Acts 23:23-35


Sermon preached on October 1, 2006 by Laurence W. Veinott. © Copyright 2006. All rights reserved. Other sermons can be found at http://www.newlifeop.org/.

Did you ever feel helpless, like other people were controlling your life and there was nothing you could do about it? Did you ever feel that others were restricting your freedom and actions so that you couldn't do what you wanted to do? Did it ever seem that you were a victim of circumstances and that your life just wasn't going the way that you wanted?

If you're in that situation, or if you ever find yourself in that situation, I know what the apostle Paul could say to you about it. He could say,

"Welcome to the club."



The apostle Paul knew all about such things. We see part of it here in Acts 23. He's a prisoner. He can't go or do what he wants to. You'll remember that in Romans 15:20 he had written,

"It has always been my ambition
to preach the gospel
where Christ was not known,
so that I would not be building
on someone else's foundation."

Paul wanted to be free to travel so that he could preach Christ in areas where he had never been preached. But here we see Paul in custody. He is taken to Caesarea. His imprisonment there is going to be measured in years, not months. He is kept confined under Felix and Festus for at least two full years. It wasn't until after that that he was escorted to Rome under guard. Paul doesn't have his freedom and that was basically how his life was going to be characterized from then on. In Acts 20:22-23 Paul said to the Ephesian elders,

"And now,
compelled by the Spirit,
I am going to Jerusalem,
not knowing what will happen to me there.
I only know that in every city
the Holy Spirit warns me
that prison and hardships are facing me."

His life was about suffering. It was that way from his conversion. You'll remember when he was converted he became blind. When God told Ananias to go and heal his blindness, Ananias hesitated. But God said to him, (Acts 9:15-16)

"Go! This man is my chosen instrument
to carry my name
before the Gentiles and their kings
and before the people of Israel.
I will show him how much
he must suffer for my name."

If someone was going to give Paul a phrase that was going to describe his life, from an earthly perspective, a good candidate would be,

"Your life is going to be the pits."



Here's how Paul described his life in 2 Corinthians 11:23f,

"I have worked much harder,
been in prison more frequently,
been flogged more severely,
and been exposed to death again and again.
Five times I received from the Jews
the forty lashes minus one.
Three times I was beaten with rods,
once I was stoned,
three times I was shipwrecked,
I spent a night and a day in the open sea,
I have been constantly on the move.
I have been in danger from rivers,
in danger from bandits,
in danger from my own countrymen,
in danger from Gentiles;
in danger in the city,
in danger in the country,
in danger at sea;
and in danger from false brothers.
I have labored and toiled
and have often gone without sleep;
I have known hunger and thirst
and have often gone without food;
I have been cold and naked.
Besides everything else,
I face daily the pressure of my concern
for all the churches."

We see part of that here in Acts 23. Paul's in prison. The Romans are taking him where they like.

This passage has many lessons for us—that should help us in our daily living whether or not we feel that helpless about our lives.

The first lesson has to do with the fact that

many Christians have experienced what Paul did.

Contrary to what many Christian teachers will tell you today, the Christian life is not necessarily about prospering in an earthy, worldly sense. They will tell you that God wants you to be healthy, wealthy and successful. They will tell you that Paul's life was unique, and is not to be the pattern for our lives.

It is certainly true that God bestows great blessings on His people and that we can have lives that are quite dissimilar to Paul's life of hardship. But our calling is the same as that of the apostle Paul. Here's how Jesus put it in Luke 9:23. He said to his disciples,

"If anyone would come after me,
he must deny himself
and take up his cross daily
and follow me."

The cross is a symbol of suffering. We are to take up our cross daily and follow Jesus. The Christian life is about denial oneself, about sacrifice for Christ, about not having things go your way from an earthly perspective. In 1 Peter 4:12 the apostle Peter wrote,

"Dear friends,
do not be surprised
at the painful trial you are suffering,
as though something strange
were happening to you."

It's nothing unusual for Christians to go through painful trials. Peter knew what it was like to have his life in the control of others. You'll remember that Jesus predicted it in Peter's life. In John 21:18f Jesus addressed Peter and said,

"'I tell you the truth,
when you were younger
you dressed yourself
and went where you wanted;
but when you are old
you will stretch out your hands,
and someone else will dress you
and lead you where
you do not want to go.'
Jesus said this to indicate
the kind of death
by which Peter would glorify God.
Then he said to him,
'Follow me!'"

It's was God's will for Peter to eventually be given into the hands of God's enemies and to be carried where he didn't want to go—to death on a cross.

Or think about the prophet Jeremiah. The popular song says that Jeremiah was a bullfrog. I'm sure that when he was being let down in the muddy cistern he wished he could adapt to it like a bullfrog would. Do you know the story of his life? Parts of it were exceedingly horrible. Some people think that Jeremiah's name means, "The Lord will cast away", not meaning that God will forsake him, but meaning that his life was going to be difficult, like God was giving him into the hands of his enemies. He was sent to warn the people of Judah but they did not listen to him. Indeed, God told him as much. In Jeremiah 7:27 God said to him,

"When you tell them all this,
they will not listen to you;
when you call to them,
they will not answer."

Some refer to Jeremiah as the "broken-hearted". He had some horrible things happen to him. In Jeremiah 20 we read that when Jeremiah proclaimed disaster, the chief officer in the temple had Jeremiah beaten and put in stocks at the Upper Gate of Benjamin. Later, in the reign of Jehoiakim, he again told the people God's message. (Chapter 26) The priests and prophets and all the people seized him and said that he must die because he had predicted disaster for Judah. He narrowly escaped death. Later when the Babylonians left Jerusalem because of a report that the Egyptians were coming, Jeremiah predicted that the Babylonians would be back. When he tried to go to his home in Benjamin, he was arrested and accused of deserting to the Babylonians. He was beaten and imprisoned in a dungeon. Later, on the order of the King, he was released. But when he started telling people that the Lord was going to give the city over to the Babylonians, they arrested him, lowered him by ropes into a cistern and he sank down into the mud. Later he was rescued, but when they Babylonians took the city they put Jeremiah in chains. But he was then released, allowed to go back to Jerusalem, but the people there rebelled against the Babylonians and they forcibly took Jeremiah to Egypt with them.

I could name example after example of Christians who have seen their lives slip out of their control and be given into the hands of others. Joseph knew all about this. His brothers bound him and were going to kill him. Then he was given over into the hands of the Midianites. Then he was given over to Potiphar. Then he was thrown into jail. He suffered for many long years, going, it seemed, from disappointment to disappointment.

Or think about Jonathan, the son of King Saul. If his father had been faithful, Jonathan would have followed his father as king over Israel. If only his circumstances had been different. His father ruined it for him. Yet he remained a loyal friend of David.

Or consider the man born blind that we read about in John 9. He spent years blind so that the work of God could be made evident in His life—so that Jesus could heal him.

Now the point is that even though others may be controlling your life, even though your circumstances may not be like you want them to be—that's okay. Your experience is not unique. Indeed, many of the heroes of the faith have been in exactly that type of circumstance. Don't sweat it. God is in control. Trust Him. Be patient. Be faithful. Why should you do those things?

The answer is

because God will accomplish His plans and purposes in your circumstances.

On of the things that Luke makes clear here is that God had a purpose in all that was happening to Paul. God was in complete control. In verse 11 we read,

"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.'"

Before the forty some men put themselves under a curse, before they vowed not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul, the Lord appeared to Paul and told him that he was going to testify about Him at Rome. The 40 some men who vowed to kill Paul were wasting their time. Their plans and determination were going to come to nothing. Paul's life was safe. Jesus was going to get him safely to Rome.

How did God bring Paul to Rome? For the first part of his journey He gave him no less than 470 Roman soldiers to protect him. There were 200 regular soldiers, 70 horsemen and 200 spearman. That's pretty impressive. God protected Paul from the forty men. Paul was saved and God did it through the Romans.

God had a plan. On his journey from Jerusalem to Rome Paul faced many dangers. First it was there forty men. Then it was the great two week storm on the Mediterranean. Then the soldiers wanted to kill Paul. Then there was the incident with Paul getting bitten by the deadly snake on Malta. But Paul arrived in Rome safely.

The truth we see here is that

if God wishes, he can muster unexpected forces to protect or prosper His people.

These forces can even consist of non-Christians. What we see happening here is that the Romans save Paul.

It's interesting to look at the Bible and see the many ways in which God has used to protect or prosper His people. Sometimes God himself intervened, like in the case of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. When King Nebuchadnezzar looked into the furnace he saw four men there, even though he had only thrown three in. The fourth looked like a son of the gods. (Daniel 3:25) It is likely that this was a pre-incarnate appearance of the Second Person of the Trinity. (E.J. Young, Daniel) God saved Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego through His Son.

At other times God sent an angel to rescue one of His own. When Daniel was thrown into the lion's den, it was an angel that protected him. When the king rushed to the den at the first light of dawn and shouted to see if Daniel was still alive and if His God had been able to rescue him, Daniel responded, (Daniel 6:21-22)

"O king, live forever!
My God sent his angel,
and he shut the mouths of the lions.
They have not hurt me,
because I was found innocent in his sight.
Nor have I ever done any wrong
before you, O king."

But at other times, God uses not His angels, or even His people, but his enemies to accomplish His purposes. That's what we see here. Roman power protected Paul.

Do you remember how God protected David from King Saul when David fled to Samuel at Ramah? (1 Samuel 19:18f) When King Saul sent men to capture David so that he could kill him, the Spirit of God came upon the soldiers and they prophesied. King Saul sent three groups of men and the same thing happened to them all. Finally, Saul himself went and the Spirit of God came upon him and he stripped off his robes and prophesied in Samuel's presence. David was able to escape.

Or consider how God used a donkey to preserve Balaam's life when God wanted Balaam to bless Israel. God used a donkey and even gave the donkey voice, so that Balaam would bless Israel.

Or think about the incident in Joseph's life with Potiphar's wife. God used that incident, as an important event, in a long series of events, to promote Joseph to Pharaoh's right hand man in Egypt. God used Potiphar's wife's wicked lust for Joseph to promote Joseph's eventual good. The path to that good was long and difficult, he had to endure prison and long disappointment for two full years after he had interpreted the cup-bearer's dream. But it was because he was in prison that he met Pharaoh's cupbearer.

Now the point of all this is that God can use the most bizarre, the most wicked lust, the most unusual circumstances to protect or prosper His people. The route may be long and circuitous—but God can use any circumstances to accomplish His plan and purposes. James Montgomery Boice writes, (Acts, p. 386)

"I cannot tell you what God is doing in your circumstances. I cannot see the future any more than you can. But God is doing something in your circumstances. And if you are going through dark times, as Paul was, if you are discouraged, if the way seems dark, if you are weary with the struggle, the message of this chapter is to continue to trust in God and serve him regardless. His purposes for you will be accomplished, the day will brighten, and the will of God will be done."



So, if you ever find yourself in difficult circumstances,

be faithful, behave righteously, trust God.

If you look at the wider context here you'll see that Paul was faithful to his calling. When he got an opportunity to speak before Felix, Paul didn't argue so much about the injustice of his confinement—he basically defended Christianity and focused on spiritual things—so much so that a few days later Paul was given an opportunity to speak to Felix and Drusilla about faith in Christ. He also spoke about righteousness, self control and the judgment to come.

It was the same way when he spoke before Festus. Luke tells us that Felix had kept Paul in prison because he was looking for a bribe and also because he wanted to grand a favor to the Jews. So when Paul came before Festus, Felix's successor, you might expect him to complain about those things. But he doesn't. Festus gets the impression that the whole thing is about spiritual matters. When he tells King Agrippa about this—Agrippa wants to hear Paul. So Paul speaks to Festus, King Agrippa and Bernice. What does he do? He preaches Christ to them.

What we should understand here is that even though these people were responsible for keeping him in prison, Paul loved them! He wanted them to become Christians. That was obvious to King Agrippa who said to Paul, (Acts 26:28)

"Do you think that in such a short time
you can persuade me to be a Christian?"

Paul replied,

"Short time or long—
I pray God that not only you
but all who are listening to me today
may become what I am,
except for these chains."

Paul loved his captors. He loved those who kept him in prison, who restricted his freedom.

Paul was not self-serving or deceitful in anything he did or spoke. Paul's behavior in this section stands in sharp contrast to that of the Roman commander Lysias. Lysias' letter to Felix was self-serving. He tells Felix that he rescued Paul because he had learned he was a Roman citizen. In fact, it wasn't until after he rescued Paul that he learned that he was a Roman citizen. He totally left out the part where he was going to have Paul tortured and interrogated, which was against Roman law. Lysias was self-serving, self-centered, seeking to put the best face on his actions.

Paul didn't care about any of that. He acted righteously. And when he spoke, it wasn't to serve himself—but Christ. He was willing to die for Christ. As he said in Philippians 1:20,

"I eagerly expect
and hope that I will in no way be ashamed,
but will have sufficient courage
so that now as always
Christ will be exalted in my body,
whether by life or by death."

Paul is in glory today and he will be forever and ever? Why? Because of Jesus and His work on the cross. But part of the means that God used in this great enterprise—was that when Paul was in trouble, when others were controlling his life, restricting his freedom—he was faithful to God. He kept doing his duty. He loved those who were harming him and he wanted them to come to Christ. He did everything he could toward that end.

Lastly, for those of you who are not Christians. What is Christianity all about? This morning I watched a televangelist on TV and she was talking about becoming wealthy, about becoming healthy and successful—the focus was on earthly things. It's true that some Christians are wealthy, healthy and successful in their careers, etc.. But that's not true of all Christians, not even the majority of them. Christianity is about coming to know Jesus and finding salvation in Him and living for Him no matter what comes your way. As Paul wrote in Philippians 3:7f,

"But whatever was to my profit
I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.
What is more,
I consider everything a loss
compared to the surpassing greatness
of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord,
for whose sake I have lost all things.
I consider them rubbish,
that I may gain Christ
and be found in him,
not having a righteousness of my own
that comes from the law,
but that which is through faith in Christ
—the righteousness that comes from God
and is by faith.
I want to know Christ
and the power of his resurrection
and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings,
becoming like him in his death,
and so, somehow,
to attain to the resurrection from the dead."

In Christ you have everything you need. Outside him, you have nothing. Go to Jesus today.