# The Faithful Ones of Acts 17

December 11, 2025

Turn your Bible, if you would, to Acts chapter 16. Acts chapter 16. We’re going to get this map up here and kind of get us updated from last Wednesday. We’re on Paul’s second missionary journey, and him and his missionary team—now they’ve got Luke with him. We’ve got a doctor on the team now, and that’s good. Just kind of reminiscing a little bit from last week. We started down here in Jerusalem and then on up to Antioch. That’s where he and Barnabas split ways, and Barnabas took John Mark down here to this island, and Paul took Silas and went up here to Paul’s hometown. Then on up here, Timothy joins…

And God told them, no, no, no. Then finally they had a vision in the night here: the Macedonian call. And then last week we finished right here in Philippi. Somebody helped me out. What did they do? Don’t just say without preaching the gospel—yes. But what did they do that got them put in jail? What did they do? Paul. Yeah, that… that the girl was saying the right words, but she was demon-possessed. Finally, Paul got fed up with it and cast the demon out. She was a fortune teller, basically. So her owners said, “Well, we can’t make any money off of her anymore.” They were just infuriated, and they got the authorities to beat them with many stripes. They ended up in prison.

Remember that? In the inner prison, they had their legs, their feet in stocks. They didn’t have handcuffs; they had ankle cuffs, you know. And they’re there. At midnight, what did they do at midnight? Help me out. What did they do at midnight?

Good, good. What’s the order of it? Right, right. They prayed and sang. Both are important, but sometimes I think we’d sing a lot more if we prayed first. That’s actually the order of it: prayed and sang. By the way, they sang praises unto God at midnight. They’re singing to the Lord. Sometimes there’s a difference between you singing or singing to the Lord. I say this often, but I always remember Les Roloff. He used to say, “You ought to give God a concert every day.” You just sing to the Lord. They sang to the Lord at midnight, prayed and sang praises.

Then what happened? We didn’t cover this. What happened? Earthquake. Good. You know your Bible. Man, you’re on the ball. You ought to be up here preaching instead of me, you know. The earthquake—just a great earthquake—and the prison doors opened up, and the chains fell off. The prison guard, what was he going to do? He was going to kill himself probably because he’d have been executed if the prisoners got away. Paul said, “Hey, hang on here, buddy.” Remember, they heard them singing, which we covered last week. He said, “Hey, we’re all still here. Don’t hurt yourself.”

The guard came in, and he had the right question. Anybody remember what is in Acts 16:30? Remember, what did he say? What did you say?

Amen. I don’t even—I think he even got the “Sir” in there. That’s Bible. That’s it, man. “Sir, what must I do to be saved?” Man, he knew what to ask. And they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and get baptized and repent and turn over a new leaf and start tithing, cut your hair.” Is that what it said? I mean, your faith, you’ve got to show up by your works, you know. Let’s say all that. No, what did he say? What did he say? Man, just clear. I love it. Just clear and concise: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.” He adds that on there, and the household did get saved a little bit later on. But man, they got saved, and probably their house was right there by the prison. They said, “Come on home.” And they came on home.

They fed him a big old pot of chili. It was—uh—it was the number five, I think. That’s the one from the other night, wasn’t it? Pot five, you know. It fed him a pot number five. That was Brother Baxter. Brother Baxter can cook that. Judge two weeks—two years in a row he’s won. I’m glad to say somebody else got to win next year, you know. But anyway, they probably fed him whatnot, and they gave him the Word of God.

They got saved, and then the whole household got baptized. There was just a little bit of revival there. That’s where we’re going to pick it up tonight. We’re in—oh, I think it’s verse number 40, if I remember right, Acts 16 and verse number 40 of God’s Word. Y’all there tonight? Amen? Good, good, good. Anybody asleep yet?

Yeah, that’s not until you get home. Come on now, come on now. There we go. Oh, brother, people are pointing that. Oh, my goodness. Brother Bill, you got two people pointing at you over there. That’s a conspiracy, right, man?

Let’s stand, if you would, please. Acts 16, verse number 40. Acts 16:40. And Acts 16, verse number 40: “And they went out of the prison and entered into the house of Lydia.” Remember, she was the first convert. “And when they had seen the brethren, they comforted them and departed.”

Now, when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. I’m just going to stop there. Would you pray with me that God would speak to our hearts? We’re going to cover a couple of different things today. Would you pray with me that God would speak to us, encourage us, give us what we need tonight? Would you pray the same with me here tonight?

Father, we come to you, Lord. These people are in your house. Lord, keep us—keep us just engaged. Lord, bring life, encourage. Lord, just kind of unite us as we travel through your Word, and give every single person what they need, Father, from you, from your Word. And, Lord, we will brag on you for it, Lord. We ask for this, Father, in the name of Jesus. We pray. Amen.

Thank you so much for standing. You may be seated.

So we just read where they came—oh, my goodness, can we get the map back up? We’ll keep that map up there for a while. We just read they left from Philippi, came through these two cities, and they’re at Thessalonica. All right? So we just read that.

Now, here’s an interesting thing about it. I’m going to just try to point out something here at the beginning. You know, in Thessalonica, they weren’t there very long at all. Some say up to three months. When we take a fellow on to support him to start a church, we take him on for three years. And then at the end of three years, if it needs more, well, we’ll continue on for a while if it needs it. But Paul and his missionary team, they weren’t at Philippi very long at all, and a great church got established. I mean, they ended up in jail. And then they’re in Thessalonica—I don’t know, some say up to three months—but the persecution was strong in Thessalonica. I don’t even think they were there that long.

Now we’re going somewhere with this, all right? After Thessalonica, the Jews got real envious, and they rose up persecution. So they had to leave. Look down in verse number 10; let’s find out where they went. They went to Berea.

Berea. Look at verse number 10: “And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea.” Thessalonica, man, you get out of here! Your leaders are going to kill y’all. They sent him away by night unto Berea, “who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.”

Now, Berea—they were good people. Man, they searched the scriptures daily, and they were just a great… How many have ever heard of a Berean Baptist Church? How many have ever gone to a Berean Baptist Church? Yeah, that’s where they get the name from. They were searching the scriptures daily, and they were very interested in what Paul and his team was preaching about. They wanted to know. But then the Jews from Thessalonica, the envious ones, they came all the way over to Berea, and they caused trouble with these Jewish people. They caused trouble there, so they had to leave Berea. Now, we don’t know—some will say they were in Berea for a couple of weeks, maybe a couple of months—but not long at all. Now imagine how quickly these churches got started. Pretty amazing.

Now, Silas and Timothy did stay there and help once Paul left. But look down in verse number 14 and let’s find out where they’re at, because they had to leave Berea. Look at this, verse number 14: “And when Paul was now about to open his mouth…”

Well, I’m in the wrong place. Excuse me. I was about to open my mouth. I said, “That is…”

“…immediately the brethren sent away Paul to go as it were to the sea; but Silas and Timothy abode there still.” And they that conducted Paul brought him unto Athens. Now, that’s Greece. “And receiving a commandment unto Silas and Timotheus, for to come to him with all speed, they departed.”

Paul waited for them at Athens. His spirit was stirred in him when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry. He was just trying to go somewhere with all this. Paul was all the way down here at Athens, all right? And he wasn’t there very long in Athens. We’re not exactly sure—very similar, but many think a few days, took a couple of weeks. It was amazing.

Now, that church is not really spoken about in Scripture, but history says it wasn’t a big church, but a church got started. They were very, very educated people. It didn’t look like a whole lot got saved, but some did, and a church got started. Look in chapter 18, chapter 18, and look what happens there, chapter 18, verse number one: “After these things, Paul departed from Athens and came to Corinth.”

Now, we’re not going to really cover anything about Corinth, but a church got started there. Paul was there a little bit longer—we think around 18 months, about a year and a half. Here’s just—I just want to point this out briefly: These missionaries, Paul, a great preacher—God used him to pen 13, probably 14 books of the New Testament, over half of the New Testament books—and a great missionary team. You know, he’s got Silas with him, he’s got Luke, Dr. Luke, who penned the book of Luke. These are great men, but for the most part, they weren’t there very long.

And sometimes the preacher and these missionaries, evangelists, they get the spotlight, and that’s where God has them. They’re not doing anything wrong; somebody’s got to be there. That’s important. But sometimes we forget about the people. I mean, they were there. The church at Thessalonica—it almost seems like from First and Second Thessalonians that Paul was worried if they were going to be able to make it. But there were some great—I mean, they’re young Christians—but they were dedicated.

Every church has got to have that crowd of dedicated people. There must be the Wednesday night crowd, if you will. I mean, the people that are just going to be there. If the doors are open, they’re going to be there. If they’re not there, they’re either in the hospital or at the funeral home in the casket. You know what I mean? They’re just there.

And I’m saying these churches that got started—praise the Lord for Paul and his missionary team, they had to do their part—but not everybody is called to be Paul. And not everybody is called to be part of the missionary team. There must be faithful people that keep that church going. There’s got to be that.

You know, if it’s a good church, they’re going to have a nursery, and somebody’s got to be in there changing those diapers. Who wants that job? But you’ve got to have it. There’s got to be somebody that’s in the PA booth, turning the microphones off and everything. You know, there’s got to be… There’s got to be somebody that cuts the grass. There’s got to be somebody that pays. There’s got to be somebody that puts money on an offering plate. If it’s a good church, there’s got to be a bus or two. There’s got to be some bus workers and bus captains around. I’m just saying these churches got started, and the missionary team was there for a month or two or three, and praise the Lord for that. But you’ve got to look kind of beyond that and see some good, dedicated Christians.

I just get off work on Wednesday night and say, “Man, I’m going to be running late, but I’m going to go with my work clothes on.” If a church is going to be much for the Lord, there must be people like that. And I’m not preaching at the choir. Praise the Lord, you’re here on Wednesday night, but I’m saying congratulations. You’re part of that crowd.

Every church, by the way, when we get to heaven—you know, the Bible says it says twice, it says it other times a little different—but it says twice, very similar to this: “Many that are first shall be last, and the last shall be first.”

And I think often he’s talking about those people that nobody knows about. They’re delivering pizza to the Christian school on Fridays, or they’re sewing quilts when nobody knows about it, or they’re sending out cards to the sick. They’re just doing things that nobody knows about, and they’re not doing it for everybody to know about it. They’re not looking for that. But those are the people that one day God’s going to say, “Hey, I’ve seen every bit of the things you did.”

I love this verse, Proverbs 15: “The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.” He sees it all. In a church—these churches, all the… we don’t know how many churches Paul started—but man, he’s traveling, and praise the Lord for Paul, not trying to down Paul. But I’m telling you, there were good people. He was there for a month or two. And you know what they say about evangelists? They blow in, blow up, and blow out. And they’re doing their part. That’s what God calls them. There’s nothing wrong with that. But there’s got to be some faithful people that are there to keep things together, to keep things moving. There must be that crowd.

For Paul, God used him to start all these churches. I guarantee you in eternity, we’re going to find out who it was that kept that church together at Thessalonica. They had severe persecution—to the point, to the point, persecution was so bad they thought they were living in the tribulation period. That’s what Second Thessalonians is all about. I mean, I had to tell them, “No, I didn’t get to preach real good and real long. I was in it and out.” But yes, trouble and tribulations come up, but you’re not in it right now. Somebody was there even during the tribulation, keeping it together.

Don’t worry about being like Paul. Just worry about doing what God’s called you to do.

I’m going to move on here, but you know Jesus—from the time he was 12, remember the temple there, and then they left. Three days later, they finally came back, you know, and found him and all that. And mom said, “Oh, me and your dad have been sorrowful looking for you.” I always think that’s why—just… I question exactly a mom being like that. You’d think, “Oh, poor son, man, I’m so sorry we left you,” but, “You know, me and your dad…” So sorrowful. You know?

But remember what Jesus said? “Wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?”

The Bar Mitzvah is 13, 12—it’s changed over the years, you know. But that’s typically when a Jewish boy begins his trade, and his dad takes him as an apprentice and teaches him how to repair watches, whatever it is. When he gets older, he can do it ever, but he’s always got that trade to fall back on.

I think that’s when Jesus fully grasped: “I am the Son. I must be about my Father’s business.” And he grew in wisdom, the Bible says, as a human. And he got it. Man, I’m the Son of God, and I came to die and to be the sacrifice. And I’ve got to shed my blood. And Psalms 22 was talking about me. And I’m the one that’s going to—my hands, my feet are going to be pierced in him. And he understood all this.

But you know what? From the time he was 12 until the time he was 30, he wasn’t out doing a public ministry. He was a carpenter. I mean, he went to the carpenter shop. We don’t know from that point on. Joseph is never mentioned. Some say Joseph died after that. Some say Joseph left. We don’t know what happened with Joseph. I don’t know. He’s just not mentioned anymore. So imagine, maybe from the time Jesus was 12, somewhere along there, he took care of the household until the time he was 30. We don’t know.

But I’m just saying Jesus understands what it’s like to just go to work. By the way, later on in his public ministry, he came back to his hometown of Nazareth twice. And one of those times it said he went to the synagogue as he was accustomed to doing. For those years, those 18 years from 12 to 30, Jesus knows what it’s like to be in church, be faithful, support the leadership, however crazy they are. I mean, they only got all the fingers on their hands. I mean, support—I mean, just support the leaders, amen, be there for the men’s fellowships and whatever. I mean, Jesus knows what it’s like.

And there must be, if a church is going to reach people and make a difference, there must be that crowd. I couldn’t help, just studying through this, I thought about how Paul was in so many of these churches briefly, but churches got started. God used Paul, but I promise you, friend, there are some people that said, “You know what? This Christian thing—we’re going to sell out and live for the Lord.” And they were involved for the Lord.

Now, let’s get something else. Let’s go back, if you would. Let’s go back to chapter 16. We’re going to go back over to the church at Philippi when it got started. And Lydia got saved, and then they’re in jail—the Philippian jail. “What must I do to be saved?” Excuse me, “Sir, what must I do to be saved?” That’s right, that’s right, that’s it. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved,” and the household got saved.

Now look at verse number 32, Acts 16:32. You all there tonight? Acts 16:32? Good. Verse number 32: “And they spake unto him the what? The Word of the Lord.” It doesn’t say their philosophy or the way of doing things, but just the Word of the Lord to all that were in his house. Now that’s the church at Philippi.

Now look over in chapter 17. Chapter 17, and look at verse number two. This is the church at Thessalonica. Chapter 17, verse number two: “And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures.”

Well, that’s interesting. The church at Philippi—he’s with young converts—he speaks the word of the Lord. Now at Thessalonica, he’s going to the synagogue three times, and he’s opening the scriptures to them.

Look at chapter 17, verse number 11. They’re at Berea now. The Berean Baptist Church is getting started. Verse number 11: “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica in that they received the what?” Now, they received—it must be Paul and the missionary team’s preaching it. That’s what they received: receive the word with all readiness of mind and search the what? The scriptures.

Well, they didn’t search what all they were saying; they searched the scriptures to find out if what they were saying is true or not. So they dug into the Bible, searched the scriptures daily whether those things were so. Look at verse number 13: “But when the Jews of Thessalonica”—these are their enemies—the enemies acknowledged that the word of God… even their enemies knew what they were going to do. They were giving the Word of God out. “…that the word of God was preached to Paul at Berea, they came thither also and stirred up the people.”

And here’s them getting that… Man, can I just—I’m going to try to be brief on this here. Somewhere down the line, hang your philosophy, your certain way of saying it, your methods, your techniques, all of it—and just get the Bible out there. It’s what changes lives. Illustrations are good to illustrate the Bible. It’s the first you say it’s wonderful with the soul, but that illustration is not going to permanently change lives; it’s the Word of God.

And, friend, you know, a gospel tract ought to have Bible in there. Whether we’re soul winning or whatever, praise the Lord, Miss Meyer, you’ve got a Bible in there. That Vietnamese guy—man, the Bible, the Word of God, is what changes lives.

I’m not saying it’s all bad. Apologetics can sometimes be helpful. But can I say something? If apologetics don’t have the Word of God in there, hang it, friend. That person is probably ten times smarter than you are anyway, and you’re not going to outsmart someone into heaven. The Word of God is going to convict the born again of the Word of God, the Bible says. Come on.

I’m for apologetics as long as it’s not taking away from the Word of God. Man, if I choose between the Word of God and apologetics, I pick the Word of God any day of the week. Now, you use them both. But I’m a little bit just shocked—and not necessarily in our realm, but just in our day and time—how much we are about feelings and philosophy and techniques. I’m not against it; I like it when feelings are there. Praise the Lord, man, I like it. But feelings are fickle. Feelings won’t hold up when you’re going through a tough time. Man, you better be careful. Those feelings will make you dive.

But the Word of God—you get those promises, the Word of God—and you get grounded in the Bible. That’ll carry you through the tough times. I like it when someone comes to church and they feel God move. I like that. I’m not against feelings. I like it. The music—man, you get a little bit of feeling in there. Miss Meyer, she gets going on that piano sometimes, you know, in a good way. And Miss Chisgar, if we’re in school, Sarah, if we’re not in school, or Miss Patterson or Grace, Ms. Patterson, Grace, or Ms. Bush—I’m trying to get it all in there, you know. But I don’t think there’s anything… You get a little feeling in there. I don’t want this rock and roll music, but you get a little… Or, I don’t mind when someone raises their hand. I don’t mind that; that’s biblical, friend. Someone’s not doing it to be seen. I like feelings. I like it when someone says, “Amen.”

You know, some of those messages are just geared, you know, just… I like those, man, just kind of get everybody going. That’s a good thing, and the Bible’s not against that. Someone said, “I’m against emotional preaching.” You tell that to Nathan when he was preaching to David, how he got him emotionally involved about that sheep they stole. Man, he knew exactly; he was setting the hook on that thing. Not wrong with that. But emotions won’t carry you through tough times. While you’re getting people emotionally involved, you better be getting the truth in there. You better be getting the Word of God in there. Because feelings are good, but feelings on Monday morning ain’t the same way they are on Sunday morning.

That alarm clock goes off. Man, Felix doesn’t do a whole lot there in the morning time when your alarm clock’s going off, you know. So you’ve got to get grounded in the Word of God. And Paul and the missionary team there, God’s using them to start all these churches, and they used the Word of God, the Word of God, the Word of God. And I’m just saying it seems a little bit like this American Christianity, where we are getting away from the Bible, the Word of God.

I’m a touch disappointed, just as I meet out here, there, and yonder, and sometimes the things you’re saying are good things, but no Bible in there. I’ll mention the Bible verse, and this thing like that doesn’t mean anything to them; it’s just about their feeling, what they thought about this. And I don’t mind what they feel or think, you know, that, but somewhere along the line, you’ve got to get grounded in the Bible, Bible, Bible.

Look over here real quickly here in Isaiah, Isaiah 55. When they’re going around starting all these churches, man, they’re getting the Bible out. Even their enemies know what they’re doing. They’re preaching the Word of the Lord, and they’re getting the Bible in there. Look over there in Isaiah 55. Isaiah 55.

Look in verse number 10, if you want. Isaiah 55 and verse number 10. And what you find out… Would you say, “Praise the Lord”? Good, good, good. Look at verse number 10 of Isaiah 55. He says, “For as the rain cometh down and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth in bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater.”

Brother Bruce used to be our youth director here. He’s pastoring in Colorado. And the Powers’ daughter and son-in-law, they live out there in that area. They were here Sunday morning. We went out there to do a marriage conference for him years ago, and everybody was talking about the snow. You wanted snow on the mountains still to be there at that time—I can’t remember what time of the year it was. But they said because if there’s a lot of snow in the mountains, that means it’s going to be a good harvest this year, because as it melts, it waters everything. And that’s what we’re talking about in that verse. The rain and… well, you get drought, and all those farmers, man, we need some rain, you know. And that’s what we’re talking about. That rain comes down, the snow, and it waters and it brings life to an area.

Now that’s the parallel. Now look at verse number 11, verse number 11. He says, “So, just like that, so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth. It shall not return unto me void.” Now, let me say this along that line: People get that mistaken. It doesn’t mean that everyone who hears the Word of God is going to get saved. But it’s accomplishing God’s will; it’s accomplishing a work there. They may reject you, but they’re not going to be able to point their finger at God one day and say, “I didn’t know.” God’s going to say, “Uh-uh, uh-uh. My word was preached.”

It doesn’t mean every seed put in the ground when there’s snow in the mountains means every seed comes up and produces. But man, you’ve got a lot of water, a lot of rain, a lot of snow—you’re going to have a good harvest overall. There’s going to be some that produces, some that don’t, but overall… The same thing applies here. He says, “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth. It shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereunto I sent it.”

The Bible—you get the Bible going out, you’re going to have a good crop is what I’m trying to say. It doesn’t mean every single person will listen to it, but you’re going to have a good crop. The Bible—don’t get away from the Bible, whether it be soul winning or whatever. And I’m not as good as I want to be at this for sure; I need to grow in this. Whatever philosophy you’re talking about, man, I want to get Bible in there. Counseling someone, I want to get Bible—Bible, Bible. Does it change lives?

There’s an old story—I had to look it up—about a… I think it was in Australia. I did not find that part of it. But there was a blind man, they say, that was on a street corner, and he was reading a Braille Bible. He was reading, and he was just learning all that Braille. He was reading kind of like a street preacher, and he was reading out loud, and his fingers kind of got stuck over there in Acts 4:12 where it says, “No other name.” And he just kind of kept fumbling over that, “No other name.” He kept saying, “No other name, no other name, no other name, no other name.”

There was a stranger, they said, walking by—a lost man. But he heard that blind man reading that Braille Bible saying, “No other name, no other name, no other name, no other name.” And that just kept ringing in his ears. He couldn’t get that out of his mind, his heart—the Bible. You know it’s a sword, you know that.

“No other name, no other name, no other name, no other name.” And he said, “I’ve got to find out what that’s talking about.” And he looked it up at Acts 4:12: “Neither is there any other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.” And they say he got saved because he just heard those few words of the Bible. Friend, I’m telling you, the power is in the Word of God.

There’s other stuff. I’m not saying it’s all bad. Apologetics, feelings—I’m not saying all those things are bad. I like a lot of it. I use some of that stuff. But friend, none of it compares to the Bible. By the way, don’t you put—and I’ve got to move on—but don’t you put tradition up to the level of the Bible. Fully on that tradition, if it’s not biblical, man, get the Bible! Get the Bible!

Let’s look at one more thing. Y’all still with me tonight? Let’s get one more thing here. Paul preaches this last part of chapter 17. Paul is preaching this famous sermon on Mars Hill. How many have heard of Paul preaching at Mars Hill? You’ve heard that? Yeah, yeah. And Paul does a great job. I’ve heard some preachers say this is their favorite one of Paul’s messages. He did a great job. He knew his crowd. It mentions the Epicureans and the Stoics. They were philosophers. Epicureans are more like the party crowd, man; they’re all about how to enjoy the pleasures of life, you know. Yeah, let’s have a good time. Then the Stoics were kind of on the other side—and I’m simplifying it—but they’re like, “How do you endure the pain of life?” And he knew his crowd. And he even, during his preaching, uses some quotes from their philosophers. Twice he does that in his sermon. He uses their wording and their philosophers, and he did a good job preaching. He’s got Bible in there. He didn’t get as much Bible when he was preaching to the Jewish people, you know; he’s using a lot of Old Testament, he did, but he’s got Bible in there, and he did a great job preaching to them. It’s a famous sermon, and he just brings it all together, even more theology in there, and he just does a wonderful job.

Paul’s spirit was stirred, but I want you to notice the response to this. Look at the last part of chapter 17. Would you look at verse number 32?

We’ll read 32, 33, and 34, and we’ll be done for the night. Well, we’re going to preach a little bit after this, but we’ll be done after this here, okay? All right. Acts 17, look in verse number 32. He just preached this great message. Many really look at it and dissect it; it’s a wonderful message. And look what happens: “And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked.” Some what? Mocked. They rejected it; they made fun of him. They mocked. “Another said, ‘We will hear thee again of this matter.’” They were interested; they didn’t get saved, but they were interested.

“So Paul departed from among them: howbeit certain men clave unto him, and believed.” They got saved. “Among the which was Dionysius, the Areopagite”—don’t ask me to say that again—“and a woman named Damaris, and others with them.”

Here’s just briefly here: He did a great job preaching. It wasn’t Paul—Paul did a good job preaching. He’s got Bible in there. But you know what? Some rejected. Some were interested; they didn’t get saved, but some got saved.

I’m telling you, by the way, if someone acts like, “Well, every person I witness to gets saved, every person I try to meet—I have 100% success in counseling,” whatever it is, you can mark that person off as a hypocrite, fake, guaranteed. Jesus didn’t have that, friend. But the devil will get all over you. And, friend, that’s part of trying to make a difference in somebody’s life; that’s just part of it.

But don’t let those that reject the truth—whatever may be—don’t let those people stop you from reaching those future ones that will get saved. There will be some that get saved. “Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” That’s typically the way it is. Some mock. How many of you have ever had someone throw a tract down right in front of you? You give them a tract, they thought… Oh, that’s part of it. How many—how many of you have a relative that’s not happy with you, and they call you names, whatever, you know, so you’re trying to witness to family or whatever? They’re trying to… Don’t think, “Well, I’m doing something wrong.” That’s part of it.

Then there’s going to be those interested, and then praise the Lord for those that will hear. Les Roloff—I’ve told this story before, we’ll be done after—Les Roloff. You remember Les Roloff? Back in the day, back in Texas—he’s from Corpus Christi, Texas. He’s down that way; some of his homes were… and Ian was in those homes back when he was… No, I’m teasing, he wasn’t, you know.

Les Roloff was being interviewed. I’m trying to remember the guy’s name, one of these talk show hosts way back in the day. Oh, I want to say Phil Donahue. Let’s see, remember that, man? Come on now. How many of you remember Phil Donahue? How many of you say, “I don’t know who in the world Phil Donahue is?” All right, we got some young people in here today. That’s a good thing, you know.

He was interviewed. I had a cassette tape of this. That shows out. There wasn’t 8-track; it wasn’t reel-to-reel, okay, now, you know. It was a cassette tape. And Phil Donahue, you could tell, he was trying to corner Les Roloff a little bit. And he said this: He said, “All right, be honest with the preacher. You know, in their homes, they would have rebellious teenagers or alcoholics or whatever coming to a home, and drug addicts. And man, they would just have them in the home. And God used those homes greatly. It wasn’t perfect, but God used the homes greatly.” Anyway, Phil Donahue, on this interview, he said, “Tell me the truth: How much success do you really have? Don’t lie to me now. Tell me how much success you really have.”

I really believe God gave Les Roloff the answer. It’s kind of a theme for me sometimes. Les Roloff said this: He said, “Well, we have enough success to praise the Lord and enough failure to keep us humble.” Now, friend, that’s reality when you’re working at people’s lives.

And that’s what’s going on here. Some rejected it. Some were interested. Praise the Lord, some got saved.

Would you bow your heads and close your eyes? Heads bowed, eyes are closed. We covered several different areas tonight. Maybe you just want to spend some time. Would you spend some time? Lord, Lord, help me to be that faithful. Praise the Lord for those faithful ones. Help me to be a part of that faithful crowd. I want to be that one that God can call out of the shadows and say, “Hey, they’re part of the foundation, if you will, and they’re just there.”

Maybe it’s the Word of God. I need to be in the Word of God. About to start a new year; it’ll be a great year to read your Bible through this year. Let’s just get the Word of God out everywhere any way we can. And then maybe you’ve been discouraged because not everybody hears. Oh, friend, let me encourage you: That’s part of it. But there will be some. Don’t let those that mock stop you from reaching those that will listen. There’s that crowd.

Would you please stand tonight for a word of prayer? You spend some time with the Lord as he leads you. You spend some time with him. Father, thank you, Lord. It is a blessing that you don’t sugarcoat it. You show us what it was really like. That’s helpful to us. Thank you for that. Bless the folks tonight over these truths. Well, thank you for what you do, Jesus. Then we pray. Amen.

Would you be obedient to Christ as our instruments play? Would you do that?

I hope it’s encouraging as we go through the book of Acts and just study it and find out. Praise the Lord for those faithful ones. Man, that just spoke to my heart. I praise the Lord for you, just the faithful people at First Baptist Church, for keeping things going. That’s just great. Good to see you tonight. And how many of you, you’re finished with your Christmas shopping already? Anybody like that? I’m mad at you. Wow. Right, right there. How many haven’t even started yet? I thought about it. I don’t think of… No, I bought a birthday present. No, no, I haven’t started yet, so amen. We’re going to work at it, amen. Good to have you here today, every single person. Glad you’re in God’s house tonight. What a blessing. What a blessing.

Original File: 2025-12-11 - Pastor Paul Chisgar - ＂The Faithful Ones of Acts 17＂ Wednesday 12⧸10⧸2025