This passage is centered around the battle between idolatry and the gospel. The gospel had slowly but surely been taking ground in the city of Ephesus for quite some time and now the idolatry that lurked in the shadows of that dark culture was rearing its ugly head.

The gospel had made a public spectacle of many things on the surface in Ephesus as people repented radically by burning their books of witchcraft (19:18 – 19), but when it comes to idolatry, it is not what is on the surface that really counts but what is under the surface. The things hidden under the surface is where the real battle takes place. Some people refer to this as the battle ground of the heart and soul. The heart and soul are the places where idolatry truly lives and thrives.

Most commentators are quick to remember that John Calvin calls the human heart “a perpetual idol factory” meaning that the human heart never stops churning out new invisible idols to bow down to; it is not like the twelve hour fueling station, it is more like the twenty four hour shopping center – it never stops churning, it is open for business 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year – it is an idol factory.2

My friend, Bob Thune, in his book Gospel Eldership, quoting Darrin Patrick from his book Churchplanter, helpfully summarizes what he calls “four basic source idols” that lie deep under the surface in our hearts (see below):3

  1. THE DESIRE FOR COMFORT: If comfort is what I want then I will do anything I can to maintain my privacy, to find relieve from stress or to avoid stress, and to find what appears to be ultimate freedom. I will be willing to pay the ultimate price to get what I want by simply being lazy and reducing my productivity to accomplishing very little. My greatest fear is any kind of stress or highly demanding situations. Others often feel hurt by me because I am emotionally, physically, and relationally unavailable to them. At the end of the day, I waste my life in the monotony of boredom because nothing exciting will happen when all I seek is to be comfortable. Does this sounds familiar to you?
  2. THE DESIRE FOR APPROVAL: If what I really want is approval, then my heart and my mind will be dominated by dreams of affirmation, love, acceptance, and relationships. I will have no problem spending whatever I have to, to get what I want, and I will typically give up every ounce of independence I have as I chase the tail of pleasing everyone around me. The thing that will make me lose sleep at night – my greatest fear – is being rejected by anyone, therefore people feel smothered by me because I am going to be really clingy. Most of the time, no matter what I do and no matter how many people approve of me, I feel like a coward – fearful of any kind of disapproval. Does this ring a bell for you?
  3. THE DESIRE FOR CONTROL: If what I really want deep down inside is control, then I will be obsessed with self – discipline, being certain of everything before I make a decision, and I will typically have very high – unmanageable or unreachable or unrealistic – standards for myself and everyone around me. Because I want to be in control so bad, I will pay the ultimate price of living in a lonely existence without any spontaneity. My greatest fear is uncertainty, therefore I accomplish very little since nothing can be certain, therefore other people around me usually feel condemned by me, and my entire existence is going to be full of worry and anxiety because the longer, I live, the more I become certain that I cannot control anything. Do you struggle with this?
  4. THE DESIRE FOR POWER: If power is what my heart longs for then I will be consumed with winning, being successful, and being more and more influential. To get what I want, I will spend untold amounts of energy to take on more and more responsibility so that I am more burdened than anyone around me – which proves why I am so powerful. My kryptonite, my greatest fear, is humiliation and embarrassment – I run away from humiliation and embarrassment, therefore the people around me feel used, like a rung on a ladder, and all I feel is perpetual anger because I can never get enough power to satisfy my hunger. Sound familiar to you?

Talk about a sobering introduction to a sermon, right?! My friend, Bob, later says that the way to deal with our inner idols is to simply: name your idols through hard evaluation, neuter your idols by recognizing how they do not deliver on their promises, and replaceyour idols by turning away from them, and turning by faith to specific aspects of God’s character that replaces those idols (i.e. God is our true comforter, He has given full approval in Christ, He is in full control and the final outcome is certain, He alone is all powerful and everything/everyone will submit to him).

So, with this basic course in idolatry in place, we can look at the text now and see what we can apply to our struggle against the darkness that lives under the surface of our lives.

21Now after these events Paul resolved in the Spirit to pass through Macedonia and Achia and go to Jerusalem, saying, “After I have been there, I must also see Rome.” 22And having sent into Macedonia two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, he himself stayed in Asia for a while. 23About that time there arose no little disturbance concerning the Way. 24For a man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought no little business to the craftsmen. 25These he gathered together, with the workmen in similar trades, and said, “Men, you know that from this business we have our wealth. 26And 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. 27And there is danger not only that this trade of ours may come into disrepute but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis maybe counted as nothing, and that she may even be deposed from her magnificence, she whom all Asia and the world worship.” 28When they heard this they were enraged and were crying out, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” 29So the city was filled with the confusion, and they rushed together into the theater, dragging with them Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians who were Paul’s companions in travel. 30But when Paul wished to go in among the crowd, the disciples would not let him. 31And even some of the Asiarchs, who were friends of his, sent to him and were urging him not to venture into the theater. 32Now some cried out one thing, some another, for the assembly was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together. 33Some of the crowd prompted Alexander, whom the Jews had put forward. And Alexander, motioning with his hand, wanted to make a defense to the crowd. 34But when they recognized that he was a Jew, for about two hours they all cried with one voice, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” 35And when the town clerk had quieted the crowd, he said, “Men of Ephesus, who is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple keeper of the great Artemis, and of the sacred stone that fell from the sky? 36Seeing then that these cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rash. 37For you have brought these men here who are neither sacrilegious nor blasphemers of our goddess. 38If therefore Demetrius and the craftsmen with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts are open, and there are proconsuls. Let them bring charges against one another. 39But if you seek anything further, it shall be settled in the regular assembly. 40For we really are in danger of being charged with rioting today, since there is no cause that we can give to justify this commotion.” 41And when he had said these things, he dismissed the assembly.

#1: THE TIMING OF IDOLATRY (VV. 21 – 23)

One of the basic mistakes we often make in our war against the darkness of idolatry is focusing on the external issues (i.e. pornography addiction, outbursts of anger, laziness, conflict avoidance, etc.) when we really ought to be paying attention to the timing of when the darkness of idolatry raises its ugly head.

In verses 21 – 23, Luke tells us that the darkness of idolatry raised its ugly head sometime after the massive public display of repentance (vv. 18 – 19). Immediately following that episode of mass repentance, the apostle Paul sends off “two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus” (v. 22) while he remained in Asia for a little longer preparing to head to Rome by way of Macedonia, Achia, and Jerusalem.

Commentators believe that this was the precise moment when Paul got the dream to collect an offering from the Gentile churches to help the church in Jerusalem and therefore to solidify the relationship of gospel partnership between these churches.4

So, it is exactly here where Luke says that “about that time there arose no little disturbance concerning the Way” (v. 23). So, immediately following a massive move of God that resulted in a city-wide season of repentance, and just when Paul had laid out his plans to unite the churches through mutual giving and receiving of financial support through partnership in the gospel – this is when idolatry reared its ugly head.

We might find a similar pattern in our lives when the darkness of idolatry rears its ugly head too. Oftentimes, the darkness of idolatry rears its ugly head when God is preparing to do something great in me or through me or has just done something great in me or through me.

Think about Moses – he must have loved being in control – because after leading the people out of Egypt, he takes things into his own hands as he strikes the rock for water (Exo. 17; Num. 20). Or think about David, fresh off the battlefield of success, and he rapes Bathsheba, murders her husband, and takes her to be his wife (2 Sam. 11 – 12) which must have made David feel really powerful. Think about Peter – seeking approval at all costs – at the precise moment when the Gentile and Jewish churches are spending time together finding common ground and he stopped eating with the Gentiles because of his fear of being rejected by his Jewish brothers (Gal. 2:11 – 14). Think about Noah after the miracle of being saved from the flood by the boat that he built under God’s direction – he is looking for a little comfort – so he gets drunk, passes out, and brings shame upon the entire family (Gen. 9).

The timing of idolatry can tell us a lot about what God has been doing or wants to do in and through us. And I also think there is some wisdom in realizing that our ability to resist idolatry, is deeply connected to the depth and regularity of our relationship with Jesus – because the threat, and the danger, and the promises of idolatry are always lurking in the shadows.

#2: THE THREAT, DANGER, PROMISE OF IDOLATRY (VV. 24 – 27)

In verses 24 – 27, a man named Demetrius gathers up all the business leaders in the community for a meeting to discuss the effects of Christianity in their city. Demetrius is a persuasive fellow who basically points out the danger or the threat of Christianity not only to their bank accounts – since all their wealth came from the promotion of idol worship – but Christianity also threatened or endangered the value of the pornographic goddess named Artemis, not to mention her temple with its worship practices of ritual prostitution. The danger and threat were to the almighty dollar and the promise was that if Christianity was removed, then bank accounts would overflow, and the temple and goddess would be safe.5

The premise here is that since Paul proclaimed that anything made with hands cannot be a god – a point that should be easy to understand since no god was ever the creation of another unless the creator was a god too – nevertheless, the people in this meeting valued their wealth and they valued their ritual worship of a pornographic goddess of fertility. Christianity threatened the sinful customs and livelihood that promised great wealth and great pleasure.

Can you not hear echoes of our earlier Bible stories here too; Moses (control), David (power), Peter (approval), and Noah (comfort)? It would have been dangerous for Moses to be out of control or for David not to exert his power or for Peter to not seek approval or for Noah not to look for comfort. If these men would only do what they wound up doing, (striking the rock, sleeping with Bathsheba, avoiding the Gentiles, getting drunk), then and only then would the promises of control, power, approval, and comfort provide the valuable refreshment they promised. Or would they?

#3: THE RESULTS OF PRACTICING IDOLATRY (VV. 28 – 34)

The threats, and the dangers, and the promises of idolatry are always filled with deceit; they never produce what they promise, and their threats are always hollow. Listening to and obeying the promises of idolatry in light of its threats of danger, will always produce emotional instability, confusion and persecution.

In verses 28 – 34, once Demetrius had set the hook of idolatry with his threats of danger and implied promises, his listeners lost their ever-living minds and they threw an all-out riot in the city center, complete with chanting “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians” (vv. 28, 34) at the top of their lungs for hours on end. They get so enraged that they drag some of the local believers into the amphitheater, where they proceeded to accuse them without allowing them to defend themselves.

It is important to notice here that Luke describes these idolaters as being enraged (v. 28), confused (v. 29), and then confused again (v. 32) as he describes the persecution that they attempt to bring upon the believers in Ephesus. What do we see here? I think we see emotional instability, persecution, and confusion! This is what playing with idols does to every one of us.

On the one hand, if you are standing firm on the gospel, you can rest assured that the spiritual warfare in this present darkness that we live in (Eph. 6) will eventually rear its ugly head against you and you will experience first-hand, the emotional instability, the confusion, and the persecution that results from those who are under the spell of idolatry. The gospel upends the core idols of control, power, comfort, and approval and when those idols get upended in the unbelievers around us, we will certainly face the wrath of their emotional instability, their confusion, and their persecution.

On the other hand, if you and I – just like Moses, David, Peter, and Noah – give into our idolatrous tendencies, then the result will never be what those idols promise; the result will always be emotional instability as our hearts are hardened against the Spirit of God, confusion as our minds are filled with the smoky embers of our sin, and persecution as our flesh acts in sinful ways that it was not designed to act in.

Can you identify with any of this? Does this not seem to be a pitiful place to be? Is there any hope here of being free from the effects of idolatry in this life? The only hope we have is if we can silence the idolatry that is constantly shouting at us at the top of its lungs.

#4: WE MUST SILENCE IDOLATRY (VV. 35 – 41)

In verses 35 – 41, Luke tells us that the equivalent of the community secretary eventually got the crowd to quiet down and basically explained that they had no legal grounds to charge the local believers with and that if they kept it up, they would be charged with unlawful rioting.

In the grand scheme of things, God works silently behind the scenes to use a public official to shut things down and to silence the idolaters and the fine thread woven into the silencing is the use of a Pagan official to prove that there was no legal right to persecute the believers and that the real offenders, the real criminals, were in fact the idolaters.

This got me to thinking that the way we silence all the threats, all the insinuated dangers, all the bottomless promises, all the emotional instability, all the confusion, and all the persecution that idolatry brings with it, is to silence idolatry’s dark voice with a legal argument that says, “Idolatry, you have no legal hold over me because of the bloody cross, the empty tomb, and the promise of Christ’s return!”

CONCLUSION…

In conclusion, I want to make sure you are tracking with me. Idolatry holds no legal power over you if you are in Christ Jesus. And the way you silence the dark voice of idolatry, is to basically do what my friend Bob Thune says to do from the introduction to this message; Name the idol, Neuter the idol, and Replace the idol. When you do this, you effectively remind yourself that the idol has no legal hold over you.

  1. The idol of control has no legal hold over you – although you want it badly – you name it, you neuter it, and you replace it by reminding yourself that Jesus is in ultimate control over all things because of the bloody cross, the empty tomb, and the promise of eternity.
  2. The idol of comfort has no legal hold over you – although you want comfort really badly – you name it for what it is, you neuter it, and you replace it by remembering that the only lasting comfort you will ever find is in seeking the presence of your crucified, risen, and returning Savior.
  3. The idol of approval has no legal hold over you – even though you really want approval from other humans, that approval will never satisfy you eternally, therefore you have to name it for what it is (false approval), neuter it by showing it how unable it is to deliver on its promises, and then you have to replace it by preaching to your heart that the bloody cross, the empty tomb, and the promise of eternity will certainly deliver the most absolute acceptance and approval you will ever experience in the presence of your perfect, good, and loving Father who ransoms and redeems and welcomes sinners just like you and me into his arms for all of eternity as he transforms us into saints!
  4. The idol of power has no legal hold over you – even though power is so tempting – it will never satisfy you because it will be burned up in the end, therefore you have to name it as the liar it really is, neuter it as the incompetent thing it really is, and then replace it with a crucified, risen, and returning Savior who will rule with ultimate authority when he returns with an iron rod on a white horse with his clothes drenched in the blood of the martyrs!!!

So, pay attention to the timing of when the desires for control, approval, comfort, and power rear their ugly heads. Those idols reveal themselves at times when God has done or is about to do something great in and through you. Do not buy into the threats of danger or implied promises of those idols. They will only ever produce emotional instability, confusion, and persecution.

Do not walk around defeated when you fail in your fight against idolatry or when some idolatrous person attacks you. Silence the intimidating voice of idolatry by naming it, neutering it, and replacing it with a bloody cross, an empty tomb, and the hope of heaven that you have been given in the crucified, risen, and returning Christ! – Amen!!!

1 Unless otherwise specified, all Bible references in this paper are to the English Standard Version Bible, The New Classic Reference Edition (ESV) (Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, 2001).

2 Derek W. H. Thomas, Acts, (Phillipsburg, New Jersey: P&R Publishing, 2011), 550.

3 Robert H. Thune, Gospel Eldership: Equipping a New Generation of Servant Leaders, (Greensboro, New Growth Press, 2016), 41 – 42.

4 Derek W. H. Thomas, Acts, (Phillipsburg, New Jersey: P&R Publishing, 2011), 552.

5 Kent, Hughes, Acts: The Church Afire, (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 1996), 262 – 265.