Reaction to the Gospel

Introduction

Have you ever noticed people that no matter what is coming at them, they just seem calm

you begin to wonder, is there anything that bothers this person?

the world is crumbling around them or things just keep firing at them and they seem fine…

it is so weird, we wonder if they even know that they should be stressed by what is going on

some people always look as if they are stressed by stuff

every little thing is a big deal

every news story, every thing that happens to other people

There is a very sharp contrast between Paul and his plans and the riot that takes place in Ephesus

One you can hear the calmness that comes from the Spirit dictating where Paul will go next

the other, you can hear the stress, chaos and confusion

Acts 19:21–41 CSB

21 After these events, Paul resolved by the Spirit to pass through Macedonia and Achaia and go to Jerusalem. “After I’ve been there,” he said, “It is necessary for me to see Rome as well.” 22 After sending to Macedonia two of those who assisted him, Timothy and Erastus, he himself stayed in Asia for a while. 23 About that time there was a major disturbance about the Way. 24 For a person named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines of Artemis, provided a great deal of business for the craftsmen. 25 When he had assembled them, as well as the workers engaged in this type of business, he said, “Men, you know that our prosperity is derived from this business. 26 You see and hear that not only in Ephesus, but in almost all of Asia, this man Paul has persuaded and misled a considerable number of people by saying that gods made by hand are not gods. 27 Not only do we run a risk that our business may be discredited, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis may be despised and her magnificence come to the verge of ruin—the very one all of Asia and the world worship.” 28 When they had heard this, they were filled with rage and began to cry out, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” 29 So the city was filled with confusion, and they rushed all together into the amphitheater, dragging along Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians who were Paul’s traveling companions. 30 Although Paul wanted to go in before the people, the disciples did not let him. 31 Even some of the provincial officials of Asia, who were his friends, sent word to him, pleading with him not to venture into the amphitheater. 32 Some were shouting one thing and some another, because the assembly was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together. 33 Some Jews in the crowd gave instructions to Alexander after they pushed him to the front. Motioning with his hand, Alexander wanted to make his defense to the people. 34 But when they recognized that he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” 35 When the city clerk had calmed the crowd down, he said, “People of Ephesus! What person is there who doesn’t know that the city of the Ephesians is the temple guardian of the great Artemis, and of the image that fell from heaven? 36 Therefore, since these things are undeniable, you must keep calm and not do anything rash. 37 For you have brought these men here who are not temple robbers or blasphemers of our goddess. 38 So if Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a case against anyone, the courts are in session, and there are proconsuls. Let them bring charges against one another. 39 But if you seek anything further, it must be decided in a legal assembly. 40 In fact, we run a risk of being charged with rioting for what happened today, since there is no justification that we can give as a reason for this disturbance.” 41 After saying this, he dismissed the assembly.

Prayer

If Jesus is Lord of my life, then it must be of every aspect of my life. The test is easy. What areas am I looking for something other than Jesus to fulfill satisfy and sustain my life.

The Love of Money

rip the bandaid off… people have made claims that churches, clergy and other ministries simply want their money

this has and in some cases remain true

at a point in church history… if you want God to answer your prayer about your loved one, give money to the church

we see people on TV that claim if you send them money, your prayers will be answered

One specific pastor I have seen… God wants me to have these planes, mansions and millions of dollars

The real question is why do we get so upset when we talk about money

For most, I would argue it is because they have earned it

Even a small child, when they buy something, “I bought that with my own money!” And it makes it special to them

Acts 19:23–25 CSB

23 About that time there was a major disturbance about the Way. 24 For a person named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines of Artemis, provided a great deal of business for the craftsmen. 25 When he had assembled them, as well as the workers engaged in this type of business, he said, “Men, you know that our prosperity is derived from this business.

A major disturbance about the way

the way is the church, the people who have become disciples of Jesus

there are many of them, not just in Ephesus, Galatia and Achaia due to the ministry that Paul has been a part of

We do not know how long after the name of Jesus was held in high esteem, (v17), or the word of the Lord prevailed (v20)

we simply know it was after those events, as Paul is getting ready to move on after a couple years in Ephesus

he had sent Timothy and Erastus ahead to prepare for Paul to go to Macedonia

it was long enough that the fear of the name of Jesus had worn off

people would come from a great distance to the temple to Greek goddess Artemis, the Roman goddess Diana

this temple was one of the great wonders of the ancient world and dates back to 8th century BC

but with more disciples of Jesus they were noticing a drop in sales of the idols they would sell at the temple

or, Demetrius has seen how many people are coming to Christ, has heard Paul preach against this, or knows the religion is from the Jews, who preach against idol worship

I believe it is a combination of the last two

either way, we know it is the loss of money or potential loss of money that has him stirring up those he works with

We get just a fired up when our finances are threatened

people love money

there are different reasons for this

power, security, dreams all of which if you have money, it makes it possible or easier to gain any of those things

this is why some of the most greedy people, people consumed by money are poor people who can think of nothing else but getting more money

and hating those that have it

Paul warns Timothy, who was pastoring in Ephesus at the time Paul wrote to him

1 Timothy 6:7–10 CSB

7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out. 8 If we have food and clothing, we will be content with these. 9 But those who want to be rich fall into temptation, a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and by craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

We are not to be consumed by the things of this world

we brought nothing in, and we can take nothing out

isn’t that an amazing statement, it is true, yet we all have things that we hang on to

I have small things in my office from people and events that I want to remember, but I cannot take them with me

they are my memories, so they mean nothing else to even those in my family

these are not the things that he is talking about

it is the chasing desire to have more…

but there is a temptation (go through vs9-10) a trap

full of harmful and foolish desires

I just heard a commercial on TV, “You were made to chase your passions…”

they plunge people to ruin and destruction

but why… why does chasing after money, it is a root of all kinds of evil

and craving it leads many people away from the faith

In this case, it has caused Demetrius to stir up an entire city and Satan just love it

The Love of Confusion

I was not nice when I played high school sports

there was one kid, we payed against each other in every sport

I knew that if I could make him mad, he was done and would not do anything

so, I talked a lot of trash just trying to mess up

you know this is what satan does to us all the time

just says things trying to get us so wrapped up in our thoughts that we are confused on what we are doing

before we know it, we have no idea why we are even upset or confused

Acts 19:28–34 CSB

28 When they had heard this, they were filled with rage and began to cry out, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” 29 So the city was filled with confusion, and they rushed all together into the amphitheater, dragging along Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians who were Paul’s traveling companions. 30 Although Paul wanted to go in before the people, the disciples did not let him. 31 Even some of the provincial officials of Asia, who were his friends, sent word to him, pleading with him not to venture into the amphitheater. 32 Some were shouting one thing and some another, because the assembly was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together. 33 Some Jews in the crowd gave instructions to Alexander after they pushed him to the front. Motioning with his hand, Alexander wanted to make his defense to the people. 34 But when they recognized that he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”

Demetrius gets the whole city filled with confusion… and they all run to the amphitheater

something is going on, it has something to do with the temple and the goddess

some people grab companions of Paul and drag them in there too

there is such chaos, that some of the Jews throw Alexander out there to them to make sure that everyone knows that “The Way” is not a jewish cult, they want to be seen as separate from them

the crown wants nothing to do with the Jews, so he is shouted down as soon as he gets there

We have seen crowds get out of hand

people get into a group and things start happening that were not intended

maybe the greatest illustration of this is the trial of Jesus

the Jewish leaders stir up a crowd of onlookers to cry out crucify him!

why? I am guessing many do not know, but when the leaders are crying out, then it must be right

Satan loves this, the father of lies loves us going crazy, in a state of constant fear, anxiety and confused

so he will get us emotional, use the excitement of the crowd and watch as we begin to be absorbed into the chaos

how absorbed was the crowd, they shouted out for two hours!

how absorbed do we get

sports shows us… our team loses and we end up in a bad mood for the day

that is what this is… people who had not been effected by anything that was going on were now emotionally involved

The Love of Jesus

Don’t you just love grace…

I have fallen into this mess so many times in my life

if I had this, did this, things would be so much better

allowing events to effect me emotionally and then letting those emotions control me

only to fall into confusion when it didn’t happen like I thought

this is not the life that God has given to those who are in Christ

instead of focusing on the things of this world to satisfy or allowing our emotions to rules us, we are to look to him

Philippians 4:4–7 CSB

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

be in constant rejoicing

rejoice… when always

this means in good times we rejoice, in bad times we rejoice

why, because we are crazy, because we simply ignore what we are feeling and act happy

no! the Lord is near

we are not going through any of this on our own

we do not have to look for the things in this world to satisfy or comfort us

the Lord is near

we do not have to be upset that things are not going the way we want,

the Lord is near

So we do not have to worry about anything, but take the everything to the one who is near, take everything to the Lord in prayer

it is then, that we get a peace that surpasses understanding

that does not mean that we can rest because we will get what we want

or that we will not have pain, we won’t go through trials

not at all

when we take everything to the Lord in prayer,

the Lord guards our hearts and minds

the things that we feel and think will not be able to lie to us anymore

Lord, I am heartbroken because I cannot… and if I had… then I would be able to … and I would be satisfied

now he guards our hearts and minds

removes these feelings of helplessness and the fear from our minds and allows us to see the truth

that when we turn our eyes upon Jesus, the things of this world will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace!

Discussion Questions

Describe the contrast between Paul and the crowd in Ephesus?

In what ways can we identify areas in our lives where we seek fulfillment outside of Jesus?

How do modern societal pressures create confusion similar to that seen in the Ephesus riot?

Why did the silversmith Demetrius rally the craftsmen against Paul?

What does the sermon teach about the impact of pursuing wealth on one's faith?

How can you apply the message of focusing on Jesus to your daily challenges?

What strategies can you use to maintain calmness in stressful situations as highlighted in Paul's example?

What practices can help us take our worries to the Lord in prayer?

In what ways can you embrace the idea that 'the Lord is near' during difficult times?