An antagonistic witness

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.

Acts 19:26

These are the words of Demetrius the silversmith addressing a trade guild of idol makers and cultic craftsmen on the impact of gospel proclamation in Ephesus and beyond. This is a man who is not a friend to the gospel. Nevertheless his words collaborate the historic spread of Christian faith as it is detailed in the book of Acts. He is hostile to the gospel yet an accurate witness to its incredible impact. It turned an entire region away from pagan idolatry in a very short span of time.

Demetrius and this guild were quickly losing their means of making a living. His testimony confirms three things about the spread of the gospel in Paul’s ministry: 1) The gospel preaching in Ephesus rapidly spread to the entire region of Asia. The gospel moves outward in concentric ripple growth as lives are transformed and the message spreads exponentially. This is one reason why new mission work should strategically make disciples in influential cities. 2) The persuasive power of the gospel to transform hearts leads people to repentance. It excludes them from false religion as those new believers turn away from sins and idols. This repentance from false worship was what was destroying the cultic businesses and craft trade. 3) The gospel makes exclusive claims. It cannot include false religion. These idolaters knew Christians turned from “gods made with hands” aware these trinkets were not worthy of worship in comparison to Jesus, their Lord and Savior. This exclusivity naturally led to opposition. The gospel’s “one and only” way to salvation will offend what humans worship and what we tend to trust outside of God’s way. 

Even though there will be hostile action against the gospel by those who “lose” when righteousness wins, we should not fear. God is in control. God is building His church. The gates of hell will not prevail against it... in fact, they may inadvertently vouch for its authenticity!