Invest & Invite - The Mighty Work of God in Corinth

Amen.

Thank you so very much.

If you have your copy of God's Word, if you would find Acts chapter 18.

Acts 18 · chapter mention

If you do not have a copy of God's Word, there's one in front of you.

I would encourage you to use that copy.

And you can find today's text on page 956.

And while you're turning there to Acts chapter 18, just uh as an encouragement, um love to see you back this evening as we ordain two men to the deacon ministry.

Acts 18 · chapter mention

It's an important um moment in the life of a New Testament church.

Uh you, the congregation, uh, nominated these men and recognized uh the Lord's hand on their life and their faithfulness to serve already.

And so we want to just recognize that in a public way, and so we look forward to a good evening of worship and celebration tonight.

Acts chapter 18.

Acts 18 · chapter mention

In verse 1, we read this.

After this, he left Athens and went to Corinth.

And so uh a couple of weeks ago we saw how the gospel made its way to Europe, uh, starting there in the city of Philippi.

And then in Acts chapter 17, Paul went to the city of Thessalonica and then Berea, and then he went to Athens for a period of time, and we saw him in Athens there at the Areopagus and uh preaching to the Athenians who were worshiping many different gods, gods of all sorts of things, the sun god, and the moon god, and the nature god, and the harvest god and all kinds of other things.

Acts 17 · chapter mention

Uh and there was also a statue for the unknown God, if you'll recall that.

And so Paul took that opportunity and used that as a bridge to introduce the people of Athens to the one true God, the Savior and the Messiah of the world, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Now, in chapter 18, verse 1, he has left Athens.

He's gone about 53 miles to the west to the city of Corinth.

Interestingly, at this point in history, Corinth has replaced Athens as the political and commercial center of Greece.

It is the primary place where everything happens in Greece.

If you were to look on a map, maybe you've been to Greece, you're a little familiar with it.

Corinth is located on about a four-mile-wide stretch of land, an isthmus there.

It's got water on both the east and the west sides of it.

And so as a result of where it's located, uh, everybody had to travel through Corinth, going from the north to the south or the south to the north of Greece.

And so a lot of commerce, a lot of activity there, a strategic location like Philippi was, a very strategic location for a Bible-believing, gospel-centered, Christ-exalting church.

And the church at Corinth was far from perfect, but it would make a significant difference in its community and in that region for many, many years.

Unfortunately, Corinth was also known for something else.

It was known for its immorality.

The city of Corinth was dedicated to the Greek goddess Aphrodite, the goddess of love.

Now, maybe that sounds innocent in itself, right?

The problem is the Greeks' definition and the Greeks' understanding of love was dramatically different than how God describes love for us in the scriptures.

For the Greeks, their idea of love was solely focused on the physical aspect, not the covenant aspect, certainly not the spiritual aspect, just that physical aspect.

And as a result, there was all sorts of kinds and manners of sexual immorality going on in Corinth.

And now, here's what's even more odd that they would call these things, these acts of immorality, quote unquote, acts of worship.

That's how they viewed these things.

For example, the temple of Aphrodite had a thousand priestesses.

They were nothing more than temple prostitutes.

And every evening they would leave the temple, they would go down into the city, and they would practice their trade as quote-unquote acts of worship.

And so that's the environment that Paul finds himself in: a leading political center, a leading city of commerce, but also a leading city of immorality.

And maybe if you're familiar with 1st and 2 Corinthians, that might help explain, help you understand Paul's admonition to the church there to avoid these kinds of immoralities.

And in some cases, it was happening inside the body of Christ, and Paul is like, listen, guys, you can't do this.

This is what pagans do, this is what unbelievers do.

Stop with this, right?

And so, 1st and 2 Corinthians, there's a lot of that in there.

We come to verse 2 and through verses 4, and we we see something interesting.

It says where he says in Athens, where he, or in Corinth, where he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla.

And so Paul runs into these believing Jews, Aquila and Priscilla.

They are originally from Rome.

They were expelled from Rome.

There was a Jewish expulsion from Rome.

And so he meets this couple here, and Aquila and Priscilla would eventually become some of Paul's closest friends.

As a matter of fact, at some point in Paul's ministry, they would risk their lives for Paul.

He writes for us in Romans chapter 16, he says, Give my greetings to Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in Christ Jesus, who risk their own necks for my life.

Romans 16 · chapter mention

Now, verse 3 tells us that the three of them, Paul, Aquila, and Priscilla, were tent makers by trade.

Now you might think, why even mention that?

Well, tent making was an important occupation in this ancient culture.

Tents were needed by shepherds, tents were needed by soldiers, tents were used by tradesmen who would travel from city to city buying and selling their goods.

And so tent making was a very important occupation in this culture.

Now, look closely at verse 4 with me.

It says that he, Paul, reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath and tried to persuade both Jews and Greeks.

And so I want you to think about this.

As a tent maker, that was Paul's way of earning a living.

As a tent maker, Paul and Aquila and Priscilla, they would be busy during the week making and selling their tents.

But then on the Sabbath, on Saturday, the seventh day of the week, Paul would set aside tent making and he devoted that day to go to the synagogue, which is very normal, where it says he would try to persuade both Jews and Greeks with the gospel.

Now, carefully, Paul understood that his tent making was a vital part of his ministry, right?

That was a way he would earn a living, but he also understood that was a way that he could continue to make the gospel known through that opportunity.

Years ago, someone coined the phrase marketplace ministry.

And Paul understood the significance of that idea long before that phrase was coined.

And I'll speak to that a little bit more in just a moment.

So here on the back of your bulletin, here's the first takeaway I just want you to see from these first few verses, all right?

Look with me.

God uses ordinary relationships and circumstances to advance the gospel.

God uses ordinary relationships and circumstances to advance the gospel.

Paul's relationship with Aquila and Priscilla, his work as a tent maker, his ministry there in the synagogue, all avenues through which God advanced the gospel, all very ordinary relationships and circumstances.

There wasn't anything extraordinary about those things.

Now, why is that important for you and me today?

Because what was true then is also true today.

I want to encourage you in this.

And I want to be careful how I say it, but I want to encourage you in this.

I want you to think for just a moment about your friendships.

I want you to think about the neighborhood or subdivision if you live in one.

I want you to think about that for just a moment.

I want you to think about the other families at the ballpark or those relationships you might have built at the gym or other avenues.

God doesn't have you in those circles by accident.

That's intentional.

Those are ordinary relationships, ordinary circumstances that God has strategically put you in so that you may advance the gospel in those.

You see, sometimes I'm afraid that we think we try to make it more difficult than it is, and we want God to put us in this kind of place or that kind of place.

Wherever you are, that's the place God has for you to do ministry.

That's those ordinary relationships, those ordinary circumstances is how God wants to advance the gospel through you.

I made mention earlier of that phrase, marketplace ministry.

I want to encourage you in this.

I want you to begin to think of your place of employment, okay, for those of you that are that are still working.

I want you to think of your place of employment as your place of ministry or as your mission field.

God has placed you there, again, not by accident.

He wants you to use that avenue as an opportunity to advance the gospel.

Now, I understand, I'm fully aware that employers have given certain boundaries in the workplace, okay?

I get that.

I want you to honor those boundaries as a good witness.

But here's something I want you to also be encouraged with.

If you and I are living out our faith in the real world, okay, if we're living out our faith in the real world, those we're around every day in the office or the classroom or on the ball fields, wherever it may be, they are going to see something peculiarly different about you.

They're gonna see something unique about you.

And are you ready for this?

They will open the door for you to share the good news of Christ.

You won't have to open it.

They're gonna see Christ in you, and that difference is gonna make them curious, and they're gonna they're gonna open the door for you to share the good news of Christ.

It may take a month, it may take three months, it may take six months, it may take several years, but if you would be, if you will be faithful to live out your faith in those ordinary relationships and circumstances, I promise you this the door will open for you to share the good news of Christ.

Let's keep going.

Look with me, beginning in verse 5.

Luke writes for us, when Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia.

So for reasons we're not given, Paul left Athens by himself, went to Corinth.

He meets Aquila and Priscilla.

He's encouraged by that relationship.

And now Silas and Timothy have shown back up.

Now, in 2 Corinthians chapter 11, we're told that they brought with them a financial gift from the churches of Macedonia.

2 Corinthians 11 · chapter mention

And so, again, for whatever reason, they stayed back in Macedonia, and now they've arrived in Corinth.

And look at the next statement we read there.

Paul devoted himself to preaching the word and testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Messiah.

The language of verse, the latter half of verse 5, is explained again.

Silas and Timothy brought this financial gift to Paul.

And so that tells us that now it looks like Paul has taken a break from tent-making and he's devoted himself to preaching the word there in Corinth because of this generous gift from the churches in Macedonia.

Now, look carefully at the response to those there.

Look what we read in verse 6.

So Paul is faithful.

He takes the gospel to the Jews first.

That was his standard method of operation.

He'd always go to the Jew first.

And look at verse 6.

When they resisted and blasphemed, he shook out his clothes and told them, Your blood is on your own hands, I am innocent.

Now, pay attention to that response.

It's important.

The word resisted there was a military word, and it literally meant to arrange in battle formation.

In other words, these Jews there in Corinth organized themselves to fight against Paul and to fight against Paul's ministry and to fight against the gospel.

And going further, we're told here that they blasphemed.

They blasphemed the name of Christ.

And if you'll recall, that's the most serious of sins, right?

And so there wasn't a good response.

Now, look at Paul's reaction.

Look what we read here.

He shook out his clothes and told them, Your blood is on your own heads, I am innocent.

Shaking out your clothes against someone was a traditional Jewish gesture of rejection.

In other words, Paul said, All right, I've had enough of you.

I'm so tired of you.

I don't even want the dust from your home to cling to my clothes.

And so I'm going to shake it out and I'm leaving here.

But then he makes another interesting statement.

Look what he says next.

Your blood is on your own hand, heads, I am innocent.

Now, that is a reference to an analogy that God uses in Ezekiel.

In Ezekiel, God, when God called Ezekiel to serve as his prophet, he called him a watchman.

Now let me just read this to you real quick.

In Ezekiel 2 and 3, listen to these words that God gives to Ezekiel, and then we're going to build on it.

He says, Son of man, I have made you a watchman over the house of Israel.

When you hear a word from my mouth, give them a warning from me.

I am sending you to them, and you must say to them, this is what the Lord God says, whether they listen or refuse to listen.

Speak my words to them, whether they listen or refuse to listen.

Tell them this is what the Lord God says, whether they listen or refuse to listen.

So God is saying to Ezekiel, listen, I'm going to give you a word, and you be faithful to tell the people of Israel what I've said, and whether they listen or refuse to listen, you be faithful to what I've called you to do.

And then we jump down to Ezekiel 33 and look what we read.

The word of the Lord came to me, Son of Man, speak to your people and tell them.

Suppose I bring the sword against a land, and the people of that land select a man from among them, appointing him as their watchman.

And suppose he sees the sword coming against the land and blows his ram's horn to warn the people.

Then if anyone hears the sound of the trumpet but ignores the warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his death will be his own fault, since he heard the sound of the trumpet but ignored the warning.

His death is his own fault.

If he had taken warning, he would have saved his life.

However, suppose the watchman sees the sword coming but doesn't blow the trumpet, so that the people aren't warned, and the sword comes and takes away their lives.

Then they have been taken away because of their iniquity, but I will hold the watchman accountable for their blood.

As for you, Son of Man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel.

When you hear a word from my mouth, give them a warning from me.

And so here's the picture.

The watchman would stand in the tower or on the highest point of the wall of the city, and he would stand guard, he would look out over the horizon.

And the watchman's responsibility was very simple.

If he saw an invading army, he would blow the trumpet to warn the people.

And God says, if they don't heed your warning, well, their blood be on their own heads.

But if you see the enemy coming and you fail to blow the trumpet, you're responsible for their deaths.

And so that's the that that's the language Paul's taking them back to that language.

And so Paul likens himself to a watchman, to a watchman who's proclaiming a warning of danger to the people.

Now, in this case, the danger is not an invading army or something similar.

The danger is eternal condemnation resulting from our sin and rebellion against a holy and righteous God.

Paul is desperately blowing the gospel trumpet, calling people to repent of their sin and turn to Jesus.

The eternal condemnation of our sin and rebellion against a holy and righteous God is imminent.

And Paul is saying, I'm warning you against this.

Now, the Jews, for the most part, not entirely, but for the most part, they heard the trumpet call of the gospel.

And what do we read here?

They rejected it.

They resisted it and blasphemed it.

Paul's done his job.

The people's rejection, their resistance, their blasphemy toward the gospel are now their responsibility.

Now, notice what we read here.

Following the Jews' rejection of the gospel, Paul says, All right, from now on, I'm going to the Gentiles.

Okay?

I'm done.

Okay, I'm shaking the dust off my clothes.

Uh, you're responsible, your blood's on your own heads, and I'm going to the Gentiles.

And what do we see?

God continue to do a great work in the life of the Gentile.

We get down here to verses 7 and 8.

Uh it says, first he went to the home of a man named Titius Justus.

And then we see Crispus, who happens to be a Jew, and his family comes to believe in the Lord.

And then look what we read at the very end of verse 8.

Many of the Corinthians, when they heard, believed and were baptized.

Many of the Corinthians, when they heard, believed and were baptized.

Now, that language reminds me of a statement Paul made in Romans chapter 10.

Romans 10 · chapter mention

Look with me there on the screen.

Let's look at this together.

Romans chapter 10, verses 14 and 15.

Romans 10:14

Paul says, How then can they call on him they have not believed in?

And how can they believe without hearing about him?

And how can they hear without a preacher or someone who proclaims?

And how can they preach unless they are sent?

As it is written, how beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news?

Paul was faithful to bring the good news of the gospel of Christ to the city of Corinth.

And here's the question for each of us in this room today.

Who are we bringing the good news of Christ to?

Who are we praying for to come to know Christ as Lord and Savior?

Who are we inviting to hear the good news of Christ?

It says the Corinthians heard.

Someone has to tell them.

Who are we telling that they heard, they believed, and they were baptized?

Here's the second takeaway this morning.

Look with me there in your bulletin.

Our responsibility is to boldly and unapologetically share the gospel with all people.

Trusting God with the results.

That's our responsibility.

Listen carefully to me.

God calls us to faithfulness, not necessarily to fruitfulness.

And here's what I mean by that.

Think of the parable of the sower.

The sower wasn't responsible for the condition of the soil.

The sower was responsible to scatter the seeds.

How others respond to the gospel, that's not our responsibility.

And I know you've heard me say that several times over the past few weeks, and I just want to continue to remind you of it.

Our responsibility is to share.

Listen, it is a privilege that God calls us to be his ambassadors, to be his messengers.

It's a privilege that God allows us to have some part.

In what he's doing to redeem a lost and dying world.

It is a privilege to be used by God to share the good news of Christ, to share the hope of Christ with a world that is desperate.

I don't spend a lot of time watching news.

I don't spend a lot of time reading it online or any other thing.

It just seems to be always negative.

But here's what I do know.

When I listen to the news or I read articles or whatever, our world is desperate.

It is desperate for hope.

And it's looking for hope in all the wrong people, places, and things.

We have the answer.

Amen.

Let's be faithful to share the hope that we have in Christ.

Let's keep going.

We get down to verse 9.

And look what we read here.

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.

From the language, it sounds like Paul is a little discouraged.

Maybe Paul's physically tired.

I mean, after all, he was left for dead on an occasion.

He was beaten and flogged and unjustly imprisoned.

He's been alone for some time.

Maybe he's physically tired.

He's emotionally tired.

He's spiritually tired.

Maybe he's just really frustrated and discouraged for the lack of response from the Jewish people that he's been sharing with.

But it seems to be to me that the Lord is trying to encourage him.

And notice what the Lord says to him: don't be afraid.

Don't be silent.

You know, in Paul's mind, and like ours, I'm sure, he found it hard to understand.

Why would anyone reject God's grace?

Why would anyone reject God's mercy or God's forgiveness or God's gift of eternal life, right?

But that's what we see happening by and large, particularly in the Jewish community.

And so the Lord says, Don't be afraid and don't be silent.

Now look at the foundation for this admonition in verse 10.

Here it is.

Look what he says.

For I am with you.

God says, Paul, don't be afraid.

Don't be silent.

Listen, I am with you.

It's similar to the encouragement and admonition that God gave to Joshua.

I want to take you back to Joshua chapter 1.

Joshua 1 · chapter mention

Moses has died.

God has anointed Joshua to now be the leader of the Hebrew people, and God's going to use him to carry the people across the Jordan River and into the promised land.

Remember, they've been wandering in the wilderness for 40 years, and now all of a sudden they're getting ready to go into the promised land.

And God calls Joshua to lead his people.

Now look with me here from Joshua chapter 1, several verses, but look with me here and read this together.

Joshua 1 · chapter mention

The Lord says to Joshua, No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live.

I will be with you.

Does that sound familiar from 1 Corinthians 18?

Just as I was with Moses, I will not leave you or abandon you.

Be strong and courageous.

Above all, be strong and very courageous.

Haven't I commanded you, be strong and courageous.

Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Three times in just three or four verses, God says to Joshua, Joshua, be strong and courageous.

Joshua, I am with you.

I'll never leave you.

I'll never forsake you.

I'm with you wherever you go.

You know, it's interesting that the faithfulness of God is one of the characteristics of God that is most often emphasized in Scripture.

So much so that we're told that when we are faithless, when our faith has run out, he remains faithful.

That's good news.

Going one step further, look with me here from 2 Timothy 1, verse 7.

2 Timothy 1:7

We've looked at this recently, but it was, I wanted, I thought it would be good to encourage you again.

Look what we read here.

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and sound judgment or discipline.

A spirit of power, love, and self-discipline.

As I was studying this week, I read this statement, and it really just took me back.

I thought, I need to think about this, and I wanted to share it with you.

I read this.

Faith and fear do not mix.

Fear is the opposite of faith.

The two are like oil and water.

And I had to think about that for just a moment.

Faith and fear do not mix.

Just a few minutes ago, we sang, I am no longer a slave to fear.

Why?

I am a child of God.

Church family, we don't have to fear.

We don't have to be afraid.

And so the Lord not only encouraged Paul not to be afraid, but he also there again encouraged him not to be silent.

He encouraged him to continue preaching the good news of Christ.

And church family, the same would be true for you and me.

Sharing the good news of Christ should never be contingent on our circumstances or situations or the response of the audience, whatever that audience might be.

Like Paul, we must go on making known the hope that we have in Christ.

Now, later writing to this church in Corinth, Paul would use this language that we plead with those who do not know Christ as Savior to be reconciled to God.

Look with me here from 2 Corinthians 5 and verse 20.

Look what Paul writes to us.

He says, Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, we are messengers for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us.

Look what he says next.

We plead on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God.

At the end of the day, the gospel message is very simple.

We are pleading with those whom the Bible says are estranged from God, alienated from God.

Paul would go on to say, so far as to say, are enemies of God, outside of Christ.

That's how we are.

We're alienated from God.

We're separated from Him.

Why?

Because of our sin and rebellion against His holy and righteous standards.

And so that relationship is estranged.

That relationship is broken.

And so we plead with those around us, be reconciled to God.

How are we reconciled to God?

We're reconciled to God through faith in his Son Jesus Christ.

And Paul uses that language there.

One commentator wrote in discussing this passage these words, and I want to share them with you.

He says, and I quote, we cannot be silent.

The mission is too grave, the consequence too great, the rewards too glorious to remain silent.

Eternal souls hang in the balance.

We cannot and must not be a silent people, for the message we proclaim is nothing less than eternal redemption.

We cannot be silent.

Here's the third takeaway this morning.

The indwelling presence of Christ empowers us and equips us to faithfully and boldly share the good news of Christ with a lost and dying world.

I want to remind you this morning, I want to encourage you in this.

You are equipped.

You are equipped as a follower of Christ and dwelt by God's Holy Spirit.

You are equipped to carry the good news of Christ across the street and around the world.

Every one of you.

Not because of your wisdom, not because of your charisma, not because of your gifts or talents or personality, but because God's Holy Spirit dwells in you.

And you and I, we have all we need to carry the gospel again across the street or around the world.

We are equipped and empowered to make Christ known.

Then we come to verses 18 through 22, and we're not going to look closely at those, but verse 22 marks the end of Paul's second missionary journey.

They're going to leave Corinth in verse 18.

They're going to stop by the city of Ephesus.

Aquila and Priscilla are going to stay there.

Paul's going to go to Jerusalem, and then he's going to return to Antioch.

And so this journey took a little over two years.

He spent a year and a half in Corinth, we're told, in verse 11.

And so Paul now, with verse 22, completes this second missionary journey.

Now here's kind of how I want to wrap it up.

So we've seen a lot of challenges and we've seen a lot of difficulties that Paul and his missionary team have faced.

And through it all, we've seen God remain faithful.

God has preserved him and God has empowered him and God has equipped him and God's given this team open doors and opportunities to make the gospel known.

We've seen large numbers of people, mostly Gentiles, but also some Jews come to the saving knowledge of Christ.

We've seen this team plant churches.

We've seen them disciple believers.

And we see over and over that God honors the faithful preaching and proclamation of his word.

And that's how I want to end our time together.

I want to encourage you in that way.

Look with me at a couple of verses here.

From Isaiah 55 in verse 11.

You're probably familiar with this verse.

The Lord is speaking through his prophet Isaiah, and he's trying to encourage the Hebrew people.

And here's what he says to us.

So my word that comes from my mouth will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish what I please and will prosper in what I send it to do.

God says, when my word is faithfully proclaimed, whatever that context, a Sunday morning context like this, a small group in just a few minutes, or a Bible study, or a conversation in the office or at the ballpark or the classroom or the neighborhood, whatever it is, God says, when my word is faithfully proclaimed, listen, it won't return empty or void.

It will accomplish what I want it to accomplish.

I would imagine most of you in this room, maybe not all of you, but most of us are investing in some way in a retirement account or have a retirement account, right?

If an investor came to you and said, Listen, I have something that is guaranteed to bring you a return on investment.

Absolutely guaranteed.

Would you jump on that?

You nod your head, yes.

Yes, I would, right?

Okay.

I know some people argue that, but I'm saying, let's say that for real, they were going to guarantee you a return on investment.

You and I'd be quick to invest in that opportunity.

Are you ready for this?

The proclamation of God's good news always has a return on its investment.

It never loses value.

It always grows, it always advances.

So be encouraged with that.

It's an investment that we can't go wrong with.

Here's the second verse I want to encourage you with Matthew chapter 16.

Matthew 16 · chapter mention

Jesus said to his disciples there, I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

Listen carefully.

God is going to accomplish what he wants to accomplish in this world, and he's going to bring men, women, and children to the saving knowledge of Christ.

The gospel is going to go forward.

The church is going to expand.

And I'm not necessarily referring to Briarwood, I'm talking about the global body of Christ.

God is going to do the work that God wants to do.

And so let's be encouraged.

Let's be a part of that.

And so here's the final takeaway.

Takeaway number four.

The proclamation of God's word will never return void.

Never.

God will accomplish his purposes in this world.

God will accomplish his purposes in this world.

And guess what?

You and I are called to be his messengers, to be his ambassadors, to be a part of what he's doing.

How exciting is that.

Let's pray.

Lord Jesus, thank you.

Thank you for this day that you've chosen to give us.

Thank you for your love, your grace, and your mercy.

Thank you for sending Jesus Christ to this earth to die on a cross to pay the penalty of our sin.

Thank you for raising him from the dead, guaranteeing eternal life to all those who place their faith and trust in him.

And Father God, my humble prayer is that if there is anyone in this room today that's never placed their faith in Christ, I would ask that in these final moments together you would grab hold of their heart and their mind, convict them of their sin and their rebellion against you, but also convince them of their need of Jesus.

And Lord, I humbly ask and pray that this morning they would humble themselves before you and say yes to Jesus.

I pray that they would not resist it like some of those in Corinth, but they would embrace it like others did and believe.

Father God, thank you again for this day that you've given us.

And it's in the name of Jesus we pray.

Amen.