2023-03-26 Back On Track

BACK ON TRACK (Acts 18:18-23) March 26, 2023 Read Acts 18:18-23 - The book of Acts will make more sense when you see it is describing a transitional period. God's patience and faithfulness are on full display dealing with spiritual children. Because of our distance from events, we see the Bible representing God dealing with Israel one day, then death, resurrection and Christian church. We fail to see a transition which was messy at times - but always attended with patience and faithfulness by God. During this transitional period, even some of God's choice servants found it hard to shed old patterns of behavior. Thus, we find John and Peter following the temple prayer cycle in Acts 3. We find Peter resisting giving up long-held dietary restrictions - and objecting to taking the gospel to the Gentiles in Acts 9. The early Jewish church was shocked that Peter had eaten with Gentiles in Acts 11. Adjusting to new truth was not always easy. Acts 18:18 - 19:7 give us 3 transitional events. They involve a brilliant man named Apollos, 12 disciples of John Baptist, and Paul himself in our immediate text. Here and at least one other time (Acts 21:26), Paul practiced an OT ritual - a Nazarite vow. This was not a problem, but neither was it required. He was borrowing from OT practices to express his love for God and thanksgiving to God for intervening to address his discouragement. In this text, we see how God's faithfulness to Paul motivated faithfulness in Paul to God. Faithfulness is the goal of every believer. I Cor 4:2: "Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful." We're trustees for the most valuable message on earth. Faithfulness in sharing this is part of our mission. Faithfulness consists of many elements. Here we see 3 ways in which Paul was faithful, each providing incentive to us to follow his example. I. Paul Kept His Vision "After this, Paul stayed many days longer." After what? After Gallio's favorable ruling allowing him to continue ministering without interference. Paul was in Corinth about 18 months - probably from the fall of AD 50 through the Spring of AD 52. A thriving church was established. Timothy and Silas remained, and leaders emerged, probably including Crispus, Stephanus and Sosthenes. Paul is ready to move on. To where? To Ephesus! Earlier he'd been "forbidden to speak the word in Asia." Instead, the HS directed him to Macedonia (Europe). But Paul never lost the vision for Ephesus. It was the major city in Asia, just as Corinth was the major city in Achaia. So Ephesus is in his crosshairs. The vision is alive. But he's made a vow. He needs to get to Jerusalem. So he does an interesting thing. He asks Aquila and Priscilla, who came from Rome to Corinth just 3 or 4 years before, to go with him. They've become dear friends. He trusts them. The can alleviate the fact that he can't immediately stay in Ephesus. In his absence, they will be trusted ambassadors of the gospel in Ephesus, thus furthering his vision, until he can rejoin them. The fact that they agree to leave their business and go speaks to their loyalty and devotion to Paul. So, what is your vision? What purpose larger than yourself drives your life? I'm not talking about anything as trivial as a bucket list or a goal to visit all the MLB parks or to see NYC at Christmas. Those are appropriate adventures for a full life. But I'm talking kingdom goals. What vision drives your Xn experience that you can take with you when the Lord calls you home? What ETERNAL legacy will you leave? Paul knew his. Do you know yours? We all need something bigger than bigger than this life to live for. What is yours!? Wm Carey was a cobbler before he was a missionary. He was once accused him of neglecting his shoe repair business by spending too much time serving at his church. Carey said, "Neglecting my business? My business is to extend the Kingdom of God. I only cobble shoes to pay expenses." That's a man of vision. Do you have one? What goals that are bigger than you drive you? Nazi death camp survivor Viktor Fankl wrote, "Happiness is the unintended side-effect of one's personal dedication to a cause great than oneself or as the by-product of one's surrender to a person other than oneself." I promise you, God has one for you. Have you found it yet? Are you in the game? II. Paul Kept His Vows "At Cenchrae he had cut his hair, for he was under a vow". This is likely a Nazarite vow as described in Deut 6:1-21. "Nazirite" means separate. One took a Nazirite vow "to separate himself to the Lord" (Deut 6:2b) for a special purpose and time. During that time, they drank no alcohol and ate no grapes. They let their hair grow (hence Samson's lifelong hair growth as a lifelong Nazirite). They cut their hair at the end of the vow and burned it along with a sacrificial lamb in Jerusalem. Josephus says this had to be done within 30 days. That's what drove Paul's schedule. So, why was Paul, the ultimate apostle of grace, taking an OT vow? Wasn't such law-keeping exactly what he was so fiercely against? How do we explain his actions here? Well, first Paul is not doing this to gain his salvation. He's long past adding self-righteous achievements to get to God. He knows it takes the righteousness of Christ, not him, to be righteous before the Father. Then why the vow? We're not told. I think it likely that after God helped him thru his discouragement, Paul felt moved to renew his allegiance and devotion to the Father. A vow of thanksgiving and rejuvenation was the perfect vehicle to express his thanksgiving. It was not required; it was an expression of love. It was a highly expressive way to show Paul's deep appreciation for a God who required much but gave more. Once the vow was made, it had to be completed. Paul needed to be in Jerusalem to offer the required sacrifice. Num 30:2: "If a man vows a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth." Paul had no obligation to make a vow. But once made, he had the most holy obligation to fulfill it. But this wasn't about duty; it was his privilege to pledge himself to the Lord anew and it was his joy to fulfill it. It wasn't an obligation he put on himself. And he meant to keep it. So, made any vows lately? How about the commitment you made to ministry? It wasn't a formal vow. But you made a promise to serve, and faithfulness requires you keep it! Perhaps you say you'll be there, but call at the last minute with some weak excuse. Or you allow other priorities to interfere. It's a broken vow, Beloved. Someone depends on you. Are you giving it all that you would if Jesus were looking over your shoulder? He is, you know. How about the marriage vow? That's formal. Made voluntarily, in God's presence, with high expectations. How are you doing on that one? Has it slipped a bit. Are you all in - body and soul? Or are other things stealing time that belongs to your loved one? Have you allowed lust in another direction to rob the intimacy that you vowed? Are you there when you're there? Do you keep your promises to your children? Here's one of the most abused vows I know: "I'm going to count to three, and if you're not fill in the blank, I'm going to fill in the blank." I have seen that promise broken time after time. The promise to discipline is made. The child does not comply, but then, the moment Mom or Dad takes a step toward the child compliance follows - but the discipline does not. You've just taught Billy you don't mean what you say. If you say it, do it. If you aren't going to do it, don't say it. How about your employer? Can he trust you when he's not around? Kids - can you parents and teachers take you at your word, or do you spin it your way as soon as you are out of their sight? Your word as a believer is your vow. Faithful servants keep their vows, even when it's hard or inconvenient. One writer asked his daughter what she thought were the biggest problems fathers have with kids. She said, "Dads have too many tomorrows. 'I'll play with you tomorrow. We'll go to the park tomorrow.'" And tomorrow never comes. If you say it, mean it. If you don't mean it; don't say it. Broken vows are serious business to our God. They assassinate His character. III. Paul Kept His Vigil On arriving in Ephesus, Paul goes to the synagogue as usual. Surprisingly, they ask him to stay. But he's due in Jerusalem. So he promises to return "if God wills," and catches the next ship. 22 When he had landed at Caesarea, he went up and greeted the church, and then went down to Antioch. "Went up" implies Jerusalem. It was 2500 feet in elevation, and thus Jews always spoke of "going up" to Jerusalem, regardless of direction. Other sources indicate Paul celebrated a feast (Passover?), and sacrificed for his vow. He also reported to church leaders. Then he "went down" to Antioch and reported to his home church, thus ending his 2nd journey. Then. 23 "After spending some time there, he departed and went from one place to the next through the region of Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples." Start of 3rd journey. That last, phrase by Luke covers a lot of ground. It implies a journey of more than 1500 miles on foot, over the Taurus range, thru the Cilician gates and into Galatia, the site of his first journey. It is an arduous trip on foot, so why not by ship? Why on foot? He was "strengthening all the disciples" from his 1st journey. Paul wanted to see people saved, yes, but also wanted "that we might present everyone mature in Christ" (Col 1:28b). And he didn't just say it; he rolled up his sleeves and did it at whatever cost to himself. He was an amazing ambassador for Christ. He longs to get to Ephesus - and on to Spain. But he loves his early converts. When he can, he goes to them. When he can't go, he writes. And when he can't write, he prays for them. He knows the Judaizers have followed him into Galatia, and he needs to counter them. Paul keeps a constant vigil over those the Lord has put under his care. A faithful servant is not one-dimensional. He is interested in the whole process of salvation, from initial conversion, thru the process of becoming more and more like Jesus. He wants to see people living in light of God's commands, honing their gifts to serve others and loving each other to a fault. The job is never done in this life, regardless of cost to him. Paul knew the truth of Heb 13:17, where believers are instructed: "Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account." It was never far from Paul's mind that he would give an account for his assignment. That brought both joy and sorrow to his life, but he never stopped pushing on "to present everyone mature in Christ." His care for others is a stellar example to us all, is it not? A man was driving his new Jag thru a city street when a brick smashed into his car door. Angrily, he slammed his breaks and backed up, grabbed the kid who threw the brick and gave him an earful. The boy began to cry saying, "Please, mister, I'm sorry, but I didn't know what else to do. No one would stop, and I need help. My brother rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair. I can't lift him myself. Would you please help me?" Humbled, the man helped the boy get up, wiped his cuts and sent them on their way. But he never repaired the dent in his car. It was a reminder: "Don't go thru life so fast that someone has to throw a brick to get your attention." Did you know there are people in our church every week who need you? - people who need encouragement, help, counsel, friendship? As faithful servants we must "stir each other up to love and good works", right? Keeping vigil on our own lives, but also on the lives of others - helping each other mature and flourish. Conc - Faithful stewardship of all God's gifts. Isn't that what we want? Shouldn't that drive our existence as believers? It's not about duty; it's about privilege - we're gifted to serve the King for a little while now so we can reign with Him forever. It's a good exchange, Beloved. And 3 elements of faithfulness - keeping our vision; keeping our vows; and keeping our vigil over each other. This is part of what Christ living through us looks like. We were at the Nokia Theater in LA shortly after it opened for a night with Vin Scully and John Wooden - two men I have greatly admired. Wooden was just out of the hospital, and one of the treats of the evening was watching 78-year-old Vin Scully helping 98-year-old John Wooden out onto the stage and into his chair. It turned out to be his last public appearance. Numerous former Dodgers and UCLA bb players were in the audience that night. It was a wonderful evening of storytelling and reminiscing. At one point, tho, Wooden was asked, "When you get to the gates of heaven, what words do you most to hear?" Wooden replied simply: "Well done." No elaboration - just "Well done." Know what? Me, too. Let's pray. DONE 7