Conflict of Grace

 If you have your Bibles, if you have your Bibles, you're gonna, we're gonna do a run through of the, of the book of Acts quickly this morning in preparation. So we finished our series, our Advent series on Isaiah chapter 9, just on, on that passage where the names of Jesus are given to us. And we have this Sunday between Advent and the start of the new year.

It's funny, when I graduated from seminary, uh, this was the first Sunday I got to preach in what they called Big Church. So I was a youth pastor, and I got excited that I got to speak in Big Church, and so I emailed some of my seminary buddies, and I'm like, guess what, guys? They're already letting me preach in big church.

To which one of my buddies responded, every assistant pastor in the PCA is preaching this Sunday. Uh, so the Sunday after Christmas, I have since called, uh, assistant pastor Sunday. So welcome to assistant pastor Sunday. And we sure hope that Blake is enjoying some time away from what was a crazy few months.

Um, I, uh, I want to let you know that we will be, this 2025, we will be in Ephesians. And so, we've ordered some special books for you. It's the, it's the letter to the Ephesians, but it's bound with room for notes. And, uh, so I think it's a great idea. So you'll, you'll get to kind of take this with you and put your notes in it and keep it.

Um, and Ephesians is going to be wonderful. I am so excited about Ephesians. The last time I preached to Ephesians, it took almost two years because it is so jam packed. And so one thing you're going to hear in Ephesians, whenever I get a chance to preach, I'm going to ask you, what can a dead person do?

Because at the center of Ephesians, he says, You were dead in your trespasses and sins. And so, my previous churches, I, I, I instructed the people, if I said to them, what could a dead person do? They would respond, stink. What can a dead person do? Stink. Yeah. This beautiful grace that he's gonna expound from his prison cell to the church in Ephesus that he loved so dearly, that loved him so.

Dearly is going to be so rich and full of grace. So for those of you been at Trinity since its inception. And you have learned to say grace changes everything. You'll have it fleshed out in a city. So I thought the best thing for me to do this week, this Sunday, was to kind of set that up by looking at the church in Ephesus.

It's, it's formation. And it's conflict. And so, if you have your Bible, turn to Acts chapter 1. We're going to race through a few passages before we get to the text for this morning. As you're turning to Acts chapter 1, think about what this means. We've celebrated Advent, the birth of Jesus, and all these beautiful things, and homes being lit up, and beautiful nativity scenes.

But when Jesus comes into the world, we're missing one thing from the nativity scene, aren't we? We're missing the dragon of revelation. That the Apostle John sees. The virgin's about to give birth and the dragon stands there to devour the child. We can easily forget that this child came to declare a holy war against idolatry.

Against all other false and fake religions, not because he's unkind, not because he's selfish, but because he loves God's image bearers. And this son is born to bring all away from worshiping idols and vain images. Jesus birth matters to us because of what he has accomplished. He has rescued his own people from the dominion of darkness.

Now, all PCA sermons need C. S. Lewis or the Lord of the Rings in order to pass muster. And though this is often used, it stands as a great illustration. In the Lord of the Rings, there is a ring, right? And what is it called? My precious. And, and if you, if you watch the series or if you've read the books, you, you find that there is something beautiful and attractive about that ring.

That when you take it, it gives you power. Who would not want to be invisible at some point in their life, right? It gives you power. And by then over time, what does it do? It enslaves you. It changes you. All the things that you value slowly over time and it is patient over time lose their value. People, loved ones, even your own self is lost into a mumbling, bumbling idiot that just can say Gollum.

That's what idols do. And so wherever we see in Acts the apostles coming to a city, there is this cycle. They go to the synagogue and we call that the low hanging fruit. Right, the low hanging fruit. These are people that have read their Old Testament, that have been looking for a Messiah. These are people that would have had the songs of ascent every year that they would sing and recite to one another.

They would chant portions of Isaiah. These are the people that it seemed to the apostles, oh boy, we have found the one. Here he is. The scriptures spoke about him. Here is what he's done. What more could he do? To be your messiah so that the low hanging fruit and so you would see that the Apostles would go to the synagogue and when we get to Ephesus Apollos goes there before Paul and Apollos Reasons with the Jews and they get angry with him Why because even the Jews had idols in their hearts their idols were more subtle Than the one we read about in Ephesians their idols were their good works their nationality their religious heritage their faith Right?

Those were the idols that the apostles were saying that, that, that will not save you. Indeed, Jesus himself said he could take children, make children of Abraham out of the very stones. That will not save you. And so, of course there's conflict there. When we get to Ephesus, Apollos has been there. Paul is writing a letter to that church.

It's probably 60 to 62 A. D. from prison, from a Roman prison. He's writing a letter to that church. And his letter is put into this context. So, the book of Acts, um, chapters 1 to 7. Well, even before that, in the book of Acts, you have a second Great Commission. So, Acts 1, 8, Jesus appears to the disciples, and he says, You'll receive power.

When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you'll be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. And then it's interesting, the writer then follows that pattern. And so you see the church growing in, uh, Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria. If you ever wonder why Trinity's part of Acts 29, and you're one of those people that looked up Acts and couldn't find 29, Um, it's because of that.

We are continuing this work of the Apostles from Acts 28 on. We are continuing to spread the Gospel to the very ends of the earth, and it will be our job, it will be our calling, it will be our mission until Christ returns. So they receive that, and so in the first seven chapters, you see the Gospel going out to Jerusalem.

The church in Jerusalem is growing and growing and growing until Saul comes. And Stephen is martyred and Saul is introduced, Saul of Tarsus who becomes the Apostle Paul is introduced at the stoning of Stephen. Conflict. Grace brings conflict. Christian, I, I, I know that when you get a hold of the Gospel of Grace, and, and it kind of unfolds deeper and deeper in your life, and you long to see those that are enslaved to various forms of idolatry, and you think this is such great news, why will people not receive it?

Some of you probably come back from family visits where you've walked a fine line between being respectful and loving and yet not being able to stand lies that are told. Desiring out of the goodness and the kindness of your heart to share the gospel to others whom you love and you wonder why is there such conflict and it is because of this.

Human beings worship idols. We just, we just do. In fact, when you're converted to Christ, I think you're more converted to syncretism. You're like, okay, I'm accepting Jesus and yet you don't yet know what that means. You don't yet know what it means to put your complete faith and trust in Him. And by the beauty of the Holy Spirit, He slowly chips away at these things that you have been serving.

These things that you have been looking to for your value, identity, worth, and security. So in Jerusalem, there is, there is Stephen's martyrdom as the church strikes back. The Jerusalem church strikes back in Acts 8 to 12. Then we see it go from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria. Philip goes to Samaria, the Ethiopian eunuch is saved.

Saul of Tarsus is converted and becomes Paul the Apostle and starts a Gentile mission. In Acts 13 to 28, the gospel goes then to the ends of the earth. In chapters 13 to 22, you have the gospel before the Gentiles. In chapter 16, in Macedonia, Lydia is converted in Philippi. And in chapter 17, there's a conversion that goes on in Thessalonica.

And there's conflict. Chapter 17, verse 5, the Jews were jealous. They took wicked men of the rabble, and they formed a mob. They set the city in an uproar. They attacked the house of Jason, bringing him out in the crowd. They couldn't find him. They dragged Jason out. He was one of the early converts. Some of the brothers before the city authorities shouting, These men have turned the world upside down.

And they're here also. Jason's received them. And they're all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another King, Jesus. Another King, Jesus. Why do governments and authorities Allow all various forms of religion, but totalitarian states inherently hate Christianity because of this.

Christianity says Jesus is king. There's nothing different today, is there? In verse 8, people in the city authorities were disturbed. They heard these things. They took money and security and they let them go. In chapter 18, Paul is in Corinth. From Antioch he goes to Ephesus. And then from 22 to 28, he's before kings.

And so you see this. Spread of the Gospel. Apollos had previously preached in Ephesus. He had known about the baptism of John, the writer of Acts says, but not the baptism of Jesus. And they took him in and they trained him. In verse 26 of chapter 18 it says he speaks boldly in the synagogue. But Priscilla and Aquila heard him and they took him aside.

And they explained to him the way of God more accurately. I love that. He didn't understand. He needed growth, he needed to understand what this baptism of Christ meant. He goes on to Achaia, and then Paul goes to Ephesus. Wherever they go, they confront false gods, false powers. Sometimes the Lord gives them miracles to prove that His power is greater than the other powers that they serve.

Apollo seemed to avoid the confrontation, but Paul seemed to address the idolatry head on and face to face. Paul ends up in Ephesus speaking to the Gentiles. The Jews wouldn't have gone to the temple of Artemis, and so they are particularly absent from this encounter. So we get to chapter 19, Paul in Ephesus and a riot.

So if you have your Bibles, we're from the bulletin. Let's stand for the reading of God's Word.

About that time there arose no little disturbance concerning the way for a man named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought no little business to the craftsmen. These he gathered together with the workmen in similar trades and said, men, you know that from this business we have our wealth.

And you see and hear that not only in Ephesus, but in almost all of Asia. This Paul has persuaded and turned away a great many people. Saying that gods made with hands are not gods. And there's danger, not only that this trait of ours may come into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis may be counted as nothing.

And that she may even be deposed from her magnificence. She whom all Asia and the world worship. The grass withers and the flower fades. The word of our God will stand forever. This is the word of God. You may be seated.

Why can't we all just get along? Amen. You ever wondered that? Maybe, maybe some of you had it over Christmas. Why can't we all just get along? Maybe his family has gathered. You've, you've finally worked out this tenuous piece that we don't talk about this, this in politics and religion. Uh, then we can all get along.

I tell you why we can't all get along. Because every religious solution apart from Jesus the Savior are dangerous frauds. Every religious solution apart from Jesus Are dangerous frauds with which there can be no compromise or even a polite toleration. And so the gospel of grace brings conflict. I wonder for a few moments if you would just think about what you surrendering to Jesus has cost you.

And if you've yet to give your life to Christ. Is there some cost that you're secretly holding on to and say, I, I just don't want to give up this? Is it sexual freedom? Is it friends? Is it money? Is it your very life? Physical pain? Suffering? You know that each city has a culture or a subculture, and each city and area has really its own set of gods and values and idols.

When I took a mission trip to Nepal, when we got to Kathmandu, we checked into a hotel, they gave each of us and the students a little god. You know, and, and it's supposed to guide us. It was supposed to, as long as we kept it in our pocket, You know, it was supposed to keep us safe through our travels. And me, being a boisterous man, said, Thank you, and I put the God on the ground, and I crushed it.

And the kids were like, Whoa. I said, I'm not carrying this thing around in my pocket. It's not a God. It's a lie. It's a lie. Some of those gods are really easy to figure out, aren't they? You see it. But our enemy's gotten much more subtle with us. But each city has its own set of values and gods and idols.

Uh, you know, for a few years when Bartlesville was being planted, I would go up on every other Sunday night or so and preach. And I think it was one Sunday night I was talking to people afterwards and they said something about Frank Phillips. And I said, who, who's Frank Phillips? And they all just looked at me like, Did you just get off the boat?

Like in that city, right? There's the Frank Phillips Boulevard. There's Woollo Rock. There's just, you know, I mean, there's Phillips 66. I mean, yeah, I should have known, right? But each city, each culture has its own set. It was interesting for us as we moved from place to place to watch my teenage kids inculturate in their dress, in their saying, in their music, in their heroes.

Alright, what does this culture say is worthwhile and valuable? Here in Ephesus, Artemis stood front and center, and her temple. And so when the apostle comes, he goes head first into this conflict. Note, gods made with human hands, I'm sorry people, are not gods. And that's the encounter that we see here. And before it, in chapter 19, a bunch of occultists get converted, and this is what happens.

In verse 19 of chapter 19, it says, A number of those who practiced magic arts, they brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them, and they found it came to 50, 000 pieces and Of silver, they were converted and they said, not only do we not want these books to be read anymore, we don't want to sell them.

We don't want to goodwill them. We don't want to get, we're going to burn them and we're going to do it in public. So that all those that we have misled, all those that we have told to trust this God or that God or burn this incense or sacrifice this. All of those that have seen us, that we have led astray, we might make witness publicly that we led you astray.

That we were worshiping lies. What we thought would rescue you would eventually take your life. And so that happened in public. Alright, so that's what happens in our scene. Demetrius sees this. They hear about, here's what's going on. Every time these apostles, these groups go from city to city. Those who worship idols, those who make idols and find they're living from idols.

We are suffering an economic catastrophe. We can't let that happen here. It cost them who followed Christ not just the price of selling their books, but really it cost them and they were willing to lose everything. In Ephesus was the temple of Artemis, one of the seven wonders of the world. Uh, destroyed, uh, the second time it was rebuilt, I think in the fourth century, by the Goths who came in and destroyed it.

It was one of the seven wonders of the world. Artemis, and you might have heard of Diana, kind of the same, uh, goddess, the Roman goddess, uh, in the Greek and Roman mythology. They provided their worshipers, this is what they gave their worshipers, protection during hunting. Isn't that cool? Wives, like, hey, don't forget to take Artemis when you get up in that tree stand.

Kuiper protected them from hunting, isn't that something? Okay, you don't care, I do. Childbirth, guardian of young women, they offered support for fertility, successful child rearing and safe passage through the wilderness. They were particularly seen as a powerful protector of women. And yet, the Apostle could not let it stand unheeded.

Why can't we get along? Because the human heart is drawn to idolatry. It is everywhere. It infects us. Growing up with me as a dad was pretty hard on my kids sometimes because I just would never let stuff go. We'd watch some Disney movie or something and I'd pause it and they're like, oh boy, here it comes.

I'm like, kids, do you see what they're doing here? Can you see what's going on here in Happy Feet? All right, who sounds like the religious person in Happy Feet? Oh, do you see this picture of destruction? Do you see that there's a cross in there? Okay, dad, it's just a movie about a penguin that wants to dance.

No, it's not! It's much deeper. Okay, dad, thanks. I'm going to watch this at my friend's house. It is, however, everywhere, and I would say that it is not necessarily purposeful by those who promote it. And the gospel comes to Ephesus, and the first and most noteworthy idol is confronted. Tertullian writes on idolatry in the first chapter, and says, the principal crime of the human race.

The highest guilt charged upon the world, the whole procuring cause of judgment is idolatry. For although each individual sin retains its own proper feature, although it is destined to judgment under its own proper name also, yet they all fall under the general heading of idolatry. All murder and adultery, for example, are idolatry, for they arise because something is loved more than God.

Yet in turn all idolatry is murder, for it assaults God, and all idolatry is also adultery. For it's unfaithfulness to God, thus it comes to pass that in idolatry all crimes are detected, and in all crimes, idolatry. Think of it this way. We've had ones we've loved become addicted to substances. And when it reaches its culmination, the fix is the ultimate God, isn't it?

We've seen people lose jobs, lose family, lose relationships. Uh, lie, cheat, steal for something that they believe promises them life. Richard Keyes in his book, No God, it's not his book, in the book No God But God, writes, A careful reading of the Old and New Testament shows idolatry is nothing like the crude simplistic picture that springs to mind of an idol sculpture in some distant country.

There's a main category to describe unbelief. The idea is highly sophisticated, drawing together the complexities of motivation in individual psychology, the social environment, and also the unseen world. Idols are not just on pagan altars, but in well educated human hearts and minds. The apostle associates the dynamics of human greed, lust, craving, and coveting with idolatry.

The Bible does not allow us to marginalize idolatry to the fringes of life. It is found on center stage. Just one more quote from David Paulison and the idols of the heart and Vanity Fair. The rele relevance of massive chunks of scripture hangs on our understanding of idolatry. But let me focus the question through a particular verse in the New Testament.

Beloved, keep yourself from idols First. John 5 21. How does that command merit being the final word in 105 verse treatise on living in vital fellowship with Jesus, the son of God. Keeping oneself from idols sums up what vital fellowship with Jesus is. Now if this is new to you, and I suspect it probably isn't, but if this concept of it is new to you, I'm going to give you my simplistic version of what an idol is.

An idol is anything or anyone that replaces or outplaces our God in our affections. In our love, in our worship, hope, security, or commitments, anything or anyone that either replaces or outplaces our God. In our affections, love, worship, hope, security, or commitments. Sometimes, they are good things that become ultimate things.

And so we have conflict. The sermon and the sentence this morning is that if we submit to Jesus, we enter into a holy war against all idolatry. For to bring God's salvation to the ends of the earth, those who witness Christ must unmask treasured idols, encountering hostility from those whose security is shaken by God's.

Truth. We must go on a quest of the identification and the dismantling of idols. Our Savior knows that they war against our very selves, our very being. They seek to subdue us, to use us and discard us. They make promises they can't keep. They offer pleasures that don't last. And those who serve them, as the prophet Isaiah says, become like them.

Turning from idols threatens your whole community. And here is what is at stake. What will it cost to convert? Well, uh, in our text, verses 24 through 31, I want to just list these three things that it costs. And it's just a, it's just a sampling. Of what it costs, but we, we see these kind of overarching and, and I want to just introduce one more concept.

We have this, what we would call this external idol. Okay. So it might be the Stanley cup, you know, not the expensive ones you drink out of, but you know, the ones you win in the hockey, uh, right. The Stanley cup that, that might be in some sense for some people, the visible idol, uh, The invisible or the unseen idol is what that promises you.

Winning the Stanley Cup promises me, as a coach, security, significance, respect, money. Okay, so idols are often that way. There is a, there is kind of a, a visible one. Uh, there's the seen one, but then there is the unseen that the seen one is connected to. And so that's why they would give you an image and say, you know, this is the seen one, but, but Diana herself will give you an image.

There are two main ones that are related to security and safety, right? The seen one in Ephesus is Diana, this Artemis, this big, big temple. The unseen ones are what Demetrius accuses and rouses up this riot from, right? The first one is community, right? Verse 24, Demetrius is a silver smith. He gathers up the craftsmen and those of a similar trade, and he gathers them together and says, you know, brothers, hey.

Remember, we're in this together. Do you know what binds us together? Brothers, this idol that we serve, she, she, she holds us two together. And idols will do that. Idols will build community, right? And, and, and so when you apply this this week, or when you think about it, that's the first question I want you to ask yourself.

What community would I risk not being a part of if I wholeheartedly surrender myself to Jesus? Because that's what he's appealing to here. Brothers and tradesmen, this is our living. This is who we are. You don't think idols build community? Well, think about this. Uh, my son in law works at Disney, and they have this funny thing about Disney adults.

Has anybody ever heard about Disney adults? Maybe some of you are Disney adults. If so, it's not purposeful. I don't know. But there are these adult, all their clothing is Disney. Everything about them is Disney. There are people that like to refer to themselves as Swifties. Anybody know what that means?

People looking down, mm hmm. I see you, I see you, I see you over there. Right, it is a community, right? Idols build this community. Doesn't matter what you look like, how much you, how much you make, like, we are, we are, we are joined by. I could be a football team. It could be a musician. Um, it, it, it brings us together.

And that was being threatened. It could even be your family. A few years ago, I baptized a young lady in Grove to Christianity, whose father was an outspoken atheist in the area.

conversion meant I, I am going to lose this community with my earthly father. And we're not used to that in the U. S., are we? It was hard for me. I'm like, what dad would not want his daughter to follow Christ? You know, even if you're not a Christian, you, you like that, that's going to be great. But it was an act for her of saying, I'm refusing your idols.

You're not putting my faith and trust. In Jesus Christ, what might you have to give up to surrender to Jesus? Will you lose your community, your family and your friends before we get too hard on the folks in Ephesus? That is what it cost them. Before you get too hard on Demetrius and those silversmiths, ask yourself, what if following Christ?

Cost me my community. And I tell you what, it's even more than that. Uh, the second thing that he points out is really his business, his wealth, his financial security and verses 24 and 25. He's like, there's no, it brought no little business. Demetrius, our finances are dependent on it. This is brothers, how we got our wealth.

Are you aware of what these apostles are going to do to our livelihood? How do we apply this? Well, that may be a great question for yourself. Are there things I do in my vocation that I have compromised with the idols of success? The idols of making money, the idols of impressing my peers and my bosses.

Have you given too much power to your vocation? I find that In the U. S., that's an important thing, isn't it? You introduce yourselves. Hi, I'm so and so. Oh, what do you do? And that's the third thing. Respect and prominence in verses 26 and 27. Look there. Uh, you see in here, not only in Ephesus, Paul's persuaded and turned people away.

And verse 27, there's danger not only that our trade may come into disrepute. But also that the temple of the great goddess, Artemis, may be counted as nothing, and she might be deposed from her magnificence, idol's, promise, respect, and prominence. What gives you respect and prominence? What does it in our culture, Demetrius is saying, we're gonna lose that.

I'm a silversmith. I want to pass it on to my son. It's an honorable profession. I help people connect to the goddess that gives them comfort, security, peace, and fertility. What would it look like if the community realized I was selling lies? What would that mean for me? Maybe I could find another job, but respect, reputation, and prominence.

Are you willing to give that up and surrender? The way this ends is, is really interesting. It's, it's like a giveaway from Demetrius. Look at this last verse, verse 27. Um, they now have to protect their God. Um, if you join us for, um, uh, adult Christian education, uh, starting next, starting back up next week, um, Paul Delory's been going through 1 Kings 18, and there's this, this beautiful.

Interplay that's very clear and, uh, and, and visceral of, of 1 Kings 18, the, the, the prophets of Baal versus Elijah. And what does he do? He starts mocking them. Maybe your God's asleep. But then God prevails, and what happens? The community does not want God to prevail. The community likes its idol worship.

For an idol is something we can control, or we think we can control. And this idol has worked for so many people around me, and an idol may have worked for you for many, many years, and that's why it's interesting in the passage that James read out of Acts 17, he says, God has patiently held back during times of ignorance.

But there is a day coming. There is a day coming. And so rather than, okay, you guys are on your own. The mission of the church is a rescue mission from the wrath of God poured out upon idols, idolaters, and all who follow and give. I don't know what you want to expect from Ephesians, but I think you'll get a reason to hope and trust in Jesus above all.

Others, we'll study that letter together and you'll realize. Uh, you'll forget at times that it's being written by someone who sits in a Roman prison. You will. You'll forget. You'll hear him speak so wonderfully about salvation and the hope of the gospel that the American health and wealth that's crept into all of us will say, wait a minute, isn't he in jail?

How can he be happy in chains? That's the beauty of the gospel of grace. Amen. Let's pray. Oh, Father, will you send your Holy Spirit to us? Us who call upon you? Oh, Jesus is our Lord and our Savior. We pray, Holy Spirit, that you will identify and expose those deep rooted idols of our heart. Those things that we feel like if if they were gone, life would not be worth living.

If they if they were gone, I'd never be happy again. If they were gone, what would people think of me? Whatever manner, Holy Spirit, for our good and for your glory, will you root those out for us? And will you owe Jesus with this sacrament? Will you fill us with yourself? Are you not a God that needs to be defended or fought over?

You are the God who gives himself for his people. You are the God who makes the sacrifice necessary for salvation. And may that, Father, the beauty of that so encapsulate our hearts and minds that when idols come up, maybe it's from a friend or a loved one or a spouse or a child even, we will not quickly go to defend ourselves or the idol, but be quick to repent and to be released of its power.

Will you make this so? We ask in Jesus name, Amen. Let's continue in worship by giving the Lord his tithes and our offerings.

Sermon transcript is computer generated.