Friends,Pagans and Rioters

Please read Acts 19:23-41

The near riot in Ephesus is a unique and fascinating event in the Acts history.  A thorough study of this passage would fill a book but there is one phrase that ought to grab our attention.  In Acts 19:31 we read, “some of the Asiarchs who were his friends…” Who or what were these Asiarchs?  We have no comparable role in our society.  There were 10 of these leaders from the major cities of Asia Minor, they were selected locally, but had to be sanctioned by Rome.  They were responsible to organize and produce the annual games in May.  In this way, they were similar to a college football, bowl game committee.  They were also responsible for the performances at the theater.  In this way, they were like a board of directors for a Broadway theater.  They also had oversight for the entertainment and distractions of the region.  Here they are not unlike the executives of our multimedia conglomerate. They actively lead or had oversight for the religious rituals associated with the games, the theater, and the worship of the Emperor.  In this way they were the priests of a pagan cult.  They did all of this at their own expense.  Here they are a near equivalent to a modern, wealthy and generous philanthropist.

Some of these men are described as “Friends of Paul”.  We can safely assume these were not casual acquaintance kind of friends, but were rather close friends and they knew Paul fairly well.  There is no evidence that the disciples sent word to the Asiarch who in turn sent word to Paul that he should not go to the theater.  More likely is that when the Asiarchs saw what was happening in “their theater” they knew Paul well enough to know he would want to come and address the crowd.  These men were not casual acquaintances of Paul; rather they knew him so well they could predict his behavior.  And they cared for him so much they wanted to protect him.  These men were pagans, but they knew Paul well and care for him deeply.

One of the greatest failures of the church today is we gather disciples into Christian ghettos, areas of isolation from the world around us.  We have encouraged our people to serve on our committees, our boards and our teams to the exclusion of serving in and with our lost friends and neighbors.  We would imagine that serving on the VBS committee would be superior to service at the YMCA or public library.  We run from contact with the world and therefore we have no impact on the world.  If we or our congregation were in a crisis situation would the sinners and non-Christians we know come to our aid?  If the our church was on the verge of closing would our community say, “”How can we help?” or “Good riddance”?  I think we know the answer.  Here is a better question, a more proactive question: How did Paul become friends with the Asiarchs and how can I reproduce that in my life?”