​Sunday May 26th
Acts 20
 
Psalm 32:2 says that a man who God declares innocent is blessed! And in Acts chapter 20 we will find the Apostle Paul making the case for his own innocence.
 
Verse 1 begins right where chapter 19 left off, after the big riot in Ephesus that was started by the silversmiths:
 
 1After the uproar had ceased, Paul sent for the disciples, and when he had exhorted them and taken his leave of them, he left to go to Macedonia.
 2When he had gone through those districts and had given them much exhortation, he came to Greece.
These worshippers of the goddess Diana certainly didn’t consider Paul to be innocent. They felt that he was turning people away from their goddess to this new thing called Christianity. And if spreading the gospel was a crime, then Paul actually WAS guilty. But if it’s a crime to spread the good news about having our sins forgiven through our faith in Jesus, then we ALL should be guilty of that! Paul escaped from Ephesus unharmed, and he continued to preach all throughout Greece. But his enemies were hot on his trail:
 3And there he spent three months, and when a plot was formed against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for Syria, he decided to return through Macedonia.
 4And he was accompanied by Sopater of Berea, the son of Pyrrhus, and by Aristarchus and Secundus of the Thessalonians, and Gaius of Derbe, and Timothy, and Tychicus and Trophimus of Asia.
 5But these had gone on ahead and were waiting for us at Troas.
 6We sailed from Philippi after the days of Unleavened Bread, and came to them at Troas within five days; and there we stayed seven days.
Paul finds out that the Jews who have been following him around persecuting him are planning to kill him when he arrives by boat in Syria. So he foils their plot by sending the rest of his team ahead by boat while he secretly travels by land. When they all arrive safely, he continues his preaching at a town called Troas.
 7On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul began talking to them, intending to leave the next day, and he prolonged his message until midnight.
 8There were many lamps in the upper room where we were gathered together.
It’s interesting to note two things about this gathering:

1. It was held on the first day of the week, which was Sunday. This shows that the early church had begun to shift their day of worship away from Saturday, which was the Jewish Sabbath,

to Sunday, because that was the day that Jesus rose from the dead.

1. The early church included communion or “breaking bread” as a part of their gatherings.

What happened next was equally interesting:
 9And there was a young man named Eutychus sitting on the window sill, sinking into a deep sleep; and as Paul kept on talking, he was overcome by sleep and fell down from the third floor and was picked up dead.
 10But Paul went down and fell upon him, and after embracing him, he said, "Do not be troubled, for his life is in him."
 11When he had gone back up and had broken the bread and eaten, he talked with them a long while until daybreak, and then left.
 12They took away the boy alive, and were greatly comforted.
Paul’s long-winded sermon puts this poor boy to sleep and he falls out a third story window! By the way, this boy’s name, Eutychus, means “fortunate”, or “lucky”!
Falling from three floors up doesn’t sound very lucky for him OR for Paul, who might get blamed for being too long-winded! But Paul says, “I’m innocent! I was just preaching the gospel. It’s not my fault that he fell asleep. And besides, he’s not really dead.” Then Paul picks the boy up and brings life back into him, and just goes right back to preaching until daybreak!
After this episode, Luke and the others travel ahead by boat again, waiting for Paul to join them by land:
 13But we, going ahead to the ship, set sail for Assos, intending from there to take Paul on board; for so he had arranged it, intending himself to go by land.
 14And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mitylene.
 15Sailing from there, we arrived the following day opposite Chios; and the next day we crossed over to Samos; and the day following we came to Miletus.
 16For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus so that he would not have to spend time in Asia; for he was hurrying to be in Jerusalem, if possible, on the day of Pentecost.
17From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders of the church.
Paul really wanted to be in Israel to celebrate Pentecost, so instead of making a side-trip to Ephesus, he asked the elders from the Ephesus to meet him in Miletus. And when they arrived, Paul began to make his case for his innocence before God:
18And when they had come to him, he said to them, "You yourselves know, from the first day that I set foot in Asia, how I was with you the whole time,
 19serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials which came upon me through the plots of the Jews;
 20how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and from house to house,
 21solemnly testifying to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul’s first point in proclaiming his innocence is to remind them that he only had one priority, one focus, and that was proclaiming salvation through faith in Jesus. Paul said the same thing to the Corinthian church in 1st Corinthians 2:2 “For I determined to know nothing among you except Christ, and Him crucified.”
Paul points out that it wasn’t easy carrying out his mission, and that he brought his message, “with tears and with trials which came upon me through the plots of the Jews.” Then he tells them that he knows that the cost of his mission is about to get even higher:
 22"And now, behold, bound by the Spirit, I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there,
 23except that the Holy Spirit solemnly testifies to me in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions await me.
 24"But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God.
Paul has been receiving prophetic warnings as he travels from city to city, heading closer and closer to Jerusalem. They’ve been telling him that “bonds and afflictions” are in store for him once he reaches Jerusalem. We’re going to see a specific example of one of these prophecies in chapter 21. But Paul isn’t swayed by these warnings, he plans to finish the course and fulfill the mission that he’s been given. How certain is he that this trip will end with severe consequences?
Look at what he tells them next:
 25"And now, behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about preaching the kingdom, will no longer see my face.”
And then Paul makes this powerful statement:
 26"Therefore, I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men.
 27"For I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God.
There is a very specific Old Testament reference that Paul is making here in proclaiming his innocence. It’s found in two places, both in the book of Ezekiel:
Ezekiel 3:17-19
17"Son of man, I have appointed you a watchman to the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from My mouth, warn them from Me.
 18"When I say to the wicked, 'You will surely die,' and you do not warn him or speak out to warn the wicked from his wicked way that he may live, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand.
 19"Yet if you have warned the wicked and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered yourself.
And again in Ezekiel 33:8-9
 8"When I say to the wicked, 'O wicked man, you will surely die,' and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require from your hand.
 9"But if you on your part warn a wicked man to turn from his way and he does not turn from his way, he will die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your life.
Paul is making the point to these elders from Ephesus that he has fulfilled God’s command in Ezekiel; he has called out a warning like the watchman on the tower, crying out to sinners to turn from their wicked ways and receive forgiveness through Jesus Christ. Paul says, “I have blown the trumpet of the Gospel for all to hear. Some have listened and some haven’t listened, but those who have rejected the truth bear their own guilt. They can’t say that they weren’t warned. That’s why I can proclaim my innocence today!”
And then Paul gives a warning to these elders, because they are also responsible before God for protecting their flock. He says:
 28"Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
 29"I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock;
 30and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.
 31"Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish each one with tears.
Paul reminds them that they too must answer to God for the lives of the believers that He has entrusted to them. And these believers will need protection, Paul says, from attacks from the outside AND from the inside! The outside attackers Paul calls “savage wolves”. That probably included the Judaizers, those who were trying to put new Christian believers back under legalistic submission to the Old Testament laws. Those who might rise up from within the church Paul says will speak “perverse things”.
Here’s what he means by this: Legalism is a problem, but the opposite problem is something called license. Our freedom in Christ doesn’t give us a license to sin! But Paul says that these folks will “draw away” some disciples. Why? Because some people want to say that they are Christians but still continue their sinful lifestyles. If they can find a leader who tells them that it’s okay to live like that, they’ll follow that leader rather than following what the Bible says!
Paul finishes up the defense of his innocence with one more point:
 32"And now I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.
 33"I have coveted no one's silver or gold or clothes.
 34"You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my own needs and to the men who were with me.
 35"In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'"
 36When he had said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all.
 37And they began to weep aloud and embraced Paul, and repeatedly kissed him,
 38grieving especially over the word which he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they were accompanying him to the ship.
Paul’s last statement of his innocence has to do with money. He reminds them that he didn’t get rich from preaching the gospel. He wasn’t like some TV evangelist who has several mansions, Rolls Royce, and a private jet! In fact, he worked as a tent-maker while he was with them so that he could help to meet the needs of the poor.
Ultimately, the only real innocence that we have when we stand before God comes from having our sins forgiven and our souls cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. The day that we put our faith in Him, and His death on the cross, God pardoned our sins and declared us innocent, because Jesus paid the price for the things that we were guilty of!
But at the same time, God is calling us to live pure, holy, and innocent lives once we are saved, by the power of the Holy Spirit working within us.
That’s why we as a church have taken the time to enter into this season a fasting and repentance. And we, just like Paul, are headed towards Pentecost.
In these next couple of weeks, leading up to Pentecost Sunday, let’s be sure that we are standing before God with willing and open hearts to receive correction from Him in any area of our lives where we are not living according to His standards. We should all be aware, like Paul was, that one day we will stand before the judgment seat of Christ, and we will all give an account of the things that we have done with our lives.
Paul wanted to stand before God not only innocent because of Christ’s forgiveness, but also innocent because of how he chose to LIVE in response to that forgiveness. That’s the challenge that stands before each one of us. 

​While in Ephesus, Paul began engaging the Jews in discussion at a synagogue for three months. This was a long period compared to other places before things got heated between him and the Jewish religious leaders. These leaders began slandering Paul and so he moved on and began conducting discussions at a Lecture Hall each day between 11am - 4pm. Ephesus was a city of the night so most of its residents rested during the day and so Paul took advantage of using the space. These lectures went on for two years to where all inhabitants in Asia both Jew and Greek heard the message of the Lord. Many of Paul's key disciples were formed during this time and later sent out to other territories to advance the Kingdom.

What may seem like defeat often leads to victory to those who trust in the Lord! We can actually fail forward, meaning one door closing can lead to a bigger door opening. We have lessons to learn in every situation and just because there seems little success outwardly doesn't mean the internal work within makes it not for nothing. If we are faithful over the little given we will be given more. If we can endure being rejected then we can handle stronger opposition.

Paul was initially prohibited by the Holy Spirit to enter Asia but this time around he was allowed and as we see in Acts 19 had great success. He needed to multiply himself so that greater kingdom advancement would transpire and so he held a two-year Bible training school where many other Apostles and mature disciples were formed. One of the reasons Paul was probably held back previously was the degree of demonic onslaught he needed to be able to endure. Ephesus was the capital of the known world in the areas of magic, witchcraft, and the occult. Also, Ephesus was the chief capital for devotion to the god Diana (Artemis). It wasn't just a religious practice, devotion to Diana influenced all parts of the society. Paul was having success but the territorial spirits that held these people in bondage for centuries weren't going to go down without a fight.

In verse 11 it says "God was performing extraordinary miracles by Paul's hands so that even facecloths and aprons that touched Paul's skin were brought to the sick, and diseases left them, and evil spirits were driven out." Then it talks about the seven sons of Sceva who tried to mimic Paul by driving evil spirits out in Jesus name, and these spirits beat these guys up saying, "Jesus and Paul we know, but who are you?"

People can use the name of God but if they have not been given authority by God the acts they do will not be backed up. The name of Jesus has power to those who are in Christ anyone who attempts to oppose evil in the name of Jesus without the person of Jesus will end up like the sons of Sceva, all beat up. There are those who want the benefits of Jesus without truly submitting to Him. When we are one with Christ then even our pores are full of His presence so like Paul if someone just touches our skin, healing and deliverance will manifest. There are those who sell handkerchiefs, cloths, etc. with the idea that it will release healing to others but their motive is all wrong, the person's faith may bring healing, but those who use God for their own gain will be judged severely.

People witnessing this power grew in fear of God and came confessing their evil practices, bringing their books of magic to be burned. The calculated value of these books was 50,000 pieces of silver which in today's standards would be over 4 million dollars. Now, this is when opposition arose in Ephesus because now the economy was being affected by this movement. People are fine when religion is kept behind closed doors but when it affects the god of this world, money, then there is a problem.

A man named Demetrius, a silversmith who profited from people's obsession with idols gathered fellow craftsmen to bring this issue up at the public square. He spoke the truth, that their business was being discredited because Paul had persuaded the masses of people to turn from their gods made by man and now even the great goddess Diana is being despised which was one of the main attractions to this city. Their livelihood was in jeopardy and this movement needed to be stopped immediately. The people responded by chanting for two hours "Great is Diana of the Ephesian." The mayor spoke up, quieting the crowd, saying that there is no credible charge here, this matter needs to be settled in the courts, and the assembly was dismissed.

Ephesians 6:10 says "For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places." Paul wrote this from his experience in Ephesus. Paul became a mighty warrior in the spirit. He learned that the way to defeat darkness was by continually speaking truth, the sword of the spirit. Lies and deception believed for generations were exposed and people confessed their sins, removing the dark things from their lives so that the light could come in and transform them. If we just remain faithful to God the word will not come back void. No matter what comes at us if we don't change our confession and agree with the enemy, the truth will prevail, people will eventually respond, and the enemies of God will be driven out. The battles we face are won or lost depending on whether we fight them in the flesh or the spirit! It is time we take the higher ground and enter into Spiritual War!
​
Warriors rise! Transformation come! Heaven manifest in our land.

Sunday May 12th
(Baptism)
Acts 18:24-19:7
 
One of the jobs of a pastor is helping people straighten out their wrong ideas, sometimes referred to as “stinking thinking”.
A lady recently asked me to talk to her husband because he had developed this strange habit of drinking brake fluid whenever he was out working on his car. He assured her that it was non-toxic, but she was really worried about him drinking it.
So I met with him and I told him that it seemed to me like he was getting addicted to drinking brake fluid and he really needed to cut it out, because it was actually very bad for him.
But he told me, “I’m fine Pastor, I can stop anytime.”
Speaking of correcting someone’s thinking:
Back in verse 18 of chapter 18 we saw that Paul left for Syria, traveling with Aquila and Priscilla. Then he kept on traveling while they stayed behind in Ephesus. And it seems as though God had a very specific reason for keeping Aquila and Priscilla in Ephesus. They were going to be used by God to help correct a rising young teacher named Apollos.
 24Now a Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, came to Ephesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures.
 25This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John;
 26and he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.
 27And when he wanted to go across to Achaia, the brethren encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him; and when he had arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace,
 28for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating by the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.
Apollos was well versed in the Old Testament Scriptures, and verse 25 states that he “had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and…spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord.”

So why does verse 26 say,
“when Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately”?
Why was it so important for Priscilla and Aquila to correct Apollos’ understanding about baptism? Because it says he was “acquainted only with the baptism of John”.
Was there something wrong with the baptism of John? No, but there was another kind of baptism available now. Apollos’ knowledge of baptism needed to be updated.
John the Baptist had said this himself in John 1:33. “He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, ‘He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the one who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.” Apollos needed to be taught about the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Does some little doctrinal detail like that really matter? I mean, Apollos was teaching about Jesus, wasn’t he? And it seemed like he was doing a pretty good job. So why even bother to correct him? Shouldn’t Aquila and Priscilla just cut him some slack?
Well, if we look at the first 7 verses of the next chapter, we can begin to see why Apollos’ understanding of the full meaning of baptism needed to be addressed:
It happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the upper country and came to Ephesus, and found some disciples. 2 He said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said to him, “No, we have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.” 3 And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” And they said, “Into John’s baptism.” 4 Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” 5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking with tongues and prophesying. 7 There were in all about twelve men.
Now do you see why Priscilla and Aquila “took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately”?
The baptism of John the Baptist was good, but it was incomplete. Baptism in water is a wonderful thing, and we have some folks that will be participating in that today, but there is also the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
So just like the husband and wife team of Priscilla and Aquila worked together to help Apollos understand the two types of baptism, Laurie and I are going to work together today to do the same thing.
Let’s start with water baptism.
Here are several key things to know about water baptism:

1. Water baptism does not save you. Your faith in Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins is what saves you. Water baptism is an outward demonstration of your belief that Jesus died and rose again, and also your belief that you are a new creation in Christ, that the old you is gone.
2. Although Jesus had no sins, and therefore had no reason to be baptized, He still chose to do so in order to set an example for us.
3. One of the important things about water baptism is that it is a public display of your faith. Those who get water baptized are acting in accordance with the words of the Apostle Paul in Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes”
4. In the Book of Acts, we see time and time again where those who get saved also get baptized.

Regarding the Baptism in the Holy Spirit:
​
John 4:24 God is Spirit and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and truth 
Mark 6:7 Jesus gave them power over unclean spirits
Luke 1:15 John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother's womb
Luke 1:40 Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit when Mary came and greeted her and baby John leapt in her womb
Luke 1:67 Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied he prophesied his son's Destiny to prepare the way before Jesus Christ Luke 4:1 Jesus being full of the Holy Spirit was led into the desert
Luke 4:14 Jesus return from his fast in the power of the spirit 
John 1:33 John was speaking about Jesus and said He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit
1 Corinthians 2:4 Paul demonstrated the gospel in the Spirit and Power
2 Corinthians 1:22 the Holy Spirit is the Seal of guarantee on our hearts
James 1:21 holy people were moved by the Spirit to speak in the OT
Ephesians 5:17-18 we can only understand God's Will by the power of the Holy Spirit and we are told to be full of the Holy Spirit
Romans 12:1-2 says that we are present our bodies a Living Sacrifice Holy and acceptable to God by being transformed by the renewing of our mind, we can only do that through the power of the Holy Spirit
John 14:17 the spirit of truth will be in you