Well folks, as we turn to that passage, please do have it open in front of you.
We'll be dipping in and out of it, so it'll be great if you have it open in front of you in the pew Bibles,
if that's convenient for you.
Let us pray before we think about this passage together.
Let's pray.
Heavenly Father, when we come to a passage like this, we have questions.
We have maybe doubts of what it could teach us.
Father, I pray that you would help me to preach faithfully.
Father, would you bless the meditations of our hearts and the words of my mouth.
Would it all be pleasing to you, our wonderful rock and our redeemer.
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Now, have you ever read a story, watched a movie or seen an episode series
and it doesn't quite pan out like you think it would.
There's that moment where you're following along, everything is happy and fine,
the story makes sense, but then something happens and it throws it.
It throws you completely off.
You're left shocked, unsure of what will happen next.
You are confused and you have questions.
That's similar to where I think we find Paul this morning.
He's been one of the most well-known people in the New Testament who went from town to town,
telling people about Jesus, planting churches, encouraging Christians.
But then last week in Acts chapter 21, we saw that he was told he would be bound in Jerusalem
and handed over to the Gentiles.
That is not what you would expect of this great apostle.
What good can come from this, we might be asking.
Now, maybe you found yourself in that situation as well.
Questioning why God has placed you where you are.
Why God has placed you around the people that you are around.
It all seems hard and you have no idea what good could come from any of this.
Well, two things we can learn from Paul this morning as he found himself in a similar situation.
Always be ready to give a reason for your faith in Jesus
and remember that God's ways are not your ways.
Now, we'll cover that passage that Alistair read to us under two headings
that summarise the teaching points of these verses.
But also that help us think about how to apply this passage to our lives.
Let me give you a quick overview of what happened in the passage.
So a group of Jews were angry with Paul and they gather a mob.
They create absolute chaos with false accusations and they try to kill him
until the Roman authorities step in.
Then Paul asks to speak to the crowd who just tried to kill him.
And he tells the story of his own life and what God has done.
He then stands before the religious high court and another chaotic scene breaks out.
There's another plot to kill Paul, but it is all discovered by the Romans
who, as we'll see next week, take steps to keep him safe.
Now, what can we learn from this historical retelling of one man's story
intertwined with courtrooms, with chaos and with religious customs?
Well, we can learn that we always need to be ready to give a defence for our faith
and that God's ways are not our ways.
So let's look at this passage together with those two things in mind.
The first thing we see in this passage is that Christians should always be ready
to give a defence of their faith.
Always be ready to give a defence.
Now, last week we looked at the beginning of Acts chapter 21
and saw that Paul was told he would be bound in Jerusalem
and handed over to the Gentiles.
And people begged him not to go to Jerusalem.
But Paul says in Acts chapter 20 verse 22
that he is compelled by the Holy Spirit to go to Jerusalem.
And the prophecy from last week happens in verse 27.
Read it with me.
When the seven days were nearly over,
some Jews from the province of Asia saw Paul at the temple.
They stirred up the whole crowd and seized him.
Now, these are probably Jews from Ephesus because of verse 29
where it tells us that they recognised one of Paul's travel companions
and assumed that Paul had taken a non-Jewish friend into the temple.
Look at their accusations in verse 28.
They say,
Fellow Israelites, help us.
This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere
against our people and our law and this place, meaning the temple.
And besides, he has brought Greeks into the temple
and defiled this holy place.
See, these men are accusing Paul of things
they haven't actually even seen themselves.
But they've assumed.
They are hostile and lying in order to get the result they want.
They want Paul dead.
Now, this is a pattern we've already seen in Acts before, isn't it?
Paul is accused of teaching against the Jews,
against Jewish law and against the temple.
But this time they create a mob.
And verse 30 says that the whole city was aroused
and people were running from every direction to join in.
The Romans arrive and they bind Paul with chains
and try to figure out what all the commotion is about.
But look at verse 34.
The crowd is confused.
One shouting one thing, one another.
They have no idea what they're even there for.
This has all come about through hostility and lies.
Now, what would you do in a situation
where people have already started beating you to death?
I think you'd see the police coming
and you would welcome the rescue, wouldn't you?
You'd go into custody.
You would try to get as far away from the mob
as humanly possible.
It is our natural instinct to run from danger,
to preserve our lives,
to keep on fighting for another day.
What does Paul do?
At the end of verse 39, Paul says,
please let me speak to the people.
Paul responds to the hostility and lies of the crowd
with honesty and loyalty.
Look at chapter 22, verse 1.
Paul says,
brothers and fathers, listen to my defense.
Paul begins like this to highlight their shared heritage
and also his respect for the Jews.
He doesn't go in all guns blazing.
He isn't wanting payback.
He isn't out to launch an attack on them.
He simply wants to be honest about who he is
and how his life has been changed.
So Paul tells his story.
He tells them what happened to make him so different
from the Paul they maybe remember from a few years back.
The Paul who went around persecuting Christians,
who spent time going from town to town
hunting Christians and throwing them in prison.
Now we've already heard Paul's story before in Acts 9,
haven't we?
And we'll hear it again in Acts 26.
But maybe as Alistair read it to us,
you thought that it sounded a little bit different.
That there were additional details or phrases
used that we haven't seen before.
Now why is that?
It's because Paul is intentionally using words and concepts
that would be easy for Jews to understand
so that he can witness to them.
He's highlighting that he is one of them,
that they have the same background,
but he's also highlighting his Jewish pedigree.
He's showing them his religious CV,
which for a Jew was very important.
And so in verse 3, Paul says,
I am a Jew born of Tarsus of Cilicia,
but brought up in this city, meaning Jerusalem.
I studied under Gamaliel and was thoroughly trained
in the law of our ancestors.
I was just as zealous for God as any of you are today.
He then says how he persecuted Christians
and even brings in the high priest
and the whole council in verse 5 as his witnesses
to the man he used to be.
But something changes, doesn't it, in verse 6.
Paul says on traveling to Damascus,
about noon as I came near Damascus,
suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me.
And Jesus spoke to Paul from this bright light
and asked, why are you persecuting me?
Now again, notice how close Jesus is with his people.
Jesus doesn't say, why are you persecuting my people?
Jesus says, Saul, why are you persecuting me?
And for a Jewish audience,
that bright light from heaven in verse 6
would make them think of nothing else
other than God's presence,
because God's presence was revealed to them
in the Old Testament by a bright light.
So Paul has been blinded by this light
and is told by Jesus to go to Damascus
where he'll meet Ananias,
who Paul describes in verse 12
as a devout observer of the law
and highly respected by all the Jews living there.
See, the accusations against Paul
are that he is disregarding
and encouraging Jews to disregard the law.
He highlights that Ananias
was a devout observer of the law.
So with each little phrase,
Paul is showing respect
and being honest about his life story,
highlighting that along the way
he has met faithful, devout people
who are all doing the will of God.
And then in verse 14,
after Paul has miraculously received his sight,
Ananias says, read with me, verse 14,
the God of our ancestors has chosen you
to know his will
and to see the righteous one
and to hear words from his mouth.
Now at this point,
every Jew would know
that the righteous one
is a reference
to God's promised Messiah
from the Old Testament,
the one who would come
and save God's people.
Then in verse 16,
Paul is told to call
on the name of Jesus,
God's Messiah,
to be saved through his death
and resurrection
and to be baptized.
Now that is abundantly clear
to everyone in this crowd
listening to this.
Paul isn't hiding anything.
He isn't holding anything back.
And so far,
they've listened to him
until verse 21,
where he says,
then the Lord said to me,
go and I will send you
far away to the Gentiles.
Now the crowd hear this
and they go wild.
They conclude that
the only good outcome
from this
is that Paul needs to die.
They work themselves
into a frenzy
and in verse 23,
they start throwing their cloaks
and dust into the air.
Expressions of lament,
condemnation and anger.
But notice through
this whole interaction,
Paul hasn't once
gone on the offensive.
He hasn't attacked
those who attacked him,
but he has faithfully
and honestly relayed
the story of his life
and how Jesus changed him.
Friends,
as we go into a world
that is increasingly moving
away from the Bible,
a world that is becoming
increasingly antagonistic
towards Christianity,
a world where it feels like
Christians are being sidelined
for our faith,
attacked maybe on every side,
we need to do two things.
First,
we need to remember
that Christianity,
that the church
has been opposed
from the very beginning.
This is nothing new.
And yet,
the Lord has continued
to grow his kingdom,
hasn't he?
What started
some 2,000 years ago
with a small number
of followers
is now
a number,
a group of billions
of Christians worldwide.
Nothing will stop
God's plan
for people
to hear
about Jesus Christ.
No amount
of opposition
will prevent
the kingdom of God
from growing
and God
will never,
ever leave
his people.
The pattern
throughout Acts
and arguably
throughout the whole
of church history
is that the gospel
grows
as it is opposed.
See,
when we become Christians,
we are signing up
for a life
of being sidelined,
a life of difficulty,
a life of constant
spiritual battle
where people
will try to silence us,
people will try
to stop us
talking about Jesus,
people will question
our beliefs
and the way
we live our lives.
But it is a glorious,
glorious life
of forgiveness,
a glorious life
of a relationship
with our Creator
and a life
of eternal significance
because we are living
and working for God,
the one who holds
all things together
and one day
we will be
in his presence forever.
That is the future
that awaits
every Christian
and no amount
of opposition
should hinder us
from living
for Jesus.
The second thing
we need to remember
is that like Paul,
we should always be ready
to give a defense,
always be ready
to explain to people
why we have hope
in Jesus,
why we live our lives
for him
and why they should
listen to the message
of forgiveness
and peace with God
that is offered
through Jesus' death
and resurrection.
And the way we do that
is important.
The manner in which
we speak with people
about Jesus
really matters.
The only offensive thing
about any Christian
sharing the gospel
should be the gospel
itself.
The gospel will
naturally offend people.
The Bible makes
that clear.
But like Paul does here,
we need to be honest
and respectful
to those we share
the gospel with
and why we trust Jesus.
Now this goes for
in-person discussions
and online interactions
and the way we live
our life.
How many of you
became Christians
because someone
was trying to win
an argument
rather than winning
the person they
were talking to?
How many of you
became Christians
because someone
pointed out your hypocrisy
on a Facebook post comment?
I'd say probably
next to none.
The way we speak
to people about Jesus
really matters.
The life of a Christian
should be one of
constant witness
to the goodness
of Jesus
and so we always
need to be ready
to give a defense.
But the second thing
we see in this passage
is that God's ways
are not our ways.
God's ways
are not our ways.
So this crowd
have just absolutely
lost it with Paul
and the Romans
have to step in
again and protect him
but their means
of getting to the truth
also wasn't really ideal.
Read verse 24 with me.
The commander
ordered that Paul
be taken into the barracks.
He directed
that he be flogged
and interrogated
in order to find out
why the people
were shouting at him
like this.
See the Roman commander
wanted to get to the truth
of why the crowd
was so mad at Paul
because at this stage
Christians were seen
as a subsect
of Judaism.
They had no idea
that Judaism
and Christianity
were different.
That realization
would come later on
in the Roman Empire.
So the commander
decides to get
to the truth
by torture.
And they stretch
Paul out to be flogged
but it all comes
to a halt
in verse 25
when Paul asks
the question
is it legal
for you to flog
a Roman citizen
who hasn't even
been found guilty?
See Paul knew
that it was illegal
to beat a Roman citizen
without a fair trial
and a guilty verdict.
And so he uses this
to his advantage
as he has done
before in Acts
and so they retreat
with their tail
between their legs.
Verse 29 says
they withdraw
immediately
and are alarmed.
Now this might sound
like a minute detail
but it gives Paul
the opportunity
to stand before
the high court
of the religious leaders
in Acts 23.
Look at chapter 22
verse 30.
The commander
wanted to find out
exactly why
Paul was being
accused by the Jews.
So the next day
he released him
and ordered the chief priests
and all the members
of the Sanhedrin
that's the Jewish
high court
to assemble.
Then he brought Paul
and had him stand
before them.
Paul stands
before this group
of men
and basically says
in chapter 23
verse 1
I'm innocent
of the charges
you bring against me.
The only thing
I have done
is exactly
what God
has called me to do.
Now he isn't saying
he's a perfect man
but he's saying
that he has been faithful
in carrying out
his calling
from God
and the chief priest
hears that
and orders the man
standing next to Paul
to punch him
in the face
because he doesn't
want to hear anything
from this perceived
blasphemer
and Paul responds
in verse 3
by saying
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.
Now at this point
Paul could be
denouncing
faithless
and corrupt
leadership
within the religious
leaders of Jerusalem
but it's more likely
that he's just
responding out of anger.
I mean he's just
been beaten
by a mob
nearly flogged
by the Romans
and now he's
standing before
the very court
of religious leaders
who are supposed
to recognize
God's work
and he gets
punched in the face.
Paul is a human.
He gets angry
to be honest
if that was me
I would be raging
but then he composes
himself
and after finding out
that it was the
high priest
he had snapped at
he says in verse 5
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.
Paul's being smart here.
He's using the
Old Testament law
as part of his
apology highlighting
as he did with the
crowd earlier on
in the passage
that he has
respect for the
Jewish leaders
and their shared
heritage
and so Paul gets
to speak again
and very cunningly
because he knows
the political feel
in the room
he says in verse 6
read it with me
my brothers
I am a Pharisee
descended from
Pharisees
I stand on trial
because of the
hope of the
resurrection of the
dead
and again
this unleashes
chaos
because the
Sadducees
other religious
leaders who were
present didn't
believe in the
resurrection
but this isn't
quite like we see
in the House of
Commons in Westminster
so you've probably
seen clips of the
different parties of
the House of
Parliament shouting
across the benches
at each other
right laughing
and passing
what I assume
are little jokes
about each other's
policies and
character etc
when it all starts
to get a bit heated
in the in Parliament
the speaker says
order
and it may take a few
moments but it goes
quiet
there is no speaker
in this Jewish
courtroom
they are divided
and it gets so
heated
the Romans
have to take
Paul away
because it
became so
violent
verse 10
says that they
feared he would
be torn
to pieces
now put yourself
in Paul's
shoes
his own
countrymen
people who
he maybe even
studied with
people who
he maybe stood
shoulder to
shoulder with
in debates
as they were
praying in the
temple
people who
maybe he even
looked up to
I've just
tried to kill
him twice
can you imagine
the betrayal he
would feel
imagine the pain
he'd be in both
physically and
emotionally
but I can also
imagine him
sitting there
thinking I
used to be
these guys
I have been
on the other
side
because Paul
went from being
the persecutor
to the
persecuted
Paul can
speak so
well to
these people
because he
used to be
in their
shoes
and many
of us will
remember a
time when we
weren't Christians
we all know to
some extent what
it's like not to
know the truth
about Jesus
and it should
give that should
give us a deep
empathy and love
for people rather
than an attitude
of I'm better
than you
because that's not
true
it should
conjure in us
a love for a
world that is
lost without
Jesus
Paul must be
so hurt at
this point
but do you see
that God is not
distant
God cares for
his people
look with me
at verse 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
now from a
human perspective
we might be
tempted to look
at Paul's time
in Jerusalem
and think that
it was an
evangelistic failure
we have no
record that
anyone came to
faith
the only thing
we know is
that chaos
and confusion
ruled
and yet Jesus
appears to Paul
and encourages him
whilst this must
be hard and
maybe confusing
for Paul
this has been
part of God's
plan for the
spread of the
gospel
from the very
beginning
remember back
to Acts
chapter 1
verse 8
where Jesus
said to his
followers
you will be
my witnesses
in Jerusalem
and in all
Judea and
Samaria
and to the
ends of the
earth
all of this
going on
is part of
God's plan
that will take
the gospel
to places
of power
to people
in power
and to people
who aren't
in power
why
because every
single person
needs to hear
about Jesus
now when
you're feeling
completely out
of place
questioning
why you are
where you are
questioning
maybe even
why you're
here
why has
God put
you in
the place
you are
at that
specific
time
prayerfully
consider
that you
have
opportunities
to share
the gospel
maybe that's
why God
has placed
you where
you are
Paul is
here in
the midst
of this
crowd
who want
him dead
why
to share
the gospel
you may
be in a
job that
has no
future
prospects
you may
be looking
to move
house and
it's just
not coming
about and
you are
getting
frustrated
could it
be
that God
has placed
you in
those social
networks
to share
Jesus with
people
think and
pray
why has
God placed
you where
you are
God wants
all people
to hear
about Jesus
so maybe
that's why
you are
in that
classroom
that you
really
don't
like
maybe
that's
why
you are
in that
particular
flat
with some
housemates
that you
really
struggle
with
maybe
that's
why
you are
with work
colleagues
who
just
wind you
up the
wrong
way
share
Jesus
with
people
God's
ways
are not
our
ways
Jesus
words
in verse
11
confirms
Paul's
own
understanding
of his
calling
to go
to Jerusalem
from chapter
19
verse 21
and the
word spoken
through the
high priest
in chapter
9
verses 15
to 16
Paul was
set aside
to take
the gospel
to the
Gentiles
and he
will
suffer
for the
gospel
that happens
as another
plot is
discovered
in chapter
23
verses 12
to 22
to kill
Paul
and he
will
eventually
end up
in Rome
God's
ways
are not
our
ways
we
are not
promised
a bed
of roses
we're not
promised
a pain
and suffering
free life
we are
promised
that a
life
of humble
submission
to Jesus
and faithfully
living for
him will
lead to a
life of
suffering
and persecution
and rejection
but it will
also lead
to people
hearing about
Jesus
and some
of them
coming to
eternal
life in
him
God
has a
plan
God
has a
mission
and nothing
no chaotic
group of
religious leaders
no Roman
commander
no slander
from your
work colleagues
no insults
from family
or friend
members
no oppression
or persecution
will ever
stop God's
plan from
happening
we're not
all called
to do
something
spectacular
we're not
all called
to go to
the far
off land
and proclaim
Jesus
to hostile
people
but we
are all
called
to go
to the
people
who we
live
next to
to live
faithfully
and to
proclaim
Jesus
to them
we all
know those
moments that
take us
by surprise
whether it's
in stories
movies
or in
real life
we're left
with questions
and we are
confused
asking ourselves
what good
could come
from any
of this
that's where
Paul found
himself in a
similar situation
this morning
and we
can learn
from how
he dealt
with it
and do
the same
in our
lives
too
Christians
always be
ready to
give a
defense of
your faith
always be
ready to
tell people
why you
have hope
in Jesus
and always
remember
that God's
ways are
not our
ways
let us pray
together
heavenly
heavenly father
with the
ups and
downs of
life
we realize
it's so
easy for
us to
feel that
you have
abandoned
us
we look
at our
lives
we look
at our
world
and we
think
that you
maybe
have
turned
away
father
we thank
you for
the truth
of your
word
that you
never
leave
your
people
lord
would you
help us
to live
according
to your
will
help us
to have
good
conversations
with people
about Jesus
help us
to willingly
and openly
share our
faith
and point
people to
the hope
that we
have
that eternal
hope
eternal
life that
is found
through Jesus
and his
death and
resurrection
and help
us remember
that your
ways are
not our
ways
but lord
doing this
by ourselves
is impossible
we need
you by
your holy
spirit to
come and
give us
strength
to give
us
opportunities
and to
give us
boldness
to take
them when
they arise
father help
us be
faithful
as we
serve you
in Jesus
name we
pray
amen