It was not Paul’s intent to speak theologically here. He is trying to make friends and speaks in language his prospective friends understand. The Greeks considered themselves near-perfect men, god-like, surrounded by gods material and immaterial. Paul is trying to take them a step farther.
Acts 18:2. Why Claudius’ decree?
“Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome on account of their continual tumults, instigated by Chrestos.” This, from the Roman author Suetonius, is clear enough historically. But who is “Chrestos”? Many claim that this is an allusion to Christ Himself. The Day of Pentecost, now 20 years past, saw some Roman citizens in that upper room. Men full of the Spirit of Jesus had come back to Rome and spread the good news to the Jewish people.
But, as we know, the Jews didn’t always take it as good news. Fights broke out. Persecution erupted. “Tumults” is the word used by the Roman writer. If indeed “Chrestos” is “Christus” or Christ, the picture would fit perfectly. Jesus said that He came to bring division. Every household has the potential of division when Christ comes in and speaks His truth.
The divisions were so great, so vocal, so disturbing in the Eternal City, that the Emperor threw the lot of them out the door!
Acts 18:17. Why was the new leader (see v.8) of the synagogue beaten?
Crispus, saved by grace up in verse 8, had been the leader of the synagogue in Corinth. His new life would not sit well with the old responsibility, so his task is handed over to Sosthenes.
At the center of all this converting was of course Paul, who is brought in the middle of it all before a Pilate-like Roman proconsul of Achaia (southern Greece). Pilate-like, in that he had no desire to preside over the petty religious problems of the pestilent Jews in his province. He literally threw them out of the courtroom and let them handle it themselves.
Handle it they did. Before they could get very far, they had grabbed the new synagogue leader and started to beat him. It looks as though they were trying to get Gallio’s attention. But it didn’t work.
We are still left with the question about this Sosthenes.
But another question first. Who did the beating? Most translations say “the Greeks”. Many say just “the crowd” or “all of them”. And that latter has led some to suspect the Jews.
Was this Sosthenes the same one mentioned in Paul’s letters? Was this new leader of the Corinthian synagogue slowly turning to Christ himself? Did the Jews know about it? That would explain a Jewish beating.
But suppose the majority of the texts are correct about “Greeks.” Sosthenes, though he may have indeed come to Christ later, is now the focal point of this “Jewish problem” they are having now. Gallio has turned his back on the proceedings, but his men decided to carry it a bit further? How dare these Jews keep taking up our time with their frivolous lawsuits. Was that the problem?
Acts 19:1-7. What was obviously missing in Apollos’ message?
If he was merely a fired-up disciple of John the Baptist, a lot was missing! True, he preached Jesus from the Old Testament Scriptures. He was a gifted speaker. He preached repentance, as his master had. He brought many to God.
But missing was the entire teaching of the coming of the Holy Spirit! Apollos was, like John, able to get people to look to God but could not take them into God or God into them. His followers had never even heard of the Holy Spirit!
My goodness, that sounds a lot like churches you might visit in our own day!
Acts 19:10. What is meant by “Asia” in Acts?
A relatively small province inside the territory we know today as Turkey but was known for some time as “Asia Minor.” Definitely not the continent which wears that name today!
Acts 19:11-17. Why would a Jewish exorcist use the name of Jesus?
Power. All these men had to do was look at what was going on since Jesus had come, and they would see that their art was nothing by comparison. Jesus, that name Jesus, it got results! So, they gave it a try. Didn’t work out too well for them. They failed to understand that the Name without the Person and the Spirit’s approval, won’t get the job done. We watch Paul use that name and devils flee. But this is not a method that works outside the family of God.
Acts 19:20. What is the value today?
One estimate I read was 5 million dollars. One “piece of silver”, it says, is a days’ wage. 50,000 days of work at 100 dollars a day?
It was a lot of money.
Acts 19:33. Who was this Alexander and why was he treated so?
Paul has managed again to stir up a riot. The craftsmen of Ephesus are worried about the idol-making industry that Paul is destroying by his insistence that idols are worthless. They assemble and make a lot of noise. Paul wants to address them but cannot. The crowd goes crazier. Then comes verse 33. Alexander is pushed forward to make a “defense”. He is a Jew, pushed forward by Jews.
Why? The Jews in the crowd wanted it known here and now that they had nothing to do with all this nonsense. Alexander, had he been allowed to speak, would probably have trashed Paul, and disassociated himself from the Christian movement, even though Christian and Jew were considered one and the same by that pagan crowd.
And that was the problem. The Ephesian citizens had no discernment about these things, and seeing just another Jew stand up to defend Jews, the crowd went wild again.
Another interesting possibility here is that this Alexander is the same one mentioned by Paul to Timothy (2 Timothy 4:14), much later, as a coppersmith that had done him much harm. There was a reason that this particular Jew was pushed forward. He may easily have been the leading Israelite in the opposition against Paul.
Acts 20:7. Does this passage prove that there was a communion service in the early church every Sunday?
Not to me. Most translations convey the idea that this was a one time event of which Luke was speaking. It may well have happened every week. But this text does not say that. There is scant evidence in the New Testament that the “day of the Lord” was now to be Sunday. If a text such as this is to be our evidence, we must also have services that begin in the evening, last until midnight, and include at least one miraculous healing.
The Roman Catholic Church of today makes claim to the transition from the 7th day to the 1st day of the week for religious observances. The New Testament Scripture is essentially silent about things such as Sabbath and tithe, except to hint that every day is holy and every dollar is His.
Even the cult known as “Jehovah’s Witnesses” understands this!
Older
Top
