Many times, we feel that hardship is a hidden message that we need to change our direction. This was not the case with the apostle Paul. He followed the lead of the Holy Spirit despite the opposition and hardships he had to go through. His love for those he served and taught was far greater than the personal pain he went through to help them grow in the Lord. Let’s see some examples of this.
It seems after Paul arrived back in Antioch, Syria, after his second missionary journey, he spent little time there before again took off again. In 54 AD, only four years after he had begun his second journey, he left again going throughout Galatia and Phrygia (parts of what is today the country of Turkey) to strengthen believers in the churches he had established to ensure they were still growing and teaching correctly. Nero was now the reigning Roman emperor.
In the meanwhile, Apollos from Alexandria, Egypt, came to Ephesus. He was a very educated man and had a thorough understanding of the Scriptures, yet he did not know anything beyond the baptism that John the Baptist preached. Aquilla and Pricilla invited him to their home and told him about Jesus Christ and he was converted (Ac 18:24-16). When he went to the province of Achaia (this is where Corinth and Athens were located), he was able to publicly debate the Jewish leaders and teach about Jesus being the Messiah.
While Apollos was debating and teaching in Corinth, Paul continued his journey visiting the various churches he had established and worked his way back to Ephesus. He spent three months teaching in the synagogue there, but due to the obstinate nature of many of the Jews, he stopped teaching there and instead taught in a lecture hall owned by Tyrannus. He taught here for about two years. Many people, both Jews and Gentiles heard about Jesus Christ due to his teaching. God also did many miracles through the apostle Paul. The glory of God was so strong on Paul that even his clothing and handkerchiefs were able to cause healing to the sick and the removal of evil spirits (Ac 19:8-12).
Some Jewish men tried to copy what Paul did and cast out demons, but these men were beaten so badly by the demon possessed man that they barely escaped with their life—they were naked and bleeding from the encounter. This caused the name of Jesus to become held in high honor and many practicing sorcery burned their scrolls publicly (Ac 19:13-20).
While in Ephesus, Paul wrote, as far as we know, four letters to the church in Corinth. Two are lost to antiquity, but two are part of his New Testament epistles. The first letter to the church at Corinth, not part of Scripture, was written to encourage them not to participate with individuals who were immoral (1Co 5:9). This may have been due to the society in which they grew up and lived where immorality was part of their everyday culture with nothing wrong considered with such actions because prostitution in their temples was part of their worship of the various Greek gods with sexual pleasure and satisfaction being held in higher regard than moral purity. We don’t have any information about this letter except the reference he made to it in what we know as his epistle of 1st Corinthians. Paul received word that the church there was still having some serious problems that he knew should be addressed. In addition, a letter arrived from the church with a series of questions seeking his guidance (1Co 7:1). Paul then wrote what we know as 1st Corinthians to address these issues and these questions.
The overarching theme in Paul’s letter to Corinth we note as 1st Corinthians was sanctification and their lack of unity (1Co 1:10). He first has to deal with their division and reminds them that while men can have good and legitimate ministries, believers are to be united in Christ and not to a particular person. He also cautioned them to not view and take care of issues that may arise as the world would handle such issues but to follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit in all matters affecting the church and later goes into further detail about how they were bringing each other to civil court rather than dealing with such disputes as Christian brothers in Christ. He then dealt with immorality that existed in the church. He reminds them they are not to tolerate such behavior among believers and, if necessary, have the person removed from their congregation (1Co 5:9-11). While they had grown up with immorality as a common practice within Corithian society, they could no longer live that way as they had to reflect the righteousness of Christ. Because of their society, they had questions regarding marriage, divorce, and eating sacrificial meat made to idols.
Paul then addresses the proper way to handle the Lord’s Supper, what we call Communion today, as part of their worship service and addresses their concern regarding spiritual gifts and states that the church is like a human body where every member and every function is important, and one cannot be more important than another because they are interdependent. All gifts are important and should be used in concert for a given whole used in love for each other and love toward God. He then goes on to address the false idea that there is no resurrection from the dead. He emphasizes that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of our faith, for if Christ was not raised then neither would we be raised. As Christ was raised from the dead with a new, glorified body, so will we.
Around 55 AD during Paul’s stay in Ephesus, he made a quick trip back to Corinth which he considered a painful visit (2Co 2:1), likely still dealing with the same man addressed in his first epistle (1Co 5:1). After getting back to Ephesus, Paul wrote another letter, again not part of Scripture, and sent this to the church at Corinth via Titus (2Co 7:8). Paul had intensions of going throughout Macedonia and Achaia before returning to Jerusalem and then to Rome, but he stayed in Ephesus awhile longer but sent Timothy and Erastus ahead of him into Macedonia, probably seeing if they could hear back from Titus any earlier.
In Ephesus there was a silversmith named Demetrius who made silver shrines for Artemis, who many believed was the protector of Ephesus and was one of the main gods worshipped in this city. Because of the preaching of Paul and the conversion of so many Ephesians, Demetrius saw a decline in his business. Fewer and fewer people were buying these shrines. He called all the tradesmen in the city together and insinuated that all their businesses were in jeopardy if Paul was allowed to continue. Hed also stated Paul was putting their beloved goddess herself and her temple in danger of becoming discredited and robbing her of her divine majesty.
A riot ensued placing the whole city in an uproar but many of those participating in the commotion didn’t even know what the uproar was about (Ac 19:23). Some of Paul’s companions from Macedonia, Gaius and Aristarchus, were pulled into the open theater where the crowd had gathered. Paul wanted to enter and address the crowd but the disciples there and even some of the officials who had become friends of Paul advised him not to appear. The city clerk stepped in and quieted the crowd and told Demetrius that if he had any legal grounds for his concerns to bring them to the courts; otherwise, he and others would be charged with rioting which would serve no one. At that, the crowd disbanded.
When the commotion settled down, Paul said his goodbye to the disciples there to head out for Macedonia. It seems Paul was anxious to hear back from Titus concerning the congregation at Corinth and went to Troas where he preached hoping to meet Titus on his return trip (2Co 2:13). Not finding Titus there, Paul departed for Macedonia and met Titus in Philippi. He gave a favorable report but there was still an aggressive minority in Corinth opposed to Paul. Paul wrote 2nd Corinthians, likely from Philippi, to reinforce his authority as an apostle, to thank them for their favorable response to him, to remind them about giving to the poor in Judea and to instruct them in the proper attitude toward one who repents. Titus took this epistle back to the Corinthians and told them Paul had plans on visiting them soon.
As Titus went directly back to Corinth, Paul made a circuit through the churches in Macedonia to encourage them and then to Greece where he stayed for three months. Therefore, he most likely made it back to Corinth as he stated was his desire.
I think Paul’s example is humbling for us as we often give up with just a little adversity. This should give us pause as we reflect on all Paul did and what he went through and compare that to our own lives.
Next time, we’ll see some more evidence of his tenacity in his following the leading of the Holy Spirit.
____________
Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens