Acts 21:27-40

One of the things that has happened in the life of our church is that we have people that have moved here recently from the northeast. When they find out that Texas is the best place to be, they got here as fast as they could. But one of the things that they don’t leave behind is their allegiance to the team they’ve been rooting for. So after last week’s Sunday service, one of them complained to me that during the Sunday school back there, I did not make any mention of the fact that the Eagles are playing in the Super Bowl tonight. So for the sake of them, here’s a caption that shows that the Kansas City Chiefs and Eagles are playing in the Super Bowl tonight. It’s a wonderful achievement, something that we are not able to claim. But, you know, as we have it, we also have this figure that has popped up on my slides. And it is this, that we have five championships, that you only have one. And even if you win tonight, it will only be five and two, and it will still be three ahead of you. Even though more than half of the people living here, sitting here, were not even born when we won the five championships. We will not talk about that this morning either. But so grateful to be worshiping with you. May the best team win tonight.

But so grateful for the powerful time of worship the Lord gave to us. Welcome any guests that are here with us. I know there are at least a couple of you worshiping with us for the first time. We welcome you to our church. We are going through our sermon series in the book of Acts, Church on the Move. And we were in Acts chapter 21 last week, after we had a break of a couple of months in which we had our Advent series. And on the month of January when we had other servants of God preach from God’s Word. Last week we talked about the fact that the Apostle Paul has returned to Jerusalem at the end of his third missionary journey. After recounting great things that God had done through him, countless thousands of believers who have come to the saving knowledge of Christ. Miraculous work that God has done through the servants of God.

He comes and there is a concern among the church at Jerusalem. That there have been rumors have been spreading about him. That he has been preaching and teaching things that are contrary to the Jewish people. Against the laws of them and standing against them. So upon the advice of James and the other elders in Jerusalem, Paul does certain things to accommodate the Jewish believers in Jerusalem. He undergoes purification himself having been traveled over Gentile countries for the last several years. And not only that, he agrees to pay the money that was required for men who are taking a Nazarite vow. And they had to offer a sacrifice at the end of that vow. And the Apostle Paul also agreed to pay for the sacrifice in the temple as well. Even though many have criticized the Apostle Paul for accommodating the request of these Jewish leaders, we learned from God’s word that here is a man who was willing to make all the accommodation that was necessary if it meant that the gospel could be spread. So to the weak, he would become the weak. To the Jew, he would become the Jew. As long as he did not compromise God’s word.

So in the context of that, we come to chapter 21 verse 27 this morning. When the seven days were almost over, the Jews from Asia, upon seeing him in the temple, began to stir up all the crowd and they laid hands on him. The Bible is not very clear what seven days exactly it is talking about. But in the case of the purification of the Jews, there are two different days in which they are required to go to the temple to show themselves to the priest. That is on the third day and the seventh day. So the thinking here is that at the end of his purification, he had done everything that asked him to do to make himself to be a friend of the Jewish people. But we have a problem here. Some Jews from the province of Asia. When you read in God’s word in the book of Acts about Asia, even in the New Testament is not talking about the continent of Asia. Asia is modern day Turkey and the most prominent and the capital city of Asia would be Ephesus. The place where he had spent the most time preaching and teaching the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Remember in Acts chapter 19, these people had tried to capture Paul in Ephesus. In fact, there was a great riot that we talked about in Acts chapter 19 when the exact same people had tried to capture Paul and kill him and put him to trial on that day.

Now they had come to Jerusalem to worship during the feast of Pentecost. And guess who they find there? The man that they have been hunting all along. In fact, the word over there, saw Paul at the temple, literally means they started looking at him, analyzing him, make sure it’s the same person. And they’re like, you know what? Here is the guy who has been giving us trouble all along. And look what they did. They stirred up the whole crowd and they seized him. The word literally means they started going from crowd to crowd and they started getting every single one of them on their side. And before they knew it, the apostle Paul who had come to the temple that day had been seized by this massive crowd of people who had all been influenced by these men who had come from Asia.

And look what they’re saying, verse 28. Shouting, fellow Israelites help us. This is a man who teaches everyone everywhere against our people, our law and this place. And besides, he has brought Greeks into the temple and defiled the holy place. There are three charges against him. This man is teaching people everywhere against our people, our laws and our temple. Our people, he is against our people. And we talked about last week how he is not against his own people. He is against the law, which was very important for them. By the time the feast of Pentecost, which they were celebrating that day, literally had become a feast of the laws. The primary focus of the feast of Pentecost by the time you come to Acts chapter 21 has become the giving of the law on Mount Sinai by Moses. So it is very important here that they mention the law that this man is against the law. These men have traveled hundreds of miles to come to this place to celebrate the feast. And here they find that one person who is standing against the law that they’re so proud of. And not only that, this place, he is against the temple as well. The three things that are most important in the mind of a Jewish person at that time. Our heritage, who we are as a people. The law that has been given to us by God alone on Mount Sinai to our forefather Moses. And also this temple that God has given to us, the holy place of God.

There is a charge against him. He has brought Greeks into the temple and defiled the holy place. There are three different places in the temple in Jerusalem at that time. The most holy place obviously is not included in the three that I’m mentioning. The most holy place, the high priest only enters into it on the day of atonement and that also once a year. But then you have the outer court of the Gentiles. That is a place where anyone can come to. Whether you’re a Jew or not, you can come to the outer court. Then you have what is called the inner court. The inner court is the place of repentance and mourning specifically for children and women. That is the place to worship for them, the inner court. And then you have the holy place, which is the place where the priests offer the sacrifice. All the Jewish men with their sacrifices come to the holy place. You have to be a Jew in order to come to the holy place. The Gentiles can only come to the outer court of the Gentiles. They cannot even come to the inner court where the Jewish women and children are allowed to worship. Here is the main charge to them. This man has brought Greeks, Gentiles into the inner court or even the holy place and thus has defiled the holy temple of the Lord.

In fact, between the outer court of the Gentiles and the inner court, there was a sign that said this. If you are a Gentile, do not enter into the inner court. If you do, the death that happens to you is only as a result of your own actions. That is an inscription that was in both in Greek and in Latin language that was inscribed on the inside of the inner court. Thus to make sure that no one, no Gentile entered into it even by mistake. It said, if you enter into it, you will die. And if you die, the result of that death is not our fault. It is your own action that resulted in death. Because of the fact the Romans did not want the Jewish people to revolt against them. Because a unified Rome was very important in the mind of Rome. And guess what? Whenever somebody was killed for violating this law, the Romans usually looked in the other direction. They could care less what happened to them. They allowed the Jewish people to do what they needed to do.

And look at what they complained in verse 29. They had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with Paul and assumed that Paul had brought him into the temple. There is no basis for their charge. Paul had not done anything of that sort. Here is what that charge is. We have seen Trophimus with Paul. Everywhere Paul goes, Trophimus is also going. So Paul was in the temple, so Trophimus was also in the temple. But none of those things had happened. Paul was very careful to respect the wishes of the Jewish people. We learned about Trophimus early on in the book of Acts. He was one of the men who accompanied Paul in Ephesus. He is a man from Ephesus. One of the leaders of the church there. Who had traveled with Paul to Jerusalem. And he had come there to help Paul in his journey and travel. And Paul 100% would have made sure that this man never entered into the forbidden places of the temple. But they had made the assumption out of their hatred towards Paul that this Gentile had defiled the holy temple of the Lord.

Look what happened in verse 30. The whole city was aroused and the people came running from all directions. Have you ever seen anything like this? You see this quite a bit in other parts of the world. Nobody knows why they are running. But they all run. And nobody often knows why they are rioting. Different people have different ideas as to why the rioting is going on. But the only thing that really matters is that there is a riot going on. There is a mob that is going on. And there is something there that I am also upset about. So I need to come running towards it. And look what happened. All the people came running from all directions. Seizing Paul, they dragged him from the temple and immediately the gates were shut.

They seized Paul. They had already been beating him. And look what they are doing to him now. They start dragging him on the ground. I want you to imagine this. Probably a lot of wounds and a lot of afflictions are already falling on the body of the apostle Paul. And remember, he has done nothing wrong. He did everything that was required of the leaders in Jerusalem. He had tried to accommodate the Jewish people. But they have turned against him. And they are literally dragging him from the temple. And look what else they do. Immediately the gates were shut. Which means the access to the inner court was shut. The temple gates were shut. He was dragged out of the temple. It is so ironic that they do not want to kill him inside the temple grounds. Even though they are about to take the life of an innocent man. Even though their life is going to be polluted forever by the death of an innocent man. They are more concerned about their temple not being defiled. That shows the hypocrisy of these religious leaders as they are blinded by hate towards the apostle Paul.

Look at verse 31. While they were trying to kill him. This was no easy beating or gentle assault that was going on. This was assault and dragging and beating with the intention of killing him. News reached the commander of the Roman troops that the whole city of Jerusalem was in an uproar. And I want you to see the providential hand of God here. If this had not happened at the time it had happened, the life of the apostle Paul would have been over in that instance. Imagine a crowd of people. By this time it is estimated that the population of Jerusalem has swelled up from 200,000 to 2 million people as they came to celebrate the feast of the Pentecost. Imagine 2 million people are in Jerusalem. Surely tens of thousands joined in this riot against Paul. Because they are zealous towards the temple. He is about to be shredded into pieces, ripped apart, beaten to death. But by the grace of God, look what happened. The commander of the Roman troops, the Bible identifies him later on. Claudius Lysias. That the whole city of Jerusalem was in an uproar. As he is being beaten, as he is about to be killed. I wonder if you remember the promise of God that came to him in Acts chapter 9 verse 15. At the moment of his conversion, God’s word had come to Ananias. But the Lord said to Ananias, Go, this man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. There are three groups of people that he is supposed to proclaim my name to. Gentiles, people of Israel and the kings of the Gentiles. Guess what one group that he has not yet preached to? The kings of the Gentiles. He has already preached to the Gentiles. He has already preached to his own people, the people of Israel. But one group he still has not preached to. Which later on we will read about in the coming chapters. That is the kings of the Gentiles.

What is God’s word reminding us? Until God’s promises are completely fulfilled in your life, you are immortal according to the sovereign protective plan of God in your life. Even if an entire city rises up against you, they cannot kill you because a promise of God still is remaining in the life of the man of God. That you are to stand before the kings of the Gentiles. Entire city in uproar, thousands of people about to tear him out to pieces. But yet there is a God still in heaven who is watching over his servant. And somehow the commander, a man who was in charge of hundreds and thousands of troops heard. And the Bible says he did not waste any time. He rushed towards the apostle Paul.

Look at verse 32. He at once took some officers and soldiers and look what they did. They ran down to the crowd. There have been a lot of killings like this among the Jewish people. What makes this one so different? Why the sense of urgency? Why is this man, and look at what they did. The Bible in some of your translations, he took some centurions and soldiers. A centurion is in charge of 100 soldiers. It is loosed in plural in God’s word. Which means this man took at least 200 soldiers and ran toward the apostle Paul. Why all this sense of urgency? Why hundreds of soldiers? You know why? It was all sent by the God above to protect His servant in the midst of what is going on.

Do you know that your God does not spare any expense when it comes to your security, your protection and His provisions towards you? He will open the doors of heaven and He will supply everything that you need for every hour. Even if it means amassing hundreds of troops of Roman soldiers who are not believers themselves. But God can use them for His holy purpose. That is exactly what He is doing right over here. Isn’t it wonderful how our God watches over us? How He is such an amazing God who cares about what is going on in His children. He told Him, you will suffer for me in Jerusalem. But my God is not sleeping. My God is not in slumber. My God is not forgetting His servant. He is amassing hundreds of troops to rush towards Him because His life is precious in the eyes of my God. And so is your life this morning as well. You are not done until God says you are done. You are not finished until God says you are finished. It doesn’t matter what the verdict of the world is. It doesn’t matter what the verdict of the doctors are. It doesn’t matter what the verdict of hospitals are. My God is absolutely in control of every moment of our lives. If I am to be here tomorrow, it is because God has willed it in my life. If I am not here tomorrow, that is also the perfect will of God in my life. That is what we believe and that is what we trust in.

If you look at the next picture, it will show the place where they came from. I have highlighted in red, it is known as Antonia’s Fortress. Named after Mark Antony by Herod the Great. That is the fortress upon which the Roman soldiers were. The beating was happening quite a while away. Outside the city, outside the temple courts. And they come rushing towards it. When these commanders came, the people immediately stopped beating Paul. Verse 33, the commander came up, arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains. He does not know who this guy is. He does not know why the beating is happening. He is probably also wondering why he ran so much. He is just one person among thousands of people. These kind of things happen there all the time. But something told him he should run and he ran. I do not think even today he knows why he ran. But later on he will find out. But he runs and he finds this man. But he says, you know what, I have to somehow save him. Let me just bind him with two chains. We do not know if the two chains are one for the hands and one for the leg. Or he is bound to two soldiers, we do not know. Then he asked who he was and what he had done.

It is interesting the progression of events here. The arrest happens even before you know what the guy’s name is or what he had done. There is no reading of Miranda Rights or anything that is happening over here. You arrest him first and then you deal with the matters later. That is how justice is done in many parts of the world. Thank God that you are living in America. Then he asked who he was and what he had done. But this binding of the chains is also not an accident. Remember the prophecy of Agabus in Acts chapter 21 verse 11 that we talked about. Coming over to us, Agabus took Paul’s belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, The Holy Spirit says, in this way the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles. Even the number of chains by which Paul would be bound was prophesied by Agabus the prophet. This is how biblical prophecy is. It is very specific. It is very direct. It tells you in a way in which when it comes to fulfillment, you have no doubt in your mind as to who has spoken. Look at God’s word what it says. He will bind not only your hands but your feet as well. In God’s word it says he was bound with two chains. So here’s the answer to my question earlier. We don’t know how he was bound. We know how he was bound. He was bound in the hands and he was bound in the feet by two chains exactly as God had prophesied just a few days before.

Look at the way in which God prepares his children for the work of God. Verse 34. Some in the crowd shouted one thing and some another. Remember I told you earlier they have no idea why they’re rioting and why they’re after this man. A question was asked, who is this guy? What has he done? And the answers are different depending upon who is answering. They probably don’t even know his name. Some don’t even know. They don’t even know what he has done. They started making up all kinds of things. As many heads are there, as many brains are there, different tongues are there and different ideas are there. And since the commander could not get at the truth because of the uproar, he ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks. The barracks is Antonia’s fortress. The one that I showed you in the picture earlier.

Verse 35, verse 36. When Paul reached the steps, the violence of the mob was so great he had to be carried by the soldiers. Imagine how sometimes when people are victorious on a soccer field or on a football court, they carry them on their shoulders because they’re excited about what this person had done. This is literally carrying on the shoulders so he was not killed. The mob was so heavy that he had to be carried by the shoulders into the barracks. The crowd that followed him, they have not gotten rid of him. They completely followed him and said, get rid of him. Filled with hatred and anger, they beaten him to a pulp and they want to kill him.

Verse 37, as the soldiers were about to take Paul into the barracks, he asked the commander, may I say something to you? And they answered, do you speak Greek? He replied. Where does this kind of a composure come from? Where you have just been beaten, you have just been almost killed and what does he say? Even as he’s being taken into protection, he says, may I say something to you? He knows multiple languages. He knows Latin. He knows Greek. He knows Aramaic. Yet, the Holy Spirit prompted him that day to ask the question in Greek. May I say something to you? Even the language that he chose to speak that day was controlled by the Holy Spirit.

Look at the commander. He is suddenly very surprised. He expected him to speak Aramaic because if he is an ordinary Jewish man on the streets, he would speak the Aramaic language. But Paul, being an educated man and of high stature, spoke Greek to him and also very good Greek, Koinonia Greek. And so he exclaims and says, do you speak Greek? He replied. Then verse 38, aren’t you the Egyptian who started a revolt and led 4,000 terrorists out in the wilderness some time ago? Remember, they didn’t know who he was or what he had done. And he had gotten so many answers from them that the commander thought, we finally nabbed the guy who started a revolt against the Roman Empire. And there was a man just like this. In fact, Josephus writes about it. He had led a revolt against the Roman Empire with 4,000 men. He took them into the wilderness and then he marched with them towards Jerusalem. And here was his theory towards them. That if we march towards Mount Olives, God is with us and the walls of Jerusalem will come tumbling down and we will retake the city from the hands of the Roman Empire. And so they came. They came revolting against the Roman Empire. When they came to the city gates, remember what I told you last time. Felix was ruthless in the way he suppressed any kind of revolt against the Roman rule. He went against them, killed hundreds of them, more than 400 of them were instantly killed. And this man who had led the revolt ran away. And the Roman people were looking for this man ever since. When he caught Paul, you know what he immediately thought? I finally got the guy that we were looking for on our FBI’s most wanted list. There’s a problem. This guy is speaking Greek. You are not an Egyptian. Because if an Egyptian is speaking Greek, there’s a specific accent to it. This man is speaking Greek even without an accent. And he’s like, you are not the guy. I thought I was about to get an honor and medal from their emperor because here I nabbed the guy that we were looking for. You are not that guy.

Paul answered verse 39. No, I am a Jew from Tarsus in Cilicia. A citizen of no ordinary city. Here he does not mention his Roman citizenship which we will later on. Here all he boasted about was the fact that he was born in Tarsus. Considered to be one of the greatest cities in Roman Empire at that time. To be born in Tarsus was one of great credit to the people of that time. And he says, I am a Jew. I am a citizen of no ordinary city. But then look what he says, please let me speak to the people. Let me speak to the people. The very people that just tried to kill you. The very people that just tried to tear you apart. Shows the heart of the man of God for the salvation of his own people. Here he is thousands of them. All they are asking is to get rid of him and to kill him. But even there the gospel is the most important thing in his mind. Let me speak to the people. What composure, what greatness, what courage under fire. What power of the Spirit of God is flowing through the man of God. His heart always has broken for the Jewish people.

Look at Romans 9:1-3. A very verse in which he shows the great passion that he has for the Jewish people. He says, I speak the truth in Christ. I am not lying. My conscience confirms it through the Holy Spirit. I have great sorrow, unceasing anguish in my heart. For what? For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people. Those of my own race. Obviously it’s hyperbole language that he is saying. But he is saying, I wish I was not saved. If it meant my people were saved and know the true gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let me speak.

This kind of a composure is not something that is natural. It only comes because the Holy Spirit is working through this man and providing him with strength in the midst of it. Look at what Alexander McLaren writes about this so beautifully. He says, though bruised and hustled and having but a minute or two beforehand looked death in the face, he is ready to seize the opportunity to speak a word for his master. There is nothing more striking in Paul’s character than his self-command and composure in all circumstances. Let me ask you this, this morning. How do you handle adversity? How are you in the midst of difficult circumstances? Are you able to stay composed? Pray for that. That you will say the right things and do the right things when pressed against the wall. When things going difficult, do you have composure?

Then he continues, this ship, talking about his life, could rise to any wave and ride in any storm. It is not easy to disturb a man who counts not his life dear, if only he may complete his course. If God is a rock and a high tower, we shall not be moved. How many of you are able to say that this morning? If God is my refuge, if God is my strength, if God is my strong tower, I will not be moved. Even in the midst of the storms of life, even when things rise up against me, I will stand strong if God is my refuge. If God is my strength, if I have the strong belief that God is with me. And he is throwing to you tremendous strength in the midst of the adversities of his life.

Verse 40, after receiving the commander’s permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When they were all silent, he said to them in Aramaic, wisdom, discernment. Speak to the Roman commander, speak in Greek. Speak to the common man who wants to tear you apart, speak in Aramaic. Paul is not an extraordinary person. He is flesh and blood just like you and me. But he is a great example for us to follow of what it means to be led by the spirit of God. To walk by the spirit, to listen to the Holy Spirit, to trust in the Holy Spirit. In every circumstance of life that you face, Jesus is able to sustain you.

We don’t know what you’re going to face tomorrow, you don’t know what you’re going to face tomorrow. But I can assure you, God will give you the strength if you put your trust in him. I’ll end with this. John Lennox in his book, Against the Flow, Oxford professor. He notes that when God calls us to do something difficult, he gives us the strength when we need it, not before we need it. I’ve always thought about this, and I love that he wrote this. I thought, I hear about great men and women all around the world who lay down their life. But if I am ever called to lay down my life for the Lord, will I do it? He illustrates this principle with a story about an encounter with a Russian follower of Jesus, who spent years in a Siberian labor camp for the crime of teaching children about the Bible.

Lennox writes, he described to me he had seen things that no man should ever have to see. I listened thinking how little I really knew about life and wondering how I would have fared under those circumstances. As if he had read my thoughts, he suddenly said, you could not cope with that, could you? Embarrassed, I stumbled out something like, no, I’m sure you’re right. He then grinned and said, nor could I. I was a man who fainted at the sight of his own blood, let alone that of others. But what I discovered in the camp was this, God does not help us to face theoretical situations, but real ones. Like you, I could not imagine how one could cope in the Gulag. But once there, I found that God met me exactly as Jesus had promised disciples when he was preparing them for victimization and persecution.

Lennox adds, we can be confident then that the Lord will give us a sufficient amount of grace to handle whatever comes our way, whenever it comes our way and not necessarily a moment before. Did you hear that? No matter what you’re going to face, God’s grace will be sufficient at the exact time when you need it, not a moment before. So sitting here today as in the comfort of America, you might be thinking, I’m not a strong Christian. I can never face or do what Paul did. But I tell you, if you continue on trusting in the Lord and allow his spirit to lead you every single day, being built up by the grace of God, when that time comes, if that time comes, God’s grace will be sufficient to give you the strength so that you with such weak strength in your own heart will be strengthened beyond what you think you’re able to stand for the Lord in that day. Because our God does everything perfectly in the right time, according to what we need. He gives us strength that we need for every hour, every moment, for every circumstance. You can count on it. No matter what value you face, he is sufficient. He is more than able.

So don’t be worried. Do not be anxious. Do not think about tomorrow. Whatever faces come tomorrow, Jesus will still be there. His grace will be there. He will be sufficient and you will be strengthened beyond you are today because he knows what you need for every hour, every day, every year. He knows what you need. Such a great God we worship. Grace, strength, composure for every circumstance, according to the measure of what we need, he gives to us.

Heavenly Father, we come to you thanking you for your word and for the example of a man like the Apostle Paul. We pray, O God, that long before we ever face circumstance like this, our hearts will be a trusting heart. A heart that is constantly aware of your divine presence and strength in our life, O God. Help us to live by your spirit, strengthened by your spirit every day so that if we ever face something like this, we will also have the composure to stand for you and to do and say the right things. We thank you that you are our protector, our guide, a God who is in charge of every moment of our lives. We thank you for your provisions in our life as well. Thank you for hearing our prayers. In the name of the Lord Jesus, let me pray.