Lock in, Brother
Acts 18:1-17
We live in a culture where it’s easy to feel overwhelmed.
When have you wanted to leave?
Leave the heat?
Leave your workplace?
Leave your marriage?
Run from a tough situation?
Escape the present by scrolling?
Paul finds himself in a dark city, with a difficult culture, where a mob of his own people surrounds and attacks him—but God was bent on redeeming that city because it was strategic for His purposes.
Acts 18:9–10
“Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, [10] for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.”
DON’T LEAVE WHEN GOD TELLS YOU TO LOCK IN.
WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE TO LOCK IN?
01. Lock in with your SETTING
02. Lock in with your SITUATION
03. Lock in with your SPHERE
04. Lock in with the SCRIPTURES
05. Lock in when you're SCARED
01. LOCK IN WITH YOUR SETTING
The Context of Corinth
Acts 18:1
“After this Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.”
Athens = intellectual center of the ancient world
Corinth = great commercial capital of the ancient world
📍 Strategically located near the Isthmus of Corinth, connecting mainland Greece to the Peloponnesian Peninsula.
Corinth was massive in size
Athens: 10,000 people
Corinth: 750,000 people
Corinth was, therefore, strategic.
The Isthmian Games
A competition like the Olympics that attracted the masses every two years.
The crown for victory is referenced in 1 Corinthians 9:25.
A Transient Population
Because of its cosmopolitan nature and diverse, shifting crowds, Corinth was an ideal landscape for the rapid dissemination of fresh ideas and cultural practices.
Immorality
The temple of Aphrodite/Venus sat atop the 2,000-foot Acrocorinth and was associated with 1,000 female prostitutes working the streets in worship of their god.
The phrase “Corinthian” meant hussy in their day.
But Corinth became a place where God worked.
1 Corinthians 1:2
“To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints…”
We might face things in this city that make us want to hit the eject button.
But God still has a huge plan for the West Valley.
“If trade could radiate from Corinth in all directions so could the Gospel.”
— John Stott
→ What SETTING does God have you in this season?
Are you trying to understand why you’re here and asking how to get out of it, or how you can fulfill His purpose for you in it?
02. LOCK IN WITH YOUR SITUATION
Paul redeemed his work situation.
Acts 18:2–4
“And he found a Jew named Aquila… with his wife Priscilla… [3] and because he was of the same trade he stayed with them and worked, for they were tentmakers by trade. [4] And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and tried to persuade Jews and Greeks.”
Acts 18:2
Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome.
Suetonius, Life of Claudius 25.4:
“Since the Jews constantly made disturbances at the instigation of Chrestus, he expelled them from Rome.”
Acts 18:3
They were tentmakers by trade.
Tentmaking is a category for someone who is highly engaged in ministry but also works a regular job.
“Secular” work is good.
If you’re passionate about ministry, don’t downplay secular work.
Acts 18:4
“And he reasoned… to persuade…”
You have this opportunity in the workplace too. You can invite coworkers into your life to do just this.
→ How can you see your work situation as providential and leverage your influence there to do God’s work in your work situation?
03. LOCK IN WITH YOUR SPHERE
Acts 18:3
“He stayed with them…”
01. Groups
Exploring Community
Are you being called to lead a group?
02. Your Household
Husband and Wife Teams
See your spouse as your greatest team member in ministry.
Acts 18:26
“He began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.”
Acts 18:5
“When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul was occupied with the word, testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus.”
04. LOCK IN WITH THE SCRIPTURES
“Occupied with the word”
Blue Letter Bible
Constrained by
Pressed
Used to control cattle
Lie sick
Be taken with
Other translations:
“Devoting himself completely” — NASB
“Devoted himself exclusively” — NIV
“Constrained by the word” — ASV
“Completely given up to” — Bible Basic
“Devoted himself fully” — Berean Standard Bible
“Pressed in the Spirit” — KJV
1 Corinthians 2:2
“For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.”
Paul’s responsibility as a watchman
Acts 18:6
“Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”
This echoes Ezekiel 33:4.
Create a Bible culture in your home:
Scripture Memory — Sardines
Read the Scripture in the morning — Bible Before Breakfast
They’ll replicate who you are
05. LOCK IN WHEN YOU’RE SCARED
Acts 18:7–11
“And he left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a worshiper of God… [8] Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with his entire household. And many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized. [9] And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, ‘Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, [10] for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.’ [11] And he stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.”
God’s plan is to protect Paul despite the plots against him.
God has many people still in this city.
The language refers to people who are set apart for God’s plan to save them.
BUT WHAT DOES GOD'S PROTECTION LOOK LIKE?
Acts 18:12–13
“But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought him before the tribunal…”
How is it that the Holy Spirit’s word to Paul was accurate—“no one will attack you to harm you”—when the text explicitly says they “made a united attack on Paul”?
God’s protection looks differently than we often think.
Safe in Christ doesn’t mean you won’t face difficulty, but that God’s plan will work in and through you despite the difficulty.
THE GOSPEL
Why would Paul be willing to stay?
Because Jesus stayed on the cross for him.
Christianity is not a command to BE COMMITTED.
It is first the good news that while you and I were sinners, Christ WAS COMMITTED enough to you to die for your sin on the cross!
GOD WORKS THROUGH THE SITUATION
Acts 18:14–17
“But when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, ‘If it were a matter of wrongdoing or vicious crime, O Jews, I would have reason to accept your complaint. [15] But since it is a matter of questions about words and names and your own law, see to it yourselves. I refuse to be a judge of these things.’ [16] And he drove them from the tribunal.”
Gallio
Gallio was proconsul of Achaia from A.D. 51–52, when Paul was in Corinth.
He was the brother of Seneca, who taught Nero.
The dates of his time in office, known from extrabiblical sources, have given Bible scholars a valuable tool for determining the dates of Paul’s missionary journeys.
Religio Licita
Gallio’s ruling allows the Church peace to proceed in Corinth.
God works through legal means to allow His Gospel to flourish.
God sovereignly works through Gallio to clear the way for Paul and his companions to LOCK IN and continue preaching.
DON’T LEAVE WHEN GOD TELLS YOU TO LOCK IN.
Acts 18:18
“After this, Paul stayed many days longer…”
“You’re never safer than being in the will of God.”
— Pastor Frank