Jeff Shelnutt Sermons

This is the third message in our Christian Essentials series. Together, we are diving into those core doctrines that define Christianity. Having considered the triune nature of God, and the depravity of man, we are now in a position to look at the doctrine of the Son. Jesus Christ was fully God and fully man. We cannot err on one side or the other, but must hold both beliefs simultaneously as the Bible presents them. Because Jesus was fully man, He could live and die on behalf of men. Because Jesus was fully God, He could bear the wrath of God sin deserves. The person of Christ refers to who Jesus is. The Work of Christ refers to what He has done.

This passage is the first description of early Christians meeting on a Sunday. It gives us a glimpse of what the gathered believers in Troas did when they came together for worship. In this message, we ask four questions: 1) Who meets together? 2) When do we meet? 3) Where do we meet? 4) What do we do when we meet? By allowing the Word of God to shape and calibrate our times of worship, the people of God are encouraged and the Lord Jesus is exalted.   

After leaving Ephesus, Paul's destination is Jerusalem. He revisits the churches in Macedonia and in Achaia. However, learning about a plot against him by the non-believing Jews in Corinth, he takes a detour. Because of this unexpected change in plans, Paul ends up in Troas. While ministering to the church there, a young man is killed by falling asleep and falling to his death. The detour has turned into a disaster. Paul faces the disaster in faith, raising Eutychus from the dead. The destination for every Christian is the likeness of Christ. Detours are not accidents but events used by God in order to reach the destination. For the Christian, disaster will never have the final say. 

Every form of idol worship represents a desire for security, significance, or satisfaction. The mob in Ephesus formed at the behest of those who felt their financial security threatened. Though Paul desired to address the confused and angry crowd, the disciples and his friends kept him from doing so. The apostle's friend in the highest place, the Lord, invites everyone to taste and see that He is good. The goddess Artemis, whom the crowd so vehemently defended, could not speak, see, or hear, much less could she offer assistance to the crowd who chanted her name. You become like what you worship. The One Paul worshiped delivered him from the hands of the mob who proved powerless, like their idol, to accomplish their goals.  

As Paul makes plans to visit Jerusalem and then Rome, he aligns his intention with God's intention. Paul is ever looking forward, seeking to land where the Gospel has yet to be proclaimed. In his ultimate desire to go to Spain, Paul does not neglect to remember the poor. No sooner does Paul purpose and plan to do the will of God, he faces opposition in Ephesus. The local craftsman rise up against the apostle, revealing their idolatry is deeper than Artemis worship. When you pursue the will of God, false gods will be revealed. The subtle power of idolatry is dealt with at the cross of Jesus Christ.   

There are certain essential doctrines that lie at the core of Christianity. These beliefs pertain directly to what it means to believe the Gospel. In the second message of this series, we consider the fall of the first man, Adam, and the resultant depravity inherited by every man and woman. With Romans 5:12 in the forefront, we ask and answer three questions: 1) What went wrong? 2) What does it mean? and 3) How are things set right? 

Those who had believed in Ephesus began to publicly confess and disclose practices that displeased God. As a transformed people, they brought out into the light what was formerly kept in the dark. Ephesus was a city steeped in the practice of magic. It was believed that much of the effectiveness of so-called magical powers depended on the secrecy surrounding the magical spells. Those Christians who used to engage in such things brought their books of magic and burned them publicly, breaking the influence of darkness in their lives. In this passage we learn about the necessity of confession; when sin needs only to be confessed privately to God; and when sin should be confessed publicly to others as well. We also see the value of denouncing sin publicly, denouncing sin voluntarily, the cost involved in doing so, and the spiritual gain that results. 

After departing the synagogue, Paul spends two years teaching in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. Ephesus will prove to be an incredibly fruitful mission field with regional impact. Though God opens the door for the powerful advancement of the Gospel, the Adversary does not easily concede his long-held ground. Attempts by some who do not personally know the Lord Jesus to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus backfire on them. The residents of Ephesus, steeped as they were in magical practices, learn that the authority and power of Jesus cannot be claimed or used like a magical formula.    

Arriving back in Ephesus from the north, Paul encounters twelve disciples of John the Baptist. Something about them is off. Like a wise soul doctor, Paul poses a couple of questions in order to evaluate their spiritual health. Revealing their symptoms by their responses, the twelve help Paul reach a diagnosis. The apostle then proceeds to apply the cure. In their own uninformed way, the disciples of John are living according to the Law. Paul reveals how the Gospel of Jesus Christ can set them free.  

There are certain doctrines that have always and must always be affirmed by Christians. Of these core beliefs, affirming the truth of the Trinity is essential for relating to God as Creator and as Redeemer. The first part of the message deals with some key passages in the New Testament and Old Testament that address the triune nature of the Godhead. The second part breaks down why the Trinity matters to the individual and to the church.