Acts 18:23-19:22 - Part B

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That's connectwithskip.com. Now let's get into today's teaching from Pastor Skip Heitzig. In finding some disciples, 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. You ought to know a little bit about Ephesus. Ephesus, as I mentioned, is the chief commercial port of that area, 250,000 people. But it was most commonly known for a certain temple. Now there was a lot of temples in there, but Ephesus was called the guardian of the temple of Artemis or the temple of Diana. Artemis is the Greek name, Diana is the Roman name. And because the temple was there, and I'll tell you a little bit about this temple later on in this text, massive, four times bigger than the Parthenon in Athens, if you've ever seen that, four times larger.

It was one of the imperial cults in existence in the Roman Empire, and it was right outside of Ephesus. Diana was the goddess of the hunt. She was also the protector of young girls, she was called. She was sort of the patron goddess of motherhood. I'll explain a little more about that in the verses ahead.

But when young girls got married, they took a lock of their hair and their maiden garment and offered it in the temple of Diana, hoping that she would protect them and take care of them and help them birth children. Paul goes there, it's a superstitious city, there's lots of different kind of worship that goes on there, but a very noteworthy city. It becomes his base of operations for the next three years, two and a half to three years. Remember I said the Corinth, he stayed longer than any other city except for one and that was Ephesus?

So he stays here a long time. Jesus said you will go from Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, the uttermost parts of the earth. That's the book of Acts. Paul makes Ephesus his new Jerusalem. This now becomes the center, the base of operations for his third journey and I'll tell you why that's important. He's going to use this to reach that whole region and he does that through Bible study in the same place. He just raises a people who will go like little embers out of the fire and it lights it up in different areas around this region.

You'll see it. So he comes, comes to Ephesus, set up operations, he's going to be there a while. And he said to these disciples, these believers, remember this is his first time he's been there, he now finds believers. Aquila and Priscilla have been there. But also who else?

Paulus, right? So watch this. So he said to them, did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed? So they said to him, we haven't heard so much whether there is a Holy Spirit. And he said to them, into what then were you baptized? So they said into John's baptism. That's the baptism of repentance. 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. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

And when Paul had laid hands on him, the Holy Spirit came upon them and they spoke with tongues and prophesied. Now the men were about 12 in all. What's happening here? Who are these men? What's going on?

Let me give you a couple of explanations and I'll let you figure it out or decide on your own. One possibility, these were believers in a sense. That is, they were converts, early converts of Apollos of Alexandria. Apollos of Alexandria knew only part of the gospel. He only knew the gospel up to John the Baptist. So he was baptizing people and that was John's baptism. That's all he knew until Aquila and Priscilla filled him in, right? So it could be that they were getting baptized, but this baptism was John's baptism looking forward to Jesus who would come.

Aquila and Priscilla go, dude, he came. Christian baptism doesn't look forward to Jesus coming, it looks back to the fact that he came, died, buried, and rose. That's what Christian baptism identifies with, his death, his burial, his resurrection. So they were baptized only in John's baptism. They get re-baptized, by the way, the only case we find in the scripture where somebody gets re-baptized. And that's because they were converts of Apollos, early converts. A second explanation, and this would be the explanation more of the Pentecostal churches, is that Paul gets to Ephesus and notices that something is lacking in these early Christians walk in Ephesus. There was power lacking. And so he asked them, did you receive the Holy Spirit?

Because there's like something amiss in your life. We don't even know what that is. And so he prayed for them, they were baptized in the name of Jesus, and he prayed for them and they were filled with the Holy Spirit. They now had a new dynamic, a new power. So I'm going to let you sort those things out. There is an ongoing in-house debate among brothers and sisters as to which is the preferred interpretation.

Have fun with it. Verse 8, and he went into the synagogue. Remember, they like him in the synagogue, right? Back in chapter 18, look at verse 19 of chapter 18. He came to Ephesus, this is missionary journey number two, and left them there, but he himself entered the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. When they asked him to stay longer time with them, he did not consent. Remember, he said, I'm leaving, went to Jerusalem. Now he's back. Now he goes back to the synagogue where they invited him. They were receptive.

And he spoke boldly for three months. He's never had that kind of an audience in a Jewish synagogue, ever. Reasoning and persuading concerning the things of the kingdom of God. These Jewish people in the synagogue are getting saved.

He's persuasive, but there's always one of those lurking around. But when some were hardened and did not believe, but spoke evil of the way, remember that's what it's called in the book of Acts, Christianity, five times is called the way. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, the life, following Jesus is the way.

It's the only way. When they spoke evil of the way before the multitude, he departed from them and withdrew the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. And this continued for two years so that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks. He's in the synagogue until he wasn't. He's in the synagogue until their soft hearts became so hardened because the leaders evidently saw such fruit converting to Jesus that they said, dude, you're done, you're out of here. So he left, left the synagogue, left the organized religion and started teaching, discipling, preaching in a place called the school of Tyrannus.

A secular place, a non-religious environment. That's where the church really took root. That's where it really started. It's sort of like when we came to town, we started in the lakes apartments and then we went to the far north cinema theater.

That was our school of Tyrannus. Now, in ancient times, in this region especially, in the Ionian cities especially, because of the weather conditions, people would work from early morning till 11 o'clock in the morning and then quit. Have a break from 11 to about 4 in the afternoon, a five hour break. Then they would resume work into the evening. And that's because it was the heat of the day.

They still do that in a lot of areas. So that's sort of like the midday siesta. So this is the Ephesian siesta. So in keeping with that, Paul saw an opportunity. Hey, Tyrannus, whoever that is, we'll get to that in a minute. Tyrannus doesn't work after 11 and won't work again until 4. So he worked something out with Tyrannus so he could use his classroom for five hours to teach the word of God.

And it was a great opportunity for two years. Cool, huh? Now, we don't know who Tyrannus was. We don't have any other extra biblical literature, but he was obviously an educator, school of Tyrannus. He was probably a philosopher or a rhetorician teaching guys to reason and speak.

But his name is interesting. Tyrannus means despot or tyrant. You're thinking, I thought it meant dinosaur, Tyrannosaurus Rex.

No, that sort of plays off the word. Tyrannus means despot or tyrant. Now, one wonders in hearing that where he got that name. Did his parents really name him tyrant? Or perhaps that's a nickname that his students gave him. That guy's a tyrant.

He could have earned that name. Either way, Paul is using his classroom for a couple of years. That secular environment turning it into something spiritual. And it says, verse 10, and this continued for two years.

Watch this. So that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus. Both Jews and Greeks.

How? How did all of Asia? Asia, meaning Asia Minor, that area, that Ionian area. That's Asia.

That region called Asia or Asia Minor, all of it heard the word of God. You're listening to Connect with Skip Heitzig. Before we get back to Skip's teaching, we want to help you understand what real peace looks like so you can experience it in your own life. That's why we want to send you a copy of Unleashing Peace, Experiencing God's Shalom in Your Pursuit of Happiness by Jeremiah J. Johnston. This resource is our thanks for your gift of at least $50 today to help share solid biblical teaching with more people around the world through Connect with Skip Heitzig.

Go to connectwithskip.com slash offer or call 800-922-1888 and request your copy when you give at least $50 today to reach people around the world through Connect with Skip Heitzig. Let's continue with today's teaching with Pastor Skip. Well, he just systematically taught the word of God week after week, month after month, year after year for two years.

Longest ministry in his missionary endeavors. And it says all of Asia heard the word of the Lord. Now, Paul from Ephesus writes 1 Corinthians. And in the end of that book, chapter 15, chapter 16 of that book, he says this, he says, I'm going to tarry in Ephesus for a while.

I'm staying here. I see good fruit. For, listen to what he said, for a great and effective door has been opened unto me and there are many adversaries. That's a direct quote, 1 Corinthians 16. What did he mean a great and effective door opened to me? He probably meant I get to use this guy's classroom every day.

I'm going to do it as long as I can do it. He had it for two years. Now, out of that sprung other churches. The Church of Colossae was founded during that time. Paul never even went to Colossae when he wrote the letter to the Colossians. But a church started there.

How? People from that region came to Ephesus, heard Paul, went back. The church at Laodicea. In fact, the seven letters to the seven churches you know about in Revelation 2 and 3, that's a circle of churches around the area of Ephesus. They probably all were influenced by Paul preaching in the school of Tyrannus, sending these people out to those areas instead of himself going to those areas. An interesting style of evangelism. We have a little bit of a problem.

I just want to make it known to you. In verse 10, it says they continued for two years, which would lead you to conclude Paul spent how many years in Ephesus? Two years. The problem is, later on in Acts chapter 20, he says that I was in Ephesus for three years. So was Luke wrong or was Paul wrong? Well, maybe they're both right.

You say, how do you figure? Well, go down a few verses, down to verse 22. So he sent into Macedonia two of those who ministered with him or to him, Timothy and Erastus, but he himself stayed in Asia for a time. So he's in the school of Tyrannus for two years, plus the three months he has been in the synagogue, plus the extra time that he stayed in Ephesus somewhere doing something, adds up to three years.

Make sense? Now, verse 11, now God worked unusual miracles by the hand of Paul, 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. I love the way Luke pens this. He does not say, and Paul worked unusual miracles, because he didn't. First of all, he knew Paul. He knew Paul couldn't work any miracles.

He's just a guy. And so notice the wording, God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul. That's how God works. God is looking around for hands to use.

Romans 12, 1, I beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies as living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. How about, wake up every morning, God, take my hands and use them. Let my hands be your hands. Work your work through my hands, my feet, my mouth, my life.

Here's my body. Whatever you have for me today, Lord, I'm yours. God is looking around for hands to use, mouths to use. Scripture says, the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the entire earth, that he might show himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are loyal or dedicated or perfect toward him. God's just looking for people to use. Will he use you? Will he find you? He'll work his works through you. It's interesting in verse 12, he says unusual miracles in verse 11. I want to show you how unusual a miracle. Don't picture Paul just standing over somebody, you know, kind of quivering his hand going, yea, I say unto thee, be healed.

He didn't do that. Now, that's weird, but this is weirder, weirder than even that. It says, so even handkerchiefs, the word means sweat bands. It's what guys like Paul who were tent makers in the heat of the day would wear on their head that would soak up their sweat. And it says aprons, that's what workers put over their bodies to rub their hands on.

It got mirey and gnarly and greasy, dirty. So Paul would throw a sweat band or apron and the Lord would use that to heal somebody. Now, because of this scripture, over the years, people have said, now that is unusual and that is weird. Maybe I can get weirder than that.

And they have, but they've gotten so weird they become unscriptural, unbiblical. They have taken this idea to an extreme and they will have their healing ministry and they say, brother, I'm sending you this apron or this handkerchief I've seen. I've gotten handkerchiefs in the mail with a handprint drawn on it, really by a machine.

But they say, I placed my hand here and I drew my hand so that you can place my hand on your head, this handkerchief, and you'll be healed. Weird, right? It gets even weirder because the letter, dear Skip, as I was thinking of you this week, my heart went out to you and I started praying for you. Now, this guy doesn't know me.

I've never heard of him. I got things like this 30 years ago and I've kept them just to prove how weird some Christians can get. I have a file called scams and that's in it. And so you take this thing and you pray this prayer and you place this magical handkerchief on and you supposedly will get healed. But part of the deal is if you really want to claim your healing, you'll show it by a seed faith offering to this ministry. In other words, give us money for this stupid handkerchief because we got to defray the cost of this crazy thing and God will heal you. Oh, I'll restrain myself.

I've never heard anybody saying, hey, here's a smelly sweatband that I had in my garage. Let me just give this to you, place this on you. I'd like to see him try that. That would be more closer to the biblical text.

They won't do that. Then, verse 13, then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists. See, it gets really weird.

Took it upon themselves to call on the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits saying, we exorcise you. Now look at the spelling. It's not we exercise you. He's not saying do 20 pushups and 15 jumping jacks. Come on, exercise.

Get into a good exercise. It's exorcise to cast out. We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches. And there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus, I know. And Paul, I know.

But who are you? Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them so that they fled out of the house naked and wounded. In Ephesus, I failed to mention, it was the center of temple worship of Diana and several temples. If you go there today, you can see some of the ruins of this temple of Diana and other temples, many of them in that city. It was also a center of occultism because of the pagan worship. Demon possession, demonology, and there was at that time, and unfortunately still is today, a fascination, even an obsession with demons and demonology.

I know some Christian ministries that just have an obsession over a deliverance. I remember when we first started this church, I got a phone call one day from somebody, and it was just kind of a long pause. I said, hello, and then no answer.

Hello. And then finally, the person on the other line said, do you deliver? And I immediately thought, he thinks we're a pizza parlor, right? I said, well, no, I think the pizza place is a couple doors down.

I can give you that. No, do you deliver from demons? I said, well, the Lord can deliver anyone from demons. So, yes, there is the power of the Lord to deliver, but I don't have a deliverance ministry. That's Jesus' ministry, not mine.

But some become very obsessed with it. There was that in this area. Now, it says that this was a chief priest.

What does that mean? Well, Sceva may have been indeed a chief priest. That doesn't mean he was a high priest because we have all the names and antiquity of the Jewish high priest.

This isn't one of them. So he was not a Jewish high priest with residence in Jerusalem or an office in Jerusalem. He wasn't even from the family of the high priesthood because we know again who their names are. He could have been a priest who got weird and distracted by casting demons out, or he wasn't a priest at all, but he claimed that he was a chief priest. I bring that up because if you remember a few chapters back in Samaria where Philip went, there was a guy named Simon the magician, Simon Magus, and it says who claimed that he was something great. He wasn't great, but he thought he was great.

He claimed he was great. This guy could have claimed to be a chief priest, but maybe he wasn't, or maybe he was. Those are the options, but there were seven sons of this Jewish chief priest named Sceva who did so. So there they are casting demons out. Now, it wasn't that unusual actually 2,000 years ago to read of Jewish exorcists. Do you remember in the gospels, and here's a case out of Luke chapter 10, where the Jewish leadership accused Jesus, they knew he cast demons out. He had authority over nature, over evil spirits, and they said, well, he casts demons out by the power of Beelzebub, the devil himself. And Jesus said, listen, a house divided against itself cannot stand.

If I cast out Satan or demons by the power of Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? A reference to the fact that there was an interest, an inordinate, I might add, interest in this. And this is of that same vein. Thanks for listening to Connect with Skip Heitzig. We hope you've been strengthened in your walk with Jesus by today's program. Before we let you go, we want to remind you about this month's resource that will help you experience God's Shalom in life's busiest seasons.

Unleashing Peace by Jeremiah Johnston is our thanks for your support of Connect with Skip Heitzig today. Request your copy when you give $50 or more. Call 800-922-1888.

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