Friday, April 17th

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Friday, April 17

Acts 18:1-17

After this Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. And he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. And he went to see them, and because he was of the same trade he stayed with them and worked, for they were tentmakers by trade. And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and tried to persuade Jews and Greeks. When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul was occupied with the word, testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus. And when they opposed and reviled him, he shook out his garments and said to them, "Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent. From now on I will go to the Gentiles." And he left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a worshiper of God. His house was next door to the synagogue. Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with his entire household. And many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized. And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, "Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people." And he stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them. But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought him before the tribunal, saying, "This man is persuading people to worship God contrary to the law." But when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, "If it were a matter of wrongdoing or vicious crime, O Jews, I would have reason to accept your complaint. But since it is a matter of questions about words and names and your own law, see to it yourselves. I refuse to be a judge of these things." And he drove them from the tribunal. And they all seized Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him in front of the tribunal. But Gallio paid no attention to any of this.

Most of us can remember radio personality Paul Harvey and his famous line, “Now you know...the rest of the story.” Harvey was a master at weaving tales of ordinary people living ordinary lives; but his stories would have a surprising  and often heartwarming twist at the end.

That’s what we see here in Acts 18. In fact I think there are two surprises in these 17 verses.

The first takes place when Paul is dragged before the Roman proconsul by those who hated him.

But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought him before the tribunal, saying, "This man is persuading people to worship God contrary to the law."

Paul’s enemies think that they have a slam-dunk case against Paul, especially because the proconsul is a pagan named Gallio. Surely, they think, Gallio will agree with them that Paul is a dangerous man teaching dangerous doctrine.

Here’s the surprise:

But when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, "If it were a matter of wrongdoing or vicious crime, O Jews, I would have reason to accept your complaint. But since it is a matter of questions about words and names and your own law, see to it yourselves. I refuse to be a judge of these things." And he drove them from the tribunal.

See it? Paul doesn’t even have to defend himself! Before he can say a word Gallio dismissed the case. The surprise is that God uses a pagan Roman administrator to protect Paul and the gospel ministry in Corinth.

The second surprise has to do with the man who served as the “prosecuting attorney” for those who hated Paul.

And they all seized Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him in front of the tribunal. But Gallio paid no attention to any of this.

It seems that Sosthenes must have presented the case against Paul, and when Gallio refused to listen, the people who had put him up to it were so enraged that they turned on him and beat him up!

Interestingly, that’s not the last we hear about Sosthenes in the New Testament. Paul begins his first letter to the Corinthian church this way:

Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes,

To the church of God that is in Corinth... (1 Corinthians 1:1-2)

See the surprise?

While we can’t know with certainty that this is the same Sosthenes, it would be very odd for Paul to mention a man by this name in a letter to those in Corinth if it were not the same guy!

The “rest of the story” seems to be that Sosthenes, the guy who tried to get Paul thrown into prison or worse, winds up becoming a follower of Jesus, one who Paul calls “brother.”

How cool is that?

Sosthenes went from one who rejected Paul and the gospel to one who followed Jesus and served with Paul in the gospel ministry.

Wouldn’t you like to hear Sosthenes’ faith-story? I know I would!

Paul had preached in the synagogue; his message was rejected; but some time later the leader of the opposition becomes a believer and co-worker for Christ.

You just never know when a gospel seed planted will burst into life!

Pastor Brian Coffey