Acts 19 - Ephesus | Pr Matthew Chang

You're listening to a message to go from ex church. We hope this message

will light up your day. So today we're gonna continue on the series of

the Paul's Missionary Trip. How many if you're familiar with it, all right,

so turn with me, Okay to act chapter nineteen. Okay, today's

passage is gonna be quite interesting. Okay. We're gonna learn a lot of

different things. We're gonna learn a bit about history. We're gonna learn a

bit about a city. We're gonna learn about casting out demons as well.

We're gonna ask We're gonna learn a bit about being cast away from a city

as well. And we're gonna try to make sense what all of these actually

mean in one sitting, and also how it affects your life. Most importantly,

it's not about history, you know. Okay, we can learn about

all these details and it just flash through our minds, But what does it

mean to you and how does it apply to your life? And what can

you do today and tomorrow that helps That helps your life to live in obedience

to God's work. That's ultimately what's the most important. Now, I'm not

going through this as a history lecture, Okay, I'm going through this so

that we all can learn something from it. Okay, how only by God's

grace. Okay, So let's read. Okay, and I also have slides

today. But let's read a bit from X chapter nineteen, and I'm gonna

read from verse one all the way to verse ten. Okay. Now Paul

is at a new city. Okay. As previously he was in Corinth to

Antio. Now he's in Ephasus. Okay. There's even a book or a

letter written by Paul called the Letter to the Ephesians as well. Okay,

and so now Paul is at Ephesus, and let's let's read what happens here.

It says, yeah, and it happens while Apollos. Again, there's

not Paul, this is another person or another minister. Apollos was at Corinth

that Paul, having passed through the upper regions, came to Ephesus, and

finding some disciples, he said to them, did you receive the Holy Spirit

when you believed? So they said to him, we have not so much

as heard whether there is a holy Spirit. Very interesting, so they have

never even heard about it before. Then Paul said to them, into what

then were you baptized, so they said, into John's baptism. Then Paul

said, John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, okay, saying to

the people that they should believe on him who would come after him, that

is on Christ Jesus. Okay, Let's pause there for a while because it's

quite a load there, okay, And there's quite a lot of things there.

Okay. Now I'm thinking where should I start beginning first? Okay,

Let's begin with the city. Okay, let's possible, let's begin with the

place. Okay, Now in Ephasus. What is Ephesus? What? What

kind of place? It is just a rough background. I'm not gonna go

too much. Ephesus is considered the second biggest city in the Roman Empire.

Okay, second biggest city. It's like Osaka to Tokyo. Okay. It's

like, I don't know what we always know the number one city, we

never know, never know the number two city. What's a number two city

in Malaysia? Binang people said, there's no official number two c city,

right, but Darling Jaya, who is it? What's the numbers two city

in Malaysia? JB. I was gonna think jb ready, but I don't

know, man, I'm conflicted. You know, I started something here,

I'm not gonna be able to stop ready, Okay, I had no idea.

Okay, Claire klangg claim and actually you know, claim has got a

legit claim there. Okay, So maybe like Shanghai to Beijing, but Shanghai

is actually bigger ready, you know, but you know, talking about the

second biggest, it's Georgetown really officially, Oh we learned something too new today,

okay, So peen and people you know what that means on a lunch

is on you you know he asked for right, right, everybody agree?

Right? You claim number two? You'll get to pay ex kidding it's okay,

So glory with a sacrifice, It's okay, all right. So second

biggest city, okay. And it's popular, very very well known as as

like an intersection between the East and the West, Okay, very popular intersection.

They are very known for a few things of course, for trade.

But many people come to Ephesus not to trade. Why, okay, They

come to Ephasas because it is one the more beautiful cities in the world at

the time compared to you know, just Rome. Okay, at first,

it's very very beautiful. Of course, there are other beautiful cities like Corinth

and you know other places, but Everceins is very beautiful, and they are

known to have they worship this patron deity called Diana. Okay, how many

view are familiar? You might be. You probably don't know, but actually

you've seen it very very many times. So the patron deity, what what

do you call it? Patron patron means hosting. Okay. So every a

lot of the cities in ancient Rome and ancient Greece time, a lot of

their cities are founded based on a history, a background story, and and

you know, based on a particular god or goddess as well. That's how

they derive their name. They derived their history, their culture, their heritage.

And I tell the whole story. It's like I don't know, you

know, It's like it's a copitiamina. They tell you this copy, this

coffee come from this village, from fishermen village, and then they rose this

being, and then they sell you this kaya you know, and tell your

entire whole story before something like this as well. So they will tell you

these whole entire efficus come from a story. They came from a stone that

dropped down from the sky, came down in the middle, and they built

an entire temple around it called the princes prince, called the Temple of Diana

literally you know, so people actually have a story about it. So different

cities will have a host deity. Okay. So for example Athens, who's

the host deity for Athens? Thie? Nah? Do you know that Athena

is the goddess of wisdom. So Athens attract what kind of people, smart

people or the smart alects, all the smart let's go there, firetuggers,

you know, all the different you know, Greek people had too much time,

okay, and that's that thing. So the patron deity saw the main

was the worship of Lady Diana. No Lady Diana, okay, Princess Diana,

not Princess Diana, Goddess Diana, so many okay. So in Greek

it's called Artemis. It's the goddess of the hunt, goddess of the moon,

goddess of virginity, protector of young women and birth. And they are

worshiped by many young women. Okay. And there are many other places,

smaller towns that also host the goddess. But the main headquarter is it actually

is in Ephesus, and why they are also the headquarter. They have one

of these seven wonders of the ancient world, not the modern world, one

of the seven wonders of the ancient world. And then it's the beautiful Temple

of Artemis or Temple of Diana. Okay, it took them one hundred and

twenty years to build one hundred and twenty years. We cannot brain. You

know, the textpayer money that goes into a bit okay, okay, So

it's very powerful, very beautiful, and they also have not so there's the

uh, the image of what it looks like. And the temple is not

just a temple not The temple was basically the heart of commerce administration for the

entire city. People do banking, people do get licensing, people want to

meet influential people, anything you do in life. You know, you know,

its like administrating an entire city. It's like your MVPG plus your home

Yong bank pass, your main bank all come together in one place. Oh

did you know that? So everybody, the whole entire city goes to this

place to do their basicasic living. Okay, their daily lives. But now

if you look on the rights, that's what it remains right now, only

one pillar remains, small pillar remain standing there. They also have a few

other things, I think the first line. They also have the famous sudden

they can remember the stage okay, the correct the great theater of Ephesus.

Okay, so this is the Great Theater of Ephesus, housing up up to

twenty five thousand people. Beautiful, Okay, there is quite the MP theater

half only that is why the word MP not theater. They called it MP

theater. Half of it. It's okay, And so there's a reason why.

I don't know why. Okay, it's pretty beautiful. And later this

place is going to come up in the Bible as well, where Paul and

not Paula about his disciples and the believers will be dragged there and they try

to sentence them or try to punish them right here in front of everybody as

well. Okay, So that's a bit of the understanding of what Ephysus is.

Now. The other person that we wanted to bring about is Apollos.

Okay, so we read earlier in the chapter there's this character called Apollos.

Some of you might have forgotten who he is. He is a Jew,

but he is one of those persons who is very highly studied, very knowledgeable.

He studied in Alexandria. Can you know who is Alexandria? Okay?

Where? Okay? Egypt? Very good? Okay, you guys have no

at least listened to my previous message. Okay, on the northern Egypt and

Egypt and Alexandria is also known for one sorry, yes, the Great Library

Okay, it's one of the most powerful, the Great Library of Alexandria where

the holds all the you know, a lot of the ancient manuscripts and stuff

like that as well. So, but you know that Alexandria is also known

for one very important contribution to the Bible. You know what is that very

very important contribution Alexandria, the Great Library. The modern Bible that we have

here is a result of Alexandria as well. You see the Old Testament,

okay, before we have the Bible rights all written in Hebrew or some of

it Arabic. Okay. So at that time, during Jesus time, of

Paul's time, the most common language that was spoken was what Greek. Okay,

Greek okay, Greek. So the Greek people were the so called most

highly intellectual people. Okay, but you have a problem. You have the

Old Testament, you have the Old Testament in a Hebrew but then you also

have a group of people speaking in Greek. So there is a gap in

translation and that time, and we don't have we're gonna translate not GBT okay,

to do all that work as well. So the knowledge of the Old

Testament couldn't really pass on to either the rest of the world or even the

modern Jews as well. A lot of the modern Jews who don't leave other

places, right, they mostly spoke Greek. Okay. It's like nowadays a

lot of Malayias don't know how to spin. But us already, we have

to close that gap, people. We gotta work harder, okay, we

gotta work harder. Okay. So that's a very important thing. So what

have in Alexandria is there we have these seventy Greek scholars, okay, who

came down to Alexandria and they decided to translate the Hebrew Old Testament into the

Greek language. Manuscript. It's called the sept Too Agent. Okay, have

you heard this word the septu Asian manuscript sceptu Agian means seventy oo. And

so now a lot of times when you read whatever your English translation, English

transition is actually third generation. So you have the Hebrew, you have to

the Greek. Then you hear do they king James Ah? Makes sense right

now? So we actually go through a few levels as well. So if

you want to study the original manuscript, you have to go through the either

the Greek or to the Hebrew as well. Makes sense. So that's why

it's a lot of times when you really want to understand certain words, right

you go back to the Greek understanding of the Hebrew understanding as well, to

thank God for this Septuagian work that God has prepared so that you know,

before even even Jesus came into the world, the world has been prepared,

even the Old Testament, so that the Jew, the Greek, and the

Romans can know that Jesus is the prophesied one. The world was getting ready.

Oh, understand that God is preparing the world all this. Wow amazing,

isn't it. Actually? If you study I want the studies I like,

is that to study God's sovereign work over his word. You know,

God inspires, God affirms, and God preserves his word from beginning until the

end of time. Amazing. You know God's work, his sovereign in control.

Humans has tried to erase, humans have tried to corrupt, humans have

tried to pervert it. But God still remains in control of his word.

Amen. The Bible actually is the most reliable in the entire world. Did

you know that Bible is entirely if you you know, the Bible has more

what they call it manuscripts, more references than any other historical references that we

have. You talk about the most reliable, you're talking about Tacitus, Roman

Caesars, Gaelic War and stuff like that. I know because I teach Christian

foundations. You know how much more references do we have? Four hundred to

five hundred times more multiples, four hundred for every manuscript you have, the

Bible has five hundred more. That's how much we have. So if you

said the Bible is not true, you might as well not learn ancient history

anywhere. What do you know that it's true? If you cannot trust the

Bible, you might as well not taught trust anything you know about ancient Greek,

Ancient Roman, Ancient China, ancient Japan. Anything. You cannot learn

it because they don't even pass what the Bible has passed through. That's how

reliable. And it's the most research text in the entire world five mile Okay.

So there's just a fact so that you can know, you know,

ultimately, what you can say is that I can trust the Bible more than

anything else. You know, you can trust the Bible, Okay, to

be honest, it's it's more trustworthy than your purpose driven life. Okay,

more trustworthy than anything else. The Bible is more reliable than anything else.

Okay, So you got to read it. People read it. Okay.

Now let's move on. What what do I talk about? Sorry, I

always divert into different things everybody. Okay, so far we're talking about Apollos,

right, So he is a godly man, but he is let me

put it in this way. He is like a first generation believer, okay.

But he believed to a point where the message the God, the God

of the Old Testament arrive until John the Baptist. That's why I call first

generation. So he believed God. He believed the Old Testament everything about you

know, God, God is with you know, God has not shown his

glory. God has commended man to live right, to obey it, to

believe in him, to repent. All this well, and he even believed

John the Baptist as well. But then it was he stopped there because there

was normal for the revelation to him, normal for the revelation to me.

So he believed to there, and he believed. He was bullied so much.

He studied from Alexandria, He studied the libraries, he studied everything,

even the Septuagian materials as well, and he went about telling people a repent

repary, pary par repen But because of the lack of revelation, he stopped

there. And so when he preached the word, he even influenced people in

Ephesus, the first generation of disciples there. And so this is where Paul

comes in. Paul comes in in this pain, in his pain, he

asked people to what baptism have you been baptized? Oh? We baptized until

uh, you know, according to John's baptism of repentance. Okay, so

Paul says, oh, that's good, but it's not complete. It's not

wrong, but it's not complete because until version one, not even virgion one.

Virgin is zero point five. You know, oh my, it's not

fully reviewed. But to say that whatever that you learn is good, but

it all points to one important thing and that person, that message, that

gospel has been revealed, and that revelation is Christ. Okay, So no

longer it's just a baptism of repentance. You baptize further beyond repentance and into

Christ, because repenting without hope is nothing. Repentance without a hope of resurrection

is nothing. But that has been fulfilled in Christ. Now you believe in

Christ. And if that's the case, I invite you to be baptized into

the Holy Spirit, into Christ's ruder Holy Spirit. That's the complete version.

You know what I'm saying. And how to validate that is true is that

immediately when they were baptized, what they received it Holy Spirit. Let's read

that, Okay, So read let's read that from verse four. He says

here, then Paul said, John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance,

saying to the people that they should believe on him who would come after him,

that is on Christ Jesus. So John is preaching is not pointing to

himself. The finger was not pointing to him. John's preaching was him Christ,

Christ Christ. If you believe John, you will believe he's pointing.

You will believe what he's pointing to the person that he's pointing to. And

so now I give you this person, and that is Christ. Okay.

And so when in in verse five, he says, when they heard this,

there were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul

had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them and they spoke

with tongues and proper side. Okay. So that's the evidence. Okay.

So now what was in Propheside in part now is complete. Amen. Now

before they believe in part now they believe in completeness. Okay. Now he

says that now that men were about twelve in all. Now let's move on

to verse eight. Okay, everybody, Okay. So on it's amazing work

God has God has allowed, you know, Apaulos to come and lay down

the foundations, but yet Paul comes to complete Okay. So God, when

you think about it, God, does you know what they call it?

The work of it of spreading his gospel, not just one time in stages.

Wan, No, it could happen in many ways. Sometimes when you

preach, people might not believe or fully understand. But that's fine, okay,

as long as you do it in truth and in boldness. God prepares,

and then another will come along. Say you know, you know that,

you know there's a words, can't remember where it say. It says,

No, someone plants and not Apollos planter and pour waters. But it's

the Lord to cause it to grow. Amen, Okay, the Lord is

the one who causes it to grow. Okay. Yeah, Paulus, he's

a very powerful person. He's so powerful that even people were trying to,

you know, side with him. You know, you know, even Paul

was saying, I think if in the book in a letter of Efficians are

saying that it comes on. I think it was Corinthines or Ephesians that people

started to identify with themselves with different speakers. It's called sectarianism. Okay,

you have heard before the word sectarianism. Sectarianism means within a group, whether

it's an institution, a group, but people start to take form cliques or

form groups. Say, some people will follow Paul, some people follow apollos.

Some people will follow Peter me like some belief. I am Jesus and

I follow belief in Jesus. People try to identify themselves and because of that

they start to fragment. Okay, please don't do that. Okay, not

in the church. Okay, don't say oh, I followed this pastor,

I followed that pastor. I'll follow this home leader. Paul he himself at

the this is not this is ungodly. Okay, it's not right. Okay,

we sh all we're all under the same body. It shouldn't be your

hand telling that, or I believe to these fingers, you know, this

other hand belief to this. No, you have to work together. Okay.

So that's very important. Now verse eight, and Paul went into the

synagogue and spoke boldly for three months. Okay, very very important. Okay.

He said that he went and spoke body for three months, reasoning and

persuading concerning the things of the Kingdom of God. Okay, So where did

he went to. He went to the synagogue. You know what, it's

a synagogue. The temple means he started preaching to his own people, first,

the Jewish people, the people who are familiar with the Old Testament.

The people who have the privilege of, even though it's incomplete, but at

least a full knowledge of whom God is promising them, okay, what God

is promised them. At least they have something. Okay. So Paul goes

there and trying to convince them using the scripture. Okay, but in verse

ninety says, but when some of them were hardened and did not believe,

okay, what did they do? They spoke evil of the way before the

multitude. See the read. You must understand when you do when you want

to do right things, a good things are, you must be prepared to

be rejected. That's the truth. And I'm not just talking about you know,

when you're teaching about gospel. In almost every other areas of your life,

doing the right thing would not always, but certainly invite a lot of

rejection. Sometimes you want to do the right thing for your own family,

do the right thing, you will get rejected. People will discount you.

People will say that you have false and bad intentions. You try to help

someone in your homes, people will say that you're insincere, or you do

things with intentions so you want to pay back, you help a community.

People will say that you try to rob the poor. People will say that

you're trying to manipulate them. You get me in right. They will think

of the worst of you and put you for labor. You may have helped

them for five years, but just one day they will take one particular message

and then say that this will you and disregard everything. Heartbreaking, isn't it?

But does that mean that we stop doing the good work. No,

you continue to do the right thing because you have already prepared to be rejected.

You must understand this. You know, rejection doesn't mean you stop it

all. It just means that it's part something that you must be ready.

It's very very important one. This world is a broken world. Make no

mistake about it. If you think that this world is complete we have all

people are good inherently, that is not the right assumptions for life. This

is a broken wall. But it doesn't mean that we give up trying to

do our best. You might not you won't be might not be even remembered.

You might not have your names put up on TikTok or be the most

mentioned person that that's the most for humanity. But you keep doing the right

thing. Why because the fear of God is in your lifeAnd what I'm saying

some of you have given up so much I don't know, and some of

them people might not know you. You pick up people, drop them off

in the far away places. You cook and you broke your bag. Ah,

this one thing, I literally broke my back. Okay, this is

okay, the one my bones just cooking and people won't even remember and say

that you're looking too salty. Okay, I tell you, I tell you,

I me joking. You prepare your message, you preach hard for your

home, notes for your homes and stuff like that, and people will say

that WHITE told long you do it works for your community or for your children.

Sometimes they might not appreciate it, I tell you, But it's okay,

it's okay. That is why you can't do good things without God.

Want no no, because you do good things? Why you want to be

remembered. You want to be right, but only right. The only thing

that feeds our soul is not to be right by men. The only thing

that feeds our empty soul that longs for something that the world can at get

used to be right by God. You know I'm saying what I'm saying,

that's what we ultimately want it not we want to be right by God.

That validates us. That one approval, the audience of one that matters more

than anything else, is that God smiles at me, God approves me,

saying that type of approval is so great and so powerful. You can go

off into the world and disappear, but you still be fully satisfied. You

get me right. That is what that is. That is what we are

creative for. The eternal glory only comes from God nor from men. Okay,

that's very important. Okay. Now West number nine, it's okay,

say it's there. You know, some were some were hardened and do not

believe, but even spoke evil. Okay, they even spoke evil of the

way before the multitude, and He departed from them and retrew the disciples.

Reasoning daily in the school of Tyranness. I want you to underline them.

Okay, reasoning daily in the School of Tyranness. And this continued for two

years, so that all who do in Asia heard the word of the Lord

Jesus, both Jews and Greeks. Now, this is such an important thing.

It's not that these are details, you know, but I we even

like put this unders like the theme for this entire message reasoning daily in the

School Tyranness, what in the world, what is there to do? If

anything? Now, the School of Tyranness, it's uh supposedly just a normal

Greek school, okay. And you must understand now the schools are not like

the schools that we have now. And it's not like oh classrooms roof air

con non black boar, no. Okay. The school at that time was

what just alan literally alone, you know, okay, literally alone. You

go there and you sit down and listen suns hot and you retreat. That's

that's what school is, okay. In fact, you know what that's the

word university comes from. And why do you go to university together? Sir?

You know where the university comes from? The Greek started didn't know,

okay, but why because they saw, uh, at there, get your

engineering degree here so you can get a job. Is that what university is?

What? No? Universities literally means the study of the universe. But

you went there to study to get accounting degree or gether arts degree or become

an architect. University is to think about it? Why they call universities,

right, it's the study of the universe. So when univerity started, they

didn't promise anything. You know, the universities were just gathering people who want

to think, who want to reason, gether together and to look around the

universe and ask this question, how does the universe work? That's the university.

Then look at it. Oh, this triangle, this degree plus this

degree plus this degree always equals one hundred and eighty degrees. Right, Oh,

I didn't know that the triangle always fits their whol photographs you know,

came out really you know, and then Newton because Newton wasn't there and not

look at the apple dropped down. It's the force pulling in understanding of the

universe. Every there, your mind gets blown. So everyone will get to

the university. Were just thinking about how the universe works. Literally, so

there were scholars, philosophers and everybody. You know, we're just understanding how

the universe works. Okay, so now when you go to the university,

talk to the diner and say you have short changed me in us kidding,

give me a bit of money. But this where your universities really came from.

Understanding how the universe works. But we have the Bible. This is

how the universe works. You don't go and think, you ask the creator.

Okay, this is how the universe are. You go straight to the

creator. Okay. That we go by revelation, not by speculation. Okay.

The people will try to understand one by speculating this, this, this,

and they come out of theories. But we go by revelation. That's

how we go. Okay. So where was I again? Okay? The

school? Now when you read this right, So Paul got rejected from this

temper the people who were so called learned and privilege, you got upset with

them. Okay. Then he decided, you know, the one door has

been closed. Okay. Then he started to realize, hey, there is

another opening. Okay, there's another opening, a school open to him.

Now it's not written there again, But if you some of your Bible will

have more I think they have more annotations. They will give you a certain

annotations there, okay, because a lot of the scripture is made up,

not just one manuscript I told you before, thousands of manuscripts. And one

of the manuscripts actually give a specific detail saying that some of the Bible my

hair, saying that Paul when he preached there, he was preaching from the

fifth hour, okay, from the fifth to the eleventh hour, okay.

And ancient time, their first hour starts at what time? Six in the

morning, that's the first hour. This is what our first hour. We

think one am in the morning. Okay. In the ancient time, their

first hour, which is the work hour, starts at six in the morning.

So the fourth hour is ten in the morning, ten until five okay,

yeah, correct, fifty ten eleven okay, all right, let me

check the level chain. I think it's a fifty eleventh hour. Okay,

yep. Now why does it matter that we know that Paul was teaching from

the tenth to five o'clock, from ten to five o'clock. How does that

change your life? How does that make you want to spread the gospel?

Do you have any idea? You must understand that, like go back again,

schools at that time were just a lawn, no building. So when

they start any work and even teaching, right, they start teaching from six

or seven all the way until ten o'clock. When the sun comes at ten

o'clock, got's getting very hot. And from ten o'clock until four o'clock to

five o'clock there nobody works nobody goes and digs and plants. This is typically

at that time people will rest. People rest. They wake up very early,

they start work early, but from ten o'clock until three four o'clock,

when the sun is at they don't work. But they start working again around

four and five o'clock all the way until six seven o'clock and they rest again.

Not like as because we're in air con. If we're out there,

you wouldn't be working from ten to four o'clock out in the hot Sunday,

so you want to you wouldn't want to try. Not you hot in your

hot in your eyes office air con and you're laty day, you know,

doing your ticchniclick work. You know, well, it's true, you cannot

appreciate the difference in the context of how we work. By the time they

don't work from ten to four, it's hot, everybody is resting. Paul

at the time was doing two things. The first thing he was doing he

was working. He was a tent maker, so he earned his own money.

Okay, he was tent making, so from an early wage he will

start nor let the rest of the people earn, so that he don't have

to rely on the church to give him money he earned, he make a

living on his own. Well, that's how he met Priscilla. And what's

that that person, Aquiline Priscilla. That's how he met them. Because there

were ten makers as well. That's how we know he was working. So

he met another fellow in the marketplace. So in from six to ten o'clock

he was in the marketplace. But from ten to five, the hour that

nobody would work. He saw an opportunity, an opportunity that was so unique

because it was not just free time. It was the school that attracted so

many people from everyone. You see, everyone was coming to Ephesus to see

the Temple of Diana. Yeah, everybody was coming to see It's like everyone

in the world coming to see the Olympics. Where it's Olympics. This here

Paris. Everybody coming to Paris to see the Iffel Tower and to see Olympics.

Now there was a major attraction now and Paul says that oh, okay,

everyone is coming, and there's this hour, and there's this venue.

What can I do? Let me teach, Let me teach. If Paul

was with us right now, you're seeing how he would think if you have

spare if you have any room, any opportunity outside of your work. If

I can use this to share to one more person, I would use it.

He is literally like a young working adult, the guy who would use

his one fifth hour until his eleven hour to preach the gospel and then go

back to work. If every day you have until from ten to four o'clock

where you get a break, you do with it. Sometimes you're actually,

I need to finish my Netflix series. You know, I need I break.

Oh gosh, you know that. You also, I'm not. I'm

not condemning it. I know this is how the flesh speaks. Okay,

I know, but it's such an encouragement. You know, you have no

idea. You think these guys are so far and loftier. These guys must

be like, you know, floating on the air. You know, you

know that's why he speak. People believe he's just like you and me nine

to five jobs, because he's not nine to five. He's different where he

goes better. Can I teach you? Because he said, you don't want

to waste the time. He's like you and I know the very far off

and use that time. And he said, and he says, the reasoning

daily in the school of Terranus. And this he continued for two years.

People rejected in one place where they're smart people, you know, all his

own people rejected him. He went to another place. Give me the hottest

day, give me the hottest day, the hour. Then nobody wants let

me use it. How many of us? How far will we go to

preach the gospel? So that, oh man, did you realize and this

is this is my middle partner see her rejection in one part and open door,

and he saw an opportunity. He did, like, oh, let

me pray and then ask her for confirmation. You know, we like to

spiritually delay, go on it. Do you know that many of us like

to spiritually delay, go and let me pray. The didn't give the detail,

of course, I'm sure he prayed, but he saw him he grabbed

it, you know, Yeah, I mean right, he's but we like

to kind of like delay if we will, if we will do the same

thing in our lives. I'm sure you won't go there very far in your

career as well, you know, but you correct, you will grab it

because you are hungry. But yeah, you come to spiritual things that cause

us something that'll be delayed. Let me praying in all fast a bit longer

God, you know. But Paul didn't. He went straight into it and

prayed for two years so that all who dwell in Asia the world of the

Lord Jesus Christ, both Jews and Greece. Wow, amazing. Sometimes our

things are beneath the layers are and God God challenging. God is challenging you,

and not today. Can you open your eyes, open your eyes to

think beyond your needs, open your eyes to think beyond the doubts. All

the negative negativity, is all the skepticism, and see what an opportunity you

have, What an opportunity you have. I don't care whether you're working with

the biggest consulting firm, whether you're working with the most busy country, whether

it's a very terrible situation, whether that opportunity. So maybe you got one

hour in your lunchtime, But can you use that lunchtime for something? Paul

used the hot our people nobody want to use one. He used it,

though, So he's setting an example for us. You know, I told

you already in the Bible is relevant, right, very extremely relevant people.

It's the heart, it's the attitude that he had Okay, let's continue.

How much time do you have that? Okay, fifteen minutes. Okay,

let's do this. Actually I'm only to do three percent on it, by

God's grace, by God's grace. Okay, let me summarize up verse eleven,

so we seeya, Okay, now God is doing something through Paul.

Here. Let's see what happened from there. What happened to Ephasus as a

city because of the way that Paul incepted and invaded into Ephasis. Okay,

first thing we noticed, miracles started to happen from that two years, right.

He says that in words eleven, God worked unusual miracles by the hands

of Paul. So they even handkerchiefs. People remember, Paul was a tan

maker, and they they had really literally small spots, you know, you

know, you know like those river markets you know in Thailanda, and now

they have like a small Yeah, that's like how it is, that's how

they make they make a living. They were lining up and the hot sun

and there's no aircorn, you know, and they just used the handkerchief and

they're like, oh, that's Paul. Oh you know, I can't reach

to him, but we have his dirty handkerchief. Well, I use one,

Give it to me. Use it. Where dirty handkerchiefs you'd be using

every day to wipe under the hot sun to heal somebody. You know,

there's a handkerchief. Okay, nowadays we look at it, we'll be like,

hey, it's like no, not taking a COVID master. This is

called they could be using to heal somebody. But that's how they believe.

People, how much believe even the ankerchief were brought from his body to the

sick, and the disease left them, and the evil spirits went out from

them. Oh amazing, Okay, I told you before at that time,

God establishes presence by always combo the preaching of the word, and the miracles

too, always to combo, boom boom, And the enemy will come to

as well. How does the enemy counter? Let's read here, okay,

So Paul preach, there's a miracle in verse thirteen. Then some of the

Itinerian Jewish exauces, the same Jewish people who rejected him, who even spoke

evil and lies about him, what did they started to do? They took

it upon themselves to call upon the name of the Lord Jesus I told you

don't believe in Jesus. So now they see these people are the same characters

that are involved in the first chapter are now involved in this chapter as well.

Okay, they call upon them. They took it upon themselves to call

upon the name of the Lord Jesus, over whom over those who had evil

spirits say we okay, we yeah, okay, but I'm not going to

go into another teaching. Okay, say we exercise you Okay, what is

the signature? Why is the authority here? Where by the Jesus, not

my Jesus, by the Jesus whom Paul preachers. He said, I don't

recognize. But Paul preached to Jesus. I called by that guy. Okay,

so I called by I called by that guy. I called by that

guy, and I cast you up. There's no ownership, you know,

there's no identity, you know, identification. You know. It's like I

know, Paul preached that Jesus. I use that guy's name, and I

cast you up. What would why would why would they do that? For

in the first space, Why would these people start to use Jesus name even

though it's like second and third hand and fourthandhanded down name like that in this

context, why would they use that because they realize you can preach, but

the works bad weakness. You know, the works is the one that gets

gives credibility to the world. You give me right. You can preach all

you want, but we are the miracles. Paul is preaching under the hot

sun. You don't you have a synagogue, you have a whole building.

Paul is preaching under the hot sun, and yet miracles follow him. What

are you doing? Just two years everybody is having even his handkerchiefs. He's

doing miracles. So they are getting embarrassing. Basically, they're getting embarrassed down

to the ground. And so like, Okay, we gotta do something.

We gotta cast up some demons. But we've been doing it for so long,

cannot know. Maybe we borrow a bit and people in this what will

do that? People will sometimes they will do all these things. Maybe they

take a verse from the Bible. They will take a particular preacher, their

player, take a particulars worship song. You know, I use this and

I somehow, you know, try to find breakthrough in this. But you

never believe this is what the world is doing, isn't it copycats false,

okay? And then what did they do? And these were seven sons of

Schemer, a Jewish chief priest or direct from the boars, someone direct from

the direct from the bars. And now who did so? And the evil

spirits answer and said, Jesus, I know Po, I know the guy

you mentioned. But who are you? Who are you using these people?

What authority are you? Who are you? Now? This is very important.

You know a lot of people just see something that works out and they

try to borrow it. They try to borrow it. I tell you,

even the evil spirits know that you don't fear God, you might as well

also be fearful of the evil spirits who can see through you. You know

it gve me you might not have no fear of God, but even the

evil spirits can see through that that you have no authority. Scarier, very

scary thing. All mess up with this thing, It's okay. Then the

men in whom the evil spirit was leaped upon them, overpowered them and prevailed

against them. So that's what happens. It's not that you only got discovered,

You get punished, you get judged, okay. So that they fled

out of the house naked, and wounded. Oh, this became known both

to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Everesus. Everybody knew about it and what

happened. Fear failed on them. So I told you again what happens.

There is the opening of the of the school Paul Pridge. For two years,

the miracles starts to happen. Then there was a battle, isn't it.

There's a fight between the true and the false. Okay, the truth

and the fake people they're fine. And then what happens. There was a

judgment. And then when all the people all around you, all, oh,

you here, you are witnesses, and you see what is transpiring,

what is happening? What happens to you all? You're not just You're not

just like ooh spectating. Now God becomes real in your life yet me right,

it's a difference. And all I can preach as much as I want,

Oh past I made a great, preachy, nice music, but there's

no reality in your life. Hits you hard and all soon the moment when

they're so like, what's happening is not just good messages, but it's like

whoa, there's a judgment waiting for you. When you continue to reject and

resist God. You get me right. There's a judgment waiting when you can

do to resist God and not And that's why happened, running out and start

naked, you know, the chief priest's son and all running out and all

God, it's not regard of your ranks, you all. I don't care

whose son you are you a nor regard judgment is waiting you all. And

when you saw that, what happens there fear people fear whoa And so what

did they do? What did they do? Fear felt on them. And

the name of the Lord was magnify. So we want to glorify God?

Do we uh raise the volume? Do we shout louder? You want to

magnify God? What do we do? You fear him. That's how you

magnify the name of God. You want to magnify the name of God among

your children. You fear him. That's how God's name is to be magnified.

Reverence not music, not shouting, not concerts. Reverence. Fear came

mean right, that's that's not People will know that you're a man of God.

Not true you a love music and not true that you truly fear God.

Understand not Noah did he put loud music. He obeyed because he feared

God. That's why he built the ark. You know what I'm saying,

You fear God? Okay, I'm really I got so much to teach person,

everybody, O guess got too much to teach ready, okay, and

they may just finish this quickly, okay. And many who have believed it

came confessing and telling their deeds. So this is what the fear of God

bringing up confession okay. And many of those who had practiced magic through their

books together and burned them in the size of oh oh my goodness. And

they counter up the value and if it and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of

silver. You know how much it does? That is that worth in our

context right now? That's worth up to Can I have this slight? I

think it's about twenty two million? Twenty two million, yes, dollars?

Yeah, the slight stressful? Ah? Yes? Oh sorry, it's okay,

Sophia, come upon the people. There was repentance and burning of the

magic books and scrolls worth up to US five point five millions. That's about

how they arrive fente or ringd Okay, I forgot. I remember twenty something,

but I what ring Gate. It's okay, I remember twenty something somehow,

remember Okay, so you know, like why so much? It is

so many people. You must understand at that time, I think I have

a slight or so. People practice witchcraft very commonly, very common and I

don't have the time. We'll talk about it. But witchcraft. They sometimes

they have scrolls and not talking about RPG, but literally they have scrolls.

Okay, you're like, what a scroll of ble skin scroll healing and all

like, okay, but no, literally they're selling scrolls. Little they were

selling scrolls. Okay. Some of these scrolls from EGYP, some of it

from different parts. They have scrolls, and they have writings and these some

of it are written on any specific animal skin, written with a specific blood,

or written with a specific ritual one. Okay, these crows are very

power, very unique one okay. And they're selling this and they're not cheap,

you know, okay, it's not cheap. And even the books that

have witchcraft books, I must understand, books are very rare. If you

own a book, it's like you're owning a Mercedes S class. Serious.

Your reading is one. But owning a book is rare because book takes treated

four years to write, okayre and each is unique, authentic one, so

they cannot be copied like that is one. Okay, So it's very expensive.

And the fact that everyone saw that, you imagine a mouth of fear.

They had everybody starting taking up. Oh, I started to see you

all. Do you realize you got all these magic books? Have you been

casting curses on me? Everybody? When you take out your all your your

witchcraft, what are you doing? You're airing out your laundry. If I

start to find out if anyone here, it's just to find out, oh

you've been practicing this switchcraft to get money. One day, one day you're

going to see people who actually practice witchcraft. Don't be surprised how there's many

witchcraft happening here in the high places, even in governments are yeh. Governments

are very powerful their practicer and the eraor what kind of witchcraft they do for

healing, for money, for for last you know, for power all this.

So when they brought our is the darkest secrets, you know, all

the witching air and burning it in from people people, it's like it's a

big deal and it's only a big deal to the individual. It's a big

deal to the city. You know why, because the city was the one

selling it to them. Then the city what the one selling to them.

They were selling whatever the city was producing. I told you that the Goddess

of Dina, they were selling all this cross, all these figurines and stuff

like that. So people were so instead they's so there's saw what has happened?

They fear and there's so whatever that the city was producing that God is

regurgitating out for any of the nonsense and the toxicity, the witchcraft for this

city is regurgiting it literally and being burnt up in that city. The city

is going through toxicy and detoxa. It's basically a city detoxico. Okay,

So it's amazing. So you know so much, and then you all if

your last part is I come to a close. You see, I'm not

going to go through everything the last part. What happens. There's a preaching

of the world, there's miracles, the detoks, then the city rioted.

The whole city fights back right because the efftus, although they are trading city,

most of their money was made from selling the figurines Okay, this figuring.

So they were saying, they were saying that, hey people, you

know, our economy is built on Diana, this beauty. Everyone in the

world comes to see this, and they're no longer buying from us this sewer

Diana that we were making. And because of this preaching of Paul, he's

been preaching for two years. Ready, if we do this, then all

the things that we're building and earned will be gone. See what you do

sometimes from ten to four o'clock can change the city. Yeah, you're right,

it's life changing. I don't know. It's amazing that how God moves

and shakes the city gets a city to detox and the whole body is,

you know, fighting back and ah no, I still want to eat my

fast food, you know, I still want to eat it. But the

whole thing was shaking, and so much of they were causing a riot.

They're dragging everybody. It's like when you're when you have diarrhea or your body

has the foot poisoning. Your whole body gets affected. You know, you

get me right, it's the whole body goes into a convolution or you you

know, you start to now cradle down like a baby, like a fetal

status. Of course you're projing. That's how God brought the highest city to

its knees with the gospel, not just the gospel, but the power of

the gospel. Imagine, one day we're going to experience revival. The revival

there will detox a city who wants to see that. A revival there will

detox and entire city, so that you know, the rest of the people

will know, I mean. And the rest of it is basically they try

to persecute and try to cause a stir from it, and eventually you know,

there was a counselor who many should count everybody down, but there was

the end of the story. Okay, So my question is to you right

now, is it real to you? Can you imagine it happening that sometimes

you know, there's so much breakthrough of waiting for us if we just believe,

if we just obey, you get rejected in the temple. But yet

you believe you're from a ten to four under the hot sun. And yet

something like that, you know, as Jesus say that if you believe,

it's something as small as a mustard seed, that can grow into it patree.

So when we say hey, people, each and every one of you

are you potentially have a mustard seat wherever you are where there. It's in

your homes, you know, in your family, in your marketplace, whether

it's a Saturday weekend, maybe it's whatever the opportunity you have. Don't despise

it you got I mean right, all comes down to one in one minute.

Do you believe? And with that belief, whether it makes whether it

happens or not, you choose to believe and Lord the rest you will take

care. I don't know what it would not. Could Paul have imagined on

what will happen? I'm sure he didn't. He just believed in Obay,

my belief I know will take me to one step the rest. God will

take care you get me saged. It's just sometimes it's just enough for you

to get into the car. God brings the car. Would you get in?

Would you believe me? You know? Or theer grabs are? Do

you control the driver when you got the grabar? Okay a direction or idea?

Let me drive? No, you trust a fellow to drive your day,

isn't it? It's the same thing. Would you believe to step in

to this vehicle? To believe God? And God will take care of the

rest. God wants to do great things. I believe it, even until

now, all of us here we are placing the amazing opportunity. So how

many of us today here will be willing God, I'm willing to give to

you my ten to four o'clock even if it's a hot sun. Don't say

six hours that Okay, let's say half an hour today, God, I

start with half in how half an hour help me open mind, help me

share something, help me believe, and let the cities change. Amen.

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We're believing that this week is going to be a good week. I

hit for you. God, bless