Paul in Ephesus
Acts 19:1-7; 2/18/2024; BCBC/IOUC; Rev. Paul Wang
Introduction
This was Paul’s second visit to Ephesus, having previously passed through it on his return trip from his second missionary journey. The bible says, “And they came to Ephesus, and he left them there, but he himself went into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. (Acts 18:19)” Today’s passage is about Paul’s third missionary journey, which took place around A.D. 52-57. It can be said that these five years of travel have completely changed the gospel landscape, and the life and mission of the entire New Testament church have taken a huge step forward. Today’s segment focuses on Paul’s brief stay in Ephesus, but deals with the most important core truths of the church. Let’s look at the first point:
Faith and the Holy Spirit
Paul and Apollos were probably at the back of each other in Ephesus. As soon as Apollos left Ephesus and arrived in Corinth, Paul came to Ephesus from Antioch in Asia. First, go through the Gospel Land. Paul’s third missionary journey followed almost the same route as his second missionary journey, from Antioch in Syria to Tarsus, the birthplace of Paul. It seems that both Paul and Barnabas had the habit of passing through their hometowns for missionary work! Just like in the beginning of our missionary work, we also went to China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. Then proceed to Derbe, Iconium, Antioch in Asia, Laodicea, and the destination is Ephesus. This is what the scripture means when it says, “Paul passed through the inland country.” This has also been the missionary habit of the church for more than two thousand years. In fact, this is also a learning process, that is, From familiar to unfamiliar, from known to unknown.
Second, meet the evangelists. Walking all the way to Ephesus, it is possible that he will meet the disciples. However, the “meeting some disciples there” mentioned in the scripture is not an ordinary thing. The fact that the Bible specifically mentions it in this way shows that this matter is not simple. It seems that Paul’s encounter made the disciples feel a little uneasy. Once Christians meet each other in life, they will probably know each other’s spiritual life, right? If you truly believe in the Lord, a feeling of peace will accompany you. Of course, if there are problems in spiritual life, or if the basic truth is incomplete, or even problematic, it can also be detected from the words. Our encounter with each other is essentially a collision of lives.
Finally, talk about the gospel. What is the collision of lives? Of course it means touching Christ and the gospel, right? You don’t know this unless you touch it, but you will be shocked when you touch it! Perhaps the gospel preached by Apollos was incomplete, or they were still influenced by the disciples of John the Baptist, we do not know. In short, the gospel they believe has nothing to do with the Holy Spirit! The Bible says, And Paul said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” ” That’s the extent of fundamental truth, right? God declares us righteous because of our faith in Jesus Christ. Therefore, God gives the Holy Spirit to everyone who believes in Him. This is receiving the Holy Spirit! There is no need to add additional behaviors, such as falling to the ground, screaming, crying, rolling on the floor, no need! For without faith it is impossible to please God. Let’s look at the second point:
Pointing to Jesus
The core of faith is Jesus, Christ! The reason why you and I are saved is because we believe in Christ, Jesus, the Son of God. First, it is Christ whom we believe. “What we believe is Christ” is our core value. How to implement it? It’s easy to get confused when you encounter a specific scene, right? The Bible says, “And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John’s baptism.” Is there a problem? John’s mission was to pave the way for the Lord and to be the Lord’s pioneer. After Jesus Christ was baptized, John gradually faded away from the stage and even ended up being martyred for the Lord. Therefore, the message John preached was incomplete. The gospel he preached did not have important contents such as the resurrection of the Lord, justification by faith, or receiving the Holy Spirit. When Paul heard that what Apollos preached was incomplete, he went to make up for it without adding any blame or complaint.
Secondly, in the name of the Lord. What does it mean in the name of the Lord? In fact, it is to interrogate the motives of each of us in our actions and examine our souls. Can we give account to the Lord without any fear? Even if we are baptized, we must do it in the name of the Lord. That is, do it solely and simply because we believe in the Lord. You can’t do it just because you’re just joining in the fun, or because you’re afraid of offending people’s feelings, and you can’t just follow the crowd in a confused way, seemingly understanding but not understanding. Nothing has any eternal significance if it is not done for the sake of Christ Jesus. The few disciples whom Paul saw were blessed; “On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.” And you? After hearing today’s sermon, are you willing to serve and do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ from now on?
In the end, to live to Christ. This is the greatest mystery in life, which is that we all must actually live to Christ. Paul said: “For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. (Romans 14:8)” That is to say, there is nothing in life that cannot find its meaning in Christ, and there is no so-called intermediate meaning. Be of Christ or be of the world, there is no middle way. Paul also said: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Cor. 5:17)” A person who believes in Jesus Christ has only one way, which is to live for the Lord, to live to Christ, and to imitate the Lord’s likeness. Let’s look at the third point:
Tongues and prophecy
Finally we come to the matter of tongues and prophecy. Dialects in Chinese refers to the dialects and accents of some places, while the tongues mentioned in the Bible refer to tongues and spiritual languages, especially the language used in the dialogue between the spirit and God. First, lay hands on prayer. The essence of the laying on of hands is to express God’s authority by faith and to receive grace from God. The twelve disciples Paul met may have received baptism or immersion from John the Baptist through Apollos, and he laid hands on them. It means that the adjustments they need to make in their lives come from God’s authority from above, not from human will. Once the truth is made clear, people are faced with choices. If they are willing to receive God’s grace by faith, then Accept God’s authoritative laying on of hands through His servant. At this time, God’s promise came, and this promise was God’s gift of the Holy Spirit. From then on, they received the Holy Spirit because they believed in Jesus Christ. That is to say, receiving the Holy Spirit is included in justification by faith.
Secondly, speak in tongues. The earliest record of tongues in the New Testament is in Acts 2:1-4, which basically says that when the Holy Spirit came, “everyone heard the disciples speaking in their own language.” Please note that it is a local accent, not speaking in tongues or some spiritual language. By 1 Corinthians 12-14, tongues were regulated by Paul as one of the spiritual gifts. The gift of speaking in tongues is not superior to other gifts. And the gift of speaking in tongues was strictly limited. If you speak in tongues alone at home, there is no law against it. If you speak in tongues in the church, someone must translate it so that others can understand it. Otherwise, if you talk very excitedly on stage alone and the audience cannot understand you, what meaning does it have to the church?
Finally, prophesied again. Prophecy is very common in the Bible. On average, one out of every seven verses is a prophecy. Prophecies are also divided into biblical prophecies and extra-biblical prophecies. This classification is very important and is the basic principle for identifying false prophets and false Christs. Biblical prophecies are relatively simple. As long as they are words in the Bible, they are the truth, the way, and the life. It’s just that today there are so many types of prophecies that it’s difficult to identify them. Whether it is Anand from India, Parker from England, Blind Goddess, or Liu Bowen’s Shaobing Song, Christians should not believe it and there is no need to pay attention to it. What is more difficult is that in some churches today there are people who prophesy during worship. What should we do? In fact, it is simple. So-called prophecies that are not in the Bible have no authority. Just listen and don’t take it too seriously! Don’t follow the personal statement!
Conclusion
Well, thank the Lord! Paul helped the twelve disciples he met in Ephesus to reorganize their faith, establish values with Christ as the core, and also talked about tongues and prophecy.
Let us pray……
Acts 19:1-7
1 And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples.
2 And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
3 And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John’s baptism.”
4 And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.”
5 On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
6 And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.
7 There were about twelve men in all.
