Keep Speaking | Strengthened by the Lord in the Face of Opposition

Silas & Timothy Arrives in Corinth | Acts 18:5-11 | Alex Sands

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Welcome to the Kingdom Life Podcast. Have you ever boldly proclaimed the gospel and felt the weight of opposition pressing against you? Moments like these can make a believer feel alone. As though no one else understands the hardship that comes with proclaiming Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul knew that feeling well. In Acts 18, he faith resistance in order. But the Lord met him with a powerful word of encouragement. Do not be father. I am with you. And there are many people in this video belonging to me. Today after Alex Faith takes us to Acts 18. Show us how to persevere through heart. Trust in the Lord's protection. And hold idly to the word of the ISO Christ. Listen, listen.

SPEAKER_01 1:05

All right, guys, we're continuing in our study in the book of Acts, and we started Acts back in January in 2025. So we've been at Acts for a while, and we're in Acts chapter 18, verses 5 through 11. That's what we're going to cover today. But before we dive in, since we have been studying Acts for almost a year and a half, I thought it'd be good to have a quiz. Oh, the groaning. Come on. It's not going to be hard. Not going to be hard. Just a few questions. Few questions. You ready? All right. Question number one. True or false? The book of Acts is in the Old Testament. False. False. It is in the New Testament. The New Testament, it is after the Gospels. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Then you have the book of Acts, the only book in the 27 books of the New Testament, whose genre is history. The history. Which leads us to the second question. The book of Acts is a record of the miracles and teachings that Jesus performed while he was physically on the earth. False. The book of Acts begins where the gospels leave off. Jesus, when he uh was resurrected from the dead, the father raised him from the dead. He didn't just go up and ascend into heaven. He was with the disciples for 40 days, teaching them about the kingdom. Bonus coverage. They got to see Jesus. If they ever thought maybe it was a mass hallucination, Jesus would show up again. Poof! He could go like closed doors couldn't hold him back. And eventually they just got used to Jesus and the fellowship with Jesus. He ate and everything else with them and he taught them about the kingdom of God. Question number three: who's the author of Acts? Luke. Dr. Luke. Luke, who's the author of the Gospel of Luke, is the author of the book of Acts. He wasn't one of the original disciples, but Luke went along with Paul, he was one of Paul's partners. He was able to gather together the various stories of Jesus and he compiled them together into an orderly account for a man named Theophilus. And some say that it wasn't truly a person, it was just a, I think it was a person. He wrote the gospel of Luke to give the story, what Jesus did during the time he was on the earth, and the book of Acts is the continuing work of Jesus through the church. Through the church. How many chapters are in the book of Acts? 28. You can do the math. We're more than halfway through. But we got a little while to go. 28 chapters covering roughly the first 30 years of the church's history. Question? Where did Jesus say that the gospel would go? In Acts chapter 1, he told the disciples that the gospel would move forward from Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the man, I just want to take a seat, man. I'm just like so good. Y'all are on it. Jesus said this gospel. The disciples were ready for the kingdom to arrive immediately. Jesus said, No, it's not for you to know the days or the times. Your job right now is to be witnesses of all that you've seen and all that you've heard. Tell it. You will receive power. Oh, it's not going to be up to you, Peter. It's not going to be your strength or your wisdom. You will receive power after the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You will be my witnesses. And it will, gospel will spread from Jerusalem. Jesus was crucified. Jerusalem. Go further out. Judea. Further out, Samaria. So it would be like a uh you know expanding circle going out, out and into the uttermost parts of the earth. We're part of that uttermost. And so the gospel moving forward and the beginning of it of Acts is mainly focused on the 12 and the church in Jerusalem. Then there's a transition in chapter 11 when you see the church at Antioch, the Gentile, the Gentile church, that even though they are Gentiles and they are not Jews, they behave just like the church in Jerusalem because it's not about the personalities, it's not about the ethnicity, it's the Holy Spirit that transforms a person and enables them to live a godly life and creates the family of God. That's why you're often closer to believers than your blood family. Because you've been put into a new family. Last question: true false. James was the apostle that was sent out specifically tasked to share the gospel with Gentiles. False. Who was the apostle to the Gentiles? The apostle Paul, formerly Saul of Tarsus. He was like Darth Vader. He was trying to exterminate the church until Jesus met him on the Damascus Road and changed his life. He saw the resurrected Lord. He was commissioned, sent, personally sent by Jesus. Apostle means sent. And the big A apostles speaks of those who were personally sent, saw Jesus and sent by him. Paul's one of them. And so starting in chapter 13, is a lot, much of chapter 13 and moving forward is about the gospel going to the uttermost parts of the earth as God has been leading, leads through Saul, who becomes Paul, and those who come alongside him, his partners in ministry. He has three primary missionary journeys that we find in the book of Acts. We're on the second one. So what you can see, what there's that, I'm gonna get a little bit closer. I just wanted everyone to kind of get an idea of the scope of his missionary journeys. The starting point, the starting point was the church at Antioch in both his first and second missionary journeys. And um, and so starting right here, and then going throughout. Here is just to get you an idea if you so you can see like you're there in the back. That's kind of his travels, first and second missionary journey. We're in the second missionary journey, not exactly sure to you know how many particular the mileage, but it's approximately 3,000 miles between the years of AD 49 and AD 51, whereabouts, you're talking about 20 years after the resurrection of Jesus. Too soon for a myth to develop about Jesus' resurrection. He goes out and he's sharing the good news. As I said, he wasn't alone, he had a team, and and and when he was uh the Paul and his partners, uh, God had led them to a little place, a port city called Troaz, and there he had a dream from a man uh from which region? Macedonia, he had a vision. Come and help us. This is Macedonia right here. They were at a port city. That's how God leads us. We don't know where we're going until we get to Troaz. Often where you feel confused right now about your life, maybe God is just directing you to Troaz, closing doors, opening a door to get you there, so He can you can make that next step and be prepared. And they take at that dream, uh you have Dr. Luke along with uh Timothy, you got Silas, and they travel to Philippi, and that's the first city that in Macedonia that they preach the gospel. And that's in Acts chapter 16, going from there to uh Thessalonica. Thessalonica is over here, then you had Berea, and then Paul got sent over to Athens, and where we are today is he is in Corinth. We started that last week. This again, part of this Macedonian portion of his uh missionary tribal spreading the gospel, and Corinth, as I shared last time, is located right on a little three three-mile strip of land. On either side, there were ports. Ships, instead of going around Achaea, like if they had to go, there are a couple different routes they could get, say they wanted to go here. One route would have been all the way around, like this, but the shorter route would have been through Corinth, that little strip of land, what they had, they would have these logs that they would pull the ships over from one side to the other, and just pull it over, and then the folks who were on the on the ship, they would go on to their destination. So Corinth was a busy city. It was uh economically, it was a city of commerce and uh you know diversity and everything else. And on top of that, it was a colony, so there were certain protections that the Roman Empire had given them. They had they it was it was large, it was wealthy, people were well educated and and um also grossly immoral. It was known for its immorality. People had time on their hands just passing through. They were waiting for their ships to go across, and so just hanging out, and there's a bar or two, temples filled with with cult prostitutes who are ready to engage in in their activity and calling it worship. There was a lot of bad things to get into in Corinth. And someone had once said that it was the bad parts of Las Vegas on speed. It was grossly immoral, and it had a reputation for it. Paul had been in Athens prior to Corinth, and he had shared the gospel with people who were cultured and educated and everything else, but the land was filled with idols. He delivered the message and everything else, and and then there's some who came to faith, but it was time to move on, and he went to Corinth. Many would have said, Don't go to Corinth. That's not a place for a church. It's too dark, it's too desolate, there's too, it's too spiritually dark. You're not gonna get a church. Folks aren't gonna be saved there. Some might have said, that's not a place for a good Christian man to go. Mind you, he was alone. He got sent off, sent out of Berea because his life was in danger. He just said, All right, send uh Timothy and Silas as soon as you can. But they shipped him off. He was in Athens by himself, he's in Corinth by himself when he arrived. And spiritually, it was a hard place. You know, some places, the demonic strongholds are stronger than others. It was strong in Corinth. The carnality was strong, it was a challenging place to do ministry, and he came there by himself. And what I shared last week was that how God is with us when we are in hard places. And uh Corinth, as I shared, was a hard place. Paul arrived alone, but it wasn't for long. Because there in Corinth, he met a couple. He found a Jew by the name of Aquila. And Aquila had been a native of Pontus, but he and his wife, Priscilla, had been thrown out of uh of Rome because the Jews were just causing so much ruckus. How about that? That's a deep theological word, isn't it? They were refugees, but their uh occupation was tent making. Well, Paul, his trade was tent making. He worked in leather goods and made tents, and rabbis, you know, part of the rab uh uh rabbinic training was to learn a trade. Well, he was a tent maker. He's there, he needs to supply, he needs, he has needs, he has physical needs, he needs money, he needs resources, and then he's got a brother and sister that were looking for someone to partner with as they try to re-establish themselves financially. Won't God put something together? Won't He do it? How did they just happen to bump into each other? That is the providence of God. When you find yourself in a hard place, understand God is already there. He beat you there, so don't think you're isolated in a hard place, a difficult job, a difficult neighborhood, a hard place financially, a hard place physically. God has your back. He is there with you. I will never leave you or forsake you, he says. So Paul and Aquila and Priscilla, they are engaged in tent making, and Paul does what he does. When he gets into a new place, he goes to the synagogue and he reasons and he shares the gospel, and so that's his first stop is amongst the Jews. His people, you know, he was a Jew, and so he's sharing it amongst the Jews. Jesus is the Messiah. Be saved today. Repent of your sins, be saved. The law can't save you. Jesus is the Messiah, he is the only way. Well, praise God for his provision. Amen. Now we pick up in verse 5. Again, Paul doing his thing, reasoning uh on the Sabbath and uh and so forth. He's doing his thing. But then look what happens in verse 5. Who shows up? Verse 5? Who was it? Silas and Timothy. Paul wanted them to come. Remember, he left uh he left Berea on a ship at night. His only request was Paul and Silas. Excuse me, Silas and Timothy. Just send them as soon as possible. They didn't make it while he was in Athens. So he left Athens and he's in Corinth. And he's just doing his trade. And then Silas and Timothy, maybe they backtracked and found out that's where he is and they made the trip. Can you imagine Paul's elation in seeing them? There were no cell phones back then. There were no phones, period. There's no community, no way of knowing. Hey, I'm gonna text Paul and make sure he knows we're okay and we're on the way. There was none of that. There's no find my or what is it, life 360? There was none of that. Can you imagine the elation of just seeing? Timothy was like a son to Paul. He knew how Timothy walked, his gate, everything else. And Silas, partner in ministry, they got beat together in Philippi. There's a bond when you've been beaten together. I haven't experienced it. But there's a bond when you're in prison late in the midnight hour. To see them coming, can you imagine his elation? You imagine his spirit, how that picked him up. What happens when Paul and Silas and Timothy arrive and well they arrived from Macedonia when they showed up? At that point, well, Paul became what? Occupied. Occupied with the word. Occupied with the word. That's a nice phrase there to understand. It means that to be constrained by the word. What in the world happened? See, sometimes I get a little, get excited and I start hitting buttons. I don't need to be hitting. Okay. So he's occupied with the word. That means he's gripped by the word, held by the word, again, compelled by the word, driven by the word. He was sharing it on the Sabbath, right? He was sharing it on the Sabbath and then different opportunities. But now that Paul and Silas have come, it's like now wind in his sails. And he's sharing, he's occupied, gripped by it, controlled by it, consumed with the word, the gospel. The word begins to govern everything. He's sharing it, and what he does is he's occupied with the word. And what did that mean in this case here? He's occupied with it, testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus. He is reasoning again, like earlier, and everything else he's gonna die. Now he's he's he's testifying. That means to bear witness. It means to bear witness, it means to uh why that is happening. It's bearing witness to, to bear solemn witness of, to testify earnestly or repeatedly about something. That's what he does, that's what he's doing. He keeps pressing the claim. Jesus is the Christ, Jesus is the Christ. Be saved. Jesus, Jesus is the one that God promised to Abraham. He's the one, he is the descendant of David, he's the one who took upon himself all of our transgressions, as Isaiah said in Isaiah 53. He is the one, he's bearing witness. What did Jesus say? You will be my witnesses. He is being a witness. Now he's fully engaged in doing it 150%, because this is this is what is needed for transformation. This is what's needed for anyone to be saved. Romans 10:17, faith comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ. Faith comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ. The word has to be taught, it has to be delivered, it has to be communicated. The gospel message must be articulated and explained. And so now that as Silas and Timothy have come, you've got that encouragement, and we'll talk some other reasons here, but now he is fully engaged in the word and he is giving it consistently, faithfully, committed, dialing in all of his time, not building up his platform, not reporting on the news, not giving briefs and cultural updates. He's coming with the word. The word, the word, the word, because that is what transforms. It's the word that transforms church, not our opinions, not our opinions, not even our examples. Our example, how we live. We may live a godly life, but someone may not know that it's Jesus. He's the reason why we're doing it. He is uh faithfully pointing everyone to Jesus. Because it is the word, James 1.18. Of his own will he begot us through or by the word of truth. By the word of truth. I don't know what that is. A bug. John 1. Excuse me, James 1.18, of his own will, he brought us forth by the word of truth that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures. It's the word that enables us to be born again. That's why he's consumed with it. Jesus is the reason why we do everything. And you know, there's some people that just want to say, look, the church, the church should just be about helping people. Just feed the poor, just take care of the widows and the orphans. Have your food programs. That's what the church should be about. And leave your Jesus behind when you go to work. No, Jesus is everything. When he's occupied with the word, Paul is occupied with telling people about Jesus because Jesus is the only one who saves. If you take Jesus away, and in particular, him being the Savior, the Messiah, fully God, fully man, lived a sinless life so he could be the perfect sacrifice for us. You take that out, you gut Christianity. We have nothing. The tomb was empty. He is risen, resurrected. The church is not a social organization, it is the body of Christ. The family of God. But this focus that he had, it wasn't just because he was excited about Silas and Timothy. It was because also was Silas and Timothy brought along with them. And we see it in 2 Corinthians chapter 11, verse 9. He says, When I was with you and in need, I didn't burden anyone. Remember when I was with you? I didn't burden anybody. Remember, he was working with his hands. I didn't burden anyone. For the brothers who came from Macedonia, who were they? Silas, Timothy. When they came from Macedonia, they supplied my need. So I refrained and will refrain from burdening you in any way. Silas and Timothy, when they came, they brought a gift. They brought gifts from the churches in Macedonia and in particular the church in Philippi. They sent assistance, they sent aid, and he thanks them for it in the book of Philippians, chapter 4, verse 15 and 16. And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving except you only. Even in Thessalonica, you sent me help for my needs once and again. When he just made it to Thessalica before Athens and before Corinth, the Philippians just had a generous heart. They were partners. They saw themselves as partners in ministry. Their hearts were connected with Paul. They were so concerned about him and they were passionate about the gospel. So they sent assistance, they sent financial resources, they sent enough where Paul could devote himself fully and being occupied with the word. Instead of trying to be tent-making in order to sustain himself, well, now he had this gift. So he can be fully engaged in giving the word out. Look at the providence of God. God got him connected with Priscilla and Aquila. They worked together for a season. He's able to go on the Sabbath and share the good news with the Jews. He's introducing himself. He's building credibility because listen, he's not begging, he's not coming to get anything, he's working. He's working and he's respectful, yet he can see his life. And then at the right time, God provided through Silas and Timothy bringing that offering from the church at Philippi. The churches in Macedonia. Here's what I want us to see. Our first kingdom truth principle. These kingdom truths are timeless, regardless of day, time, age. God will always faithfully, providentially, and abundantly, everybody say abundantly, provide his people with everything they need to accomplish all the plans he has for their lives. He may not always give you what you want, but he'll give you what you need. And it'll always be right on time. That's what we see here. It was time for Paul to be released to doing, to be occupied with the word fully, capitalized on the relationships that he had made in the synagogue. See, Corinth was a hard place. You weren't just going to show up and just come in and just be somebody, and they're just all going to just fawn all over you. No, you wanted to be to stand out from those professional guys, the professional order. He needed to establish himself, and he did. And then he was able to come alongside and build on those relationships and say, This is what you need. I shared it with you in the synagogue. You got any questions? I got all day. God provided it right on time. He always provides what we need to accomplish his purposes. Oftentimes we get discouraged and frustrated with God because our purposes aren't aligned with his. Sometimes our purposes are about getting a bigger house, a nicer car, finer clothes, just add on a list, etc. etc. names for ourselves. That's not the kingdom agenda. God has something bigger for all of us than things we're just going to leave here in this life. And the sooner we can get online with in line with God, where do you want to position me so I can be effective for your glory? The sooner we get that right, the happier we'll be. And we'll realize we have exactly what we need for exactly what we need to do. We don't know what we need, to be quite honest with you. Philippians 4.19. And I'm going to have to fix that. Don't know what's going on. I apologize for this glitching, guys, but you guys can see it now. This is helping everybody pay attention. Alright, Philippians 4.19. My God will. I just want y'all to read it. Y'all read it. And my God. Didn't that feel good just saying? My God, Paul says, will supply every one of your needs. Not out of his bank account that is running low. But according to his riches in comparison. Look, the size, how much he's able to provide, his account is an abundance of riches. He will always provide what is needed for everything he's called us to do. And in this case, Paul is able now to accelerate ministry. So the funds uh Philippi gave so the Corinthians could hear it. The the the uh Macedonians, they they sacrificed and Paul preached. If God gave you the extra time and everything else, would you use it for kingdom purposes? All of us are called to preach or to teach or whatever, but God has something for all of us. God released Paul right when he needed it, right when the Corinthians needed it, and the Philippians had provided. Here is our kingdom life principle, something for us just to meditate on and to chew on. Turn the gifts and resources the Lord has given you into force multipliers for kingdom advance. Whatever it is, your resources, they belong to God. The more we can think about them as belonging to God and being instruments to accelerating the advance of the gospel and expansion of God's kingdom, the more we think along that those lines, what we have can be force multipliers. And what that what that means, that term means, it's it's used to describe, listen, any factor, tool, or strategy that dramatically increases the effectiveness or output of a person or team, allowing them to achieve far more than they could on their own without proportionately increasing resources or effort. It's the person that your company hires, but they're like a Swiss Army knife. And they're they're they are energetic and they're passionate, they dive in and they make the team better. Not everybody makes the team better. People can be skilled and not make the team better. A force multiplier is someone who comes in and not just does theirs but helps there to be a level of productivity that exceeds what might be expected. They call you use this term a lot in sports, that there'll be someone who's picked up in the draft and they'll say that that person is a force multiplier because he demands double teams. Because he's so strong, they have to double team him, freeing up another member of the team to go and get sacks or whatever it is. A force multiplier, not just getting his own, but able to free up others. We have resources that God can multiply, not just financial resources, but physical resources, time, energy as well. God can take a little and make much. The churches in Macedonia, they didn't have a whole lot of money. They weren't, I should say this. The believers in the churches in Macedonia, they weren't overflowing with money, but they gave sacrificially. And look how God multiplied it. They gave, so that in the Corinthians heard. Maybe we should ask God more. Because our R O I R O I in traditional investment resources isn't looking too good right now, is it? One of the good things of going through dips like this, if you're old enough like me, you've seen different recessions, all of that. Well, it's it they all bounce back and everything else. But it lets you know how fragile your financial standing is. Don't brag about your 401k, your IRA, your IR whatever. Don't brag about that because it can be gone. It could be one health event, one one, it could take everything. House, everything. Something like you, we better just give thanks to God for everything and say, God, what do you want to do with it? I have learned through a pandemic, I have learned through upticks, the gas this week was five dollars and four cents a gallon. Found out on Thursday. And I prayed. But listen, it's a reminder. This isn't ours, and things can change. But God says if you invest in my kingdom, not only will there be a return here, there'll be a return in heaven. Because you're investing in heaven, and God says, my ROI beats any ROI you'll find on earth. Return on investment, it'll be better than anything else you can invest. Maybe this is a season to do an assessment. Because often what happens during pandemics and things like that is you realize you don't need as much money as you thought anyway. You stop going out to eat as much and everything else, and then you find out I like my cooking better anyway. Chicken too greasy over there anyway, and this and that. So listen, let God make you creative because you have resources. God can take them and multiply them. We, no individual is going to advance the kingdom, and no one set of spiritual gifts is going to advance the kingdom. There are preachers, there are evangelists, there are teachers, but the body of Christ expands the kingdom. All of us with all of our gifts, gifts of administration, gifts of hospitality, everything, including physical resources, whatever it might be. God uses all of it. The gospel advances through the body, not one or two. Paul is the recipient of this blessing from the church in uh the churches in Macedonia, in particular, the church uh there in uh Philippi. Amen. So now let's continue. Verses six through eight. Alright, so Paul has been active testifying that Jesus is the Christ, and look what happens. Verse 6. And when they opposed and reviled him. Don't you love it how Luke now is just like a foregone conclusion? It's not a matter of if, it was just when. They, speaking of the synagogue leaders, after Paul's been doing this and telling people the Messiah and all of that, but they can't get it wrapped around in their minds. How is a uh a crucified carpenter, the Messiah, can't get with it? So then it begins, no longer a debate, they begin to oppose him. And and to oppose means to stand against, to come in alignment against and resist against, like in a battle array. They opposed him. And then what else did they do? What's the second thing? They reviled him, and that word reviled is a strong word. That's right. It's it's where you get blaspheme from. See the the the Greek word to slander, to defame, to speak abusively, especially against what is holy. So listen, it transitions. And this is, guys, this we've seen it repeated in Acts. And if you look back on your life, if you shared the gospel enough, you know, family, friends, this is the pattern that you see. First, it begins with a disagreement. But a disagreement goes to abuse. Suddenly, it becomes personal. And then it'll move from that abuse and then that questioning to slander. It becomes personal, then they can't put a hole in what you're saying. Well, then they start to talk about you personally and they'll make it a personal thing. And then that personal thing moves from just being resistance to reviling, to speak abusively against. And then in the case of the apostles, it would just become full outlies in order to convict the apostles of wrong and to execute them. Praise the Lord. That's not something we see here in this country, but in other parts of the world. That's that's what that's the pattern, that's what happens. When you see this happen, understand it's not you. It took me a while to figure that out. It's not personal. If you are faithfully sharing Jesus and living like Jesus, if someone is upset, it's not about you, it's about Jesus. If they crucified Jesus, if the world crucified Jesus, what about his disciples? What about his followers? We can expect some abuse, but you in good company. They're gonna talk about you anyway. Might as well talk about you for something true, righteous, good. Look, all of us are gonna be talked about by somebody. No one, not everybody is not gonna like you. At least let it be about truth. You mad at me because I said Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life? Oh, okay. Well, I can't help you there. I love you. I'm free to talk to you, talk with you, everything else. But you have made my day. Opposed him, reviled him, and now Paul takes dramatic prophetic action. Second half of verse six, what does he do? He shook out his garments. He shook out his garments. And and that's the way he's saying, even the dust. That was a way that what they would do is if you know there was uh they were in Gentile territory, you know, the ground that the Gentiles would be on the like and and they would you know be opposed to God, and they would just, you know, I don't even want the dust. To do this to a Jew is saying you're no better than a Gentile, you're no better than a pagan. But it falls in line with what Ezekiel, you know, what he did, what he talked about, what God led Ezekiel, he talked about a watchman on a wall. The watchman on the wall, the responsibility, you've seen movies like this, a uh uh a fort and the wall protecting the city, and somebody in charge with being on the lookout. And if you see the enemy approaching, let everybody know. You got one job. Everybody say, one job. You've got one job. You are the watchman on the wall. The watchman on the wall is responsible for communicating the message. But what people do with it, that's their responsibility. And that's what God told Ezekiel in Ezekiel 33, verse 9. He says this, if you warn the wicked to turn from his ways, oh went too fast, I guess. Uh-oh. Oh, shoot. All right, let me tell you what it says. But if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, and does not turn from that person shall die in his iniquity. But you will have delivered your soul. That's the principle Paul is applying. I have been the watchman on the wall. My responsibility was just to deliver the news. You decided you didn't want it. Now I'm shaking the dust from my feet, and listen to what he says. Shaking the dust are the garments, and your blood will be on your own heads. I am free. And then he says, from now on, I will go to the Gentiles. What the what? But I want to bring the second truth. Kingdom truth number two, every hearer is accountable for the word they have heard. You hear it, you're responsible for it. And if you've been exposed to more truth and you still resist, the punishment will be greater. Everybody's experience in hell is not going to be the same. Those who have been afforded many opportunities and have rejected and resisted many, many, many times, their punishment will be greater. Luke chapter 12, verse 48, Jesus talks about it. There will be with many stripes. Why? Because you resisted harder. God gave you more revelation and you just thumbed your nose at it compared to somebody who heard it just once. Everyone is responsible for what they've heard. Therefore, don't carry any false guilt if someone does not receive Jesus. And you've been living faithfully before them and everything else. Do not carry false guilt as if, if only I had told them better, if I had only done this and I had only said it like this and that. They have to be receptive to the Holy Spirit, they have to be willing to receive it. And everyone is responsible for the word that they have heard. Did I get this one right? No. My my. All right. Well, let me read it to you. Here you go. Matthew chapter 10, verse 14. Jesus said, if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town. Shake the dust off of your feet. And then John 3, 18, whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. My goodness. So you're responsible for the word that you've heard. We are responsible for being faithful. And if it's not received, well, that is on them. But Paul says, I'm going to the Gentiles. Your blood be on your own heads. From now on, I will go to the Gentiles. He's not saying he's never going to minister to the Jews ever again. He's saying now in this phase, this assignment in Corinth, I'm moving on. I've done all I can do here in the synagogue. Now I'm moving on to the Gentiles. And but where does he go? Verse 7: He left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justice, a worshiper of God, meaning he was a Gentile God fearer. He goes to his house, and his house was where? Next door to the synagogue. Can you imagine what those jokers were feeling like in the synagogue? Really? He goes to Titius Justice's house, and from there he ministers the word right next to the synagogue. Just because the doors to the synagogue closed didn't mean Paul left Corinth. Just because access to the synagogue got cut off, that didn't mean that Paul went home and he kept his mouth shut. He didn't forget the mission and he didn't go to another place way across town. A man right around the corner said, Come on and set up shop here. You can teach them here. So the people who were hearing about Jesus in the synagogue and they were, you know, they were maybe inclined toward it and had more questions. Paul would be like, I'm right around the corner. Look how God sets things up. He put it in Titius Justice's heart to say, Come on, come on, you can come to my house and stay. If that's okay, I'm a Gentile. I'm sure Paul is like, there's no Jew or Gentile in the body of Christ. You've heard the word, you've been responding to it. Hey, I'll stay and we'll continue to teach and learn and everything else. And he's and look, he just continues doing the work. Every curious God fearer can go right next door. Sometimes rejection is a redirection. Sometimes it's God intentionally changing gears, shifting directions, don't get stuck on the fact the first door closed. Because if you are faithful, sometimes ministry, God just leads in a different direction. Every ministry, everything has a season. And then there's time to move on. We have to be flexible and let the Holy Spirit direct us wherever. Paul knew it was time to move on from the synagogue, and God had already provided the next place to go. Right around the corner. And look what happens right around the corner. Verse 8. Crispus, what was his position? The ruler of the synagogue. What did he do? Believed in the Lord. What was his position again? He was the president, if you will, of the synagogue. His responsibility was to make sure the synagogue order of services was done every week, make sure the grounds were kept up and everything was well. He was, you know, the dude in charge. Make sure who was going to be bringing the scriptures, who was bringing the prayers, everything else. Christmas got saved. Can you imagine his partners? It wasn't just Christmas, though, was it? Everybody. Everybody in his household, they believed as well. Crispus was a leader. And God opened up his heart, because you can't be saved unless the Lord opens up your heart. He hears it, he responds, and his whole household believes. And then what happens? And many Corinthians, hearing Paul, believed and were baptized. Many of the Corinthians. God saved Christmas, it was almost like the damn broke. Paul was faithful even when he was reviled. Faithful, delivering it, delivering it. When he had to readjust and go somewhere else, he did it. He was flexible. And look who what if he had quit? What if he decided to pack up and go home? God opened another door, brought Crispus. How could if he had known what God is doing in Crispus's heart? He didn't know it till he saw it. You often don't know what God is doing in someone's heart. A lot of times the people who are the most angry with you about Jesus, they're the ones that are closest to Jesus. Because the Lord is pricking their hearts. Crispus. He believes along with his whole household, and then many Corinthians get saved. They hear, believe, and were baptized. You see that they hear. You got to hear the good news. You got to hear it. You gotta believe it. And believing means you acknowledge Jesus as your Lord. You repent and you believe in who he is and what he's done and that you're a sinner, so on. So the whole gospel package. And then they were baptized. And baptism, it is an outward sign of that inward grace that has taken place. I'm identifying myself with Jesus and with his family. I'm making it public. Jesus is my choice. And that happens, church, in Corinth. Immoral Corinth. Greed filled Corinth. All of the debauchery. In the midst of that, God planted a church. Don't ever say what you think God can't do. Don't ever think there are certain groups of folks God can't save. Don't you ever dare write somebody off. They're 80 years old. They don't like 80 and one day they can be saved. Don't ever say what can't happen. Our responsibility is not to try to assess whether someone has the potential to be saved. That's not our job. We are the messengers on the wall, just letting people know. And just sharing the good news, sharing it and let the seed fall where it may and be ready to answer any question. Corinth wasn't easy. Greenville isn't easy. Simpsonville isn't easy. Boston isn't easy. Seattle, Washington isn't easy. Angola isn't easy. The world is a mess. But you and I have been placed as believers for such a time as this. We have been equipped, called, put here to be gospel witnesses. You couldn't be anywhere else. God wanted you, how he packaged you, because he stitched you together in your mother's womb and brought you out, and you were exactly what he wanted. And he called you before the foundation of the world, and you couldn't have been in another century, another decade. You are here, regardless of how hard life is, you are equipped to handle it. God says, I would never put you in an environment that you can't handle. If you are following me and living for me, I promise you, you will not be on your own. As difficult as life looks, you're made for it. Turn to somebody and say, You were born for this. You know what? They didn't believe you. But that's okay. You gotta keep telling yourself and telling one another that's our job as the body of Christ. You can make it. You can make it in that terrible job where you're the only light. Praise God, you showed up. It was utter darkness before you showed up. Yeah, it's hard, but you can make it. The marriage is hard, but you were made for this. Those children, it's hard. Being a caregiver for a parent is as a suffering dimension, it is hard. Being a spouse in that, it is hard, but God has gifted you, graced you for the season that you are in. I will provide everything you need for life and godliness. You can make it. And anytime you hear that voice, I can't, God can. And God will make a way of escape. I will not go back to Egypt. I have been set free from my bondage. I am free. I am not going back. I'm in this with Jesus all the way. So don't allow rejection or disappointment to cause you to miss God's next open door. Okay, good. Don't let rejection or disappointment cause you to miss God's next open door. I got a great story about Billy Graham. I'm gonna tell it in 60 seconds. Billy Graham, you know about Billy Graham, right? He uh estimates are that he preached to 215 million people. 2.2 million of them made professions of faith in Jesus Christ. Most likely the greatest evangelist in terms of being able to deliver the word and seeing folks saved that has ever walked on the earth. In 1949, he was 30 years old, and he was doing a crusade in Altoona, Pennsylvania. And by his own words, it was a disaster. It was terrible. They weren't getting support from the churches, and even those that were who said they were going to support, once they found out that Church X, Y, and Z down the street was also going to support, they pulled out. People were picketing, and they were Christians picketing against it. It was a disaster. The worship leader said, we can't wait, just I just couldn't wait to leave. It was hard. It was a hard place. Then that summer, his partner in ministry, Charles Templeton, also an evangelist. He started going to Princeton Theological Seminary and he came back to Billy Graham with a new theology. He said, Listen, your gospel is too simplistic. No one believes in all of those things anymore, those fairy tales. We you you need to change, you need to adapt, we you need to move forward. And see, he was at a low place, speaking of Billy Graham, where that started to work in his spirit. But then he said, and one night he went out into the woods with his Bible, and he placed his Bible on a tree stump and he prayed. And he said, I will believe everything you have said. I will stand by it, I will live by it, I will die by it. This is the truth. You know, faith is a decision. There are enough reasons to believe, and if you don't want to believe, you'll find reasons for that too. He made a choice later that year in the fall of twelve of 1949. He had a uh a crusade set up for Los Angeles. And it was supposed to be there like a week. Ended up three weeks, if memory serves me right, 300,000 people came to the crusade. And like 350 gave their lives to Jesus Christ in that crusade, those three weeks in Los Angeles. And that catapulted Billy Graham's ministries and everything else, then started going international and so on and so forth. What if he decided I'm not made for this? I'm gonna go back to being a college president. That's what he was. He was a college president at a seminary, and he said, I'm just gonna go back and doing that. I'm 30. Why am I gonna burn out? Maybe this isn't for me. Don't miss the next open door. You never know what God is going to do. We just have to be faithful and bring what we can bring. You may not be the smartest, you may not be the best at whatever, but you're the best you uniquely placed where God has you and in a unique training program. Every day is training. But where God is taking you next. Okay, maybe that was three minutes, but it was a blessing. Don't miss your next. Oh, and this part here, guys, give me this time here. Um, this is the one of the most important parts. Uh uh all this kind of leads to this. I'll I'm I'm to try to hold back my emotions, okay? This part I can so relate. What would you have thought would have happened next if you had to write the story? If you were writing a script, what maybe you would have thought next would happen is well, Paul, now he gets some momentum. Christmas and many people being saved, the church exploded. And and grows and grows by leaps and bounds, and Paul grows in great confidence and everything else, but that's not what happened. Verse 9. And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, do not be afraid. Do not be afraid. What that means is don't be terrified, don't be fearful, and it's in the present tense, present middle passive voice, which means Jesus is saying, stop fearing. He's already afraid. What are you afraid of, Paul? It's really pretty easy when you put the pieces together. You know, when you're doing ministry during the day and you're active and you're seeing things happen and folks converted, it's oh, you got all kinds of energy and adrenaline, but when it's time to go to bed, you ever lay down and your mind won't let you go to sleep? And your mind is racing and you're thinking and you're thinking in scenarios. I can just imagine what would flash in front of Paul's eye. You know, the threats were already being issued. He was being reviled just like all the other places. In Lystra, he was stoned after he was reviled. In Philippi, he and Silas were beaten with rods after being reviled. Thessalonica basically they ran him out, the opposition rose against him, and he left, and then those same jokers chased him in Berea, and then he ends up in Athens, and some of them got saved, but others laughed him to scorn. Can you imagine just being exhausted and everything and thoughts just running through your mind? What's going to be next? Can we? Paul was human, right? You understand he was a human being. Oh, he was Paul the apostle, but being called doesn't mean you don't fear sometimes. It doesn't matter how anointed you are. Fear, this fear, his mind racing of all the things that have happened. That is why, oh, please, please work, please. Oh, no. All right, let me read it to you. I'm gonna have to send this out. I'm gonna try to work this afternoon to get it out to you. But 1 Corinthians chapter 2, verse 3. Paul says, When I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling. Paul wasn't in Corinth, like you know, having a swag and you know, all that, you know, I'm this, I'm that. I am the apostle to the Gentiles. He was in fear and in much trembling. Why? Looking over his shoulder. Everywhere he went, he was a man, a wanted man. Life on the line all the time. And at night, I'm sure it was worse. And Jesus is so gracious, he showed up. He came to Paul at night because Paul needed more than just a pat on the back, he needed a vision of the Lord, and Jesus met him there. And you know what? That's what God does. You can read the story about Gideon. How God said, if you're still nervous about going against the Midianites, walk to the camp and listen. And he listened and heard that they were having dreams about a Gideon and a boulder rolling down. He said, Yeah, let's go. God knew what he needed. Gideon didn't even need to ask because God knew his fears, God knew Paul's fears, and the Lord came to him, and the first thing he said is, Do not be afraid. Why? Okay, don't be afraid. What do you want me to do? Go on speaking and don't be silent. Don't be silent. Keep on speaking, keep on preaching, keep on teaching, keep on doing it. Okay? Why? Jesus gives him three reasons. First, before we go there, man, just um I love the fact how Jesus doesn't shame us, he strengthens us. God has had to do a work in my heart. Help me understand those voices that I was hearing was not him. Because the it maybe, maybe you're like me, the tape playing. You should be better than this by now. You're running out of time. You're still struggling with this, you're only getting older. You should be better than this. Why aren't you doing XY? I gave you everything that you need. That's not the master's voice. When your heart is sincere to do the Lord's will, that's not his voice. That's not the shepherd. We got a good shepherd who comes alongside and gives you not just materially what you need in the moment, but spiritually what you need to strengthen you. He doesn't shame you, he strengthens you. He doesn't tear you down, he builds you up. And church, biblical courage is not about the absence of fear. Biblical courage is obedience in the presence of fear because we trust the Lord who is with us. I am with you. That changes everything. I am with you. That is why he should just go on and keep speaking. What makes the difference is Jesus' presence. His presence with us makes the difference. This is the same thing that Jesus, that the Lord told Moses, I am with you. Moses talking about his stuttering. Don't talk to me about your stuttering, man. I made you. I know all of that, but I am with you. Jesus says, I am with you. So he promises his presence. Then he promises Paul protection. No one will attack you to harm you. That was his promise for Corinth. That wasn't a universal. He's just saying, don't bolt, don't break camp. No one's going to attack you or harm you. I'm promising my protection. Presence, protection, and then he says, For I have many in this city who are my people. Woo! What he's saying here is, Paul, there are a lot more folks that are going to come to Jesus. They're my people. I called them before the foundation of the world. They're just ready now to hear the message, and they're going to hear the message from you. I've got many in this age, but many have already been saved. There are many more. You know, the doctrine of election does not make us passive when it comes to evangelism. It motivates us to be evangelistic. Just because God knows who's going to be saved doesn't mean we are like, ah, well, I don't need to share the gospel. God already gonna save them. No, it doesn't. It gives us confidence. Because God is working with us, and somebody out there, somebody's grandmother has been praying for you. Because their grandchild is was lost and prayed for somebody to share the gospel. And she went on the glory, and you are the answer to her prayer. So keep on speaking because Jesus says there are many more. I have many more in Greenville, I have many more in Simpsonville, I have many more in South Carolina, I have many more in the United States of America, I have many more in China, I have many more all over the world. Keep speaking. I am with you. I promise you my presence. I promise you, I will provide everything you need to do what you need to do. I will not abandon you or forsake you. He doesn't say you'll get better circumstances. He doesn't tell Paul your opposition is going to disappear. He just says, My presence, my protection, and my promise. The promise is there are many in that city. So he has this purpose is going to be fulfilled. Even in immoral Corinth. And what does Paul do? He wakes up refreshed, settled. He settles down in Corinth. He's not going to run. He's not leaving. He settles down for 18 months. He hasn't been anywhere for 18 months. But he stays in Corinth for 18 months because he knows he's got the protection of Jesus. And there's many more in that city. And again, Jesus being with him, he just stays. And you know what he does? He teaches them the word. You know, he's not going about, you know, just uh talking about life and this and this. He keeps giving them a steady diet of God's word. Because that's what we need to grow. Newborn babes. 1 Peter chapter 2, verses 2 and 3. Like newborn babes desire the sincere milk of the word that you may grow thereby. And sure enough, these believers in Corinth, they needed every Bible study, every lesson that they could get, because these jokers were off the chain. When he left all that carnality, there's a lot to work out of him because not all of us start off at the same place. Some of us, we got some real stuff that has to be worked out, but Jesus is able. The word still works. And God planted him in Corinth because it was a hard place. You need to stay and teach these believers. And then help them. When he starts writing, he says, Remember when I told you? Remember when. Oh yeah, I remember that study over at Tisha's house. Oh yeah, I remember that. Gives them what they need to know. Oh, quickly. God sustains believers. God sustains believers through his presence and his promises so that they can persevere in his purpose. Thank you, Jesus. I can't tell you the number of Mondays I've resigned from being pastor of Kingdom Life Church. Especially in the early days. I took everything personally. If people had problems in their lives, well, it must be my preaching. God set me free. Brothers, free now. I'm just a delivery man. I love you, but look, I thank the Lord, but so many times I was so discouraged. Fear church may speak loud and long, but never let it have the last word. Oh, there's so much I can say. There are times you know you're gonna be in a dark season. You can feel it in your bones. I've learned to just say, I'm going to outlast this. If I just have to sit on the floor and quote scriptures all day, I will outlast the storm. I'm just gonna keep, I'm gonna stay here and look. Fear will not have the last word. God's promises are gonna have the last word. What the good work, Philippians 1, 6, I started in you. I will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. That's his promise. I'm gonna hold on to it. I pray that you do too. Oh, we're in overtime, but praise God. I thank God is good. Thank you, Lord, for your word. Hey. I appreciate you guys. Love you so much. Let's pray together. And um, God's word gets gooder and gooder, and uh so good to be in communion. Thank you, Father, so much for allowing us to be here and to worship and to hear your word, God. You are holy. You are holy. Uh, you are holy forever. We get the privilege of being able to tell the world about it and and and to uh thank you for the ways you showed up when we needed you. The nights, Lord, when our minds were just racing with how are we gonna pay this? How are we gonna make it through that? How are we gonna do this? Thank you for your presence. That was just what we needed. Thank you for the phone calls, thank you for the emails, the texts that you put on others' hearts to encourage and to keep us moving. God, keep us help us to remember to just be faithful and let you take care of the rest. You'll provide everything we need to do exactly what you've called us to do. And we were made for such a time as this. Thank you, Lord, for your grace. We love you in the name of Jesus. Amen.