Acts 18:22-19

(taught on August 10, 2008)

D. Paul's third missionary journey (18:23 thru 21:14)
1. Paul goes to Phrygia and Galatia strengthening the disciples (18:23)
2. Apollos comes to Ephesus and is further taught by Aquila and
 Priscilla and sent to Corinth (18:24-28)
3. Paul returns to Ephesus where he teaches and baptizes twelve men
 (19:1-7)
4. Paul spends three years preaching in Ephesus, and where a riot drives
 him from the city (19:8-41)

(Acts 18:23) After he had spent some time there, he departed and went over the region of Galatia and Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples.

· Acts 18:23-20:38 is Paul's third missionary journey. This occurred from 53-57 AD. Evidence suggests he took this journey to attempt to undo damage caused among the churches by numerous opponents to the gospel. During this journey, he was in Ephesus for about 3 of those years.

(Acts 18:24) Now a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus.

· Apollos was from Alexandria, a famous city in Egypt named after Alexander the Great, who founded it in 332 B.C. Alexandria had a large Jewish population and one of the leading Hebrew colleges with one of the most famous libraries in the world.

· Apollos was "born" there. The Greek word implies not only born there, but had his ancestry there.

· He was highly cultured, well-learned, particularly in Scripture, and was a skilled speaker. He was energized, enthusiastic. He likely had great portions of the Old Testament memorized. He becomes a leader in the Christian church (1 Cor 3:6) and in Ephesus (1 Cor 16:12). Years later he was still helping Paul (Titus 3:13).

(Acts 18:25) This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John.

· Apollos had been instructed about Jesus, but possibly only from John the Baptist or his disciples, which would explain why his knowledge was lacking (verse 26). Note that his teachings were accurate, but incomplete. It appears the news of Jesus resurrection and what it meant had not reached this area, for others had the same incomplete information (19:2-5).

· Apollos preached the same baptism that John taught. John's baptism was only a sign of turning away from sin. (Matt 3:2,6,8,11, Mark 1:4-5, Luke 3:8), not a sign of new life in Christ and what He did for us. Jesus was not part of the solution. John was always pointing to something else, and was incomplete. The baptism in Christ is final and complete.

· Both John and Apollos preached basically the same message, but can you imagine the difference in presentation, since John was from the wilderness, and Apollos probably was trained at the university? Yet, God worked just as well through both men. Moses claimed to not be eloquent in speech (Exo 4:10), yet look how God spoke through him! Whatever our background, whether learned or not, whether comfortable in speaking or not, God will give us the words to use when we need it (Luke 21:14-15).

(Acts 18:26) So he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.

· Aquila and Priscilla were a godly couple that opened their house to Christian worship and ministry, in at least 3 different cities (Corinth, Rome (Rom 1:7, 16:3), and Ephesus (Acts 18:24-26)). They ministered to people as a family - they were all involved in ministering to others. And, they ministered wherever they went.

· Aquila was a Jew, born in Pontus (the area just south of the Black Sea, and northeast of Galatia). Many of the Jews of the dispersion were settled in that country, as we see in 1 Peter 1:1.

· Aquila and Priscilla had just come from Rome, because of a recent edict from the emperor Claudius Caesar that all Jews are to be banished from Rome (approx 50 A.D.). The Jews were generally hated there, and the Romans took every occasion to put hardship and disgrace upon them. Interesting that they had been banished because they were Jews, not because they were Christians. Often Gentiles in those days could not distinguish between the two. The Romans complained that the Jews were a turbulent people, and the conflict between the Jews and Christians only made their perception worse.

· It is good to be in company and to have regular conversation with those that will improve our knowledge of Christ, and to put ourselves under the influence of those who are resolved to serve the Lord. Are some of the people you spend time with those that draw you closer, or do most draw you away? How about you - do you draw others closer to Christ or have no impact for Christ in their lives?

· This shows us that although women were prohibited from teaching men publicly (1 Tim 2:12, 1 Cor 14:34), those limitations didn't mean a woman couldn't teach a man privately.

· Aquila and Priscilla acted as mentors for Apollos. There were not intimated by his eloquence and education, because they had the truth.

· Note they took him aside, probably as not to embarrass Apollos. This is how correction is to be handled (Matt 18:15-17).

· What are some characteristics of a mentor? Motivates; encourages, protects, counsels, trains, takes time with, sacrifices, opens up. Yikes, that sounds like work. In fact, they risked their lives to help Paul (Romans 16:3-4). But they were so effective for God that they became well-known in all the Gentile churches (Romans 16:3-4).

· By mentoring someone, you could be the catalyst in their lives to become a great help to others and be a powerful defender of the faith.

· Imagine if Apollos had been hard headed and arrogant. He never would have accepted the truth, and never become a Christian. We need to be careful we are never someone that people cannot reason with. He listened and carefully examined the words of Aquila and Priscilla. He saw the Old Testament prophesies becoming clearer, and being fulfilled.

(Acts 18:27) And when he desired to cross to Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him; and when he arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace;

(Acts 18:28) for he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.

· Now Apollos, from the tutoring he received from Aquila and Priscilla (verse 26), he combined that with his vast knowledge of Scripture, his fervent spirit, and his skilled speaking, to aggressively and persuasively refute arguments against Christ from the Jews.

· But note that it was Aquila and Priscilla who enabled Apollos to be in this position. In your life, who has been a Spiritual mentor to you? Who has lifted you up in the faith? Who are you doing that to (2 Tim 2:2)? Remember our main purpose for our lives is to glorify God, to draw close to Him, and to help others do the same. In what ways are you fulfilling God's desires for your life?

· How can you as a family be an influence for God?

· Apollos soon after left Ephesus and went to Corinth (vs 19:1), in the region of Achaia. He quickly became the verbal champion for Christianity there (see Paul's comments in 1 Cor 4:1,6, and 1 Cor 1:12, 3:4-6, 16:12).

(Acts 19:1) And it happened, while Apollos was at Corinth, that Paul, having passed through the upper regions, came to Ephesus. And finding some disciples

· In addition to Aquila and Priscilla, there were other disciples there. But, these disciples that Paul meets had the same incomplete knowledge that Apollos had (18:24-26).

· God guides Paul to come to Ephesus, for God had forbidden Paul to go into northern Asia (Acts 16:6-10). Ephesus was a strategic location from which to influence the rest of Asia. Paul wrote 1 Corinthians from Ephesus. Later, from prison in Rome, he wrote the epistle to the Ephesians.

· Paul stayed in Ephesus 3 years, preaching there day and night (Acts 20:31). While there, he earned his own keep (20:34). Because of the long time there and since he spoke regularly, people probably travelled there from other cities to hear him speak.

· Ephesus was a city of up to 250,000 people, on the west coast of Asia Minor. It was a center on the imperial highway from Rome to the east, a backbone of the Roman empire. Ephesus was second in importance and size only to Rome. It was rapidly becoming the center for Christianity, more so than Antioch of Syria.

· Ephesus contained the Temple of Artemis, also known (less precisely) as the Temple of Diana. Artemis was the Greek name for the goddess of fertility - Diana was the Roman name for the goddess. The temple is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It had 127 pillars each 6 stories tall, and was about 4 times larger than the Parthenon in Rome. It took 220 years to build, and was completed around 550 BC. It was built of the purest marble.

· Obviously much of the population of Ephesus worshipped Diana. Sexual vice was part of their heathen worship - the worship was a "perpetual festival of vice", and was a regular part of their festivals. The priestesses of Diana were public prostitutes.

· Vast multitudes of Diana worshippers became Christians. Those who had worshipped Diana and now were Christians were used to that way of life, and found it difficult to give it up. Some tried to harmonize their Christian walk with their former heathen life. Some continued to allow heathen immoralities. Here in Ephesus, Christian leaders excluded those who taught allowing these practices to continue, but in other cities they were more lenient, and paid the price for it.

· But many found it difficult to give up. This is reminiscent of St. Augustine.

o Augustine was born on November 13, 354, in North Africa (present-day Algeria). His parents were Romans citizens of modest means; his father was a pagan, and his mother, Monica, a Christian. In his Confessions series of books, he dramatically recounts the first 33 years of his life until his conversion in 387.

o Augustine describes his adolescence in terms of "my past wickedness and the carnal corruptions of my soul." During his teenage years he says that he was pricked by the "briars of unclean lusts." He tells a story about he a bunch of boys stole a load full of pears, for no reason at all except that it was wrong to do so.

o In 370, the year his father died Augustine was sent to study at Carthage. As he writes, "I came to Carthage, where a cauldron of illicit loves leapt and boiled about me. I was not yet in love, but I was in love with love." Around 371, he took a concubine and "did fall in love, simply from wanting to." He had a son by her in 372. But in 373, he "changed the direction" of his interests and kindled a passion for philosophy and its quest for truth.

o Around 374, Augustine wrote that, throughout the "nine-year period, from my nineteenth year to my twenty-eighth, I was led astray myself and led others astray." During this time he remained faithful to his concubine, bonded by "a lustful love," and cared for their son. He moved to Milan, where he heard Bishop Ambrose preach. At first, Augustine was interested only in his eloquent style rather than in the content of his sermons. But gradually, Ambrose made him see that faith could be maintained on reasonable grounds.

o But in 386, sexual passion still restrained him from committing to Christianity. "I in my great worthlessness [he writes to God] had begged You for chastity, saying: "Grant me chastity and continence, but not yet." For I was afraid that You would hear my prayer too soon, and too soon would heal me from disease of which I wanted satisfied rather than extinguished."

o One day he was wondering how long it would take before his intellectual conversion would be accompanied by a moral one, when suddenly a child's voice, in "a sort of sing-song, repeated again and again, 'Take and read, take and read.'" He thought that this was a message from God, and picked up the bible and read the first passage he saw. It was from Paul's Epistle to the Romans 13:13-14: "Not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and impurities, not in contention and envy, but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ and make not provision for the flesh in its concupiscences." He says that as soon as he finished the sentence, he felt as if "all the darkness of uncertainty vanished away." Now his will as well as his mind was converted to God.

· Once you have been involved in sin, it likely will be a life long struggle to fight against it, especially substance abuse or sexual sins. Beware every time you give in to sin, potentially for the rest of your life you are making it harder to fight it. Think about it before you give in. You cannot change the past, and you know how it haunts you, but you can make proper decisions going forward. The number one way to prevent abuse it to remove the cause of it (if practical), to be far away from it (Prov 4:14-15). This means if you have a drug problem, those drugs should be unavailable in the house. If you have an eating problem, don't buy the offending foods, don't even go down those aisles. If you have a lust problem, stay away from anything (as much as you can) that feeds it. Often you're making the wrong decisions long before the moments of sin. Every time you fail you add to future temptations - don't fuel the fire. (There are other helps, like Scripture memorization, regular prayer, accountability by others, etc.)

(Acts 19:2) he said to them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" So they said to him, "We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit."

· Apart from the Holy Spirit, there is no salvation (Rom 8:9,16, 1 Cor 12:13, Eph 1:13). It is the Spirit that imports life (John 3:5).

(Acts 19:3) And he said to them, "Into what then were you baptized?" So they said, "Into John's baptism."

(Acts 19:4) Then Paul said, "John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus."

(Acts 19:5) When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

· 1 Cor 1:14-17 implies Paul did not do the actual baptisms.

· This is the only example in Scripture of a rebaptism. Although, many probably did - those who were John's converts that later became Christians.

(Acts 19:6) And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied.

· In Acts 10:45-47 there was a similar manifestation of the Spirit.

· The supernatural filling of the Spirit endorsed them as true believers and showed others they needed Jesus Christ, not just repentance.

· Instances of speaking in tongues was erratic, and not the rule (2:4, 10:44-46, compared to 8:39, 13:52, 16:34).

· This is the final recorded speaking in tongues in Acts.

· Note that the book of Acts is not intended to be a book of doctrine, showing what should be happening. No, it merely shows what did happen (although there is some doctrine woven into it). The epistles are much more focused on doctrine.

· Note there is no set pattern to receive the Holy Spirit. Some receive it at baptism (2:38, 8:38), some before (10:47).

(Acts 19:7) Now the men were about twelve in all.

(Acts 19:8) And he went into the synagogue and spoke boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading concerning the things of the kingdom of God.

(Acts 19:9) But when some were hardened and did not believe, but spoke evil of the Way before the multitude, he departed from them and withdrew the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus.

· In the school or Tyrannus, the lecture halls were used in the morning to teach philosophy, but were empty during the hot part of the day, from 11-4. Because many people did not work during those hours, they could come to hear Paul preach.

(Acts 19:10) And this continued for two years, so that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.

· Paul may have been in the school of Tyrannus for 2 years, but was in Ephesus for 3 years (20:31).

(Acts 19:11) Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul,

· Paul only worked miracles at certain times in certain places. There is no mention of miracles from Paul in Damascus, Jerusalem, Tarsus, Antioch, Athens, or Rome. At one point he could not heal his fellow worker Trophimus (2 Tim 4:20).

· The miracles had a 3-fold purpose - they demonstrated God's power and authority, they authenticated Paul, and they helped the people.

(Acts 19:12) so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them.

(Acts 19:13) Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, "We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches."

(Acts 19:14) Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so.

(Acts 19:15) And the evil spirit answered and said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?"

· It was a common practice to make a living by driving out demons (Luke 11:19). During this they would often recite a long list of deities to make sure they included the right ones. So here they try is using Jesus' name, to match the power that Paul had. It doesn't work.

· Here is a clear indication of the difference between knowing about Jesus and knowing Jesus. (Other examples of demons with spiritual knowledge - Luke 4:33-34, 8:28.) There are those who have read the Bible, who have studied it, and have a great knowledge of it, but do not know Jesus.

· These men failed to realize that the power was from God, not from magic or incantations. It wasn't what was said or how it was said, but the faith behind it. That is why attending church, learning the lingo, singing the songs, etc. does nothing without faith. Tell me about your faith! Show me your faith! In James we read faith without works is dead (James 2:17). Okay, don't show me your faith - show me the evidence of your faith byt the results in your life.

· Are you scared of demons, or are they scared of you? Is your name known in Hell? Are you respected in Hell? The demon says "I know Paul".

· Interestingly, sometimes prayer with fasting is required to cast out demons. Yes, with fasting (Matt 17:21).

(Acts 19:16) Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

(Acts 19:17) This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.

(Acts 19:18) And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds.

(Acts 19:19) Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver.

· Paul shook the mighty city of Ephesus to its foundation.

(Acts 19:20) So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.

(Acts 19:21) When these things were accomplished, Paul purposed in the Spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, "After I have been there, I must also see Rome."

· Paul had planned to continue on to Rome on this trip, but wound up turning back before he did. Note that he had planned to leave even before the commotion broke out (vs 23).

(Acts 19:22) So he sent into Macedonia two of those who ministered to him, Timothy and Erastus, but he himself stayed in Asia for a time.

(Acts 19:23) And about that time there arose a great commotion about the Way.

(Acts 19:24) For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Diana, brought no small profit to the craftsmen.

· Ephesus had become a place of pilgrimage for many worshippers of Diana, and while there they bought trinkets and souvenirs. Paul had been there about 3 years already, so it had taken a long time for the effects of Paul's preaching to have a noticeable impact on the pocketbooks of those who sold cult artifacts. Demetrius didn't care about what Paul taught, he only cared about the money. He didn't care Paul was making converts until he realized it was affecting his bottom line. But, the only way they could get a following to stop Paul was to hit the religious aspect (vs 27), because folks didn't care that it was affecting him financially. He hid behind patriotism and loyalty, when it was really a selfish reason. The people cared about the prestige of the goddess and the shrine.

· How many people with seemingly noble aspirations underneath have selfish motivations as the foundation. This may include those who preach, donate, give time to others, etc. May we each examine our hearts to make sure the things we do, we do with pure motives, to honor God and not ourselves and our purposes.

(Acts 19:25) He called them together with the workers of similar occupation, and said: "Men, you know that we have our prosperity by this trade.

(Acts 19:26) "Moreover you see and hear that not only at Ephesus, but throughout almost all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that they are not gods which are made with hands.

(Acts 19:27) "So not only is this trade of ours in danger of falling into disrepute, but also the temple of the great goddess Diana may be despised and her magnificence destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worship."

(Acts 19:28) Now when they heard this, they were full of wrath and cried out, saying, "Great is Diana of the Ephesians!"

(Acts 19:29) So the whole city was filled with confusion, and rushed into the theater with one accord, having seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians, Paul's travel companions.

· The amphitheater could hold around 25, 000 people.

· Gaius was from Derbe, and was one of the few people that Paul personally had baptized (1 Cor 1:14-16).

· Aristarchus was a native of Thessalonica.

· Both Gaius and Aristarchus later travelled with Paul (20:3-4, 27:1-2).

(Acts 19:30) And when Paul wanted to go in to the people, the disciples would not allow him.

(Acts 19:31) Then some of the officials of Asia, who were his friends, sent to him pleading that he would not venture into the theater.

· Paul had friends at all levels, including political officials.

(Acts 19:32) Some therefore cried one thing and some another, for the assembly was confused, and most of them did not know why they had come together.

(Acts 19:33) And they drew Alexander out of the multitude, the Jews putting him forward. And Alexander motioned with his hand, and wanted to make his defense to the people.

(Acts 19:34) But when they found out that he was a Jew, all with one voice cried out for about two hours, "Great is Diana of the Ephesians!"

· The commotion lasted for at least 2 hours!

(Acts 19:35) And when the city clerk had quieted the crowd, he said: "Men of Ephesus, what man is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple guardian of the great goddess Diana, and of the image which fell down from Zeus?

· The "image which fell down" was likely a reference to a meteorite that was regarded as divine, they had been placed in the temple for veneration and worship. This object was considered proof that Artemis (Diana) was a great and powerful goddess.

· The city clerk was probably a Roman, which may have given him more weight to get the people to listen to him.

· If they had failed to control the city, Rome would have had to intervene, removing officials from office, and probably putting martial law in effect, greatly limiting their freedoms.

· It is amazing that this Roman was using the law to protect Christians in this most idolatrous region in Asia. This probably was because he didn't care about the faiths, but of civil peace.

(Acts 19:36) "Therefore, since these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rashly.

(Acts 19:37) "For you have brought these men here who are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemers of your goddess.

(Acts 19:38) "Therefore, if Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a case against anyone, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. Let them bring charges against one another.

(Acts 19:39) "But if you have any other inquiry to make, it shall be determined in the lawful assembly.

(Acts 19:40) "For we are in danger of being called in question for today's uproar, there being no reason which we may give to account for this disorderly gathering."

(Acts 19:41) And when he had said these things, he dismissed the assembly.