Summary:

Paul didn’t decide to leave Ephesus (v.1) because the “uproar” that Satan instigated (Acts 20:23-41) ran him out of town.  He left because he knew his work in Asia was done (Acts 19:9,10).  So he actually planned to leave for Macedonia before the uproar (v.21).  He planned to go to “Achaia” because he’d heard that the church he established in the Achaian city of Corinth had fallen into sin.  So he wrote them a letter and sent Timothy to deliver it (19:22 cf. ICor.4:17).

In that first Corinthian epistle, Paul really let them have it, and warned them of his plan to come and straighten them out further in person (ICor.16:5,8)—especially because he’d also heard some of the Corinthians were doubting his apostleship. So in that first epistle he warned them he was coming to chasten them with an apostolic rod (ICor.4:18-21).

But after all his big talk, he didn’t show up in Corinth.  His detractors claimed that he was obviously a man who made promises lightly, and didn’t keep them (IICor.1:15-17).  So Paul wrote them that second epistle, explaining he didn’t show up in Corinth to “spare” them (1:23-2:1).  He didn’t want to have to use his rod on them, so he took some time to cool off in Macedonia before going to Corinth (Acts 20:2).

The Macedonian churches of Philippi and Thessalonica were among Paul’s favorites, but even they needed “much exhortation” from God’s Word (v.2)—and so do you!  Be sure to be in church to get it, as often as you can.

During the time Paul was administering that exhortation, he was going through a rough time himself (IICor.2:12,13).  When you find yourself going through tough times like he describes in those verses, be sure to do what he did and just keep serving the Lord in spite of it all.  That’s the best cure for dealing with adversity.  Then find God’s comfort in the fellowship of other believers, as Paul did (IICor.7:5,6).

Paul was also comforted by the news Titus brought him that said the Corinthians had repented (7:7).  He was very comforted by this, for he’d repented of some of the things he said in that first Corinthian letter (7:8).  Even Paul wasn’t always sure he’d done the right thing!  I find that very comforting, how about you?  We know Paul wrote II Corinthians from Macedonia due to the references he makes to Macedonia in it (IICor.7:5; 8:1; 9:2,4).  He then visited the church in Corinth during his time in “Greece” (Acts 21:2).

It must not have taken Paul more than three months to write an epistle, for he wrote Romans during his three months in Greece (21:2,3).  We know this because he mentions staying with Gaius, a Corinthian (Rom.16:23 cf. ICor.1:14).  Of course, the writing of Romans got Satan’s attention, and he instigated a Jewish plot on Paul’s life (Acts 21:3).  God was phasing out rescues like the earthquake in Acts 16, so Paul rescued himself. He heard the assassination was to take place near the ship he was taking to Syria, so he took a land route to Macedonia instead (Acts 21:3).  We too must save ourselves from trouble by making adult son decisions like that!

Paul also gathered bodyguards (21:4), who also joined him to guard the money he collected from the churches in their respective cities (cf.Rom.15:26).  After the Jews rejected the Spirit when they stoned a Spirit-filled man, He withdrew, and the ones He empowered to live as one, with no lack (Acts1:8;2:4;4:34,35), suddenly became “poor” (Rom.15: 26).  The twelve asked Paul to help them (Gal.2:9,10), which Paul was “forward” to do by taking collections for those poor Jewish saints from the Gentile churches (Rom.15:25,26).

Paul sent Titus to pick up the Corinthian letter, but sent a man with him (IICor.8:16-19) to provide things honest in the sight of all men when it came to the Lord’s money (ICor.16: 1-3).  Plus, the collecting of money can’t be kept secret, so Paul was “in perils of robbers” (IICor.11:26).  So the more men involved in collecting and delivering money, the better.

A Video of this sermon is available on YouTube: “The Travels of Paul” Acts 20:1-5

Summary:

When it looked like Paul and his fellowworkers in the Lord’s work were about to be killed (Acts 19:23-40), a city official “appeased” the murderous mob (v.41).  Since they wanted the apostles dead, he probably appeased them by just beating Gaius and Aristarchus to satisfy their bloodlust (cf.Gen. 32:20).

Since that angry mob was worried that people wouldn’t come visit the temple of Diana they had built in Ephesus, the townclerk reminded them that they also had “the image which fell down from Jupiter” that people came to worship (v.35).  They claimed a meteorite that landed in Ephesus fell from Jupiter because it is the largest of the planets, and because Jupiter was the name of the king of all their gods.

They also named it Jupiter because Jupiter was the father of their goddess Diana!  Once that rock landed, they claimed Jupiter thought enough of them to send them that image.  This may have led to the justification of building her magni-ficent temple there, making Ephesus the headquarters of all worship of Diana.  So as long as they had that rock, these things could not be “spoken against” (Acts 19:36). And since no one could speak against it, the townclerk encouraged the mob not to do anything rash by killing the apostles.

He went on to remind them of the only two legal reasons they could kill them under Roman law (v.37).  The first reason was if Paul had robbed any churches of their most highly valued commodity—their idol.  That was a crime that had historically been punishable by death (Gen.31:32).  The second crime punishable by death in Rome was blaspheming another religion’s god.  That’s why the Jews charged Stephen with blasphemy (Acts 6:11,13).  They knew Rome wouldn’t censure them for killing him for that, and they were right.  So when they wanted to kill Paul, that’s what they charged him with as well (25:7,8).

So how did the townclerk know Paul hadn’t robbed any churches of their gods? Well, he knew he hadn’t robbed their temple, for they still had that rock, and their statue of Diana.  And he knew Paul hadn’t robbed other churches, for he’d been in Ephesus three years.  Paul did say there was no such thing as idols (19:26), but that must not have met the stand-ard of blasphemy under Roman law, for he wasn’t executed for saying it in Athens (17:29).  The townclerk probably meant Paul never singled out Diana, or any other god, to say he or she wasn’t a god.  His point was: if they killed a man who hadn’t broken any laws, they’d be breaking the law.

And all the townclerk cared about was the law.  He spoke of “your” goddess (v.37), not “ours.”  He didn’t care about Diana.  He just cared about keeping the peace.  He then went on to remind the angry mob that there were legal ways to settle their differences with Paul (19:38-41).  He pointed out that the courts were open to hear such cases, and there were “deputies” who judged court cases (cf.18:12-17).

But when it came to “other” matters that were outside the jurisdiction of Roman law, things that Roman judges would not judge (cf.18:14,15), they could settle those differences in a “lawful assembly,” i.e., in a venue similar to Mars Hill in Athens.  This riot was an unlawful assembly.  He then made it clear that there’d be an inquiry into this riot if they took things any further by killing Paul (v.40).  And he didn’t say it’d be one in which “you” could give no legal account to justify.  He said “we” couldn’t justify it. He knew that he’d be accountable if he let a mob murder someone on his watch.

Paul was putting idol makers out of business, just as God will one day put Babylon out of business, the church of the Antichrist (Rev.18:10-18).  But in that dispensation of wrath, God will do it by burning Babylon.  In the dispensation of grace, Paul did it by grace.  That’s the way to put abortion clinics out of business.  It’s also the way to deal with govern-ment corruption, instead of bombing federal buildings, etc.

A video of this message is available on YouTube: “The Townclerk Comes To The Rescue” Acts 19:35-41

A video of this message is available on YouTube: “The Riot At Ephesus” Acts 19:23-34