What is a Berean? Part I
Part I – A Noble Pursuit
“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, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. Therefore many of them (the Berean’s) believed; also of honorable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few.”
Acts 17:10-12 KJV
For some, the term “Berean,” may be strange upon the tongue, and for others it may be a cliché’. Amongst Bible believing Christians, this term is commonly chucked around. To many who study the Bible; these individuals have almost become legendary. A simple Google search under the heading of “Berean” will yield copious amounts commentary (I am not recommending you develop your theology via Google) on this topic. It is a term that has been used for inspiration, and a term yielded to desecration (as is so often the case with powerful biblical terminology.) Some hyper-sectarian groups have adopted the name in the past in such a fashion that it directly and ironically contradicts the very nature of what being a Berean means.
Before perusing this meaning, it is worth noting that one likely reason the Berean’s have obtained a certain romanticized stature in the minds of many, is due to the noble pattern they established. This is a pattern I think we will find radical, essential and ought to be unwavering in the lives of those who crouch on bended knee to enter through that slim and narrow gate of Christ.
These Berean people are set, by the Holy Spirit, in contradistinction to the people whom Paul had preached to in Thessalonica. We find in Acts 17:4 after Paul reasoned with the Thessalonians in their synagogue that some of them believed and associated with Paul. After which he gets chased out of town yet again by the Jews who hated what he had to say about Jesus due to envy. When Paul then ventures to Berea (now known as Veria) he happens upon a group of would be believers who set themselves apart from others. Rather than simply accepting what someone, no less than Paul the Apostle, said about scripture at face value, the Bereans chose, with readiness of mind, to search the scriptures to see if what PAUL said was true or not. Before we move on it is worth noting, that they verified the teaching of one who wrote the majority of the New Testament. Was this a rebellious tendency? Was it bare naked skepticism? No…this was true nobility!
