PAUL THE APOSTLE ( PART 39 ) | THE THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY ( ACTS 15:36 - 18:32 )

Pastor Christopher Choo

Lesson 3139

PAUL THE APOSTLE ( PART 39 )

THE THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY ( ACTS 15:36 - 18:32 )

Before I embark on the 3rd Missionary Journey of Paul, I would like to begin with 4 background studies on Ephesus which I believe every student of the Bible should know:

1. The Goddess Diana of Ephesus.

2. The Statue of Diana of Ephesus.

3. The Temple of Diana at Ephesus

4. The City of Ephesus ( in Paul's time )

THE GODDESS DIANA OF EPHESUS

In Greek mythology, she was a virgin goddess, the twin sister of Apollo - sometimes the goddess of the hunt or even of the moon ( as she replaced the original Moon Goddess Selene ).

But the Romans of Ephesus morphed her into a mother goddess of fertility from a virgin goddess. This is a significant and remarkable transformation.

The preceding Asiatic cult of the Mother Goddess was so strong that the Greek Artemis and the Roman Diana became a Mother Goddess. Please note that Ephesus was the capital city of Asia Minor in the East vying for social, economic, and religious prominence with Rome in Italy in the West. 

Thus Ephesus prided itself as the Temple Custodian of Diana the Great. Not surprisingly Ephesus became the hodgepodge of the occult arts ( for magicians, witches, wizards, exorcists, soothsayers, and mediums with the spirit of divination ).

Abba Father, we encounter this major demonic and territorial spirit mentioned in the Bible who was worshipped in one of the greatest cults in the Mediterranean world. Paul would have an uphill task in trying to change the mindset of the early Ephesian converts from worshipping this false demonic entity to the worship of the One True God in Christ.