Unusual Miracles Series

UNUSUAL MIRACLES

Text: Acts 19:8-20

Introduction

1. “A miracle is a divine intervention into, or interruption of, the regular course of the world that produces a purposeful but unusual event that would not have occurred otherwise.” (Norman Geisler and Ron Brooks, When Skeptics Ask: A Handbook on Christian Evidence (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1990), 79).

2. “Scholar, William Lane Craig gives us an even more simple definition: A miracle is an event which is not producible by the natural causes that are operative at the time and place that the event occurs.” (Lee Strobel, The Case for Faith (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Pub. House, 2000), 62).

3. In case you haven’t already figured this out, I believe in miracles, and yes, I believe they still happen today!

4. I believe God gives his people the power to do things to do the uncommon, the unusual, and the unordinary.

5. Read Acts 19:8-20

Transition: God gives us…

I. The Power of Sticktoittiveness (8-10).

A. Lecture Hall of Tyrannus

1. After Paul’s encounter with the 12 believers who he taught and prayed for them to receive the Holy Spirit, he stayed and ministered in Ephesus for more than two years. During that time, his ministry was filled with powerful preaching, supernatural healings, and changed lives.

2. In v. 8 Luke tells us, “Then Paul went to the synagogue and preached boldly for the next three months, arguing persuasively about the Kingdom of God.”

a. Here Paul shows that he was a man of his word. If you recall, the last time he was in Ephesus, Paul preached at the synagogue, and they asked him to stay. He told them that he couldn’t stay but that he would come back.

b. So, Paul shows his character in keeping his promise.

c. This shows us the importance of keeping our word to others. If we say we are going to do something, we should be people of high character by keeping our promises. Our word has to mean something.

d. Notice also, that he “argued persuasively about the Kingdom of God.” The phrase “argues persuasively” appears six times in the Book of Acts, and each time it refers to Paul.

e. This word accurately describes his ministry among the Jews, and it shows his dependence on the power of the Holy Spirit in his preaching.

f. We should also pay attention to the fact that he talked about the “Kingdom of God.”

g. Although we see this phrase often in the Gospels, it is rarely used in Acts and is either a reference to the preaching of Jesus or to Paul.

3. As a friend of mine used to say to me, “there are always demons to slay.” Whenever someone is doing something for the Kingdom, you can bet that the devil will fight you tooth and nail. In v. 9 Luke tells us, “But some became stubborn, rejecting his message and publicly speaking against the Way. So Paul left the synagogue and took the believers with him. Then he held daily discussions at the lecture hall of Tyrannus.”

a. Whenever you preach the truth, stubborn people will either belittle you or leave. This is the case with some people in the synagogue at Ephesus.

b. The word stubborn means “to harden your heart.” It’s a word that we encounter throughout the OT of the people of Israel.

c. In Psalm 95:8 it says, “The Lord says, “Don’t harden your hearts as Israel did at Meribah, as they did at Massah in the wilderness.”

d. That’s exactly what these Jews did; they hardened their hearts and refused to believe the Gospel.

e. But I want you to see what Paul didn’t do; he didn’t get discouraged and give up. He just said, “okay, you don’t want me to preach here, so I’ll just take the true believers with me and switch to plan B.

f. What was plan B? Well, he rented out a local lecture hall and used it daily to preach and teach to people.

g. This to shows Paul’s determination to not let the devil win.

h. You see in Ephesus, like in many Mediterranean countries, people did nothing from the hours of 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. They went home took a nap because it was too hot. Sounds like a good idea, right?

i. So, Paul took advantage of this and used this lecture hall when nobody else would, and people rather than taking a nap would go and listen to Paul preach.

j. Sounds like a good plan B, if you ask me! In other words, the devil gave him lemons, so he made lemonade.

4. As a result, the Lord blessed Paul’s “sticktoittiveness,” and, as Luke tells us in v. 10, “This went on for the next two years, so that people throughout the province of Asia—both Jews and Greeks—heard the word of the Lord.”