Unsaved Believing Disciples
Notes
Transcript
Handout
as we return to our study of the book of Acts I would like to us to think for a moment about the purpose of Acts:
Luke and Acts written by Luke the Gentile physician and partner with Paul on many of his missionary journeys
to understand his purpose must go all the way back to Luke 1:1-4
Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.
Luke’s purpose was that Theophilus have certainty about what he had been taught
we’re not told what he had been taught but it obviously had to do with Jesus, His life and ministry, His death and resurrection, His coming kingdom and the HS
it would appear that he had come to saving faith and Luke was writing to encourage and strengthen him
in Luke’s Gospel he gives an account of the birth, life, ministry, death and ascension of the Lord Jesus
in Acts the continuing work of the Lord Jesus by the ministry of the HS through the Apostles and disciples
secondly, the title of the Book, “Acts”, also tells us something about Luke’s purpose
when many Christians think of the title “Acts” they immediately think of the title given in the King James Version of the bible, “The Acts of the Apostles”
while this is true it is only partly so, for
Apart from the coming and work of the Holy Spirit there would have been nothing to write about!
thus a better way to consider the title of the book is “The Acts of the Holy Spirit through the Apostles and Disciples to Fulfill Jesus’ Great Commission”
and that work has been continuing right up to the present day and will continue until Christ returns
and what fuels our passion and desire to fulfill the Great Commission is Jesus promise in Mt 16:18,
English Standard Version Chapter 16
on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Jesus continues to build His church by His Holy Spirit with His Holy Word through His disciples.
Jesus’ plan and purpose has not changed, what He started He will finish!
thirdly, since the Book of Acts is an account of the establishing of the church there is much for us to learn about,
preaching, the gospel, salvation, church discipline, persecution, suffering, Christian fellowship, giving both financially and otherwise, the work of the HS, leadership
as we come to our passage today, we’re going learn again about salvation and specifically 3 things that are necessary for true saving faith
Pastor John MacArthur makes what I believe is an enlightening observation concerning this passage
in 18:18 we find Paul taking upon himself a Nazirite vow
in 18:25 we find Apollos who understands only the baptism of John
in our passage before us, Acts 19:1-7 we find 12 men who do not know about the HS
Pastor MacArthur’s observation is that in each of these cases we are introduced to individuals who are at different stages of coming out of Judaism into the full light and freedom of the Christian Gospel
as the church in Acts moved out from under the Old Covenant into the New there were some growing pains and we have a microcosm of it in Paul, Apollos and the 12 men
Paul obviously had the most knowledge and freedom, yet still felt constrained to keep some of the rituals of the OT
Apollos, though he had less understanding of Jesus and did not understand the significance of Christian baptism, just needed some instruction from Priscilla and Aquila in order to become a formidable preacher of the Gospel and a powerful defender of the faith
today we consider 12 men who know nothing of the HS
what is it that we are going to learn from this passage this morning?
3 essentials to true salvation and understanding what true faith is and isn’t,
what is a believing disciple?
what is the Gospel?
what is assurance?
what we are to do?
First: to examine ourselves in the light of these 3 essentials in the spirit of 2 Cor 13:5,
Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!
Paul instructs us to hold ourselves up to the scriptures on a regular basis in order to confirm and affirm that we are indeed true Christians
to put a finer point on it he says, “test yourselves”
and then the warning, “unless indeed you fail to meet the test”
Second: to help us to be wise and discerning in our conversations with others who claim to believe and be followers of Christ
Third: to guard the Gospel as it is under great attack in our day
Disciples Who Believed But Were Unsaved
Disciples Who Believed But Were Unsaved
let’s read Acts 19:1-3,
And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John’s baptism.”
Paul is fulfilling his promise given in 18:21
Paul had earlier passed through Ephesus on his way to Jerusalem to fulfill his Nazirite vow and when the Jews of the synagogue asked him to stay longer he said,
21 But on taking leave of them he said, “I will return to you if God wills,” and he set sail from Ephesus.
Paul fulfilled his vow in Jerusalem, travelled back to his home church in Antioch and then after some time set out for Ephesus on his 3rd missionary journey
on the way he strengthened the disciples in the churches he had previous established
when he arrived in Ephesus he encountered 12 men
now when Paul meets these men they are introduced to him as disciples
when we read that word “disciples” it is extremely tempting to conclude that they were Christians
then in v.2 Paul asks, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?”
so the words “disciples” and “believed” are used to describe them
surely then, these must be Christians!
but we need to ask, “disciples of whom” and “believed in what or whom?”
John the Baptist had his disciples and the Pharisees had theirs
and in the matter of believing James says,
Even the demons believe—and shudder! (Jas 2:19b)
John in his gospel often pointed out that you cannot determine anything by simply following or believing
So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples,
After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him.
though Judas was a disciple he proved himself false and betrayed Jesus!
Although every true Christian is a disciple of Christ, not every disciple is a true Christian!
Just because the words “disciples” and “believed” are used does not mean that these men were Christians.
another reason why these men could not have been Christians was because they did not know anything about the HS
in v.2 Paul asked them,
English Standard Version Chapter 19
“Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?”
something in their conversation or their behaviour tipped Paul off to the fact that though these men were “disciples” and “believed” there was something missing
and so Paul asked, “did you receive the HS when you believed”
note Paul’s assumption in his question:
believing in the sense of saving faith is inseparable from the gift of the HS
to believe is to have the HS and no one has the HS apart from saving faith
and notice their answer,
2 And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
it is surprising that anyone who had any knowledge of the scriptures could say they knew nothing of the HS!
Their answer clearly shows that though they were “disciples” and “believed”, they were unsaved.
upon hearing that they had no understanding of the HS Paul asked the next logical question, “into what then were you baptized?”
they answered, “Into John’s baptism”
whatever knowledge they possessed it began and ended with John the Baptist
the 12 had received John’s baptism without understanding the purpose of his mission or his message
accordingly, Paul replied in v.4, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is Jesus”
John’s entire ministry was to prepare the Jewish people for the coming of their promised and long awaited Messiah
Zechariah’s prophecy about his son in Lk 1:76-77,
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins,
in his ministry John pointed Israel to Jesus, the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world (Jn 1:29) and who would baptize them with the Holy Spirit and with fire! (Lk 3:16)
those baptized by John were affirming their faith in the coming Messiah who would cleanse them of their sins and give them the HS
somehow these men had been baptized without this knowledge or understanding
because they had been baptized they considered themselves disciples but they didn’t understand who they should be following or what they should be believing
they believed but had no understanding of the person and work of the HS
they were disciples, but not of the Lord Jesus Christ
Application:
what was true of these 12 men is true for many today who say they are followers of Christ and/or believe on Him
for some it’s because the Gospel they have accepted has been watered down and key parts are missing in their understanding
for some it because they belong to a church where the Gospel has been abandoned
for others, they know all the facts but have never truly believed
we also learn from these 12 that not all baptisms are genuine!
people who know nothing of the HS have not truly been baptized
a baptism without the HS is not baptism
anyone who has been immersed without an understanding of the Lord Jesus and the HS has not been baptized
a counterfeit bill is not real mooney and never will be!
Christian baptism is always connected to an understanding of the person and work of the Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
all true believers are therefore to be baptized
The Whole Gospel
The Whole Gospel
Paul does not delve into how the 12 missed the most crucial parts of John the Baptist’s message but focuses instead on what they really needed to know: the full Gospel.
this is the 2nd essential to true saving faith, understanding the whole Gospel
the 1st essential to true saving faith: what it means to be a disciple of Jesus and believe on Him
the 2nd essential to true saving faith: understanding the whole Gospel
And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
As is often the case in the book of Acts, many of the extended sermons and dialogues are not included but implied or briefly summarized.
I believe this is one of those cases
for reasons known only to Luke and the HS who inspired him, nothing is said of this conversation other than, “Paul said ...” (v.4) and the response of the 12 in v.5 “on hearing this”
having confessed they had no knowledge of the HS and knowing how important the Gospel was to the Apostle Paul,
It is inconceivable that Paul did not take some time to instruct these men on the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
remember Paul’s declaration to the Corinthians:
For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
we can be sure that whatever the 12 needed to fill out their understanding of the Gospel, Paul instructed them
what I want to do now is share with you the Gospel from Paul’s letter to the Romans
some of you will know it by the title, “The Romans Road”
I give this to you both as reminder of the way of salvation and as a tool that you can use in the instruction of your children and your witness in the community
Romans Road:
The Problem of Sin
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
10 as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; 11 no one understands; no one seeks for God. 12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” 13 “Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.” “The venom of asps is under their lips.” 14 “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.” 15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood; 16 in their paths are ruin and misery, 17 and the way of peace they have not known.” 18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
2. The Penalty for Sin
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
3. God’s Provision
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
4. The Call to Believe
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
salvation is available to anyone who will embrace Jesus as their Master and believe that in raising Jesus from the dead, God affirmed everything Jesus said and did
all who call on Jesus as such will be saved
all who do so are to be baptized according to the command of the Lord Jesus Christ
so the 12 were immersed, demonstrating their own death to sin, and their resurrection to eternal life in and through the Lord Jesus Christ
5. The Benefits of Saving Faith
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?
For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Assurance
Assurance
the first essential to true saving faith: following the right person and believing the right things
the second essential: having the whole Gospel
the third essential: assurance
And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying. There were about twelve men in all.
Normally the Holy Spirit is received at the point of saving faith.
however, there are 2 instances in the NT where this was not the case, where the HS was given after salvation
the giving of the Spirit to the Samaritans through Peter and John in Acts 8:14-25
this instance of the 12 receiving the HS after Paul lays his hands on them
When we understand the transitional nature of the book of Acts we will realize that receiving the Holy Spirit after salvation is not the normal experience of believers.
because Christianity was birthed in the context of Judaism there were many transitions that Jewish believers had to make as they embraced all that Christ and His Apostles taught
as they transitioned from the Old to the New Covenant they struggled to let of some things and embrace others
example of the Samaritans
it is possible that no group of people were more despised by the Jews than the Samaritans
in order for them to be received into what at that time was primarily a church populated by Jewish Christians God had to show them in a very clear and unmistakeable way that they were accepted and received by Him on the same basis as the Jews
thus when Peter and John prayed for them and they received the HS and the spoke in other languages as they had, they were convinced
in Acts 19 there is a different reason, one that I think will be an encouragement to us all!
these 12 men thought they were believers, they thought they were followers
having been taught and baptized, how were they to know for sure that they were now truly saved, truly believing and truly following?
Paul laid his hands on them, the HS came on them, and they began speaking in other languages and prophesying or declaring the glories of God
After such an experience there would have been no doubt in their minds as to their position in Christ!
now some of you may be saying to yourselves, “I wish I had such a sign to help me with my doubts about my salvation”
that sign is now past
but I would encourage you with the fact that it was given to very few in the early church and when it was given, it’s primary purpose was to convince unbelievers of the truth of the Gospel
remember that at Pentecost only 120 spoke in other languages while nothing is said of the 3000 who were saved doing so
although speaking in other languages is no longer a sign given there are other ways that the we can be assured of our salvation
So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.
for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.