The Word Made Plain

Guest (Male): Welcome to The Word Made Plain with Senior Pastor Tony Clark of Calvary Chapel Newport News in Virginia. Currently, Pastor Tony is teaching a study in the book of Acts. Please open your Bible to Acts chapter 18, verses 19 through 23.

Tony Clark: All right, let us dive into the word of God together. Turn with me in your Bibles to the book of Acts, chapter 18. We're going to be looking at verses 19 to 23 as we continue our verse-by-verse study of the word of God on Sunday mornings. On Wednesdays, we're in 1 Samuel, but because of the building dedication, we'll be in 1 Samuel the following week.

Father, thank you so much for this great time you've given us to study your word. Lord, we just finished singing about it. It’s not by power, nor by might, but it's by your spirit. May your spirit teach us the truths of your word today. May our hearts be revealed by your word in Jesus' name. Amen. Acts 18, looking at verses 19 to 23. The title of this message is "God's Will Revealed."

This is one question that I've been asked more than any other as a pastor: how can I know God's will for my life? Only those who are truly born again would truly care to know God's will for them. So, I pray that this message opens up your eyes to finding and knowing God's will for you.

This is such an important message in my opinion because many of you make many decisions, large and small, big, great, or insignificant in some people's eyes, wondering if it's God's will. I'm amazed and astounded at how many of you will make life-changing decisions without considering one second whether it's God's will for your life or not.

You make many decisions all day every day. Life-shattering decisions. Not one time do you inquire, not one time do you question, and not one time does it come into your mind: is this what God wants for my life? Is this God's will for me? You make some earth-shattering decisions, moving from state to state, out of the country, or into the country.

So often, we make decisions based upon dollar signs and not about God's will. The dollar sign is driven, and we immediately think if it's more money, it must be God's will. That's not always the case. So, I believe this message is definitely something that is needed today.

Let me give you the background. Last time we were together, we saw how Paul stayed a long time in the city of Corinth according to verse 18. We know from verse 11 that he spent 18 months there. We also saw how Priscilla and Aquila left to travel with Paul when he left the city of Corinth. They didn't allow work to interfere with ministry, and we dealt with that last week.

Finally, we saw that Paul took a type of Nazirite vow when he got to the city of Cenchreae, showing his thanks to God for protecting him, as the end of verse 18 said. Now, where did they travel next? Look at verses 19 to 21. "And he came to Ephesus and left them there, but he himself entered the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews."

"When they asked him to stay a longer time with them, he did not consent, but took leave of them saying, 'I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem, but I will return to you again, God willing.' And he sailed from Ephesus."

In these verses, we see that Paul traveled east, crossing the Aegean Sea, and came to the city of Ephesus. We will see later in verses 23 to 28 that Aquila and Priscilla decided to stay in Ephesus, perhaps to reestablish their tent-making business and also to help establish the church in Ephesus, because the church in Ephesus first met in their home according to 1 Corinthians 16:19.

But here's what we need to see: Paul used this layover to make a quick visit to the Jewish synagogue. Paul shows us how to view life. He viewed every effort he made and made it count for all eternity. He lived with eternity in view.

After being on a two-year missionary trip where he was beaten, he was stoned, and run out of every city he preached in, surely he was tired. He was weary and needed a break. But because he lived for eternity, he took this time, this layover, to go to the Jewish synagogue to try to introduce his fellow Jewish people to Jesus Christ.

Let me just pause right here and ask us this very penetrating question: do we live with eternity in view? Or do we view everything through what is temporal? Do we view everything selfishly, how it will please or cater to us? Not Paul. He lived for eternity.

I dare you pray, "Lord, make my life count for eternity." I dare you pray that prayer and see what happens. Watch and see what happens. Your eyes will be opened, your ears will be opened. You will see people and wonder if they're saved or born again. You will see things from God's perspective. You will hear things, not with physical ears, but you will hear things and you'll be like, "Oh, something is off here. Something is not right." I dare you to pray, "Lord, make my life count for eternity."

If you have the nerve and the courage to make such a request of God, I will say strap in and get ready. Just like in the city of Berea in Acts 17:10-12, the Jews in Ephesus received Paul so well that, according to verse 20, they asked him to stay longer with them. People enjoyed being around Paul. They enjoyed his company.

It wasn't because he had such an incredible personality or because he was a friendly person. People wanted Paul to stay a little longer around because he showed them the things of the kingdom of God. I am convinced that this is still true today. I love to be around those who are rich in the things of God. How I love to sit at the feet of those who have eternity in view and they see everything from a biblical perspective. They are rich in the things of God and the Word of God. I love to be around them.

This is how the Jews in Ephesus felt about Paul. I wonder, is this how people feel about you? Do they want you to stick around a little longer? And why? Why do they want you around? Do they want you around because you're a class clown? Maybe they know the verse "laughter is good as a medicine" and they want you around because they just want to laugh. That's one thing.

Do they want to be around you because you are generous, and they know that they can let their need be known and you'll be throwing them some money? Is that why people want you around? Or do they want you around because you're a good time? Why do people want you around? You have to question and look into your own heart of why people want you around them.

They wanted Paul to stay longer because Paul shared with them about eternal things. He shared with them about the kingdom of God, the Word of God. He was rich in the things of God, and I'm sure he shared it in such a way that people were like, "I just want to hear more about this." You have to ask yourself, do people want you to be around a little longer? Or can they not wait for you to leave?

Something else I want you to see before I leave this section. Paul had wanted to preach in this same area two years earlier, but the Holy Spirit didn't allow him to, according to Acts 16:6. This shows us that God has a perfect timing for everything in our lives.

What God was saying to Paul in Acts 16:6 when he didn't allow for him to go to Asia Minor, or modern-day Turkey, was "no, not right now." So often, we discern God's "no" as in "no, never," when he is actually saying "no, not right now," or the word we hate to hear is "wait."

I have a perfect timing by which I will allow for you to go to this area, Paul. It's just not right now. The same is true for us. God tells us "no" when he is saying "no, not right now." When God tells us "no, never," it is only in those things that we pray about that are sinful, unethical, and unbiblical. God is saying, "No, never. And to be honest with you, don't even ask me about it again because it's still going to be no. Never."

However, when they asked Paul to stay a little longer with them, he did not consent but left them because he said that he had to keep the coming feast in Jerusalem. Please don't think that Paul and the early believers felt obligated to keep the Jewish feast. This is a new thing that is going around now that many Christians are now all of a sudden saying that the church needs to keep the Jewish feast.

They say, "Hey, it’s right here in them scriptures in Acts. Paul and those early believers, they kept those Jewish feasts." Whoa, whoa, whoa. We have to pump your brakes before you start putting that sort of thing on the church. There's a reason why Paul wanted to keep the coming feast.

He had a greater audience by which to preach the gospel to, and he always had a heart to reach his own people, the Jewish people. So, when is it that he had a complete audience with the Jewish people? During the Jewish feasts. They all came together. He said, "Oh, yes, sir. This is my time to reach my people."

Don't think that the early church kept the Jewish feast because that was to be a practice throughout Christianity. No. They had a greater audience. And then the Christians who were coming home, they needed some encouragement. Paul said, "Look, I've got Christians, they need encouragement. I've got Jews that need Christ. This is the great—I've got to go."

You all want me to stay a little longer, but I've got to go because I'm going back and there's going to be a tremendous audience for me to reach for Jesus Christ. So, Paul went on to say that he would return again to you, God willing. And he said to those believers in Ephesus, "Duces, I'm out of here," as verse 21 says. That’s the Tony Clark translation.

Now, what does it mean to say "God willing"? It means that we're looking at things from God's perspective and not ours. Unless your perspective is in line with God's perspective. It means that you're acknowledging that God is in control of your life and God can change your plans if he wants to.

We've got some verses to illustrate this. James 4:13-15 says be careful that you don't say "I'm going to do this thing on such and such a day." Instead, say "If God wills, I am going to do this thing." Why? Because God could have other plans for your life. Have you ever thought about that? Or he could see danger on the road you're presently traveling on, and he can change things to keep you from being hurt. Have you ever thought about that?

Also, by saying "God's will," you're acknowledging that God is all-knowing and you're not. So, it is a good practice to start off each day by saying, "Lord, what is your will for my life today?" Then, go and saturate yourself in God's word because that is where his will is contained, and watch and see how your day will be filled with a God awareness.

Now, how can we know God's will for our lives specifically? How can we know whether it is God's will to marry them, to move there, to take this job, to take this position? Or is it just some crazy idea I came up with? Well, we have already established that a daily time in prayer and asking him to reveal his will and a daily time in God's word is required. That is a prerequisite.

However, there are three ways we can know God's will for our lives. Number one: do you have a desire? Whatever it is you want to do—you want to go there, you want to marry them, you want to move here, you want to take that position—do you have a strong desire? Number two: do you have a peace? Number three: do you have an open or closed door?

Let's look at these one at a time. I'm about to lay some gold at your feet. You don't even realize what you're about to get. I'm about to help a whole bunch of people here. Let's look at them one at a time. Number one: do you have a desire? Whatever it is you want to do, do you have a strong desire?

Philippians 2:13 says it is God who works in us both to will and to do his good pleasure. Now, let's look at this a little bit deeper. I forgot to mention this at the beginning. Let me just say this. Many of you already know this, but some I got a question about this three weeks ago, so it lets me know that I need to say it.

I am into words. Words mean something. That's how we communicate. One of the things about the English language: the English language can be a little limited. For instance, we have one word for love. And there are several loves. The love you have for your wife is different from the love you have for your children, and the love I have for cheesecake is different from both of them. So there's different loves. But we only have one word: love.

The Greeks had five different Greek words for love. So their language is a little more expansive. The New Testament was written in Greek. So this is why I give you Greek words and stuff, and in the Old Testament, I give you Hebrew words, because those languages are a little more expressive than the English language. So when somebody asked me about three weeks ago, who's been coming to our church for years, it kind of threw me because I was like, "Don't you know all ready?" But I said that because when I give you Greek words, it expands your understanding of that particular word in English and gives you a little more depth into that particular word and what the author was saying when he said those things.

Once again, Philippians 2:13 says it is God who works in us both to will and to do his good pleasure. Let's unpack that a little bit more. The Greek word for "works" is *energeo*. You can see it's where we get our English word "energize" from. It means to energize, to activate.

And the Greek word for "will" is *thelo*. It means to strengthen, to delight in, or it can be translated as desire. Or watch this: God will energize us to delight in or desire his good pleasure for our lives. The word "good pleasure" is *eudokia*. It means satisfaction. It can be translated good pleasure or purpose.

So, let's put this all together. It is God who energizes us both to delight in to do what is his good pleasure or purpose for our lives. So, let's remove the confusion. Why'd I bring that all that up? To remove the confusion. Because people say, "Is it God's will for my life or is it my will?"

God will work in us both to will—that's desire—and to do—the power to carry out—his good pleasure for our lives. Now, let me just bring it a little bit closer to home and give you a personal example. Why am I a pastor today? Because God put it in my heart to become one. In 1 Timothy 3:1, it says if a man desires the office of pastor/overseer, he desires a good work.

So, God gave me the desire. Now, watch this, to illustrate my point about the English language. If you notice in that verse, there are two words for "desire." "If a man desires the office of pastor, he desires a good work." But in the Greek, it's two different Greek words.

The first Greek word for desire speaks of an inward desire, that which is on the inside. The second word for desire, the Greek word means to reach out after, that which is external. Watch this: you put that together, God gave me the desire to be a pastor internally, and then I reached out for it externally. That's what that means.

I bring this up because this is very critical because I hear people all the time—and they mean well—"Yeah, God called me to be a pastor but I ran from that calling. I ran for years. God was chasing me, but he chased me down." I don't understand such things.

God put the desire in me and I ran toward it, not against it. It is God who works in us both to will and to do his good pleasure. So, all those talking about God called me and I ran, I don't understand that. That goes against what the Greek words mean, meaning that God will work internally in us and start putting those desires in there, and then we reach out after that which we're inwardly drawn towards. That's what that means.

So, do you have a strong desire? Whatever it is you want to do. Number two: do you have a peace? Do you have a peace? Colossians 3:15 says and let the peace of God rule in your heart. The Greek word for "rule" is *brabeuo*. It means to arbitrate or to govern. It speaks of acting as a referee of an athletic contest.

So, God will give us a peace or lack of peace with everything we want to do. The peace of God will act as a referee in our lives. Either saying that decision that you're about to make is safe, or that decision that you're about to make or you just made is out of here, like a referee calling an athletic contest.

The referee is guiding the game by the rules of that sport. The Holy Spirit in us is guiding our lives by the Word of God. If we're making the right decisions based upon the Word of God, the Holy Spirit will give us a peace and will say that decision is safe to make. Or the Holy Spirit, if we're making decisions that's not based upon the Word of God, the Holy Spirit in us will say that decision you're about to make or you just made was out to lunch. So, do you have a peace?

Number three: do you have an open or closed door? Revelation 3:7 and 8 says God is the one who opens doors that no one could close and close doors no one could open. So with this in mind, whatever you want to do, is the door open or closed for you to do it?

Now, let's put all this together. Let's put all three of these together. To know God's will, you must be able to say yes to all three. When I've given a version of this message around the country, people come up to me and say, "Well, Pastor Tony, I got two out of the three." I don't care. I just said you need all three. Those may be good odds in the world or at Vegas somewhere, but those not good odds in knowing God's will for your life.

Now, watch this. Let me give you some examples. Whatever it is you want to do, wherever you want to go, move to, take the position, whatever. Let's say you got a strong desire. And let's say number two, you got a peace. But the door of opportunity is closed. Don't you go trying to kick it open.

This is a "no, not right now." It's a matter of timing. It's not the right time. Yes, you got a desire. Yes, you got a peace about it, but the door isn't open. So it's a timing issue. So don't go trying to keep on keep calling them. "Did you all get my resume? You all call me? When you calling me?" Leave those folks alone. It ain't the right time. Leave them folks alone. People tired of you, and they see your number and say, "Here they go again." Leave them folks alone. It's a matter of timing. It's not the right time.

Now, watch this. Let's say you got a desire. And let's say the door is open for you. But you don't have a peace. Something inside of you is saying, "Don't you do it. Don't you take that door. Don't you marry them. Don't you go and take that position. Don't you go and put in for that duty station. Don't you do it."

Ladies, you guys are a little more in tune with this than we as men are. And you know, just something in you saying, "I shouldn't do it. No, let me turn this down. No, something's not right." Yes, you had a desire. Yes, the door's open, but something on the inside is saying, "I better not do that." Well, you better not do it. Then don't do it.

Now, watch this. Let say for example, the door's open. You don't sense anything on the inside saying "don't do it." But you really don't have a desire to do it. But everybody else saying, "Put in for the job."

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