7 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. 8 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. [acts 18:7-8]
he left there
sometimes the people we expect to relate to simply won’t listen. this is the situation paul found himself in at the synagogue in corinth. paul was clearly aware of his surroundings and his audience. when it became clear that he had accomplished all he could at the synagogue, he decided to move on. yet in leaving paul was not ‘giving up’. he had planted a seed, and as we will see, God was still actively at work there.
a worshiper of God
true to his word from verse 6 that he would go now to the gentiles, paul went next door to the home of a gentile God-fearing man named titius justus. this made good sense – titius was clearly open to the truth of God and offered paul a place to speak this truth to a different audience. in every city, God led paul to those who would support his message, and even when they were decidedly in the minority God used these people in powerful ways.
the ruler of the synagogue
crispus serves as a minor charter in the book of acts, but his faith tells a powerful story. paul had left the synagogue because of the lack of belief and strong opposition. yet even in spite of this, God was growing those seeds paul planted up to faith. in crispus, God grew that seed to salvation for him and his family, and what faith that must have been! As the members of the synagogue and gentiles in corinth saw this man and his household turn to faith in Christ, how many others were persuaded? It would appear ‘many’ chose to make the same decision as crispus, and devote themselves to Jesus.
The message of the gospel is powerful, and God is faithful to draw to himself many who we would never imagine.
~ jason soroski