Acts 19 -  Act Like It

There are 41 verses in Acts 19, some compelling teaching, and fantastic storylines. This morning I really could not get my mind off of v1-7. This encounter of Paul coming into Ephesus and meeting with some of the local disciples, this encounter is fascinating and so intriguing to me. I think there is so much for us to pull out of this and apply it to our lives.  Let’s dive in. 

“While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” - ‭‭Acts‬ ‭19:1-2‬ ‭NIV‬‬

What did Paul see, or maybe the better question is, what didn’t Paul see in these disciples? It’s a widely debated topic around these disciples if they were Christians since they were not filled with the Holy Spirit. I have a hard time thinking Luke would write this, and specifically call them disciples if they were not followers of Christ. Nevertheless, Paul perceived they lacked something, and they needed the Holy Spirit in their lives. 

My mind races in many different directions with this, and now you why it was a bit challenging to focus on the remaining verses. One place I go is, what would Paul think about my family and me upon meeting. This encounter seemed brief, and a bit of a Malcolm Gladwell “Blink” moment. Would my actions, my brief encounter with Paul, represent Christ in a way that shows the Holy Spirit is alive and working in my life, or would it be flat and lifeless? Forget Paul, how does my life day in, and day out model Christ? How about you? Knowing of Jesus, or having head knowledge of who He is, and what he has done and believing it is different than fully living a life for Jesus. Salvation, believing in and receiving Jesus and choosing to follow him happens in a moment, and then the transformation is a process. A question I wrestle with is when the Holy Spirit comes into our lives if not upon believing and receiving Jesus, then when? Is it a process of discovery, or a spiritual act that must be brought as Paul did? Is it a one-time act or multiple? This is a wormhole I can stay in, but I am going to move on because I am not sure it will be productive this morning. This expert from a commentary this morning was excellent:

God always wants us to go deeper. We tend to sip where we could drink deeply; we drink deeply where we could wade in, and we wade in where we could plunge in and swim. Most of us need to encouraged to go deeper and further into the things of the Holy Spirit.

We learn a little more as the text goes on.

“So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?” “John’s baptism,” they replied. Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” - ‭‭Acts‬ ‭19:3-4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Here we do pick up that in the process of believing and receiving Jesus, these Ephesian disciples had a fundamental understanding of our Savior Jesus and were willing to step into the process. These disciples had willing hearts and a passion for stepping into what they knew, and this is what Paul encountered. I believe Christians that were in the process and discovering more and more about Jesus, and like the commentary above says, God always wants us to go deeper. Paul took them deeper, and we read about this here.

“On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. There were about twelve men in all.” - ‭‭Acts‬ ‭19:5-7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Paul, assessed these Ephesian disciples and realized they were in process.  He quickly responded and pushed them towards pursuing Jesus and go deeper into a relationship by receiving the Holy Spirit and receiving His gifts. 

This encounter is just rocking my world this morning. We are Jesus disciples. Paul and Apostle of Christ was a disciple, and these Ephesians were disciples. That is a broad spectrum of Christ-followers. Where do we fit on the spectrum, and what are we doing about it? Are we living a life that resembles the Ephesian disciples, that looks like we are missing out on the Holy Spirit and His gifts? Or, are we more like Paul and seeing this lack in others and challenging other disciples around us to grow deeper in relationship with Christ and pursuing things of the Holy Spirit. 

A wormhole this morning caused by seven verses in chapter 19. I pray that I am the latter of this example. Lord, I pray that my life and actions represent you in a way that glorifies you, and the Holy Spirit powers me and flows through me to touch the lives of those around me. I pray this for you as well.