The Power of God’s Word Part 1

Pastor Mike will be speaking on The Power of God’s Word Part 1. He will be reading out of Acts 19:8-20

Too many times as believers we think that somehow we have failed based upon the response of others towards our witnessing. But you have not failed at any moment that you are obedient to sharing God’s truth.

Your obedience is success in God’s eyes. Hello this is Pastor Mike Sanders and I’m delighted to welcome you to the Hope Worth Having radio program. This week we’re honored to share God’s Word and we want it to be a source of inspiration to you.

We wanted to encourage you in your faith and if you do not know Christ we pray that God’s Word will draw you to Him and that you would receive Him as your Lord and Savior. Today we’re going to be in Acts chapter 19 again but this time we’re covering verses 8 through 20.

We’re going to talk about the power of God’s Word. So let’s get into our study today. This morning we’re back into the book of Acts. We have been tracking through it for actually several months but it’s such a wonderful book and we are in Acts chapter 19.

Acts chapter 19 our main text will be verses 8 through 20 and I want to talk to you about the power of God’s Word. The power of God’s Word in our life, its influence, its impact upon us. Now as we come to verse 8 of chapter 19 we’re reminded that the Apostle Paul is on his third missionary journey, that he is in the city of Ephesus.

He’d already been to Ephesus once on his first missionary journey but it was a very short stay, did not stay long probably most likely we can say that Apollos which we already learned about in chapter 18 had the greatest influence in this city of Ephesus up to this point through his preaching and teaching of God’s Word and organizing.

organizing and establishing a local body of believers. The city of Ephesus was a very crowded city because it was filled with tourists and visitors, constantly coming, constantly going. But like most large cities, there was much sin and ungodliness that had infiltrated into the community.

The apostle Paul spends three years in the city of Ephesus. You are familiar probably with the letter in the Bible called Ephesians, it is a letter to this church and a letter that was circulated among the churches to be read, to be taught, to be explained and to be discussed.

The apostle Paul had great confidence in this local body of believers. Now, as we continue to study the book of Acts, we are reminded that the book of Acts chronicles the spread of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

It’s important for us to understand its context, to understand what is really taking place, or you and I might fall into the trap of misunderstanding certain passages of Scriptures. But not only is it chronicling the book of Acts, chronicling the gospel, but it is chronicling the growth of the church, and how the church is spreading far, and it is spreading wide, and it is making its roots into many lives and many communities.

Many hearts have come to Christ and received Jesus Christ. But we have also witnessed, as we have studied the book of Acts, much opposition, persecution, and pushback from those that have rejected the gospel.

But what is interesting about our text this morning is that Luke is recording to us the power of the Word of God. Now I want you to actually start in verse 20. You say, pastor, are you doing everything backwards?

Probably, but I just want you to see, because it’s easy, as I read all these verses to you, for you to get infatuated with some of the miracles that took place and forget the whole theme of this section of the text.

In verse 20, Luke records these words under the inspiration of the Spirit of God. So the Word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed. Keep that in mind. As you and I are looking at this text in verse 8 through 20, we are going to see a contrast between an authentic ministry that is rooted into the Word of God and a false, or inauthentic, ministry.

A ministry that is based upon, perhaps, emotions and mysticism, and even some pagan magic that it shows the contrast that’s going on. It’s important for us to see this because God is always calling us to be a people of discernment.

The Bible tells us to test the spirits, to examine all things. We’re not people who just because we hear something that has the name of Jesus on it, or somehow that it is something that is mentioning about the Bible that it must have come from heaven.

But rather we are being not only wise unto salvation, but we are wise in the dispensation of the ministry and the kingdom of God on this earth. So what we see here is that Jesus has true power and his power is in his word, and it is a contrast to the counterfeit authority that are out there, the false narratives, the fake ministries that so often lead God’s people down a path that leads them to vulnerability and being anemic in their spiritual life.

So let’s pick up in verse eight of chapter 19 and see what the scripture says. And he went into the synagogue, referring to the apostle. He spoke boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading concerning the things of the kingdom of God.

But when some were hardened and did not believe but spoke evil of the way before the multitude, he departed from them and he withdrew the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyranus. And this continued for two years.

So shall all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord, Jesus, both Jews and Greeks. Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul. Please underscore that phraseology, unusual miracles. So that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick.

And the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying we exercise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.

Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest who did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus, I know, and Paul, I know, but who are you? Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them and prevailed against them so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

This became known both to all the Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus, and fear fell on them all. and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. And many who believed came confessing and telling their deeds.

Also many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them. It was totaled 50,000 pieces of silver. And here is the key verse of this section of this passage.

So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed. As Luke is giving us the narrative of what is taking place in the ministry of the apostle in the city of Ephesus, having helped us to see the legitimacy of the apostle’s ministry, the unusual miracles that took place in his ministry, and then showing us the contrast of a false and fake ministry that not even the demons knew or recognized, he tells us in conclusion that the word of the Lord,

the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed. So that’s why I’ve entitled the message, the power of God’s word. I want you to see three things real quickly this morning. First is the proclamation of the word.

So we go back to verse eight. We see God’s word being ministered through the apostle Paul as his strategy has been and was all throughout those beginning days of establishing and planting churches that he went into the synagogue because of his training, because of the platform the apostle had, because he knew the Jews and because of Christ’s command to take the gospel first to the Jews, he always went to the synagogue.

And his credentials gave him the opportunity to stand before the congregation in the synagogue. The Bible says that he spoke boldly for three months. Amazing, that for three months they listened to the apostle.

What did they listen to? He reasoned with them and he persuaded concerning the things of the kingdom of God. He’s helping them to see the big picture. He’s probably walking them through the Old Testament.

He’s helping them to see the fulfillment of Christ of all the prophecies that the prophets had made. He is communicating to them the gospel of Jesus Christ. The apostle was not always standing before them and lecturing or maybe preaching and teaching.

No doubt, according to the understanding of these words, referring to reasoning and persuading that there is interaction relating to groups and there may be opportunities where he’s allowing questions and he’s giving.

answers, and he’s showing them different passage of Scripture in the Old Testament. But that was his ministry, persuading people, persuading them in the Gospel. That was his style of evangelism. The Apostle didn’t walk up to people and grab them by the throat and tell them to turn or burn.

He didn’t threaten them. He didn’t drag them to the altar. He didn’t force any kind of an emotional decision upon them. But he allowed the Word of God to be proclaimed and to do its work in the heart of the people.

He was not upset if there was doubt. He was not angry if there were questions. He continued to reason with the people. He continued to persuade the people with the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Now the Bible tells us in verse 9 of chapter 19 that there were some who were hardened. They were hardened to the gospel. They did not believe. And they went so far as to speak evil against the way, the way.

That is a reference we see emerging in the book of Acts referring to those who believe in Christ. Those who would follow the way of Christ or they would follow as disciples in the way of Christ. So that is what Luke is referring to.

And because these individuals spoke evil of the way before the multitude, like it was not anything that they were keeping to themselves, but rather they would probably challenge the Apostle Paul in a very defiant way and they would probably try to discredit him before the multitude.

It’s true the Bible says that the Apostle departed. For some reason these people having heard the powerful presentation of the gospel of Jesus Christ did not believe. Their hearts were hardened. It was like water on a duck’s back.

It just kind of, they heard it. It flowed right out of them. They had nothing to do with it. They opposed the gospel of Jesus Christ. What does the Apostle Paul do with these folks that are stubborn?

These people that are resistant. Does he get in arguments with him? Does he throw him in a headlock and call them all kinds of names? No. The Bible says that he departed. We see this many times with the Apostles.

That as they are witnessing and presenting the gospel of Jesus Christ, there are those who oppose the gospel, resist the gospel, and even those who come to the point that they become violent or they become very verbally aggressive.

Paul’s approach is not to get even. It is not to get any kind of retribution. It is not to try to hurt them. those who disagree with him, but rather his approach is we work with the willing and we move on.

Jesus reminded us this in Matthew chapter seven in verse six when he said, do not give what is holy to the dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine lest they trample them under their feet and turn and tear you in pieces.

Do not think that somehow Jesus is being rude here. He is just simply making a statement relating to a thought or an understanding that was very prevalent in the Greek culture. And what Jesus is saying is, look, if you have people who resist you or people who do not want to hear what you have to say, that it’s not your job to take the Bible and beat it down on them, but to move on, move forward.

Remember all of us as we are witnessing to our families and our friends. and our neighbors and our co-workers, that there are gonna be those who are hardened towards the gospel. They are gonna resist the gospel of Jesus Christ, that they are not gonna want anything to do with the gospel and maybe in times may be verbally aggressive with us about the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Your job is not to manipulate. Your job is not to force the gospel on anyone. It is to simply present the gospel and rest in the power of God’s word. We are taught in the book of Isaiah that God’s word will not return void.

Too many times as believers we think that somehow we have failed based upon the response of others towards our witnessing. But you have not failed at any moment that you are obedient to sharing God’s truth at any time that you are faithful to present the plan of salvation, the gospel of Christ to plant seeds of kindness, compassion and goodness into the hearts of others.

No matter how they receive it, no matter what their response is, your obedience is success in God’s eyes. Do not be discouraged because maybe your children have not responded the way that you want them to.

Do not be upset because after 10 years of trying to drag your neighbor to the church that they have yet to come, but that you recognize this responsibility, that you are to present the gospel. And if their response is resistance or their hearts are hard, that you are to move forward in your life.

You are a witness for Christ and you are to work with the willing, having full confidence that as you proclaim the word of God, it will not return void. And when the Bible says that it will not return void, it does not mean that every person something on the planet will be saved.

But what it does mean is that when you plant the word in someone’s heart, when you share God’s truth, when you show God’s love in ministry, that God will do his work in their hearts, they have to respond to God.

They have to decide will they receive it, believe it, and follow Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, your responsibility is done. And you are a success in the eyes of God. And I want you to be encouraged, not discouraged that you have proclaimed the word of God.

I want you to know that there are many who have hardened their hearts. There may be some this morning that are watching online or perhaps even in this auditorium. and you are here this morning or you are listening this morning and there has been a hardening of your heart towards God.

Remember the words of the scriptures in Hebrews 3a which teach us do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, in the day of trial, in the wilderness. All of us have the responsibility that we do not become so apathetic in our faith, so anemic in our walk with the Lord Jesus Christ that we allow our hearts to become hard to His word, hard to His moving in our lives, hard towards His Spirit drawing us to Him.

We are called to have sensitive hearts to the Lord. As witnesses we are sensitive to God and we don’t define our success by the response of others. Whether there’s five people here this morning or there are three or four hundred people here this morning, it just doesn’t matter.

What matters to God is that we are faithful and we are obedient to God. It is the world that defines everything by a response. It is the world that defines everything relating to something that is big and large and we’re not against anything big or large.

We’re just trying to help you as a believer to see the power of God’s word in the proclamation and that you are, as you are obedient, God will bless. Oftentimes we are opposed. It can cause us to be fearful.

It can cause us to be paralyzed in proclaiming God’s truth. But we must remember that our commitment is to always tell others about Jesus. Many missionaries throughout history have gone to countries and people groups that have never heard the gospel, and it took years upon years before they ever saw a response to the gospel.

Were they unsuccessful? No, they were faithful. And we see many times that even today that there are large groups of people who have come to Christ because of those early pioneers who took the gospel to many places.

So what does the apostle do? Well, we’re back in verse nine of chapter 19, and the Bible says that he withdrew the disciples, those that did believe, those who were willing, those who were responsive, and where does he go?

Well, the Bible says he’s reasoning daily in the school of Tyranus. Tyranus was most likely some rabbi or some great teacher. He could have been living, or maybe it was an honor that this building was named after him.

In whatever the case, they always met early in the morning. They did their training and their teaching. So the apostle found out that the building was open and there were seats available. So he invited the disciples to come and we’re going to get together in the afternoon every day and he would disciple them.

Who knows how many came? Maybe five came, maybe 20 came, maybe 100 came. We do not know, but that’s not the issue. The issue is daily, he was discipling these new believers. Daily, he was reasoning with them.

Daily, he was sharing God’s truth and he took advantage of this open facility. He took the opportunity to meet together as a body of believers. Remember what Paul taught us in 2 Corinthians in chapter two, verse 16.

In referring to the gospel of Jesus Christ, he said to the one, we are the aroma of death, leading to death. And to the other, we are the aroma of life, leading to life. Who is sufficient for these things?

The apostle even questioned his own capabilities of being able to share these wonderful truths of the gospel. But he says, look, for some, when we share the gospel, it’s an aroma of death. They cannot even stand the smell of the gospel.

It is a stench in their nostrils and it is something that causes them to repel against the truth of God. But to others, the apostle says, it is the aroma of life. There are many who look forward and they love the opportunity to hear the gospel talk to them, to hear the word of God talk to them.

So much these folks loved it that they met every day. How about that church? We might have a heart attack if the pastor asked us to come every day, huh? But you know what? It’s the aroma of life to you.

And it leads to more life to you. That as you hear God’s word taught to you, as you’re in your Bible study groups, as you’re in your small groups, and you are ministering to one another, and you are sharing the word of God in your classes, it is the aroma of life to you.

It is invigorating. It is stimulating. It is empowering to your heart. That’s what I want you to see. How powerful is God’s word? That when it is presented to those who have responded to Him and received Him as their Lord and Savior, it is a very powerful influence that has a great impact upon our life.

The Bible says that the Apostle, he taught for two years. And of course, we know that he was three years in Ephesus. We know later, we’ll learn in chapter 20, that Paul would talk about not only… that he met in this hall, this teaching hall, but he would go house to house.

Now some have interpreted that, that he just randomly went out there and banged on doors and kicked doors down and told people they need to turn or burn. But that’s not what house to house means. Paul went over here to this family that loves the Lord and taught them the word of God.

And in this family over here in this house, he went over there and he taught them the word of God. And then this house down the street, he went over their house and he taught them the word of God. He did not care where, he did not care what the facilities were, he just wanted to share God’s word.

Why? Because it was the aroma of life. It was giving life and leading to life to those who love Jesus Christ. You don’t have to be ashamed of the gospel. You don’t have to be ashamed of God’s word because the best defense for the gospel is the gospel.

And you may say, well, there are those who critique it and those who find fault with it. It’s gonna always be true. There’s always gonna be those who are upset with the gospel. But church, we are called to be faithful and to plant those seeds and to keep moving on with the gospel and proclaiming the gospel.

Listen to the words of the apostle in Colossians 1, 28. He said, him, meaning Christ, we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom that we may present every one mature in Christ.

No one’s gonna get saved without the proclamation of the gospel, whether that’s one-on-one or whether that is in a small group or in a large group. Because the Bible says faith comes by what? Hearing the what?

The Word of God. Now again, church, I always tell you, the Bible’s either true or not. God is either being straight with you and honest, or he’s lying to you. And so we come to Christ by hearing the word.

Some of you are discouraged about your family, maybe some children. You know what the most powerful thing you can do? Is take every opportunity to interject the word of God to them. Not to preach to them.

Not to beat them over the head with the Bible, but find opportunities to share God’s word and God will do his work through proclaiming. But also in relating to helping believers grow. You want to grow in faith?

You want to be presented mature before Christ? You want to be that person that God has called you to be in your faith? It is requirement that you are consistently and constantly under the word of God.

Do not ever devalue the proclamation of God’s word. Now, I know what some people say. They say, well, pastor, I can’t remember. You know, when our children were young, we’d sit at the table and I’d say, well, what did you learn in Sunday school?

They’re like, ah, Jesus. That was always the go-to answer, amen. The go-to answer was Jesus. You could never be wrong with Jesus, amen. You may not remember everything that Pastor Mike teaches, but you don’t remember what you had for dinner last week either.

But I tell you, when you ate it, it was so good. And let me tell you what the power of that food did, is it nourished you and it continued to strengthen you. And I wanted you to know that when you hear the word of God taught in your heart, you may not remember Pastor Mike’s outline, you may not remember the title, and maybe sometimes even forget the exact passage that he was in.

I know it’s in the book of Acts, somewhere in there. But I’m telling you, as you hear God’s word taught in your classes, your Bible studies, even one-on-one discipleship, mentoring, as you hear it in the worship service, it is so good.

It is so good that we are hearing the word of God proclaim. And here’s what God is doing. He’s shaping you. He’s refining you. He is maturing you. And he is making you stronger for your journey of faith.

And he is establishing and rooting you in the faith of Jesus Christ. Now let’s look at number two, the confirmation of the word. That’s what most of you wanna hear about. You wanna hear about verse 11 through 16.

You wanna hear what does Pastor Mike got to say about this? Well, let’s start off with that theme that Luke gives us in verse 11. And that is now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul. These were not even normal miracles, but they were unusual miracles.

The book of Acts chronicles the spread of the Gospel and the growth of the Church, and we see this from chapter to chapter as we are studying the book of Acts. And it’s exciting to see God’s mighty work and how the Word of God is such a big part of that.

God uses His Word in a powerful way to not only awaken us spiritually, but to strengthen us so that we might be mighty for God. And that is what Acts chapter 19 verses 8 through 20 is about, is the power of God’s Word.

And so I hope you’re taking these principles and you are applying them to your heart and that you’re staying faithful and consistent in the Word of God. This is Pastor Mike Sanders reminding you that in Christ there is hope worth having.