Understanding

Acts 19: Early Christian Testimony in the City of Ephesus

The Holy Spirit empowered the Apostles and early believers to boldly proclaim the Gospel of Christ in the great City of Ephesus, and to undergo persecution resulting from refusal to shrink back from the truth of the Gospel.

The story starting at v.23 reads in part, “Soon the whole city was in an uproar.” It helps us to understand that Ephesus was a city of some 250,000 people! The theater (v.29), which is still standing to this day, held approximately 25,000 people. Increase the seating of the Hollywood Bowl by about 40%, and you have a rough idea.

Here is a link to a picture of the ruins of the theater in Ephesus as it looks today:

http://static.panoramio.com/photos/large/58347211.jpg

“Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” This chant was repeated over and over by the angry crowd. In Ephesus, the Temple of Artemis was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, attracting large numbers of worshippers from around the Mediterranean world and beyond. In Greek mythology, Artemis (Roman “Diana”) was considered the daughter of Zeus and the twin sister of Apollo. She was the goddess of the hunt, wild animals, childbirth, virginity, and young girls, to name a few.

Most of the city’s lucrative industry and trade in household idols and shrines revolved around the goddess Artemis. This was a large industry in one of the largest cities in the empire. Ephesus also boasted its many shrines and temples to other deities, including several Roman Emperors thought to be divine. Artemis was the most popular of all, but the threat Paul’s preaching posed to commerce in Ephesus extended across the boards to all their many “gods” and “goddesses” – not only Artemis.

The City of Ephesus had one of the largest and most well stocked libraries in the ancient Near East. The ruins of that library are standing to this day at the end of Celsus Street:

http://turkeycitytour.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/ephesus-tour-1.jpg

Many streets, columns and statues of ancient Ephesus can still be seen in Western Turkey, and one can walk upon the very same stone streets which the Apostle Paul and the early Christians traversed:

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http://ephesuswebsite.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/curates-street.jpg

The disturbance described in Acts 19 was not merely a case of one obscure artist (Demetrius) getting upset and stoking a handful of people into outrage. This was a major uprising - nearly a full-scale riot - against Christ and the Gospel. Someone finally calmed the mob down by warning them they were in danger of punishment by the Roman authorities for public disturbance. Paul’s friends would not allow him into the theater for fear he would be killed. This was certainly no minor event.

I believe we often read such accounts and imagine them to have taken place in some dusty, primitive, small town environment with a handful of bearded men in robes and sandals, carrying staffs. Erase that “flannel board” image. Ephesus was a sophisticated, commercial city, roughly the size of Santa Clarita in population. It had running water, an underground sewage system, a large public library with an extensive collection of writings, and a number of affluent homes of up to 9-10,000 square feet with multiple levels, central heating systems, sophisticated art, and rich furnishings. Imagine wide, paved streets with beautiful, sophisticated buildings, shrines, columns and arches, hundreds of businesses, and many travelers on the major trade route, of which Ephesus was a key port city with a busy harbor. Imagine all this, and you are imagining the real Ephesus in the time of Christ and Paul.

Following is a link to a rendition of how central Ephesus would have looked in the first century:

http://www.culturaltravelguide.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ephesus-map.jpg

The above picture does not purport to show the entire city of Ephesus, only the “downtown” or central part. There was much more to the city, including the great temple of Artemis:

http://www.ephesus.ws/assets/99671/bcjoxfli92.jpg

Ephesus was far from Jerusalem – over 1,000 miles by land and over 600 miles by sea. Yet, events described here in Acts 19 took place only 25-30 years after Jesus issued the Great Commission. This testifies to the fact that the entire Roman World heard the gospel in a very short period of time. When the Gospel was faithfully preached in the power of the Holy Spirit, it caused disturbance and conflict “right here and right now.” It was not a matter of going in and gradually winning over the people, nor was it a matter of Christians doing social services to get the city leaders to like and support them. It was not about doing personal acts of kindness to “prime the pump” so the personal testimonies of Christians would be more palatable.

Paul and the others were respectful and proper in their preaching, and miracles happened through them from time to time, but they did not put “deeds before creeds.” The Apostles and thousands of early believers were not tortured and/or martyred for performing good deeds, nor for acts of charity and kindness, but for believing and preaching the Gospel of Christ, which was incompatible with pagan idolatry and emperor worship.

Some 20-30 years after this event, the Apostle John (traditionally  the only Apostle to die of old age) became the pastor of the church in Ephesus and the chief elder or bishop of the surrounding six churches named in chapters 1-3 of Revelation. During his tenure as Pastor, John was arrested, allegedly tortured in Rome, and then exiled by Emperor Domitian to the prisoner island of Patmos, where he was held for a year or two and where he received the Revelation. Subsequently, John resumed his pastoral post in Ephesus and lived to a ripe old age.

Why do we care about such historical details? There are several compelling reasons. One is that the scriptures describe real, objective, flesh-and-blood historical events, and their significance and meaning are best understood in light of the cultural and practical settings in which they took place. Another is that we can apply the lessons of scripture to our own present circumstances more effectively when we are able to relate and compare them with conditions in which the historical narratives of the Bible are set. Yet another is that the original Great Commission in the early church period provides us with guidance by which we can shape our own Great Commission efforts; we are not left to invent it from scratch, nor to take undue creative liberties with it.

The early believers with Paul and the other Apostles carried out the commands of Christ. If we are going to do the same, then it is vital that we understand the Biblical and historical patterns in proper objective and historical context.  

Acts 18: The Gospel & Words

 

The Gospel of Christ must be represented, conveyed and affirmed using words.

Yes, to be “in Christ” is a matter of both the heart and reason. Faith cannot exist apart from reason. Conveying the Gospel requires words, while hearing and understanding it requires engagement of the mind.

Paul “…reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks” (Acts 18:4). The Lord spoke to Paul, “…keep on speaking…” (v.9). Paul stayed in Corinth “teaching them the word of God” (v.11). Apollos “taught about Jesus accurately” (v.25). Apollos later “vigorously refuted his Jewish opponents in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Messiah” (v.28).

Throughout Acts and the Epistles, Paul and the others preached the Gospel, taught the word, reasoned and debated the truth claims of Christianity, proved using arguments from Scripture that Jesus Christ is the promised Savior, repeated and reaffirmed the Good news, and in all ways constantly and consistently spoke, reasoned, explained and taught the Gospel of Christ. They made disciples, constantly teaching them with the very words of life.

Nowhere in the New Testament do we find the Apostles or early Fathers striving to convey or affirm the Gospel without using words. Moreover, the Great Commission itself (Matt. 28:16-20, Mark 16:15-16, Luke 24:44-49, John 20:21-23, Acts 1:8, etc.) is essentially a mandate to preach the Gospel and teach the word, both of which require words, propositions, explanations, repetition, and teaching.

The Christian faith rests upon factual, historical events of incredible significance. To preach the Gospel means and has always meant explaining and recounting these historical events and truth claims. These objective claims are actually true, or they are not. Jesus Christ was either born of a virgin, or not; He is the seed of Abraham and the one promised by God, or not. He lived a sinless life, or not; He died for us on a Roman cross, or not; He rose from the dead, literally and actually, the firstborn of many brethren, or He did not; and He ascended to the Father to make intercession for His redeemed, sending the Holy Spirit to be our Comforter, or He did not. Either God credits the righteousness of Christ to the accounts of those who believe the Gospel, or He does not.

Such propositional truths as these are either believed, or they are not. If believed, then faith and “the heart” is necessarily involved, alongside and in concert with the reason.

The world’s religions do not depend upon historical, objective truth claims such as those which comprise the Christian Gospel. Buddhism does not depend upon the actual life, death or resurrection of Siddharta Gautama (the “Buddha”). Islam does not depend upon the life, death or resurrection of Muhammad. The Koran could have been given to someone else besides Muhammad. In order to hold to the Christian faith, by contrast, one must know and affirm a set of very specific truth claims concerning one and only one historical person, namely the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

The Gospel simply “is” an objective set of historical claims and affirmations – no amount of “silent,” wordless adherence to “good” lifestyle practices can convey it. In fact, good, generous, kind living (as elusive as it can be) is basically benign – even pagans display it, at times better than many Christians.

Biblical “obedience” essentially means to believe Biblical truth claims - what actually happened – who, what, and why (John 6:29). The only way these truth claims can be understood in the first place is by hearing, studying and coming to understand the words of Holy Scriptures. No words, no Gospel of Christ. No words, no Bible. No Bible, no Gospel. If we miss this point, then we can just as easily miss the importance of Biblical study, learning, and much of discipleship altogether.

In chronicling the early Great Commission, almost every page of the Book of Acts underscores importance of sharing the verbal message of the Gospel; so does the entire New Testament, for example: Matthew 24:14, 26:13; Mark 3:14, 6:12, 13:10, 14:9, 16:15, 16:20; Luke 16:16, 24:47; Acts 8:4, 8:25, 8:40, 9:20, 9:27…  we can cite many dozens more examples. Some of my personal favorites are Romans 10:14, 1 Corinthians 15:2, 15:14, and 2 Timothy 4:2.

What we do not seem to find in the Bible is any teaching or command to preach the Gospel without words. It isn’t there, because it cannot be done! The most pious person on earth, if he is silent and does not use words to share the Gospel of Christ, does not share it. Christianity does not consist of our piety, but His righteousness, His life, His death, and His resurrection – as these are imparted to us by grace. It is not our testimony about ourselves that counts, but our testimony of Him; not what we do and don’t do for Him, but what He has done, and still does, for us. These are the things to which we must bear witness with words – or there is no Gospel, and no basis for authentic Christianity.

In fact, authentic Christianity itself is Christ and His work, not us and our work. I am afraid it is very, very easy as well as tempting for us modern, self-focused believers to get this turned around backwards, and our addiction to doing so is more a function of our rampant individualism and insidious narcissism than anything else.

Christ commanded that the Gospel be preached, and that disciples be taught. If words are not involved, some things can be conveyed, but not the Christian Gospel. Good living is both fine and important, and it should result increasingly from our belief in Christ and the Gospel as we grow in the Lord. Better living, however, is not the recipe but an outcome of Biblical Christianity.

While many results of believing the Gospel can surely be demonstrated in and through the lives of believers, and while poor outward behavior of a messenger can certainly impair the credibility of the message, in the final analysis the Gospel of Christ cannot be conveyed except in words. 

Acts 17: Paul, Mars Hill and the Men of Athens

Acts 17:22-25 – “Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: ‘”Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.”

The Areopagus in Athens, Greece (Acts 17:19 &22) is a knobby hill of light gray marble stone with ancient, chiseled steps. Also known as “Mars Hill,” it stands yet today in the shadow of the Acropolis, a large, flat-topped, rock mesa overlooking and dominating the ancient city of Athens. On the Acropolis stand ancient columned temples and shrines in various states of preservation; these temples were built before Christ for the worship of various deities (idols). The largest of the Acropolis temples in Paul’s day (and still in ours) is the mighty Parthenon, temple of the Greek goddess Athena. In the time of Paul and the early Church, sacrifices and prayers were frequently offered at the numerous temples and shrines of Athens.

Pictures are sometimes better than words. Follow the link to a picture of the Areopagus (Mars Hill, in the foreground) as it looks today, with the Acropolis and Parthenon looming in the background. The city of Athens would be outside the picture in the lower-left direction, behind and below Mars Hill: 

http://www.albertmagnus.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Areopagus6.jpg

This second picture is from the opposite direction, taken from atop the Acropolis. Mars Hill is in the center, with the city of Athens visible beyond and below it. Mars Hill was a lofty perch, yet it was far enough removed from the throngs on top of the Acropolis, that conversations were possible. Paul and his listeners would have stood or sat atop Mars Hill when Paul made his speech:

http://www.padfield.com/greece/athens/images/mars-hill-01.jpg

In the city of Athens, citizens lived in homage to numerous deities. It was considered perilous to anger a god or goddess, or to show any disrespect. One could work hard to please all the gods, but slip-up with even a minor god or goddess, and life could become full of curses and misfortunes. There were literally hundreds of gods to deal with, and even the minor ones were not to be offended. We can imagine, then, why the Athenians kept a shrine to “an unknown god.” They wanted to avoid offending any gods they may have overlooked. This explains why the “men of Athens” - though they were learned philosophers - were willing to entertain Paul’s announcement of the identity of the “unknown god.”

 These cultural factors help explain the depth of Paul’s preparation (v.16-18) and his mastery in bringing the message as he did to the Athenian philosophers.

“The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead” (v.30-31).

As a result of his preparation by engaging some of the Stoics and Epicureans down in the city, Paul had been invited to Mars Hill (v.16), where Athenian thinkers customarily gathered to discuss and debate the latest philosophical, political and cultural ideas (v.21). Here, Paul addressed a group of philosophers, who asked him to explain himself. Paul, being an Apostle of Christ, was happy to oblige.

“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” (1^st Peter 3:15)

How exactly did Paul reply? He answered as he always did – he preached the Gospel, including centrally the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. His listeners were not upset with Paul’s talk of the “unknown God,” because they already had many gods. However, some mocked him at the very idea of a resurrection (v.32).

So do most people today. In fact, there are millions of self-proclaimed “Christians” who seek some other explanation for the Biblical resurrection than Christ actually rising physically and literally from the dead. Many believe it is all merely a “truth” residing solely in their hearts; others believe the story of the resurrection is merely a myth and a literal impossibility. Some hold the resurrection of Christ to be a fanciful tale that is worth appreciating in a “pretend” or allegorical kind of way, like Santa Clause or the Easter Bunny. Many scoffers sneer, “Surely you don’t believe a man was actually dead and then became alive again! I bet you also believe a fish swallowed a man and then spit him up alive a few days later!” This is how some of Paul’s listeners on Mars Hill reacted to the Gospel.  

God, however, chose some to be born again by faith in the word which Paul preached (v.34). God bestowed upon and within these elect the gifts of the Holy Spirit, including faith, repentance, adoption, justification, and sanctification. He does the same today when the actual Gospel of Christ is preached. And so the pattern of Acts keeps repeating: the gospel and the resurrection are clearly preached, the Holy Spirit moves, and some are converted and baptized. This is the way of the Great Commission, and it is the way of “making Christ followers.”

Acts 16: The Conversion of Lydia & the Great Commission

Acts 16: The Conversion of Lydia & the Great Commission

Paul had completed his first missionary journey to Eastern Asia Minor, including Syria. Now on his second journey, Paul crossed Asia Minor in obedience to the Holy Spirit, and together with Timothy he sailed across the northern Aegean Sea from Troas to Philippi. It was only AD 50, some 15-20 years after the death and resurrection of Christ, and the Gospel was already moving out from Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria into the “uttermost parts of the earth,” where it was being delivered to “the nations.” (Acts 1:8; Matt. 28:19).

Lydia of Thyatira was Paul’s first recorded convert in Europe. She had moved from Asia Minor to Philippi in the region of Macedonia. Lydia was a woman of means. She was in the textile business, dealing in an upscale product for which Philippi was well known. Lydia may well have moved to Philippi in order to place her product closer to its relevant markets and closer to the main trade route connecting Asia and Europe. Philippi, being a Roman Colony and a trading center, was home to retired and highly respected Roman military families, who would presumably have been part of Lydia’s elite customer base.

Acts 16:14-15 reads, “The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. ‘If you consider me a believer in the Lord,’ she said, ‘come and stay at my house.’ And she persuaded us.”

Several observations

1. The Lord (not Paul or Timothy, and not Lydia) opened Lydia’s heart (willingness, attitude, perception of truth, faith, repentance) to respond to the Gospel; as always, God did the electing and the opening, and He dispensed the gifts of faith and repentance; Paul’s job, being Christ’s ambassador, was to deliver the Gospel and teach the truth of God’s word. This he did faithfully, and the Holy Spirit worked in Lydia through the word of God which Paul preached;

2. Paul’s message throughout the Biblical record was consistently the Gospel of Christ,                      including centrally the fact that after Jesus was crucified as the ultimate sacrifice for sins                    and was totally, physically dead, He rose again from death to life, the firstborn of many                      brethren; the risen Lord appeared to many, and He ascended to the Father’s right hand to                make intercession for the saints and to send the Holy Spirit to regenerate, comfort and                      guide believers;

 3. Lydia was baptized when she believed the Gospel and received the Spirit; her household                was also baptized. In Greco-Roman culture of that time, all members of a household,                          including slaves, were expected to adopt the religion of the head of that household, who                    was almost always the paterfamilias, or the oldest man in the family. Lydia’s “household”                  would typically have included children, extended family members (possibly, for example,                  a grandparent, older parent or a single/widowed relative), and all house slaves and freed                    slaves working for the family. Our understanding of this enlightens Paul’s statement to                      the Philippian jailer at Acts 16:31. To refer to “Lydia’s household” and to focus on her                          conversion, being a woman, as the driving force behind the entire family’s baptism, is                          both unusual and remarkable;

 4. Lydia was a “worshiper of God,” a Gentile who had been drawn to Judaism and the true                  God. In the mid-first century, engaging with women on matters of philosophy and                                religion was counter-cultural, even outrageous. The Good News was truly being extended                  to Gentiles and the nations, and not only to men but also women and people of all colors                    and classes. This is the full meaning of “the Nations” in the Great Commission. As Jesus                    Himself had ministered to people - men, women, Samaritans, or whomever - so Paul and                  his companions ministered inclusively, in obedience to the mandate of Christ, and to the                  calling of Paul as “Apostle to the Gentiles”; and

 5. Lydia immediately manifested the gift of hospitality. God granted this woman faith in                    Christ and the Gospel, and he granted repentance; then the Spirit immediately called and                  empowered her to extend hospitality to Paul and Timothy, who were truly in need of it. We              see here the Christian community and fellowship at work immediately upon conversion,                    and we see the great providence of God. We see also the beginnings of a life of faith,                            wherein Lydia was already learning to obey the commands of the Lord, as she entered a                      new life in Christ.

We clearly see in this account of the conversion of Lydia the following components of the Great Commission:

(a) “Go” & “Obey” - Matt. 28:19 & 20 - In going to Macedonia, Paul obediently moved when and where he was directed by the Spirit;

(b) “Preach the Gospel” - (Mark 16:15, Matt. 28:19) - the Gospel was preached inclusively to women, Gentiles, and the Nations;

(c) “Baptize them” - (Matt. 28:19) - Lydia was baptized with her household when she repented, changing her mind and belief, under the power of the Spirit, to believe the Gospel and receive Christ as Lord and Savior;

(d) “Teach them to obey all that I have commanded” - (Matt. 28:20) - Lydia began to obey the commands of Christ. Her first and most important act of obedience, granted to her by God’s grace, was to believe the Gospel, whereupon she received the gift of the Spirit (Acts 2:38) and immediately obeyed God’s prompting to extend hospitality to Paul and his companions; and

(e) “Pray” - (Acts 16:16) - they all obeyed the command of Christ to pray.

Acts 15: Many Philosophies, One Gospel

Acts 15:1 – “But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, ‘Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved’.”

This was a false teaching which sprang from the Jewish religious and cultural mindset and worldview, which was exclusive by nature. That is, the Jews had long considered themselves to be God’s people, to the exclusion of Gentiles. Now, they sought to impose their Jewish-ness on converts to Christ, by insisting that believers were not “true” Christians unless they observed Jewish laws, including circumcision.

We can admit that we ourselves bring our own notions of “exclusivity” to the Christian table. We are “us” and other Christians with differing traditions are “them” – even if we are all believers who trust Christ for salvation, redemption, sanctification and all that accompanies these blessings and gifts of God. We tend to hold onto our own particular traditions and mindsets.

Jesus Christ and the Great Commission changed the entire landscape of exclusivity. The Great Commission as portrayed in Acts and in the NT epistles was an inclusive, expansive movement. People were converted to Christ out of a multiplicity of philosophical, cultural and religious backgrounds, and philosophies were quite diverse.

One's "philosophy" or "worldview" is the lens through which one views the world and his or her place and role in it; it encompasses one's understanding of reality, existence, knowledge, learning, values, and reason. In casual terms, "philosophy" refers to the most fundamental beliefs and attitudes of a person or a group of people.

Philosophy was popular back in the Near East and in Europe in the first century, even at street level, and far more so than in our day. Today we have science, literature, mathematics, politics, etc., and we think of philosophy as being a separate, minor subject for the few strange people who go in for that sort of thing. Not so in Paul’s world, where philosophy enveloped and informed other disciplines and was a relatively common topic of passionate conversation and concern.

There were Stoics who valued reason above all else, and there were Epicureans, who being materialists, had no belief in life after death or anything spiritual or eternal. Paul, while in Athens on his second missionary journey, reasoned with Stoics and Epicureans on Mars Hill, a rock outcropping next to and just below the mighty Acropolis. Paul chose his words and his approach carefully in light of their particular philosophical bents, not pandering to his listeners but demonstrating knowledge of and sensitivity to their views, while presenting truth which was in sharp contrast.  

Paul and the early Christians also encountered Gnosticism, at least in its early form. Gnostics, who contaminated (and still contaminate) the Church with heretical notions of secret knowledge and wisdom unavailable to ordinary Christians, denied there was any good in material things, including flesh, which kept them from accepting the full humanity of Christ. For that reason and others, those Gnostics who falsely claimed to be “Christian” were in fact heretics.

The Cynics, ancient “hippies” so to speak, were itinerants who thwarted normal societal norms and taught that social convention and popular thinking falsely covered up truth. Cynics believed it was their job to explain and reveal reality to those whose vision and understanding was obscured – that is, everyone except themselves.

In addition to the various philosophical schools, there were the “Sophists” whose skill was rhetoric and whose work was to speak and argue for whatever positions would be most lucrative for them at the moment. Sophists were speechmakers, and they were debaters. They could take any side of an issue and make a convincing case for it. The Apostle Paul was undoubtedly trained in rhetoric by his teacher and mentor, Gamaliel, and having had such expert training, Paul was no doubt mistaken for a Sophist at times.

All of these schools of philosophical thought and rhetoric existed alongside a synergistic and polytheistic Greco-Roman pantheon of many "gods." The common worldview and philosophy concerning the gods was that they were neither omniscient nor omnipotent, nor even necessarily good - they were in fact given to human-style weaknesses and even malevalence, much like the men and women who invented them in the first place.

So the early Church, not unlike the modern day Church, was plagued with the presence of many whose worldviews were, at least initially, incompatible with authentic Christianity. As another example, here in Acts 15:5 we find of all things “Christian Pharisees!” It seems that a large part of Christian discipleship, then as it should be now, was educating, training and equipping converts to know, practice and share with others the differences between the Christian faith and the philosophies and worldviews which they brought with them.

Paul wrote, "We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ". (2nd Corinthians 10:5)

We know Paul himself was a Pharisee at the time of his own conversion.  Zealous for the law, such men often sought to falsely apply requirements of the Jewish religious and ceremonial laws to converted Gentile brothers. Carryover of old beliefs and ideas (“worldviews”) into a convert’s Christian life is a problem and a challenge today, just as it was in Paul’s time. Our tendency to hold onto old, popular worldviews and philosophies is also why it is necessary to “to equip the saints for the work of ministry …until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God …so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine” (Eph. 4:12-14).

Given all of the above, when Paul and the other Apostles and early evangelists carried out the Great Commission, they did so in a highly pluralistic and philosophically and religiously diverse environment that was more like our own than we might think. Paul preached the Gospel mostly to those having philosophical backgrounds (worldviews, belief systems) that were incompatible with a belief in resurrection from the dead, or with the notion of one single God of creation, let alone a single Triune God.

People in the original Great Commission age of the first century tended to be quite jealous of their own particular ideas, just as people today. This is one reason why Paul and the others encountered more rejection and persecution than acceptance. We would undoubtedly encounter more rejection and persecution, rather than mere apathy and mild condescension, if we preached the Gospel as blatantly and clearly as Paul did. 

What am I driving at?

Jesus lived into His early 30’s, died on a brutal Roman cross, and then rose from being absolutely dead to completely alive on a particular date, in a specific place; He did these things literally, physically and historically. He did not rise from the dead “in our hearts.” He did not come to merely inspire us and “fill in the gaps” of our philosophical and religious preconceptions. He did not give us a general idea of “goodness” along with wonderful ethical teachings and then leave us to reconcile His teaching with our own preconceived philosophies and worldviews.

He certainly did not give us a blueprint or mandate to go into all the world and affirm everyone's vain philosophies while merely overlaying a little Christianity. Jesus was not the first word on human philosophy, He was the last word. He was as tangible and real and as human as you or me, and what He did up close and for real put all petty human philosophies in their rightful places.  

No philosophy or worldview which is counter to Christ and the Gospel can possibly prevail over Christ and His glory, and that is the case whether the person holding such a philosophy or worldview is an atheist, a professing Christian, churched or un-churched, or whether he holds multiple degrees in philosopy, religion, or theology.

Our mandate is to share the Gospel of Christ, the real one set forth in the Scriptures. Yes, in light of Paul's example on Mars Hill we need to be sensitive to those with whom we share, along the lines of 1st Peter 3:15 which says we must be ready to give to those who ask us a reason for the hope that is in us, and we must do so with gentleness and respect. 

But gentleness and respect for another's worldview, when it is counter to the Gospel, does not mean we agree with it, affirm it, or call it "their truth." Paul and the Apostles didn't do so, as throughout the Book of Acts we see the Gospel shared sensitively yet directly into cultural, religious and philosophical diversities that are not much unlike the ones we encounter today.

Let's be comely in our sharing, but let's also be honest and forthright about the Gospel when we share it.

 

 

 

Acts 14: Paul, Hermes & Hermeneutics

Acts 13:1 through 14:28 recounts Paul’s first missionary journey, in which he and Barnabas – having been sent out from the church in Antioch (13:2-3) - traveled north and east through south-central Asia Minor. Paul did a very straightforward thing: he preached the Gospel, especially the part about the actual, physical resurrection of Christ from the dead.

In preaching the Gospel, Paul importantly taught Christ from the Old Testament (e.g., 13:16-25), sharing knowledgeably and skillfully how the Scriptures pointed to Christ and to that which Christ accomplished. In doing this, Paul calls to mind the words of Jesus Himself: “You search the Scriptures [Old Testament] because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me...” (John 5:40).

When Jews did not believe the news of the Gospel and turned against Paul, he turned to the Gentiles. Paul was in fact called to be the “Apostle to the Gentiles” (Galatians 1:15-16).  Paul obeyed the commission and command of Jesus as we find them documented at Matthew 28:16-20, Mark 16:15-18, Luke 22:44-49, John 3:18-20, Acts 1:8 and elsewhere. In preaching the Gospel, nurturing believers in faith and doctrine, equipping them for the life of faith and for works of ministry, and preparing them for suffering, Paul carried out the Great Commission. Another key components of the Great Commission that went along with these were observance of the sacraments (baptism and the Lord’s Supper), and prayer.  

There is an interesting comment in Acts 14:12, where it is said that the people called Paul “Hermes.” Why would they attach this particular name to Paul?

In Greek mythology, which most in the Greco-Roman world were familiar with, Hermes was the “god” who brought messages to mankind. Some Gentiles who witnessed miracles and who believed Paul’s message decided to honor him by nick-naming him after Hermes. Long after Hermes was no longer seriously regarded as a god, it was said that an interpreter who brought strangers together with translations was a “hermeneus.” This is also the source of our word, “hermeneutics,” the discipline of skillfully approaching, studying and interpreting the Bible, so its message may be clearly and accurately understood and conveyed.

When we engage ourselves in learning how to more effectively approach, read, study and explain the Scriptures, we are engaging in Biblical “hermeneutics.” It is a 25 cent word that can intimidate people when they first hear it, but its meaning and derivation are plain enough. The word itself is not as crucial as our dedication to learning and understanding the word of God and the message of the Gospel of Christ which it carries and conveys.

Hermeneutics by whatever name is an important component of developing Christ followers, and of equipping one another to develop them. Thus it is a crucial part of the Great Commission.

Acts 9: Paul – Persecutor, Convert & Persecuted

"…Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.” (Acts 9:1-2)

“[Paul] went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord. And he spoke and disputed against the Hellenists. But they were seeking to kill him…” (Acts 9:28)

Saul of Tarsus (Saul with an “S”), a Jewish Pharisee and zealous persecutor and killer of Christians, went out in search of Christians to persecute and kill, and he came back a Christian named Paul (with a “P”). He then preached the Gospel “boldly in the name of the Lord,” placing his life in grave danger at the hands of his former religious colleagues.

I believe that by considering the life and ministry of Paul, we can learn much about our own calling and our own responsibilities as Christ’s witnesses. And if we choose to do so, we can ask ourselves some probing questions about our own service to the Kingdom.

What was in it for Paul?

Did Paul convert to Christianity for fame or fortune, or so that his life would be “transformed” to be pleasant and full of blessings? Did Paul devote himself to praying for God’s material blessings? Did he convert because someone convinced him it would be just wonderful to be a Christian, or that if he did convert he could be just like them? Did Paul feel so guilty over his great sin of persecuting Christians, that in shame he bowed down and “asked Jesus into his heart?”

Hardly! There was no fame in it for Paul, only scorn and ridicule from those whose approval he once coveted, and persecution from political authorities. There were no creature comforts in it for Paul. He himself would be terribly abused for his faith in Christ and his aggressive evangelism and apostleship. There was certainly no money in it for Paul – the Christians he would serve were rapidly losing whatever financial means they might have enjoyed.

Paul was not converted to any so-called “prosperity gospel.” He wrote no books and taught no series on “Five Ways to Gain Economic Prosperity” or “How to Keep Your Kids off Drugs.”

There was at least one thing in it for Paul – suffering. God guaranteed it! (Acts 9:15-16)

Paul’s Conversion

Paul was converted the same way anyone else is – by the effectual calling of God through means of the word and Spirit of Christ. Sure, Paul’s conversion was dramatic, being knocked off his horse and blinded and all, but the essential ingredients of calling and conversion, the word and the Spirit, were front, center and efficacious. Perhaps all the drama and lightning and blinding was for God’s own purpose of qualifying Paul among the brothers and getting him to work sooner rather than later. On that we can only speculate.

God told Ananias of Damascus (v.15-16) that He would show Paul how much he must suffer for Him. God let Paul know what was coming – beatings, floggings, stoning, imprisonment, chains, hatred, ostracism, betrayals, expulsion from cities, and beheading. Yet, Paul zealously obeyed Christ whom he now knew and in whom he now believed and trusted.

Paul the Evangelist

What was Paul’s approach to “witnessing?”

We might have guessed he would spend most of his time “building relationships.” After all, what good could come of leading right off with the Gospel, proclaiming Jesus as Messiah? With all the bad reactions Paul knew were coming, and all the rejection, why rush into things? Surely Paul would be crafty enough to think of some suitable social service projects to do, so the people would see the great transformation in his life and want to get in on it.

How about some pancake breakfasts, or perhaps a free concert or two in Jerusalem? Wasn’t Paul taught, like many Christians today are taught, that he was the “only Jesus the people would ever see”? If he could be tactful, and hold off on the “Gospel” and all the theological stuff, then maybe the people would not be overwhelmed with complexity that was just too much for them. Maybe Paul could give away free tents with Gospel tracts tucked inside. That way, maybe some would be softened up by the free tent and decide to join Paul’s tract society.

Thankfully, Paul did none of these things. Instead, he began speaking and disputing against “the Hellenists.” The Hellenists in this context were Jews who read the Old Testament in Greek (called “LXX”, or the Septuagint.) They had been “Hellenized” or molded to be more “Greek” than culturally Jewish. Some of these Hellenists were very likely converts – that is, culturally Greek Gentiles who had converted to Judaism.

This suggests that Paul very likely began targeting his original audience according to his ultimate calling as “Apostle to the Gentiles.” Paul preached the Gospel to them, argued with them, gave reasons for the hope that was in him, “demolished arguments and every pretension that set itself up against the knowledge of God” (2^nd Cor. 10:5), and in every way presented Christ as Messiah.

Perhaps this is the very sort of activity that brought Paul into contact and friendship with the Gentile, Dr. Luke, who later became Paul’s companion in ministry and author of the Gospel of Luke and Acts, the book we are now reading. Could Luke have been a Hellenistic convert to Judaism before reconverting to Christ? There’s an interesting study for another day.

Summing Up

In any case, once Paul was converted, he preached the Gospel, defended the faith, and in so doing placed himself in harm’s way. He later made it clear in his writings that he converted no one, but that God alone did so, using believers as “secondary means” - one to sow seeds, another to water, and someone else to harvest as God gave the increase.

Paul did as God instructed him, though it was both unpopular and dangerous. All of this seems very much consistent with the commands of Christ in Matthew 24-28, as He prepared His followers for His death, resurrection and ascension, and for great persecution to come upon them. In His parting instructions, Jesus commanded His Apostles to preach the Gospel, teach His word, administer sacraments, pray, hope, and persevere.

Paul certainly did all of this in carrying out his mandate to be the “Apostle to the Gentiles.”

Acts 6 – Early Church Messiness

       “…a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because                       their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution.”                                                                    - Acts 6:1

The context is the early church in Jerusalem. “Hellenists” were Greek-speaking Jewish Christians. These were often Christians who were born and/or had lived or worked outside of Palestine, such as in Asia Minor (now Turkey), or North Africa/Egypt, or elsewhere in the Greco-Roman world where Greek was the official language. Many of these were widows who had little or no means of supporting themselves. The reason there were so many widows is that it was common for men to marry much younger women, and men very often predeceased their wives.

“Hebrews” in v.1 refers to those Jewish Christians who spoke Hebrew or Aramaic. The “Hebrew” Jewish Christians did not speak Greek, or if they knew any Greek did not speak it as a matter of course. Greek was considered by many of the Hebrew Jewish Christians as a “foreign” language, symbolic of the occupation of Israel by pagan Gentiles.   

Jews in Jerusalem had long maintained a system of providing food and clothing to widows, and it seems the early Christian Jews followed suit. So here we have the early Jerusalem Church serving widows, some of whom were “Hellenistic” or Greek-speaking, and the rest of whom were “Hebrew.”

While the Hellenistic (Greek-speaking) Jewish Christians and the Hebrew Jewish Christians shared the same fundamental Christian beliefs, from there it had become somewhat messy. The Hellenistic Jewish Christians seem to have been more inclusive and accepting, and less isolationist, than the Hebrew-speaking Jewish Christians. Hellenists were typically conditioned to a wider geographical and cultural sense of their Judaism, while the Hebrews – being under much local oppression and most having been in and around Jerusalem all their lives - were less inclined to embrace diversity and more resistant to anything perceived as outside or foreign influence.

It seems, therefore, that a natural division was in place between the Hellenist and Hebrew Jewish Christians, even though they were part of the same Christian Church in respect to their common Christian beliefs and practices.

This “messiness’ in the early Jerusalem Church somehow manifested itself in the Hellenistic, Greek-speaking, Jewish Christian widows being short-changed on the distribution of relief. This was seen as (and in fact was) injustice and therefore antithetical to the teachings of Christ. It was not only injustice, but also a threat to unity in the Church. Therefore, the Apostles decided something needed to be done. However, they were saddled with leading, teaching and managing thousands of new Christian converts, and as such they wisely understood that they needed to give themselves all the more to prayer. The solution was to appoint a task force to oversee correction of the injustice, and to establish a more equitable system whereby the Hellenistic Jewish Christian widows would receive just distribution of food and clothing.

Some say the seven men appointed to address the immediate problem were the first “deacons,” and while there may be some rough truth in that, it appears that there was no overt intent here to establish a new church office in perpetuity. Given the situation they found themselves in, and given the particular matter of food distribution to widows, the Apostles simply acted in a sensible way to address the situation without undermining their own responsibility to effectively lead the nascent Christian Church.

As far as modern application is concerned, we can observe that (1) people tend to be “messy”, (2) the Church will therefore tend to become messy and fragmented over time if no steps are taken to hold it together, (3) increased messiness and increasing challenges add to the leadership burden, (4) at some point, then, good leadership demands delegation, and therefore (5) good and effective leaders in the Church (pastors, elders) are wise to identify, train, and appoint others to handle certain tasks and problems, in order to ensure that peace and unity in the churches. 

Acts Chapter 2 – The Spirit of Christ & the Gospel of Christ

We must never separate in our understanding the ministry of the Spirit of Christ (the Holy Spirit) from the Gospel of Christ. To do so would be to miss the entire point of the power and presence of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus had promised (Acts 1:4-5, 8) to send the Holy Spirit to empower the Apostles for the work of the Great Commission. He told them that once the Holy Spirit came, the Apostles would take the Gospel from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. Having received this promise, and this commission, the disciples were sitting together in a house (2:2) in Jerusalem, waiting for something to happen. They did not know exactly what, but they had come to believe that what Jesus promised would certainly take place.

When fulfillment came, it was in a most extraordinary way. There were signs and manifestations, as a great sound from Heaven rushed through the house, and as “divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them…” The Apostles of Christ then began to speak in “other tongues” as the Spirit “gave them utterance.”

The question now arises, what was the reason for these manifestations of the Spirit? To what purpose did all this take place among the Apostles on that “day of Pentecost?”

The answer is plain enough from the text itself. In fact, the answer is the main thrust of Acts and the New Testament. The answer is: The Gospel.

Jesus had previously told His Apostles (1:8) that once the Holy Spirit came upon them with power, they would be equipped to go into the world to proclaim the Gospel and be “my witnesses” to the world. Prior to His crucifixion, resurrection and ascension, Jesus had led His disciples personally, teaching them many things about His Kingdom and encouraging and equipping them for their future work as His ambassadors. Now, having rejoined His Father, Jesus sent His Spirit – who like Jesus is fully God, being a person of the Holy Trinity – to remind them of His teaching and of “all truth” (John 16:13), and to empower and encourage them in the ongoing ministry of that truth – namely, the Gospel.

There are two major ways in which the Apostles would now bear witness to the Gospel.

First, they would go immediately out into the public and preach the Gospel. We should not skip over this, because it is the main point and result of their empowerment by the Holy Spirit. It is what they did immediately after their empowerment, and it is what they continued to do for the rest of their lives.

In beginning immediately after they were filled with the Spirit, the Apostles spoke the Gospel in words, which is the only way the Gospel can be shared.If there are no words, then there is no Gospel. What was unusual on the day of Pentecost was that the words of the Apostles, as they shared the Gospel, were understood by men of diverse nationalities and languages. They heard the Gospel in their own native “tongues!” We are not given minute details on how this worked, or exactly how it sounded, so to attempt to explain it in detail is presumptuous at best. We do know from the text that it was an amazing, sensational event, in which the Apostles, having been Holy Spirit empowered, were able to declare the Gospel in words unrestricted to languages they otherwise knew how to speak.

Second, the Apostles – over the next several decades – wrote letters to the churches and to individual leaders of those churches. Some of these letters were written under the continuing power and inspiration of the same Holy Spirit who filled them on the Day of Pentecost, such that the record and witness of the Gospel is now preserved in what we call the New Testament. This New Testament became the written succession and preservation of the Apostolic witness and testimony, namely the Gospel.

So what is the point of the Holy Spirit‘s arrival with signs and wonders here in the 2^nd chapter of Acts? The exact point is the spread of the Gospel from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth, and the corresponding establishment of the Church, which the Apostle Paul called “a pillar and buttress of the truth” (1^st Timothy 3:15). This “truth” is Christ and the Gospel.

The point of the Holy Spirit’s empowerment was not for Christians to dazzle one another with strange signs and wonders, as some sort of fantastic display. It was not to signify that “this” tribe of believers had more “Holy Spirit power,” and thus more truth, than “that” band of believers. It was not to establish famous evangelists who would gather great crowds for money and then, using mass marketing strategies and slick advertising, entertain the people with amazing displays of charismatic powers.

The Holy Spirit was not sent to make heroes of men, nor to puff them up according to how many “Spirit gifts” they can manifest, nor to build up “me, myself and I,” as we find in much of the modern Church. The Holy Spirit came to magnify Christ by empowering men to effectively preach and establish the Gospel of Christ, and by correspondingly granting some the power and grace to hear and believe the Gospel.  

Those who were “filled” with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4) went on to “fill” Jerusalem with their teaching (Acts 5:28), and the teaching they filled Jerusalem (and then Judea, Samaria and the world) with was the Gospel! We see this very clearly right here in Acts chapter 2, as the first thing Peter does (Acts 2:14-36) is stand and preach the Gospel, with particular emphases upon the resurrection of the crucified Christ as an actual, historical event, and the identity of Jesus as both Lord and Messiah (v.36).

In other words, the infilling of the Spirit of Christ (the Holy Spirit) was not an end in itself, but the means to the end which had been decreed by God from all eternity – namely that the Gospel of Christ would be shared and taught first in Jerusalem, and then throughout the world.  

This being the case, we should above all read the Book of Acts through a Gospel frame. It is all about the Gospel, which means it is all about Christ and what He has done. Not only did Christ take on human nature and presence among us, live the holy and righteous life we could not, die in atonement for our sins, rise from the dead for our justification, and ascend to be our Mediator and Advocate with the Father, but He and the father also sent the Holy Spirit to empower men to take this very message – the Gospelof Christ – into the world and into the Church.

If the Gospel is not in the front and center of our life, our churches, and of our reading and thinking about Acts and all of scripture, then we have missed the point, the meaning, and the purpose of the Holy Spirit’s presence and empowerment.

We must not separate the Spirit of Christ from the Gospel of Christ.