Acts 21: the start of the long trial
‘Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.’ (Acts 21:13).
Acts 21 sees the start of the last 'chapter' of Acts - whereby Paul is arrested in Jerusalem and is passed from pillar to post while all the various officials try to decide what to do with him. After being sent around and shipwrecked in the process, he eventually ends up in house arrest in Rome where he stayed for a number of years - and this is the point where the narrative of Acts ends.
At this point, however, we are on the last leg of the journey to Jerusalem, arriving there, and seeing the arrest of Paul. There were a couple of things here that stood out to me. Today I will deal with the first: again - Paul's willingness to face whatever trials came to him, including death.
I focussed on this in my previous post on Acts 20, where Paul says: "I consider my life worth nothing to me" (Acts 20:24) - in comparison to the task of preaching the gospel and seeing God glorified. Again, fellow believers are witnesses to God's revelation that Paul will face great trials in Jerusalem, and urge him not to go there. Paul, however, says: ‘Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.’ (Acts 21:13).
There is a sense of following in the footsteps of Jesus here, and it was a path that many of the apostles took. We know that this particular interment was actually not the end of Paul's earthly journey (as his letters point towards further missionary journeys and a further, much harsher imprisonment in Rome (during which he wrote 2 Timothy) after which it is believed that he was beheaded), but it may have felt like the end to Paul's companions. They did not know what was coming, and they were fearful for the sake of their friend.
But Paul knew that God was in control - that he had a plan, and that he was working things to his glory. We know this, because we know of the things Paul wrote to believers in his letters. Indeed, the letter to the Philippians was written during the house arrest in Rome that was the eventual result of Paul's arrest in Jerusalem, and in it he writes:
Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear. (Philippians 1:12-14)Because of Paul's arrest and long imprisonment, the gospel was brought to people who otherwise who not have heard it, and others were emboldened to preach the gospel too. To others, it looked like the wrong thing to happen, but God knew best. But that is not all - in his letter to the Philippians Paul goes on to say:
Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and God’s provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. (Philippians 1:18-21)
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