Acts 19:1-20

Paul in Ephesus

While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul passed through the inland regions and came to Ephesus, where he found some disciples. He said to them, ‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?’ They replied, ‘No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.’ Then he said, ‘Into what then were you baptized?’ They answered, ‘Into John’s baptism.’ Paul said, ‘John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, in Jesus.’ On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. When Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied— altogether there were about twelve of them.

He entered the synagogue and for three months spoke out boldly, and argued persuasively about the kingdom of God. When some stubbornly refused to believe and spoke evil of the Way before the congregation, he left them, taking the disciples with him, and argued daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia, both Jews and Greeks, heard the word of the Lord.

The Sons of Sceva

God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that when the handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were brought to the sick, their diseases left them, and the evil spirits came out of them. Then some itinerant Jewish exorcists tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, ‘I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.’ Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. But the evil spirit said to them in reply, ‘Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?’ Then the man with the evil spirit leapt on them, mastered them all, and so overpowered them that they fled out of the house naked and wounded. When this became known to all residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks, everyone was awestruck; and the name of the Lord Jesus was praised. Also many of those who became believers confessed and disclosed their practices. A number of those who practised magic collected their books and burned them publicly; when the value of these books was calculated, it was found to come to fifty thousand silver coins. So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed. 

In Paul’s time, as in ours, it was important to be able to argue for the faith. As Peter would write to believers new to the faith, “Always be ready to make your defence to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you, but do it with gentleness and reverence.” (1 Peter 3:15) And, as Paul’s experience indicated, this is a long-term project. Paul presented Christ to the congregation in the synagogue at Ephesus for three months, before deciding it would be more productive to move into a public space. This was the methodology he had adopted earlier in Corinth. Taking the gospel out of the more obvious place into the public square takes the utmost courage and faith. 

Scholars are not clear as to who Tyrannus was – a teacher or philosopher perhaps? However, lecture halls were among the public buildings in many Greek centres of population. Here people gathered to listen to speakers and thinkers – and Paul believed that he too had a message to offer. A Western Syriac text adds the words, ‘daily from the fifth to the tenth hour’, that is, from about 11 am until 4 pm. Small wonder then that, with this consistency of teaching, “the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed”.

The World Methodist Peace Award is made on the basis of “courage, creativity and consistency”. The account of Paul’s ministry shows that precisely these qualities are required for fruitful ministry, for captivating listeners with the gospel.

Blessings as we marvel at Paul’s perserverance in response to the naysayers and pray that we too might perservere in an increasingly sceptical world.  Be safe!  Be well!  He is Risen Indeed!

 To Ponder:

• There are few quick fixes, and perhaps today we do have a tendency to look for instant results when we offer Christ. What do you think?
• Reflect on a time when you may have been too impatient in your efforts to witness to the faith. What, if anything, may have made you slow down and take your time?