Dr Ken Baker

Paul preaches at Rome under guard

“Three days later he called together the local Jewish leaders. When they had assembled, Paul said to them: ‘My brothers, although I have done nothing against our people or against the customs of our ancestors, I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans. ¹⁸ They examined me and wanted to release me, because I was not guilty of any crime deserving death. ¹⁹ The Jews objected, so I was compelled to make an appeal to Caesar. I certainly did not intend to bring any charge against my own people. ²⁰ For this reason I have asked to see you and talk with you. It is because of the hope of Israel that I am bound with this chain.’

²¹ They replied, ‘We have not received any letters from Judea concerning you, and none of our people who have come from there has reported or said anything bad about you. ²² But we want to hear what your views are, for we know that people everywhere are talking against this sect.’ (Acts 28: 17-22)

When Paul reached Rome, he requested a conference with the local Jewish leaders. It seems that he had finally travelled beyond the reach of his accusers in Jerusalem and Asia Minor who had been (literally) out for his blood for some time. The local leaders replied: “We have not received any letters from Judea concerning you, and none of our people who have come from there has reported or said anything bad about you.”

But they had heard the gossip! “We know that people everywhere are talking against this sect.”

“So when they had appointed him a day, many came to him at his lodging, to whom he explained and solemnly testified of the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus from both the Law of Moses and the Prophets, from morning till evening. And some were persuaded by the things which were spoken, and some disbelieved.”

It’s a good exercise to talk about Jesus from the Old Testament – to work as if there was no New Testament at all- to learn to do as Paul did, and to consider the principles, themes and truths that proclaim the truth of Christ. Some would put it in a subsidiary position, as of lesser value, but Paul spoke for several hours using the Hebrew Bible as his lecture notes. Jesus did the same in Luke 24 with the disciples on the road to Emmaus: “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.”

In Luke’s description of Paul’s style, there’s a wonderful combination of intellect and passion. It comes in the three verbs: “He explained and solemnly testified of the kingdom of God, persuading…” We see exposition, exhortation and personal testimony linked together. It must have been quite a day! 

And Paul undoubtedly taught what Jesus taught in Luke 24 -that in Jesus, God brought a spiritual kingdom that would take root in men’s hearts before it took over the governments of this world. Most of the Jewish people of Jesus’ day and of Paul’s day looked for a political kingdom, not a spiritual kingdom.

And at some point in the day, there was a sticking-point. “Some were persuaded by the things which were spoken, and some disbelieved.”  Even the best teaching from the best apostle in the best circumstances could not shift them.

Centuries of tradition and a thousand pieces of honoured culture were at stake. Tradition becomes our security, and when the mind becomes “secure” it becomes unable to budge. The pool becomes stagnant when outlets and inlets become jammed. And also, as Mark Twain put it in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer: “The less there is to justify a traditional custom, the harder it is to get rid of it.”

And so, one last time, the Jews rejected the Gospel of Christ. 

The terrible irony was that time was so short. Even as Paul taught and shared in the gardens of Rome, the lunacy of Nero -just a mile or so away- was gathering momentum and would erupt on to the world in a an orchestrated orgy of violence. The probability is that Paul himself died in this insanity.

And for the Jews, a few short years separated them now from the events of AD 70. In just a few years after Paul’s rebuke of those Jews who rejected Jesus, the Jewish people of Judea were slaughtered wholesale and Jerusalem was destroyed. God’s judgment was coming, and part of Paul’s frustration was that he sensed this.

And so he preached and taught with heart and mind blazing with the power of the resurrected Christ. It’s important to note that. The early Christians were not fed to wild beasts or dipped in wax and set ablaze as lamps in Nero’s garden because they thought Jesus was a helpful life coach or role model but because they witnessed to Him as the only Lord and Saviour of the world.

The book of Acts finishes at this point, on the point of talking. Isn’t that interesting? The Jews had heard about these Christians. Everyone was talking about them. And then those long sessions with Paul himself, talking and talking. And finally, the text finishes on the same note: “He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ – with all boldness and without hindrance!”

Paul was a determined talker. He pronounced himself free of guilt before the Ephesian elders (in Acts 20) because he had told the whole business out clearly without fear or favour: “I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.” The same thing could be said of him at Rome.

Shannon L. Alder said this: “When you give yourself permission to communicate what matters to you in every situation you will have peace despite rejection or disapproval. Putting a voice to your soul helps you to let go of the negative energy of fear and regret.”
This is exactly what Paul did, and it is what we are called to do, too.

There is perhaps a short generation separating the writing of Paul’s letters (and the Gospel of Mark) with the writing of the Gospel of Matthew. Whereas Paul never mentions Christmas, apart from the tiny reference in Gal 4:4,5 (“born of a woman, born under the law…”), Matthew has a great deal to say.

But he tells the story from a very particular perspective.

Of course, everybody recounts facts from their own point of view. It’s impossible to do otherwise. If four people witnessed a traffic accident, they would offer four points of view, depending on the point from which they viewed the accident.

There are three things that strike you about the view of Jesus’s birth from where Matthew was standing. It was a male-dominated perspective. It was rooted in Judaism. It took dreams and prophecy very seriously.

There’s much more to say, but in brief, these three factors are strongly present in Matthew’s narrative. For a start, he tells the entire story from inside Joseph’s head (if I may put it that way). Joseph is described as dikaios which means “righteous.” But it means a whole lot more than moral or “fine upstanding citizen.” It means that he was rigorous in following the codes of the Old Testament. He was an upholder of the ancient traditions. This makes it all the more challenging for him when he begins to encounter God in a series of dreams that force him way out of his comfort zone, into new situations to protect what God is doing in Mary. The dreams lead him to marry Mary, despite the possible stigma of her pregnancy; to take the child to Egypt to escape Herod’s murderous intent; and to return to Nazareth after Herod’s death. Every dream (like those of the Joseph of the Old Testament) is designed to protect and prosper the people of the covenant.

And it is this sense of covenant and history that gives rise to the most remarkable part of Matthew’s Christmas: the telephone directory. Actually, it’s a long list of forty two names that sketch the story of Israel from Abraham to Jesus. The original readers would have perhaps known it by heart. But to us it often remains unread.

And that’s a pity.

The genealogy of Jesus begins with Abraham – the man to whom God made three big promises. Those promises were land, people and God’s presence.

God kept those promises by giving a son to Abraham (people), bringing the Israelites to Canaan (land) and by establishing first the tabernacle and then the temple amongst the people (blessing).

Have you ever realised that Jesus actually fulfils all these promises in an even better way? Through his sacrifice, Jesus brings us into the promised land of eternity with God. He also brings us into God’s family, and forms bonds between us and other Christians – our family. Finally, when we accept Jesus, we are brought into God’s presence – both now with the Holy Spirit and for eternity in the new creation with God.

Rahab: God uses all types of people

Do you remember the story of Rahab? Rahab was a prostitute in the city of Jericho. When the Israelites approached Jericho, in the promised land, Joshua sent some spies into the city to scope out the competition. But the Jericho authorities discovered the spies were there, and attempted to capture them.

However, Rahab hid the spies instead! Despite her profession, God used Rahab to bring the Israelites victory over Canaan. And of course, Canaan became the land where Jesus was born and died and rose again. Plus, Rahab ended up being the mother of Boaz, who married Ruth.

David: the promised king is coming

One of Jesus’ most famous ancestors was the second king of Israel, David. In many ways, David was an ideal king: wise, humble and a good leader. But then he messed up in a big way. He slept with someone else’s wife, then murdered the husband to cover up his sin.

David’s failure as the king demonstrates that no human could possibly be a perfect king. But, at the same time, during David’s reign, God tells the prophet Samuel to tell David, “When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.” (2 Samuel 7:12-13)

David was an imperfect king, but a perfect, eternal king was coming.

Exile: God is faithful no matter what

Several generations after David, the Israelite people were constantly sinning against God and rejecting his rule. So, God gave them over to the Babylonians, who took them into exile.

However, as the genealogy of Jesus demonstrates, the line did not die out during the exile. The people returned to the land of Israel and, four centuries on…

And so we come to

Joseph and Mary: parents of Jesus

The birth of Jesus was a miracle – he was the child of the Holy Spirit, carried in the womb of a young virgin and adopted as the son of an anxious but righteous man.

From his great-great-great-great-great-great… (you get the idea!) grandfather, Jesus’ life and death were planned. For the whole history of the world, and the whole history of this family, God knew how he would redeem unfaithful Israel, and the rest of the world.

And that’s why you shouldn’t skip the genealogy! It’s full of the disreputable, the outsiders and the problem-people. In fact, the family Jesus came from anticipated the family he came for!

So Matthew tells the Israel story -the covenant tradition. He tells the Joseph-story and it’s a model for how Christian husbands should act and lead their families in godly dependence. And in chapter 2 he flags up a totally opposite perspective. Herod (as a non-Jew) represents evil power and political chicanery that would stop at nothing to destroy what God is doing. The “thief” (usurper) comes to steal and to kill and to destroy.

But God – that familiar phrase – But God is on the move. He speaks in past prophecy and present dreams, (“A virgin will conceive”…. “Bethlehem…” “Out of Egypt….“). God is not deflected from His mighty purposes by the vicious bullies who dominate political life.

This is Matthew’s Christmas. It reflects the Messiah whose story it begins -a righteous Jewish man of the royal house of Judah who stands in the very centre of all the ancient prophecies and brings them into being…

¹¹ After three months we put out to sea in a ship that had wintered in the island – it was an Alexandrian ship with the figurehead of the twin gods Castor and Pollux. ¹² We put in at Syracuse and stayed there three days. ¹³ From there we set sail and arrived at Rhegium. The next day the south wind came up, and on the following day we reached Puteoli. ¹⁴ There we found some brothers and sisters who invited us to spend a week with them. And so we came to Rome. ¹⁵ The brothers and sisters there had heard that we were coming, and they travelled as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns to meet us. At the sight of these people Paul thanked God and was encouraged. ¹⁶ When we got to Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with a soldier to guard him.” (Acts 28:11-16)

This is the straightforward recounting of how Paul and his group made it from Malta to Rome. They found another Alexandrian wheat ship that had wintered nearby on which they could book passage. Why is it worth the mention that the ship carried the masthead of the twin gods, who were worshiped as sons of Zeus? These were the gods to which the heathen looked for safety when navigating the seas. But why does Luke mention them? Probably, as we noted in relation to the viper incident, when Paul first arrived on Malta, we are reminded that these Gentiles are truly pagans and deeply entrenched in idol worship. The corollary of that is that it is precisely such folks as these who so desperately need the gospel and are blessed by the unexpected arrival of Paul, Luke, and Aristarchus.

There’s also another -slightly subtext- thought: these heathen idolaters are far more receptive and gracious toward Paul than the Jewish leaders in Rome were to prove.

After wintering on Malta for three months, they once again set sail, making port first at Syracuse, an important city of Sicily. Then they sailed to Rhegium, on the very “toe” of Italy. Making good time, they arrived in Puteoli in only a couple days. This city was apparently the place where the Egyptian wheat ships made port and unloaded their cargo. There were believers in Puteoli, so Paul and his companions were allowed to stay with them for a week. From this point, Paul and the others would travel by land, along the great Appian Way. Believers in Rome had received Paul’s epistle to them (Romans) some time before, and so when they heard he was arriving, a number went out to meet him, traveling some almost 40 miles to do so. Paul was greatly encouraged to see them and thanked God for this.

And now his journey is done.

As Christians, we often refer to our time in this world as a journey – a journey home, a journey back to God, the home whence we came ‘trailing clouds of glory’ as Wordsworth puts it.

We are each making our individual journeys through this world; we each have our own story to tell. We may prefer to dwell upon the good things that we experience on our journey, to cling to those good times rather as the disciples tried to cling to that Transfiguration moment on the mountain top. If only we could just journey to a safe and comfortable place and stay there. But the call of Christ is not a call to stay tied up alongside in some safe harbour; it is a call to follow, a call to cast out into the deep, to take risks for the sake of the gospel, to meet with the storms of life, with disappointment and with set back and, from time to time, to wallow in the havens of success and fulfilment as well. And so, as Christians, journey on we must.

On his journey, Paul was not alone. He was, after all, a prisoner under escort. But Luke is at pains to point out to us that, not only does Paul have human travelling companions, he travels also in the constant presence of God. The reference to the tangle with the viper and Paul’s predictions that no lives would be lost in the shipwreck are but two pointers to the presence of God with him. We each live our lives in the intimate presence of God. Sometimes, we find it hard to believe that he is with us but my experience is that, usually with hindsight, we can see that he was always very much there.

And Paul was also in the company of the church – the use of the pronoun ‘we’ seems to indicate that Luke at least was with him  (and probably others too)  when he came to the Three Taverns, the local church hiked out to welcome him.

It was a nineteenth century historian who said, “Jesus proclaimed the Kingdom of God, and what came was the church.” We usually smile wryly when we hear that quotation. But it was not meant in a cynical way as if the church were a later misunderstanding of the original, more individualistic teachings of Jesus. Jesus’ message is about community: a community of justice, a caring community, a community of worship, a community in which our lives battered by the storms of life are renewed and restored in the eucharist, the very symbol of community with each other and with God.

The Roman church met Paul at the Three Taverns. He no doubt was apprehensive about what the future held for him in Rome but, on seeing the local community of Christians, he thanked God and took courage.

And we too live in the ambiguity of journeying. That’s why fellowship and faith are so crucial.  It recalls a song from my childhood:

I do not know what lies ahead,
The way I cannot see;
Yet One stands near to be my guide,
He’ll show the way to me:

I know Who holds the future, And He’ll guide me with his hand.
With God things don’t just happen; Everything by Him is planned.
So as I face tomorrow, With its problems large and small,
I’ll trust the God of miracles, Give to Him my all.

I do not know how many days
0f life are mine to spend;
But One who knows and cares for me
Will keep me to the end

The end is quite close now, for Paul. His journeying is done, and there is only a little more time left to him, relatively speaking, and all of it will be lived in the frustration of near-captivity and -one would imagine- the fear of imminent death. But the record shows no flagging of zeal, no shirking of responsibility. He knew  the “One who knows and cares for me Will keep me to the end.”

That relationship made life possible.

“Once safely on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. ² The islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold. ³ Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand. ⁴ When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, ‘This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, the goddess Justice has not allowed him to live.’ ⁵ But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. ⁶ The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead; but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.

⁷ There was an estate near by that belonged to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us to his home and showed us generous hospitality for three days. ⁸ His father was ill in bed, suffering from fever and dysentery. Paul went in to see him and, after prayer, placed his hands on him and healed him. ⁹ When this had happened, the rest of those on the island who were ill came and were cured. ¹⁰ They honoured us in many ways; and when we were ready to sail, they furnished us with the supplies we needed.” (Acts 28: 1-10)

We read the words “safely ashore,”  “kindness” and “welcome” with some relief, after the strain of the past weeks on the open sea. “At last!” -we think,- “A little calm!” But Luke’s narrative is, instead, of another brush with death. As Paul takes his place with the others gathering brushwood for the fire on the beach, he is bitten by a poisonous snake. The response of the islanders reminds you that we are once more in pagan territory, far from the familiarity of the synagogue and the Jewish covenant people. The local people expect his death, assume that a kind of karma-fatalism is in hand, and then when Paul shakes it off, make the second assumption that he is himself divine.

They make two false assumptions about God that Paul has come to clarify! First, that idea of superstitious payback that often gets called “karma.” Karma is not Biblical. Paul wrote in Galatians 6:8-9, “The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

And it was Jesus whose death on the cross resulted in the reaping of eternal life for us, and that it is faith in Jesus that gives us this eternal life. Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” It’s not what we do or don’t do. It’s what Christ has done.

There are, of course, causal connecting links, however, and “chains of circumstance.” And in Luke’s narrative, there seems to be a connection between this incident on the beach and what followed. “There was an estate nearby that belonged to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us to his home and showed us generous hospitality for three days.” One doubts whether this was the entire complement of  the 276 shipmates. The “we” then is presumably Paul and his companions, treated once more with honour and respect after Paul’s sensational ability to “shake off” the evil that had fastened on him.

Paul repays the “generous hospitality” by offering prayer for healing for the father of Publius, the “chief official” of the island. Luke uses the medical terms with some precision: the man was sick with “fever and dysentery.” The healing led to something of a healing crusade across the island, as “the rest of those on the island who were ill came and were cured.”

In fact the tradition in the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Church is that Publius was converted -and the island with him – and became bishop in Malta and latterly in Athens.  Such an amazing impact from a short  -three month- visit, but one that fits exactly into the modus vivendi of Acts. This was what John Wimber called “power evangelism” when the “signs” of gospel power made a way for the effective transformation of a community. As someone said: “What you do has far more greater impact than what you say.”

In fact, the whole passage is about actions rather than words. Paul had prophesied danger and peril and had not been heeded. He had then prophesied the safety of everyone on board ship and again his words had proven true. But it isn’t recorded that anyone listened! But now, on the safety of the Maltese coast, it was his actions that spoke louder than his words. The viper is scorned, the Governor’s father healed – and a whole host of islanders with him.

God is with us in our adversity, working out his purposes and establishing his kingdom. What is our role? I guess it’s to be faithful to what we are called to do. God doesn’t call us to success but to faithfulness. Paul’s “success” was not in the number of his converts nor in the churches that he planted but in his steadfast faithfulness to his calling, and his ability to “shake off” any of the vipers that fastened on him from time to time. Philippians 4:11-13 gives a clear account of the “secret of his success.” Here it is: “ I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”

The ability to shake it off comes from one source and one source only. It is “through him.” Once that relationship is in place, nothing is really impossible any more.

The Shipwreck

²⁷ On the fourteenth night we were still being driven across the Adriatic^[c] Sea, when about midnight the sailors sensed they were approaching land. ²⁸ They took soundings and found that the water was a hundred and twenty feet^[d] deep. A short time later they took soundings again and found it was ninety feet^[e] deep. ²⁹ Fearing that we would be dashed against the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daylight. ³⁰ In an attempt to escape from the ship, the sailors let the lifeboat down into the sea, pretending they were going to lower some anchors from the bow. ³¹ Then Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved.” ³² So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat and let it drift away.

³³ Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. “For the last fourteen days,” he said, “you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food—you haven’t eaten anything. ³⁴ Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head.” ³⁵ After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat. ³⁶ They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves. ³⁷ Altogether there were 276 of us on board. ³⁸ When they had eaten as much as they wanted, they lightened the ship by throwing the grain into the sea.

³⁹ When daylight came, they did not recognize the land, but they saw a bay with a sandy beach, where they decided to run the ship aground if they could. ⁴⁰ Cutting loose the anchors, they left them in the sea and at the same time untied the ropes that held the rudders. Then they hoisted the foresail to the wind and made for the beach. ⁴¹ But the ship struck a sandbar and ran aground. The bow stuck fast and would not move, and the stern was broken to pieces by the pounding of the surf.

⁴² The soldiers planned to kill the prisoners to prevent any of them from swimming away and escaping. ⁴³ But the centurion wanted to spare Paul’s life and kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land. ⁴⁴ The rest were to get there on planks or on other pieces of the ship. In this way everyone reached land safely.

Imagine two whole weeks at the mercy of a horrendous storm. I was pretty miserable after a six hour journey across the Irish Sea on one occasion, but don’t press me for detail.

And then, the “sailors sensed that they were drawing near some land.” Perhaps they heard -or saw- breakers in the distance and so “dropped four anchors from the stern, and prayed for day to come.”  This is a kind of prayer-plus-paracetamol type of approach that most people adopt when push comes to shove. You want divine help, but you do the “practical thing too!

And then Paul comes once more into prominence, noticing some of the sailor planning their own private getaway. “Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.” Then the soldiers cut away the ropes of the skiff and let it fall off.” The sailors were simply trying to save their own necks and abandon the ship and its passengers.

Why did Paul want them to stay? First, the ship’s passengers needed the crew’s expertise, and it would be fatal if the crew abandoned the passengers. Second, Paul probably sensed that God’s promise to give him the lives of the whole ship’s company assumed that they would stay together.

Paul continues in this place of respect -so strange for a [mere] prisoner to take the lead- by encouraging everyone to eat. He does this on the basis of his own confidence in their imminent safety.  “And when he had said these things, he took bread and gave thanks to God in the presence of them all; and when he had broken it he began to eat. Then they were all encouraged, and also took food themselves. And in all we were two hundred and seventy-six persons on the ship. So when they had eaten enough, they lightened the ship and threw out the wheat into the sea.”

This was the last of the essential cargo of the ship, after they had already lightened the ship. This was a struggle for survival.

And then the ship came aground and began to break up. They were on Malta but they didn’t yet know it. An old historian noted:  “Only the rarest conjunction of favorable circumstances could have brought about such a fortunate ending to their apparently hopeless situation…all these circumstances are united in St. Paul’s Bay.” F.F.Bruce added: “If they missed Malta, there would have been nothing for it but to hold on for 200 miles until they struck the Tunisian coast, and no one could have expected the ship to survive that long.” This was the very last chance.

Even then all danger was not past, for the soldiers contemplated killing the prisoners to prevent their escape. The centurion had an eye to Paul, however -another sign of the respect with which he was honoured- and so took command of the situation.

And so they all came safely ashore.

There’s a remarkable quality of truthfulness about the passage, which is evident in the tiny details – the odd remarks and the extraneous points mentioned. As a piece of writing, it is sharp and well-observed. But as a part of the big picture of Paul’s journey to Rome, what does God say to us?

Again, we have that dual sense of man making his decisions and God having His way. Man is still responsible for every decision he makes, but at the same time, God will have His way. It’s a reassuring principle.

But there’s more:

In a very real sense Paul was a “saving presence,” for saving him automatically meant saving the other prisoners. Thus as a mediator of physical preservation, Paul again becomes a living parable of spiritual salvation, which is just as certain when persons take refuge in the name Paul preaches (Acts 16:31). Whether swimming, floating on planks (which may have been used to hold the grain cargo in place) or riding on the backs of swimmers,”everyone reached land in safety.”

The comforting prophetic word had been fulfilled to the last letter (Acts 27:22, 34). The strongest of natural forces threatening Paul’s existence had been unable to thwart God’s providential purposes for him. Solidarity with Paul meant physical life. For those considering the claims of Christ, the question is, If God’s messenger can be so salubrious to old salts, what can his message do for me?

Acts 27 is the story of a storm. The storm is still gathering when  “It was decided we would set sail for Italy.”  It was really too late in the year so they made for Crete. And on the surface, things looked just about ok.:

“When a gentle south wind began to blow, they saw their opportunity; so they weighed anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete.”

And then the storm breaks. 

“Before very long, a wind of hurricane force, called the ‘North-Easter’, swept down from the island. ¹⁵ The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave way to it and were driven along. ¹⁶ As we passed to the lee of a small island called Cauda, we were hardly able to make the lifeboat secure, ¹⁷ so the men hoisted it aboard. Then they passed ropes under the ship itself to hold it together. Because they were afraid they would run aground on the sand-bars of Syrtis, they lowered the sea anchor and let the ship be driven along. ¹⁸ We took such a violent battering from the storm that the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard. ¹⁹ On the third day, they threw the ship’s tackle overboard with their own hands. ²⁰ When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved.”

Luke provides much descriptive detail. As the storm breaks, he resumes the use of “we” reminding us that in a small ship any able pair of hands would be apt to be used in a crisis. He mentions the ropes holding the boat together, the lifeboat taken on board, the sea anchor and the jettisoning of the cargo. “On the third day” – generally a positive Biblical time frame – is here entirely negative. It marks the end of all hope at continuing the voyage, because “they threw the ship’s tackle overboard with their own hands.”

So let’s think about the narrative- the destruction of the ship and the salvation of the passengers – and ask the question: “What do you do when storms come? Paul’s situation has always looked pretty bleak and now things have just gone up a notch. The physical danger is like a parable for the life of the beleaguered apostle and -perhaps- suggests a few strategies for survival.

For a start, we note that storms will come, even (and especially) when “When a [deceptively] gentle south wind begins to blow, and we see a golden opportunity to do what we want.” The thing is: Don’t expect to live a problem-free life! Jesus said “In this world you will have trouble.”

We have to plan for it, and, second, face the danger. Head into the waves if at all possible. Don’t pretend that the storm isn’t happening!

And third, if it’s just getting too bad- Run before the waves. People often use that phrase “Let go and let God” to excuse a kind of dull passivity that sounds a little like giving up. But sometimes there’s just nothing else for it. In the case of grief, or bereavement or some serious emotional storm, there’s nothing to be done but to ride it out, to batten down the hatches and let the waves take you where they will.

The key to this kind of surrender is the sea anchor.  It’s a device used to stabilise a boat in heavy weather. Rather than tethering the boat to the seabed, the sea anchor increases the drag through the water and thus acts as a brake.

What does that look like for us?  It means, simply, keep to your routines, maintain your prayer-life, stay calm and find friends that you trust, don’t make big decisions in bad situations. In a word, keep it together. “They passed ropes under the ship itself to hold it together.” 

Think about the ropes you need to “keep it together” when the storm breaks?

Next, throw out the excess baggage. In the middle of the storm, a boat needs to be as light and responsive as possible.  When survival is at stake, extra weight needs to be jettisoned. Here, the question is, simply, What don’t you need?

Next, take soundings. “They took soundings and found that the water was forty metres deep. A short time later they took soundings again and found it was thirty metres deep…” Without compass or stars they took soundings to see how close to shore they were, and how near to danger.

When the storm breaks, it’s useful to find a reliable friend or counsellor. Take stock of where you are. Talk it over. Share with an outsider.

And next, let down the anchors.  Do you recall that old song: “Will your anchor hold in the storms of life?” The anchors we let down are those of faith and hope in the certainty of God’s presence and purpose. This was Paul’s experience here too. He announced it to the frightened crew:

“Last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me ²⁴ and said, “Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.” ²⁵ So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me.”

Isn’t that a ringing testimonial? Paul had let down the anchors and found bedrock in “the God to whom I belong and whom I serve.” When the winds rise, and the storm pelts against the house, that’s the rock I need, the “blessed assurance” of God’s word.

One more hymn!

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

2. When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale
My anchor holds within the veil.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

3. His oath, His covenant, and blood
Support me in the whelming flood;
When every earthly prop gives way,
He then is all my Hope and Stay.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

The hymn-writer is sharing his survival strategies “in every high and stormy gale…”in the whelming flood, when every earthly prop gives way.” What do you do when the storm breaks?

Find the rock.

²⁷ On the fourteenth night we were still being driven across the Adriatic^[c] Sea, when about midnight the sailors sensed they were approaching land. ²⁸ They took soundings and found that the water was a hundred and twenty feet^[d] deep. A short time later they took soundings again and found it was ninety feet^[e] deep. ²⁹ Fearing that we would be dashed against the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daylight. ³⁰ In an attempt to escape from the ship, the sailors let the lifeboat down into the sea, pretending they were going to lower some anchors from the bow. ³¹ Then Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved.” ³² So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat and let it drift away.

Imagine two whole weeks at the mercy of a horrendous storm. I was pretty miserable after a six hour journey across the Irish Sea on one occasion, but don’t press me for detail.

And then, the “sailors sensed that they were drawing near some land.” Perhaps they heard -or saw- breakers in the distance and so “dropped four anchors from the stern, and prayed for day to come.”  This is a kind of prayer-plus-paracetamol type of approach that most people adopt when push comes to shove. You want divine help, but you do the “practical thing too!

And then Paul comes once more into prominence, noticing some of the sailor planning their own private getaway. “Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.” Then the soldiers cut away the ropes of the skiff and let it fall off.” The sailors were simply trying to save their own necks and abandon the ship and its passengers.

Why did Paul want them to stay? First, the ship’s passengers needed the crew’s expertise, and it would be fatal if the crew abandoned the passengers. Second, Paul probably sensed that God’s promise to give him the lives of the whole ship’s company assumed that they would stay together.

Paul continues in this place of respect -so strange for a [mere] prisoner to take the lead- by encouraging everyone to eat. He does this on the basis of his own confidence in their imminent safety.  “And when he had said these things, he took bread and gave thanks to God in the presence of them all; and when he had broken it he began to eat. Then they were all encouraged, and also took food themselves. And in all we were two hundred and seventy-six persons on the ship. So when they had eaten enough, they lightened the ship and threw out the wheat into the sea.”

This was the last of the essential cargo of the ship, after they had already lightened the ship. This was a struggle for survival.

And then the ship came aground and began to break up. They were on Malta but they didn’t yet know it. An old historian noted:  “Only the rarest conjunction of favorable circumstances could have brought about such a fortunate ending to their apparently hopeless situation…all these circumstances are united in St. Paul’s Bay.” F.F.Bruce added: “If they missed Malta, there would have been nothing for it but to hold on for 200 miles until they struck the Tunisian coast, and no one could have expected the ship to survive that long.” This was the very last chance.

Even then all danger was not past, for the soldiers contemplated killing the prisoners to prevent their escape. The centurion had an eye to Paul, however -another sign of the respect with which he was honoured- and so took command of the situation.

And so they all came safely ashore.

There’s a remarkable quality of truthfulness about the passage, which is evident in the tiny details – the odd remarks and the extraneous points mentioned. As a piece of writing, it is sharp and well-observed. But as a part of the big picture of Paul’s journey to Rome, what does God say to us?

Again, we have that dual sense of man making his decisions and God having His way. Man is still responsible for every decision he makes, but at the same time, God will have His way. It’s a reassuring principle.

But there’s more:

In a very real sense Paul was a “saving presence,” for saving him automatically meant saving the other prisoners. Thus as a mediator of physical preservation, Paul again becomes a living parable of spiritual salvation, which is just as certain when persons take refuge in the name Paul preaches (Acts 16:31). Whether swimming, floating on planks (which may have been used to hold the grain cargo in place) or riding on the backs of swimmers,”everyone reached land in safety.”

The comforting prophetic word had been fulfilled to the last letter (Acts 27:22, 34). The strongest of natural forces threatening Paul’s existence had been unable to thwart God’s providential purposes for him. Solidarity with Paul meant physical life. For those considering the claims of Christ, the question is, If God’s messenger can be so salubrious to old salts, what can his message do for me?

This last section of the book if Acts has been referred to as the ‘travel diary.’ That’s because Luke himself is more evident than in previous chapters, and because the theme of travel is so central. These two closing chapters take us out of the stifling restrictions imposed on Paul by Felix and Festus, that kept him under house-arrest in Caesarea, and begin the final journey to Rome itself.

Paul is finally on his way. He has wanted to go for some time (Romans 1:11), but a short visit to Jerusalem to check in with the apostles turned into this two-year house arrest in Caesarea Maritima. He had been falsely accused by the Sanhedrin. The Roman governors wouldn’t release him—because that would irritate the Jewish leaders—but couldn’t really hand him over to the council because of his Roman citizenship. Ultimately, Paul appealed his case to Caesar. The text of this chapter alternates between Luke’s detailed description of the sea voyage and Paul encouraging the people on board to make choices that won’t kill them all.

Acts 27:1–8 records the calm part of this trip

Sometimes life is plain sailing, with no contrary winds. There’s a general plan and everything seems to go according to that plan! And Paul is not on his own. Luke and Aristarchus have rejoined Paul. Paul, along with other prisoners, is under the watchful eye of Julius, a centurion. Luke records their voyage. They sail north from Caesarea to Sidon where Julius allows Paul to visit friends. From Sidon, they curve around the northeast isthmus of Cyprus, and land in Myra on the southern coast of modern-day Turkey. Julius finds a grain ship in Myra that is sailing for Rome. On board, the prisoners and companions sail west, then south, and skim the southern coast of Crete until they reach the port of Fair Havens.

Let’s look at the text

When it was decided that we would sail for Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius, who belonged to the Imperial Regiment. ² We boarded a ship from Adramyttium about to sail for ports along the coast of the province of Asia, and we put out to sea. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was with us.

 This phrase -‘Imperial Regiment’- is mentioned in the Histories of Tacitus (Book 2) and by Suetonius, in his Life of Nero, (Chapter 20). However, we don’t know much about this specific one, except that it was common for Roman soldiers to accompany the transport of criminals, those awaiting trial, and -not least- the merchant ships filled with grain going from Egypt to Rome. It was a vital part of imperial business that the grain made it safe to Rome.

And notice the people

Aristarchus and Luke (notice the us of verse 2 and beyond) accompanied Paul on this voyage. The favour Paul enjoyed from Julius (as in Acts 27:3) meant he was allowed to take these companions with him. Indeed there is frequent mention in Acts of the favour that Paul enjoyed at the hands of the Roman officers.

 We have met Aristarchus with Paul at Ephesus, during the disturbances there, Acts 19:29, where he had been seized by the mob, and was in great personal danger. He afterwards attended Paul to Macedonia, and returned with him to Asia, Acts 20:4. Now, accompanying him to Rome, he was there a fellow prisoner with him, (according to Colossians 4:10), and is mentioned in Paul’s letter to Philemon, Philemon 1:24, who was probably a common friend.

The end of plain sailing – ‘slow headway’

³ The next day we landed at Sidon; and Julius, in kindness to Paul, allowed him to go to his friends so they might provide for his needs. ⁴ From there we put out to sea again and passed to the lee of Cyprus because the winds were against us. ⁵ When we had sailed across the open sea off the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we landed at Myra in Lycia. ⁶ There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing for Italy and put us on board. ⁷ We made slow headway for many days and had difficulty arriving off Cnidus. When the wind did not allow us to hold our course, we sailed to the lee of Crete, opposite Salmone. ⁸ We moved along the coast with difficulty and came to a place called Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea.

 The ship first sailed to Sidon, where Paul met with Christians and could receive care from them. The Roman commander gave Paul a lot of liberty because he wasn’t a condemned man (yet), but waiting for trial before Caesar. Paul’s godly character and display of Christian love were also helpful in gaining favour.

Paul was different from the other prisoners on board. The other prisoners -according to some commentators- were “probably all condemned criminals being sent to Rome to die in the arena.” (Guzik)

The ship was a grain transport, taking the grain grown in Egypt to Italy. According to Hughes, the typical grain freighter of that period was 140 feet long and 36 feet wide. It had one mast with a big square sail, and instead of what we think of as a rudder, it steered with two paddles on the back part of the ship. They were sturdy, but because of its design, it couldn’t sail into the wind.

The ship began to make its way west, eventually coming to the port called Fair Havens on the south side of the island of Crete.

And this is the beginning of a distinct change of events… (Drumroll)

PS “GOD NEVER SAID THAT THE JOURNEY WOULD BE EASY, BUT HE DID SAY THAT THE ARRIVAL WOULD BE WORTHWHILE.” ~MAX LUCADO

Paul had Roman citizenship, which meant that he could not be punished without a trial, that he could not be held in prison without a fair trial, and that he had the right at any time to ask for his legal case to be taken away from the court it was being tried in, and taken to the supreme court of the Roman Empire, which was the Emperor’s court in Rome itself. His case could be heard, either by the Emperor or, more likely, by his representative, who acted as a supreme judge in that Supreme Court which only took place in the city of Rome. So, when he says, “I appeal to Caesar”, it means that Paul is no longer willing to accept the judgement and decision of the provincial governor in Judea. He wants to be transferred to Rome. The governor is then responsible to ensure that the prisoner is transferred from the province, in this case Judea, to Rome itself, under armed guard. This is what is going to take place in due course. This was really rather shocking. The governor realised that he must follow this appeal and so he declared, “To Caesar, you will go!” 

And now, at the end of Acts 26, we read this aside: “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.” This is the parting shot in the ‘archery contest’ of Acts 26. We’ve heard from Paul, Festus and Agrippa. Nothing is decided, nothing is judged or even properly understood apart from that frustrated exclamation of Paul in the previous chapter: “I appeal to Caesar.” It sounds very much as if Festus was looking for any -simply any!- face-saving device that would get his guy out of his jurisdiction. And this was the straw that he grasped at.

Paul could not be set free, because he had appealed to Caesar, so it seems that once an appeal was made, it could not be retracted.

But here’s the question: It seems that Paul might have been set free here if he had not appealed to Caesar. So, was Paul’s appeal to Caesar a good thing or a bad thing?

Some people believe it was a bad thing, and that Paul was trusting in the power of the Roman legal system instead of in the power of God. They say that Paul might have been set free by Agrippa if he had not appealed to Caesar.

However, we should see the fulfilment of God’s plan through all these events. By his appeal to Caesar, Paul will have the opportunity to preach to the Roman Emperor the way he had to Felix, Festus, and Agrippa, thus fulfilling the promise that Paul would “bear My name before…kings” (Acts 9:15).

The appeal to Caesar, and his subsequent journey to Rome at the Empire’s expense, were also the fulfillment of the Holy Spirit’s purpose that Paul should go to Rome (Acts 19:21, 23:11). This also answered a long-standing desire in the heart of Paul to visit the already present Christian community there (Romans 1:9-13).

And what was the alternative? Possibly a return to Jerusalem to face a trial there. But if tried in Jerusalem, Paul knew he would never leave there alive. But it was not saving his own skin that led Paul to appeal to Caesar. He wanted to go to Rome and even into the presence of the Caesar himself to testify for Jesus. Hadn’t Jesus said, “You will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles” (Matt. 10:18). This was taking place right before his very eyes as he witnessed about Jesus before Roman governors, kings, and now before Caesar, the most powerful man in the world!

It wasn’t easy. But Paul persevered, and indeed, as we find out in his letter to the Philippians, he made it all the way into Caesar’s palace: “I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ” (Phil. 1:12-13). 

Paul begins his apologia

This is Luke’s third retelling of Paul’s encounter on the road to Damascus. Paul’s own account is in the first chapter of Galatians: “The Gospel which I preach . . . came through the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1:11-12). Paul never doubts this revelation. 

26 Then Agrippa said to Paul, “You have permission to speak for yourself.”

So Paul motioned with his hand and began his defence: ² “King Agrippa, I consider myself fortunate to stand before you today as I make my defence against all the accusations of the Jews, ³ and especially so because you are well acquainted with all the Jewish customs and controversies. Therefore, I beg you to listen to me patiently.

Though he was a prisoner, Paul describes himself as ‘fortunate’ to speak before Agrippa. First, because he was pleased to have the evidence of his case examined closely by the highest officials, but also because he was pleased to preach the gospel to kings and rulers. In the auditorium in the city of Caesarea Paul spoke to Festus, Agrippa, Bernice, commanders of the Roman Legion, and all the prominent men of Caesarea (Acts 25:23). This was a tremendous opportunity, and Paul intended to play that opportunity for all it was worth.

This was a partial fulfilment of what the Lord promised Paul at his conversion: “Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.” (Acts 9:15)

So Paul begins yet another account of his life and the radical shift that changed the trajectory forever, and which led inexorably to his present situation:

⁴ “The Jewish people all know the way I have lived ever since I was a child, from the beginning of my life in my own country, and also in Jerusalem. ⁵ They have known me for a long time and can testify, if they are willing, that I conformed to the strictest sect of our religion, living as a Pharisee. ⁶ And now it is because of my hope in what God has promised our ancestors that I am on trial today. ⁷ This is the promise our twelve tribes are hoping to see fulfilled as they earnestly serve God day and night. King Agrippa, it is because of this hope that these Jews are accusing me. ⁸ Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?

Paul made it clear that in both his heart and mind, he remained a faithful Jew. His trust in Jesus was an outgrowth of his trust in the hope of the promise made by God and he argued that “for this hope’s sake… I am accused by the Jews.” But “Why should it be thought incredible by you that God raises the dead?” Since Agrippa was an expert in all customs and questions which have to do with the Jews (Acts 26:3), he should have understood the belief that God could, or would, raise the dead. As Jesus said, with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). Yet it should be especially easy for Agrippa to believe that God raises the dead, given some clear statements in the Old Testament (such as Job 19:25-27), the nature of God, and the intuitive grasp of the eternal among mankind.

And Paul’s zeal for the way of ‘our ancestors’ led to an implacable opposition to the Way of Jesus.

Paul analyses his resistance

“Most of us have two lives. The life we live, and the unlived life within us. Between the two stands Resistance.” ― Steven Pressfield describes beautifully the paradox of Paul’s life before Damascus.

⁹ “I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. ¹⁰ And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the Lord’s people in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. ¹¹ Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. I was so obsessed with persecuting them that I even hunted them down in foreign cities.

 I myself thought I must do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth: Before his conversion, Paul believed he must persecute the followers of Jesus. Some he imprisoned, some he killed, and some he forced to renounce Jesus (compelled them to blaspheme).

Paul later speaks of the great regret he had over his prior life as a persecutor (1 Corinthians 15:9, 1 Timothy 1:15). Perhaps the fact that he compelled them to blaspheme weighed especially on his conscience.

 I cast my vote against them: This clearly implies that Paul was a member of the Sanhedrin, having a vote against Christians who were tried before the Sanhedrin (as Stephen was in Acts 7).

If Paul was a member of the Sanhedrin, it also means that at that time he was married, because it was required for all members of the Sanhedrin. Since as a Christian, he was single (1 Corinthians 7:7-9), it may mean that Paul’s wife either died or deserted him when he became a Christian.

Before his conversion, Paul was an angry man. His great rage showed that his relationship with God was not right, despite his diligent religious observance.

This passage opens up to us the parameters of resistance. What does it look like when people take a stand towards God. They might not be bad people. They might be very good, very virtuous. But in the name of being correct, or definite about something, it entails a resistance, that everything else must be wrong. So pay attention to the attitudes of scorn, anger, hostility -even personal persecution- it might mean that that person is worth the trouble, worth the investment.

Paul encounters the light

¹² “On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. ¹³ About noon, King Agrippa, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions. ¹⁴ We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’

This is Paul’s fullest account yet of his experience on the Damascus Road. He first noted that he went on his mission of hate and persecution with the authority and commission of the same religious leaders who now accused him.

Paul literally saw the light before he figuratively saw the light. Paul went to Damascus supremely confident that he was right; it took a light brighter than the midday sun to show him he was wrong.

Paul repeats the words from Acts 9:3-6. These words emphasize:

· The personal appeal of Jesus (Saul, Saul).

· The misdirected nature of his persecution (Me).

· The folly of persecuting Jesus (Why).

¹⁵ “Then I asked, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ Drumroll for the Great Reveal.

“ ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,’ the Lord replied.

These words changed Paul’s world. He immediately understood that Jesus was alive, not dead. He understood that Jesus reigned in glory instead of being damned in shame. He realized that in persecuting the followers of Jesus he persecuted Jesus, and in persecuting Jesus he fought against the God of his fathers.

This choice of words is pivotal; Paul must have wondered: “Why does he say ‘me’ when I’m persecuting these people?” Paul gradually comes to his understanding of the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:12) as an organic, ontological union between Christ and those who are loved by Christ—which Paul eventually realizes is everyone and everything. This is why Paul becomes “the apostle to the nations” (or “Gentiles”).

This enlightening experience taught Paul nondual consciousness, the same mystical mind that had allowed Jesus to say things like “Whatever you do to the least of my brothers and sisters, you do to me” (Matthew 25:40).

Paul had to repent – make a transformation of mind leading to transformed action – instantly. Paul lived a moral life, so he didn’t have to repent of immorality – but of misguided religious zeal and wrong ideas about God.

Response to Encounter

 ¹⁶ ‘Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen and will see of me. ¹⁷ I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them ¹⁸ to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

Jesus called Paul up to his feet. This was not because his humility level wasn’t up to scratch, but because he had been commissioned and this was a call to action. This was a way to say, “Come now, let’s be going.” “For I have appeared to you for this purpose“: The religious leaders had sent Paul to Damascus for one purpose, with their authority and commission. Now – in the light of a higher authority and an over-riding commission, he must rise up and serve another purpose, the purpose of Jesus.

“For I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness.” Paul was commissioned to be a minister, which means he was to be a servant of the things which he had seen, and of the things which Jesus would yet reveal to him. The commission of the Christian is not to make the message or his testimony serve him; he is called to serve the message. It’s interesting to consider the two words: commission and conversion and ask which suits the situation best.

To make you a minister and a witness: Paul was also called to be a witness of those things. The commission of the Christian is not to create experience or create the message, but to witness it and experience it.

To whom I now send you, to open their eyes: Jesus described the work Paul would do. At that moment on the road to Damascus Paul was blinded by the great light from heaven. His eyes were not yet opened physically, but Jesus sent him to open the eyes of others (both Jews and Gentiles).

Jesus then told Paul of four results that would come from the opening of the eyes:

· Being turned from darkness to light.

· Being turned from the power of Satan to God.

· To receive forgiveness of sins.

· To receive an inheritance among God’s people.

Among those who are sanctified by faith in Me: This was how Jesus described His followers, His people, His family. They are sanctified (set apart from sin and self), and they are sanctified by faith in Jesus (not by works or spiritual achievement, but by their connection of love and trust to Jesus).

The auditorium where Paul spoke was filled with important people and dignitaries (Acts 25:23), but we may fairly imagine Paul speaking these words with special attention on and focus towards Agrippa.

This was an invitation to Agrippa to become one of those who are sanctified by faith in Jesus. His eyes could be opened just as Paul’s were on the road to Damascus.

This section of Acts 26 has two responses to the gospel. They are both negative. Both rejections. But the reason for the rejection is different in each case, and that makes it interesting.

First, let’s pick up at v19, as Paul rounds off his appeal to King Agrippa, after stating his apologia before him.

¹⁹ “So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven. ²⁰ First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and then to the Gentiles, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds. ²¹ That is why some Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me. ²² But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen— ²³ that the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles.”

²⁴ At this point Festus interrupted Paul’s defense. “You are out of your mind, Paul!” he shouted. “Your great learning is driving you insane.”

²⁵ “I am not insane, most excellent Festus,” Paul replied. “What I am saying is true and reasonable. 

.Paul was obviously an intelligent man, a man of much learning. Still, at this moment Festus thought he was crazy, saying this with a loud voice among all present. Sometimes people will resist the words of the preacher because it sounds too intellectual, too airy-fairy, pie-in-the-sky. Perhaps Festus thought that Paul was too clever-by-half, too smart to connect with a real person like him.

And, in a sense, he was right. The word goes out and sometimes it falls on stony ground, hard hearts and deaf ears. “Today if you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” Festus heard, but didn’t hear. Let those who really have ears to hear…. “let them hear.”

However, given Paul’s conduct at this hearing, there are some reasons someone like Festus might think Paul was mad!

· Though a prisoner in chains, he said he was happy (Acts 26:2).

· He insisted that God could raise the dead (Acts 26:8, 23).

· He experienced a heavenly vision and changed his life because of it (Acts 26:14-19).

· He was more concerned about proclaiming Jesus than his personal freedom (Acts 26:22).

· He believed in a message of hope and redemption for all humanity, not only Jews or only Gentiles (Acts 26:23).

The gospel, when properly proclaimed and lived, will make some people think we are crazy. Paul put it this way: the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing (1 Corinthians 1:18).

Yet, Paul knew that not only his gospel was true, it was also reasonable. God may sometimes act above reason, but never contrary to reason. Festus recently came from Rome, and perhaps didn’t know much of what had happened with Jesus and the early Christian movement. Yet King Agrippa did know, and Paul appealed to his knowledge of the open, historical events that were the foundation for Christian faith – things that were not done in a corner.

So how did Agrippa respond? Very differently, but with the same result.

²⁶ The king is familiar with these things, and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner. ²⁷ King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do.”

²⁸ Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?”

²⁹ Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.”

³⁰ The king rose, and with him the governor and Bernice and those sitting with them. ³¹ After they left the room, they began saying to one another, “This man is not doing anything that deserves death or imprisonment.”

³² Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”

Paul’s message was characterized by truth and reason, because it was based on historical events (such as the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus), things which were not done in a corner, but open to examination.

The historical foundation of Paul’s message made it true. As for reason, it simply isn’t reasonable to ignore or deny things that actually happen. Who Jesus is and what He did must be accounted for.

Agrippa is almost persuaded to become a Christian.

Paul used Festus’ outburst to appeal to what King Agrippa knew (Acts 26:26). Then Paul brought the challenge directly to Agrippa, asking him: “do you believe?”

Paul didn’t first ask Agrippa if he believed on Jesus; he asked, “Do you believe the prophets?” Paul did this because he knew that if Agrippa did believe the prophets, truth and reason would lead him to believe upon Jesus. He wanted to connect what Agrippa already believed to what he should believe.

With this, Paul brought the challenge and a point of decision directly to Agrippa. This is a good and often necessary part of the presentation of the message of who Jesus is and what He did for us – calling the listener to decision.

When Paul called Agrippa to faith in the prophets and in Jesus, Agrippa refused to believe and to say he believed. Paul almost persuaded him.

The literal idea behind almost is “in a little, you seek to persuade me to act a Christian.” The meaning of little could be “in a short time” or it could mean “there is little distance between me and Christianity.” However close Agrippa was to becoming a believer, it wasn’t close enough.

If the sense is “almost,” Agrippa’s reply is especially sorry. Of course, almost being a Christian means that you almost have eternal life and will almost be delivered from the judgment of hell; but almost isn’t enough.

Far from being admired for how far he did come, Agrippa condemned himself even more by admitting how close he has come to the gospel and how clearly he has understood it, while still rejecting it.

We may say that Paul recounted the words of Jesus on the road to Damascus, saying what a Christian is (Acts 26:18). Agrippa didn’t want it.

· He didn’t want to turn from darkness to light.

· He didn’t want to turn from the power of Satan to the power of God.

· He didn’t want to receive forgiveness of sins.

· He didn’t want a place among God’s people.

· He didn’t want to become one of those set apart by faith in Jesus.

What stopped Agrippa short? Why did he only almost become a Christian?

Why was Agrippa only almost persuaded? One answer was the person sitting next to him – Bernice. She was a sinful, immoral companion, and he may have rightly realized that becoming a Christian would mean losing her and his other immoral friends. He was unwilling to make that sacrifice.

On the other side of Agrippa sat Festus – a man’s man, a no-nonsense man, a man who thought Paul was crazy. Perhaps Agrippa thought, “I can’t become a Christian. Festus will think I’m also crazy.” Because he wanted the praise of men, he rejected Jesus. “Alas, how many are influenced by fear of men! Oh, you cowards, will you be damned out of fear? Will you sooner let your souls perish than show your manhood by telling a poor mortal that you defy his scorn? Dare you not follow the right though all men in the world should call you to do the wrong? Oh, you cowards! You cowards! How you deserve to perish who have not enough soul to call your souls your own, but cower down before the sneers of fools!” (Spurgeon)

In front of Agrippa was Paul – a strong man, a noble man, and man of wisdom and character – but a man in chains. Did Agrippa say, “Well, if I became a Christian, I might end up in chains like Paul; or at the least, I would have to associate with him. We can’t have that – I’m an important person.” “O that men were wise enough to see that suffering for Christ is honour, that loss for truth is gain, that the truest dignity rests in wearing the chain upon the arm rather than endure the chain upon the soul.” (Spurgeon)

Paul declared his continued trust in the gospel of Jesus Christ. He did not retreat from his stand one inch, despite his long imprisonment for the sake of the gospel.

With a dramatic gesture, Paul showed that even though he was in chains, he had more freedom in Jesus than any of the royalty listening had.

Agrippa admits Paul’s innocence, yet forwards him to Caesar.

When he had said these things, the king stood up: Paul’s direct challenge was too much for Agrippa, Festus, and the others on the platform. It was getting too close, to personal, and they felt they had to end it quickly by standing up and ending the proceedings.

This man is doing nothing deserving of death or chains: Agrippa also saw there was no evidence offered to support the accusations against Paul, and he respected Paul’s great integrity even while rejecting Paul’s gospel. So, Agrippa and the others pronounced a “not guilty” verdict.

This man might have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar: Yet, Paul could not be set free, because he had appealed to Caesar. It seems that once an appeal was made, it could not be retracted.

It seems that Paul might have been set free here if he had not appealed to Caesar. So, was Paul’s appeal to Caesar a good thing or a bad thing?

Some people believe it was a bad thing, and that Paul was trusting in the power of the Roman legal system instead of in the power of God. They say that Paul might have been set free by Agrippa if he had not appealed to Caesar.

However, we should see the fulfilment of God’s plan through all these events. By his appeal to Caesar, Paul will have the opportunity to preach to the Roman Emperor the way he had to Felix, Festus, and Agrippa, thus fulfilling the promise that Paul would bear My name before…kings (Acts 9:15).

The appeal to Caesar, and his subsequent journey to Rome at the Empire’s expense, were also the fulfillment of the Holy Spirit’s purpose that Paul should go to Rome (Acts 19:21, 23:11). This also answered a long-standing desire in the heart of Paul to visit the already present Christian community there (Romans 1:9-13).