Two weeks ago, we discovered that when the door closed for Paul to preach the Gospel in the synagogue in Ephesus, God opened up the lecture hall of Tyrannus for him to evangelize and disciple those who had come to faith in Christ. During the next two years, Paul shared the message of Jesus so that multitudes who lived in Asia not only heard the Word of the Lord, but also grew in their faith as well.
And then last week, we saw opposition coming from Jewish exorcists, the seven sons of Sceva, the Jewish chief priest. After the demon in the man being “exorcised” revealed that he knew of Jesus and of Paul, but did not know these sons of Sceva, the possessed man overpowered the seven sons and they ran away naked and beaten. Can you imagine what that scene must have looked like! After dealing with the seven sons of Sceva, you might have thought that things would settle down a bit. However, while the Gospel was flourishing, more opposition to The Way (of Jesus) or (the Church) arose. And Luke says that it was “no small disturbance,” meaning that it was quite a large one. And it is to this second “disturbance” that we will now turn our attention.
Wanting to encourage the churches that Paul established on his Second Missionary Journey, Paul sent Timothy and Erastus to Macedonia to prepare the churches for his arrival. Assuming that things had settled down a bit in Ephesus, Luke tells us that,
A man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Artemis, was bringing no little business to the craftsmen; these he gathered together with the workmen of similar trades, and said, “Men, you know that our prosperity depends upon this business. You see and hear that not only in Ephesus, but in almost all of Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away a considerable number of people, saying that gods made with hands are no gods at all” (Acts 19:24-26).
The Temple of Artemis, or Diana, was a major source of income for all of those who produced silver replicas and other trinkets related to the goddess, and Paul was effectively destroying their income with his message of a living Savior as opposed to a worthless and dead idol. Demetrius spoke correctly when he said that Paul was telling the people that any god “made with hands is no god at all.”
Luke then continues to record Demetrius’ message to the crowd,
“Not only is there danger that this trade of ours fall into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis be regarded as worthless and that she whom all of Asia and the world worship will even be dethroned from her magnificence” (Acts 19:27).
With these words, the crowd responded with misplaced confidence saying,
“Great is Artemis of the Ephesians” (Acts 19:28)
And as a result, Luke records,
The city was filled with the confusion, and they rushed with one accord into the theater, dragging along Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul’s traveling companions from Macedonia. And when Paul wanted to go into the assembly, the disciples would not let him. Also some of the Asiarchs who were friends of his sent to him and repeatedly urged him not to venture into the theater (Acts 19:29-32).
And so, we see that as the aroused crowd was ready to pounce on Paul, Paul was eager to enter the theater and give a passionate defense of his faith. However, Gaius and Aristarchus, along with some prominent leaders in the city who had become followers of Jesus, recognized the danger involved, and prevented Paul from going into the theatre. Oh that each of us would have faithful friends like those who were able to discern the danger and restrain Paul from entering the theater.
Interestingly, most of those in the crowd were totally confused, having no idea why they were shouting. The pandemonium continued for another two hours with the people shouting, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” And then, someone whom you would least expect stepped forward hoping to quiet the crowd. It was the unnamed, but influential, town clerk, and Luke tells us that that clerk addressed the crowd saying,
“Men of Ephesus, what man is there after all who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of the image which fell down from heaven? So, since these are undeniable facts, you ought to keep calm and to do nothing rash” (Acts 19:35-36).
Apparently, centuries prior, a shooting star had appeared in the sky and it was thought to have landed on one of the hills in Ephesus. As a result, the people believed that a “goddess” had descended from heaven to dwell among them. He continued saying,
“For you have brought these men here who are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemers of our goddess. So then, if Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a complaint against any man, the courts are in session and proconsuls are available; let them bring charges against one another. But if you want anything beyond this, it shall be settled in the lawful assembly. For indeed we are in danger of being accused of a riot in connection with today’s events, since there is no real cause for it, and in this connection we will be unable to account for this disorderly gathering.” After saying this he dismissed the assembly (Acts 19:37-41).
I love this. First, Paul is prevented from entering the theatre by some of his faithful friends, and then an unnamed idol-worshiping town clerk brought peace to an agitated crowd of people who had gathered because Demetrius wanted to get rid of Paul and his message of salvation. Let’s thank God for faithful friends who come along side of us in times of trouble, and for God in His grace who raises up others, even unbelievers, to come to our rescue. I’m pretty certain we have all experienced a situation like this in our own lives.
And so, we see how the open door at the lecture hall of Tyrannus and the miraculous healings brought many to faith in Christ, and in response, opposition to the spread of the Gospel came from some unlikely sources, namely, some Jewish exorcists and a prominent silversmith. And in the end, God’s plan prevailed as He used Paul’s faithful friends and an unnamed town clerk to allow Paul to safely leave for Macedonia. And He can do the same with each of us whenever we sense opposition to what God is trying to do in and through us.
Let’s remember that when God opens a door of opportunity, opposition will invariably arise to oppose God’s work. At the same time, God is using the opposition refine us, and to help us realize that He has everything under control. What He wants us to do is to trust Him and His plan for us. He wastes nothing, not even opposition!
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