This week's ongoing Bible study will move on to Acts 19 part 1

The Apostle Paul In Ephesus

[Acts chapter 19, verses 1-12]

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This week, in our chronological studies of the writings of the apostle Luke, we will be moving on to part 1 of Acts chapter 19, where we find the apostle Paul has made his way from where he was in Corinth up into the interior of what would be southeastern Asia Minor today, hundreds of miles northeast of Rome or northwest of Jerusalem. He traveled up through the regions of Galatia and Phrygia, in what would be roughly northwestern Turkey today. And so today as we begin this week's in-depth analysis, we find Paul has eventually arrived in Ephesus, a city on the western coast of what is modern Turkey, and that's where we'll start, beginning at verse one.

“1) While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples 2) and asked them, 'Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?' They answered, 'No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.' 3) So Paul asked, 'Then what baptism did you receive?' 'John’s baptism,' they replied. 4) Paul said, 'John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.' 5) On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6) When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. 7) There were about twelve men in all.” (Acts 19, verses 1-7)

So here we have the apostle Paul having just arrived in Ephesus, where he found some disciples, or other Christian believers of mixed Jewish and Gentile heritage. Notice that by now, Paul had made good on his vow to leave Judaism and take the Gospel to the Gentile nations, as we read in part one of chapter 18 from two weeks ago. As a result, he had traveled in a large semi-circle throughout the interior of what would be western and west-central Turkey today. At his farthest point in this second missionary journey, Paul was within about 150 miles of the northern coast, near the Black Sea. Now that he has arrived back at the coast again, he resolves to strengthen the church that had been planted there, evidently by a disciple of John the Baptist decades before.

As you can see, the ministry of John the Baptist was far more significant and had a far greater reach than what is being taught in churches today, particularly here in North America. That's why he said in Luke chapter 7, “I must decrease so that He may increase.” (see Luke 7, verses 18-35, which we studied a while back, for the full story on John the Baptist) Today's “prosperity gospel” says that we all must increase, and by as wide a margin as possible. To put it bluntly, this is raw hogwash. But Luke's narrative continues, “....and (Paul) asked them, 'Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?' They answered, 'No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.' So Paul asked, 'Then what baptism did you receive?' 'John’s baptism,' they replied.”

The reason these people had embraced John's baptism is because they had seen a need within themselves to lead better lives and to be a lot more caring towards others. To sum it up, they had repented of their old ways and embraced new ways of thinking and of living by emulating the teachings of Jesus Christ. If everybody did this, the world would truly be a much better place. But the only baptism they had ever heard of had been that of John the Baptist. In today's terminology, they had incomplete information. So then Paul says to them, “....John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.' 5) On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6) When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them....” Notice that the only way Holy Spirit baptism can be administered is by the laying on of hands, just like the only way water baptism can be administered is by water immersion. Pouring a few drops of water across a baby's forehead is not real baptism, folks, I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but it's the truth. And now let's move on to part 2 of this week's study.

“8) Paul entered the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God. 9) But some of them became obstinate; they refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way. So Paul left them. He took the disciples with him and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. 10) This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord. 11) God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12) so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.” (Acts 19, verses 8-12)

So here in verse 8, we see that Paul has had a change of heart, and is once again back in a synagogue, where he and his fathers before him had been educated and raised. It can be a difficult thing to have to renounce one's religion, but this was, once again, what Paul – a lifelong Jew – found himself forced to do. So Paul and those with him move to a lecture hall, which was presumably either paid for out of church proceeds, or the space was given to Paul by Christian sympathizers and true believers. And, they stayed there for two full years, six months longer than Paul had stayed in Corinth. Notice too, God was unable to work any miracles through Paul until he stepped away from the synagogue completely. Once that was completed, the miracles worked by God through his willing servant Paul flowed like water out of a fire hydrant.

“....even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.” This did not happen because Paul had special powers just because he was an apostle, as some church denominations erroneously teach. All these miraculous healings took place because Paul, like John the Baptist before him, caused himself to “decrease so that He may increase'. He voluntarily relinquished all ownership of the healing of those who were healed so that he could be used by God to be God's healer, like a conduit for God's tremendous power, which is unimaginably vast and deep. So Paul stayed at Ephesus and built the church there. Next week when we return for part two, we will see where all this leads, and how some who purported to emulate Paul's healing powers would up getting badly beaten for their trouble. So everyone please be sure and return next week for part 2. Shalom!