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Two Hours (Paul in Ephesus)

Ephesus nearly riots and gathers in the Theater to protest Paul’s ministry

Acts 19:28-41; 2 Timothy 4:5-8; Philippians 1:20-24; 1 Corinthians 15:30-31

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The relentless howling deafens any attempt to quash it. Like a primitive group of warriors who parade themselves along the front line in a field of battle and taunt their adversaries before their attack, the crowd refuses to cease from its endless cries of Ephesian solidarity. “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians.” It chants in unison. “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians.”

Standing by the stairwell leading up into the theater’s massive seating section, Dimitrius’ lips curl upwards ever so slightly. With appreciated satisfaction, he observes the young city official, that Jewish representative, lower his head in defeat and begin to walk towards the side of the proscenium stage. “Run along, Jew.” He snarks. “Run along.”

…

Helplessly raising his head between the two larger soldiers flanked on either side and firmly gripping both of his arms, Gaius begins to feel the weight of the ear-rattling jeers from the thousands of angry Ephesians now assembled in the theater. He then tilts his head back and stares out above the velarium that shades the theater’s uppermost seats. “Lord, we just showed up in this town. What is happening?” He prays. He then leans slightly forward to see Aristarchus trembling uncontrollably. “Aristarchus!” He tries to yell above the crowd.”

“Quiet!” Commands an Avocati who tightens his grip around Gaius’ much smaller arms.

Barely hearing Gaius, Aristarchus leans forward to spot his counterpart and betrays a look of utter terror.

“Pray!” Gaius mouths several times and gestures upwards with his head.

Aristarchus nods his understanding and desperately tries to refocus. “Faith. Not fear, but faith. Oh Lord…” He mouths.

Momentarily relieved, Gaius breathes out a long sigh. Out of the corner of his eyes, he notices the young Jewish town official walking off the side of the platform. His eyes follow over to the Jewish contingency taking up four rows of seats off to his right. He then observes the discomfort of those seated and watches them immediately regroup by forming several small huddles amongst themselves.

…

As Alexander reaches the side of the stage, he discovers how his situation hasn’t improved. He’s met with a sneer of disgust from the man who… has set him up to fail? 

A disapproving Elam wags his head in contempt. “I thought you actually had talent, boy!” He accuses. “One… simple… job.”

“Are you kidding me?” Alexander tries to object. “There are thousands here shouting me down. I’m no match…” 

Elam coldly interrupts. “You have no right to be our representative to this city.”

Alexander grows redder with each fleeting moment, as he tries to formulate a rational reply. “I don’t wish to sound disrespectful…” He manages to get out before being interrupted once again.

“I suggest you make no sound at all.” Elam parries. “You had a moment to say the right thing at the right time… and you failed. You are worthless to us. Now,” Elam snubs, “Remove yourself from my sight!”

Though on the verge of tears, Alexander coldly stares back at his accuser, refusing to give him any further satisfaction. He turns and marches off.

… 

Unable to keep up with Paul’s brisk stride, the two officials trail the determined diminutive man who races towards the theater.

Out of the corner of his eye, Karpos watches a smaller man making a beeline towards the platform with three other familiar faces waving from behind to get his attention. Identifying his subordinates and, “Who is that with… Aquila. What’s going on?” He asks himself. It suddenly comes to him, and he runs to intercept the surprisingly fit older man. In time, Karpos grabs Paul by the shoulders and tries to redirect. “Wo, wo, wo, woah!” He warns. “You can’t go out there, my friend. They’ll kill you.”

“Better me…” Paul hastily retorts as he fights to break loose from Karpos’ firm grip.

Karpos centers in front of Paul with both hands firmly grabbing his shoulders. “Then they will kill many others in the process.”

“What else am I supposed to do?” Paul helplessly laments. “I can’t just stand here.”

Karpos shakes his head. “No. We’re taking care of it.” He points over at a number of Lictors surrounding the Secretary who makes his way out onto the stage. “You, my friend.” Karpos shares. “Are a compelling individual. But in this setting, they will be far more convincing than you could ever be. Do you understand?”

Paul shuts his eyes and tries to keep himself from hyperventilating. 

“Do you understand?” Karpos repeats firmly. 

“Yes.” Paul relents and relaxes his resistance. “I get it.”

Karpos softens and replies. “Now, just… just watch and see what our Lord does here.”

Finally catching up, Aquila receives a warning from Karpos to remain quiet and observe. He nods while placing his arms around Paul’s shoulders. The men nervously observe from the sides of the platform, as the Secretary of Ephesus calmly waits for the crowd to settle down.

The noise subsides, yielding only to the sounds made by a few gusts of wind.

“What… is… this?” The Secretary reprimands the crowd. “We are not barbarians.” He says with a shaming tone. “Men of Ephesus, what person 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 the sky?” He smirks before continuing. “Who is it here that would deny this? Well? Okay then. Since these are undeniable facts, you ought to keep calm and to do nothing rash. For you have brought these men here who are neither temple robbers nor blasphemers of our goddess.”

Spotting the man responsible for precipitating the portending riot, the Secretary walks over towards the edge of the platform and glares at Dimitrius. 

Feeling the weight of every eye in the theater, Dimitrius stiffins.

“People of Ephesus.” The Secretary yells out without taking his eyes off of the chief offender. “We have laws in this city to protect one another from false complaints. We have the appropriate processes in place to provide a fair hearing to all of you. That’s why we have judges, and that’s why we have the courts of law.”

Addressing the larger crowd, the Secretary appeals. “So then… if Demetrius and the other trade-guild members who are with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts and judges are available to hear the cases. Let them file an official complaint and bring up charges against one another. Let this be settled in a court of law. Would you not wish to be afforded the same right to a hearing if you were the ones being accused?” He asks rhetorically. “I should say you would.”

Thousands of men stare back at the Secretary without a word.

Out of desperation, Gaius and Aristarchus quietly mouth out their prayers.

“I’ll tell you what the real problem is here, men.” The Secretary continues, as he slowly moves towards a wary Demetrius and looks directly at him. “Do you want to know what the real danger is here? Want to know the real threat? I’ll tell you.” He warns as he points towards the harbor not far behind him. “The real threat is what Rome would do should they hear about our… gathering here.”

The Secretary eyes his Primus Lictor who then nods at two subordinates to flank Demetrius on both sides. The Secretary then points back at the audience and stoically asks. “What happens when Rome accuses us of having a riot in connection with this little soiree? Would you like to see Rome govern us more ruthlessly than they already do, hmmmm? Do you know what would happen to us if Rome chooses to see this disorderly gathering as an uprising?”

The Secretary then ominously chuckles, as he personally runs through the scenario knowing he would be seen as the one responsible for such a revolt. “Let me assure you, Rome has laid waste to independent cities that have acted out in defiance in the past. Be certain, they will do it again and again, and Ephesus is no exception.”

He frowns and glares back at Demetrius. “You… you sir have endangered our city. You have sought to incite a mob to carry out vigilante justice, which is not just at all. We shall deal with you soon enough.” He then turns back to the audience. “Well… what are the rest of you still doing here? Away with you all. Go to your families and peacefully go about your day.”

Hundreds of men stand to take their leave, and conversations emerge throughout the theater. 

Turning around, the Secretary briskly leaves the stage with two of his lictors in tow. “What the hell was that?” He rants to several staffers standing just off the stage. “This close!” He says, as he measures with his fingers. “We’re this close to having to answer to a merciless Rome, and I have no idea what Nero might do to us.”

His staff reluctantly gather around their boss, in fear of the impending retribution to come. “I know Dimitrius and the stunted slime ball that he can be… But I also know he has been provoked. I want to know who has irritated him and why?”

Hesitant to speak out, the faces of the staffers fall upon Karpos. Following their eyes, the Secretary sets himself only inches away from Karpos’ face and gruffly inquires. “What… do… you… know?”

…

Seated on the stage, Gaius finds himself gently rubbing his freshly bruised upper arms. He looks over at Aristarchus who sits with his arms clasped over his knees, rocking slowly back and forth and seemingly absent to the sudden change of events.

Hearing the drum of several footsteps closing in and suddenly fearing the worst, Gaius covers his head with both arms.

Seeing Gaius protecting his head, Paul slows himself and calls out, “Gaius! It’s me. What have they done to you?”

Hearing his voice, Gaius looks up to see a familiar and concerned face looking down at his own. Shaking his head, Gaius nods over at Aristarchus who hasn’t stopped rocking back and forth. “Check Aristarchus. He’s not doing well.” He lets out.

“Okay.” Paul affirms, as he nods over at Aquila to follow up with Gaius. He steps over to Aristarchus and reaches out to comfort him. “Aristarchus,” he says. “It’s me… Paul.” He waits for a moment to see what happens. 

No response.

“Aristarchus,” Paul tries again, as he sits himself next to him and places his arm gently around his back. “Hey buddy, you’re okay. We need to get you out of here.”

…

Well, we’re going to stop here for today.

Two hours of frenzied protest, with so many things happening all at once.

Dimitrius has nearly incited the city of Ephesus to riot in response to an enormous cultural shift that has taken place within the past two to three years since Paul’s arrival. Along with Aquila, Priscilla, and several others, Paul has ministered to and trained hundreds of disciples to forsake their allegiance to Artemis and to align themselves with Jesus, the Jewish Messiah. This effort shook the bedrock of Ephesian society and financially affected the existing business community and the multiple trade guilds that benefited from the worship of Artemis. Artemis was not only the city’s patron hero, this goddess was also big business and the reason for putting Ephesus on the map for being one of Rome’s wealthiest cities.

Meanwhile, Alexander is shamed and shunned by his own, when he fails to disassociate the Jews from the rapidly amassing assembly of Christ followers. The Greeks didn’t exactly see eye-to-eye with the fairly large Jewish community living in Ephesus. For the most part, the Jews lived among their own, did business with their own, and avoided fraternizing with their Greek counterparts. So, the Greeks saw them as uncooperative, unsupportive, aloof, and even snobbish towards them. 

In this instance, Paul muddied the waters among the Greeks. Some Greeks found his bridge-building approach to be supportive and refreshing; whereas, many lumped Paul among the other Jewish contingents and blamed him for their economic woes. From the perspective of a sizable percentage of Greeks, Paul was an evangelistic Jew who created a ruckus, which is why the Jewish community wished to separate themselves from any dealings with the rogue Paul and his followers. They wanted no affiliation with the church so as to remain in the somewhat good graces of the community at large. 

As for the city officials, some favored Paul and even sat under his tutelage. Whereas, other officials were simply trying to keep peace, order and overall economic well being. While Ephesus was a key city of Rome–Strabo regarded Ephesus to be second to only Rome itself–it was governed independently. This means, Ephesus was shown some latitude to govern itself without Rome sticking its nose in the city’s business. However, Ephesus was an important city to Rome for economic and regionally influential reasons. Any hint of riotous gatherings would result in an overwhelmingly harsh military response. To add, Ephesus would potentially be seen as incapable of governing itself and would invite further Roman involvement, much like Jerusalem had been feeling at this time. 

Most nations fear instability during a transition of governing power, and that was no exception during the transition from Claudius to Nero after Claudius’ sudden death in AD 54. 

With the young Emperor Nero taking the helm, the known Roman world simply didn’t know what kind of Emperor he would be. He was young when he became Emperor. Taught by the Stoic, Seneca the Younger–who incidentally happened to be the brother of Gallio who had dealings with Paul in Corinth–Nero carried out his duties as emperor in a fair manner. We know that changed dramatically later on, but the first five or so years were pretty even keel for the young ruler.

The governors of Ephesus simply didn’t know how Nero would respond should he get wind of this unofficial gathering, so reasoning with the Ephesians would definitely be the right course of action for the Secretary to take. Get them settled down so that Rome would not intervene. 

As for Paul, he was most concerned for the well being of Gaius and Aristarchus, who found themselves at the wrong place at the wrong time. Repeatedly, Paul would place himself in the line of fire, especially if it meant protecting those under his mentorship. So, when Paul saw them being arrested and potentially subjected to a public flogging, he tried his hardest to get to the theater in order to address the crowd. While Aquila and Karpos wouldn’t let him, Paul did whatever he could to put himself in their place. He didn’t care if he lived or died. He would share this sentiment throughout his writings. Death was not to be feared, and life was to be lived in pursuit of Jesus. Here’s what Paul had to say:

Why are we also in danger every hour? I affirm, brothers and sisters, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, that I die daily. 

– 1 Corinthians 15:30-31

With all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sakes.

– Philippians 1:20-24

But as for you, use self-restraint in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.

– 2 Timothy 4:5-8

Well we’re going to wrap things up for today. The two hours of protest was a response to Paul’s relentless preoccupation with disciple making in Ephesus. Paul simply proclaimed something that many in the city did not wish to hear. Jesus was God’s solution to humanity’s problem, and even death could not keep him down. Resurrection was Paul’s endgame. 

Death is not the enemy, especially when your life is lived for Jesus. Even as we celebrate Easter today, please remember that Jesus’ resurrection is the game changer that would defeat the permanence of death. To live for Jesus is to live as God intends. Death is just a temporary hiccup to be overcome when God raises His own from the dead. In other words, to live is Christ; to die is gain.

May you live for Jesus, and may you look forward to the moment when God raises you from the dead. With that, let’s move forward together.

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Heavy Lifting

Paul arrives in Ephesus, reunites with Aquila and Priscilla, while Apollos gets established in Corinth

Acts 19:1; Romans 3:19-31; Galatians 3:1-14

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…

Flanked by the ornate Roman gates at both of it’s ends and lined with two enormous arched porches on both sides, the Arcadian Way inclines from the harbor to the theatre which butts against the hillside. 

As in many Roman cities, the main thoroughfare connecting the city with it’s nearby port teems with a sea of vendors. Here they hawk their wares to passers by hoping for a flicker of interest, just enough to warrant the next step in the trading process… the timeless sport of haggling. 

As he observes dozens of interactions like this happening at this very moment, Paul then finds himself smiling at the idea that his friends are buried somewhere here in the marketplace. Moreover, he is excited that he and his friends will be reunited once again. As he conducts his search, he happens upon a surprising number of tentmakers spaced throughout both stoas. 

“Okay.” Paul mutters as he enters through the gate and begins his search. “Finding them might be tougher than I thought.” He ponders while giving attention to the swarm of vendors lining the street. He sighs at the madness of it all and thinks back on his own days as a vendor. “Crazy!” He says aloud.

Within earshot of a nearby vendor, Paul chuckles when he hears the salesman use a tactic that he himself has used before. “It doesn’t matter where I go, all tradesmen seem to do it the same way.” He reenacts the exchange between the buyer and seller and says to himself aloud while the transaction takes place some thirty feet away. 

“The vendor entices and shows his new and improved product.” Paul rehearses aloud, as he mentally walks himself through the typical sales transaction. “The slightly interested buyer moves closer to inspect and finally asks, “How much?” The vendor then assesses the buyer, rubs his chin and points out the especially detailed craftsmanship along with the toil of hardship that went into making such a fine product. “Here’s why mine is better.” He would often imply if not outright say.”

“The salesman flatters. “You have a keen eye for detail.” He then pauses for dramatic effect and finally makes an offer. “For you…I will make you a special deal. I like you.” He then gives the buyer an unreasonably high quote.” Paul continues. “Shocked by the inflated price, the buyer then points out the flaws and offers a low ball counter which, of course, only insults the vendor. Ever the thespian, the seller gives a cold shoulder, as if to send the buyer away.” Paul continues. “Here, the ultimatum card is played. Does the buyer move in, or will he walk away? Should he move closer, the vendor knows he has the upper hand. Should he walk away, the vendor will reach out in a moment of desperation to keep the buyer engaged. After all, he cannot afford to lose him.”

A voice yells out from behind and interrupts Paul’s train of thought. “You there.” 

Paul bristles at the idea of being poached by a city guide. He straightens up and pretends not to hear him.

The voice whistles then yells. “Yes, you. You who are standing without knowing what you’re doing. You must be new here.”

Paul sighs. The thought of turning around and placating a guide has little appeal to him.

The voice becomes shriller. “I say, you there! I’m talking to you!”

“Nope.” Paul says under his breath. He begins to walk away.

“Hey!” The voice gets even louder. “Don’t you ignore me when I call out to you… Paul of Tarsus!”

Paul stops in his tracks and turns around to see… Aquila laughing so hard that he buckles over to hold onto his stomach.

…

As if in unison, Apollos and Timothy shake their heads at the back and forth discussion happening in front of them. 

“No.” Sosthanes explains. “To excoriate the Law from the good news about Jesus is to undermine God’s rendering of the Law in the first place. To dismiss our obedience to the Law in favor of…”

“The Holy Spirit?” Apollos deftly interjects, finishing the sentence. Closely huddled together, Apollos looks into the eyes of the men closest to him. “Let me ask you all something. How is it that God credited Abraham with righteousness some several hundred years before the Law even existed? If keeping the Law at all times is how we gain God’s favor, then what do we do with Abraham? What do we do with any individual who existed before the Law? Moreover, we understand the Law brings condemnation to anyone who does not uphold all of the commandments of God. Should you trespass against a single command, you stand condemned and removed from God’s favor, yes? How are we faring in that area, hmmmm?” He prods. “Are there any of you here who would be willing to step out on a limb and claim that you have completely upheld the Law, never violating a single command?”

An argument is heard off in the distance, as the intimate group of men stay awkwardly silent.

“Yes,” Apollos smirks. “I thought as much.”

Abraham believed the promises of God, yes?” He pauses to look into the eyes of those next to him and continues. “God made certain promises and Abraham believed, so much so that he rearranged his life to align himself with those promises. God’s response? God counted Abraham’s belief, his new conviction, as righteousness. No God ordained Law was in place at the time.”

“But… My brother,” Sosthanes interjects. “The Law wasn’t revealed until well after Abraham had gone to dwell with his ancestors. With new revelation comes new expectations. The Law would be the new basis for God’s adjudication.”

“Indeed.” Apollos quickly replies. “The Law certainly upped the level of God’s expectations towards Israel. But the spirit behind the Law remained scarce, didn’t it. If the Law was so capable of bringing about transformation, then wouldn’t we see the evidence of the Holy Spirit’s fingerprints actively at work within the hearts of fellow Jews? Wouldn’t we see factions and hostilities towards one another cease altogether? Wouldn’t we identify a culture of grace and self-control instead of a culture of condemnation and rigid rule keeping? Wouldn’t we recognize God-sized miracles taking place on an ongoing basis?”

Apollos turns directly to Sosthanes and continues. “If the Law was so successful at changing humankind, then what need would there be for the Holy Spirit in the first place? Why would Jesus need to offer his body as a permanent sacrifice for our corrupt nature, hmmm? Furthermore, did you receive the Holy Spirit by your obedience to the Law, or just as it was with Abraham, did it come by hearing through faith? No, God’s transferring us from the Kingdom of Darkness and into the Kingdom of Light was a result of him offering Christ as an ultimate sacrifice for our deeply corrupted beings and by declaring us as newly favored by him.” Apollos gets up, stretches, and moves towards the door. He turns around and says, “One last item, gentlemen: Why on earth would we choose to resurrect an old way of thinking to live out our new freedom in Christ as God’s favored ones?” He mutters aloud as he makes his exit. “If it didn’t work for 1400 years, how in the world would it be any different for us now?”

…

Seated at a tiny table in the courtyard next to their apartment, Aquila, Priscilla and Paul share a small meal together. Locating a bucket, Aquila places it under a dripping pipe and fills it full.

“In the terraced homes.” Aquila begins as he points to the west, “The wealthy have their water plumbed right inside their homes.”

“Oooohhhh.” Priscilla smiles at this. “No more trips to the pipe.”

“At least we have a pipe.” Aquila says looking over at the water spigot. “In Corinth, you had to walk a lot further away. At least now you can get enough water to heat up a nice bath.” He muses as he smiles at the thought.

“You get me the tub, I’ll draw the bath.” Priscilla counters.

Paul smiles at the back and forth. “My how I’ve missed you two.”

Priscilla ribs Aquila and snorts. “Ha! See hun, even when we’re bickering, we’re still appealing to this guy. Time to take off the blinders, Paul.” She pokes. “Or, maybe your eyes didn’t quite heal up all the way after all.”

A younger man enters the courtyard and clears his throat. “Excuse me. I’m sorry to interrupt.”

“Epaphras!” Aquila calls out. “Just in time. I was about to come up with a reason why the Mrs. here won’t get her bathtub.”

“Yes,” Priscilla chimes in. “You just missed the bruising Aquila was about to receive. Get in here and sit yourself down.”

Paul stands to meet Epaphras and offers him a chair.

“Oh, I couldn’t, my lord.” Epaphras replies as he sits on the cement. 

Aquila brings over a chair and says, “Get up and sit down.” He laughs at himself. “That was confusing wasn’t it.”

Paul takes his time to size up the younger man and asks. “Where are you from, son?”

“Phrygia, my lord.” He says. “More specifically Colossae.”

“No kidding.” Paul replies. “I passed through there on my way to Ephesus.” He looks over at Aquila and Priscilla and smiles. “I think we have some catching up to do.”

…

We’re going to stop here for today:

Apollos follows up with Timothy and the church in Corinth, while Paul arrives in Ephesus and spends time getting updated with his trusted humorous married couple, Aquila and Priscilla. 

As Paul has encountered in the regions throughout modern day Turkey, Apollos experiences a similar set of problems in Corinth. Well meaning Messianic Jews wish to incorporate the Law of Moses into their relationship with Christ. Paul has been fighting this war for sometime by now, and Apollos himself is beginning to see how much of an uphill battle this is for the early church. 

With this being his fourth trip to Galatia (two visits in his first missionary excursion, one visit in his second mission trip, and this recent trip on his way to Colossae and Ephesus in his third mission), Paul is likely to write the letter to the Galatians here in Ephesus explaining why the Spirit has bypasses the need for the Law. 

As for the timeline of Paul’s third mission go around, the year is likely to be AD 53. Paul is going to spend a minimum of two years in Ephesus and will take time addressing the Galatian issue. Unfortunately, the contention between the Law and the Spirit isn’t only happening in Roman Galatia. This is a problem facing many of the towns with a larger Messianic Jewish presence. Paul even addresses the Romans later on, as the problem keeps on showing up throughout his ministry. 

In Romans 3:19-31, Paul provides us with the value of the Law–Yes, he does value the Law greatly–but he follows with a clear explanation of how the Spirit enables believers to go above and beyond the Law’s commands and exhibit the righteousness and character of God. I’ve taken the liberty to break this passage down into a few major hunks followed up with a quick “Andy” take in the parentheses. Let’s get into it.

Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law none of mankind will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes knowledge of sin.

(The Law raises God’s expectations of humanity and will hold those under the Law fully accountable for their violations of it. The Law doesn’t save. It condemns.)

But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, but it is the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. 

(Bypassing the Law, Jesus’ life-giving sacrifice made God’s favor available to anyone–meaning Jew or Gentile alike–and all who believe. Even the Law and the Prophets explain this)

This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in God’s merciful restraint He let the sins previously committed go unpunished; for the demonstration of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

(God has held back punishment so that he could show mercy and rescue all who otherwise deserve to be punished–which is everyone–through their faith)

Where then is boasting? It has been excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from works of the Law. Or is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since indeed God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith is one.

(A new law has replaced the old. It is no longer the Law of Moses, which condemns anyone trying to live up to it. Instead, it’s a law of faith. Jews and Gentiles alike may bypass the Law of Moses and receive the righteousness of God by trusting in Jesus)

Do we then nullify the Law through faith? Far from it! On the contrary, we establish the Law.

(For those who believe, the Holy Spirit changes them from the inside out to want to go above and beyond the commandments found in the Law. The Law is fulfilled when we align ourselves with the character of God)

— Romans 3:19-31

Even though Paul provides us with this insightful contrast between the Law and the Spirit in Romans, the same sentiment is also found in Galatians. 

Oh, foolish Galatians! Who has cast an evil spell on you? For the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death was made as clear to you as if you had seen a picture of his death on the cross. Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ. How foolish can you be? After starting your Christian lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it?

I ask you again, does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the law? Of course not! It is because you believe the message you heard about Christ.

— Galatians 3:1-5

Hear the message about Christ, believe in his sacrificial offering on your behalf, and let the Holy Spirit of God go to work on changing your heart.

I know we have tackled this matter in several previous episodes, but to Paul and Apollos alike, this issue confronted them in just about every single ministry moment they had. Our takeaway? Believe in the work of Jesus and frequently ask God to make changes within you as you go. That pretty much sums up our responsibility in the Christian faith. While our Christianity requires our investment of seeking God out and our willingness to be changed, God does the heavy lifting. 

Well, that’s it for this week! May you search out God to begin His faithful and cleansing work within you. Let’s move forward… together.