6. What Can God Do?

‘Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smouldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his law the islands will put their hope.’
Isaiah 42 v1-5

This passage from the Bible was written about Jesus and what he would do. We believe that to act for global justice, to pray and campaign for change in the structures that hold so many in poverty is a noble cause, but without Jesus at its centre it is hollow. To put Jesus at the centre of all that SPEAK is and does, requires Jesus to be at the centre of each one of us that makes up the SPEAK network. This is why we are committed to learning more about what it means to be disciples of Jesus and to follow him. Through this, in combining our prayers with our campaigning, we believe that we add a powerful dynamic to our struggle for justice.

There is the potential danger for us in supporting a campaign to become so busy looking at the unjust structures of the world that we fail to deal with the injustice in our own hearts, and relationships. We need to recognise that God changes us in order to change society. With this in mind, in a SPEAK context we need to keep coming back to the importance of a relationship with Jesus as central to all that we do.

It is our hope in Jesus’ power to transform unjust situations that we look to and rely upon, not our own strength, wisdom or power.

Would God Make A Big Dress Square?

SPEAK has thirteen core values which characterise us as a network, they guide the way in which we respond to situations. Our core values of being ‘Jesus centred’ and ‘Believing the Bible’ mean that as a network we try to really focus on and understand what the Bible, Jesus and therefore God cares about.1 Some more of SPEAK’s core values are ‘Empowerment’, ‘Commitment to the Poor and the Environment’, and ‘Campaigning and Speaking for Justice’. As a network then, we are committed to making use of all the opportunities God gives us to bring about justice.1

So…Would God Make A Big Dress Square? The following Bible study is provided as part of answering this interesting question2…

Man-Made Gods – Yesterday To Today - Acts 19 v 23-41

Jews and Greeks in Ephesus on learning about God had come to fear Him; that is, recognize the place of honour He deserved in their lives. So great was their devotion that they burnt their scrolls publicly and turned away from all their past securities and comforts and began to depend on God instead.

However we see from verses 23 to 27 that this new found life is a threat to the established culture and some wealthy businessmen:

"23About that time there arose a great disturbance about the Way. 24A silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought in no little business for the craftsmen. 25He called them together, along with the workmen in related trades, and said: "Men, you know we receive a good income from this business. 26And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole province of Asia. He says that man-made gods are no gods at all. 27There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited, and the goddess herself, who is worshiped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty."

The temple of the great goddess Artemis was one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world, so it must have been quite a shock for the culture of the time to learn that this god and this temple were actually meaningless. However, people were realising the truth, and saw that they no longer had need for man-made gods.

We still have our man-made gods today. Advertising works by creating false needs; we can never have enough, we will always need to buy more in order to keep up, if we could just get there we could be happy, we would finally discover our worth and potential, finally be satisfied with ourselves…. but actually, all this is meaningless, and in our case there is an extra twist as peoples’ humanity is compromised in order to provide richer nations with their next quick fashion fix.

So what are the differing reactions to Demetrius’s speech and the situation?

"28When they heard this, they were furious and began shouting: "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!" 29Soon the whole city was in an uproar. The people seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul's travelling companions from Macedonia, and rushed as one man into the theatre. 30Paul wanted to appear before the crowd, but the disciples would not let him. 31Even some of the officials of the province, friends of Paul, sent him a message begging him not to venture into the theatre.

32The assembly was in confusion: Some were shouting one thing, some another. Most of the people did not even know why they were there. 33The Jews pushed Alexander to the front, and some of the crowd shouted instructions to him. He motioned for silence in order to make a defence before the people. 34But when they realized he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours: "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!"

REFLECT…
In verse 32 some of the people do not even know why they are there! Ludicrous? But does this ever happen to us? What things do we conform to without realising? Where are we tempted to follow the crowd and why?

If someone shows us the flaws in something we’ve grown comfortable with, it hurts us personally and it’s not uncommon for us to overreact at first.

"35The city clerk quieted the crowd and said: "Men of Ephesus, doesn't all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven? 36Therefore, since these facts are undeniable, you ought to be quiet and not do anything rash. 37You have brought these men here, though they have neither robbed temples nor blasphemed our goddess. 38If, then, Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a grievance against anybody, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. They can press charges. 39If there is anything further you want to bring up, it must be settled in a legal assembly. 40As it is, we are in danger of being charged with rioting because of today's events. In that case we would not be able to account for this commotion, since there is no reason for it." 41After he had said this, he dismissed the assembly."

Demetrius accuses Paul of robbing Artemis of her deity and discrediting the temple. He wants to look as if he has motives of religious and civic pride, but no actual charges he makes stand up. The real issue is reduction in trade. Paul, Gaius, Aristarchus and others challenge people’s beliefs, legally and without having to slander the man made gods.

The people are so awed by the real God that there need not be any direct explanation as to why man made gods are of no worth. If we can demonstrate Jesus’ love and help people to understand God’s values (from which the profit motive is notably absent), praying all the while that the Holy Spirit will convict and encourage response then we will see great change.

The change that Paul helped galvanise and that swept through the region was so significant, that it seriously impacted the dominant, powerful, and rich cult of the day not least in the sale of goods associated with this. This is reminiscent of the ‘Great Awakening’ in the 18th-century United States that was so significant that it impacted the amount of crime on the streets. What if we built a prayerful movement today that was so committed and persistent in challenging global injustice that we saw global trade transformed?

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