Paul in Antioch of Pisidia: I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Acts 13:38
The Book of Acts recounts how Paul's first missionary journey began, with a call from the Holy Spirit to him and Barnabas to preach the faith to the Gentiles. It is interesting to note that the Book of Acts changes Saul's name to Paul upon the apostle's arrival in Cyprus, and this makes sense because Paul, formerly known as Saul, begins to preach the Good News to the pagan world as a new man.
The Book of Acts relates that Paul and Barnabas left Antioch and arrived in Cyprus, where they traveled around part of the island and then went to Perga in Pamphylia and from there went into the interior of Anatolia until they reached Antioch of Pisidia. In this city, as usual, Paul and Barnabas went to a synagogue on the Sabbath, and after a reading from the Law and the Prophets, they were invited by the community to speak. There, the apostle Paul gave his first public speech, a speech that would later influence his famous letters to the various churches.
Paul began his speech with these words: "Fellow Israelites and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me!" Book of Acts 13:16. And in this speech, the apostle explained to the audience God's plan for humanity, from the Israelites' departure from Egypt to the arrival of King David, and then how, from his lineage, came the savior of humanity, Jesus.
In this speech, Paul proclaimed the divinity of Jesus, and in an incipient way, the doctrine of justification, a central question in Christian theology, something the apostle would later return to in the Epistle to the Romans, and he did so with these words: "I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses" Acts 13:38-39. With this teaching, Paul affirmed that the righteousness of Jesus was the only path to the gift of eternal life, the contemplative life, something that could not be achieved with the law.
The Book of Acts relates that Paul and Barnabas's stay in this city was very brief, and despite the hostility of some, many embraced the faith through Paul's preaching.

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