The Success Of The Gospel - Acts 19:8-20

And he entered the synagogue and continued speaking

out boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading

them about the kingdom of God. But when some

were becoming hardened and disobedient, speaking

evil of the way before the people, he withdrew

from them and took away the disciples, reasoning

daily in the school of Tyrannus. This took place

for two years. so that all who lived in Asia

heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.

God was performing extraordinary miracles by

the hands of Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons

were even carried from his body to the sick,

and the diseases left them and the evil spirits

went out. But also some of the Jewish exorcists,

who went from place to place, attempted to name

over those who had the evil spirits the name

of the Lord Jesus, saying, I adjure you by Jesus,

whom Paul preaches. Seven sons of one Sceva,

a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. And the

evil spirit answered and said to them, I recognize

Jesus and I know about Paul, but who are you?

and the man in whom the evil spirit leaped on

them and subdued all of them and overpowered

them so that they fled out of the house, that

house, naked and wounded. This became known to

all, both Jews and Greeks, who lived in Ephesus,

and fear fell upon all, and the name of the Lord

Jesus was being magnified. Many also of those

who had believed kept coming, and confessing

and disclosing their practices. And many of those

who practiced magic brought their books together

and began burning them in the sight of everyone.

And they counted up the price of them and found

it 50 ,000 pieces of silver. So the word of the

Lord was growing mightily and prevailing. The

emphasis of... Our exposition today is going

to be in verse 20. So the word of the Lord was

growing mightily and prevailing. In this text,

I want us all to consider Luke's understanding

of the gospel and its work in Ephesus. I want

us to consider... Luke's view, his perspective

of what gospel success really, truly is. I want

us to consider in this text Luke's understanding

of the advancement, of the increase, the multiplication,

the growth, the spreading of the gospel in this

world. What does it mean that the church is established?

What does it mean that the kingdom of God come

forth and break forth into this world? What does

it mean, brothers and sisters, that God work

in this world? Luke helps us understand this.

He shows us clearly what his perspective of true

gospel progress and true gospel success is in

verse 1. Now, I think it's important for all

of us that know Christ, that we see gospel success

and gospel progress and the work of God the same

way that the inspired author sees gospel success.

So, if Luke has a certain perspective regarding

the Word of God, Regarding God's work in this

world. Then we should view it the same way. If

we want to truly understand how God works in

this world. Now there's several reasons that

this is really important. That we understand

the nature of gospel progress and gospel success.

It's important because we as fallen creatures

will always. have a tendency to measure and make

judgments and determine whether something is

effective or ineffective, successful or unsuccessful,

based on things which are tangible. Things which

can be seen and felt. Things which are known

by our senses. Things which are worldly. Things

which are quantifiable in a sense. Things which

are carnal. Things which are earthly. We always

have that tendency as people. Everybody. It's

part of our nature in living in this world. So

we need to understand Luke's perspective on this

in particular because of that. But we also need

to understand this because of pragmatism. And

because... of certain movements in Christianity

throughout the ages and throughout the world

today that are solely based on application and

doing in the world. Many times these movements

and these pragmatic movements will say, well,

it doesn't work, therefore our theology must

be... But here's my question. Here's my question.

What if our definition of success is wrong and

we're deducing incorrectly based off of that

false, wrong definition? That's important that

we understand the nature of true gospel success.

We've got to, brothers and sisters. But we also

need to understand this because if we have a

wrong definition of what it means for the gospel,

to succeed, and God to work in the world, then

there's many people who could think, well, God

is blessing me, God is working, God is using

me, God is present, God is in our midst. But

if they're measuring that based on the wrong

definition of success, then in reality, God very

well may not be in their midst. God very well

may not be blessing them, and God very well may

not. Be at work in that place. But you could

go the other way as well. If we don't understand

the nature of true gospel success. Then it's

easy to get discouraged. If we're basing it off

of the wrong thing. Or we have the wrong idea

of what it means. Meaning. Well I don't see this.

I don't understand this. I don't recognize that

God is doing this. Therefore. God isn't working,

but brothers and sisters, what if he is in fact

working, but your understanding of gospel success

and progress is wrong? It's vitally important

that we understand Luke's perspective on the

success of the gospel in Ephesus. And that we

understand it for ourselves. So that we're not

disheartened. discouraged and despairing, and

so that we are rightly confident and bold as

we ought to be as believers in Jesus Christ,

knowing that God is at work. So how does Luke

view the success of the gospel in Ephesus? First,

he attributes the success of the gospel. to the

word of the Lord. What does he say? So the word

of the Lord was growing mightily and prevailing.

What is the word of the Lord? Well, it's the

gospel message, brothers and sisters. It's the

gospel message that Paul was proclaiming, that

Paul was preaching in Ephesus. It's the gospel

message that... had Christ as its center. The

message of the kingdom and the Messiah and God's

work and God's coming and taking on flesh. It's

the word of God. It's the full counsel of God.

It's apostolic doctrine as proclaimed in the

apostles. This terminology of the word of the

Lord carries with it A couple different emphases.

It carries with it the emphasis of divine authority

and divine origin and divine agency. So what

is Luke saying about the nature of gospel success

by attributing the work in Ephesus to the word

of the Lord? Brothers and sisters, here's what

he's saying. He's saying this work, everything

we read about in verses 8 through 20, all of

this work, brothers and sisters, it's of God.

It's from God. It's because of the Lord. It's

of divine origin. It has a divine source to it.

And it has divine authority. It's rooted and

grounded in divine and authoritative revelation

of God. It's not. A human work. It's not a man

-made convention. It's not a man -word work or

a man -centered work that his breath is about.

One might be tempted to think that this would

be a summary of Paul's work. One might be tempted

to think that this would be a summary of the

great apostles' efforts and labors and service

in Ephesus. But it's not. The work is attributed

to the Lord and His divine word. The gospel success

has a divine and sovereign source and authority

to it. It's from God. It's not from man. It's

God working through the word of God in that place.

That's what it is. It's God, it's the risen Lord

Jesus Christ from heaven, working through His

Word, through the message that's proclaimed by

the Apostle Paul. It's not that it's Paul and

he's not involved at all. He is. But listen,

it's Christ from heaven working for His kingdom.

It's Christ from heaven working for His church.

It's Christ working. Paul doesn't emphasize man

in this. He attributes it to God so that God

gets the glory, so that God gets the honor and

the recognition. God's work is preeminently and

chiefly through his word. That means that in

this world, God works where, brothers and sisters?

In and through his word. That means that God

works in this church. Where? In and through His

Word. That means, brothers and sisters, that

God works in your family. Where? In and through

His Word. That means, brothers and sisters, that

God works in and through mission. Where? His

Word. That means that God works in individuals

and people. He works in individual Christians

who know Christ. He works in individuals. who

love Christ, He works in individuals who are

struggling and have difficulties in life. How

does He work in their life? In and through the

Word of God. So if we're not in the Word of God,

should we expect that God be working in His life

as He would be if we were in the Word of God?

We can't say, oh, God's not working in my life.

He's not doing anything in and through me. Well,

are you meditating on the scriptures? Are you

thinking about the word of God? Are you asking

God to reveal himself and manifest himself through

the word that he gave to us? Is God speaking

to you through his word regularly so that he

can work in you and through you because those

are the appointed means that he has given? to

do so. Brothers and sisters, God works in and

through His Word in this world, in the church,

on mission, and in our lives personally. No wonder

the devil is always out to supplant, to replace,

and to do away with the Word of God, to take

our focus and our mind off the Word of God. to

get our attention off of it, and anything else.

Isn't that exactly what he's been doing since

the beginning? What did he do in the garden?

He sought to supplant the Word of God. Has God

really said? The devil doesn't want us in the

Word of God. The devil doesn't want you in the

Word of God. He doesn't want God working in you

through the Word of God. He knows how to hurt

you. He knows how to bring detriment and pain

and suffering into your life. And that's to get

you out of the Word. Brothers and sisters, we

have to be in the Word of the living God. If

it's trivial, menial, insignificant, and leftovers

in your life, Don't expect to be what you ought

to be as a believer in Jesus Christ. If it's

trivial, menial, and insignificant in the life

of a church, that church should not ought to

expect that they will be full of life and vitality

and power and blessing of God. But brothers and

sisters, there's another side to it as well.

If a church or a person is... faithfully giving

themselves to the means that God has given to

us, then we have to, by faith, believe that He

is working in and through our lives, regardless

of whether we see it, whether we recognize it,

whether we understand it or not. Do you understand

that? If you are being faithful, and you are

in the Word of God, and you're actively submitting

your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ through the

Word of God, you're asking God, God, speak to

me through your Word. I want to know you better

through your Word. I want to know you more, and

I want to know you better in greater ways. I

want to know your presence in further and greater

ways. I want to know your work in my soul in

further and greater ways in my life. Listen to

me. If you're doing that, then you have every

reason to expect that God is going to grow you

in the grace and the knowledge of the Lord Jesus

Christ. Take heart, believer. Be bold. Be confident

in the Lord if you are giving yourself to the

means that He has divinely appointed to work

in this world. He's not left us alone. Listen.

He's not left us empty -handed. He has given

us the Word of God. And He will work in and through

the Word of God. Believe those promises. Appropriate

those specific promises by faith to your very

soul. So we see that Luke attributes the success

of the Gospel to the Word of God. So we see that...

Luke attributes the success of the Gospel to

the Word of God. It's not of man, it's not from

man, it's of God, and it's through His Word that

God works. That was true in Ephesus, and that's

true of us today, brothers and sisters. We have

to believe the promises regarding the Word, but

we have to also understand that if we're not

in the Word, and we're not giving ourselves to

the Word as we ought, then we shouldn't expect

that God is working in our lives as He would

be if we were in that Word. Secondly, we see

that Luke sees it as the Word growing mightily.

He says in verse 20, The word of the Lord was

growing mightily. Now, that's an interesting

way of putting it. How does the word of the Lord

grow mightily? How does it, we could say, blossom

in the world, in a place, in a people, in a person?

How does maturation come to the word of God progressively?

How is it strengthened and advanced? How is it

grown and spread in this world? I think Luke

helps us with this. I think that we can answer

that question in the following ways. The Word

grows mightily in Ephesus because the ministry

of the Word continued and increased in Ephesus.

Do you remember Paul went from being in the synagogue?

He was preaching and teaching. He was persuading.

And then he had to leave the synagogue. And where

did he go? The school of Tyrannus. And it was

at the school of Tyrannus that he gave himself

more extensively to the preaching of God's Word,

to the exhortation and the teaching of the people

in Ephesus, to seeking the conversion of sinners

in Ephesus. So we see that the ministry of the

Word itself grew. That the ministry of the Word

itself expanded and increased in Ephesus. We

could look at Acts chapter 12, verse 24, and

Acts 12:24

Luke alludes to this. He says in Acts chapter

Acts 12:24

12, verse 24, in another summary statement, He

says, but the word of the Lord continued to grow

and to be multiplied. Now, what is this text

summarizing? It's summarizing the reality that

the word of God continued to be promulgated,

that the word of God continued to go forth, that

the word of God continued to be proclaimed, that

it couldn't be stopped, but that it proceeded

forth in power by the apostle Peter in that.

specific instance. So the word in Ephesus was

continuing, but it was also increasing in that

place. We can also answer the question of how

did it grow in this way? True knowledge of the

word spread far and wide. If we look in Acts

Acts 19:10

chapter 19, verse 10, we read this took place.

for two years, so that all who lived in Asia

heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.

What's it talking about? Knowledge of the Gospel

was spreading like wildfire. Knowledge concerning

the Lord Jesus Christ was spreading everywhere.

And people were... hearing it, and they were

being exposed to it, and some of them were understanding

it, and some of them were being converted by

it. They were coming to a greater and a better

knowledge of who Christ was and what he did.

Jew and Gentile all over Asia Minor. It was spreading

like wildfire in that area. We see also that

it grew because those... Saved by the word. Were

multiplied greatly. We read in Acts chapter 6.

Acts 6 · chapter mention

Verse 4. In the life of the early church. Earlier

than where we're at now. I'm sorry in verse 7.

Acts chapter 6 verse 7. Listen to what this says.

Acts 6:7

The word of God kept on spreading. And the number

of disciples continued to increase greatly in

Jerusalem. And a great many of the priests were

becoming obedient to the faith. So how did the

word grow in that area, brothers and sisters?

How did the word grow in Ephesus? Listen, more

and more and more and more people were being

converted by the very word that was being spread.

The Gospel is being proclaimed. The Gospel is

going forth. And men and women were being converted

by that Gospel. They were coming to know the

Gospel. Their lives were being transformed and

changed by the Gospel. Those disciples were being

strengthened and edified and built up. So it's

not just that the word was being sounded forth

and people were hearing it with their ears, but

brothers and sisters, it's a reality that the

gospel is going forth in power by the apostle

and that men and women were being converted because

they were hearing it in their hearts and they

were being changed. They were becoming converts

to Christianity. The word of God caused them

to be born again to a living hope and made them

new creatures in Christ. And those disciples

weren't just growing in their head knowledge,

but they were growing deep and strong roots as

disciples in the Lord Jesus Christ. So the Word

of God was spreading. It was growing. The disciples'

knowledge of the Word was strengthened. The effects

and the power of the Word was going forth, being

enjoyed and experienced by many, many people

in that time and in that place. This is really

what we want. We want the Word to grow. This

is what you want in your life, and this is what

I want in my life. This is what we want in the

life of this church. This is what we want in

this place, in this area. This is what we want

in this people. And that's what we want in our

families, brothers and sisters. We don't want

mommy's opinion or daddy's opinion to grow. We

don't want the pastor's opinion to grow. We don't

want people's perspectives to grow. What do we

want to grow and to multiply and increase? The

word of the living God. That which is divine

and authoritative and powerful and life -changing.

That's what we want to increase and to spread

far and wide all over. But it's also what we

want to strengthen us and make us deep and strong

and rooted and grounded in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Causing us to know Him and love Him better. Is

the Word of God growing in your life? Ask yourself

that question. Is the Word of God increasing

in your life? Is the Word of God multiplying?

Is it flourishing in your life? Can you tell

consciously that the Word is bubbling? That the

Word is trying to come up and trying to come

out? Can you tell that it's affecting and changing

you, brothers and sisters? Or is it just a little

teeny tiny voice in the bottom that you suppress

and you don't listen to and you don't want to

hear because it's hard and it's painful and it's

discomfort? Brothers and sisters, the design

of the Word of God and the design of Christ for

His people is that the Word of the living God

flourish and thrive and grow in your soul. Don't

tell me. That the Word is growing in your life

if you spend five minutes in there a week. Don't

tell me that the Word of God is growing in your

life if you can't remember the last thing you

read. Don't tell me the Word of God is growing

in your life if you don't think about it at all

during the day. Brothers and sisters, it's in

the Word that the Spirit of God bears witness

to the risen Jesus Christ. If we want to know

Christ by faith more, we have to know His Word

in greater ways. Is it growing in you? What's

the Word of God doing in your life? How is it

challenging you? How is it confronting you? How

is it affecting you? How is it convicting you?

Is it revealing the presumptuous? hidden faults

of your hearts that not even you see? Is it showing

you the errors of your way? Is it showing you

the arrogance and the pride in your heart? Is

it showing you the immorality and the perversion

that lies deep down in your heart that not even

you knows about? Brothers and sisters, that's

what the Word of God does. And that's why it

needs to grow and increase and flourish and multiply

in your very soul. That's the design of our risen

Lord, to be sanctified and holy and godly in

our lives. That His Word dwell deeply within

us and dwell richly within us. That we hide it

in our hearts that we might not sin against Him.

Is the Word increasing in your soul? Not your

neighbor's soul. Not your brother or your sister's

soul. Not your mom or your dad's soul. Not the

person sitting next to you. Not the person sitting

on the other side of you. But is it growing in

your own soul? That's the question we each have

to wrestle with. Every single one of us. That's

the question we have to wrestle with every single

day as we think about the Word of the Living

God. What's it doing in your life? Because that's

the way God works in our life. That's the way

God strengthens us and encourages us. Now, amazingly

enough, in this text, we think about the word

growing and flourishing. But in this text, Luke

understands that the word isn't just growing.

That it's not just increasing, but what does

he say? He says that it's growing mightily. That

it's increasing and spreading mightily. That

word carries this idea of according to power.

So the word in Ephesus is growing according to

power. But whose power is the word? growing from.

What's divine power? It's the power of God that

works in and through the words of God. Maybe

it's alluding to the miraculous things that accompanied

Paul's preaching in Ephesus. Maybe that's why

he says that it's growing mightily. Maybe Luke

is alluding to the fact that There was visible

demonstrations and visible signs and wonders

and miracles that accompanied and associated

the message that Paul proclaimed. Or maybe, most

likely, I think what he's alluding to is the

fact that when the Word of God is effective and

powerful in any way, it's because the divine

and sovereign power of God is accompanying that

Word, the Spirit. Of God. The need. Today. Is

the same as it was. Then. The need. Is for the

word of God. But it's also brothers and sisters.

For the spirit. Of God. The word. By itself.

Is not enough. The Word by itself, when it's

spoken, and the Spirit of God does not bless

it, and the Spirit of God is not accompanying

it, and the Spirit of God is not with it, blessing

it, working in and through it. Brothers and sisters,

even the Word is vain. It must be the Word and

the power, the Spirit, at work with the Word.

I love this text, and I love this section of

Scripture. Because it reminds us that God worked

in a certain way in Ephesus. Through His Word

and by His Spirit. But brothers and sisters,

it also reminds us, and this is why it's so encouraging,

that that's still the way that God works. God

still works through His Word and by His Spirit.

And if He worked like that in Ephesus then and

there at that time, do you know what that means

for us today? Do you know what that means for

you today? Do you know what that means for the

life of our church? Do you know what that means

for Christianity and the world today? That means,

brothers and sisters, that God can do mighty

and powerful things just like He did in Ephesus.

He can do this very thing and ring the heavens

and pour down His Spirit. And He can convert

sinners. And He doesn't have to do it in small

groups. He can do it in big ways. He can do it

in one, two, three, hundreds or even thousands

of people. This is the nature of true revival

in the world. And history bears witness to it.

Brothers and sisters, I fear sometimes that our

understanding of the Word of God as the ordinary

means of grace has caused us to forget. The extraordinary

and supernatural power at work in and through

the Word to do extraordinary things in the life

of the church. There's nothing ordinary about

the Spirit of God and the power of the Spirit

that accompanies the Word of the living God.

He did it then. He can do it now. He can work

in such a way then, and He can work in such a

way now, and He has worked in such ways throughout

history. Do you long for God to move, for God

to work in mightier and bigger and greater ways

in your life, in the life of your church, in

the life of your family, in the life of your

town, in the life of your world? Brothers and

sisters, do you long for that? Do you hunger

and thirst for God to act? Do you hunger and

thirst and look for and pray for and long for

God to move in mighty ways to such a degree that

men and women look upon it and they say, that

must be of God. That's what we need. We need

God to act like He acted in Ephesus. That's what

we need in our lives, personally. And that's

what we need in our church. And that's what we

need in our world. God to act. God to move. God

to save sinners through His Word. To extend His

sovereign power in this world in mighty, mighty

ways. So Luke understands that the work in Ephesus

is of the Lord. And the success of the Gospel

is according to the Word of God. But he also

sees it as the Word growing mightily. Or the

Word growing and increasing, spreading, multiplying,

and flourishing according to the power of God.

But we also see that he understands the Word

to be prevailing. He says in verse 20, Also at

the end of the verse. So the word of the Lord

was growing mightily and prevailing. Luke now

portrays the word or the gospel in terms of its

impact in Ephesus and in the life of sinners.

When we think about the gospel impacting people,

we could think. Or the gospel being impactful

and effective and working and changing and transforming

things. We could think about all the miraculous

healings that took place in Ephesus. We don't

know how many there were, but we know that they

were present. We could think about the lives

that were changed as a result of those miraculous

healings. We could say the gospel is prevailing.

We could think about... The demons, the evil

spirits that were cast out. They were driven

out by the power of the living God. We could

think about that. We can say the word was prevailing.

And surely it was. We could think about the seven

sons of one Sceva. And that whole situation and

the true knowledge of God spreading far and wide

in Ephesus. and this fear, this reverence coming

over the city, and Christ's name being magnified

and exalted and revered among men. We could say

that the word was prevailing. But we have to

remember the word so. The very first word in

verse 20. So the word of the Lord was growing

mightily and prevailing. What comes directly

prior to... this summary statement. What happened?

What was transformed? What was so effective?

What was made to be so drastically different?

These people, these individuals who are converted

by the gospel, who used to be practitioners of

these evil arts, and now they've come to the

church and they confess their sins and their

participation, and... They burn their books.

So what is it that's been transformed and so

changed that Luke would say the gospel is prevailing

in Ephesus? It's the fact that sinners are being

converted to Christ and the church of Jesus Christ

is being established in the world. The gospel

prevails in the many converts, in the establishment

of the church. in Ephesus. You cannot tell me

that that is not what Luke is summarizing here.

He's summarizing the work of the gospel in the

life of people and the transforming, effective

power it brings. It changes dead men to be living

men. It brings men out of darkness into life

and it rewires everything. It makes them new

creatures in Christ. And this has certain effects

with it. And we see that take place in Ephesus.

When men and women are changed. When men and

women are transformed and really, really changed

by the Gospel. Meaning God takes out their old

dead heart and gives them a new heart and makes

them live according and in His precepts and in

His law. Because of Christ and the work of Christ

in the Gospel. When that happens, there are effects.

But those effects are indirect with regards to

the Gospel. They're indirect effects, we could

say, with regards to the Gospel and the purpose

of the Gospel. So we see, That Luke understands

the gospel to be successful in Ephesus. Why?

Because men are being converted. Because men

are coming to Christ. Men are coming to love

the Lord Jesus when they used to hate Him and

there was enmity between Him and Christ. He's

bringing men to Himself. and changing them individually

and personally, and establishing His church in

this place. That's the epitome of gospel success.

That's the essence of what it means for Christ's

kingdom to come in this life and this world now,

brothers and sisters, until the coming day of

Christ's return and is visible, tangible. Kingdom

is established. That's why we pray the way we

do in the catechism. That men would believe and

obey the gospel. Because Christ's kingdom comes

into this world by coming into men's hearts and

changing them and transforming them. So what's

the business of the church? What's the business

of the believer, brothers and sisters? What's

our mission? Our mission is to proclaim the Gospel

and to see men and women come to Christ. That

men and women would be converted to the Lord

Jesus Christ. That they would be born again.

That's what the church is about. That's what

the Gospel does. And there are certain indirect

effects that come as a result of that. We see

that later in the book of Ephesus. And we'll

talk about that later. That when men are changed,

the culture and society and the world are affected

and they are changed. It is impacted by the gospel

and the transformation of sinners, brothers and

sisters. But we don't start there. We don't start

there and work our way back, do we? What's the

mission of the church? Conversion of sinners

and the strengthening of disciples. The establishment

of the church. And the effects come as they will.

Brothers and sisters, history bears witness and

testifies to the reality that when revival comes,

reformation follows. Not permanently. but for

an indefinite period. But reformation doesn't

come until what? Revival comes. Life change doesn't

come until regeneration comes. Transformation

in our own life doesn't come until the Word is

implanted and we are converted. Brothers and

sisters, reformation comes following true, genuine

revival. That's the job, that's the business

of the church of Jesus Christ. To preach and

proclaim repentance of sins and justification

by faith alone that men can come to know the

Lord Jesus Christ by faith and repentance. That's

the function of the church and that's what Luke

sees the gospel as being successful.