I am not the authority.

God’s Word is our authority, and the Bereans show us that we should not blindly follow spiritual leaders who are prone and very capable of making mistakes.

Richard DeHaan tells the following: My wife and I were driving to church one Sunday when we came to a red traffic light, so we stopped. There was only one car in front of us. While I waited, my mind began to wander.

“When the car ahead started to move, I was far off in thought and absentmindedly followed right along without even glancing up at the light. Only after I had driven through the intersection did I realize that I had blindly followed the leader.

The light had been green, but if the other driver had moved ahead before the light had turned green, I would have followed right along with him, and my following of him might have caused a serious accident.

As I reflected on my carelessness, I thought about people who blindly follow their religious leaders. They accept and do everything their preachers say without ever thinking for themselves.

In sharp contrast, those in Berea “received the Word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.” Blindly following the leader can be dangerous. That’s why we must test everything by what the Bible says.

The Greek word translated “searched” in verse 11 is a legal term. It means to interrogate, cross-examine or put through a course of questioning as when one is questioned and examined in a court of law. It was used of a judicial examination before the final verdict was rendered.

It is used of Pilate after he questioned the Lord. Luke 23:13-14 says,

“And Pilate, when he had called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people, Said unto them, Ye have brought this man unto me, as one that perverteth the people: and, behold, I, HAVING EXAMINED Him before you, have found no fault in this man touching those things whereof ye accuse Him.”

The words “having examined” is translated from the same Greek word translated as “searched” in Acts 17:11.

Like with the great detail and care that is given to judicial examinations, that is how thoroughly the Bereans carefully pored over the Scriptures.

Before the Bereans would render a final verdict on Paul’s preaching, they carefully sifted through the Scriptures, and cross-examined, cross-checked, and compared what Paul had said with the teaching of the Word of God.

All of us should imitate these Bereans by being people of the Word and faithfully testing the messages we hear against the truth of the Scriptures.

And as the Bereans searched and examined the Scripture, they did so “daily.” They were not only earnest in their desire to receive the Word, but they were diligent in their pursuit of verifying the truth.

It was worth it to them to work hard at it, and investigate what the Word of God said, and how Paul’s teaching matched up with it.

They did so because, again, they believed in the authority and sufficiency of Scripture. Scripture alone was their sole arbiter of what was true and what was false.

In searching out the truth daily, the implication is that Paul was expounding the Scriptures to them daily. But their response was to go to the Word themselves every day to confirm that what they were hearing from Paul was the truth of Scripture.

Acts 17:12: “Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few.”

So back to our question, “What is a Berean?” first, a Berean is who RECEIVES the Word with all READINESS of mind. Second, a Berean is one who RESEARCHES the Word. And third, a Berean is one who RESPONDS to the Word.

Here we see in response to receiving the Word, and then researching the Word, the Bereans responded to the Word. And they responded by faith.

“Therefore many of them believed” verse 12 says. The “many” here are many Jews. In verse 4, we see that only “some” Jews believed in Thessalonica. In contrast, among the noble Bereans, many Jews believed.

But like in Thessalonica, “not a few” honorable, prominent Gentile women believed. And quite a few Greek men believed as well. We see the impact of Paul’s gospel on both Jews and Gentiles in Berea.

And the Church under grace is made up of Jews and Gentiles reconciled to God in one Body, the Body of Christ.

During Paul’s 3rd missionary journey, we learn the name of one of the Greek men who believed and who assisted Paul on that journey. Acts 20:4: “And there accompanied him into Asia Sopater of Berea.”

When Paul went to Berea and preached the Word, Sopater was one of the Bereans who was leaning forward in the synagogue, open-minded and eager to hear and understand the Word as it was taught.

Sopater then went home and researched and checked the Scriptures daily to see if the things Paul taught him were so. And then Sopater responded, by believing Paul’s message.

Sopater’s Berean response also involved him giving his life to Christ and to be available in His service, as seen by him going as a representative of his hometown to help carry the collection, the financial gift for the saints who were in need in Jerusalem.

Another response by the Bereans is like what 1 Thessalonians 5:21 challenges us to do: “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” The church today is filled with error and confusion. And this is all the more reason why today we need to be like the Bereans.

Like the Bereans, we must “prove all things” or examine and evaluate everything we hear, carefully measuring all things by the standard and truth of God’s Word.

Once we’ve proved, tested, verified, and made sure things are in harmony with the teaching of Scripture, then it’s imperative that we carry out the next part of that verse: “hold fast that which is good.”

“Hold fast” means to grab hold of, seize, to hold on. When you find something that is true, you grab it, you hold onto it and embrace it, and you don’t let go, and you stand for it.

It is the believer’s responsibility to test or examine everything in the light of the Word of God, and then hold to the good and live it out.

My wife and I had the privilege to visit Berea in Greece. And there was a little plaque near a statue of Paul and a mosaic depicting his visit to Macedonia. The plaque, as you can see, contains Acts 17:11 and a poem.

And the poem on this little plaque is very powerful and true: “The Word of God is a power, Neither hell nor sin gainsay; Fruit and blessing abound, In that life where it holds sway.”

And that should be a Berean response to the Word, to allow the Scriptures to hold sway in our lives and to live out the Word in the strength of the Holy Spirit.