July 2, 2020
Can I Tell You About My God?
Acts 19:1–20
Jose Padilla
Central Truth
Paul saw an urgent need to share the gospel with everyone he met. If you ever came into contact with Paul, you would hear about his God and how great He is. Paul boldly spoke and reasoned with the people in Ephesus, and he persuaded them to know about Jesus.
Key Verse | Acts 19:8
And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God.
Acts 19:1–20
Paul in Ephesus
1 And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland 1 19:1 Greek upper (that is, highland) country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. 2 And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” 3 And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John's baptism.” 4 And 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, Jesus.” 5 On hearing this, they were baptized in 2 19:5 Or into the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying. 7 There were about twelve men in all.
8 And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God. 9 But when some became stubborn and continued in unbelief, speaking evil of the Way before the congregation, he withdrew from them and took the disciples with him, reasoning daily in the hall of Tyrannus. 3 19:9 Some manuscripts add from the fifth hour to the tenth (that is, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.) 10 This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.
The Sons of Sceva
11 And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, 12 so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them. 13 Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.” 14 Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. 15 But the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?” 16 And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all 4 19:16 Or both of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. 17 And this became known to all the residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks. And fear fell upon them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was extolled. 18 Also many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices. 19 And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver. 20 So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.
Dive Deeper | Acts 19:1–20
Acts 19 shows us who Paul's God is, how Paul worships, and how Paul lives. Acts 19:8 tells us, "And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God." This verse really had me thinking about who my God is, how I worship, and how I live.
I began evaluating what I talk about with others, what comes out of my mouth, and what I try to reason and persuade others to see. If I am honest, when I talk to others, I am not sharing about God the Creator, but about the creation God made. I can easily worship the creation and not the Creator. I easily talk to others about the "gods" of my life.
I find that I am persuading others and reasoning with people about why they need to see the latest movie or why they should try a certain type of pen or even eat at this really good restaurant.
I have to ask myself then, what is really keeping me from boldly speak about my God, my redeemer and savior? When fear seems to keep my mouth shut, I need to remember the One who has given me a new life, the One who allowed me to feel and understand what Lazarus felt when Jesus called him out of the grave, the One who has given me a new life in Him. I need to remember, as Paul did, the power of Christ in me, the hope of glory.
Paul shared the gospel with his life and with his words. He lived out his faith by loving those around him with his talk always seasoned with God's love. The passage further tells us, "This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jew and Greeks." (Acts 19:10) My hope is that I will worship my God, my redeemer and savior, with my life and with my words. I pray that my heart would be changed to have an eternal perspective, not just for myself, but for those around me.
Discussion Questions
1. Who are the gods of your life that you always talk about?
2. What is keeping you from boldly speaking to others about Jesus?
3. How can you be bold this week and share with someone about Jesus?
4. How can you live your life in a way that people see Jesus through your actions?
5. Challenge: Ask your family or closest friends to examine your life and tell you what they see as the most important thing in your life. Are you willing to change that to Jesus?