What is a Berean?

There seems to be a great deal of confusion over what, exactly, is a Berean. Some think it is some kind of religious denomination or a sect. Some even accuse a person who calls himself a “berean” of being a heretic. There is a great deal of misunderstanding in religion over what a “berean” really is. The best thing we can do here, and the best thing we should ALWAYS do, is see what the bible says about the Bereans:

Actually it would be better to go back and set the stage first, and see why it is that Paul wound up in Berea where the “Bereans” are located. In the bible, a Berean would be somebody who lived in the Macedonian city, or community, of Berea. Here is why Paul wound up there:

Acts 17:5 But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people.

Acts 17:6 And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also;

Acts 17:7 Whom Jason hath received: and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus.

Acts 17:8 And they troubled the people and the rulers of the city, when they heard these things.

Acts 17:9 And when they had taken security of Jason, and of the other, they let them go.

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

So, Paul and his companion, Silas, come to Berea. It is simply a city named in the bible. Obviously the people who lived there would be known as “Bereans.” But this next verse will show us why people today call themselves “Bereans.”

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.

Did you notice that? God’s word says they were “more noble” than the unbelieving Jews in Thessalonica. Why does it say that? Well, it says the received the word with “all readiness of mind.” A ready mind would be the exact opposite of the people Stephen was preaching to in Acts chapter seven. They would also be the opposite to the unbelieving Jews who had assaulted Paul:

Acts 7:51 Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.

So it seems that these Bereans had an open heart and open ears to what Paul was telling them, but there is one more important thing about them. Look back up at verse 11 again and see if you can see what else they did. They SEARCHED THE SCRIPTURES, and it says DAILY, whether these things were so. Wow! Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you could just get people to do that! To just open their bibles and follow along in the verses as you show them God’s testimony about Jesus Christ.

That he is the son of God, and although he was put to death on a cruel cross, death could not hold him, because God raised him from the dead. The WHY of the cross is the most fantastic reality in the universe! Christ died for our sins, all of them, and was raise for our justification (Romans 4:25) The FACT that he is alive from the dead is LIVING PROOF that God has forgiven us ALL trespasses, since he had already died for all of them.

Now the scriptures the Bereans were searching would be the Hebrew (Old Testament) scriptures, because the new ones were not yet written, but Paul could absolutely show and say that “This Jesus, whom I preach unto you IS CHRIST.” Then he could tell them what the death of Christ had meant for them.

So, a very simple defenition of a Berean is this: A Berean is someone who compares what the PREACHER says with what THE BIBLE SAYS. Do you do that? Most preachers carry a bible but many of them rarely open it. The next time you hear a preacher preach, be a Berean, and compare what he is saying with what the bible says...AND STICK WITH THE BIBLE.

Back to the Bus