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Well, please turn with me in 
your Bibles to Acts chapter 18. Acts chapter 18. I'm going to read the chapter 
and then our focus will be at verses 12 to 28. But I'll begin reading in chapter 
18 at verse 1. After these things, Paul departed 
from Athens and went to Corinth. And he found a certain Jew named 
Aquila, born in Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with 
his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to 
depart from Rome. And he came to them. So because 
he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and worked. 
for by occupation they were tent makers. And he reasoned in the 
synagogue every Sabbath and persuaded both Jews and Greeks. When Silas 
and Timothy had come from Macedonia, Paul was compelled by the Spirit 
and testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ. But when 
they opposed him and blasphemed, he shook his garments and said 
to them, your blood be upon your own heads. I am clean. From now 
on, I will go to the Gentiles. And he departed from there and 
entered the house of a certain man named Justice, one who worshiped 
God, whose house was next to the synagogue. Then Crispus, 
the ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his household. 
And many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed and were baptized. Now the Lord spoke to Paul in 
the night by a vision. Do not be afraid, but speak, 
and do not keep silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack 
you to hurt you, for I have many people in this city. And he continued 
there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among 
them. When Galileo was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews with one 
accord rose up against Paul and brought him to the judgment seat, 
saying, This fellow persuades men to worship God contrary to 
the law. And when Paul was about to open 
his mouth, Galileo said to the Jews, If it were a matter of 
wrongdoing or wicked crimes, O Jews, there would be reason 
why I should bear with you. But if it is a question of words 
and names in your own law, look to it yourselves, for I do not 
want to be a judge of such matters. And he drove them from the judgment 
seat. Then all the Greeks took Sosthenes, 
the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment 
seat. But Galileo took no notice of these things. So Paul still 
remained a good while. Then he took leave of the brethren 
and sailed for Syria. And Priscilla and Aquila were 
with him. He had his hair cut off at Centria, for he had taken 
a vow. And he came to Ephesus and left 
them there. But he himself entered the synagogue 
and reasoned with the Jews. When they asked him to stay a 
longer time with them, he did not consent, but took leave of 
them, saying, I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem, 
but I will return again to you, God willing. And he sailed from 
Ephesus. And when he had landed at Caesarea 
and gone up and greeted the church, he went down to Antioch. After 
he had spent some time there, he departed and went over the 
region of Galatia and Phrygia in order, strengthening all the 
disciples. Now a certain Jew named Apollos, 
born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, 
came to Ephesus. This man had been instructed 
in the way of the Lord, and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and 
taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only 
the baptism of John. So he began to speak boldly in 
the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard 
him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God 
more accurately. And when he desired to cross 
to Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive 
him. And when he arrived, he greatly helped those who had 
believed through grace. For he vigorously refuted the 
Jews publicly, showing from the scriptures that Jesus is the 
Christ. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our Father 
in heaven, we thank you for the written word of the living and 
true God. We thank you that you've not left us as orphans in the 
world, but you've given us the Holy Spirit and you've given 
us the word of truth. We pray now that the Holy Spirit 
who gave us this word would guide us in our study of it. We pray 
that you would encourage and strengthen our hearts You would 
cause us to stand amazed at Your sovereignty and Your power and 
Your majesty and glory. You chose just but a few men 
in the first century, and they turned the world upside down 
for the glory of God and for the extension of the kingdom 
of Christ. We ask that You would bless the church today, that 
You would cause us to see men raised up by You, laborers that 
will go out into the harvest field to proclaim the truth as 
it is in Jesus. We pray, Father, for those that 
are preaching and teaching the Word of God here and overseas. We pray that you would bless, 
prosper, and strengthen them, and cause the Word to run swiftly 
and be glorified. Forgive us now for our sins and 
our unrighteousness. Cleanse us in that precious blood 
of Jesus, and cause us to just glorify, honor, and praise you. 
And we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, we have 
been studying the second missionary journey, which comes to an end 
in this particular section. There should, perhaps, or there 
could have, perhaps, been a chapter break between verses 22 and 23 
here in chapter 18. Paul formally concludes the second 
missionary journey when he returns to Antioch. And then in verse 
23 it says, after he had spent some time there, the church in 
Antioch, he departed and went over the region of Galatia and 
Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples. So that's 
the beginning of the third missionary journey. So we finish the second, 
we pick up on the third in this particular sachet. But before 
we get there, we want to look first at this appearance before 
Galileo. The Apostle Paul, again, is harassed, 
persecuted by the Jews, and they bring him to civil government. 
Secondly, we'll notice the return to Antioch in verses 18 to 23. And then finally, if we have 
time, the ministry of this man called Apollos in verses 24 to 
28. But I want to look first at this 
appearance before Galileo, and as we have been considering over 
the last little while, there's a lot of stuff in the Bible concerning 
civil government. On Wednesday night, this past 
week, we started the book of Exodus, and Pharaoh presents 
only a negative view concerning civil government. Pharaoh was 
certainly concerned about the multiplication, the rapid multiplication, 
of the Jews. And Pharaoh concluded that if 
the Jews keep growing like they are, they will rise up along 
with other persons in the nation of Egypt that were against the 
Egyptians, and they'll mount an attack upon us and take possession 
of the land. So what does Pharaoh do? He first 
changes the status of the Jews. He classifies them as slaves. He gives them that inferior subordinate 
status within that particular government. And then he turns 
to genocidal rage. He wants to exterminate. He wants 
to liquidate the boy babies that are born to the Israelites. Not 
the girl babies. They would sexually exploit them 
and eventually assimilate them into their culture. But the men, 
the boys, would grow up to be fighting men. And so Pharaoh 
was horrified at the prospect of losing his reign over Egypt. We move on in the Old Testament. 
You see a king like Cyrus, king of Persia. He was both good and 
bad. Certainly the Lord raised him 
up. The Lord calls him my servant, my anointed, literally. And Cyrus 
is the one responsible for allowing the Jews to return from Babylon 
back to the land of Judah. Obviously, Cyrus wasn't a godly 
man. Cyrus certainly had his shortcomings. 
And Cyrus didn't do everything to the glory of God. But there 
was both good and bad in that particular man. Well, this particular 
magistrate, this Galileo, is both consistent and inconsistent. We'll never find somebody who 
is absolutely perfect, but I do believe that he sets forth a 
pattern here that we ought to consider prayerfully with reference 
to civil government in our own generation. So I want to look 
at the appearance before Galileo under two considerations. First, 
the charge against Paul, verses 12 and 13, and then secondly, 
the response of Galileo in verses 14 to 17. In the first place, 
notice the plaintiffs. Verse 12, when Galileo was proconsul 
of Achaia, the Jews with one accord rose up against Paul. 
That is not a surprise because the Jews have been, with one 
accord, rising up against Paul. Paul has been severely targeted 
for extermination, for imprisonment, just so that he could be silenced 
and not continue to preach Jesus as the Messiah. So the Jews rise 
up with one accord against Paul and bring him to the judgment 
seat. The Geneva Bible says the wicked are never weary of evildoing. I think we would agree as we 
survey this animosity against the apostle in his missionary 
enterprise. But it says the wicked are never 
weary of evildoing, but the Lord mocketh their endeavors marvelously. I think we would all agree with 
that. try as the world may to silence Christianity, to silence 
the cause of God and truth, they have failed, they are failing, 
and they will always fail because Christ will, in fact, see the 
travail of his soul and be satisfied. He redeems men, women, boys, 
and girls from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation. There's ebb, 
to be sure, there's flow, to be sure, but the contours of 
history demonstrate that Christ is enthroned, Christ wields the 
scepter, and Christ is, in fact, building His church, and the 
gates of Hades itself shall not prevail against it. So try as 
these persons might, the Lord mocks them marvelously and shuts 
them down. Now they bring him or bring Paul 
to this man called Galileo. Now Galileo was the proconsul. 
It was sort of like a governor over the province of Achaia from 
AD 51 to 52. This is one of those concrete 
situations in the book of Acts that helps us to definitively 
date the document that we're dealing with. This is how we 
know Paul's second missionary journey was in fact from 51 to 
52. Now this man, Galileo, was the older brother of a man by 
the name of Seneca. And Seneca was a Stoic philosopher. We met the Stoic philosophers 
in Acts chapter 17. But this Seneca was also the 
tutor of Nero. Now Nero would turn out to be 
a horribly wretched man, so I'm not sure we should blame all 
that on Seneca, but nevertheless he was a noteworthy person. Seneca 
also had spoken about his brother Galileo and said that he was 
universally loved by all men. He was a very generous and a 
very amiable character. We move through the passage, 
I think Sosthenes would disagree, but nevertheless, for the most 
part, he was universally loved by the people that he governed. 
So that's who is in view with reference to this judgment. Notice 
that they bring Paul to the judgment seat. This was in the agora, 
or in the marketplace, and this is where the governor would indeed 
conduct business. So they bring him, it's a formal 
charge, it's a formal allegation, and they bring him before the 
man that can render a verdict. Now, in terms of the charge, 
look at verse 13. It says, saying, this fellow 
persuades men to worship God contrary to the law. Now, when 
we see that statement, we need to ask, which law? Is it the 
Mosaic law? Is it the law of Moses? Is it 
the Old Testament? Certainly, they thought that 
Paul was, in fact, teaching contrary to that because they denied that 
Jesus was, in fact, the Messiah. And as Jesus said to his opponents, 
you search the scriptures for in them you think you have eternal 
life, but these are they which testify of me. So they did not 
believe that Paul was teaching properly concerning the Mosaic 
law. But as well, they could have been alleging that he was 
teaching contrary to Roman law. They did that in Philippi in 
Acts chapter 16. They do that in Thessalonica 
in Acts chapter 17. So which is it in terms of the 
law? Now, with reference to the particular 
charge, Galileo understands it as being a violation of Mosaic 
Law. The way that he responds, by 
way of dismissal, he basically says, it's up to you to judge 
sort of this intramural debate that obtains between you and 
this man, Paul. So that's how Galileo understands 
it. But probably the larger sort 
of context is something that was in play with reference to 
the Jews in the Roman Empire. F.F. Bruce explains it this way. 
The Jewish community and synagogue of Corinth, like Jewish communities 
and synagogues throughout the empire, had the status of collegium 
lictum. Now that basically is the reality 
that there's a group of people that have the ability to function 
as one and they are left unmolested. He goes on to say, but Paul's 
accusers maintain that the gospel he preached had nothing to do 
with their ancestral faith. It was no true form of Judaism, 
and therefore should not share in the protection extended to 
Judaism by Roman law. Paul should be prohibited from 
further propagation of the gospel, if not indeed punished for his 
activity in propagating it thus far. So it may not have been 
the case that they were saying he's guilty of violating the 
Mosaic law or that he's guilty of violating specific ordinances 
with reference to Roman law, but the Roman law that allowed 
the Jews to exist in the empire. That's not to say that the Romans 
were favorable to the Jews. We already see in verse 2 that 
Claudius expelled them from the city of Rome. They weren't looked 
at as these bastions of wonderfulness and everybody in Rome bowed down 
to them, but they were given a legal status and a privilege 
to exercise their religion within the confines of the Roman Empire. 
They were, for the most part, unmolested by the civil state. Initially, with Christianity, 
Rome, or the Roman Empire, viewed Christianity as a subset of Judaism. So it could be the case that 
the Jews here are saying, they're not with us. They are different 
from us. They are contrary to the very 
law that permits us to function legally in the Roman Empire. 
It's not until Nero that we see a Caesar actually make that distinction 
in terms of Christianity and Judaism. So that's probably the 
background to what is happening in this particular instance. 
Now let's look secondly at the response of Galileo. First, his 
consistency. After the charge is leveled in 
verse 13, this fellow persuades men to worship God contrary to 
the law. Notice in verse 14, and when 
Paul was about to open his mouth, we should observe that, we should 
embrace that, and we should understand that Paul did not live in this 
way. He didn't say, well, God is sovereign. God will provide whatever may 
happen. Certainly he did live that way, 
and certainly he did believe that, but he didn't live in the 
minimization of or elimination of means. In other words, he 
is going to defend himself. He is going to assert to Galileo 
why what he is teaching is not contrary to either Mosaic law, 
to Roman law, or to this particular statute that allowed the Jews 
the privilege of worship within the Roman Empire. Paul was going 
to speak up. When we see later Paul's confrontation 
with civil authority, he always gives a defense. He always reasons. He always provides a rationale. He doesn't just take whatever 
may come his way. There is nothing wrong with the 
people of God exercising their rights in a civil polity to their 
own defense. There is nothing wrong with us 
seeking to advance the kingdom of God by maintaining our ability 
to freely move within an empire. This is a good and legitimate 
thing. If we are given these prerogatives, 
if we are given these privileges, if we are given these blessings, 
it is foolhardy not to employ them. So the apostle was about 
to open his mouth, he was going to give an offense, but then 
notice Galileo. He refuses to get involved, according 
to verse 14. Again, it's likely that he understood 
them to be saying that Paul teaches contrary to Mosaic law. Paul 
teaches contrary to those things that regulates the Jews. But 
Galileo says in verse 14, If it were a matter of wrongdoing 
or wicked crimes, O Jews, there would be reason why I should 
bear it with you." Now, I suggest that he is to be heartily commended 
here. I suggest that this is one of 
the primary ways that civil government should function. Notice what 
Galileo maintains. He maintains what our London 
Baptist Confession says in chapter 24 with reference to the civil 
state. Their primary function is to maintain justice and peace. Now note how Galileo sort of 
uses the language that highlights that. If it were a matter of 
wrongdoing, for those of you who have heard me preach on the 
death penalty from Romans 13, when Paul says, but you who do 
evil, be afraid, I always make sure that everybody understands 
evil works are in view. And this is a corroborating passage. Galileo did not understand his 
function as a governor in the civil state, specifically in 
the Roman Empire in AD 51 and 52, to punish wrong thinking. That is not the job or the arena 
for the function of civil state if they commit crimes, wicked 
crimes as he says, or they engage in wrongdoing. Brethren, we are 
witnessing decay in this aspect in terms of civil government. 
It has become the norm to punish thought, to punish those things 
that don't go along with the mob, to punish persons for having 
a viewpoint that may be contrary to the accepted norms. Now, we 
may affirm that and applaud that when it goes our way. But at 
the time of a regime change, and you get somebody up there 
that doesn't like Christians, that doesn't want Christianity, 
that doesn't want you and I thinking about the glory of the Messiah, 
and they're going to punish us for that? That is a horrible 
and a wretched thing to ponder. The civil state is not about 
the policing of your mind. The civil state is about the 
policing of external threats to persons, whether domestic 
or from abroad. That's the function. That's their 
purview. And Galileo thankfully recognized 
that and did not involve himself in an intramural debate which 
obtained between the Jews and the Apostle Paul. This is most 
excellent. He recognized that it was not 
his purview to jump into a theological or a religious debate. How often 
does that happen? How often do the people of God 
even want the state to get into those sorts of things? Brethren, 
we want the state out of such things. We don't want them butting 
their noses in to theological differences among the people 
of God. We don't want the state to authorize 
one particular religion, one particular expression of Christianity 
even, because it might be an expression of Christianity that 
you and I reject or abhor or despise. Not everything that 
goes under the banner of Christianity is necessarily Christianity. 
We want the civil state to punish wrong doing, not wrong thinking. We want the civil state to punish 
those who engage in criminal activity, those who actually 
engage in the infraction or transgression of those laws that are established 
to maintain justice and peace. So Galileo is to be commended 
in this instance. Notice at verse 15, he expands. 
If it is a question of words and names in your own law, look 
to it yourselves, for I do not want to be a judge of such matters." 
Do you mean there was actually a time in the history of the 
world, in even a corrupt empire such as the Roman, where the 
civil state didn't want to be involved in everybody's life 
from cradle to grave? Yes, and praise God for that. Brethren, I'm not anti-government. 
I've preached on it. I've taught on it. I uphold it. I will maintain Romans chapter 
13. But I'm certainly against a civil 
state that wants to police the thoughts of their persons. When they want to cross that 
boundary and get into God's job. If you have wicked thoughts, 
bad thoughts, horrific thoughts, that's a sin against God. And 
He will not leave you unpunished. It's not that there's not going 
to be punishment. It's who does have the monopoly on that punishment. The civil state is given a monopoly 
on the punishment of wicked doers and transgressors of laws and 
those who threaten the civil order. In other words, those 
who engage in wrongdoing are those who commit crimes. God 
deals with sin. We can't police sin. We can't 
make people in their minds stop sinning. but we can stop them 
from breaking laws and that's the function and role of the 
civil state. Praise God again for the consistency 
of Galileo at this particular point. You Jews see to it yourself. It's theology, it's religion, 
it's an intramural debate. He didn't have the training. 
He didn't have the expertise. He didn't have the MDiv or the 
THD or the PhD to be able to weigh in successfully on who 
was right between Paul and the Jews in terms of the hermeneutic 
associated with the interpretation of the Old Testament. In other 
words, he knew his purview. He knew his limitations. He knew 
what he was not supposed to go beyond. And again, brethren, 
pray that God would raise up such leaders in our day. I encourage 
us, and I will encourage us if we make it to Apollos this morning, 
to pray for these kinds of preachers and teachers within the context 
of the church. But brethren, we're leaving something 
to children and to grandchildren. We have a heritage. You know, 
if you get active in terms of speaking out against abuse in 
society, you're reminded of Philippians 3.20. I know my citizenship is 
in heaven. I know I'm heaven-bound. But 
I don't want my children to be raised wearing uniforms, working 
in a factory, so that their overlords can eat designer ice cream. I 
want my children to have the same sort of thing that we've 
been able to experience in terms of liberty, to worship our God 
as God calls us to. In other words, there ought to 
be in the heart of all of us a desire, not only for faithful 
preachers and teachers, but for faithful men and women who function 
in the realm of civil authority, that govern in a manner that 
God calls them to. Let every soul be subject to 
the governing authority, for there is no authority except 
from God, and those which exist are established by God. By virtue 
of the Noahic covenant and its continuance into this age, the 
civil government is responsible to God Most High in the way that 
they function. And in this regard, Galileo is 
absolutely positively right in my estimation. He dismisses the 
case according to verse 16. He drove them from the judgment 
seat. We shouldn't read violence into 
that. We shouldn't see any sort of a driving them away with water 
cannons or beanbags or or rock salt and a shotgun, get him out. 
No, that's not what he did. He drove them away from the judgment 
seat because he had dismissed the case. He didn't need to hear 
it. He didn't need to continue on. 
Paul didn't even need to open his mouth. I mean, he was opening 
his mouth. He was about to launch his defense. It wasn't that Galileo 
was being rude. It wasn't that he was cutting 
him off. It wasn't that he was denying him due process. He was 
dismissing the case. Paul, you don't need to make 
your case because there's no crime that's been committed. 
You don't need to make your case because this is an intramural 
debate between you and the Jews over hermeneutics with reference 
to the Old Testament. In other words, Galileo was perfectly 
content to butt out in an area that did not demand his attention. 
Again, I think that's a legitimate prayer for us with reference 
to the civil state. Let them butt out in areas that 
don't concern them. Let them take up the task, which 
is a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week, 365-day-a-year task to maintain 
justice and peace. Get busy with that instead of 
harassing the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Get busy with the 
punishment of evildoers rather than punishing those who are 
seeking to worship and honor their God. Brethren, we can pray 
that way because Solomon says in Proverbs 21 that the heart 
of the king is in the hand of Yahweh. and God turns it the 
way He desires, just like He does with the rivers of water. 
This is legit. It is okay. It's not to compromise 
the reality that our citizenship is in heaven. Our blessed Savior, 
in the model prayer that He gives to the church, tells us what? 
He tells us to pray to God. First and foremost, how would 
be thy name? Thy kingdom come. Thy will be 
done on earth as it is in heaven. Last time I checked in the book 
of Revelation 21 and 22, there wasn't rioting and looting in 
the New Jerusalem. There certainly wasn't Planned 
Parenthood or isn't Planned Parenthood in the New Jerusalem. There wasn't 
the wholesale aggression against the people of God that we are 
witnessing throughout the earth in the New Jerusalem. So what 
is ungodly or untoward about the saints of Christ obeying 
Christ and actually praying that the will of God be done on earth 
as it is in heaven? Will it ever be fully actualized 
on this side of the age to come? No, of course not. But could 
it possibly be the case that God in His grace and wisdom would 
shut down a Planned Parenthood? I'd sure like to see it, and 
that's what I'm praying for. Could it be the case that God 
would see fit to criminalize through civil magistrate? not 
only abortion, but euthanasia, to criminalize the sorts of abuses 
that we see and the sorts of just violations of persons at 
the most basic level. Brethren, we have God most high. 
Now, we don't twist his arm and we don't threaten him. We don't 
say, if you don't do this, we're going to fly to Mars and we're 
going to colonize that. No, we don't have that prerogative, 
but we pray according to the revealed will of God. And Christ 
tells us what the revealed will of God is relative to this earth. Pray that God's will be done 
on earth as it is in heaven. See, you can't make that an eschatological 
promise because it is inevitable that God's will will be done 
on earth as it is in heaven in the new heavens and the new earth. 
In the age to come, there's no more sin, there's no more righteousness. 
In fact, that prayer is uniquely connected to this age and the 
lawlessness and the transgression and the rebellion that we witness. 
So yes, our citizenship is in heaven, but our children and 
our grandchildren and great-grandchildren are growing up on this earth. 
Do we want them to be constantly and vigorously harassed by the 
civil state, or do we want them to be able to come to church, 
to be able to open up this altar with David and say, I was glad 
when they said unto me, let us go to the house of the Lord. 
Again, when you look back at the Pharaoh, what was his beef 
against Israel? What was Israel asking in that 
particular situation? We want to go worship our God. 
We want to go worship Yahweh. We want to be free to glorify 
and enjoy Him forever. Pharaoh was incensed at that, 
Pharaoh was outraged at that, and Pharaoh denied that. So he 
tangled with the wrong God, the God that brought judgment to 
bear upon the gods of Egypt in a most violent and a vicious 
fashion. Now brethren, it is consistent 
for us as citizens of heaven to at least be concerned enough 
for life on earth to pray that God's will be done on earth as 
it is in heaven. And I would suggest that a Galileo, 
in this instance, sets a good standard in terms of the non-involvement 
of the civil state in matters of theology and religion. If 
those matters of theology and religion end up in crime, wrongdoing 
or wicked crimes, then the state steps in. But until such time, 
you can or you should be able to be wrong with reference to 
theology and religion without getting punished, without getting 
in prison, without getting thrown into jail. And Galileo saw this. Now again, he wasn't always consistent, 
and that's what verse 17 introduces. Verse 17 is a notoriously difficult 
verse in terms of what's exactly happening. There is a Sosthenes 
mentioned in 1 Corinthians 1.1, a Christian, a believer. Some link that Sosthenes with 
this Sosthenes, and it would be a good link, but Sosthenes 
was a pretty common name. So while it may be the case that 
the Sosthenes of 1 Corinthians 1 is the Sosthenes that was beaten 
here in Acts 18, 17, we don't know for certain. But why was 
he beaten? He's the ruler of the synagogue. 
We're already told that Crispus was. Either Sosthenes is the 
new ruler of the synagogue, or there were several leaders within 
the context of the synagogue, Crispus having been one, and 
now this Sosthenes being another. But who beat him and why? There's 
a textual variant to make the job even more difficult in terms 
of who's doing what in our verse. Look at verse 17. Then all the 
Greeks took Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him 
before the judgment seat. But Galileo took no notice of 
these things. If you're in the King James tradition, 
it reads that way. Then all the Greeks took Sosthenes. Outside the King James tradition, 
you have they all. Who all? Is it the Greeks beating 
Sosthenes or is it the Jews beating Sosthenes? Again, there are typically 
two ways that we can proceed. The first understands it as being 
Jews beat Sosthenes because Sosthenes didn't present their case effectively. In other words, Sosthenes was 
their spokesman before Galileo and wanted to bring the hammer 
down upon the Apostle Paul. Obviously, Sosthenes failed because 
Galileo was being consistent, and so the Jews took him and 
beat him because they were bugged by him. That's one reading. I 
take the second that what we have in the New King James is 
accurate. Then all the Greeks took Sosthenes. And here it's 
not the believing Greeks. Here it's not the Christian Greeks. Here it's just unconverted Gentiles 
that happen to be present at this particular scene. And as 
far as they were concerned, Galileo had successfully shut down the 
Jews. So you've got a people that aren't 
real fond of the Jews that seize upon this opportunity to take 
out a bit of aggression upon a representative Jew, specifically 
Sosthenes. I think probably that that's 
what's in view. One of the reasons why is because 
of what Galileo does. At the end of verse 17, we see 
that Galileo took no notice of these things. So in other words, 
there was a man beaten in the proximity of the judgment seat 
and Galileo didn't do anything. As I said earlier, if he was 
universally loved by all, I bet Sosthenes would have had a problem 
with him because Sosthenes got beat up and Galileo didn't make 
a sound. The historians tell us that Galileo 
wasn't a big fan of the Jews either. So as far as Galileo 
was concerned, a bit of rage vented on a singular Jew wouldn't 
threaten the body politic, and so he wasn't going to involve 
himself in that. In fact, Barrett says as much. 
Galileo was not concerned either to prosecute Paul or to protect 
Sosthenes. The disturbance was evidently 
on a sufficiently small scale to justify the view that public 
order was not threatened, and Galileo considered that it would 
do no harm if a few angry people vented their wrath on a Jew. 
Again, I don't like that particular explanation, but I think that's 
what's going on. He isn't a fan of the Jews. He isn't one that is in their 
corner. He's already said, I'm not going 
to prosecute Paul. And so when the Greeks there 
engage in a bit of their display of enmity or animosity toward 
the Jews, Galileo already kind of shares that. It's not a sufficiently 
large enough threat to pose any problem within the province, 
so he takes no notice of it. Again, he advocates that particular 
role in terms of the maintenance of justice and peace. Civil government, 
in terms of their responsibility, should affect everybody in a 
body politic. It isn't the case that one people 
group should be considered higher up than another people group. 
It shouldn't be the case that one people group is given privileges 
or protections that other people groups are denied. That is where 
Galileo is inconsistent. Consistent not inserting himself 
into a theological debate, but inconsistent in not abdicating, 
or abdicating rather, with reference to the maintenance of justice 
and peace. This is horrendous. This is horrific. This is bad. This would be like somebody getting 
beat up right outside the courthouse and nobody taking any action 
whatsoever to intervene. That's the job, actually, when 
persons are threatened, or when bodies are being smacked around, 
or when they are being beaten, or when there's a threat of murder 
posed to the person of another person. That is exactly what 
the function of civil magistrate is. So if he had a personal antipathy 
against the Jews, if he wasn't a big fan of the Jews, he still 
should not let that affect his ability to function as a magistrate 
in a body politic that included the Jews. So if we have a prime 
minister, we have a government that has an axe to grind against, 
say, one particular people group, and if we happen to not like 
that people group, that's not okay. He needs to function properly 
in all realms. Lady Justice, that wonderful 
statue, she's blindfolded. Why is that? Because justice 
isn't supposed to operate based on skin color. It's not supposed 
to operate based on status. It's not supposed to operate 
based on a whole host of considerations. But Lady Justice is blind. Messiah, 
in Isaiah 11, is described as blind. There was an expectation 
on the part of the Jews that Messiah would be a blind man. That's to miss the point. The 
Messiah would judge not according to sight. He would judge based 
on fact. He would judge based on evidence. 
He would judge based on data. Again, things completely contrary 
to the current situation that we are facing today. It's all 
about emotion. It's all about feeling. It's 
all about prejudice. It's all about mob rule. It's 
all contrary to what we see displayed in terms of God's will relative 
to civil government. You need to maintain justice 
and peace, not to summon the body politic. but to everybody 
in the body politic, or you should be fired, you should be removed, 
you should be cancelled, to use a beautiful word that is going 
around today. That is unacceptable. So Galileo 
on the one hand is consistent relative to not butting his nose 
into something that doesn't concern him, but on the other hand Sosthenes 
is being beaten by a group of angry greats and he doesn't do 
a thing. That, brethren, is inconsistency 
on his part. Now let's look secondly at verses 
18 to 23, the return to Antioch. The return to Antioch. Again, 
this is the conclusion of the second missionary journey. Notice 
verse 18. So Paul still remained a good 
while. Think about that for just a moment. A group of Jews had 
got you. I don't know if they laid hands 
on him. The text doesn't specify. It simply says the Jews with 
one accord rose up against Paul. I would assume there was some 
sort of manhandling. The text doesn't say it, but 
I would assume that. So they take him. They're obviously 
not happy with him. They're bringing him to the civil 
government to shut him down. They're not bringing him to the 
civil government so that he can get more benefits, so that he 
can get more accolades, so that he can get his own parking spot 
at the court building. No, they're bringing him to shut 
him down. Paul knows that. Paul understands 
that. He sees that within the city 
of Corinth, there is an animosity and a rage that is targeted against 
him. But he still remains there a 
good while. Why? Because he believes Jesus. Remember Jesus in the vision 
given to Paul in verses 9 and 10. Now the Lord spoke to Paul 
in the night by a vision. Do not be afraid, but speak, 
and do not keep silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack 
you to hurt you, for I have many people in this city. So while 
he saw the rage of the Jews, while he saw the animosity of 
the Jews, while he witnessed the inconsistency of Galileo, 
he got a fair shake to be sure, but Sosthenes certainly didn't. Paul was a Jew, certainly he 
might begin to conclude that if Galileo gets another crack 
at it, I may be subject to a vicious beating myself. He knew all that, 
and yet the promise of Jesus sustained him. The promise of 
Christ's presence and the promise of Christ's protection steadied 
the Apostle Paul, so that even as he came face-to-face with 
Galileo by these angry Jews, he nevertheless trusted in the 
promises of Jesus and he continued there for a while. He stayed 
at his post, he preached the truth, he ministered the gospel 
for the glory of God and the salvation of sinners and the 
edification of the saints. It is a most beautiful display 
of faith in the heart of the apostle that he overlooks the 
physical, the temporal, the problematic, and nevertheless rests himself 
in the promise and the presence of Jesus Christ that nothing 
harmful will come his way. Notice that he then sails for 
Syria, according to verse 18b. Then he took leave of the brethren 
in Corinth and sailed for Syria. And Priscilla and Aquila were 
with him. Remember, he met them when he 
came into Corinth. He met Priscilla and Aquila. 
Aquila was a tent maker, a leather worker, just like Paul. They 
struck up a lifelong friendship. And so now Paul departs from 
Corinth and he goes to Syria. Notice at the end of verse 18, 
again a difficult section or difficult thing to get our minds 
wrapped around. He had his hair cut off at Centria, 
for he had taken a vow. Let's deal with the easy part 
first. Centria is where Phoebe, a servant 
of the church, she went to that church, according to Romans chapter 
16. But what's this cutting off the hair and taking of a vow? Is that what we do as New Covenant 
Christians? Do we cut our hair and take vows? Most see it as 
some sort of application of the Nazirite vow in Numbers chapter 
6 that had to do with cutting the hair and not ingesting anything 
associated with grapes. So some see it as either a public 
form of that or some sort of a private application of that. 
You'll see it again in chapter 21. When Paul meets with James 
at the Jerusalem church to try and facilitate things, to try 
to maintain peace between Gentiles and Jews, James tells Paul to 
accompany some men to take a vow to cut off their hair. So whatever 
is happening, I want to argue in the first place that this 
was not religious obligation on the part of Paul. Paul preached 
a law-free gospel. Not that there's no law for those 
who've received the gospel, but in terms of our coming to the 
Lord Jesus Christ, it's not connected with our works, it's not connected 
with our deeds. We're justified freely by God's 
grace. Paul maintained that thunderously 
from the beginning of his conversion to the very last breath. You 
can never convince me that Paul assumed that the cutting of a 
hair here and the vow was somehow commending him before God. It 
was probably in order to commend him before the Jews. Remember 
that at this transitory or transition time, there was some upset between 
Gentile inclusion into the covenant promises of God. That's what 
Acts 15 is all about. How do we deal with these Gentiles 
that are entering into the covenant promises of God? There was a 
band of Jewish believers that said, well, they need to believe 
plus be circumcised. So they have this council, they 
silence that, and then they simply encourage the Gentile churches 
to avoid certain things so that they wouldn't give unnecessary 
offense to other Jews. So it was something that was 
dealt with. Here, Paul is traveling. Here, Paul is engaged in various 
things, and he wants to be all things to all men. He tells us 
as much in 1 Corinthians 9. In verse 20, specifically, he 
says, "...and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews." 
to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might 
win those who are under the law. So I believe that what we have 
here with reference to Paul's cutting his hair, it wasn't just 
for style. It wasn't that he just got out of the Wuhan quarantine, 
he's getting his first haircut. That's not it. It was something 
connected to this vow, and again, most connected at least in some 
form, whether technically or publicly or private or a consistent 
or somewhat modified application of the Nazirite vow in Numbers 
chapter 6. It is something that he does 
so that he doesn't give unnecessary offense to any Jews that he will 
be traveling near or around. So verse 19 tells us, and he 
came to Ephesus and left them there. We're walking through 
this because it makes sense, but sometimes you get lost in 
some of the details. I want to make sure that we understand 
what's happening. He left Priscilla and Aquila there. He left them 
in Ephesus. In fact, the church at Ephesus 
met in Priscilla and Aquila's house, according to 1 Corinthians 
16, verse 21. So he comes to Ephesus, he knows 
that he's got to go to Jerusalem, and so he leaves them in the 
city of Ephesus. We'll see them later in the chapter 
in Ephesus. So verse 19, he came to Ephesus, 
left them there, but he himself entered the synagogue and reasoned 
with the Jews. Again, when he says, I'm going 
to turn to the Gentiles, as he does in the previous section, 
it doesn't mean universally. It doesn't mean that he gave 
up on the Jews. It doesn't mean that there's no ministry from 
him to the Jews. He goes to the synagogue and 
he reasons with them as he does in every city that he goes about 
to preach the gospel of our Lord Jesus. And for those who are 
worried, we're not going to get to Apollos this morning. Just 
not going to happen. I don't want to keep us here 
till one because I would be afraid of tomatoes coming my way. But 
notice, when they asked him, these are the people in Ephesus, 
to stay longer with them, he did not consent, but took leave 
of them, saying, I must by all means keep this coming feast 
in Jerusalem. Now, the coming feast was most 
likely Passover. It was the biggest of feasts, 
and it would be the one that you would just call the feast. 
without any other modifier because everybody would know what feast 
you're talking about. Now is he keeping this feast 
again out of obligation in terms of old covenant law? No, he's 
probably going there because it's going to be packed with 
people and he's going to preach Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah 
promised by the Old Testament that would suffer and be raised 
again the third day. Paul wanted to go to Jerusalem 
and he had to make haste because of the winter. If he got stuck, 
I think around March or April, if he hadn't traveled at a particular 
point or time, he wouldn't make it. That's why there's haste 
in him at this point. They want him to stay in Ephesus, 
but he needs to go to Jerusalem. And then notice, he knows, understands, 
and delights at the sovereignty and the providence of God. I 
must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem, but I will 
return again to you, God willing. And he sailed from Ephesus. Now 
this is about the summer of AD 52 to spring AD 53 is what we're 
moving into. And then notice, and when he 
had landed at Caesarea and gone up and greeted the church. When 
you hit Caesarea, you would go up to the church in Jerusalem. 
The New King James is helpful in the margin because it tells 
you that it's the Jerusalem church. But it is the Jerusalem church 
because from Caesarea, you would go up to the Jerusalem church. And from the Jerusalem church, 
you would go down to Antioch. Again, he's concluding this missionary 
journey. This is another visit by the 
Apostle Paul to the city of Jerusalem, specifically to the church there. 
He meets with them. We don't know what he does there. 
We most likely can conclude he preached, he edified, he encouraged, 
he did the things that he always did when he was with the people 
of God. And then he sails from Ephesus, 
okay, verse 22, and when he had landed at Caesarea, gone up and 
greeted the church at Jerusalem, it would be good to even insert 
that there, he went down to Antioch. That's the conclusion of the 
second missionary journey. Remember it was Antioch, not 
Pisidian Antioch, but Antioch in Syria. That was the church 
that sent Paul out. That was the church in Acts 13 
that the Holy Spirit comes to. That was the church that had 
a whole host of prophets and teachers within her contacts, 
and the Holy Spirit said to them, separate for me Paul and Barnabas 
to the work that I have given them. So the first missionary 
journey launched from Antioch, they returned to Antioch. From 
there, they launched again to engage on the second missionary 
journey, and now Paul returns. So as Alexander says, it could 
have been helpful to insert, or a chapter might conveniently 
have been begun here at the opening of Paul's third foreign mission. 
So verse 22, he lands at Caesarea, he goes up and greets the church 
at Jerusalem, he goes down to Antioch. After he had spent some 
time there, notice the wisdom. We call that furlough, don't 
we? A guy who's been engaged in the work of preaching and 
teaching and ministering, a guy who's been covering mile after 
mile after mile. Praise God the early church didn't 
treat him as a John Deere tractor. No, get back out there, Paul. 
The guy needs some rest. He needs to be ministered to 
as well. Remember, Jesus says to his disciples 
in Mark's Gospel, come apart and rest for a while. Brethren, 
the ministers of Christ are not disembodied spirits. They need 
rest as well. So verse 23, after he had spent 
some time there, he departed and went over the region of Galatia 
and Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples. So this is 
an intriguing statement. Galatia, he covers in the first 
missionary journey. Phrygia, he visits in the second 
missionary journey. In that short compass, that brief 
statement, he departed and went over the region of Galatia and 
Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples. That's about 
1,500 miles. So, we just read over that, we 
don't even look at maps or anything like that. Maps? What are maps? 
The older I've gotten as a Christian, the more I appreciate the maps 
in the back of my Bible. Take that for what it's worth. 
Learn your maps. Learn not only topography in 
terms of where locations are, chronology is most helpful as 
well. Who are the kings? Who are the 
prophets? What is the timeline? Those things help you in Bible 
study. Those things shed a great deal 
of light on Bible study. You can't just drop into the 
prophet Isaiah at chapter 36 and kind of know everything that's 
happening unless you have some idea of what's happening. Same 
with the prophet Jeremiah. You've got to know where the 
exile was. You've got to know what happened in terms of exile. 
Who are the main players? All these things are helpful. 
And the same is true with the maps and the topography and the 
geography and the locales that these brothers canvassed in their 
apostolic ministry. So as we conclude the second 
missionary journey and begin the third missionary journey, 
it is customary to associate the first missionary journey 
with the churches of Southern Galatia. The second missionary 
journey, while other cities were covered, we associate it primarily 
with Corinth. It was the most or primary city 
in Achaia, the province of Achaia at that time. Well, as we see 
here at the end of verse 23, Paul has covered a great deal 
of ground in terms of visiting places that he went to on the 
first journey, that he went to on the second journey, but the 
bulk of the third missionary journey is going to take place 
in Ephesus. Ephesus is where he spends a 
great deal of time. He rents a lecture hall, a place 
called the School of Tyrannus, and it's from that vantage point 
that he preaches and he teaches and he educates Asia with reference 
to the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. A brilliant strategist. A brilliant man is what God gave 
the church in terms of the Apostle Paul. He knew the Bible. He knew 
the Old Testament. His rabbinic training gave him 
that. He meets Jesus on the road to Damascus. That's the key, 
the interpretative key, for all of the Old Testament Scripture. 
But another thing, he's tenacious. Another thing, he is ferocious. Another thing is, he is persevering 
and enduring. And when Christ said, I want 
you to go, and I want you to testify to Gentiles, to kings, 
and to the children of Israel, he took that seriously. He took 
that mantle, and he operated consistently with it, and he 
traveled the places he needed to travel, he faced the enemies 
he needed to face, he stood before civil authority, and he maintained 
always the glory of Jesus Christ. He's able to say to these Corinthians 
and 1 Corinthians 2, when I came to you, I determined to know 
nothing among you except Christ and Him crucified. What we have 
in the Apostle Paul is a model for gospel ministers and for 
missionaries today. And when we look at Apollos, 
we'll see that it's something attainable. The language that 
Luke uses to describe this man, Apollos, And the love and the 
compassion, or the camaraderie, rather, of Paul toward Apollos 
shows us our prayers are not in vain when we pray to God, 
Lord, give us Pauls, give us men committed to the truth of 
God's word, men that are relentless, men that are persevering, men 
that will endure, and men that will stand before kings, stand 
before Gentiles, and stand before the children of Israel to testify 
concerning the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord. Brethren, pray, 
God in his loving kindness gave not only Paul, but he gave this 
man Apollos. And I want to end with one practical 
observation and then urge one thing. In the first place, the 
practical observation. Apollos, and I'm jumping ahead, 
we'll look at Apollos in more detail next week, but Apollos 
was a gift given to the church. He's there in Ephesus, and he's 
there refuting the Jews. He is there strengthening the 
people of God. And then he wants to take leave 
to go to Achaia, so he goes to Corinth. But what we have with 
this particular brother, and this emphasis with reference 
to both Apollos and Paul, relative to the city of Corinth or the 
churches in Corinth, is this. The teaching ministry in the 
Church of Jesus Christ is absolutely crucial. Notice they didn't cheap 
out. They didn't say, can you utter 
the word Jesus? If so, welcome to the ministry. 
How is Apollos described? He's mighty in the scriptures. How is Paul not described? We just know he's mighty in the 
Scriptures. It's not a popularity contest. 
It's not who's the most gregarious. It's certainly not a task for 
a CEO-minded fellow, unless he can bring it. The bottom line 
is, is that God calls faithful men, trained men, qualified men, 
to be on site in churches preaching and teaching the Word of God. 
That's an observation. In terms of encouragement, we 
need to see that not only Paul, but an Apollos. Not only Paul 
and Apollos, but a C.H. Spurgeon. Not only a Spurgeon, 
but a whole host of other warriors that God has raised up for the 
task of proclaiming the excellency of Jesus Christ as Lord. The 
other thing under this Apollos head, and then we'll move to 
the urging, is this. that what we need in the church 
is not only a good teaching ministry, but we need a good obeying ministry. Corinth was messed up, wasn't 
it? I heard a minister when I wasn't 
even a pastor, I was a young Christian man, and this man said, 
a pastor that I heard, and it somehow always stuck with me. 
If any of you have ever wondered why hasn't he preached on 1 Corinthians, 
it's probably because of what I heard as a young Christian. 
Be careful of preaching 1 Corinthians in your church. If you don't 
have problems, you may end up having problems. 1 Corinthians 
has a lot, not saying I never will. I mean, I'm open to suggestions. We finished Titus. We're moving 
on to something else, God willing, soon. But 1 Corinthians shows 
us that even though you have Paul, Even though you have Apollos, 
even though you have men of that caliber and that degree, men 
who can bring it, men who are used by God in a unique and powerful 
way, unless the people of God respond, Unless the people of 
God internalize, unless the people of God move from cognition alone 
to experiential application of their religion, it's not going 
to avail us of anything. The Lord could drop CH Spurgeon 
into every pulpit in North America. But if the people of God are 
not paying attention, and the people of God have no heart to 
obey, and the people of God do not take that seriously and see 
the necessity of letting our conduct be worthy of the gospel, 
it's for naught. So pray for a faithful preaching 
ministry, but pray as well for a faithful obedience on the part 
of the people that are hearing and receiving the Word of God. 
And then the urging is simply this. The reason why Paul does 
what he does is because of Jesus. That's what motivates Paul, for 
to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. You ask the question, 
why does he go through this? Why does he do all this? Why 
travel like that? Why be mocked? Why be abused? 
Why be castigated? And not even talking about outside 
the church, he's got all that within the context of the churches 
that he ministers to. because his aim was to make Christ 
known. Because Paul knew that if sinners 
don't know Christ, sinners perish. Sinners end up in hell. Sinners 
suffer the wrath and fury of God most high, because God is 
in fact a holy God. God is most pure. God is most 
righteous. And God has in fact prepared 
a place for the devil and his angels, and all rebel sinners 
will enter into those ranks as well. Paul knew that. Paul wanted 
God's glory. Paul wanted the salvation of 
sinners. And he wanted the strengthening 
and the sanctification and the betterment of the people of God. 
Paul knew it was the gospel. Paul knew it was Jesus. Paul 
knew it was that doctrine that sees us through the afflictions. 
that sees us through the hardships, that sees us through the trials 
and the difficulties associated with this world. Paul wanted 
the people of God to be stable, he wanted them to be secure, 
and he knew the reason or the rationale for that was to preach 
Christ and Him crucified. He wanted God's glory, he wants 
the salvation of sinners, and he wants the strengthening and 
the sanctification of saints. And when Apollos comes to strengthen 
the brethren there in Corinth, he does it to those who had believed 
through grace. It is grace alone, through faith 
alone, in Christ Jesus alone, that means salvation for sinners. We saw that in Titus 3. He saved 
us, not by works of righteousness, which we had done, because there 
wasn't any. but according to His mercy, according to His lovingkindness, 
according to His grace. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank You for Your Word, and we thank You for this section 
in the book of Acts, and I pray that You would bless and encourage 
our hearts that the reality that the Christ Paul preached is our 
Lord Jesus, that one who is altogether lovely and chief among 10,000. 
And we pray wherever this gospel is preached, the Spirit would 
be at work bringing that conviction excuse me, for sin, and granting 
the graces of faith and repentance so that sinners everywhere today 
can close with the Savior. And God, strengthen us as your 
people. Help us to grow in the grace 
and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Help us to be stable. Help us to be able to navigate 
in tumultuous times, never losing sight of our enthroned Lord, 
never losing sight of His promises to be with us even to the end 
of the age. And God, in all of this, we pray 
chiefly that you would be glorified, that you would be magnified, 
and that you would be praised. And we ask this through Jesus 
Christ, our Lord. Amen.