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- Acts Chapter 18
Acts Chapter 18
George Sisneros
February 22, 2025
"When disciples followed a rabbi, they followed him closely so they would never be out of his sight, never be someplace where they couldn’t hear him speak. They followed him so closely that his sandals often kicked up dust."
May you be covered in His dust.
If this is your first time getting Covered in His Dust, WELCOME!
👉🏽 Read Chapter 18 HERE before reading my notes. If you don’t, my notes won’t make sense.
You can access previous notes on Acts and Luke HERE.
Whatever your day held, saints, His grace is enough—here are tonight’s notes.
At the end of Acts 17, Paul stands before the intellectual elite of Athens and boldly declares that the “unknown God” is, in fact, known—and He is not found in their temples or idols, but is the Creator who gives life to all. He calls them to repent, warning that God has fixed a day of judgment through Jesus, proven by His resurrection from the dead.
Some mocked him, but… a few believed.
Paul then gathers his things and makes the short journey to Corinth, where we’ll pick up next.
Athens and Corinth are about 50 miles (80 km) apart. In Paul's time, the journey would have taken a couple of days on foot or a single day by boat.
Corinth was where things happened.
It was about 100 times bigger than Athens and a major trade hub. Sitting on the Isthmus of Corinth, it connected mainland Greece to the Peloponnesian peninsula. With merchants, travelers, and sailors constantly moving through, it was a city full of opportunity—and temptation.
Map of the Isthmus of Corinth—Now the Corinth Canal
Instead of risking the dangerous waters around southern Greece, ships were dragged across a stone-paved road built to move smaller boats across the land. This brought massive wealth to Corinth, but it also made the city a wild mix of cultures, religions, and moral corruption.
The idea of a canal through Corinth goes back thousands of years. Even the Roman emperor Nero tried to start the project in the first century AD. But it never got finished.
It wasn’t until the late 1800s that the Corinth Canal finally became a reality. Construction began in 1881, and after years of work, it was completed in 1893. The canal cut straight through the land, allowing ships to pass between the Aegean and Ionian Seas without sailing all the way around southern Greece.
What used to be a long, dangerous journey became a quick cut through the land.
You have to check this out.
I want to give a little more context before we really dig in.
With all this trade and wealth pouring in, Corinth became a magnet for every kind of culture—and every kind of sin.
Corinth was known for its wealth, idolatry, and out-of-control immorality. The city had a massive temple dedicated to Aphrodite, the goddess of love, where people worshiped through prostitution.
In Greek, the verb "to act like a Corinthian" meant to live a wild, immoral life. It was a slang term for drunkenness, partying, and sexual sin.
In many ways, Corinth was the Las Vegas of the ancient world—a city of excess, indulgence, and a place where people went to satisfy their desires. Just like Vegas has the nickname “Sin City,” Corinth was known for its shameless immorality.
Years later, Paul wrote to them, warning them about the dangers of the sin they were surrounded by.
"Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God."
Paul didn’t hold back when he wrote to the church in Corinth. The city was a mess. If the gospel could take root there, it could spread anywhere. But the church was struggling.
Division.
Pride.
Sexual sin.
They were letting the culture shape them instead of the other way around.
Okay. I think we’re ready. Let’s go!
Man, I love the Apostle Paul. I love that he didn’t avoid hard places—he walked straight into them.
He walked into Athens, the center of philosophy, and debated the brightest minds.
He preached in Ephesus, where sorcery and idol-making were big business, and almost caused a riot.
And then there’s Corinth—a city drowning in idolatry, immorality, and corruption. Yet Paul planted a church right in the middle of it. He didn’t run from opposition; he saw it as an opportunity.
Paul understood that the gospel shines brightest in the darkest places.
And he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. And he went to see them,
Claudius was the Roman Emperor from AD 41 to 54. But around AD 49 or 50, he ordered all Jews to leave Rome.
Why?
A Roman historian named Suetonius, writing years later, said:
“Since the Jews constantly made disturbances at the instigation of Chrestus, he expelled them from Rome.” (Life of Claudius 25.4)
Most scholars think "Chrestus" was actually a misspelling of Christus (Christ). In other words, there were fights breaking out in the Jewish community over Jesus—probably because Jewish Christians were preaching the gospel, and others were pushing back.
Instead of dealing with the chaos, Claudius kicked all the Jews out. That included Aquila and Priscilla, who ended up in Corinth—where they met Paul.
I think it’s worth mentioning that Aquila and Priscilla were already believers. They didn’t come to faith through Paul—they were followers of Jesus before they ever met him.
That means the gospel had already reached Rome. It also shows how God was moving in different places at the same time, preparing people like Aquila and Priscilla to be key players in the early church.
By the time they met Paul in Corinth, they weren’t just listening—they were ready to serve.
The Apostle Paul had a job?
and because he was of the same trade he stayed with them and worked, for they were tentmakers by trade. And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and tried to persuade Jews and Greeks.
Paul often worked to support himself so he wouldn’t be a financial burden, especially on new churches. He removed any obstacle that might keep people from accepting the gospel.
"Nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you."
He also taught that those who preach the gospel have a right to support, but sometimes he chose not to take it.
Paul spent his days making tents and his Sabbaths in the synagogue preaching. He wasn’t coasting through ministry—he sacrificed his comfort, time, and energy to share Jesus.
Honestly, it’s humbling. Convicting. What excuses do I make? Can I do more?
Yes.
We have eternity to rest.
When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul was occupied with the word, testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus.
Paul worked hard, but when Silas and Timothy arrived, something changed. That’s when he was able to set aside tentmaking and devote himself completely to preaching.
He didn’t wait for support.
He worked.
And when God provided?
He went all in.
And when they opposed and reviled him, he shook out his garments and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”
Yea. I know. Bold.
He “shook out his garments” carries the same symbolic rejection as when Jesus told His disciples to shake the dust off their feet if a town refused to receive them (Matthew 10:14, Luke 9:5).
Both are powerful statements: “I’ve done my part. You’ve rejected the message, and I don’t even want to take your dust with me.”
And he left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a worshiper of God. His house was next door to the synagogue.
For Paul, this was a turning point—he’d been going to the Jews first, but in Corinth, he fully turned to the Gentiles. And he didn’t waste time. He set up base next door, at the home of a Gentile believer.
Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with his entire household. And many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized.
This is huge.
Paul had been preaching in the synagogue. And Crispus—the synagogue ruler—was right there, hearing it all.
Most of the Jews rejected the message. So Paul shook out his garments and left.
The very place that rejected Paul? Its leader came to Christ, and many believed and were baptized.
This isn’t the only time we’ll see Crispus. He shows up again in the first letter to the Corinthians when Paul is talking about baptism:
“I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius.”
The fact that Paul personally baptized Crispus makes it stand out even more because Paul didn’t baptize many people.
Why?
For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
Paul makes it clear that his main mission was preaching the gospel, not baptizing.
Crispus wasn’t just any new believer—he’d been the ruler of the synagogue. His conversion must have rocked the Jewish community in Corinth, sending shockwaves through the synagogue.
By this time, Paul had been beaten, imprisoned, and rejected—and now he was in Corinth, a city known for its immorality and opposition to the gospel. He’d probably been approached by prostitutes daily. He was tired. He was afraid.
How do we know? Years later, he wrote a letter to the church in Corinth:
And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling.
But right in the middle of Paul’s exhaustion and fear—God showed up. He spoke to him in a vision.
And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.” And he stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.
Let’s break it down.
“Do not be afraid.” → Paul needed to hear this. He had faced serious persecution before, and Corinth wasn’t exactly friendly to the gospel.
“Go on speaking and do not be silent.” → Keep going, Paul. Don’t hold back.
“For I am with you.” → The most powerful promise in all of Scripture.
“No one will attack you to harm you.” → A specific assurance—this time, he wouldn't be physically harmed.
“For I have many in this city who are my people.” → I LOVE THIS. God had already chosen people in Corinth who would come to faith. Paul just needed to keep preaching.
And what did Paul do?
He stayed for a year and six months—his longest recorded stay in a city up to this point.
Almost everywhere else he went, he was chased out of town.
But in Corinth, he stayed.
Not because it was easy. Not because the opposition disappeared. But because God said, Keep going, don’t be silent, I am with you.
Paul took Him at His word.
Whenever I start breaking down a chapter, I hope to get through it in just one set of notes. But almost every time, I end up going down a rabbit hole. This time, it was Corinth—its history, culture, and everything that shaped the church there.
I’m sticking to my promise: I will not rush. You deserve it. The Word deserves it.
One Minute Inspiration from Tim Tebow.
I love you,
George
Uncovering Scripture
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George Sisneros is a full-time missionary in Guatemala and the founder of Ordinary Missionaries and the El Rosario Christian Academy for Boys.
He’s been married to his wife, Vonda, for 26 years. He’s a father to nine children, five adopted.
In 2024, George and his wife expanded to Cuba, joining forces with nine pastors committed to transforming lives through the gospel.