Pursuing The Call Part 5 Series

ACTS

Pursuing The Call – Part 5

Dr. Tom Bartlett

JULY 21, 2019

Acts 18:1-17

OUTLINE

After his discouragement at Mars Hill, God Brings Paul Comfort through. . .

New godly friends

After this Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. And he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. And he went to see them, and because he was of the same trade he stayed with them and worked, for they were tentmakers by trade. And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and tried to persuade Jews and Greeks.

In discouraging times, seek encouragement from friends

Direction from God

When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul was occupied with the word, testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus. And when they opposed and reviled him, he shook out his garments and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” And he left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a worshiper of God. His house was next door to the synagogue. Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with his entire household. And many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized. And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.” And he stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.

In discouraging times, wait for direction from God

God’s protection

But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought him before the tribunal, saying, “This man is persuading people to worship God contrary to the law.” But when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of wrongdoing or vicious crime, O Jews, I would have reason to accept your complaint. But since it is a matter of questions about words and names and your own law, see to it yourselves. I refuse to be a judge of these things.” And he drove them from the tribunal. And they all seized Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him in front of the tribunal. But Gallio paid no attention to any of this.

In discouraging times, allow God to handle your crisis

MANUSCRIPT

If most people were to look at you, they could make judgments on the kind of person you are, they could reflect on your home, your car, your job, etc. But when it comes to who you really are and what’s really going on inside of you, only you and God can know that.

I can look at you, but I don’t know what’s happening between your ears, or the private struggles you’re facing.

When we read through the book of Acts, we see the events unfolding from the perspective of the writer. In Acts 18 we’re looking at the events of the life of Paul but not in his words, the writings are from Luke who recounts the history and the events.

By the time we get to chapter 18, Paul has arrived at the city of Corinth a 53-mile walk from Athens. He tired, discouraged, and beat up inside.

BUT, if you look at the text, it simply says he went to Corinth and then found some friends. Well, Corinth was a strategic stop on Paul’s journey of PURSUNG THE CALL of Jesus Christ. And what we know about the external events is written by Luke, but what we know about what was happening inside of Paul, comes from his own words. You see Paul would later write 2 letters to the Corinthians, and while he was there at this time, he actually wrote 2 other books in our New Testament, 1 and 2 Thessalonians. In those we can find several times where Paul mentions his emotional state during this time. Concerning his arrival in Corinth he writes,

1 Corinthians 2:3 he said, “And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling. . .”

In 1 Thessalonians 3:7, he mentions his emotional state around his testing in Corinth and says, “for this reason, brothers, in all our distress and affliction we have been comforted about you through your faith.”

I could give you more examples, but we can see from his own words that Paul was afraid, beaten up, worn down and dealing with discouragement.

He arrives by foot to Corinth alone, Timothy and Silas had not yet arrived. Paul suffered ridicule, opposition, accusation, imprisonment, along the way and after his eloquent speech at Mars Hill in chapter 17, only a few believed.