1. Orientation (verse 1)
2. Investigation (verses 2-3)
3. Explanation (verses 4-5)
4. Manifestation (verses 6-7)

Last week I began my sermon by telling you about Charles Wesley. He was the 18th child of Susanna Wesley. He grew up in a pastor’s home. In college,he formed an accountability group in efforts to help him and his friends serve God “every hour of the day.” He fasted and prayed regularly. He read his Bible often. He went into the ministry. Shortly after his ordination, he set out for Georgia on a short evangelistic crusade. After returning to England, he continued on with his ministry, preaching and teaching and visiting people. And yet, he was not saved.

Only after several illnesses threatened his life, did Charles Wesley find peace with God. It was a Sunday morning, May 21, 1738, Charles Wesley’s own “Day of Pentecost.” He wrote in his journal, “The Spirit of God strove with my own and chased away the darkness of my unbelief. I found myself convinced, I knew not how nor when. I now found myself at peace with God, and rejoiced in hope of loving Christ. I saw that by faith I stood. I went to bed still sensible of my own weakness, yet confident of Christ’s protection.” Charles Wesley went on for years, following after Christ. ministering to many, especially through his hymns.

Now, this morning, I want to tell you a bit about John Wesley. His story is much the same as that of his brother Charles. John was born in 1703, which makes him four years older than Charles. John was the 15th child in the family (Charles was the 18th child). They both were very bright students. They both attended Oxford. They both were very serious about their Christian life. They both were part of accountability group that Charles had formed on the campus of Oxford. where they urged each other on to pursue a holy life. (People mocked them and called them the “Holy Club.”)^[1]

Anyway, John and Charles Wesley were both were ordained into the ministry. both went on that evangelistic trip to Savanna, Georgia. Now, I didn’t mention this with what I told you last week of Charles Wesley. But on the way across the ocean, they hit a storm. and the boat rock back and forth, seemingly ready to sink at any moment. John Wesley was terrified. But there were some on board the ship who were perfectly at peace, a group of Moravians. Instead of fearing their death at sea, they sang hymns of praise. trusting in the Lord to sustain them. When Wesley asked why they were not afraid, they responded, “We are neither afraid for ourselves nor for our children.” They trusted their lives into the hands of the Sovereign God. This was one of John Wesley’s first insights into the state of his soul.

They arrived in America on Friday, February 6, 1736. The very next day, John Wesley met one of the Moravian pastors who was ministering in Georgia at the time. His name August Sottlieb Spangenberg. This man quickly discerned Wesley’s spiritual condition and pressed him a bit. This is what Wesley recorded in his journal about the conversation. Mr. Spangenberg asked him, “My brother, I must first ask you one or two questions. Have you the witness within yourself? Does the Spirit of God bear witness with your spirit that you are a child of God?” Wesley writes, “I was surprised, and knew not what to answer. He observed it and asked, ‘Do you know Jesus Christ?’ I paused and said, ‘I know He is the Saviour of the world.’ ‘True,’ replied he; ‘but do you know He has saved you?’ I answered, ‘I hope He has died to save me.’ He only added, ‘Do you know yourself?” I said, ‘I do.’”

And then, in his journal, Wesley added his comment on this conversation. “But I fear they were vain words” These words that Wesley wrote in his journal were not retrospect. In other words, they weren’t written years later as he recalled the conversation that he had with Mr. Spangenberg. They were his thoughts at the time. He knew that he wasn’t saved. He knew that he had never experienced the Holy Spirit in his life. though he had traveled abroad to Georgia to evangelize those in the New World.

This became evident upon his journey back across the Atlantic Ocean, back to England.

Again, they encountered another storm, which troubled his heart. He wrote in his journal on January 24, 1738, “I went to America, to convert the Indians; but oh! Who shall convert me? I have a fair summer religion. I can talk well; nay, and believe myself, while no danger is near; But let death look me in the face, and my spirit is troubled. Nor can I say, ‘To die is gain!’”^[2]

A few days later, still on the ship, Wesley wrote (January 29, 1738), “It is now two years and almost four months since I left my native country in order to teach the Georgian Indians the nature of Christianity. But what have I learned myself in the meantime? Why (what I the least of all suspected), that I who went to America to convert others was never myself converted to God.”

A short time after Wesley landed in America, he went to visit his brother at Oxford. Wesley wrote in his journal (on Saturday, March 4, 1738), “I was clearly convinced of unbelief, of the want of that faith whereby alone we are saved.” Wesley was in this battle in his mind. He said to himself, “How can you preach to others, who have not faith yourself?”

He spoke with Peter Böhler about stopping his preaching work. (Remember, Böhler was instrumental in the conversion of Charles Wesley). Böhler replied, “By no means.” Wesley replied, “But what can I preach?” He said, “Preach faith till you have it; and then, because you have it, you will preach faith.”

That next Monday (on March 6, 1738), Wesley said, “I began preaching this new doctrine, though my soul started back from the work. The first person whom I offered salvation by faith alone was a prisoner under sentence of death.”

If you would continue tracing through his journal, you find that he continued on doing that. He was preaching faith to others. About a month and a half later, Wesley encountered Böhler again. He asked again whether he ought not to refrain from teaching others. Böhler said to him, “No; do not hide in the earth the talent God hath given you” (April 25, 1738). The next day (Wednesday, April 26, 1738), Wesley and Böhler were out on a walk. Böhler told Wesley, “not to stop short of the grace of God” (April 26, 1738).

About a month later, he went to visit his sick brother, Charles. On Saturday, May, 20, 1738, he and some friends “spent Saturday night in prayer.” The following day (Sunday morning), Wesley heard Dr. Heylyn preach what he called, “A truly Christian sermon” on Acts 2:4, “They were all filled with the Holy Spirit.” That afternoon, John Wesley heard that his brother Charles had “found rest to his soul.” (This is the story that I told you last week.) The next few days Wesley said, “I had continual sorrow and heaviness in my heart.”

And then, on Wednesday, May 24, 1738, just three days after his brother Charles was converted, John Wesley awoke at five the morning. He opened his Bible to 2 Peter 1:4, “There are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, even that ye should be partakers of the divine nature.” He also read Mark 12:34, “Thou art not far from the kingdom of God” In the afternoon, he was asked to go to St. Paul’s church, where Psalm 130 was sung,

Psalm 130
Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD!
O Lord, hear my voice!
Let your ears be attentive
to the voice of my pleas for mercy!
If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness,
that you may be feared.
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope;
my soul waits for the LORD
more than watchmen for the morning,
more than watchmen for the morning.
O Israel, hope in the LORD!
For with the Lord there is steadfast love,
and with him is plentiful redemption.
And he will redeem Israel
from all his iniquities.

Here is what John Wesley wrote about his activities in the evening. “In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society in Aldersgate Street, where one was reading Luther’s preface to the Epistle to the Romans. About a quarter before nine, while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone, for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death.”

At 34 years of age, John Wesley was finally born again.

The next day John Wesley wrote in his journal, “The moment I awakened, ‘Jesus, Master,’ was in my heart and in my mouth; and I found all my strength lay in keeping my eye fixed upon Him and my soul waiting on Him continually. Being again at St. Paul’s in the afternoon, I could taste the good word of God in the anthem which began, ‘my song shall be always of the loving-kindness of the Lord.’”

Wesley’s trust in Christ would last his entire life. One man estimates that he preached more than 40,000 sermons during his lifetime, that’s three sermons every day for 40 years! Being a great administrator, he organized societies and opened chapels, and became the founder of the Methodist Church.
_______________

Now, I tell you the story of the conversion of John Wesley, because this is what we will see in our text this morning. We will see a group of men, zealous for the Lord, yet not saved. They were ignorant of the Holy Spirit, until Paul came along and told them of Jesus.

This, by the way, was the story of our text last week, when Apollos, a man “mighty in the Scriptures,” was preaching righteousness, but was not saved, until Priscilla and Aquila came along and told them of Jesus.

I tell these conversion stories of Charles and John Wesley, because they are so similar. just like the text I preached last week and the text I preached this week are similar. In fact, most preachers that I listen to in preparation for preaching my messages, preach them together, because the message is the same: You must believe in Jesus to be saved.

There are lots of people in this life, who look like they are saved. They have a measure of righteousness in their lives. They have a measure of zeal in their lives. They attend church, and Bible studies. From outward appearances, all looks well. But inwardly, all is not well. They aren’t saved, because they aren’t really trusting in Jesus. They are trusting in other things, like their own righteousness, or their own church attendance, or their commitment to serve the church, or their generosity to God’s work. But none of these things save a soul. It is in Jesus alone that salvation is found.

Do you remember in the book of Acts, when Peter preached to the religious leaders in Jerusalem? He said, "And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). That’s what John and Charles Wesley discovered. That’s what we will discover this morning.

So, let’s read our text. It’s found in Acts 19:1-7.

Acts 19:1-7
And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John's baptism.” And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying. There were about twelve men in all.

The title of message this morning is this: “There is a Holy Spirit.” It comes from verse 2, when these disciples say, "We have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” The title of my message is the affirmation that indeed, “There is a Holy Spirit.”

Now, before we dive into our text this morning, let’s get our bearings. Let's begin with my first word:

1. Orientation (verse 1)

Let's orient ourselves into where we are in the book of Acts. Paul is on his third missionary journey. Like his other missionary journeys, this one, also began in Antioch in Syria.

In Acts 18:23, we have recorded for us the moment he set out on his journey. We are told that he "went from one place to the next through the region of Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples." And now, in Acts 19, and verse 1, we find that he "passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus" (Acts 19:1). This is where the events of our text take place: in Ephesus. That’s where the events of last week’s text took us, with Apollos. But he has left (as verse 1 says), to Corinth.

Now, what is interesting here is Paul’s travels to Ephesus. Do you remember on Paul’s second missionary journey, how he attempted to go to Ephesus? In Acts 16:6, we read of Paul and Silas and Timothy, "And they went through the region of Phyrgia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia." In the Ancient World, Asia didn’t mean “China” it means “Asia Minor,” that is where Ephesus was. So, on his second missionary journey, Paul had tried to go to Ephesus to preach the gospel, but the Holy Spirit forbid him to go there. This was the leading of God on Paul’s life. It simply wasn’t the time for him to be in Ephesus.

Then, Do you remember on Paul’s second missionary journey, how he actually visited Ephesus? "And they came to Ephesus, and he himself went into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. When they asked him to stay for a longer period, he declined. But on taking leave of them he said, “I will return to you if God wills,” and he set sail from Ephesus" (Acts 18:19-21). Paul’s plans were taking him to Jerusalem and back to Antioch. The timing still wasn’t right for him to go to Ephesus.

But now, in Acts 19, on Paul’s 3rd missionary journey, we find it to be God’s will that he returns to Ephesus.

The application for us is simple. As you seek to share the gospel with those around you, don’t fret if things seemingly don’t quite work out for you. If you are trying to meet with someone, and scheduling conflicts keep getting in the way, or the conversation didn’t go quite right, someone else was there, which created an awkward environment in which to share the gospel.

Don’t fret about it. If God wills, God will open the door with an opportunity for the gospel. Certainly, pray for opportunities. and when opportunities present themselves, walk through the door as witnesses of Jesus. You trusted the Lord with your salvation. So, trust him with your evangelism as well.

Anyway, that is our "Orientation." We have seen Paul set out on his third missionary journey. He lands in Ephesus, according to the will of God. And we read in verse 1, "There [in Ephesus] he found some disciples." At this point, Paul begins his ...

2. Investigation (verses 2-3)

He wants to find out about these disciples. Who are they? What do they believe? Are they believers in Jesus?

This is not so much unlike the conversation that August Sottlieb Spangenberg had with John Wesley upon his arrival to Georgia, when he inquired of John Wesley’s faith.

The conversation with Paul and these disciples went as follows.

Acts 19:2-3
[Paul] said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John's baptism.”

At this point, we see what is meant in verse 1, when they were identified as “disciples.” They were disciples of John the Baptist, the one who came to Judea, preaching in the wilderness (Matthew 3:1), and baptizing people in the Jordan River as they confessed their sins (Matthew 3:6).

Now, it is unlikely for these people to have been in Judea, when John the Baptist had come, only to travel to Ephesus, and continue on in their ways. What is far more likely is that these disciples had embraced the teaching of Apollos. If you were here last week (or listened online), you will remember that Apollos was in Ephesus, preaching mighty “the way of the Lord,” knowing only the baptism of John. Of course, this was John’s purpose. He was "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight" (Matthew 3:2).

I would suspect that these disciples were following the teaching of Apollos. He would have been easy to follow being “an eloquent man,” being “mighty in the Scriptures” and “being fervent in spirit.” They would have embraced the message of Apollos, and followed in the way of John’s water baptism, seeking to walk in the ways of the Lord.

Now, last week, we saw how Priscilla and Aquilla took Apollos aside, to explain to him “the way of God more accurately” (Acts 18:26). That is, that Jesus was the one who came to prepare the way for Jesus, the Messiah. It is Jesus who we need to follow, not John the Baptist. John was good in teaching us the ways of God. But Jesus is better, bringing us to God through his sacrifice upon the cross for our sins.

Further, we know (especially from 1 Corinthians), that Apollos embraced the instruction of Priscilla and Aquilla. and became a mighty “Christian” preacher, preaching, not our own righteousness, but preaching the righteousness of Jesus Christ, obtained by faith alone. But Apollos had gone to Corinth (verse 1). And apparently, his new found understanding of the gospel had not yet reached the ears of his disciples in Ephesus. But it reached the ears of Paul, and that was enough.

Now, what is also amazing here is that they claim never to have heard that there is a Holy Spirit. This is amazing because John taught clearly about the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist said, "I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire" (Matthew 3:11). So, if they knew the baptism of John, they should have known of the coming baptism of Jesus, in which the Holy Spirit would come upon them. But somehow they didn’t.

They are not alone. There are plenty of professing Christians in this world, who know little of the presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives. that Spirit that comes and changes people from within. There are many who simply think that being right with Jesus is about our commitment to follow his ways, to give money to the church, to volunteer for some children’s ministry, to help those in need, to be active in the church. All devoid of the role of the Holy Spirit in their lives! But that’s not Christianity. That’s not the way to be right with God, as Paul goes on to explain.

So, Paul, having finished his "Investigation," continued on with his ...

3. Explanation (verses 4-5)

Acts 19:4
And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.”

Here we see Paul speaking with these disciples of John, long enough to discern what they lack in their understanding of the gospel. so as to give them what they need of the gospel.

So, I would encourage you to follow in the path of Paul. When you meet people and the topic turns to religion, play the detective, launch your own investigation. Ask questions! Ask questions of others about what they believe. Ask them questions about their view on this life. Ask them if they believe in God. Ask them if they have heard of Jesus. Ask them if they have ever been to church. Ask them if they have ever read the Bible. Ask them if they know that the core message of Christianity is. Ask them how they are seeking to be made right with God.

When you have done enough “Investigation.” Give them an “Explanation” of what they need to hear.

If they don’t believe in God, show them the glory of God all around them. If they haven’t heard of Jesus, tell them of how Jesus lived 2,000 years ago, and died upon the cross for our sins. If they haven’t ever been to church, ask them if they are interested in coming sometime to Rock Valley Bible Church. If they haven’t ever read the Bible, ask them if they have a Bible, and seek to get a Bible to them if they need one (take one home from the seat in front of you to give to them). If they don’t know the core message of Christianity, give them a brief summary of our message: God created a perfect world, but because of our sin, we messed it up. As a result, terrible things happen in this life, wars, school shootings, abuse of children. But God sent his son Jesus to make things right. Someday, God will make everything right when Jesus returns. You can be right with God by believing in Jesus, and trusting his sacrifice on the cross as a sufficient sacrifice for your sins.

So, be a detective into the hearts of others. Explain to them what they are lacking in their understanding of the gospel. This is what Paul did. From his investigation, he concluded that they didn’t know about Jesus. So, he gives the explanation: “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus” (Acts 19:4).

I find their ignorance here of Jesus to be quite amazing! When these things were happening, it was about 52-53 A.D. Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome somewhere around 48 or 49 A. D., which brought Priscilla and Aquila to Corinth (Acts 18:2). Paul spent 18 months with them in Corinth. Then he traveled to Jerusalem and Antioch, and back! That’s some 20 years after Jesus died and rose again!

One explanation is that news traveled slow in the ancient world. It took people on foot to travel from place to place to tell them of what happened in the ancient world. Somehow, the message of Jesus didn’t get to these people for 20 years. How that happened, I just don’t know. especially understanding how important the city of Ephesus was to the ancient world.

Another explanation is that they were simply blind to the working of Jesus.

I was reading this week of the ministry of Devereux Jarrett, who ministered in America in the 1760’s (about the time of the ministry of the Wesley brothers). He came to a church in Virginia and began preaching. People considered him to be quite strange. He professed, “I was called an enthusiast, fanatic, visionary, dissenter, Presbyterian, madman, and what not.” He summarized what others thought of his preaching. They said, “We have had many ministers and have heard many before this man, but we never heard anything, till now, of conversion, the new birth, &c.—we never heard that men are so totally lost and helpless, that they could not save themselves, by their own power and good deeds; - if our good works will not save us, what will?”^[3]

Now, it’s not that those in the 1740’s didn’t have a Bible where they couldn’t read about the Holy Spirit. It’s that they had never experienced it before. Perhaps that’s what those in Ephesus meant by what those in Ephesus said, "we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit” (Acts 19:2).

Perhaps they had never experienced the Holy Spirit before. Perhaps they were just like the Wesley brothers, who were knowledgeable of the Scriptures, fervent for the Lord, but never experienced the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives. So also today, I believe that there are many who haven’t experience the Holy Spirit in their lives.

Jesus said that you need to be “born again” (John 3:3). that is “born from above” (John 3:3). that is “born of the Spirit” (John 3:6). And there are many professing Christians who know nothing of this experience. who think that religion is all about do’s and don’ts. who think that it’s about believing in Jesus, and doing good things for him. But, many miss the role of the Holy Spirit to transform an individual. to bring them from darkness to light. that the things of God are the desires of the soul. Christianity is all response. The commands of God all come to a willing heart in the life of a believer.

We see this in verse 5. Paul brought to them the news of Jesus (in verse 4). And they responded in verse 5.

Acts 19:5
On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

I love the simple response: faith in Jesus, obedience to what he says. They were baptized. This is a genuine sign of the working of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer. He (or she) will hear the word and respond in obedience. In this case, with those in Philippi, it was baptism. They had been baptized in accordance with the baptism of John, for repentance. And now, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, to identify with him.

Perhaps this is the same with you. Perhaps you need to be baptized. Perhaps you have come to faith in Jesus, but have never been baptized to identify with him. I’m simply telling you today, if you believe in Christ, you should be baptized.

We have seen this often in the book of Acts, from the thousands on the day of Pentecost, to the Ethiopian Eunuch in Gaza, to Paul on the Road to Damascus; from Cornelius and his family in Caesarea, to Lydia and the Jailer in Philippi. In every instance, we see belief and then baptism. Baptism is an opportunity to publicly profess your faith. It's a time where you publicly identify with Jesus.

Let’s finish with our last point.

4. Manifestation (verses 6-7)

Acts 19:6-7
And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.

Here we see the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. There is a Holy Spirit. He works in the lives of his people. He creates fruit in their lives (Galatians 5:22-23). In this case, the manifestation of the Spirit was in tongues.

Do you know how often the book of Acts speaks about tongues? Three times. We first see tongues in Acts 2 on the day of Pentecost when the gospel goes to the Jews. We then see tongues in Acts 10, when the gospel first goes to the Gentiles. And now, today we see it in Acts 19, when the gospel spread to the disciples of John. Every time we see tongues in the New Testament, we see the gospel spreading to a new people group (the Jews, the Gentiles, the disciples of John). For all of the times when tongues are discussed today, it shows up only three times in the book of Acts. When it does show up in Acts, it's when the gospel spreads to a new group of people.

A common debate today is over what tongues actually are. Some say that they are known languages. Others say that they are gibberish. I would contend that they were known languages. The first time that they appear in Acts 2, they are clearly known languages. We know this because the testimony of those in the crowds: "we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God" (Acts 2:11). I think it's possible to assume that the events of Acts 10 and 19 were similar. Here in Acts 19, my guess is that these men were speaking in Hebrew. They were Greeks and didn't know Hebrew, but Paul did. It was a miraculous manifestation of the Holy Spirit.

We read in verse 6 that they were "speaking in tongues and prophesying." These disciples knew the word of God well. They were disciples of John the Baptist. Somehow they were speaking forth the word of God for those in Ephesus to hear.

In verse 7, we read the following:

Acts 19:7
There were about twelve men in all.

I don't know why Luke adds this for us. But it helps to paint a picture for us of what actually happened in this event. If you ask a pastor of a church how many people attend the church they pastor, it helps to form a picture of what takes place at the church. The experience of a pastor of a church of 500 is different than a pastor of a church of 40. Paul's experience here was with 12 guys. It was just a little pocket of men who heard the word of the Lord.

There is a Holy Spirit!

Do you know of the Holy Spirit in your life? Or, are you like the Wesley brothers? They were very knowledgeable of the Bible. They were very active in ministry. From all external appearances, they seemed to know the Lord. But they didn't. They were trusting in their own righteousness, not in the righteousness of Jesus. They didn't have a personal experience with the Holy Spirit. Is this you?

This sermon was delivered to Rock Valley Bible Church on May 29, 2022 by Steve Brandon.
For more information see www.rockvalleybiblechurch.org.

[1] Do you know who else was a part of that club? George Whitefield, perhaps the greatest evangelist the world has ever known!

[2] John Wesley, The Journal of John Wesley, ed. Nora Ratcliff (New York: Thomas Nelson & Sons, 1940), 54. All subsequent quotes from his journal come from this same source. You can read John Wesley's journal online here: https://archive.org/details/journalofjohnwes0000wesl.

[3] Iain H. Murray, Revival and Revivalism: The Making and Marring of American Evangelicalism (Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1994), 64.