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TIMOTHY LEARNS HOW TO DETERMINE GOD’S WILL!

On occasion I will take out a coin and flip it into the air while asking a colleague at Chandler High School to call heads or tails. With the coin already in the air he or she doesn’t have any time to consider what they are getting themselves into and invariably respond by choosing heads or tails. I then look at how the coin landed and declare, “you lose, you need to take my 4th hour class.”
With the mere flip of a coin I instantly determined God’s will as to whether I should teach my class or have someone else teach it for me. The nice thing about determining God’s will in this manner is that it is quick and it is crystal clear. Thus far, the only downside that I’ve experienced is that very few people, actually no one, have bought into the idea that this is a good way to determine God’s will for their life.
Have you ever flipped a coin to determine God’s will? Maybe, maybe not! But if you are like everyone else in this world, you have tried to determine God’s will for your life from time to time. Even your neighbors or coworkers who do not know God, who have no understanding of the Bible, on occasion try to determine God’s will in a particular manner.
In the ancient world some attempted to determine the will of God by studying livers - thinking that the center of thought was in the stomach. During their divination ritual a pagan priest killed an animal. Then while it was still warm they ripped it open, cut out the liver, and by the motion of the animal’s organ – or by the quiver of the liver – they determined the mind of the gods. In fact, there was a library in the ancient city of Assurbanipal, Assyria, in which many of the tablets dealt with a study of livers as an aid in divination.
We’d laugh at such a notion if it were not for the fact that even today people determine God’s will by consulting Ouija boards, Tara cards, mystic channelers, tea leafs, computer-generated probability studies, and/or astrologers. And there are times when even you and I think with our stomachs rather than our heads.
I bring all this to mind because for the first time in a long time Paul, Silas, and Timothy were free to stay in Corinth and free to leave. Unlike Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea someone else wasn’t making the decision for Paul. He and the others had already stayed in Corinth for a year and a half strengthening the believers by teaching them the word of God and were free to stay longer if they so desired.
The team was undoubtedly pleased with what God had brought about in Corinth. The church, as do all churches, had its problems but after a year and a half the leadership had been established and as a whole the church was reasonably stable. So perhaps it was time to move on to another city or return home. It wasn’t an easy decision for the young church still needed some help. But Paul, for whatever reasons, must have been thinking that it was time to leave Corinth. It is at this juncture in the life of the team where we read the following in Acts 18:18 - 22:
Paul stayed in Corinth for some time after that and then said good-bye to the brothers and sisters and sailed for the coast of Syria, taking Priscilla and Aquila with him. (Earlier, at Cenchrea, Paul had shaved his head according to Jewish custom, for he had taken a vow.) 19 When they arrived at the port of Ephesus, Paul left the others behind. But while he was there, he went to the synagogue to debate with the Jews. 20 They asked him to stay longer, but he declined. 21 So he left, saying, “I will come back later, God willing.” Then he set sail from Ephesus.
The next stop was at the port of Caesarea. From there he went up and visited the church at Jerusalem and then went back to Antioch.
Here, unless we read carefully, we simply see the results of the decision to leave Corinth and head home - which for Paul and Silas was Antioch. But how was God’s will determined in this matter? What did Timothy witness as he watched Paul struggle with what had to be a tough decision?
I believe the key as to what happened at this time in the life of the team is found in the fact that Paul got his hair cut in the port city of Cenchrea. Now I got my hair cut this past Friday. I did it for two simple reasons. First, it was looking pretty shaggy. Second, since I’m still employed by the Chandler School District, I thought it was looking quite unprofessional, though in today’s culture just about anything goes.
But for Paul this wasn’t a typical haircut, it was the climax of a vow he had taken. Scholars differ as to the nature of the vow but they agree on the fact that it was a Nazirite vow. For when someone sets everything aside for a period of time to spend time with God they would fast, avoid strong drink, and let their hair grow. The detailed instructions for this are found in Numbers 6 where we read:
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Speak to the people of Israel and give them these instructions: 2 If some of the people, either men or women, take the special vow of a Nazirite, setting themselves apart to the LORD in a special way, 3 they must give up wine and other alcoholic drinks. They must not use vinegar made from wine, they must not drink other fermented drinks or fresh grape juice, and they must not eat grapes or raisins. 4 As long as they are bound by their Nazirite vow, they are not allowed to eat or drink anything that comes from a grapevine, not even the grape seeds or skins.
“They must never cut their hair throughout the time of their vow, for they are holy and set apart to the LORD. That is why they must let their hair grow long. 6 And . . .
Evidently Paul separated himself from the work for some reason. William Barclay in his commentary on Acts believes Paul did it to express gratitude for all that God had done through the team in Macedonia - including Corinth. John Phillips suggest it was done to attract the Jews to the gospel. But I believe Paul set himself apart from the work to determine whether God wanted the team to stay in Corinth or not. If not, then did God want them to move on to another city or did he want them to head home?
Why do I believe Paul sought to determine God’s will in this matter of their itinerary? I believe it because of what happened in Ephesus shortly after they left Corinth. To appreciate the significance of what happened we need to remind ourselves of two things. First, Ephesus was the most important city in all of Asia Minor. It was the capital of the Roman province of Asia. It was strategically located and it was a much larger city than Corinth. If Corinth was the Las Vegas of its day, and it was, then Ephesus was the Los Angeles of its day.
Second, near the very beginning of the Second Missionary Journey the team tried to head south toward Ephesus but were prevented from doing so. Clearly Paul knew the evangelistic importance of this city. He knew that if Ephesus could be won for Christ, the entire area would be impacted for the kingdom of God. Nevertheless, when Paul was specifically invited to stay he declined the invitation!
Why? Was he out of his mind? No! In setting himself aside to determine God’s will for the team he must have become convinced of two things. First, it was time to leave Corinth. Second, it was time to go home. It was time to give a report to the church in Jerusalem and to update the home church in Antioch. He must have been absolutely convinced that this was God’s will for the team otherwise he would’ve jumped at the chance to evangelize the city of Ephesus!
Now, you will recall that for the last several weeks I have been saying that I believe Timothy learned his greatest lessons in Corinth. He learned that in the sovereignty of God a child of God can enter a strange city and be introduced to just the right people - as Paul was put in contact with Aquila and Priscilla. He learned that in our weakness God is strong. He learned that God chooses the foolish things of this world to shame the wise. And, he learned to preach the cross of Christ. He learned to correct, rebuke, and encourage with great patience and careful instruction.
He now learns that some issues are far too important to leave to the toss of a coin. Some issues are more important than to say “Heads we leave Corinth, Tails we stay a little longer.” So what exactly did he learn?
First, he learned to set aside time to determine God’s mind. Paul undoubtedly had a lot of things on his “to do” list in Corinth. But for a period of time, some say thirty days, he set everything aside and listened to the full counsel of God. This meant spending more time in prayer and more time in simply reading the Word with no other agenda in mind except hearing God’s wisdom in regards to the matter at hand. It meant being quiet enough to listen to the leading of the Spirit.
Second, he learned that setting aside time to spend with God doesn’t mean setting aside the wisdom of others. During this time, Paul undoubtedly had long discussions with Silas, Timothy, Aquila, Priscilla, and some of the emerging leaders of the church in Corinth. He knew that “plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisors they succeed.” (Proverbs 15:22)
Third, Timothy learned not to allow circumstances to determine the decision for him. For despite the fact they weren’t ran out of town, Corinth was still a very tough city. Why else would the team ask for prayer on their behalf when they wrote a second letter to the church in Thessalonica. For in II Thessalonians 3:1 - 2 we read:
Finally, dear brothers and sisters, I ask you to pray for us. Pray first that the Lord’s message will spread rapidly and be honored wherever it goes, just as when it came to you. 2 Pray, too, that we will be saved from wicked and evil people, for not everyone believes in the Lord.
You see, circumstances may bring us to the point of a decision but we must not allow circumstances to dictate the decision. Yes, circumstances were a factor to be considered but in Corinth this “factor of hostility” could be used as an argument to stay or leave.
Fourth, Timothy learned that making godly decisions isn’t always easy. All too often people don’t want to make good decisions as much as they want to make painless decisions. But the tough decisions in life, such as this one, are seldom without a good deal of agony and pain.
After the decision was made it is very clear that Paul was accompanied by Aquila and Priscilla when he left Corinth. What about Silas and Timothy? Did they leave Corinth at this time? Though nothing is said about either one, it is hard to imagine Silas staying behind when 30 days of fasting and prayer revealed that it was time to head home. Surely Silas accompanied Paul all the way back to Antioch – their home church.
And if Silas accompanied Paul as he left Corinth I suspect Timothy also left Corinth at this time. The bigger question is whether or not Timothy traveled with the two to Caesarea, Jerusalem, and then to Antioch. Or, did he go home after Ephesus? After all, by this time he had been away from his family for about three years.
I really don’t know what Timothy did after he left Corinth. I suspect he traveled to Caesarea, Jerusalem, Antioch, and then made his way home. Either way, he had plenty of stories to share with his family when he finally made it back to Lystra. What stories do you think he shared with his family? What would you’ve shared?

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