Atos 18
Alexander Maclaren · Citado em PreceptAustin
Atos 18
Maclaren wrote, “It is a great part of Christian wisdom in evangelical work to recognize the right time to give up efforts which have been fruitless. Much strength is wasted and many hearts depressed by obstinate continuance in such methods or on such fields as have cost much effort and yielded no fruit. We often call it faith, when it is only pride, which prevents the acknowledgment of failure.” One is reminded of Jesus' command in the Sermon on the Mount... “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.(Mt 7:6+) Comment - Jesus gives us His his principle which governs how one handles the Gospel in the face of those who hate the truth. And as they always do, Jesus' prophetic words were fulfilled in Acts 18:12! Related Resource: What does it mean to shake the dust off your feet? Shaking the Dust: A Turning Point (Paul's Words to the Jews in Corinth) He stood before them, bold and true, With words of fire, yet words they knew. He spoke of Christ, the risen King, Yet hearts grew cold, rejecting Him. They scoffed, they raged, they turned away, Resisting truth, refusing grace that day. And then they blasphemed, cursed the call, Yet mercy stood, still offered to all. Paul shook his robes, the dust fell light, A symbol clear, a solemn sight. "Your blood be on your heads," he cried, "I have declared, I shall not hide." "I am clean, my hands are free," "I spoke the truth, yet you won’t see." "From now I go where hearts will hear," "To Gentile souls both far and near." No longer bound by stubborn pride, The Word would spread both deep and wide. For though some hearts remain like stone, God’s light still finds a place to shine. Acts 18:7 Then he left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a worshiper of God, whose house was next to the synagogue KJV Acts 18:7 And he departed thence, and entered into a certain man's house, named Justus, one that worshipped God, whose house joined hard to the synagogue. a worshiper of God Acts 10:2,22; 13:42; 16:14; 17:4 Acts 18 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries PAUL GOES TO THE GENTILES Then he left there - From where? From the Jewish synagogue. Paul immediately makes good on his declaration that he would go to the Gentiles! So for the next 18 months of Paul's sojour in Corinth, Luke never mentions that Paul returned to the Jewish Synagogue! As would soon prove true, though he would not go to them, some of them would come to him being drawn by the Holy Spirit. As Jesus said "No one (Greek pronoun oudeis literally = "but absolutely no one") can (dunamai - they do not even have the inherent supernatural power to) come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day." (Jn 6:44, cf same truth in Jn 5:44, Jn 6:65) And went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a worshiper of God - Titius Justus is a Gentile so clearly not the same as Justus in Col 4:11. In fact the verb sebomai (see below) as a participle is almost always a technical term for "God fearers" which describe Gentiles who worshiped the God of Israel. They may have every kept the Mosaic Law but did not take the final step to circumcision which characterized a full blown proselyte. Worshiper (present tense)(4576)(sebomai from sébas = reverential awe <> stem seb originally = “to fall back before", sacred, awe) means to hold in high esteem, show reverence or awe (veneration) by someone who his devout. Always in the middle voice indicating of the personal involvement in the veneration. Sebomai stresses the outward (religious) expression of inner piety. Robertson on next to the synagogue - Whether Paul chose this location for his work because it was next to the synagogue, we do not know, but it caught the attendants at the synagogue worship. In Ephesus when Paul had to leave the synagogue he went to the school house of Tyrannus (Acts 19:9-10). The lines are being drawn between the Christians and the Jews, drawn by the Jews themselves. Whose house was next to the synagogue - So he did not travel far. The fact that he entered Titius Justus' home indicates he was welcome and in turn indicates that this Gentile God fearer was receptive to Paul's message. He may have been among the Greeks who were in the synagogue (Acts 18:4). Don't you love God's sense of humor. Paul is in essence kicked out of the Jewish synagogue and God provides a Gentile house next door to the Jews! Guess where the Jews have to pass by on their way to the synagogue! And guess who gets saved in the next verse? Crispus, the leader of the Synagogue. And finally, guess what Paul's strategic location does to the anger of the Jews! Was next to (4927)(sunmoreo from sun = together + homoros = bordering, adjoining from horos = border) means to border together, to have joint boundaries, to be right next to. This is the only use in the Bible. Acts 18:8 Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord with all his household, and many of the Corinthians when they heard were believing and being baptized KJV Acts 18:8 And Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his house; and many of the Corinthians hearing believed, and were baptized. Crispus 1 Cor 1:14 the leader of the synagogue Acts 18:17; 13:15; Mark 5:35 believed in the Lord Acts 10:2; 16:14,15,34; Genesis 17:27; 18:19; Joshua 24:15 many of the Corinthians when they heard were believing Acts 2:37-41; 8:12,35-38; Mt 28:19; Mark 16:15,16; Ro 10:14-17; 1 Cor 1:13-17 Acts 18 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries SHOCK WAVES SHOOT THROUGH THE SYNAGOGUE! Paul had sown the seed of the Gospel, but it was God the Spirit (cf Jn 3:8) Who caused the growth (1 Cor 3:6-7, cf Lk 8:15). As an aside this is God's method of "church growth," not some humanistic plan filled with man-centered methods! The only "church growth seminar" we need is "preach the Word!" (2 Ti 4:2) As we will see Paul's "method" resulted in the formation of the "First Church of Corinth." God's way worked then and it still works, because God's Word and God's Spirit are sufficient to produce genuine church growth! It is sad to see so many churches today (even "mega" churches) which are physically filled, and yet tragically they are filled with many who are not even saved, and so not part of the real Church, the Body of Christ! So while apparently the majority of those in the synagogue resisted and blasphemed (Acts 18:6), once again we see that the Word of God is living and active (cf Heb 4:12, Acts 6:7, Acts 12:24, Acts 19:20). As God promises regarding His Word in Isaiah 55:11 "So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it. If the Jews in the synagogue were irritated before, now they are about to explode! Their leader has fallen for Paul's Gospel. And not just their Synagogue president but his entire household which would imply his family and any slaves he might have had. Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord with all his household - This is now the third time that we see when the respected leader believes in Jesus, many in the household follow. This was true in my experience when I came to the Lord 39 years ago, for 2 of my 4 children believed and were baptized with myself and my wife. My other two children waited about 20 years, and one of the two is still not 100%, but I am convinced she too will come into the family of God. Here are the passages that described others in the household believing Acts 10:2 (Cornelius a God fearer) a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, and gave many alms to the Jewish people and prayed to God continually. Acts 16:14 A woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshiper of God, was listening; and the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.15 And when she and her household had been baptized, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us. Acts 16:34 And he (Philippian jailor) brought them into his house and set food before them, and rejoiced greatly, having believed in God with his whole household. Believed - see below How encouraging is God? Paul was run out of the Jewish Synagogue in Corinth, only to see a succession of souls saved - a Gentile, a Jew and his household, and now every many of the Corinthians.
Atos 18
Maclaren wrote of Gallio's preventing Paul to speak the truth of the Word of God -- “The offer of salvation in Christ is ever a crisis (Webster = a time or state of affairs requiring prompt or decisive action). It may never be repeated. Was Gallio ever again brought into contact with Paul or Paul’s Lord? We know not. He passes out of sight, the searchlight is turned in another direction, and we lose him in the darkness.” Compare the Athenian's "crisis" in Acts 17:32+ (did they ever hear again? We will discover in Heaven!) Gallio's "crisis" reminds us also of that of Felix, Luke recording "But as he was discussing righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix became frightened and said, “Go away for the present, and when I find time (kairos = opportunity, opportune time; KJV = "convenient season") I will summon you.”" (Acts 24:25) THOUGHT - A "convenient season" never came for Felix (as far as we know). He would enter a Christ-less eternity, fully responsible for his eternal punishment, having had the "opportunity of a lifetime!" Shakespeare's famous line from Julius Caesar conveys the same thought of "time" or a "convenient season" - "There is a tide in the affairs of men, Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; Omitted, all the voyage of their life Is bound in shallows and in miseries. On such a full sea are we now afloat; And we must take the current when it serves, Or lose our ventures." In short, KAIROS conveys the sense of an "opportune time," a "window of opportunity". (See also Redeem the Time) John Broadus said "Opportunity is like a fleet horse that pauses for a moment at one's side. If you fail to mount him in that moment, you can hear the clatter of his hoofs down the corridors of time. That opportunity is gone forever." Dear reader are you putting off Jesus' free gift of salvation until tomorrow! Beware for tomorrow may never come, for God "says, “AT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU, AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU.” Behold, now is “THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,” behold, now is “THE DAY OF SALVATION”. (2 Cor 6:2) If it were a matter of wrong or of vicious crime, O Jews - Gallio is using his judicial logic. He begins by saying there is nothing in what the Jews have said against Paul that supports he had broken any Roman laws or committed some heinous crime. Longnecker makes an important point - “If Gallio had accepted the Jewish charge and found Paul guilty of the alleged offense, provincial governors everywhere would have had a precedent, and Paul’s ministry would have been severely restricted. As it was, Gallio’s refusal to act in the matter was tantamount to the recognition of Christianity as a religio licita” Wrong (92)(adikema from a = without + dike = justice) describes an injustice, a crime or criminal act. Here in Acts 18:14 the meaning of adikema includes the idea of a willful criminal violation of Roman law. There are only 3 uses in NT - Acts 18:14; Acts 24:20 = " let these men themselves tell what misdeed they found" ; Rev. 18:5 = "God has remembered her iniquities." Gilbrant - In classical Greek adikēma primarily denotes an intentional wrong, or that which is acquired by wrong. It is frequently used for the misdeeds of undisciplined troops, mistreatment of a wife, acts of violence, fraud, and embezzlement (see Schrenk, “adikos,” Kittel, 1:162). The Septuagint’s usage of adikēma mostly implies “breach of the law” or “misdeeds against God” (ibid.). It is often translated from the Hebrew word ’āwōn, meaning “misdeed,” with the context having a prominent reference to God (Isaiah 59:12; Jeremiah 16:17; Ezekiel 14:10; cf. Zephaniah 3:15, mishpāṯ). Adikēma is also found parallel with sin (Genesis 31:36; Leviticus 16:16). (Ibid) Adikema in Septuagint - Gen. 31:36; Exod. 22:9; Lev. 6:4; Lev. 16:16; 1 Sam. 20:1; 1 Sam. 26:18; 2 Sam. 22:49; Prov. 17:9; Isa. 56:2; Isa. 59:12; Jer. 16:17; Jer. 22:17; Ezek. 14:10; Ezek. 28:15; Zeph. 3:15; Wicked (4190)(poneros from poneo = work or toil,