Pastor's Ponderings: Monday & Tuesday Bible Study on Acts of the Apostles 19:23 - 20:6 (July 20 & 21, 2026)

July 20, 2026:  Monday Bible Study on Acts 19:23-41

Good morning my dear friends.

Please pray for Herb who is having a double leg amputation this morning after he passed out in his yard and got severely burned. He has been under hospital care since that happened. Also, please pray for Georgia who is hospitalized while doctors work to get her body's critical systems balanced, and working correctly. She is 11 years old suffering with Rett's disorder. As always thank you so much for your prayers in these situations. Pray for Joyce too, who had surgery this past week on her arm. Pray for healing and complete restoration of her arm's functions.

Today we are studying Acts, chapter 19, verses 23-41. In our reading this morning we get quite a picture of what it meant for Christianity to confront a powerful group of tradesmen, and the practices which made them loads of money. Indeed, the whole of Asia Minor knew of this great temple to Artemis in Ephesus. And the trade of the silver smiths was an important and powerful community. This temple brought in tourists and pilgrims from all over Asia Minor, and like tourists today, it was common for the tourists to pick up trinkets to take home. In Ephesus, these trinkets were made of silver. So, their profits were really being tested by the advent of this new Christian cult which Paul had brought into their city. But there is another thing here that is important for the reader of Luke's writing of Acts to know. Such an action by the trade union in Ephesus as setting about starting a loud and growing objection to the pocketbook pain that they were beginning to feel as more people made the conversion to this new Faith presented by Gaius, Aristarchus, Paul, and certainly others too. We are told that it is Paul's disciples who hold him back from going to the theatre to speak Christ's truth to those who had gathered in objection to his success and work. It is obvious that Paul had no fear at all. It is unclear what might have happened to him if he had gone there, but at the very least, the crowds of people may well have attacked him and injured him. Another name that comes up in this text is the person of Alexander, who attempts to silence the crowds to some semblance of quiet and reason, but when the crowd discovers that he too is really an outsider who worships the Jewish God, they respond by shouting him down with that same chant.

"Great is Artemis of the Ephesians” Just a note - there is no apparent evidence in the text that Gaius, Aristarchus, or Alexander were injured at the hands of the silver artisan community, or from those who joined them in this chant in the theatre. There is another issue here for clarity. These silver smiths, and others, were afraid, not just for their incomes, but also somehow thought that their great goddess would be unable to stand against the words and faith of Paul and this new Christian cult. This goes with the kind of worship and sacrifice which people offered to manipulate the god that they were worshiping. If a person just did what was prescribed by the temple priests, then the god would be favorable to them in return, pressed to give them whatever they had asked for. This is nothing like our relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, who from the very beginning are the fullness of power, love, and judgement. They are, He is, I AM.

His decisions and choices are immutable, unswerving, and final. (Unless He decides to modify or change them). Our praise is all about His Love for our lives through His Son, our Savior, which has guided us in His way to belief, which also comes from God. Our response is never to manipulate, it is always to be in thanksgiving for what God has already done in His promises of life, forgiveness, and salvation, all of which have been fulfilled by His action and sacrifice through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.

There is one more person in this reading of whom we should take note. He is the local representative, the town secretary. He comes to remind the people that if they move to riots, the Roman Army will come down on them forcefully. And I should note that he will lose his job! Ultimately, his appeal to the crowds for a more formal "hearing" about this issue appeals to the way in which most things are settled, and the crowd disperses without any harm to the two men who tried to represent Christ's truth on Paul's behalf. If we are thinking clearly about this, we will come to realize that Paul was in Ephesus for several years, preaching and teaching the Way. By the time this near riot happens at the theatre, inroads have certainly been made by the new Christians.

Thanks for letting me spend time with you this morning.

With Love and Hope in Christ, Pastor Kim

A reminder note: Yesterday after church the Council met to set a date for a special congregational meeting to decide on how our community will move forward due to the lack of money to pay our staff, and maintain our church buildings, which will happen sometime later this year, as we are already using funds beyond offerings to continue right now. The meeting is set for August 16th after worship. At that time, we will move to the parish hall for food, which will be provided, share information, and take a written ballot vote for the direction which the congregation wants to take as we are faced with financial shortfalls. If you are a member of our congregation you need to be with us at this meeting as critical action is taken. Sign up at church or call the office to let us know that you will be able to be with us.

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July 21, 2026:  Tuesday Bible Study on Acts 20:1-6

Blessings and Peace be with you all this morning.

We have good news to share about our prayers. Eleven-year-old Georgia is home from the hospital after a day’s long care and treatment for her Rett’s syndrome health issues.

Herb is recovering nicely this morning after the double amputation of his legs below the knees. Give thanks to the Lord for answering our prayed for outcomes.

Today we begin the 20th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, and without some guidance we might get a wrong opinion about the long list of name and communities which are in the passage. We start out knowing that Paul has remained in Ephesus until the heat of the silver guild's objections to their perceived loss of income because of so many converts to Christianity in Ephesus has calmed down in the community. From Ephesus Paul went to Greece, where he stayed for about three months, and planned to leave Greece to sail to Syria. However, his followers discovered that there was a plot hatched to do away with Paul on the sea journey. The boats that Paul would have traveled on were filled with Jews who were heading from Greece to Syria too, headed home to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover for a week. It certainly would have been time to do away with Paul by casting him in the sea, so Paul, and those who were with him, made the decision to travel by Roman road cross country. This trip made it possible for Paul to revisit and encourage many of the communities where he had already preached the Gospel with success. But there is another question here. Why did Paul have so many men with him on this journey? There were Sopatros from Beroea, Aristarcus and Secundus who were Thessalonians, Gaius from Derbe, and Paul's very good young friend Timothy, as well as Tychicus and Trophimus from Asia who had gone on ahead and waited at Troas for Paul's arrival.

Can you imagine such a group of strong Christians coming into you community and needing resources like lodging and food. These men were not with Paul to protect him. Yesterday's reading made it clear that Paul traveled with boldness, without fear for his own life. So why all these companion travelers? They were each carrying the offerings which had been given for the bolstering up of the Jerusalem Mission. They traveled together to protect the gifts that they were bringing for that purpose.

In the others of Paul's writings and letters we hear much more about this travel and its purpose. There is a greater meaning in this passage too. This part of the Acts of the Apostles speaks to the need for the unity of the Church. The mission of Peter and the disciples is wholly dependent on this financial support that is coming to them. We should not be surprised by this though. The Jewish rejection of Christ during his life, continued for many years after His death and Resurrection. Unlike the other communities to which Paul had traveled, and appealed for this gift for Jerusalem, the mission in Jerusalem was faced with oversight and persecution from the Temple and the Jews who were in power there. Reaching out with Christ's Truth in that city was difficult and treacherous. Just like the times that the Jews in Asian Minor had sought to do away with Paul, or went to the Romans complaining, in Jerusalem such issues were constantly threatening Peter's and James' work to proclaim Christ as the Messiah. In our lives today, it is always important for us to realize the fullness of the Body of Christ, the Church, in all its iterations. Unity comes from Christ, not from the practices of any community of faith. Over the years of my ministry for the Gospel at American Lutheran, there have certainly been times when our congregation could have used such support, and indeed, without sharing names, times, and specific needs, I can assure you that there have been major financial gifts that have enabled our congregation to continue its important work for our Savior. It is through regular offerings and such gifts that in some years seemed to look impossible to survive, gave us the means to do meaningful ministry in Tucson, and the world.

I am reminding you again about the importance of the special congregational meeting to decide how American will continue to move forward. Finances are more than difficult and caring for our facilities has become prohibitive. This special meeting on August 16, 2026, after worship will be the time that we make a decision about what the congregation chooses to do. Please continue praying about this and seeking the Spirit's guidance as these decisions are made.

I want you to know how important your presence, love, and generosity make each day's ministry for the Gospel at American joyful. In Christ's Love, Pastor Kim

Pastor's Ponderings: Monday & Tuesday Bible Study on Acts of the Apostles 19:1-12 (July 6 & 7, 2026)

July 6, 2026:  Monday Bible Study on Acts 19:13-20

Good afternoon, Bible Study Folks.

Yes, it’s afternoon. On Saturday, while working on my computer I picked up a tag along that kept putting screens up and prevented me from checking my security and told me I needed to open the same kind and pay again for it. So, I was at the Geek Squad this morning, and it took them about 5 minutes to get rid of all that garbage and get the computer working again. The best thing was that there was no charge for the service. That is a great marketing strategy.

Since I am late with this bible study today, I am going to make it a bit brief. In our reading from the Acts of the Apostles 19:13-20, we encounter what was a part of the social culture of the people of Ephesus. This city was loaded with superstition, creating a place for those who claimed to be able to use their own power to cure people of illnesses and possessions. In Ephesus, such superstition was common among the people, and that left a wide-open field for magicians and "spiritualists" to treat all kinds of physical and mental issues. Since Christianity was a new reality in the community, those very same people attempted to use the name of Jesus to profit from it. Obviously, Paul had success in treating people and shedding them of "evil spirits". However, when those other people attempted to use the name of Jesus as a way of treating possessions, the "spirits" which had occupied the mental and physical health of people, revealed that they did not recognize the false presenters of Christ's power for healing, and instead attacked them, driving them away. I should say that a number of the people who misused the name of Christ for those healings were, in fact, from the Jewish community in Ephesus. In the reading they are called itinerant, which might indicate that they were traveling opportunists. It was through their lack of belief in Christ that they failed to have power over those "evil spirits" that caused so much havoc in the people for physical and mental health problems. I cannot explain how this passage defines, nor even in modern terms define what the reality of the possessions was all about, yet we see Christ Himself confronting the evil spirits of the Gerasene Demoniac and driving them into a heard of pigs who then drowned themselves in Galilee. Certainly, there are other symbols at work here about Christ's powers over all illness, no matter its cause, and even his authority to destroy what was a major food source for the Roman Army. Yet in the case of Paul in Ephesus, we discover that the magicians and sorcerers repented of their trade, breaking with it completely. They burned their spell books and charms, to never pick them up again, and became believers in Christ. In the case of the Gerasene Demoniac, healed and claiming trust in Christ, the people who saw the "crazy" formerly naked man from the cemetery, asked Jesus to leave and not return. Though you and I may find it difficult to fully understand how such health issues and their causes were understood 2000 years ago, what we do need to take from this passage is that those who broke away from their sin so completely, coming to believe in Christ, gave up their lifestyle completely. I am confident that you and I both know how to confess our sins, claim faith in Christ, and then continue our struggle to accepted that Holy Forgiveness, to turn away from our sin, setting our lives on a new path of faithfulness and living, and setting that old sin apart from us completely. Hence, you and I need to continue our confessions regularly, daily, if not more. I want to share with you that last night I prayed that the fix for my computer would not be complicated, and that there had not been any breaking into important content like passwords and accounts. I remembered to say thank you to God for the ease with which the problem was corrected. I know it may seem like a little thing, but after being hacked two and a half months ago, in our bank account and credit cards, it was truly a stressful wait for me to find out that everything was going to be OK. Just a reminder for all of us that there is nothing about which we should not pray in our lives, and that our faith should be the foundation of the life which we live surrounded by our Savior and His Spirit.

I will be back with you tomorrow as we continue in our study of Paul's time in Ephesus.

With Christ's love, Pastor Kim

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July 7, 2026:  Tuesday Bible Study on Acts 19:21-22

Good morning on this sweltering hot day in Tucson. I hope that you will be mindful of self-care when you are out and about today and be sure to carry plenty of water with you as you spend time in the outdoor heat. I think that both the Praseks and the Backers have been experiencing some pretty rough weather in Minnesota and Wisconsin. We pray that both couples are doing OK with the tough weather in their areas of the country. Please hold them in your prayers. Please also pray for Camille as she awaits the results of a biopsy. Please pray too for Joyce and Larry as they deal with the issues of identity and property theft that have turned their lives upside down. Pray for peace in our world.

This morning, we have a short passage from Acts, but it really helps us understand the mindset of Paul and other leaders in their outreach to Asia Minor communities. In the areas in which they have been missionaries, the new believers are almost all gentiles. Usually, the Jews in that area of the world are completely against Paul's message and seek to undermine and destroy his message about Jesus being the completion of God's Old Testament promises for his people. Luke doesn't give us a great deal of information in these few verses, but we need to know that this is the time for Paul when he sets out to the gentile Christians to take an offering that will go to Jerusalem and Peter's mission to the Jews in that city. At that time, the mission of Peter's and the disciples who have remained there to work is floundering financially and really struggling because of it. So, Paul sends Timothy and Erasmus out into Macedonia to continue the mission work, and I suspect to begin taking up that offering. At this point Paul chooses to stay on in Asia Minor, extending his appeal for that offering. You and I are more than familiar with the time it takes to gather an offering like that. When our congregation has prepared to purchase Global Barnyard animals at Christmas or Easter, it takes us weeks to gather the money to make those outreach purchases. Or when we do an ingathering of money to provide a gift to the community food bank, the same thing is necessary. Paul's hope was not to bring a small offering from the new churches, but to bring a transformative offering, which helped Jerusalem Christians and gentile Christians from Greece and Asia Minor to understand their responsibility to work together in unity for Christ's message to continue in all the places where it had started to get rooted. You and I know how easy it is to get into that mode of thinking only about ourselves and our own needs. That is why such gifts of animals and money are so important, both for those who receive them, and for those who offer them. Paul stayed on to make certain that the sense of unity which was so crucial would grow and blossom into a Church that had the will and the power to bring Christ to the whole world. Our congregation may not be large, and the summer heat means that many will choose to not come to worship or to continue their giving because they are not there, but we have come together time and again, over many years, to show that, in Christ, we know that we are called to bring God's care to all of God's people, and to His whole creation too! Even when we may feel isolated, we are part of Christ's millions of believers and are never alone as we work to proclaim God's love for all people, because ALL of us are His treasure in creation.

Be safe in this heat, and may our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, bless your day.

In Christ's Love, Pastor Kim

References for the offering for Jerusalem: 1 Corinthians 16:1 and following, 2 Corinthians 9:1 and following, Romans 15:25-26

Pastor's Ponderings: Monday/Tuesday Bible Study on Acts of the Apostles 19:1-12 (June 29/30, 2026)

June 29, 2026:  Monday Bible Study on Acts 19:1-7

Good morning my dear friends in Christ. Welcome to our Monday morning Bible study on the Acts of the Apostles. This coming weekend (the 5th of July) American Lutheran in Tucson has Gospel Music Sunday with music led by our Gospel singers, drums with Jeff Daniels of Black Cat Bones, and Pastor Taylor at the piano. After our worship service we will gather for a Summer Picnic themed carry-in meal. Pastor and Melody will provide all beef hotdogs, and chicken dogs for the enjoyment of all who are attending, just bring a dish to share. This weekend is the 250th anniversary of our nation. It is a time for celebration, but please be careful. At our home we are planning a BBQ for the family. We will not be out and about just because we are concerned about safety, ours, and that of others who are out celebrating. We will have music on Sunday that is certainly appropriate for the nation's 250th birthday. Come join us, and sing along, sharing in the Gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

Today we continue in the 19th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles but first let’s visit Paul's reality in Ephesus.

Here are some descriptions of the city:

1. Ephesus was the market of Asia Minor. It was a center of foreign trade and shipping. Called the "Treasure house of Asia" and "The vanity fair of Asia Minor."

2. Ephesus was an Assize Town. (first time I've heard this name) It means that from time to time the Roman Governor would come to town to bring the justice of Rome, along with all its pomp and circumstance.

3. Ephesus was the home of the Pan-Ionian games. This was attended by literally the whole population of Asia Minor.

4. Ephesus was the home of criminals. If a criminal could reach the grounds area around the Temple to Diana, they were free from apprehension and trial.

5. Ephesus was a center of pagan superstition, famous for charms, (the Letters of Ephesus). People from all over the world of the time came there to purchase a lucky parchment to guarantee fertility, safe travel, business success, and far more. Such parchments and lucky crystals were often worn by the purchaser.

6. Ephesus was the home to the most amazing temple to Diana (Artemis). It had 127 pillars, with 36 of them gilded and made of reflective marble. Its dimension was also amazing. 425 feet long by 220 feet wide, and 60 feet high.

This is the setting into which Paul carries his mission for Christ.

In his travels Paul goes through some upper districts and ultimately arrives at Ephesus. Apollos had remained in Corinth. Upon arrival Paul discovers a group of new believers in Christ, who had not been Baptized, and had never heard of the Holy Spirit. The group had received John's baptism for repentance of sins. This, however, was not the Baptism in Christ for the forgiveness of sin. When Paul explained to them about the Messiah Jesus, His death, and His Resurrection, they received the new Baptism in Christ and were filled with the Holy Spirit as Paul laid his hand on them. They then spoke in tongues and prophesied. You and I must remember that John the Baptist's preaching was really a threat meant to call people to repentance. Jesus’ preaching was a telling of God's Love and Forgiveness, and God's desire to enfold those who believed in Christ in His Kingdom. The message for you and me is the same.

I think that sometimes it is difficult for us to remember how we came to belief in steps and stages in our lives. We often started with children's Sunday School, week after week and year after year, as the stories of Christ became more complicated, and we studied in confirmation about the reality of the Savior's sacrifice for all of God's creation. But even that was not the end. You and I continue in our lives to study God's Word in Scripture, joining in worship with a community of believers, and then regularly receiving the living presence of Christ in the meal of Holy Communion. All of this is a lifetime journey. One of our difficult issues today is that everyone expects everything to be instant, knowledge at the fingertips with immediacy. I don't need to learn much except how to run a smart phone or manipulate my computer. There, in those places, are all the answers, but the Holy Spirit may, or may not, be present in the flicker of faith that using such tools can all too often produce. On the smart phone, or computer, there is no Paul filled with the passion of his faith, trusting in the promises of Christ, that forgiveness, life with God now and forever, and Salvation are ours through the victory of Christ dying on the cross for all our sin. All too often parents of children don't remember the many Sunday School Classes, and they don't even bring their children to regular worship to hear Christ's Good News proclaimed.

There is a reason the clergy of our ELCA must study four more years beyond their BS or BA to earn a Masters of Divinity in theological education. It takes that, and more, in terms of time, to truly live as the compassionate Christ did, and like you, all clergy continue in their own lifelong journey of faith drawing on what has gone before, to inform every future possibility for the work of Christ in the world.  All this journey is guided by the work of Christ's Spirit in our lives. Only by Her action are we able to receive Christ's constant forgiveness as we sin, because the Holy Spirit yearns for our faith to grow, and our lives to become more righteous as we mature in that same faith. For the people in Ephesus who had yet to know or hear the Good News, when it was proclaimed to them, they rejoiced and their faith grew leading them to speak in tongues and to prophesy to others about the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Such Good News! May we all be blessed by its proclamation in God's Word.

With the love of Christ, Pastor Kim

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June 30, 2026:  Tuesday Bible Study on Acts 19:8-12

Good morning, and welcome to our study this morning. It is so good to be back with you doing this study. One of the largest celebrations of the year is quickly approaching this Saturday. Our nation will celebrate its 250^th birthday. Please remember to be careful when you are out and about, sadly, there will be many who overdo, and who endanger themselves and others. Take special good care of your pets too, they are often frightened of all the noise that goes with this kind of celebration. Compared to many nations in the world, the United States is still in its youth. May the inheritors of the future of our nation be able to celebrate with pride in another 50 years, 100 years, and way on beyond that in the wonderful experiment we all share, the democratic nation in which all people are considered equal, and justice is the action of our representative government because every person deserves to be treated with fairness and compassion.

Today's reading from Acts helps us to understand what kinds of obstacles Paul continued to face.  He preached in the synagogue until troublemakers began to undermine his credibility, forcing him to move on to a new site. We need to acknowledge that Paul always went to the Jewish people first to offer his message of the completed Messiah prophecies in Jesus Christ, and Paul had pretty good success with that teaching and mission work. He preached and taught there for three months, leaving for a non-Jewish site that was available. He moved on to the hall of Tyrannus where Paul preached for two years, starting at 11AM and stopping at 4PM each day. The reason for that was that workers in Ephesus stopped their morning work at 11AM and didn't start again until 4PM due to the weather conditions that made it very difficult to do one's work in the middle of the day. So, Paul used that time to spread the message of God's love and Christ's passion for all people, including gentiles. Toward the end of our passage for today, we are told something very important. Paul never owned as his own strength of faith and prowess of knowledge the miracles about which this passage speaks. These events were by the power of God, and Paul was just the hands of God's work in the world. This is really important for all of us too. It is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Father Creator, the Son Redeemer and the Spirit sanctifier who are always at work through the believers in the Kingdom of God. I have heard many times that I have a special gift for preaching and sharing the Good News, but like Paul, I truly know that without the living presence of the Trinity which is in, with, and around me constantly, to speak of the power of God as if it is mine, I am constrained to not do that in any way.  The messages I preach are a time of great joy in my life as the Word comes through me by the power of our Savior and His Spirit. A pastor should never be placed on a pedestal for any reason. To do so is to deny the Christ that is present in all the preaching of the Word, and in the miracles of Christ which surround us. Four years of graduate theological education helps those who will be ordained to know their role in the mission of the Good News. The same is true in all our lives. Our generosity, compassion, loving fellowship, hospitality are all the actions of our loving Savior expressing His compassion and desire through our hands. This is how the Body of Christ, the Church, the church, discovers the courage and strength to move forward in faith's journey of joy in the Savior, no matter the surrounding reality and challenges.

Goodness, Paul preached in Asia Minor for years allowing the Holiness of Christ to shape the faith in the people who had the opportunity to be His hands and to do His works in the world.

Happy birthday America! May our LORD'S blessings continue to abound through our hands and hearts.

With the Love of Christ, Pastor Kim