Paul spends two decades traveling through Asia Minor, the Balkans, Greece, and the Eastern Mediterranean on the missionary journeys which built the earliest communities of the Christian Church. These communities outlived the repression and oppression, wars and persecution, and rise and falls of empires to become the global Church today. We have used this study to observe how Paul aligned his natural talents, his reputation, his position in society, and his networks to accomplish this task. He “laid them down at the foot of the Cross”- not abandoned but offered in the service of Christ.

As Paul wraps his third missionary journey and returns to Jerusalem with gifts and relief for the persecuted Church, he kicks off his final mission which would consume the remaining years of his life and lead to his eventual martyrdom. Through Acts 21-28 we can see clearly that Paul leverages all of his experiences and gifts to outwit and outmaneuver the opponents of the Gospel. In this extended trial, we see the final transition of this man from Saul the chief persecutor of the Christ, to Paul the chief defender of His Church.

We have centered this exploration of Paul’s ministry around how he used natural gifts access to the halls of power for the glory of God. We believe we are early adopters in a space which will be influential for generations, so we look to Paul for guidance on how to operate faithfully, humbly, and wisely in times of trouble. Mobs are again in vogue, political factions are rampant, and overbearing and corrupt powerbrokers are the norm instead of the exception. Let’s learn from the Apostle how to deal with each of these in turn.

Paul’s enemies lie to stir up a mob… again

...the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him, crying out, “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who is teaching everyone everywhere against the people and the law and this place. Moreover, he even brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.” (Acts 21:27-28)

Jewish leaders are on the hunt for the followers of “the Way”, now called Christians. When they hear that the defector Saul, called Paul by his new friends, has returned they see an opportunity to snag him and deliver another blow to this young sect. They resort to twisting Paul’s message and misleading this community to rise up and mob this innocent yet inconvenient man. The mob beats him, the local Roman law enforcement comes out to put down the violence, the mob is so hysterical that the Tribune (officer of the guard) cannot understand what they are angry about.

Paul demonstrates his bona fides and his education to the crowd and the guards

Paul calmly explains to the guards what is happening, and he does so in Greek so they can better understand. Then he turns to the crowd and addresses them in Hebrew to demonstrate he is one of them:

“I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day. I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women, as the high priest and the whole council of elders can bear me witness. From them I received letters to the brothers, and I journeyed toward Damascus to take those also who were there and bring them in bonds to Jerusalem to be punished." (Acts 22:3-5)

Paul uses this stage, in front of the Roman guard and the now rapt crowd, to again proclaim the Gospel. In each phase of this adventure we will see this repeat- a crowd of people are drawn together attentive (sometimes murderously so) to Paul, and recognizing there is no such thing as bad publicity, Paul engages them with the message of Christ.

Paul uses his social standing to outmaneuver the Romans and the mob

At this point the Tribune realizes he can calm the crowd by simply beating this man and sending everyone home. Paul therefore pulls another card out which he played in an earlier episode…

But when they had stretched him out for the whips, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, “Is it lawful for you to flog a man who is a Roman citizen and uncondemned?” When the centurion heard this, he went to the tribune and said to him, “What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman citizen.” (Acts 22:25-26)

Remember that imprisoning a Roman citizen without trial, let alone flogging him, was entirely illegal. Paul’s place in society commanded respect from the local culture, and he was not afraid to use it for his mission to proclaim the Gospel. Cooler heads were now prevailing, so the Tribune commanded that a trial of Jewish leaders be called.

Paul uses his experience in politics to play different factions against each other

The Jewish society of the First Century AD was highly polarized between those who had spent the past centuries trying to cozy up to and appease their Greek (and later Roman) overlords against those who were trying to fight all foreign influence and maintain “pure Judaism” on the basis of cultural superiority. The former, called Sadducees, had created a hybridized religion that combined Jewish tradition with secular Greek philosophy which denied the reality of a soul or afterlife. The latter, called Pharisees, went to the other extreme and created a culture in which religious rules dominated every aspect of life, and the adherence to Jewish law was the basis of a very real afterlife. Paul knew this, and as a young man was even an up and coming star of the Pharisaical party.

Now when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Brothers, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees. It is with respect to the hope and the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial.” (Acts 23:6)

This verbal smoke bomb had the intended effect on the court proceedings. Bickering broke out amongst those leading the trial, and the Pharisees saw an opportunity to stick it to their Sadducee rivals by flatly declaring Paul innocent of all charges. The forces arrayed against the Gospel are forces of chaos, disruption, noise, and envy. Their foundations in sand cannot stand up to a storm, and the hammer of Truth can be applied to take them down.

Interlude: The Lord councils Paul

The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome.” (Acts 23:11)

Paul has had an adventurous couple of days. We see here the importance of stepping back, taking stock of our mission and our calling, and seeking guidance from our Lord before engaging in the large journeys of life.

Through delays and corruption, Paul remains faithful to his mission to be Apostle to the Nations and his calling from the Lord to testify in Rome

We will cover the next years on fast forward. Paul has caused enough trouble that he cannot be ignored, and has demonstrated an impressive level of social savvy to the point he was “invited” to be a “guest” of the Roman governor Felix… for two years under arrest. This imprisonment appears to have been light by Roman standards- friends were able to visit, he was supplied with whatever he needed, and he was even invited to speak with the governor and his family. Some details of this episode are obscure, but eventually Paul loses patience and determines it is time to move on…

If then I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything for which I deserve to die, I do not seek to escape death. But if there is nothing to their charges against me, no one can give me up to them. I appeal to Caesar.” (Acts 25:11)

Once again, Paul’s status as Roman citizen, and no doubt the respect cultivated by years with the governor, allows him special access. This time he demands an audience with the ruler of the known world, and the man bearing the title “Caesar” at the time of Paul is widely believed to be the Emperor Nero. This represents Paul throwing down all his cards and calling his enemies’ bluff. We are to be preachers of Truth, and we are to do so fearlessly.

The journey to Rome and an open conclusion

Paul has an adventurous trip to Rome full of shipwrecks and snakebites, and the narrative of Acts ends with his arrival and house arrest in Rome awaiting an audience with Nero. We are not told how that story ends, but tradition holds Paul was executed in Rome, possibly as part of the larger scapegoating of Christians following a large fire in AD 64 which burned down a major part of the city. As a Roman citizen, crucifixion was not allowed, but even leading citizens could be beheaded or strangled (and they often were in times of upheaval).

It is here our story ends, and where we will draw the final lesson from the life of Paul. We are called to humility and to live apart from our worldly desires and ambitions. That does not imply an abandon of our gifts so that we are incapable of achieving any earthly good. We seek to rebuild and reform the broken institutions of the world, and that implies access to decision makers and earth shakers. Paul teaches us that operating faithfully in the halls of power does not mean luxury, status, and comfort. It implies denying those goals in favor of giving our talents over in service and ultimately martyrdom (in the extreme).

We are living Paul’s legacy

Paul’s missionary journeys are full of adventure and excitement, near death experiences and dramatic conversions, travelling the world and declaring Christ to the most powerful man alive. But those are not what he is most remembered for. The legacy of Paul is something each of us live with and experience every day- a community of believers who follow “The Way.” Of the 27 books in the New Testament, the first 5 are historical accounts, the last 1 is mostly prophecy. The remaining 21 are personal letters written between friends learning to live a life as followers of Christ, and a majority of those were composed by the Apostle Paul. So today we can ask ourselves, how might we use our talents, our social standing, and our fortunate positions to continue that mission of building a network of believers? We have access to the tools, the support, and the energy. Let us each move forward today as apostles to the nations.

(cover image courtesy of finestofthewheat.org)