Lystra was a Roman colony in the region of Lycaonia, in the interior of Asia Minor, an area that is now part of Turkey. Paul and Barnabas arrived there during the first missionary journey, after fleeing persecution in Iconium.
The biblical text does not mention a synagogue in the city, a sign that there were few Jews among its residents. The people spoke the Lycaonian language and worshiped Greek gods such as Zeus and Hermes.
It was in Lystra that Paul healed a man who was lame in his feet, crippled from birth. The miracle led the crowd to try to worship the two apostles as gods come down to earth.
Shortly after, Jews from Antioch and Iconium stirred up the people against Paul. He was stoned and dragged out of the city as dead, but he got up and went back in.
Years later, on the second missionary journey, Paul returned to Lystra and there met Timothy, a young disciple of good reputation who would become his son in the faith.
Lystra shows how the human heart can go from worship to violence within a few days. And how God can raise up, in the midst of persecution, someone who will carry the gospel forward.
