This morning, we're actually going to begin a new series of message about and through Paul's letter to the Ephesians. And that is certainly where we will eventually turn, but to get there, we're going to learn a little bit more about how that church was founded. So we're going to first start off, as you can see in your message guide, to the book of Acts, Acts chapter 18. But I did put the very first verse of Ephesians, there on your message guide, because in that first verse, in most of the Greek manuscripts that we have for Ephesians, it is addressed to the saints which are at Ephesus. And, of course, that's where it gets its name, the book of Ephesians, or the letter to the Ephesians. Now, there are many who believe that this letter was originally intended for a much wider audience than just that one church of Ephesus, or in Ephesus. Instead, it may have been what is called a cyclical letter, which really would have been a letter written to many churches and intended to be passed from one congregation to another. Of course, I think really every letter, every book that we have in the Bible could be considered cyclical because it was meant to be passed down to every church, but we're talking about the original recipients of this letter. In fact, many would hold that, like the Book of Revelation, which was a cyclical letter, if you remember all the way back when we first started looking at the Book of Revelation in our adult Sunday school hour, we learned that it was written to the seven churches in Asia. And the very first church that it was intended to go to was the church in Ephesus, and then it was supposed to sort of make a horseshoe trip to all of the other seven. cities and other churches in Asia. And so that was a cyclical letter. And many believe that the book of Ephesians was also a cyclical letter. The reason for this belief is because in some of the oldest manuscripts that we have of this letter, this address to the Ephesians is not even found. And so that's why when you look at some of the more modern translations, you may not find that phrase, to the saints in Ephesus, but rather just to the saints, because they believe that it would have started in Ephesus and then gone to a number of other churches in the area. But whether this was just a single letter to the church in Ephesus or a cyclical letter, the church in Ephesus would have been one of its intended targets. Because the church in Ephesus became one of the most prominent and influential churches in the latter half of the first century. In fact, they were known for their doctrinal stance, and they were also known for their first love. And that is one of the reasons why in Revelation, as the very first church that Jesus was talking to and dealing with, He said, you left your first love, and He was warning them to get back to their first love. And so the church in Ephesus really did become one of the most prominent and influential churches in the latter half of the first century. And that spiritual prominence became like that of the city in which it found its home. But that was not always the case for the church in Ephesus. In fact, there was a time when there was absolutely no church in the city of Ephesus. No church. There was a time when the only thing Ephesus was known for was its standing in the world as a powerhouse in Roman politics and Roman trade and even Roman and Greek religion. False religion. You know anything about the city of Ephesus? It was a large city during that time. It was at the center of life in the Roman province of Asia. It actually had one of the largest populations of a city of that time. It had anywhere from 250,000 to 500,000 people. So if you think about half of the city of Indianapolis, that's about how big this metropolis was. However, today it is, for the most part, in ruins, and you can see those ruins on the very western edge of the country of Turkey, and it's not very far from the modern city of Izmir in Turkey. The ancient city of Ephesus became well known for some of its important structures, which can still be seen today. I know the Hegdals had the opportunity to go visit the ruins there in Ephesus many years ago. But it's a place that is really one of the most preserved places that you can go and see this kind of Roman city. Ephesus had an enormous amphitheater that it was well known for. In fact, the amphitheater was one of the largest ones built outside the Colosseum of Rome. A few years ago, my wife and I had the chance to go tour the Colosseum in Rome and was impressed at the size and the stature of that structure even today in ruins. But this would have been the second largest amphitheater in all of the Roman Empire. It actually had seating for more than 25,000 spectators. and that would rival even some of the places where you go to watch basketball today. It was a large, large stadium. That was where they would hold plays, and that was even where they would hold events and gladiator contests, and it was even a place where Christians would be persecuted and killed later on. but it was known for its amphitheater. Ephesus was also known for its library. It was called the Library of Celsus. It is one of the most impressive buildings in all of the Roman Empire, and it was built to store over 12,000 scrolls. It was a strategic center of learning. If you wanted to go to learn something, you would go to Ephesus if you were in that area of the world. You would go there to find out knowledge. In fact, Even though this library was built shortly after the first century, so Paul would not have seen this library. It was built a little bit later. The facade, which is now visible there in Ephesus, it became the symbol of Ephesus for 2,000 years. In fact, when you think of Ephesus and you've seen pictures of Ephesus, that's what you see is the library of Celsus. And yet the primary structure that Ephesus was known for was not just a structure for entertainment, it was not just a structure for learning, it was actually a structure for worship and religion. The primary structure Ephesus was known for was its temple, its false temple to the goddess Artemis, or Diana, which are the Greek and Roman names for the same goddess of hunting. We learn a little bit more, and we'll learn a little bit more about that temple in Ephesus a little bit later as we go through the book of Acts to learn more about Ephesus. But even though there's not much left to this temple today, it is still considered to be one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. That is how impressive it was. It was a place where people would go to offer their homage and their worship to their false gods. Also, there was a bank right behind the temple. where people would go and buy and sell and trade and borrow to be able to further their business. Ephesus was quite a central place in that region of the world in the Roman Empire at that time. And even though the city of Ephesus would have been a very strategic place to start a church, Even though it would have also been a very difficult place to start a church, the Apostle Paul was never one to shy away from a challenge. And you can see that. Even after he was almost stoned to death, yet he would still get up and go right back to the very same city to the very same people who wanted to see him killed to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. He was never one to shy away from a challenge. And yet, as you go through the book of Acts, which we did a number of years ago, it wasn't until his third missionary journey that Paul even spent some significant time there in the city of Ephesus to not only start a church, but to spread the gospel from that church to the region around it. And yet he did visit the city of Ephesus toward the end of his second missionary journey, but just for a few days' time. And that's what we find here in Acts chapter 18. So here in Acts 18, we actually find the very first mention of this great city of Ephesus there in the New Testament. And it may even be the very first contact that we know of with the citizens of Ephesus with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Because after Paul was in Greece, building up the newfound church in the city of Corinth for about a year and a half, we find him on the move again, starting in verse 18, and we're going to read from verse 18 all the way through verse 23 of Acts chapter 18. where we're told that Paul, after this, after some significant events in the city of Corinth, after this, tarried there in the city of Corinth with a church in Corinth yet a good while, for many days, and then took his leave of the brethren and sailed thence into Syria, which is where the capital city was, the capital city of Ephesus, and with him Priscilla and Aquila, two friends that he met there in Corinth, people that had the same trade as he did, And, of course, they went there, having shorn his head in Sancreia. Sancreia is about 10 miles away from Corinth. It was really considered to be a port city to Corinth. But he shorn his head in Sancreia because, we're told, he had a vow. He had made a vow to the Lord. And there in verse 19, we're told that he, Paul, came to Ephesus and left them there, left Priscilla and Aquila, his friends there, his co-laborers for Christ there. But he himself entered into the synagogue, the place of worship for the Jews, and reasoned with the Jews. And when they desired him to tarry longer time with them, Paul consented not, but bade them farewell, saying, I must by all means keep this feast that cometh in Jerusalem, but I will return again unto you, if God will. And so he sailed from Ephesus. And when he landed at Caesarea and went up, gone up, saluted the church, most likely that's the church in Jerusalem, then he went back down to Antioch, and after he'd spent some time there, he departed and went on that third missionary journey all over the country of Galatia and Phrygia in order, from church to church, strengthening all the disciples. And this is how the great church of Ephesus, in the great city of Ephesus, began. It began the way all churches begin, in a rather small and seemingly insignificant way. And even though Ephesus would eventually become a central place for the church, it was not yet that time. Not in God's plan, not in God's purpose, and certainly, as we see here, not in Paul's plans either. Instead, almost as soon as the Apostle Paul arrived in that city of Ephesus, he left the city of Ephesus. Now, if he was a strategic thinker, you would think, boy, maybe he should have stayed there longer and really had a foundation there for the church in Ephesus. What a great place! I mean, it was the place where people would go for trade and for entertainment and for worship and all of these things. What a great place to reach people, Paul! And yet, as soon as you come, almost just within a few days, you also leave. Why? Why, Paul? What would others have done in such a significant and strategic city like Ephesus? I mean, if you think, a businessman would come to the city because of the great opportunities that were there. I mean, if you're going to build a business, you need to go where the people are, right? You want to be able to make money. You want to get their money. And so a businessman would have wanted to start big there and then to spread out to the rest of the area. This is one of the reasons why the population centers are where the big companies are. If you think about some of the headquarters of some of the biggest companies that we have in the country, you would think of the big cities like Chicago, and the big cities like New York, and some of the big cities like San Francisco out west, and even some of the smaller cities like Indianapolis. They have headquarters for great, huge companies because they want to start their companies where the people are, where the money is, and then spread out from there. They would do this because success would begin in a place like Ephesus. And yet Paul, almost as soon as he comes there, leaves. Or what about a politician? Maybe there's an up-and-coming politician, right? And maybe that person wanted to come to the city because of its great influence, because he wants to make a name for himself. And he wants to make a name for himself in a place that's a little further out from Rome, where he can kind of get his feet wet, learn a little bit more about the structure of politics, and he would want to make a name for himself with a hope that that name would make it all the way to Rome, because he would believe that his power could begin in a place like Ephesus. Just think about some of the presidents that we've had in the past, right? They didn't just, for the most part, all of a sudden say, I want to run for president. A lot of them started getting their feet wet in politics in the local level. Maybe they started out becoming a state representative or a state senator, and then some of them you know, went to be a governor, and then some of them would even become a congressman or a senator, and eventually would kind of make their way up to running for president. Couldn't happen all the time. But it seems like a lot of times they do that. But the place to go would ultimately be the place to make a name for yourself, a place of influence. But again, that's not what Paul did. Almost as soon as he had the opportunity to get to Ephesus, that strategic center in the Roman Empire, he would leave. within just a few days. Or what about in religion? Maybe someone would come to the city because they knew that there was a huge population there, and they knew that this population was very religious, very superstitious, and they would be able to spread some kind of message to build up a new religion, or maybe make someone more prominent in a particular religion. And again, the Apostle Paul knew all of the potential that there was in this great city of Ephesus. And he could have used all of the city's opportunities, all of the city's influence, all of the city's people, but not for himself, but for the Lord and His gospel. So truly, Paul could have gone and used that strategic center in a strategic way for the gospel. And yet, when he finally arrived in this city, He leaves within just a few short days. Now, earlier in the book of Acts, he may have even set his sights on going to the city of Ephesus. In fact, in chapter 16, verse 6, he was wanting to go into Asia. He was wanting to go into the very province which Ephesus was the capital city of. And yet, we're told that he was forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia. So he wanted to go there, he wanted to set up shop there, he wanted to use that strategic city to share the gospel in and then spread it out, but God Said no. God said, Paul, I have another plan for you. And that was when he had that Macedonian call, where he would then go, instead of into Asia, he would go into Europe. He would go into Greece, and he started sharing the gospel in Philippi, and Thessalonica, and in Berea, and in Athens, and eventually in Corinth. And now after that second missionary journey, after that time in sharing the gospel and seeing doors open to him, yet there was still a lot of struggles, now he finally gets to go to the very place perhaps he wanted to go, was prevented from going, and what a place it was. But instead of staying, he leaves. Why? Why would Paul, who also was a very strategic-minded disciple and a strategic-minded missionary, why would he do this? because he knew, Paul knew, that he could rely on the power of God to work in a place with or without him. And we would think, well, God is going to use the apostle Paul to do a great work in Ephesus, or just like he did in Corinth, and just like he did in these other places. And yet, Paul knew he could rely on the power of God to work in a place with or without him. This is one of the lessons that we can learn about the small beginnings of the church in that great city of Ephesus. Like Paul, we can and we must believe in the power of God to do His work. Ultimately, it's His work. The work of this church, the work of every church, the work of Christ in this world is His work, and we need to remember that. And even though God does use us to plant the seed of the gospel, and even to water the seeds of His word in this world, it is ultimately, according to 1 Corinthians 3, 6, and 7, it is ultimately God who gives the increase. God does the work, and that's what we must rely on and believe in. God does not need us, but He certainly uses us. And we can rely on Him to do something great, even when things seem to start out so small, so insignificant, just like it did in Ephesus here in Acts 18. And so like Paul, we can be confident that God will work even through, first of all, our greatest obligations. Our greatest obligations and responsibilities. And I think that's what we find there in verse 18, the very first verse that we read and looked at. Because remember, as Paul was leaving that ministry in Europe, that ministry in Greece, that ministry in the city of Corinth, we're told that, and Paul, after this, tarried there in Corinth yet a good while. And then he took his leave of the brethren, the church that he founded there, sailed into Syria, and with him Priscilla and Aquila, and were told, having shorn his head in Sancreia, for he had a vow." Obviously, these are little details that Luke is giving to us about his trips, his missionary journeys. But from this verse, we can see that Paul had three great responsibilities that he had to attend to, even as an apostle of Jesus Christ. Three obligations, three responsibilities. First of all, he had a responsibility to the Christians, to the Christians there in the city of Corinth. So even though he may have wanted to go to Asia before, even though he may have wanted to go to Ephesus before, that's why we're told here that Paul tarried in Corinth. He tarried there yet a good while. The phrase, those two words, good while, can also be translated sufficient days. I like that, sufficient days. Paul stayed with those new Christians that formed that new church in the city of Corinth for a sufficient number of days to help them become established in the truth of the gospel. It wasn't time for him yet to leave. They still needed to be rooted and grounded in the truth of God's Word in the Gospel. Paul may have wanted to move on earlier, but instead he stayed there because it was clear that it was where God wanted him to be and where he was needed most. It was God's will for him to stay there for a sufficient number of days to get that church grounded in the truth. And so, verse 18, when he took leave of his brethren, he did so by making sure that things were in order before he left. In fact, the phrase took leave is actually from one word, and the idea of that word is to kind of set things in order, right? To set things in order. He didn't just say, I'm out of here. No, he made sure that things were set in order in those churches in that city so that they would continue to function even as he left, even as Priscilla and Aquila left as well. Paul took his responsibility for his Christian brethren in that city and in those churches seriously, and he would not leave there until he knew that God's work for him there was complete. But then we see that Paul had another responsibility, not just to the Christians and to the brethren of a previous church, but also he had a responsibility to the church that had originally sent him on his missionary journeys. If you remember from the book of Acts, we learned that his home church was actually the church in Antioch, which was all the way over in Syria. This is why, if you look at verse 22, he eventually actually makes his way to Antioch. And one of the reasons why he would do that is just like why we have our missionaries come visit us from time to time. It's to give a report to the church of all that God has done for them and through them. You know, yes, we get our missionary letters and we're able to keep abreast of what our missionaries are doing through emails and all of these things, but back then they didn't have all those opportunities. And so it was very important for missionaries that went from different churches to go to different places would actually come back and tell the church that sent them what God was doing. Yes, Paul had the authority of an apostle, but Paul also recognized he had responsibility to his sending church, to his home church, and he wanted them to know what God was doing, to encourage them. And as they would be encouraged to send out even more missionaries to the places where he had been. So he probably was going to make his way to Antioch to do just that, to tell them all that God was doing. there in Greece. So Paul felt very strongly about his responsibility to his church, his home church, that church there in Antioch. But we also see from this verse that Paul knew his greatest responsibility was that to the Lord, a responsibility to Christ himself. So, to the Christians, to his church, and even to Christ. Because also there in verse 18, we're told that he shaved his head in Sancreia. Again, just a 10-mile journey from Corinth. Why? Because he had a vow. Now, Luke doesn't really give us a lot more information about this. We really don't know all that Paul's vow entailed. Obviously he was a Jew and formally had lived according to the Jewish religion, but now he knew that he was, as a Christian, free from those obligations, free from those ceremonial laws and various things. So more than likely, he had his head shaved to indicate that he had reached the end of a period of time that he had vowed to the Lord to commit himself to in separation and service for the Lord. Some believe that this was a vow that he'd made even before he was saved. So it would have been a vow that had lasted a very long time. You might have heard of the Nazirite vow. That was something that was done in the Old Testament and even into the New, where Jews would commit themselves to be separated to God and to serve God. And one of the indications of that vow is that they would let their hair grow long. They wouldn't drink any of the fruit of the vine, and it was just a symbol of their commitment, their absolute commitment to the Lord during a particular period of time. This might have been the vow that Paul had made. Maybe it was even before he was saved, and yet, even after he was saved, and he wasn't under the obligation of those kinds of Jewish ceremonies and rituals and even vows, yet he took his vows to the Lord seriously. Whatever he would make, he would keep. that might have been the vow that is being described here. Or it might have been another vow that he made after his salvation, maybe even a vow that he made to the Lord because of God's grace to him when he was there in Corinth. And he was facing a lot of difficulty and a lot of trial and even some persecution there in the city of Corinth. And perhaps because God had helped him and God had made promise to him and offered his grace to him, He offered a vow, a voluntary vow to the Lord, and said, I am going to serve you and to praise you, and I'm going to show the entire world that I am yours, God. And so he made that vow. Either way, when Paul made a vow to the Lord, he intended to keep it. And it seems like part of the conclusion of this vow wasn't just having his head shorn, but also to go to Jerusalem fairly quickly, we see this in verse 21, to keep a feast. to keep a feast. Some believe that that might have been the Feast of Pentecost, which certainly was a feast that was very important to the church of Jerusalem at that time. Or it might have even been the Passover feast, which was also a very important feast to the people and to the church at that time. But all of these responsibilities and all of these obligations to Christians, to His church, and to Christ, those became Paul's priorities. Paul's priorities. And no matter what opportunity might present itself, even in such a great city like Ephesus, he would not let anything get in the way of his responsibilities and the will of God for his life. So when Paul finally got to Ephesus, he could have thought, hey, Ephesus needs me. Ephesus needs me. Maybe I can put off my report to the church in Antioch so that I can serve here in Ephesus. Or maybe I can put off the completion of my vow in Jerusalem so I can serve here in Ephesus. It would have been a good thing. Surely God would understand when He would have another opportunity and chance to share the gospel in Ephesus. But what does Paul do instead? Instead, Paul understood that he still had certain responsibilities to fulfill. Even though the opportunity looked so great and the door seemed wide open to him, he knew that he had responsibilities to fulfill. And one of the things that we can learn from this is that we, too, as Christians, have responsibilities to fulfill, obligations to fulfill. And yet, as we have those obligations, as we have those responsibilities, we can still trust that God is able to do His work even as we fulfill our responsibilities and obligations. And that's one of the reasons why God calls on His people to be faithful. to be faithful in the obligations and responsibilities that we have. We have responsibilities in our families, right? We have roles and responsibilities that, you know, there might be all kinds of opportunities to serve God in other places, and yet we must not neglect the opportunity to serve God in our own homes, and in the roles that God has placed there for us, or even the responsibilities that we have where we work, or in our neighborhoods, and other things that God has brought our way. And yes, there may be other opportunities and even great opportunities, but we must never neglect the responsibilities that God has given to us, first and foremost. We need to be faithful in what God has given to us and believe that God is still able to do His work even as we pursue His will and are faithful in our present responsibilities. We need to remember, like Paul, sometimes It is better for us to come and leave, because it's just not God's timing for us. It's not God's plan for us. It's not God's will for us. Because God is still able to do His work, even with us or without us. And that's what we need to rely upon as we pursue faithfulness in our present responsibilities. And yet, at the same time, we do need to be ready for other opportunities as God brings them to us. And that's why, second, God still works through even our smallest opportunities. God works, yes, through our greatest responsibilities, but He also works through even our smallest opportunities. And that's what we find next, I think, in verses 19 through 21, when Paul And then his close friends and companions, Priscilla and Aquila, they finally get to Ephesus, all right? This is a stopping over point, as they're making their way, or really, he is making his way to Jerusalem and then to Antioch. But it says, he came to Ephesus, verse 19, and he left them there. But he himself entered into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. And when the Jews desired him to tarry longer time with them, he consented not, but bade them farewell, saying, I must by all means keep this feast that cometh in Jerusalem. So this layover in Ephesus was part of his trip on the way back to Jerusalem, on the way back to Antioch. Of course, we probably all experience this when you're traveling somewhere. You might have a little layover. It might be a couple of hours. It might be a couple of days. What do you do with that time? What do you do with those opportunities? Well, Paul, even though he had great responsibilities to fulfill, to Christians and to the church and to Christ himself, yet he still looked for and took advantage of even the smallest window of opportunity that God would give to him to do a service for the gospel. And so even when Paul arrived there, and he knew it would be for a very short time, he took of that small opportunity to share the gospel, even as he continued to fulfill his other responsibilities. Now, Paul, I think, could have probably used some rest. I mean, he'd been working and laboring for a long time in Greece, and had been there in Corinth, laboring from morning to late at night. And there were many times where he would preach the gospel during the day, and then at night he'd work as a tent maker, just along with Priscilla and Aquila. So he worked. He probably could have used a little bit of rest, a little bit of a vacation, a little bit of retirement when he got to a place where really nobody knew him there in Ephesus at the time. Maybe he needed a little extra time to get some supplies for the rest of his trip. The fact is, Paul would not let this divine opportunity and this divine appointment pass him by, even though it may have seemed so very small. He had a little bit of time, and he sought for that opportunity to be used by the Lord in that place. And so, he took the opportunity there in Ephesus in a very proactive way. A very proactive way. In fact, we're told there again in that verse that he, Paul, came to Ephesus and left them there, left Priscilla and Aquila there, but he himself entered into the synagogue. Now there's a couple ways to look at this verse. This may mean that the synagogue was actually outside the city of Ephesus. So you've got the great big metropolis, and yet the Jews would have a place for their own worship outside of the city of Ephesus. And so when they finally got to the city, Since it really wasn't a very convenient place for Paul to go, what he would do is he'd leave Priscilla and Aquila in the city to kind of get things settled, and then he would go and take that small window of opportunity to share the gospel in the synagogue outside the city. This shows us that Priscilla and Aquila truly were co-laborers with Paul. They would go, and they would function together, and they would do whatever was best in order to get the gospel out. Paul and his friends were truly co-laborers together for the Lord, and they would do whatever they could to achieve the best outcome for the gospel. That might have been what happened here. They got to Ephesus. He said, Why don't you stay here, my friends, and get things settled? Give me a place to stay. Give me some food. Give me supplies. But there's this window of opportunity for me in this synagogue, even just for this short time to share the gospel. And so he went. However, this verse might also mean that Priscilla and Aquila were planning to stay in Ephesus as well, and so Paul left them there to start the church, which really implies that Paul entrusted Priscilla and Aquila to actually water the seeds, the small seeds that he would plant in that synagogue for that short period of time. However way you look at this verse, even though Paul and his friends had some great responsibilities, they still looked for and took the smallest opportunities to be a light for Christ in a proactive way. You know, we need to look for those small opportunities as well. We have great obligations, great responsibilities in our lives as Christians, as people, but we need to look for even the smallest opportunities, the smallest windows that God puts in our path to be able to shine His light into that darkness. You know, just yesterday, as we were getting ready for our men's Bible study, we were all coming in late because of all the snow that we got the previous day. Brother Art was the latest. But you know, as I was thinking about this message, I was thinking about what he shared with us. What a window of opportunity God gave to him, even as he was making his way here to fulfill a responsibility that he had. And that was, just as he was at their former abode, there was a car that had slipped off the road. And instead of saying, oh, you know, I got a responsibility, and yes, I need to fulfill that responsibility, and I need to get to the church, and we need to have that Bible study. Instead, he looked for those doors of opportunity that God had laid before him. Those divine appointments that sometimes we might see get in the way of a responsibility, and yet he took that opportunity, got here a little bit later, and yet we still were able to have our Bible study. But isn't that what God does for us every single day? Yes, we need to rely on the Lord to do His work as we fulfill our responsibilities, but then we need to rely on the Lord to work as He gives us those small windows of opportunity that God can take something small and make it great. Because what eventually happens to this church in Ephesus, it has small beginnings, but God makes it into something great. Paul knew that God could do that with him or without him. And yet, he took whatever opportunity that God laid in his way. He did it in a proactive way. But Paul also did it in a prepared way. A prepared way. You see, when he went into the synagogue there in Ephesus, we're told in verse 19 that he reasoned with the Jews. He reasoned with them. That is, he had a dialogue with them about Jesus Christ. He shared with them the gospel of Jesus Christ, the good news, how Jesus came to be that Messiah that they had been looking for for hundreds and thousands of years. Remember, these were Jews. They knew the Old Testament. They knew the Scriptures. They knew those promises that were given to Abraham and Isaac and to Jacob and to David and through the prophets. They knew all these things. And so Paul would stand up and proclaim to them Jesus as the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world. Of Jesus who came into this world to live with us and then to die for us and then come back to life for us. He preached unto them Christ crucified and risen again. So that if they would just by grace believe in Christ as their Messiah, as their Savior, they would have that new life. and a new church could be born. That is what Paul did there, and he was prepared for it. This is one of the reasons why we come to church. This is one of the reasons why we spend time in the Word of God. This is one of the reasons why we spend time in prayer together. It's so that we are prepared, even as we are proactive, in pursuing after even the smallest opportunity that God might give us to share His Word and the Gospel. We are preparing. This is one of the ministries that God has given to us in the church. In the book of Ephesians, the Lord actually talks about why he has given to the church pastors and teachers and various things, various offices. It's to prepare the church for the work of the ministry. And so the work of the ministry is not just what goes on here. The work of the ministry is what goes on in your lives out there. And so as you prepare here, you go out there and you're proactive, looking for those doors of opportunity as God leads, as God opens. And so when those small windows of opportunity open up for you, you're ready, just like the apostle Paul was. So even as Paul was on a trip, a trip from one place to another. He did not let his guard down. Instead, he looked for and took up any opportunity he could, no matter how short it was or no matter how small it seemed. Because Paul knew that God himself would provide that opportunity, and use that opportunity, and even bless that opportunity. And that seems to be what happened in verse 20. Because after he dialogues, and after he reasons with the Jews, we're told that the Jews actually desired him, they wanted him to tarry longer time with them. Wow! What a great opportunity! Imagine if you went to talk to someone about the Lord, whether at the nursing home or maybe someone in your neighborhood, and you just kind of weren't expecting it. You're just planting a little seed. Maybe you offered someone a tract or you just told them that you'd even pray for them. And all of a sudden they said, well, you spend a little bit more time with me to pray with me and to talk with me about the Lord. And you'd be like, whoa, I wasn't expecting this. I wasn't ready for this. What would you do? What would you do? Well, here we're actually told that Paul consented not. So here we have a small opportunity turning into a huge opportunity, and yet Paul consented not. Why? Why? Well, because Paul knew that God would keep on doing his own work even in his absence. Even in his absence. That is true for us as well. We need to keep on relying on God to work, even as we pursue after His will in whatever opportunity He gives us, and yet not neglect the other responsibilities that God has given to us. We need to realize that God is doing His work. And He will always do His work. He is a sovereign God. And sometimes He chooses to use us, other times He will choose someone else. But we need to rely on God to do His work as we pursue after His will for our lives. And sometimes that will is to not go through a huge door that is open to us. Maybe it's for someone else to follow through and to follow up. And that's certainly the case here in Ephesus. especially since our divine objective is the same as Paul's divine objective. And this objective is what we also find there in verse 20, because why does he consent? Or not consent, I should say. because he knew that he had to do God's will. Again, verse 20, he says, I will return again unto you. I mean, he recognizes the opportunity. He recognizes the strategic significance of a great city like Ephesus to plant the seeds of the gospel and then to spread it from there. I will return again unto you. And yet here is his divine objective in his whole life. He says, if God wills. Another way you could put that is, God willing. God willing. And with that, we're told, he sailed from Ephesus. And yet, he wasn't dejected, he wasn't down, he sailed from Ephesus because he was confident in God's power to do his work according to his own will. No matter what, he wanted to pursue after God's will. That was his divine objective, to pursue after and perform God's known will for him and his life and his ministry, even as God would show him more of that will over time. You see, what Paul knew to be God's will, he first had to fulfill. See, God's will for him was to fulfill his responsibilities, wasn't it? We already looked at those in verse 18. He had responsibilities to Christians in Corinth. That's why he had to stay there for a little while. He had responsibility to the church in Antioch, and that's why he had to go back to report about God's work. And, of course, he had a responsibility to Christ, first and foremost, and his vow to the Lord. And that's why he had his head shaved in Sancreia, and then was going to go to Jerusalem, because he had to keep that feast. All of these responsibilities Paul knew were God's will for him at that time, and so he had to fulfill them. He had to follow through with them. But only when God would reveal His will for his return, so not just his responsibilities, but his return to Ephesus, only when he knew that was God's will for him would he do so. He knew that God would and could do His work in that place with or without him. Praise God for that. Praise God for that. Yes, we have responsibilities. Yes, God gives us opportunities. Yes, we have this great objective to do God's will, but we do so knowing that God is going to do His work, His way, according to His will in this world, with us or without us. Because God has a greater concern for His work in this world than you do, than I do. But yet we still pursue after His will, whatever it is, wherever it takes us. Paul's responsibility was to follow God's will wherever and whenever it led him. You know, every great work of God started with something small. Every great work of God started with something small. And we need to rely on and rest in God to do His work in our world. That might be the world of our families. You know, we have responsibilities in our families to share the gospel and to disciple our children and our grandchildren, and even the children and grandchildren of others that we know and love and care for. We have a world in our families, and we need to rest in God to do that work, as we pray to Him, but yet as we're faithful to our responsibilities in that world. We have the world of our church. and we need to still rely on God to do His work in our church, and pray that God would do His work in our church, or even the world of our community, which, even though it's a smaller community from some other communities around us, we know that this is still a place that needs the light of the gospel, not just from our church, but from all of the churches that are faithful to Him and His word in this area, this region. We need to recognize that God is still doing his work in this world, and we need to rely on that truth. But as we rely on him, we need to seek to fulfill our roles and responsibilities given to us by God. Our personal obligations at home, at work, and church, but then, like Paul was, be prepared and then take advantage of even those small opportunities that come our way. There is no such thing as an insignificant opportunity for the Lord to plant a seed, to give a kind word to someone who is in need, or to let someone know that you're praying for them, or to invite someone to church, or to invite someone over to your home to have a dinner, to talk to them about their lives and their needs, and especially about the Lord. Because these small opportunities are also from God, and these small opportunities are things that God can use in a mighty way. And yet, through it all, we need to follow God's will as our primary objective in life. As you follow God's revealed will through the precepts of His Word, I mean, we have things that we can find in the Bible that says, this is God's will for us. You know, one of the things that young people always wonder is, I don't know what God's will... Hopefully, Christian young people want to know what God's will for them is in their life. All I have to do is take them through Scripture and say, this is what God wants for you to do. There are places in the New Testament where it says, this is the will of God concerning you. And so as you apply yourself to the revealed will of God that we find in His Word, that we find in His precepts, do you realize that over time, God will disclose the rest of His revealed or His unrevealed will to you through His providence, through circumstances, through doors, through windows, through little keyholes that might be opened up to you? It's as you were following after His revealed will that God will disclose to you His unrevealed will, and God can use your faithfulness in your obligations, in your opportunities, and in your objective to do His will. God can use your faithfulness to bring something great out of something that starts out so small. And yet, it may not even be something that you ever see. or you ever know. But what are we doing? We're resting in God's work, even as we pursue after God's will. So that's what we find here in that very small beginning to the church of Ephesus. As soon as Paul comes, almost as soon, he leaves. Why? Because he could rely on God to do his work as he pursued after his will. And that's what we need to do as well. Keep relying on God to do His work as you pursue His will. Let's close in prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you again for the small beginnings of the church there in Ephesus that we find here in Acts chapter 18, where it's just introduced to us as a stopover, a layover, a place where Paul and his friends would come and then he would go. even as Paul was seeking to fulfill the responsibilities that he had to you and to your people. He also was open to opportunities, however small they might have seemed, in order to share your truth and to share the gospel with people around him. And then, Lord, as he had as his primary objective in life to do your will, to do things according to your will, if God wills, he said, Lord, it was your will eventually to bring him back to Ephesus. Even though it was some time later, he was able to get back to Ephesus and to be able to do all that you wanted him to do in that place, to make the church in Ephesus what it would become for that region for that time. Small beginnings, and yet a great outcome. Oh Lord, help us to see that as we fulfill our responsibilities that you've given to us, pursuing after your will, your known will for us, and taking advantage of those seemingly small opportunities that might come our way. As we're always seeking to pursue after your will, Lord, we rely on you to do your work. We rely on you to do your work. And so, Father, I thank you that we can trust your work. that, Lord, we can trust you, that you are doing a work, Lord, that even as we might plant seeds and even as others might come along and water seeds, Lord, we can be confident that you are the one that will bring forth the increase. You will do so in your own time. You will do so according to your own purpose. You will do so according to your own glory. And so, Father, I pray that you'll help us to rest in that, even as we pursue after your will in different areas of ministry. Lord, as we serve you in this church, as we serve you in our nursing home ministry, as we serve you in our good news clubs, as we serve you in other locations that you've put us, Lord, help us to recognize that you are and will do your work, and we can rely on that even as we pursue after your will. wherever it takes us and whatever it is. And so, Father, help us to see that even though something might seem like it has a very small beginning, or it might even seem to stay small, yet, Lord, we don't know the end of that story yet. We don't know the end from the beginning as you do. And so, Lord, help us to be faithful in pursuing after your will, knowing, being confident that you will fulfill your work, even as Paul. And for that, Lord, we give you the praise. And for that, Lord, we ask that you will help us to increase our faith and reliance in you in whatever you've called us to do. And we ask all these things in Jesus' name.