Acts 17:1-15, "Turn the World Upside Down and Know the Scriptures"

Ken MacLeod

Community on Mission • Sermon • Submitted a year ago • Presented a year ago

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If you want a normal, uneventful, quiet life, this message is not for you. If you want to live life to the fullest, our passage shows us the way. The fullest life is nothing more and nothing less than knowing God and making God known. We see that two-fold fullness in today’s passage in the experience of two cities transformed by the gospel of Jesus Christ. Today concludes our series through the book of Acts with a two-fold exhortation, following the experience of Christians in two Macedonian cities. For your fullest life,

Turn the World Upside Down

There is a simple way to change the world. Receive the gospel and proclaim the gospel.

Paul followed a pattern in his gospel ministry. He finds the Jews to proclaim the good news that their Messiah has come. In Thessalonica, Paul went into the Jewish Synagogue and used the Jewish scriptures to “dialogue” with people to explain and prove the gospel of Jesus:

1. The scriptures teach the Messiah must suffer and rise from the dead (Genesis 3:15; 37; Psalm 22, 69, 118; Zechariah 13; Isaiah 53, 55, Genesis 41, 50; Psalm 2, 16, 89, 110).

2. Jesus suffered and rose from the dead.

3. Jesus is the Messiah.

Some of the Jews were persuaded. But as in other cities, when Greek Gentiles also join them, the Jews get jealous. The Messiah is their king. They stir up a mob who attack Paul’s host, Jason (possibly Paul’s relative, Romans 16:21).

Their charge against Jason is that he is hosting a group of men who

Acts 17:6–7 (ESV)

they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, and Jason has received them,

and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.”

“These men have turned the world upside down” - we saw this last week when Paul and Silas turned the economy and the justice system in Philippi upside down. Now, the city authorities in Thessalonica are disturbed because Paul and Silas are messing around in politics. They are saying Jesus is king, not Caesar.

Most people aren’t ready to have their world turned upside down. They may complain about the way things are, but offer them a new alternative, they won’t be quick to jump on board. Most people prefer comfort to transformation. Most people choose not to overthrow their rulers, no matter how bad they may be.

But Jesus is a disruptor. He starts with our allegiances. Whatever country may have our allegiance on earth, the good news is that there is one true king, Jesus. He was obedient to God the Father when He suffered for our sins on the cross. And He rose from the dead and raised to the throne of God. He is the way, the truth, and the life. His kingdom cannot be shaken. And as His kingdom expands, it will shake all the kingdoms of this world. It will turn the world upside down. Will you be with Him or against Him?

The gospel is simple message but it turns the world upside down. Jesus is King of kings and He deserves your allegiance. The rulers of this world, especially those enslaved in the kingdom of darkness, are threatened by Jesus. But they cannot succeed. As they ban Bibles and Christian evangelism and public worship of Jesus, the good news only catches fire. In fact, even if you kill or imprison all the Christians, this only demonstrates the strength and worth of our devotion to King Jesus.

The point is, as we have seen before, we should expect that as the gospel of salvation in Jesus grows, opposition to that gospel will grow from those that don’t want their world turned upside down. And the experience of the Thessalonians is the template. Those like Jason that receive the gospel Paul is preaching on Saturday are humiliated and fined on Sunday.

But their faith becomes an example to others. Paul, writing several years later to the church in Thessalonica says,

1 Thessalonians 1:4–10 (ESV)

For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.

You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord,

for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.

For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything.

For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,

and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

Here’s the full Christian life:

God chooses to save

God grants power to the word of the gospel

God grants the Holy Spirit and conviction to the listener

The listener becomes a disciple of their evangelist and of the Lord Jesus

They receive the word in much affliction with the joy of the Holy Spirit

They become an example of faith to others

They serve the living and true God as they echo His word everywhere

They wait expectantly for their Savior’s return

What could you take out and still be a Christian?

The people who became Christians in Thessalonica experienced the roller-coaster, disruptive, joy-filled life of discipleship from the beginning. Paul calls them our example. The Christian life consists of receiving from the word of God by faith, giving away what we have received to others, learning from Jesus through affliction and the joy of the Holy Spirit, anticipating Jesus’ return. I believe if every Christian lived in the fullness of this life, it would turn the world upside down. As you look at this list, is there anything missing in your life?

But there’s one more thing.

Interrogate the Scriptures

Our church tradition is built on the conviction that the Bible is the inspired, authoritative, inerrant word of God. Here is our current statement of faith regarding the Bible:

“We believe that God has spoken in the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, through the words of human authors.

As the verbally inspired Word of God, the Bible is without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for salvation, and the ultimate authority by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavor should be judged.

Therefore, it is to be believed in all that it teaches, obeyed in all that it requires, and trusted in all that it promises.”

Our movement is also built on the conviction that every believer in Jesus Christ has the Holy Spirit indwelling them, who empowers us to understand and obey God’s word. So, you will sometimes hear people quote Acts 17:11 as a commendation:

Acts 17:11 (ESV)

Now these [Jews in Berea] were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.

The word here for “examine” is the word for “interrogate”, like a judge in a courtroom seeking the truth by asking probing questions. When we hear any teaching or exhortation from any source, no matter how trusted, we should interrogate the scriptures for ourselves to discern truth from error. Ask questions of the text of the Bible to see if what we’re hearing holds up. This is especially true when we hear something new.

The Thessalonians received the word with eagerness, as did the Bereans. This gospel was good news, and their hearts were eager to believe. But it was new. Believing it would change their doctrine: the Messiah was not future, but present. What do we do when we are presented with some change to our doctrine?

The Bereans’ hearts were fully engaged. But their minds were engaged at the same time. They went back to the scriptures for themselves to check everything. This is a powerful combination. As disciples of Jesus, we are learning as a community to listen to God as He leads us by His Spirit. Our hearts should be eager to receive new instruction and put it into practice. And our minds should stay engaged with God’s word in the scriptures so we stay grounded in truth.

In this heart-mind engagement, if I may be somewhat self-critical for a moment, our movement has sometimes tended to disengage one or the other. When it comes to teaching doctrine, our guiding mantra for the last 70-plus years has been, “Where stands it written?” We want to teach the word of God and not the opinions of men. So far so good. But if the word of God does not thrill my heart, if I am not eager to receive it for myself and digest it and obey it, if my zeal lags behind knowledge, my discipleship lags. Also, if we zealously guard the traditions and distinctives of our movement without examining our theology from time to time, our discipleship will lag. Let’s keep our hearts and minds engaged as we follow Jesus and interrogate His word daily for direction.

This is where we will leave our journey through the book of Acts, learning to be a community of grace on mission with Jesus. This week’s passage concludes with rabble-rousers from Thessalonica drive Paul out of Berea, and he heads to Athens. But even if we were to finish this book, the story would be the same. The gospel continues to grow and expand through partnership and opposition, from one community to another until it reaches Rome, the “Babylon” of the first century. The church continues to experience both affliction and joy as they participate with the risen Jesus in the power of His Spirit. In fact, the last passage has Paul in Rome awaiting trial before Caesar under house arrest,

Acts 28:30–31 (ESV)

He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.

Not a real conclusion as we would think of it. It’s more like a “to be continued...” Because that’s how Luke wants us to read this. The salvation of God is still being proclaimed among the nations. The community is still on mission. We, the readers who follow Jesus as disciples are that community.

As we move on, what have we learned about being the community of grace on mission with the risen Jesus Christ?

Community on Mission:

Filled with the Holy Spirit

Bearing witness to the risen Christ

Following Jesus through tribulation with joy

Centered in God, hearing the Holy Spirit

Proclaiming the gospel

Demonstrating the power of God

The community on mission with Jesus is filled with the Holy Spirit, bearing witness to the risen Jesus Christ, obediently following Jesus at cost to our comfort but experiencing His joy and peace in the midst of tribulation as we enter the kingdom of God. The community of Jesus is centered in God through interrogating the scriptures, prayer, fasting, and worship, during which the Holy Spirit speaks and directs us. This community is proclaiming the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ to every nation, to the ends of the earth. And the community is demonstrating the power of God to heal, deliver, and bring justice to people in bondage to the kingdom of darkness. God is turning the world upside down through this community. Throughout the world, disciple-making movements are seeing families and whole towns trusting in Jesus Christ and being baptized by the thousands.

What about us? Would you say we’re turning the world upside down? I heard someone say recently that the North American church isn’t ready for the lifestyle change that would be required to become the community on mission with Jesus. We’re too comfortable. That’s not true for all of us, but generally what many church leaders are hearing from God is a call for the church to seek God in prayer. Starting in August, we will start a new sermon series on listening to the Holy Spirit in prayer. We will use our time after the service during to practice that.

We want to be a community of grace on mission with Jesus to turn the world upside down with the gospel. We have a way to go to become a missional community. But we have the presence of the risen Christ. The more we are filled with Him through faith, the more powerful our witness.

Communion

Questions for Discussion

What are some events or experiences that turned your world upside down? How did those change your life?

In what ways has Jesus Christ turned your world upside down?

How is our church a witness to King Jesus in our city? How is your community group a witness to the risen Jesus, and to whom? What would be a good next step for you, your group, or our church to becoming more effective missionaries to our community?

What are some good questions to ask of the scriptures that engage both our hearts and our minds? Who could is someone with whom you could read the Bible in this way?

How would you describe the community on mission with Jesus as we see it in the book of Acts?

What are some ways the Holy Spirit has spoken to you through Acts? What is our next step of obedience to the word of God as a result of this sermon series in Acts?