Sunday Morning Service

Acts 23 (Click on scripture reference for audio access)

"Paul's Second Defense"  •  1.15.12  •  Sunday Morning Service, Calvary Christian Fellowship

Intro.

- Have you ever had a situation play out before you in a way that defied your best expectations? Perhaps you have seen it happen in the opposite way as well.

- Your situation went south in a way that was unprecedented and unpredictable.

- In both instances, people who have found themselves in such predicaments have said the words, "That was the Lord!"

- God uses incredible circumstances to draw His people into positions of usefulness for His Kingdom. Chapter 23 is one big illustration of God's hand of providence!

- If miracles are God's re-ordering of nature, then providence is God's arranging of events within natural occurrence to bring about His will. Paul the Apostle is right there.

- He's been given the chance to preach to a great mob, who heard the words "God sent me to the Gentiles" and went crazy. We're about to witness Paul's second defense.

Text

•  Acts 22:30  :  "The next day, because he wanted to know for certain why he was accused by the Jews, he released him from his bonds, and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear, and brought Paul down and set him before them."  :  Paul is now directly in front of the Great Sanhedrin, 70 men, plus the High Priest, which for all intents and purposes, was the Supreme court in Jerusalem.

- The commander brought them into the Antonio Fortress, which was not their usual assembly place. With the haste that he called them, it's likely that the group dispensed with formal clothing.

- Claudius Lysias, the Roman commander responsible for order in this area, wants to figure out what all the ruckus was about. In his mind, the Sanhedrin would have been his best hope

- The seed idea for the Sanhedrin concept was born in Exodus 18, when Moses' Father-in-law Jethro suggested that Moses delegate authority to other men to judge smaller matters.

- Moses was stuck behind a long line of people all day and night judging evey contention. Delegating authority to these men, Jethro suggested, would ease his burden.

- In Numbers 11:16,17, God ordained this group of men, to aid Moses in leading the people, whose complaining heart had become too much to bear alone.

 - During the time of the Macabees, in the intertestimental period, the High Priest became the presiding officer over the Sanhedrin.

- Because there was no prophet during that time, their rule flourished in the vacuum, giving rise both to the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

- By the time that we are studying today, any semblance of God's leading for the Sanhedrin had given way to the power of political maneuvering and saavy.

- In fact, most of the members were appointed, not by God, but by the family of Herod!  

- Traditionally, to sit on the Sanhedrin, you had to have been a Pharisee, a Sadducee or a scribe. During this period, you just had to be rich and favorable toward the Herodian family.

- Present treachuries aside, many in this group had likely been responsible for Christ's death two decades earlier.

- Had God not changed Paul's path, he would have been sitting on this council himself! Instead, he stands before them with an opportunity to speak for Christ.

•  Acts 23:1  :  "Then Paul, looking earnestly at the council, said, 'Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.'"  :  Paul fixed his eyes on the council members. He looked right at them, without any shame and without any fear of what they could do to him.

- Paul addresses them as peers. He thinks of them in the same light as himself! Usually, in this environment, you would add the word "Fathers."

- Then, Paul says something remarkable. "I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day." What a statement to make, especially for a man who is alredy presumed guilty!

- "My soul has not troubled me before God to this very day!" Paul is telling them that there is nothing that he feels guilty for. He has lived before God and has not offended his conscience!

- He speaks of something that we need to add to our vocabulary. God is our only audience and living before Him in good conscience is the best goal!

- What is conscience? The word refers to our inner sense of right and wrong. With every action, we have something within us which helps us govern the appropriateness of the action.

- As we add responsibilities in our lives and dynamics become more complex, our conscience given to us by the Lord, gathers the data and helps us to continue making right decisions.

- If it is governed by the Holy Spirit and listened to, there is great benefit.

- Paul is saying, "I have Jewish sympathies and Christian loyalties. I haven't crossed any boundary, nor have I injured my conscience in any way up to this point!"

- The charge against him was being anti-Jewish and anti-establishment. He was neither and he was willing to say that before God, he was innocent of those charges.

•  Acts 23:2,3  :  "And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth. Then Paul said to him, 'God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! For you sit to judge me according to the law, and do you command me to be struck contrary to the law?'" : The High Priest Ananias was insulted and ordered that Paul be hit, the word indicating a beating from a stick on the mouth.

- This scene was not a strange one, as Ananias' priestood was a violent and unpopular one, so much so that when he fled Rome's sacking of Jerusalem, it was the Jews that killed him!

- It's not likely that Paul was struck at this time, being a Roman citizen within a Roman fortress, but the suggestion reached Paul's hearing and he retorted quickly.

- "God will strike you, you white washed wall." Paul spoke out a word of prophecy. God is going to deal with you pretty quickly!

- Some believe that this is evidence of Paul losing his composure, which is certainly within the realm of believability. Either way, Paul is very direct in his language calling him a "white washed wall."

- In Jerusalem, prior to the feasts, the tombs lining the streets into town were painted white, so as to let visitors know that they should steer clear of the tomb and not defile themselves.

- The white walls were pretty, especially as they glinted in the sun, but behind the wall were dead men's bones and rotting flesh. Paul is calling the man who ordered the strike a hypocrite!

- He was sitting in judgment, but acting in an unlawful way!

•  Acts 23:4,5  :  "And those who stood by said, 'Do you revile God’s high priest?' Then Paul said, 'I did not know, brethren, that he was the high priest; for it is written, ‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’"  :  Paul did not know who had ordered the hit.

- The two major thoughts on this passage owe Paul's response to his eyesight or to the fact of the informality of this inquisition.

- There is evidence scripturally, that Paul had contracted a form of malaria on his first missionary journey and that his eyes never made a recovery.

- That, plus the beating he had received by the mob and the lack of formal dress by the Sanhedrin all conspired to make this moment.

- When it was revealed to Paul that the High Priest had said this, he retracted his words.

- He apologizes, quoting Exodus 22:28. Paul did not intentionally speak this way, but still honored God's Word and honored the office of the High Priest.

- Even though Ananias deserved the rebuke and the prophetic word, the office demanded respect and Paul knew that.

•  Acts 23:6-10  :  "But when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, 'Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee; concerning the hope and resurrection of the dead I am being judged!' And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees; and the assembly was divided. For Sadducees say that there is no resurrection—and no angel or spirit; but the Pharisees confess both. Then there arose a loud outcry. And the scribes of the Pharisees’ party arose and protested, saying, 'We find no evil in this man; but if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him, let us not fight against God. Now when there arose a great dissension, the commander, fearing lest Paul might be pulled to pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him by force from among them, and bring him into the barracks.'"  : Between verses 5 and 6, a little bit of time had passed and a lot of discussion had occurred. Paul was able to perceive that this group was divided.

- It is not clear why Paul said this. Some believe that he used this statement to get them to turn on each other. I'm not inclined to believe that.

- I believe that at some point, Paul figured that the only real winning possibility with this group was to reach the Pharisees with the hope of Christ's resurrection.

- The Sadducees were anti-supernatural, believing only in that which was material. They did not believe even in an afterlife! In their thinking, the body lived and died without consequence.

- The Pharisees, having been considered back to the bible guys, were much more open.

- That got the ball rolling and the Pharisees split the party up. These two factions forgot all about Paul and Claudius Lysias and they just went after each other!

- The commander had to remove Paul from their madness and the only safe place was the barracks! At the very least, it was quiet and controlled, but a place of difficulty for Paul.

- He had come to Jerusalem with high hopes and both chances to testify before the Jews were thwarted. It's not hard to imagine Paul's mindset. Discouraged, beaten down and exhausted.

•  Acts 23:11  :  "But the following night the Lord stood by him and said, 'Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you have testified for Me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome.'"  :  This verse is special. A full 2 days have transpired. Paul is sitting listlessly in prison, wondering what he is doing there.

- It's significant that it's night time. Everything has calmed down. People are retiring to their thoughts and recovering from the day. Paul was alone with his thoughts. "What was God doing?"

- What about the plan? Is this where it was to lead me? How does this bring you glory?

One can only imagine what rash things you and I would declare in prayer.

- That night, Paul received a very special visitor. Not a fellow believer. Not even an angel, but the Lord Jesus Himself! Jesus was present in the room with Paul.

- Whatever Paul had been going through that night, it took the Lord's personal visitation for him to get through it. The Lord knows when enough is enough in your life.

- I have been amazed to watch believers traverse through incredible difficulties in their lives, simply by the encouragement afforded by the body of Christ.

- It is a supreme honor to hear that someone has been touched and has been brought through something difficult on account of what the Spirit of Christ has said through me in a sermon.

- But there are believers in the world who don't have those opportunities. They have no church support or Pastoral presence. The presence of Jesus makes the difference.

- When there can be nobody else who will understand or who can travel the distance, the Lord Jesus by His Spirit will be there to comfort and encourage you!

- "Be of good cheer." Paul is in the holding cell in the Antonio Fortress. Both of his opportunities to speak to the Jews have thus far been a complete bust.

- Even one such as Paul would feel the burden of that. Apparently, this burden was sapping him of his joy. You can understand, can't you?

- Jesus tells him, "Cheer up Paul. I've got more for you to do!" Paul had testified for Christ in Jerusalem. Do you see that?

- There had been little in terms of results and Paul had not gotten out the message that he likely wanted to give, but according to Jesus, he had fulfilled his duty!

- He had given witness in Jerusalem. Now, God had determined that he would do so in Rome as well! Remember, that this had been Paul's heart, expressed in Acts 19:21.

- Can you imagine Paul's spirits after this visit!? That prison cell just became a worship hall! Paul knew that nothing could harm him. He had God's assurance that he would see Rome.

- How would he get to Rome? God had that part figured out! He would be Rome's guest!

•  Acts 23:12-15  :  "And when it was day, some of the Jews banded together and bound themselves under an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul. Now there were more than forty who had formed this conspiracy. They came to the chief priests and elders, and said, 'We have bound ourselves under a great oath that we will eat nothing until we have killed Paul. Now you, therefore, together with the council, suggest to the commander that he be brought down to you tomorrow, as though you were going to make further inquiries concerning him; but we are ready to kill him before he comes near."  :  40 Jewish men, gathered together with the idea of killing Paul!

- I believe that these would have been those same Jews that had attempted to kill Paul on the boat coming from Greece in Acts 20:3.

- They banded together under this oath. It was an issue of some immediacy, because fasting was involved! This would be their immediate goal and they suspected it would happen the next day.

- They needed only the cooperation of the chief priests and elders, who could ask the commander to bring Paul out again for further questioning, at which point Paul would assassinated.

- What intrigue! What depths the human soul can go to! How does one ever come to believe that they could speak something like this out loud, much less ask a person to cooperate in it!?

- Yet, there is no rebuke from the chief priests and elders! In fact, the plot seems to have gotten the go ahead!

•  Acts 23:16-22  :  "So when Paul’s sister’s son heard of their ambush, he went and entered the barracks and told Paul. Then Paul called one of the centurions to him and said, 'Take this young man to the commander, for he has something to tell him.' So he took him and brought him to the commander and said, 'Paul the prisoner called me to him and asked me to bring this young man to you. He has something to say to you.' Then the commander took him by the hand, went aside, and asked privately, 'What is it that you have to tell me?' And he said, 'The Jews have agreed to ask that you bring Paul down to the council tomorrow, as though they were going to inquire more fully about him. But do not yield to them, for more than forty of them lie in wait for him, men who have bound themselves by an oath that they will neither eat nor drink till they have killed him; and now they are ready, waiting for the promise from you.' So the commander let the young man depart, and commanded him, 'Tell no one that you have revealed these things to me.'"  :  How did God dispense with this foul order? Did He call down fire from heaven to consume these wicked?

- God allowed Paul's young nephew to hear of this plot, which he then told Paul. He then told the commander of the plot! God used a young boy's courage to break this plot up.

•  Acts 23:23,24  :  "And he called for two centurions, saying, 'Prepare two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea at the third hour of the night; and provide mounts to set Paul on, and bring him safely to Felix the governor.'"  :  The commander immediately put a large, impressive force together for the sake of taking to Rome's headquarters in Caesarea.

- Two hundred Roman soldiers. These were freeborn, physically and mentally healthy men who were usually over 6 feet tall. Each of these men would have been armed.

- On top of that, there were seventy soliders on horseback. That is two hundred and seventy soldiers before you add the 200 spearmen! I'm not great at math but that's 470 men!

- They are guarding Paul from 40 conspirators at 9PM, escorting Paul to Felix the regional commander.

•  Acts 23:25-30  :  "He wrote a letter in the following manner: Claudius Lysias, To the most excellent governor Felix: Greetings. This man was seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them. Coming with the troops I rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman. And when I wanted to know the reason they accused him, I brought him before their council. I found out that he was accused concerning questions of their law, but had nothing charged against him deserving of death or chains. And when it was told me that the Jews lay in wait for the man, I sent him immediately to you, and also commanded his accusers to state before you the charges against him. Farewell."  :  This commander is very saavy. He paints himself as the hero having rescued Paul.

- How did Luke get this letter? There are several theories, but I'm partial to believing that Claudius Lysias eventually surrendered his life to Christ!

- His next action would be to have his accusers come to Felix. Behind all of this, God is sovereignly controlling what is happening. The unrest and this response was used by the Lord.

- Paul is protected by Rome and is being escorted to his next audience!

•  Acts 23:31-35  :  "Then the soldiers, as they were commanded, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris. The next day they left the horsemen to go on with him, and returned to the barracks. When they came to Caesarea and had delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him. And when the governor had read it, he asked what province he was from. And when he understood that he was from Cilicia, he said, 'I will hear you when your accusers also have come.' And he commanded him to be kept in Herod’s Praetorium."  :  If you read verse 31 with a suspenseful John Williams soundtrack, you'll get the picture.

- The first leg of the trip took them halfway to Caesarea, along a road that was susceptible to ambush. It would have been a long and tense night of marching for the soldiers.

- The next morning, half the group went back, while the rest brought Paul into Caesarea. Being impressed with Paul's citizenry, Felix brings Paul into the very comfy digs of Herod's Praetorium.

- The excavations that have taken place in Caesarea are truly amazing. This palace was just a few meters from the ocean, a significant upgrade from the Antonia Fortress for the Apostle.

- We'll get more into Felix next week, who will indeed hear much from Paul.

Conclusion

- Let me leave you with a few thoughts as we go. First, the Lord is right there in the middle of your current mess. You might feel confused, but He has not lost control!

- Second, when you are the most discouraged, expect the Lord to meet you! For at least this believer, I can testify of the privilege of being comforted by God.

- Third, the world can be against you, but if God is for you, you will never be in danger! You can be confident of that very fact.

- Finally, and this is what I personally relate to the most: Whatever testimony that you eek out, no matter how frail it seems to you, God counts it according to your intention to honor Him!

- Paul had not given his best sermons, but God said that he had testified for Him in Jerusalem!

- Whatever we give to God is never a small thing in His big hands!