In his sermon 'The War Without,' Peter Allison explores the events in Acts 19, where a commotion in Ephesus arises due to the impact of Paul's teachings on the local economy, specifically in relation to the goddess Diana. Paul, guided by the Spirit, plans his travels with flexibility, responding to practical necessities while prioritizing his mission to spread the Gospel. The sermon highlights the complex relationship between the church and the world, emphasizing that while Christians live in the world, they should not be of it. It discusses the world's opposition to Christ's reign, characterized by the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. The sermon concludes by encouraging Christians to trust in the Lord, do good, dwell in the land, and feed on God's faithfulness as strategies to overcome the world's opposition.

Scripture this morning is Acts chapter 19 beginning at verse 21. Hear God's word. When these things were accomplished, Paul purposed in the Spirit when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia to go to Jerusalem, saying, After I have been there, I must also see Rome. So he sent into Macedonia two of those who ministered to him, Timothy and Erastus. But he himself stayed in Asia for a time.

And about that time there arose a great commotion in the way. For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Diana, brought no small profit to the craftsmen. He called them together with the workers of similar occupation and said, men, you know that we have our prosperity by this trade. Moreover, you see and hear that not only at Ephesus, but throughout almost all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying they are not gods which are made with hands. So not only is this trade of ours falling into disrepute, but also the temple of the great goddess Diana may be despised and her magnificence destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worshiped.

And when they heard this, they were full of wrath, and cried out, saying, Great is Diana of the Ephesians! So the whole city was filled with confusion, and rushed into the theater with one accord, having seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians, Paul's travel companions. And when Paul wanted to go into the people, the disciples would not allow him. Then some of the officials of Asia who were his friends sent to him pleading that he would not venture into the theater Some therefore cried one thing and some another for the assembly was confused and most of them did not know why they had come together and they drew Alexander out of the multitude. The Jews putting him forward and Alexander motioned with his hand and wanted to make his defense to the people.

But when they found out that he was a Jew, all with one voice, cried out for about two hours, great is Diana of the Ephesians. And when the city clerk had quieted the crowd, he said, men of Ephesus, what man is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple guardian of the great goddess Diana and of the image which fell down from Zeus. Therefore, since these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing. For you have brought these men here, who are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemers of your goddess. Therefore, if Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a case against anyone, the courts are open and there are proconsuls.

Let them bring charges against one another. But if you have any other inquiry to make, it shall be determined in the lawful assembly. For we are in danger of being called in question for today's uproar there being no reason which we may give it to account for the disorderly gathering and when he had said these things he dismissed the assembly May this word give you life and be your comfort in affliction. Heavenly Father, please open this word to us. May it be life-giving.

May it be life-transforming and renewing. And I pray that you would sanctify my sinful lips, that they may proclaim the riches of Your grace through Jesus Christ. Amen. This week we come to the war without. We have looked for the past few weeks at this chapter under the rubric, under the overall banner of the war, as this is the war for Ephesus, chapters 19 and 20.

You know, first there was the Ephesian Pentecost. The giving of the Holy Spirit to His people to disciple the nations, to be victorious over the world. And then there was the demonic aspect of this war. For we know that we don't battle against flesh and blood. The unseen spiritual world is real and are very much a part of the church's war for Ephesus.

The demons are powerful and they are fighting back against this attack on their stronghold. Ephesus was certainly a demonic stronghold, probably more so than most other cities. It was a capital of the Roman province, one of the two or three largest cities, both in terms of economy and population in the Roman Empire. And it was known for its magic arts. Of course, demons are particularly attracted to the centers of power where the rulers are because that's Working through those rulers they can extend and amplify their power I mean anybody that's been around Austin, you know realizes this or Washington DC These places are particularly Troublesome And this may have been one reason why the Holy Spirit did not allow Paul to press through Asia on his second missionary journey.

Remember, he had revisited all the churches that he had planted on the first journey, and then the Spirit said, no, don't go there and go north, and then the Spirit said, no, don't go farther, you need to go to Macedonia. And this, I think may have been one reason for that seemingly that direction that he received at that time There you see there needed to be more churches in Macedonia and Greece, in addition to the churches that were already planted in Asia on his first journey in order to pray for this work that would be at Ephesus. You see, Paul was never in a hurry to confront the demonic. He always waited until the Holy Spirit led him to do so. I think it's interesting that this is the last church that's being planted that's recorded in Acts.

I think this was a demonic stronghold. It was in Paul's letter to the Ephesians that we have him talking about this kind of battle and the armor for this battle because they were particularly in a demonic stronghold. And so this was the last. Paul planted churches all around this. Planted churches, remember, through southern Asia, Galatia, Phrygia.

He planted churches in Macedonia, Philippi, Thessalonica, Borea, all the way down the Achaean peninsula there. So that surrounds Ephesus. And it's last then that he comes to Ephesus. And he spends probably the longest time there of any place that he was. He spent probably 18 months or two years in Corinth, but he spends three years here in Ephesus.

So we looked at the battle for the demonic, then most recently we looked at the war within, our own flesh. And so this riot that we read about would have occurred, I think, somewhat soon after all the confessions and the renunciations and the burnings of books that we looked at last week. And so today, the focus of our examination of this war for Ephesus is as it respects the world. We want to look at it from two perspectives, and I think they are both equally important. The first perspective we want to look at this morning is Paul's interaction with the world.

How does he and the church relate to the world? And the second is how does the world interact or relate or attack the church? I think we see both of these aspects of the war without in this text. Now, the word world is only used once in this text that we read. But it has many nuances, ranging from the wicked who oppose Christ's reign to the physical earth and the natural events in it.

The word is cosmos in both Greek and English. And essentially it refers to the sum total of everything in the here and the now. The sum total of everything in the here and now. It's the universe and all that's in it. It's not just a globe, although that's certainly in the world.

When the Bible is talking about the physical world, It usually refers to it in the sense of a creation, or in the sense of the land. But this world, this is what God created in six days by the power of His Word. Paul told the Athenians in Acts 17 that God made the world and everything in it. This is what fell in the fall. Romans 5, therefore just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin.

The world, this is a world that fell. Sin entered the world. This is the realm in which Satan rules. 1 John 5 19, We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. The world, all that's in it.

The cultures, the people, the way of life, the cosmos. This is what God destroyed in the flood. Peter says in 2 Peter 3, For this they willfully forget that by the word of God, the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water. The globe didn't perish. The world did.

The world that was on that globe perished. The people, the inhabitants, their way of life, and all their abominations perished. The creation didn't perish in the flood. The cosmos, the world perished in the flood. This is what God so loved that he sent his only begotten son into to redeem.

For God so loved the world. It's not the land that he's talking about. It's not dirt. He's talking about. It's the world the cosmos This is what Jesus came into in the flesh.

He entered into the world to save it. John 12, 47, and if anyone hears my words and does not believe, I do not judge him, for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. And he came into the world to testify to the truth, Jesus said, John says in John 18, for this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world that I should bear witness to the truth. Jesus comes into the world to save it, to bear witness to the truth, to God. This is what Satan will be cast out of.

John 12, 31. Now is the judgment of the world. Now the ruler of the world will be cast out because it's not his. He may have the reign sway over it, but he has it as a usurper. He's stolen it.

It doesn't belong to him. He's a usurper. He's a dictator who's seized power unrighteously. And he will be cast out, and it will be fully restored to its rightful owner. Satan will be cast out of the world Now we are not to be of the world It's not our home Jesus said of His disciples in John 17, they are not of the world, Just as I am not of the world we are not of the world And we're told not in first John 2 not to love the world do not love the world or the things in the world For if anyone loves the world the love of the father is not in him.

You can't, it's one or the other. You either love the world or we love the father. But if we love the world, we can't love the father. And if we love the father, we won't be loving the world. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father, but is of the world.

James 4, adulterers and adulteresses, Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. See we either love the world or we love God. We can't love both. But we must be in the world.

We're not to be of the world. We're not of the world. It's not our home, but it is where we are dwelling right now. And it's wrong to try not to live in the world, to think, well, our home is in heaven, so we need to escape this world. And people have tried that.

There are some ridiculous things they've tried. They go off into communes, think they're going to get out of the world. They shut out all technology, thinking they're going to shut the world out and this evil that's in the world. But of course you can't because we take it in with us. There are people in the early church age who would live up on poles, 30 feet up in the air, and just exist up there in an effort to get out of the world.

That is not at all what we are called to do. I think to the extent that we try to escape this world, we completely fail in what God calls us to do. Paul told the Corinthian church in 1 Corinthians 5, he says he told them not to associate, he was telling them not to associate with a brother who was sexually immoral. Not to have that intimate fellowship and friendship. But Then he says, yet I certainly didn't mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, nor with the covetous or extortioners or idolaters.

Since then, you would need to go out of the world. So Paul's making it clear. He's not saying we have to wall ourself off from unbelievers and having contact with them. He says then you would need to go out of the world and that's not what we're to do. This world is what takes up our ordinary lives and we must be concerned about the things of the world.

This means we have to interact with people, with the world, the people in it. We aren't called to leave the world, or to have no interaction, no connection with the people in this world. 1 Corinthians 7, 33, But he who is married cares about the things of the world. Paul's not condemning that. He's saying that he has to do that.

If he doesn't do that, he's worse than an unbeliever. How he may please his wife. There is a difference between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried woman cares about the things of the Lord that she may be holy, but she was married carries about the things of the world. See what we have relationships that are godly relationships that bring duties that require us to care about the things of the world.

So we have to be in the world. We're called to be in the world, but not of the world. We're called to see this world as, to be in this world as sojourners. And finally, the world is in opposition to Christ's reign. The world is the wicked who oppose Christ's reign.

And that encompasses all the corruptions which are pervasive throughout the earth. It includes all the pleasures and the delights and the allurements by which the carnal nature of man is captivated. These allurements of the world distract us, and they lead us away from the Lord. Because to the extent that we love them, we can't love the Lord. So the world hates Christ, and The world is at war with His Kingdom.

So with that introduction to the world, let's look at how Paul lives in the world, and then we'll look at how the world responds to the church in Ephesus. So how does Paul live in the world? He makes future plans, verse 22, that are based on two fundamental things. They're based on the leading of the spirit and the practical necessities of the world. When these things were accomplished, Paul purposed in the spirit, he purposed, He made a plan.

And he was to go visit Macedonia and Achaia and go to Jerusalem. But he had a practical reason for these travels. That he explains more fully in his letter to the Romans. Luke doesn't get into all the details about why he is planning this trip. But he says in Romans 15, for this reason, and he's making reference to an explanation earlier that he did not want to build on another man's foundation.

He wanted to go where people hadn't heard the Gospel. So he's writing to the Romans. He's saying, for this reason, I have been much hindered from coming to you. Because This was a church that apparently had been planted by somebody else. He says, but now, no longer having a place in these parts and having a great desire, these many years to come to you, Whenever I journey to Spain, I shall come to you.

For I hope to see you on my journey and be helped on my way there by you, if first I may enjoy your company for a while." He's making some plans, some far out plans. But then he says, But now, But now I am going to Jerusalem to minister to the saints, for it pleased those in Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor among the saints who are in Jerusalem. So Paul now explains what the purpose, one of the purposes of his trip was. He was going to visit through Macedonia and Achaia and then go to Jerusalem to bring a gift. Now we think, well why don't you just wire it?

But they couldn't do it in those days, right? They had to carry something. And when you carried a lot of money, it was a big deal. So generally, gifts were carried in person. And the people need money to live.

And sometimes the poor need a little extra help. And so this is a practical necessity of living in the world. And so Paul makes plans here to fulfill this very earthly need. Bringing money, bringing some financial aid to the saints here in Jerusalem. And to do that, he's going to visit these churches to get their donations and then Take it.

Now notice that the timing of this plan was based on having accomplished his previous task. He says, when these things were accomplished, you see there's a logic. There's a progression to his plans. That's based on practical needs, but also based on completing the previous task. He's not starting one task and jumping to another task before the current one is done.

And so we see then that receiving guidance from the Spirit and making plans according to the practical necessities of our life in this world, they're not mutually exclusive things. They're not incompatible. The two work together. We use the knowledge that we have learned from scriptures and our experience we have gained from life about the world to plan. And we should be planning everything from our careers and long-term finances to where we will live, to the jobs we will do on any given day.

And as we do, the Lord leads by His Spirit. But you see Paul planning. He's laying plans. He's laying specific plans, detailed plans. He's communicating those plans so people know what he's planning to do.

See, trusting the Lord and leaning not on our own understanding doesn't mean we don't plan. It means we commit our plans to the Lord, knowing that apart from His blessing, we can't do anything. But with Him, we can do all things. And so that's why we add or should add the Lord willing in our plans. Or sometimes you see it Deo Volente, Dei Divi, the Lord willing.

Now that also doesn't mean that we must always move tentatively or unsure of ourselves or always looking for some confirmation. We should have boldness From what God has given us in the Scriptures and the experiences that we have learned from this world with our sanctified understanding, we should be able to move forward with boldness and confidence in our plans. I think these are marks of maturity. Being tentative about everything or uncertain about everything is not trusting the Lord. Trusting the Lord is to move forward, having committed our plans to the Lord, to move forward with boldness and confidence.

And if the Lord changes them, so be it. So Paul also builds flexibility into his planning. We see this in his letter to the Corinthian church that would have been written about this time or just shortly after the events that are here. He says in 1 Corinthians 16, and I'm just going to read this section of this letter because it conveys, you see in there, all the flexibility that he's building into his plans. He's communicating plans, but he's putting a lot of flexibility in there.

And these plans that you see him telling to the Corinthians are very similar to the plans that he's communicating to the Romans, in the book of Romans. So he says, now concerning the collection for the saints, And remember that was his purpose of his visit to get the collection. I have given orders to the church as I have given orders to the churches in Galatia so you must do. On the first day of the week let each one of you lay aside something, as you may prosper, that there be no collections when I come." You notice he's making a plan here to maximize the efficiency of his visit. And this plan that he's giving them was based on his, It's a process he viewed in other churches, and that process was based on his experience that he's learned from.

So he's passing this on, this plan. He says, and when I come, whomever you approve by your letters, I will send to bear your gift to Jerusalem. You see, he leaves some things contingent, things that are outside of his control are contingent, but the contingency is planned, included in his plan. But if it is fitting that I go, they will go with me. Again, he allows flexibility in his plan to either go for another person to carry it, and for him to go with that other person, or for him not to go with that other person or for him to carry it, he's flexible on this.

He's leaving contingencies. He says, Now when I come to you, I will come to you when I pass through Macedonia, for I am passing through Macedonia. And it may be that I will remain, or even spend the winter with you, that you may send me on my journey." It may be. You notice there's a contingency there. He's leaving, His plan includes flexibility for various contingencies that he might have to decide in the moment.

So he doesn't know. He's not committing in advance a rigid plan that has no flexibility. He may spend the winter there, may not. He says, for I do not wish to see you now on the way, but I hope to stay with you awhile if the Lord permits. And here he acknowledges the Lord's sovereign disposition of this plan that Luke tells us about in Acts 19.

Now the third thing we see in Paul's planning here is that he also builds flexibility in his plans and is willing to modify them. And when circumstances change, He makes plans that are in response to what transpires in the world. And when circumstances change, we recognize this is the Lord's doing, and we respond accordingly. Proverbs 21 says, The horse is prepared for battle, but deliverance is of the Lord. Paul made these plans to go, but notice he doesn't leave right away.

Instead, he changes his plan and sends two of his helpers, different from what he was planning to do. We see that in the but. But, but he stayed. He sends two helpers, Timothy and Erastus, while he remained in Asia for some time. Now Timothy, we've already met and been introduced to earlier.

Erastus, I think it's the first time he's mentioned in this book. And he was treasurer of the city of Corinth and one of Paul's disciples or converts. And so as a treasurer of the city, his conversion would have been one of the fruits of Paul's ministry there. We know that Corinth was his normal place of abode, but here Paul uses him to go to Macedonia. But it says Paul stays.

Now why would Paul stay after making plans to go, but send his helpers instead? Well, verse 23 tells us that commotion, a commotion was developing concerning the way. And as Paul sees this commotion develop, he changes his plans to remain in Ephesus and defend the church that he had planted against an attack that he sees coming against it by the world. In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul goes on to explain to that church exactly why he was delayed. He says, but I will tarry in 1 Corinthians 16, but I will tarry in Ephesus until Pentecost for a great and effective door has opened to me and there are many adversaries.

This is why he modified his plan. There were many adversaries And he had a door for ministry, so he changed his plan and sent his helpers. Then he says, If Timothy comes, see that he may be with you without fear, for he does the work of the Lord, as I also do." These are mundane matters of everyday life, aren't they? Sometimes we go about them without much thought. But notice here how Paul keeps the purpose of his life, his mission, his calling.

He keeps that central in his planning and his labor. He's called to preach the Gospel, to plant churches, and to build those churches up and equip the saints there for the work of ministry. And this mission is what drives all his planning and all his decisions. There's an opportunity for ministry. A great one and an effective one.

And so he changes his plan. He delays this trip, which is also important. And he stays. Now, why would he stay? Why would he not, if there's a great effective ministry and there's a great adversary that he's preparing to battle, why would he have not kept Timothy and Erastus there?

I think that's because there was a need in the churches. And 1 Corinthians 16 again explains that. He says, now concerning our brother Apollos, I strongly urge him to come to you with the brethren." But he was quite unwilling to come at this time. However, he will come when he has a convenient time. So there's some need there that Paul is urging Apollos to go.

Apollos won't go for whatever reason, and so Paul sends his helpers, Timothy and Erastus. But he recognizes Timothy has some weaknesses, and so he all goes on to say, and if Timothy comes, see that he may be with you without fear, for he does the work of the Lord. Therefore, let no one despise him, but send him on his journey in peace, that he may come to me, for I am waiting for him with the brethren." So Paul is sending these helpers because there is some need there that needs to be taken care of, and he doesn't want to ignore that. I think this commotion that Demetrius stirs up didn't happen in a day. This was built.

This was over some days, weeks, maybe even longer. And so Paul makes the decision to stay. And so we see in this then that Paul doesn't run from the world. He doesn't run from the war when things start heating up in Ephesus. He runs to it.

We see him staying in Ephesus as he sees this potential conflict coming up. And he knows what that can do. He's seen these mobs in other cities, and it's cost him dearly in some of these other cities. But he wants to stay. We also see it in his strong desire in verse 30 to enter the theater filled with a mob that could have been as big as 25, 000 people.

This theater that Luke refers to, you can actually go visit it today. It's been excavated. It's cut into the side of the mountain, and we know it would hold about 25, 000 people. Whether it was full or not, don't know, but presumably it was. And so this is a mob in there that's out to get Paul.

They're angry. Demetrius has stirred up their anger and Paul is not running from it, he's running to it. He wants to go into it. But neither is he rash, or he exercises prudence in listening to his friends who tell him, don't go, don't go in. So there's a practical aspect to Paul's zeal and willingness to engage against the world.

He's practically wise in what the right time to engage and what's the right way to engage. But we see there also that Paul is involved in the world that he's living in, and that he's making friends with officials. Notice there in verse 31, then some of the officials of Asia who were his friends. The word is asiarch, Asian official. And as an officer in the province of Asia, generally selected from the more wealthy and upper class citizens to provide, preside over things that pertain to religious worship and to put on these annual public games at their own expense in honor of the gods, similar to what would have been done in Rome.

So these men may not have even been Christians. They certainly couldn't be Christians and continue to hold these games dedicated to idols. But these are seen as Paul's friends. They're his friends. He's obviously interacted with them.

He goes to lunch with them. They know Him and He knows them. Now, that's Paul's interaction with the world. What is the world's relationship to Paul and the church? We see that's one of hatred and opposition.

As we read earlier, 1 John says, for all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father, but is of the world. And These three things are on full display in this account. James says the love of money is the root of all evil. And this whole riotous affair and all the evils that come from it grow out of the love of money. Business is down.

Christians are no longer buying their idols. And there are so many Christians in this city that it's having a noticeable impact on their business. Their money is being threatened. Their money supply is being threatened. You see, because the Gospel affects our finances and changes how we spend our money.

It changes our priorities. And that money that had been being spent on silver images of some hideous, multi-breasted woman carved out of a meteorite, were now being used to tie it to the church and advance God's kingdom. And this all happened within people through the preaching of the Word. There was no organized campaign to shut down their business. It was organically drying up as people made decisions as they were now led by the Holy Spirit and no longer friends with the world.

And this is the only way that true sustainable change comes. Some externally driven boycott may have some temporary effect, But it's not without great financial cost and continual agitation. It's like spinning plates. The instant somebody stops spinning them, they all fall down. But see what the Holy Spirit does in the lives of believers is permanent and lasting and endures.

And it results in permanent change. See, we have the leaders that people want, we have the economy that people want. These things can't be imposed externally. They arise organically from the cumulative, some cumulative total of all of our desires, our priorities, and where we spend our money and how we spend our time. That's the economy.

The sum total of that is the economy. It's not imposed from without. Although there are certainly many who will do everything they can to encourage us one way or the other. And so Demetrius has figured out the reason for this decline in their business. He's realized it's Paul and the gospel that he preaches.

Moreover, you see and hear not only in Ephesus, but throughout almost all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that our God Diana isn't a God, if it's made with hands. And he's right in that. He was exactly correct in that assessment. The unbelievers are very accurate in understanding the foundation of the attack on their world. I think sometimes Christians are less so.

And the unbelievers know how to attack the foundation. We see that strategically in our country over the last 100 years. The world went after the Bible first, attacked the authority of scripture, the inspiration of scripture. And that was the foundation, That's what they went for. Then they went for education.

Why? Because that's how you control people and what they think. You see, the world is very foundational, very strategic in their attack on the Church. And I think often we maybe are not so strategic in our attack on the world. We tend to go after the symptoms and not the root cause.

The government schools have been a huge, huge Trojan horse that has brought into our world all manner of lies and manipulation, and has been a source of maintaining. In the early, the first decade of this last century, people were actively planning, according to their minutes anyways, according to the minutes, there are many organizations actively planning how do you subvert America, this Christian land, how do you subvert it? And war is one way to do it, because war creates fear and confusion. And in those circumstances, people are willing to do whatever it takes. And in that moment then they say, well how do we perpetuate what we've accomplished in World War I?

And they conclude that it's through control of education. That's why Moses in Deuteronomy 4 is emphasizing the importance of education, of teaching our children and our grandchildren what the Lord has done, teaching them His law and His Word. And so Demetrius has then figured out where this problem is coming from. He's got to the root of it. And his love of money drives him to attack Paul and the church, because he correctly perceives that's the threat to his business.

He's not willing to accept what the market is saying and start making silver products that will be useful to this new segment of the economy. That would be a proper response. But his love of money compels him to attack. Now, Demetrius by himself can't do much. How do you respond to something that is organically diffuse, the buying decisions of individuals.

Well, he generates a huge outrage in order to create a mob to force the civil authorities to use their power to do something, to retard or stop the church. And to do that, he appeals to his fellow people with the love of money. This is affecting our business. But that's not going to appeal to the broader crowd, will it? People generally don't care too much about what other people's financial condition is.

So he needs something else to stir up more people and a bigger crowd. Because it's a big crowd that can sway and move. It's a mob that can move civil magistrates. They're very vulnerable to big crowds, especially to angry crowds, and they will do anything to placate them. And so he appeals to the pride of life.

The pride of life is connected with ambition, with boasting, with contempt of others, with blind love of self, with headstrong self-confidence. That's the pride of life. Diana is worshipped throughout Asia, the whole world, he says, worships her. The Temple of Artemis is the pride and joy of the Ephesians. And so he comes to the Ephesian people saying, Look, your pride and joy is going to go away.

It may be despised and he is. Words are designed to stir up fear. Fear over the loss of money, the loss of prestige, the loss of this pride of their city. He uses guilt. He puts responsibility for the loss of this worship on them if we don't do something.

We're going to be, we're the ones that are responsible. And so he's appealing in all these different ways to stir up the emotion. And he also puts a face to the problem. They need somebody that they can see that here's the problem. So they grab these people, they can't find, they don't have Paul, but they grab a Gaius and Aristarchus and carry them in, because they need a face.

You can't fight against something that's faceless. And that's a very common thing we see all the time. Right here in Conroe, a number of years ago, there was a book written about it called White Lies. There was a murder at the Conroe High School of a young volleyball player, student, a young lady. And they needed a scapegoat, and so they found somebody, some black man that they could demonize.

And they could drag him through the courts and convict him and execute him. And they would have if people hadn't intervened to save an innocent man. But here this is what happens. They are grabbing somebody, anybody, that they can put a face to this problem on. The goal is to create confusion.

St. Is the author of confusion. The BLM riots are a good example of the confusion of our day. You notice they're very confused. There's no clear black or white.

The BLM riots conflated police anarchy and justice. And so we're opposed to police anarchy, but we're not opposed to justice on criminals. And so these things were confused, and it's really hard to... People get so inflamed that you can't even have a conversation with them. When you see that, when you see the arrows flying and and Wars where nobody really even knows what the root problem is where the conflict is coming from that's one indication of demonic influence And so these leaders are vulnerable to inflamed crowds.

The purpose of this crowd is to get the government to use force against the church. That's the goal. Some way to bring the law upon them. And leaders are very vulnerable to an inflamed crowd like that. They will do anything.

Now this clerk is Probably not a believer the city clerk, but he brings wisdom in here. He manipulates the crowd too He says you you know We all know that we all know what you're saying that Ephesians Ephesus is the temple guardian of the great goddess Diana and the image which fell down from Zeus well that's that's what they believed he says you know we're in danger here are being called into question for this uproar. And he actually defends the church that there are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemies of the goddesses. They were not out publicly, deliberately defacing these temples or damaging them or blowing them up or any other things. And so He brings them to what is just, which is to bring a case in the courts if there's a problem.

And so God uses him to protect the church from this attack on the world, even though I don't know that he's even a believer. Psalm 37, I guess, in closing here, gives us some principles of how to resist or respond to the attack of the world. Trust in the Lord. He's in control. Don't fret because of them.

Don't fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity, for they shall soon be cut down like grass and withered as the green herb. Trust in the Lord. Second, it says do good. Be involved. Seek to influence.

Overcome evil with good. And God can prosper. God can use even wicked people, unbelievers, for good in a land. It says dwell in the land. Dwell in the land.

Don't try and escape away to some other land. Now there is definitely a time for temporary fleeing, but dwell in the land. God uses the people that dwell in the land to restore it. And then forth feed on his faithfulness. God is faithful.

God is faithful. He will sustain us. And men may fail us, but God never does. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we cannot even begin to comprehend how you would love the world in all of its animosity and enmity and hatred against you.

That you would send your only begotten son. That whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. We thank you Lord that you have overcome the world. And this is the victory that has overcome that world our faith. Lord help us to trust in you.

For you will never leave us nor forsake us. You are always with us to guide us, to protect us, to comfort us, to sustain us and to give hope. Not a fallible hope but a sure and a certain hope. Help us to overcome evil with good. To dwell in this land and to be an influence.

To be salt and light in this world. You've called us to be the salt and the light of this world. And Lord may we feed upon You and be nourished by Your Word and strengthened. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.