Sermon Tone Analysis
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Main Idea - There sometimes comes a time in our lives where we are so discouraged by circumstances around us we may want to quit.
But God will give us the strength to keep going in His will.
Intro
Paul had left Athens and went to almost 100 km to Corinth.
Silas and Timothy had joined Him but one thing we remember from Athens is that the response was not all that good.
Only a few people came to know the Lord through His ministry .
One of the easiest things to do when it seems that everything in your life is going wrong, that people are not responding to the gospel like they should is to give up.
It is easy just to call it quits and say that you do not want to do it anymore.
A man was shoveling snow from his driveway when two boys carrying snow shovels approached him.
“Shovel your snow, Mister?” one of them asked.
“Only two dollars!”
Puzzled, the man replied, “Can’t you see that I’m doing it myself?”
“Sure,” said the enterprising lad; “that’s why we asked.
We get most of our business from people who are half through and feel like quitting!”
Dr. V. Raymond Edman used to say to the students at Wheaton (Illinois) College, “It’s always too soon to quit!”
And Charles Spurgeon reminded his London congregation, “By perseverance, the snail reached the ark.”
Corinth, with its 200,000 people, would not be the easiest city in which to start a church, and yet that’s where Paul went after leaving Athens.
And he went alone!
The going was tough, but the apostle did not give up.
Corinth’s reputation for wickedness was known all over the Roman Empire.
(Rom.
1:18–32 was written in Corinth!) Thanks to its location, the city was a center for both trade and travel.
Money and vice, along with strange philosophies and new religions, came to Corinth and found a home there.
Corinth was the capital of Achaia and one of the two most important cities Paul visited.
The other was Ephesus.
When God opens doors, the enemy tries to close them, and there are times when we close the doors on ourselves because we get discouraged and quit.
As Paul ministered in Corinth, the Lord gave him just the encouragements that he needed to keep him going, and these same encouragements are available to us today.
When following the will of God, are we willing to do what it takes.
I am not talking about the strategies we use and the programs we use to carry the gospel out.
I am talking about the will of God, the purpose he has for our lives and our church.
Where do we get encouragement from?
How can we keep going?
Acts 18:1-4 - Helpers
So Paul went to Corinth to plant a church as he did everywhere else. he met up with an Jewish Italian couple who had been chased out of their hometown by the emperor Claudius.
Acts 18:2 (CSB)
where he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome.
Paul came to them,
One important thing to know is that If one wanted to plant a church, Corinth was not usually the place to do it, at least it wasn't if you wanted an easy task.
Corinth was a major commercial hub, a very important city.
Probably this was one of the reasons why it was known for sexual sin as it was.
They had quite the reputation for sexual liberty, even amongst the people that did not know Jesus at the time.
In classical Greek there was a word to mean to “act the Corinthian” means to practice fornication; “Corinthian companions” or “Corinthian girls” were harlots.
The temple of Aphrodite on the acropolis of Corinth gave religious sanction to this kind of activity.
I
Paul eventually had to write back to the church in Corinth as they had such a hard time keeping to the standard of sexual purity that the bible called for.
after all, look at the city they lived in.
This is the place that Paul was going to try and plant a church in.
He ended up with a couple of helpers, who where tent makers like he was.
You see
Paul was a tentmaker by trade.
Paul earned his money by working as a tent maker.
He could have asked the churches to support him, and he did address the reason why he chose to do it this way.
Though there where churches who chose to support him anyways, without his asking and he was grateful for it.
Acts 18:4 (CSB)
He reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath and tried to persuade both Jews and Greeks.
While he went about his ministry as he was called to do, he had the encouragement and support of two christian friends.
This is important as we look into this passage.
Paul surrounded himself with other apostles and he surrounded himself with Christian people who could help and encourage him in his times of need.
maybe even to hold him accountable if he needed to be held accountable.
if you are discouraged in the ministry God has called you to do, remember you are not meant to do it on your own.
surround yourself with christian brothers and sisters who can support you.
Acts 18:5-11 - Despair & Encouragement
Paul was doing what He always did, he reasoend with eople that he met trying to persuade thm that Jesus was the long awaited for messiah.
Acts 18:5 (CSB)
When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul devoted himself to preaching the word and testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Messiah.
Yet again he did not have the best response.
But this did not go over well on their part.
verse 6 says they spoke evil against Paul.
The spoke evil evil against the Lord no matter how Paul tried to reason with them, and that was enough.
Paul was frustrated and said
Acts 18:6 (CSB)
When they resisted and blasphemed, he shook out his clothes and told them, “Your blood is on your own heads!
I am innocent.
From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”
It was quite the gesture, even though it might be lost on today’s culture.
It is the same as washing your hands of someone.
It is sating that I am done with you, I have tried and failed, your blood, your future judgement is on your own head and I have done all I can to change your minds.
I refuse to even let the dust from your unbelieving synagogue cling to my clothes.
Due to the unbelief of the people around Him, the lack of response for the last while i believe that Paul was discouraged.
why would this be though?
after this he went to the house of a God worshipper and He believed and was baptized, it says many people believed and where baptized.
Acts 18:8 (CSB)
Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, along with his whole household.
Many of the Corinthians, when they heard, believed and were baptized.
I am going off of what we are reading in the broader context of this assage but the next verse seems to say Paul was having a bit of a hard time.
Acts 18:9–10 (CSB)
The Lord said to Paul in a night vision, “Don’t be afraid, but keep on speaking and don’t be silent.
For I am with you, and no one will lay a hand on you to hurt you, because I have many people in this city.”
when following the will of the Lord, do not be afraid, do not be discouraged.
Paul had to be reminded, as do we all at some point in time.
as Joshua was reminded we are to be strong and of good courage, do not be afraid for the Lord you God is with you wherever you go.
How do I know Paul was struggling when He went to Corinth?
Just from the evidence that we have here.
He joined other people for support, and mainly the fact that God had spoken to him directly and encouraged him to keep going, to not give up, to keep following the will of God.
He needed encouragement at that time in his life.
Part of being empowered by the HS is that we will receive the strength and encouragement we need from Him.
When following the will of God, look to Him for the strength and encouragement you need to keep going.
Acts 18:12-23 - God’s Will
SO first of all we read that we need to sometimes seek the help of others.
Encourage each other as you live your life for God.
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