Monday, October 28, 2024

ACTS: Beginning of the 3rd Missionary Journey. St. Paul comes to Ephesus

Beginning of the 3rd Missionary Journey. Paul in Ephesus.    

The Passage: Acts 18:23-19:20

Structure:

a. 18:24-28, grow in faith

 b. 19:1-5, [baptism in] the name of the Lord Jesus

  c. 19:6-7, Gift of the Holy Spirit

   d. 19:8-10, All the inhabitants heard the Word of the Lord

  c’. 19:11-12, miracle of Paul

 b’. 19:13-17, the name of the Lord Jesus [held in great esteem]

a’. 19:18-20, grow in faith  

Historical and geographical context:

By now the church or messianic movement has become universal in character. Apollos came from Alexandria (Africa) to Ephesus. He is catechized by Aquilla and Priscilla who came from Rome through Corinth (cp. 18:1). Prior to Paul’s arrival Apollos goes to Corinth with the letters of recommendation. Then Paul came to Ephesus from Antioch, coming through inland country. On his way he most likely visited the saints in Debre, Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch of Pisidia – the congregations that he established together with Bar-Nabas during his first missionary journey (cp. Acts 13-14, 16:1-5).  

Theology:

Constant growth. It is vital that the believers will not consider themselves to be fully mature at any point in their life. It does not mean that we cannot have an assurance of salvation. It’s like being a child in a family – from the time of conception and birth, one is born into the family. At the same time if a five-year-old does nothing but sleep and wants to breastfed, you might want to consult a doctor. Same thing here, Apollos comes with an accurate knowledge of the Way, competence in the Scriptures, and preaches Jesus (Acts 18:24-25). Yet, Aquilla and Priscilla catechized him. There is always something else to learn or adjust in skills. Yet, his background raises some questions: being from Alexandria, how did he learn about the Way, and how come he is baptized by St. John the Forerunner? First, he was a faithful Jew knowing the Scriptures. The theology of the Way should’ve been familiar to him from Torah (Deut. 30:11-20), Prophets (Jer. 6:16-21), and Psalms (1:5-6). Also, he could’ve visited Jerusalem during the Pentecostal sermon of St. Peter or hear it [if he didn’t go] from someone else.

Second, the knowledge of the baptism of John does not mean that he was baptized this way. It can mean that he was aware of it and understood how it worked theologically.  

Baptism in the Name of Jesus. Turns out that St. Paul also practiced constant growth. When he found the disciples who were baptized by St. John the Forerunner only, he asks them about their understanding of the Holy Spirit. Confessing that they did not hear anything of the Holy Spirit, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Notice that Jesus is the one who reveals the fullness of Godhead (Col. 1:19). As a result of the baptism in His name disciples experienced the descending of the Holy Spirit.

The reality of the spiritual world. Jesus during the time of his earthly ministry had cured/cleaned the people of demonic oppression (Mk. 1:21-27). So did the apostles, for example St. Paul heals a girl at Phillipi (Acts 16:16-18). Apparently, the seven sons of a High Priest also decided engaging in exorcism. Evil spirit acknowledged the power of Jesus and Paul, but questioned their stand in the faith: Who are you? (Acts 19:15). That’s a question of identity – a weak spot for those priests. Exorcism is a frontier of spiritual warfare… people should be additionally trained and prepared, like special forces in the military.     

Other themes:

Two interesting practices: (1) shawls of St. Paul and (2) the usage of financial means [burning the books] for the glory of God. First, it is helpful to understand that an apparel of a Jew had a symbolical dimension (cp. Num. 15:37-41; Zech. 8:23). The covenantal presence of God was revealed via prayer garment of St. Paul – faithful apostle.

Second, we can (and probably should) make a connection with Judas wanting to sell the oil instead of anointing the Messiah (John 12:1-8). Instead of selling the books that would mislead others to the ways of magic, disciples made an “ascension offering” (cp. Lev. 1), sacrificing the financial gain [50,000 silver pieces] for the glory of the Lord. As a result, the Word of the Lord (Logos, cp. John 1:1) continued to increase and prevail.

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