Summer At Sea: Week 12 Day 2

Summary of Acts 21

Paul, who was called Saul, persecuted Christians until he had a life changing encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus (see Acts 9:1-31). Since Paul had turned from persecuting Christians to preaching Jesus’ name everywhere he went, Jewish leaders in Jerusalem sought to kill Paul. Because of this, Paul left Jerusalem and headed to Antioch and beyond. In Acts 21 Paul, once again being led by the spirit, decided to set sail for Jerusalem. His fellow Christians all tried to stop him knowing that many there wanted to kill him. When Paul arrived in Jerusalem he went to the temple. Some Jews there saw Paul and called on all the people to attack him. There was a huge uproar which was followed by the arrival of the Roman soldiers who then took Paul into custody, thinking he was the problem, but Paul asked if he could speak to the crowd.

Summary of Acts 2

Paul gave his testimony and the crowd listened until he talked about God sending him to the Gentiles; at this the whole place was in an uproar. The commander quickly took Paul into the barracks to flog and interrogate him (thinking he was the instigator). Paul asked if it were legal to flog a Roman citizen (since Paul was from Tarsus and his father was a Roman citizen) and immediately the flogging was stopped; it was illegal in that day to flog, or even tie up, a Roman citizen who had not been convicted of a crime. The next day the commander brought Paul and the Sanhedrin (the supreme Jewish court which included the Chief Priests) together to find out what caused the uproar. By claiming his Roman citizenship, Paul’s mission would now change from physically going to many places proclaiming the Gospel of Christ, to his prison ministry in Rome.

Acts 23:1-11

23 Paul looked straight at the Sanhedrin and said, “My brothers, I have fulfilled my duty to God in all good conscience to this day.” 2 At this the high priest Ananias ordered those standing near Paul to strike him on the mouth. 3 Then Paul said to him, “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit there to judge me according to the law, yet you yourself violate the law by commanding that I be struck!”

4 Those who were standing near Paul said, “How dare you insult God’s high priest!”

5 Paul replied, “Brothers, I did not realize that he was the high priest; for it is written: ‘Do not speak evil about the ruler of your people.”

6 Then Paul, knowing that some of them were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, called out in the Sanhedrin, “My brothers, I am a Pharisee, descended from Pharisees. I stand on trial because of the hope of the resurrection of the dead.” 7 When he said this, a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. 8 (The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees believe all these things.)

9 There was a great uproar, and some of the teachers of the law who were Pharisees stood up and argued vigorously. “We find nothing wrong with this man,” they said. “What if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?” 10 The dispute became so violent that the commander was afraid Paul would be torn to pieces by them. He ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force and bring him into the barracks.

11 The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, “Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.”

Can’t you just feel the tension in that room? Paul started out by declaring his faithfulness to God, only to have the high priest order him struck in the mouth. Paul responded with a blazing criticism, not knowing he had just insulted the high priest. Paul gave a form of an apology, but then seemed to poke the Sanhedrin by bringing up the subject of the resurrection of the dead. Paul knew that would cause the Pharisees and Sadducees to argue, so much so that the Pharisees began to defend Paul. To our eyes it could seem that Paul was on the wrong path.

William McDonald explains the result of that curious day in the Believers Bible Commentary:

“It is remarkable that in a passage where the apostle’s actions have been subject to considerable criticism, the Lord should personally praise him for having borne faithful witness in Jerusalem. There was not a word of criticism or reproach from the Savior. Rather, it was a message of sheer praise and promise. Paul’s service was not over yet. As he had been faithful in his ministry in Jerusalem, so he would also bear witness for Christ at Rome.”

Once again we see that Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, was walking in God’s will. We also see that walking in God’s will doesn’t always look perfect, but Jesus was there to remind Paul that he was on the right path.