As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea.And coming to us, he took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’” (Acts 21:10-11)

When Paul arrives at Caesaria, a prophet tells Paul and the believers with him that he would be bound and handed over to the Gentiles in Jerusalem. The believers interpret this to mean that Paul should avoid going to Jerusalem at all costs. Yet, Paul rebukes such an interpretation and continues his mission to Jerusalem and then to Rome. He tells the disciples that he is not only ready to suffer for Christ but even to die for Him. The disciples were seeing things from a human point of view and not God's point of view.

There is a fascinating parallel from the life of Christ (Matthew 16:21-23). Jesus told His disciples that He would suffer at the hands of the Jews and that they would hand Him over to be crucified. Peter refused to accept this and rebuked Jesus. But Jesus in turn rebuked Peter, saying that Peter was thinking from a human point of view and not God's point of view.

Friends, it is more important for us to be wise from God's point of view than from man's point of view. We do not pray, "May your will be done in heaven as we have decided it on earth" but rather "May your will be done on earth as it is (i.e. as you have decided it) in heaven" (Matthew 6:10).

Therefore, whether by life or by death, "success" or in "failure", gain or in loss, let us serve the Lord. We are not masters of our own destiny, as some people trumpet to the gullible masses; we are stewards, servants of God, called to be faithful to God's will for us, not to make our own way. Our uniqueness is by God's design, not our self-determination.

When we have this perspective, we can have peace in every situation. We will understand the secret of contentment. We will not be ruled by bitter envy and selfish ambition but guided by God's Spirit, who leads us into deeds done in the humility that comes from heavenly wisdom. We will not even fear the prophet, who foresees suffering, loss or even death in our future, because we know whom we have believed and that He is able to guard what we have entrusted to Him until that Day.

When they heard this, they praised God. Then they said to Paul: “You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law. They have been informed that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs. What shall we do? They will certainly hear that you have come, so do what we tell you. There are four men with us who have made a vow. Take these men, join in their purification rites and pay their expenses, so that they can have their heads shaved. Then everyone will know there is no truth in these reports about you, but that you yourself are living in obedience to the law (Acts 21:20-24).

“A man named Ananias came to see me. He was a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews living there (Acts 22:12)

Keep in mind our basic rule of hermeneutics for books like Acts. It is primarily a descriptive book rather than a prescriptive one. It describes what happened in the early church more than prescribing how we ought to live as Christians. Therefore, we should not follow every practice or teaching presented therein. Instead, we should try to glean teachings as they are reflected more clearly elsewhere, particularly in the epistles. 

Our present text can easily be interpreted as an encouragement for Christians to keep living in obedience to the Law of Moses. After all, James says that, in truth, Paul was "living in obedience to the law" (Acts 21:24). When Paul preached to the hostile Jews in Jerusalem, he affirmed his zeal for the Law of Moses (Acts 22:3). He also spoke of Ananias, who God used to commission Paul, as also being "a devout observer of the law" (Acts 22:12). It is true that Paul, a Jew, followed the Law. It is true that Ananias, a Jew, followed the Law. It is also true that Paul circumcised Timothy, a half-Jew, before taking the decision of the Jerusalem Council to the Jews in the various churches (Acts 16:3). 

There are several sites, particularly by Messianic Jews, that try to argue from passages like this that Christians should keep the Law of Moses. The alternative, they claim, is to promote lawlessness. What they fail to understand is that while the Bible says that the Mosaic Law (as part of the Old Covenant) has been made obsolete (Hebrews 8:13), it does not mean that Christians are thereby lawless. They fail to understand that the Old Covenant has been replaced by the New Covenant (Hebrews 8:7), and the written code has been replaced by the new way of the Spirit (Romans 7:6). 

But what are we to make of the current passage in Acts? Why would Paul still faithfully keep the Law of Moses if it is no longer binding upon Christians? Why would he speak about his faithfulness to the Law and that of Ananias to the unbelieving Jewish crowds that want to kill him? Why would he circumcise Timothy before bringing the decision of the Council to the Jews in the various ehtnically mixed churches? As I have suggested elsewhere, the answer is in Paul's own words here:

Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings (1 Corinthians 9:19-23).

Why does Paul still practice the Jewish laws and customs, even though he is free from them? It is because he wants to win them over to the Gospel. He does not want to offend them before he even gives them the message, because that would cause them to close their ears to anything else he had to say. This is the same as Paul using the pagan statue to the unknown god in Athens to tell the godless Athenians about the true God. He uses every means to reach people for Christ.

As I have written previously, he circumcised Timothy, as Luke records, "because of the Jews who lived in that area" (Acts 16:3), not because he was bound by the Law to do so. As Paul would write, "Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is the new creation" (Galatians 6:15). 

Finally, he spoke of his zeal for the Law and that of Ananias before the hostile and unbelieving Jews to gain their trust and a listening ear. Notice, that these Jews started listening to him because he spoke to them in Aramaic, the common Jewish tongue (Acts 22:2). And they kept listening as he mentioned that he was a Jew and that he studied under Gamaliel, a noted Jewish teacher. Notice that they listened very carefully until the point where he tells them that God has commissioned him to preach to the Gentiles (Acts 22:21-22). If he mentioned Gentiles, whom the Jews considered unclean and their enemies, from the first, they would not even have begun to listen to anything else he had to say. 

I believe this is the reason why James encouraged Paul to pay the expenses for the four men that made a purification vow. James is trying to encourage Paul not to unnecessarily stir up the Jewish believers (Acts 21:20-24).  As I mentioned in the introduction to this book, the church was going through a transitional period, where the Jews were beginning to understand a mystery that was not revealed in the Old Testament, namely, that the Jews and Gentiles would become coheirs of the kingdom in Christ (Ephesians 3:6). For there to be acceptance, time was required. Signs were required. And patience by the stronger and more knowledgeable believers was required (cf. Romans 14:1-23; 1 Corinthians 10:23-33).

Paul has returned to Jerusalem, only to be harassed and beaten for sharing the gospel. The Lord comes to Paul and tells him to have Courage.

 (acts 23;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."

Paul has shared the gospel faithfully, in Jerusalem and the surrounding countries. Many were converted, Gentile and Jew. Paul has suffered greatly, yet he remained faithful. Christ now tells Paul that he must continue to share the gospel in Rome.

Tonight, I was thinking that often God calls us to go beyond our comfort zone. To share the good news of Christ not just in the safety of our own country, but around the world. Despite our feelings of anxiety, we should take comfort that Christ will be with us as he was with Paul. The Lord is telling us to have courage, and continue the task that he set before us.

Friends, aren't these accounts of Paul's life and ministry exciting to read? I hope that as you read, you are observing how personal effort and God's providence are working together in Paul. God revealed to him through prophets that he would be bound and imprisoned in Jerusalem, but this did not discourage him from going there. Paul probably understood from the very outset of his ministry that he was going to suffer (Acts 9:15). I daresay that he probably took the prophecies in stride as evidence that God was with him and, in some sense, preparing him for what was to come.

The Christian elders in Jerusalem advised Paul to give at least the appearance of following the law by paying for the purification of certain men that recently took a vow and by going with them into the temple. Likely this is what Paul meant in 1 Corinthians 9:20,

To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law.

Unfortunately, though well-intentioned, this counsel turned out for Paul's harm, as the Jews accused him not only of teaching against the Law but even of bringing Greeks into the temple (which was not true) to defile it. And Paul received a beating before he was rescued by the commander of the garrison.

Later, the same commander was going to interrogate Paul with torture; however, on that occasion Paul announced that he was a Roman citizen, which completely changed the countenance of the commander because Roman citizens were protected from such treatment. That outburst from Paul not only kept him from the scourging but also turned the commander's focus from trying to harm Paul to trying help him, a Roman citizen, whereby the commander would curry favor with those ranked above him.

After this, when Paul was being examined by the Jewish Council, which seemed turned against him, he stirred the hornet's nest by declaring that he was a Pharisee and believed in the hope of a resurrection, which the opposing party, the Sadducees, did not believe. This created enough of a dissension so that there was no unanimous vote from the Council condemning Paul.

Finally, as Paul was being prepared to be moved, he discovered that certain Jews were determined to ambush and kill him. He sent his sister's son to inform the commander of this plot, so that Paul might be rescued from it. Now, just prior to this, the Lord Jesus told Paul, "Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you have testified for Me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome" (Acts 23:11). Since Jesus told him this, why did even bother sending his sister's son to the commander?

Please understand, I gave this event by event summary to show you that in the life of a believer there is no conflict between God's providence and human effort. Just as God used fallible human writers to produce the infallible Word of God, He also uses fallible human efforts to achieve His infallible purposes. Like Paul, who received many revelations from God regarding his future, he did not, on this account, turn from obeying his commission and following the command of the Lord. He did not merely sit and wait for God's will to happen. He did not stop exercising wisdom or employing the means at his disposal to turn things to his favor. He recognized that all of this was within the purposes of God.

When I speak of election and the matter of people predestined for salvation, many argue, "Then why evangelize since it has already been determined?" There are many responses to this, but one might be this very text that we just read. Why did Paul employ cunning and strategy and put forth such efforts when God had already determined his fate? After all, Jesus said, "You must also bear witness at Rome." Yet, Paul did everything he could to keep from getting killed. God would use this to accomplish his purpose in bringing Paul to Rome. Likewise, even though God has already chosen His elect, God still uses our witness to bring those chosen to faith.

We evangelize not because you or I can save anyone but because God has commanded it. Isaiah and Jeremiah were commissioned to speak to a people that God told them would reject their message, but this did not hinder them from speaking. Their purpose was not to save but to obey. Interestingly, Jonah, who was sent to Nineveh, a hated enemy of Israel, hoped that the people would reject his message, and he fled from the Lord in fear that in preaching to them, they might actually hear and repent.

When will we understand? Salvation is only of God. We are but instruments in God's hand, even as Assyria was an instrument in God's hand to punish Israel. Sometimes our witness is used by God to save those He has chosen to save, and at other times our witness serves only to vindicate God's honor before those who would adamantly reject Him. As Paul wrote, one plants, another waters, but God alone provides the increase. The one who plants and the one who waters will be rewarded for their labor, not for the result, which is solely in the hands of God (1 Corinthians 3:6-8).

And to you, who have such a high view of yourselves that you think that you "freely" chose God apart from God's supernatural work of new birth by the Holy Spirit, what logic is there in your thinking? If the people that reject God truly understood the God they were rejecting; and if they could recognize of themselves the reality of heaven and the awefulness of eternal torment in hell, who in their right minds would reject the Gospel? Truly, everyone who rejects God must be insane. And what makes you so special in your faith? Is the great divide between the unsaved and the saved just that by your faith you recognized this and others did not. Won't you even have the heart of Christ to say, "Father, forgive them, for they don't know what they are doing." Isn't this the testimony of every person that rejects Christ? They truly don't know what they are doing! If so, then how are they held responsible? Free will? What's free about it when those that reject Christ cannot accurately perceive Him in order to be saved? Don't you see that even your logic falls short, and you are living under a delusion.

People are not saved by their free will. It is when God overcomes our free will that we are saved.  When will you understand that while we may freely reject God, we cannot freely choose God. It is the justice, that is, the right, of God the Potter, to condemn, even to discard the clay, and it is His grace, even His extreme generosity, to sovereignly preserve some for eternal life, that is to mold them into a beautiful work of art. You and I are clay, even dust, and have no intrinsic value and are worthy only to be discarded. But we are given value in our humanity when God breathed into us mortal life (Genesis 2:7). And we are given value in immortality when God breathed into us eternal life (John 20:22). Why do you think the Bible repeatedly speaks of there being absolutely no boasting in salvation (Ephesians 2:8-9)? If it is our faith, a faith based on free will, then there is room for boasting. But of course, except in the minds of those that refuse to see, being blinded by either a cultural or theological prejudice, this is not the case. Faith, along with the entire work of salvation, is the gift of God. soli deo gloria!

Friends, I loved the drama in these chapters. Sometimes when places are mentioned, it is helpful to follow along with a map like this one (Paul's Third Missionary Journey).

This is Paul's Third Missionary Journey, and he is making his way to Jerusalem. Did you notice that along the way people are trying to discourage him from going? The disciples in Tyre tell Paul "through the Spirit" not to go to Jerusalem (cf. Acts 21:4). The prophet Agabus comes and prophecies that Paul will be bound and handed over to the Gentiles in Jerusalem (cf. Acts 21:10-11). Even Luke, along with the other believing residents, tells Paul not to go (cf. Acts 21:12). But Paul's response is amazing:

"What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus" (Acts 21:13).

Shouldn't Paul have listened to his brothers, to those who spoke "by the Spirit," even to the prophet?

Two women in my life told me that God told them in no uncertain terms that I was to marry them. I praise God that I didn't follow through and instead waited for my wife. Three pastors in my life prophesied over me that I would be an extremely rich multi-millionnaire. Part of me hopes their prophesies come true. I never asked to be prophesied over, and it always makes me uncomfortable because I do not presently believe in the continuity of the prophetic office or gift today. I understand much of what passes for prophecy today to be either keen observations or good guesses and most are outright false. I say this not as an opinion but because most so-called "prophets" today fail the tests and violate the rules of prophecy given in Scripture. But I will not be their judge. The very Scripture that they claim gives them permission to prophecy will judge them for misrepresenting God.

But back to Paul. Even when prophets, spiritual people and friends told Paul not to go to Jerusalem, he still went. Why? He went because his motivation was the inner conviction of a man totally dedicated to God. Later on, when he was a captive, God would confirm his decision:

But on the night immediately following, the Lord stood at his side and said, "Take courage; for as you have solemnly witnessed to My cause at Jerusalem, so you must witness at Rome also" (Acts 23:11).

I know a number of people listen intently to pastors and "prophets" today for some specific word from God, as if somehow God would reveal it to  these "special" people and not to them. They travel hundreds of miles to get this kind of "revelation." To me this is only a veiled form of idolatry. Is this any different from the Roman Catholics, who feel that they need icons, beads, saints, and Mary to access God's will for their lives? And as shocking as it might sound, this is not too far removed from the throngs that traveled far and wide to seek counsel from the image of Jesus in a taco. Yet, the Scriptures teach that there is no other mediator except Jesus (cf. 1 Timothy 2:5), and He is our High Priest, who has ascended to heaven on our behalf, so that we may boldly and directly go to God (cf. Hebrews 4:14-16).

Friends, you do not need to go to a Revival Meeting, a Retreat, a Prayer House, a pastor, a prophet, or anything or anyone else. Your all-sufficiency is in Christ and His revealed Word. And because the Spirit of God lives in you, you do not need anyone else to tell you what God's specific will is for you. The Spirit will guide you through His Word to make wise judgments so that you can live a life that pleases God.