Worship - Sunday, February 6

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Good morning. Today we're going to be reading out of Psalms today during our Scripture reading together, But I wanted to share out of Paul David Tripp's devotional, New Morning Mercies, what he has written for today. Because I think it applies to where we're going to be at in Acts today. So it says, it's natural. We all do it. We all wonder about what's to come. Some of us think about the future and hope our dreams will come true. Some of us dread the future and pray that we will not have to face the things that we fear. For some of us, the future seems foggy and unknowable. For all of us, it's hard to look into the future and be secure because the future is simply out of our hands. With all of our consideration, meditation, and planning for what is to come, things never turn out the way we envision.

There are always unexpected turns in the road. There are potholes and ditches we did not anticipate. There are mountains and valleys we just did not foresee. We find ourselves walking through moments of darkness when we thought we'd be living and walking in the light. It doesn't take long for us to begin to acquiesce to the fact that we don't ever quite know what is around the next corner. But we don't have to live plagued by the anxiety of the unknown. We don't have to sleep wondering what the next day will bring or wake up working our way through the what-ifs we can think of. We don't have to seek some means to figure out what we will never be able to figure out. No, we can have rest when we are confused. We can experience peace in the face of the unknown.

We can feel an inner well-being while living in the middle of mystery. Why? Because our peace of heart does not rest on how much we know, how much we've figured out, or how accurately we have been able to predict the future. No, our rest is in the person who holds our individual futures in his wise and gracious hands. We have peace because we know that he will complete the good things that he in grace has initiated in our lives. He is faithful, so he never leaves the work of his hands. He is gracious, so he gives us what we need, not what we deserve. He is wise, so what he does is always best. He is sovereign, so he rules all the situations and locations where we live. He is powerful, so he can do what he pleases and when he pleases.

Paul says it well in Philippians 1.6, And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. Are you experiencing anxiety because you've forgotten who you are and what you've been given? Are you experiencing the fear that results from trying to know what you'll never know? He knows, he cares, and he will complete the job he's done. And so we move into Acts today where we see how God provides for us. I think those were just good words to listen to there by Paul David Tripp. That's a very good devotional. I found it. We've had it for three years now, and it's been super helpful for us every morning. But we're going to move on from that, and we're going to be reading out of Psalm 30

and just a psalm of what the Lord has done for us throughout our days. So let's go ahead and stand, and we'll be reading Psalm 30, 1 through 5.

And it begins, I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up, and have not let my foes rejoice over me. O Lord, my God, I cry to you for help, and you have healed me. O Lord, you have brought up my soul from Sheol. You restored me to life from among those who go down to the pit. Sing praises to the Lord, O you, his saints, and give thanks to his holy name. For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning. This is the word of the Lord. Let's pray. God, we thank you for the opportunity to gather together today. we thank you for those that are watching online and for those that are not with us today we just

ask that we can be an encouragement to them and to each other while we're here we thank you for your mercies that are new every morning and for the joy that you bring us even in the midst of anxieties and worries and fears and doubts you're always close to us and you're near to us and just remind us of that and remind us that in your word that that you remind us daily and every minute that you are close to us. Be with our service today and allow it to glorify you. In Jesus' name, amen. We're going to begin our worship time with the holy, holy, holy.

Holy, holy, holy Lord God Almighty Early in the morning A song shall rise to Thee Holy, holy, holy Merciful and mighty God in three Persons Blessed Trinity Holy, holy, holy All the saints adore thee Casting down their golden crowns Around the glossy sea Cherubim and seraphim Falling down before thee Who was that lot And evermore shall be Holy, holy, holy Though the darkness hide thee Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see. Only Thou art holy. There is none beside Thee. Perfect in power, in love and purity.

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty All my works shall praise thy name in earth and sky and sea Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty God in three persons Blessed Trinity Alright, you can remain standing if you'd like or if you want to, you can sit We're going to be moving into our prayer and share time If you're watching online, there'll be a slide up on the screen for you to text, with a phone number for you to text if you have any requests you'd like to send to us please do that and we will share those here together and we're going to be muted here during that time so once we are done with that together we'll be back after that and we'll move into our time of communion and we're going to be singing now Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing

Come now, fount of every blessing, tune my heart to sing thy grace. Streams of mercy never ceasing, call for songs of loudest praise. Teach me some melodious sonnet, sung by flaming tongues above. Praise thy mountain, fixed upon it, mount of thy redeeming love. Here I raise my Ebenezer, hither by thy help I'm come. And I hope by thy good pleasure, safely to arrive at home. Jesus taught me when a stranger, wandering from the fold of God. He to rescue me from danger, interposed his precious blood. Oh, to praise our greater debtor Daily I'm constrained to be Let thy grace, Lord, like a fetter Bind my wandering heart to thee Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it Prone to leave the God I love Here's my heart, Lord, take and seal it Seal it for thy courts above Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

God, you are faithful, you are faithful, God, you are faithful. Skies and struggles on the way, but with joy our hearts can't save. Never once did we ever walk alone. Terrify your thoughts to peace, held within your perfect peace. Never once, no, we never walked alone. Never once did we ever walk alone. Never once did we leave us on our own. You are faithful, God, you are faithful Every step we are breathing in your grace Nevermore we'll be breathing in your grace You are faithful, God, you are faithful God, you are faithful.

I think sometimes as we consider our Christian life, we have this view of the gospel that says to us, God has saved you, now it's up to you. He's got you cleaned up, now it's up to you to do something with what God has done. And as we move through the New Testament, and as Paul writes to young Christians and new Christians and struggling Christians, we find that the good news of the gospel is not just for becoming a Christian, but it's for equipping us and strengthening us and encouraging us throughout our Christian life. For example, Paul will say to the Ephesians that the way we're able to love one another in church is when we look at the gospel and see how Jesus has loved us. The way we're able to forgive one another when we are wrong

is because when we look at the gospel and see how Jesus has loved us, the way we're able to be generous and to be strengthened is by seeing what Jesus has done for us. And so as we gather around the table this morning, we want to be reminded that we are not just celebrating the fact that Jesus came and saved us. It's wonderful, and it's big, and it's earth-shattering. But we're also reminded of the fact that He doesn't leave us. He doesn't forsake us. Paul will write to the Philippian church, one of the churches that he loved, very deeply, and he will say this in Philippians 1. I am sure of this. He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. And he says to this church, God didn't just start you when he saved you,

but he's going to finish it. In the book of Hebrews, the Hebrew church, the Hebrew Christians, they are struggling. They're struggling with a lot of things. They're struggling to not give up. And as they get to the end of the letter, the writer of Hebrews will encourage them to walk in righteousness. He'll encourage them to be content with what they have. And you say, well, why should I walk in righteousness? Why should I be content? And he gives them this promise. He says this, I will never leave you nor forsake you, speaking of God. And then the writer of Hebrews will say, so we can confidently say, the Lord is my helper. I will not fear. What can man do to me? And so as we break this bread and drink this cup this morning,

we're reminded of how we're saved by Jesus' death on the cross. And we're reminded how he has not left us, but he walks with us, strengthening, encouraging, helping, and equipping us. Let's pray, and then we'll partake together. Father in heaven, I ask that you help our weary souls, that you help our tired souls, our fearful souls, our struggling souls this morning with the reminder that we are not alone, but that you are near us, that you love us, that you have saved us, and that you are continuing your work in our lives. So be with us as we break this bread and drink this cup. May you remind us of your love and your grace, your mercy. May we see the sacrifice of Jesus. May we see how our sins have been taken away. I ask that you bless this bread and bless this cup.

It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Paul writes as he reminds the believers about how this meal was instituted. He pictures the Passover night with Jesus who takes bread, gives thanks and breaks it, and he will say, this is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me. and then he'll take the cup the cup that reminds us that God has redeemed us with strength and with power and he will say this, this cup is the new covenant in my blood do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me for as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. And Paul found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontius, recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome.

And Paul went to see them, and because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and worked, for they were tentmakers by trade. And Paul reasoned in the synagogues every Sabbath and tried to persuade Jews and Greeks. When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul was occupied with the word, testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus. And when they opposed and reviled him, Paul shook out his garments and said to them, Your blood be on your own heads. I am innocent. From now on, I will go to the Gentiles. And Paul left them and went to the house of a man named Titus, Justice, a worshiper of God. His house was next door to the synagogue. Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with his entire household.

And many of the Corinthians, hearing Paul, believed and were baptized. And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, Do not be afraid, and go on speaking, and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people. And he stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them. But when Gallius was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought Paul before the tribune, saying, This man is persuading people to worship God contrary to the law. But when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallius said to the Jews, If it were a matter of wrongdoing or vicious crime, O Jews, I would have reason to act and accept your complaint.

But since it was a matter of questions about words and names and your own law, see to it yourselves, I refuse to be a judge of these things. And he drove them from the tribune, and they all seized Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him in front of the tribune. But Gallius paid no attention to any of this. This is the word of the Lord. All right, I'm excited to be in Acts, the 18th chapter, Paul in Corinth. You know, if you have read through the book of Corinthians, this is a church that Paul has to continue to work on. They struggle in a lot of different ways, but this morning we'll see the beginning of the church, and I think most importantly, we see how God's hand is moving through. Maybe what seems like coincidences to us, but they are part of his plan.

So let's go ahead and pray, and then we'll dive right into it. Father in heaven, we thank you for your word, we thank you for your church, we thank you for your people, we thank you for the work of your spirit in our lives, and I thank you to see it as a historical record, or a group of facts, or some interesting events all grouped together, but help us to see your life-changing, equipping power in the life of your church. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. So, my sister has three kids. We have three kids. Occasionally, she'll drop her kids off at our house, so we'll have two eight-year-olds, a couple of six-year-olds, a couple of three-year-olds, a two-year-old, and then usually Ezra shows up, and it becomes chaos. And so I think it was about a week and a half ago, my sister's kids were there, our kids were there.

There was just a lot of chaos happening, not in a bad way, just a lot of noise. I think there was only one fistfight over whether Buzz Lightyear was real or not. and the kids were running around, and they were playing, and it was also early dismissal at school because there was snow coming, so my parents showed up. It was also haircut day for like six or seven of us, so our friend who comes over and cuts our hair showed up, and she brought three of her kids, and so there was a lot of things happening. I was getting my hair cut. Little boys were getting a haircut to keep them from fussing while they're doing it. I think we fed them like two and a half pounds of Twizzlers in the space of like 15 minutes. Anyway, it was chaos.

There was a lot happening. Kids were running, people were shouting, and in a good way, there was just a lot going on. When you come to the city of Corinth, what you find is it's a city that's chaotic, and it means that there's a lot going on. It's a new city. The Corinthian city is originally destroyed about 150 years or so before Jesus is born. Julius Caesar will come back and he'll rebel after about 100 years of it being in ruins and uninhabited. And so by the time he's over 100 years old, it's like a brand new city. And Julius Caesar, when he starts this city, rebelled this city, he populates it with a whole bunch of retired military guys. And they began to grow this city. It's a big city by ancient standards. It has at least 100,000 people.

Some people think as high as 300,000. Most everybody just kind of meets in the middle and says it has a population of somewhere around 200,000 people. Now, in our day, that doesn't seem like it's very big because we have cities of millions. But remember, in a time when there's not nearly the same infrastructure, you don't have running water, you don't have electricity, a city of 200,000 people for that day and age. This is a massive, massive city. It's also a thriving commercial center. The way Corinth is situated geographically, you've got an ocean on one side, ocean on the other side, and in between those two oceans is a three-and-a-half-mile stretch of land, and Corinth sits right there. And so they have a port on the east, they have a port on the west, And so rather than the ships going all the way down the bottom of Greece,

adding a couple hundred miles and lots of danger to their trip, they'll dock at the eastern, the western dock in Corinth. They'll unpack their ship. They'll put it on carts, and there's a row. They'll take it over to the other port, load it back onto ships. And in some cases, if the ships are small enough, they'll just pick the ship up, carry it the three and a half miles, and drop it back into the ocean. So not only do you have this major city, it's on the part of a major trade route. All of these goods that go by ocean are passing through the city of Corinth, and that includes all of the sailors and everybody associated with that trade. And so you have a new city, a big city, you have a commercially thriving city,

and it's a city that's also in spiritual and moral chaos, The major temple that sat right outside the city on a big hill overlooking the city was the temple of Aphrodite, a temple to the Greek God of love. And then inside the city you have a temple to Apollos, the God of the sun. You have a temple to Asclepius, who is the God of healing. And in fact, they institute in Corinth this passageway of aqueducts and water that runs into the temple of the God of healing so people can go in and and take baths that were supposed to heal them. They could make offerings to heal their problems. And so there's all of this false worship, but going along with that false worship, many of the practices in these ancient temples centered around immorality.

And so in many ways, I think Corinth, if you were to look at this city, it'd be like one of those frontier towns during the gold rush, right? Where you have saloons outnumbering people, right? It's kind of a rough place morally. and it's a rough place spiritually. It's busy. There's so many people and everybody's doing something different and it's chaos. And in some ways that's good because you have all of these people coming through who can hear the gospel and go out to the other ends of the empire and share the good news, but also it's a deep abiding spiritual battleground and it's a struggle. And when we find Paul Corinth, he doesn't look at this city and he's not excited by the opportunity for the gospel. He doesn't look at this city and say,

man, there's so many people here who need Jesus, and I can't wait to tell them about Jesus, and we can tell all these traitors, and they can share the gospel throughout the Roman Empire. He is the opposite of excited. He's discouraged, he's struggling, he's hurting. You see, Paul, when he comes to Corinth, is tired. So far, as he's been through Greece, he's been to Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, and Athens, and in between all of those cities, he's had to walk. most of those cities he's left after being chased out by a mob. Philippi, he is beaten. Some scholars think that as he comes to Corinth, one of the reasons he's so discouraged is because he has been still recovering from the beating that he received in Philippi. And so he's been rushing ahead of the angry mob as he goes down the length of Greece on foot. And he's facing the chaos and the struggle

of Corinth alone. In Acts 16, we find that Luke stays behind in Philippi. Silas and Timothy stay behind in Berea. And so Paul is all by himself. And from his own admission, he says, I'm weak and I'm afraid. As he writes to the Corinthians, he says this about his arrival in Corinth. I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. Paul says, when I came to Corinth, I wasn't bold, I wasn't brave, I wasn't excited, but I was weak and I was afraid. And I was not just like afraid on the inside, but I'm trembling. I'm shaking over what lays ahead of me. In fact, he is so afraid that God has to specifically come to him in verses 8 through 9 and 10 of the text. The Lord will come to Paul one night in a vision and say,

Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you. And no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people. Even in this city, there's still a threat of violence. Paul's still likely recovering from his wounds in Philippi. He's a little nervous and a little gun-shy about what might happen to him. And I think he's even considering not speaking about Jesus, because one of the things God specifically says to him, go on speaking, do not be silent. That in Paul's tiredness and discouragement and aloneness, he is thinking, I don't know if I can do this. And to add to all of these things, Paul is out of money. He has gone through and he's preached the gospel, and now he shows up here,

and the first thing he does in town is to get a job. And he's not necessarily doing that as a ministry, he's doing that to support himself, because the money that he started this trip with has run out. And in verse 3, because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and worked, for they were tent makers by trade. And in 2 Corinthians chapter 11, he'll say of his time in the city. When I was with you and was in need, I did not burden anyone. For the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my needs, so I refrained and will refrain from burdening you in any way. And so what Paul says, when I showed up, I didn't have any money. I needed money. And instead of asking you in the church for money, what I did is you went and got a job.

And so do you see Paul's situation? He has this task of the city in chaos, spiritually, physically. He's all by himself. He's tired from ministry. He's been beaten up. He's afraid. He's weary. And he has no money. And he shows up in Corinth. And what's remarkable about these verses in Acts, the 18th chapter, is we see how God works in the life of this weary saint. The first thing that God does to Paul is he directs him to the fellow workers. Let's pick up in verse 1. Paul left Athens, went to Corinth. He found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had come from Italy with his wife Priscilla because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. And he went to see them, and because he was in the same trade,

he stayed with them and worked, for they were tent makers by trade. And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath and tried to persuade Jews and Greeks. And so this husband and wife team, Priscilla and Aquila, in fact, most of the places in the New Testament, it's listed not as Aquila and Priscilla, but Priscilla and Aquila. Her name comes first in most of these references. They become beloved fellow workers with Paul. And they work together in a trade for the church. And one of the ways we know that they're beloved by Paul is he calls her Priscilla. And in Greek, it's a diminutive. And what that means is it's like a nickname. So like we call Luke, he's little, we call him Lukey. Or we call Ezra, those names we shorten. And we call, you know, William, Bill, or, you know, things like that.

We give people sort of shortened nicknames. And her name, you'll find as you read through the rest of the New Testament, sometimes she'll be referred to as Prisca. That's her proper name. And so when you hear Aquila and Priscilla, what Luke is doing as he writes them, he's writing with sort of a nickname for her, showing that these people, they're not just people you kind of know and acquaintance, these are people you have a relationship with, right? You can use their nickname, and it's okay. And I love what happens with Paul. These people become beloved workers. So in 1 Corinthians and 2 Timothy and Romans, as Paul writes to these churches, what he does is he will say, make sure you tell my friends hi. Tell Aquila and Priscilla hi. I'm thinking about them and I'm thankful for them

as fellow workers in the gospel. And what I love is when Paul feels the most alone, God sends him some help in the form of Priscilla and Aquila. The second thing God does is he provides for Paul financially. It's interesting that first Paul is provided for through a job, right? He's a tent maker. He shows up and I don't know how he finds these two Christians who have been exiled from Rome, but somehow he runs across them, meets them. They're the same background as Paul. They believe in Jesus and they're making tents and Paul goes, provides him in his providential care a job. But secondly, as Paul is working and Paul is preaching on Saturdays, what happens is a gift of money comes from Philippi. He'll say this in Philippians 4, And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel,

when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving except you only. In Acts chapter 18, it'll say, Listen, Timothy arrived from Macedonia, so they show up. Paul was occupied with the word of the word, testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus. And you have this picture of a change happening between verse 1 and verse 5. In verse 1, the first section, Paul has no money. He's working as a tent maker. He's going to the synagogue on the Sabbath. And then in verse 5, all of a sudden, he's devoting all of his time to the gospel. You say, how is he able to do that? Because when Timothy and Silas show up, they bring an offering from Philippi. And Paul is now provided for, and he is able to devote all of his time for the gospel.

So God has provided Paul with fellow workers. He's provided for Paul financially. And then you have this new fledgling church that's beginning to start. And they need a place to meet because the Jewish synagogue is getting increasingly hostile. And so this little church can't go to the synagogue anymore. And look what God does. This is wonderful. In verse 6, the synagogue, they opposed and reviled him. And he shook out his garments and said to them, Your blood be on your own head. I am innocent. From now on, I will go to the Gentiles. And so they're attacking Paul. And he says, you know what? I've told you the gospel. it's your choice not to listen i'm done i'm going to the Gentiles and look at what God does he left there went to the house of man named uh Titus justice a worshiper of God and sky

Titus justice says hey you can have my house so Paul is Christian they go to the church and look at what it says next his house was next door to the synagogue if you don't think God has a sense of humor right they're getting kicked out of the synagogue what do they do the little church walks out of the synagogue next door and keeps having church, right? Isn't that amazing how God has provided for this little fledgling church in the middle of this chaotic town right next door to the synagogue? It's not a coincidence. But more than that, one of the things that you need in a new church with young Christians is you need some older Christians, people who have been Christians longer with a solid foundation so they can help and they can guide those younger Christians. And

look what happens next in verse 8. Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord together with his entire household. Many of the Corinthians hearing Paul, but they believed and were baptized. And so what does God provide for this fledgling church? First of all, you have veteran believers, Priscilla and Aquila, who are part of this church. But then, right, you leave the synagogue, you go next door, and you know who comes with you? The guy who's in charge of the synagogue, the guy who has been leading the synagogue, the guy who is versed in the Old Testament Scriptures and has believed in God for his entire life, and he becomes a Christian. And here's a guy who's had previous experience leading a group of Old Testament believers, and now he gets this job as leading New Testament believers, right? Everybody knows him. He knows their needs.

He's able to help Paul minister to them. You see how God has provided? He's provided people. He's provided financially in terms of a job, in terms of an offering. He's provided a location for the church to meet. He's provided experienced believers so all of this doesn't fall on Paul. And then he provides encouragement to Paul. Do not be afraid. Go on speaking. Do not be silent. I am with you. No one will attack you or harm you. For I have many in this city who are my people. And what he's saying is not there's many people right now who believe me, but there are many people who will believe in this city? And then God does something else and something remarkable and a huge blessing for this church. God provides legal protection for this church. When Galileo, the procouncil,

the ruler of this entire region, the Jews who have been following Paul, they make an attack on him. They bring him before the tribunal saying, this man is persuading people to worship God contrary to the law. So what they're doing is making an accusation that this is not a Roman unapproved religion. They're trying to get Christianity outlawed. They're trying to get Paul beaten and thrown in prison and maybe even killed. And so Paul is going to open his mouth. He's going to defend the gospel. And Paul was about to open his mouth. Galileo said to the Jews, he's going to look at his accuser. He's going to say this, if this was a wrong matter of wrongdoing or vicious crime, oh Jews, I would have reason to accept your complaint. But since it's a matter

about words and names and your own law, see to it yourself. I refuse to be the judge of these things. And he drove them from the tribunal. And so what you find as he's doing here is he's making a legal judgment about Christianity. He's saying that Christianity just is legal, right? Jews, Christians, settle it yourself. Government's not going to get involved. And what that does is it gives the church legality in Corinth. They don't have to worry about being dragged in front of the rulers for preaching something different, because this guy who is the ultimate ruler of this region, he's the proxy for the emperor, has said, it's fine. I don't want to hear about it. Go have your church. And God hasn't just provided a place and blessings and people and all of these things.

He's provided them a legal church in this town. He sets a legal precedent not just for Corinth, but remember Philippi, where they get in trouble? And Thessalonica, where they get in trouble? And Berea, he set a legal precedent for the church. And so these Jewish people, you've heard Brent read it, they respond not well. They grab the leader of the synagogue, who's not a Christian, and they just beat him up right there in court, and then everybody leaves. It's an interesting, you sort of see the rage overflowing out of them. So we've seen Paul and his struggles. We've seen Corinth and his chaos. We've seen God and His provision. Let's talk about us for just a minute. One of the things that this text makes very clear is that in the midst of dark and difficult and chaotic events,

God is at work. And one of the ways we see this so clearly, the plan of God in His providential care arrayed out in a way that we can see how He's been at work, is through Aquila and Priscilla. They become important and beloved friends of Paul. They work together both physically and spiritually. They give him a job when he needs labor beside him in the church. He doesn't have to face the chaos of Corinth alone. And the question is, how do these people? Luke has made it clear that, first of all, they're not from Corinth. They've just left Rome. How do they end up in Corinth? Why are they in Corinth? Verse 2 says this, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. So about a year before Paul arrives in Corinth,

there's a problem in Rome. The same problem that's arising in Corinth between the Jews and the Christians. And there's this controversy breaking out. So Emperor Claudius, you know what he says? Just get out. He says, I don't want to make a ruling about it. I don't want to hear about it. I don't want to have a hearing about it. I just want all of you to get out. And these two Christians, Aquila and Priscilla, leave Rome and they end up in Corinth. It's not an accident that when Paul needs friendship, job and help in the church, he finds this goal. And you see what God has done in the years leading up to Paul's arrival in Corinth, he set the stage for Aquila and Priscilla to be there. And they are there because Claudius has made

this decree that has kicked them out of the room, out of Rome, and on the run they end up in Corinth. Before Paul has even thought about or considered going to Corinth, God was already at work setting in place a support system that would help him. Part of God's providential care. Claudius thinks he's doing something to shut down the Jews and the Christians, but what he's really doing is he's helped starting the church in Corinth. And throughout the rest of the empire, these Christians go out to all these different cities and share the good news of Jesus. You see how God's in control? Even before Paul thinks about Corinth, God is preparing a way for him by sending Aquila and Priscilla because of this decree of emperor, right? God works in your chaos. He works in the brokenness of our lives.

We don't see it. I imagine Aquila and Priscilla were probably heartbroken to have to flee from Rome, and they're wondering what happens next, but you see what happens? God's at work. And many times in the midst of those struggles, we don't have the perspective to see how God is working. It's only when we look back after the fact and say, oh, look what God was doing. He was moving me from here to there for the good of the gospel. And so I want to remind you this morning that God is at work in the midst of those struggles in our lives, that he's maybe equipping us. Maybe he's preparing us. Maybe he's moving us to where we need to be. Maybe he's teaching us something that we need to know. But God is at work, and we see it here.

The second thing we see in this is that God has something for his people to do. Consider all the things that happen in these verses. Priscilla and Aquila provide help and support. Titus provides a location for the church to meet. Crispus provides spiritual maturity. The Philippian church provides a financial offering. Timothy and Silas deliver it. You see, the church is equipped and it grows through the work of faithful Christians. And notice, these people all worked in areas that they were already good at. They didn't show up to the church and get a different job. They were already doing these things and they come into the church and they say, how can I use the way that God has gifted me in the help of the church? And so Thomas Christ goes, hey, I've got a house.

Come have church here. Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, says, I know the Scriptures. Timothy and Silas are saying, hey, we're coming from Philippi. The Philippian church says, we can't be there to help, but we can help support the ministry and enable the ministry through our gifts. What you find is that God has gifted all of us for work and help in the church. And the question is, what has God asked us to do? So many times we pray, and it's so important for us to pray. And sometimes I don't think we think about putting our prayers into action. One of my favorite pictures of putting prayer into action is in the book of Ruth. And it's a wonderful story of hurt and loss and salvation and redemption and God turning the world upside down.

But in chapter 2, this Moabite woman, Ruth, she's out picking grain in the field so her and her mother-in-law won't starve. They're both widowed. Naomi has lost her sons. There's a lot of grief and hurt. She's in this field. And it says, she happened to come to the field belonging to Boaz, which is the providential work of God. And Boaz sees her, and he says, come get wheat in my field. And then he'll say this to her, may God spread his wings over you. The picture of a mother bird wrapping up in protective care her little chicks. And he says, may God wrap you up in his protective care. The very next chapter, Ruth will sneak in to where Boaz is guarding his grain in the middle of the night, and he wakes up thinking it's a robber. He goes, who is it? And

she goes, it's Ruth. And then she repeats this prayer back to him. She says, spread your wings over me. So Boaz is praying that God would protect her, and she comes to him and says, yeah, God, you prayed to God to protect me? God's going to use you to protect me, right? And so when we pray for the church to grow, and for the church to be helped, and for the gospel to go out, We pray for that, and I imagine God saying, yes, and I'm going to equip you to do that. Just like Ruth says to Boaz, you prayed this, you're also the one who can answer this by spreading your wings and protecting and caring for me. So God has called us to work in the church. And so I think the church in Corinth encourages us when we see how God is at work providing and caring.

But it should also energize us when we see that he uses people like us to spread the gospel. when he uses people like us to encourage the church. In fact, when Paul writes to the Corinthian church, one of the big things that he'll say right there in the middle of the book is he's going to talk about how the church is like a body. And we've got some that are hands and some that are feet, some that are fingers, some that are toes. And all of us have a place in the church. All of us have a function in the church. And all of us have a way to contribute to the encouragement and the help of the church. And it's this picture, I think, in Acts 18 that should encourage us because God is at work,

but it should also energize us because He has work for us to do. Let's pray. Father, thank You for Jesus and grace. Thank You for how You protect and provide and care for us. Thank You for this Corinthian church. I know that many churches, like many churches, they struggle theologically and morally with the practice of church, but through it all, You love them and are patient with them. And we thank You for their testimony of your good providential care. We thank you for their work in the gospel. Help us to be encouraged and energized by this. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. So we've talked about how God was at work in the faithfulness, in the chaos and the tiredness and the struggles of Paul. We're going to stand and sing about God's faithfulness. We're going to sing, Great is Thy Faithfulness.

Great is thy faithfulness, O God, my Father. There is no shadow of turning with thee. Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not. As Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be. Great is Thy faithfulness, great is Thy faithfulness. Morning by morning new mercies I see. All I have needed, Thy hand hath provided. Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me. Pardon for sin and the peace that endureth. Lie on deep presence to cheer and to guide. Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow. Blessings all mine with ten thousand beside. Great is thy faithfulness, great is thy faithfulness. I want to thank you all for being here with us this morning. We are so glad you're joining us, whether you're here in person or online, we are thankful for you. We'll be back here Wednesday night.

We are going through the book of Thessalonians. One of the ways Paul puts his letters together is many times he sort of puts them together in what we need to know. So he begins with sort of teaching people what we need to know theologically, and then he moves into how do we put this into practice. And so where we are in Thessalonians this week, Paul is going to move into the practical application of our knowledge section, and he's going to call us to walk in righteousness. And one of the ways that I've been blessed by Paul's teaching, I like to know why and how, not just do something, but tell me why and how, and so Paul is going to talk about that with the Thessalonian church as they walk in righteousness, not just the command

of God, but why do we follow this command, and how are we able to do that. So we're here Wednesday night, up here, upstairs at 7 p.m. Also, as we've been going through the Book of Acts, you may know that the Book of Acts was written to a man by the name of Theophilus. And so if you haven't had a chance, downstairs in the video room, there is a puppy named Theophilus, Theo for short, and he's a pretty adorable, I was going to say little guy, but he is part Newfoundland and part poodle, so he is not a little guy. and he will only get bigger. So if you haven't had a chance to say hi to Cody and Holly's new addition to their family, Theo, you can do that downstairs. I'm going to go ahead and pray.

We'll read a little bit of words from Peter at the end of his letter, the second letter to the church, and then we'll sing the doxology. Father in heaven, thank you for your church and your people. Thank you for the joy that you bring into our lives through our brothers and sisters in Christ and their comfort and encouragement to us. Thank you for the teaching of your word. Thank you for the reminder of the gospel as we broke the bread and drank the cup together and were nourished by the power of your love and grace. We thank you for all the ways in which you have cared for us, provided for us, and you will provide for us. We just thank you. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Paul writes this at the end of

2 Peter, he will say this, Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now until the day of eternity. Amen. Praise God from whom blessings flow. Praise Him all creatures here below. Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.