Acts 23:18-35
~17 min read
TRANSCRIPT
In our previous message, we have considered God's miraculous deliverance of Paul. The Jews have devised a wicked plot to request for the chief captain to let them have a more thorough investigation of Paul. That was a pretence because when the chief captain released Paul to them, there would be 40 men waiting to kill him. God miraculously allowed the plot to be overheard by Paul's nephew. The Bible does not tell us how Paul's nephew knew about the plot, but the moment he knew about the wicked plot, he, in turn, revealed it to Paul. Who then advised the centurion to bring the boy to the chief captain. That was how God saved his life. As we have said last week, it looks like normal circumstances, but nothing short of a miracle. It was truly God's providential hand working in the midst of the circumstances. Today, we will continue the second part of “God's Miraculous Deliverance” (Acts 23:18-35).
I. God Used a Gentile
The first thing we want to learn is “God Used a Gentile” to deliver Paul. Let us begin with verse 18, "So he took him, and brought him to the chief captain, and said, Paul the prisoner called me unto him, and prayed me to bring this young man unto thee, who hath something to say unto thee.” Upon Paul's request, the centurion took his nephew and brought him to the chief captain. Here we can clearly see how Paul respected the proper protocol. He went through the right procedures by first approaching the centurion, and through the centurion, the matter was brought to the chief captain. And then, through the initiatives of the chief captain, the matter was brought to the Roman governor, Felix. Sometimes we may know certain facts or we may have certain knowledge about a particular matter, but it does not mean that we should jump to the conclusion and immediately raise the matter to the highest authority. We still need to follow the right procedures, whether it be in church, in our workplaces, in our families, or in society.
When Paul followed the right protocol, we see the respect he received from the centurion, who did exactly as he had requested. He brought the boy to the chief captain and then informed him about the situation. You can imagine the scenario if Paul were to go straight to the chief captain without approaching the centurion. How would the centurion have felt? Surely, he would be disappointed, being disrespected. My friends, a lot of unhappiness, uneasiness, and differences are created when people do not respect the necessary authorities. For example, if the Sunday School teachers, instead of going to the superintendent, or the team members, instead of going to the fellowship leader, they go straight to the pastor and the elders. Perhaps, in your own workplaces, you have a problem. Instead of going to the manager first, you go straight to the head of the department. It is one thing if the person, the leader, is absent all the time or is not doing his job right. Then you have no choice perhaps but to bring the matter to the next level. But if that person is serving his duty faithfully, then the most sensible thing is to follow the right protocol, go to the right authority first. Like Paul, he knew the centurion was the first person to approach. Through him, the boy was brought to the chief captain, and the chief captain was brought to the Roman governor. But that obviously was the chief captain's initiatives.
Previously, we have considered how the chief captain was puzzled as to why the Jewish multitude, the Jewish leaders, were so hostile toward Paul. So, he was desperate for any information that would help him decide what to do with Paul. So, when he was told that Paul's nephew had some information to reveal to him, he immediately attended to it. Verse 19: "Then the chief captain took him by the hand, and went with him aside privately, and asked him, What is that thou hast to tell me?" Some theologians believe that Paul's nephew was still a youth, why? Because of the fact that the chief captain had to hold him by the hand and speak to him gently. You can imagine how nervous and fearful this young boy would have felt being surrounded by all the Roman soldiers.
I remember when I was about 11 years old, I witnessed the death of one of my friends. We were all playing at a construction site — we’re not supposed to play there but we went anyway. He fell, hit his head, went to the hospital, and died. I was called to court to give an account of what had happened. I was still wearing my school uniform. I stood before the judge, the prosecutor, there were lawyers maybe attending to other cases, the administrators, the policemen, and so forth. I was crying. The court personnel had to hold me by the hand and then lead me into the court chamber where I gave my testimony. That's a picture of how Paul's nephew would have felt standing before the chief captain, Claudius Lysias, with all the Roman soldiers. Surely, he was nervous and fearful. That was why he had to be held by the hand to be led aside and then spoken gently to.
So, the chief captain took him by the hand and gently asked him, "What is that thou has to tell me?" Probably, the young boy was reassured by the chief captain, and he told him exactly what had happened. Verse 20: "And he said, The Jews have agreed to desire thee that thou wouldest bring down Paul to morrow into the council” — the Sanhedrin council — “as though they would enquire somewhat of him more perfectly." —which means more thoroughly, more completely — "But do not thou yield unto them: for there lie in wait for him of them more than forty men, which have bound themselves with an oath, that they will neither eat nor drink till they have killed [Paul]: and now are they ready, looking for a promise from thee." Verse 22: “So the chief captain then let the young man depart, and charged him, See thou tell no man that thou hast shewed these things to me."
The response of the chief captain tells us that he had believed Paul's nephew. The Bible doesn't tell us why he believed. Some people think that the chief captain had believed Paul's nephew because he was already told by the chief priests and elders to bring Paul to them. So, he had already received the request because of the word "promise" in verse 21. If you look at verse 21, the last part, it says, "Now are they ready, looking for a promise from thee." The word "promise" can mean announcement. In other words, they are now ready, waiting for you, that you will announce that Paul will be brought to them. So, these theologians believe that he had already received the request. Others believe that he simply believed Paul's nephew because of his age. He was a youth, and it was impossible for a young man like Paul's nephew to come up with such an elaborate lie. But the Bible is silent as to why he had believed. So, it's best not to speculate. We all can safely say it is by the providence of God, it is by the providential hand of God, that he had believed.
II. God Used a Wise and Responsible Man
Now, what the chief captain did speaks a lot about who he was, what kind of man he was. He was a wise and responsible military man. This brings us to our second point: “God Used a Wise and Responsible Man”.
The first thing the chief captain said to the young man, Paul's nephew, was this: "See thou tell no man that thou hast showed these things to me." In other words, do not tell anyone what you had just told me. Why did he tell the young man not to tell anyone? Take a moment and consider this. Firstly, if the Jews were to know that their plot had been exposed, what would they do? They would change their plans and then come up with a new wicked plot. And then it would be impossible for the chief captain to know of their wicked scheme. Secondly, if they did not know that their plot had been exposed, then they would not question his motives for sending Paul to Caesarea because he was planning to do that. They might be thinking that he was referring this matter to a higher authority, to the Roman governor, because it was very serious. So, if that was the case, then he could plan, prepare the necessary steps to protect Paul.
I believe both were strong reasons why he told the young man, "Please do not tell anyone what you had just told me.” If such a wicked plot had been planned, the chief captain knew that things had gone out of hand. So, he wisely decided to get Paul safely out of Jerusalem as soon as possible. It was his responsibility to protect a Roman citizen as well as to prevent confrontation with the Jews. So, the best thing to do was to send him to Caesarea, refer this matter to his superior, the Roman governor, Felix. He knew that the Jews had prepared forty men, so he had to have sufficient soldiers to ensure Paul's safety. Look at verse 23, "And he called unto him two centurions, saying, Make ready two hundred soldiers to go to Caesarea, and horsemen threescore and ten,” — which means seventy soldiers on horses — “and spearmen two hundred,” — two hundred trained javelin troops — “at the third hour of the night”. He did not want to wait until the next day. He wanted them to leave immediately, that very night, at about 9:00 p.m. All because of one Roman citizen. Caesarea was about 65 miles away from Jerusalem. It was the headquarters of the Roman government in Judea. So, he reckoned that was the safest place to send Paul to.
Can you imagine, a total of 470 soldiers to escort just one Roman citizen? Isn't it amazing? Verse 24: "And provide them beasts, that they may set Paul on, and bring him safe unto Felix the governor." Which means they provided animals, most likely camels or horses, that Paul could ride on to take him safely to the Roman governor, Felix. Whenever a Roman officer sends a prisoner or someone who has been accused of a crime to his superior, it must be accompanied with an authorization letter to explain the situation. You cannot just send someone without a letter. Verse 25-30 tells us exactly what was written on that letter, so let us briefly look at these six verses. Verse 25: "And he wrote a letter after this manner: Claudius Lysias unto the most excellent governor Felix sendeth greeting. This man” — referring to Paul — "was taken of the Jews, and should have been killed of them: then came I with an army, and rescued him, having understood that he was a Roman." Verse 28: "And when I would have known the cause wherefore they accused him” — or I wanted to know the exact charge they were making against him — “I brought him forth into their council" — the Sanhedrin council — “Whom I perceived to be accused of questions of their law, but to have nothing laid to his charge worthy of death or of bonds." In other words, I understand that he was accused of things pertaining to their law, the Jewish religious law, but he did not do anything worthy of death or to deserve to be imprisoned. That is what it means. Verse 30: "And when it was told me how that the Jews laid wait for the man, I sent straightway to thee, and gave commandment to his accusers also to say before thee what they had against him. Farewell." So, he also commanded the accusers, the Jewish leaders, the chief priests, and elders, that they should appear before the Roman governor, Felix, and present their case before him. From that letter, we can tell that Claudius Lysias was a very wise, responsible, reasonable, and factual military man. He did not add nor subtract anything. He simply wrote exactly what had happened.
My friends, when we consider Claudius Lysias, how he approached his work as a military officer, and then we consider how some Christians approach the Lord's ministry, it is so sad and shameful. Look at Claudius Lysias, how serious, precise, wise, and responsible he was doing his work as a military officer. Even though Paul's nephew was just a young man, he did not push him aside. He did not treat it as a trivial matter. He took this young man gently by the hand and then tried to find out what had happened. It was his responsibility in order for him to deal with Paul accurately, correctly, rightly. He had to find out what had happened when he heard about the plot; he did not procrastinate. He immediately took action. And what was amazing was that he sent 470 men to protect just one person. 470 Roman soldiers to protect one Roman citizen who was so important to him. Yet, he was an unbeliever. Well at least the Bible does not tell us he was a believer. Why do I say this unbeliever has put many Christians to shame? We are not serving a Roman Emperor, are we? We are serving the King of kings and the Lord of lords. We are not dealing with physical lives; we are dealing with the souls of men. Yet, people can be so careless, so irresponsible, they do not put their whole heart into serving God, and they do things at the last minute.
So, do you think God does not know? God knows. God knows everything about us. Those who do not take His work seriously, those who take His work lightly, no matter who they are—pastors, preachers, deacons, Sunday school teachers—God will remove them. Those who are not serious with God’s work, careless, irresponsible, do not want to put their whole heart into the matter and rush things at the last moment, it is not honouring to God. God will remove them. If God can raise up Claudius Lysias, a Gentile, to deliver Paul, do you think God cannot raise up others in the church to serve Him? Most certainly, He can. No one is indispensable. So, all of us must bear in mind that we are serving not the Roman Emperor. We are not just dealing with physical lives. We are serving the King of kings, the Lord of lords. We are dealing with the souls of men. If we are not serious, we should not be in the ministry, right?
Verse 31: "Then the soldiers, as it was commanded them, took Paul, and brought him by night to Antipatris." Antipatris was like a halfway stopover, a rest point for travellers between Jerusalem and Caesarea. It was named after the father of king Herod the Great, named Antipater. In a sense, they had passed the danger zone, the area whereby the Jews would lay in wait to kill Paul. So, once they passed that danger area in Jerusalem, from then onwards, they did not need the entire troop to escort Paul all the way to Caesarea. That would be a waste of resources. So here we can see another wise decision made by Claudius Lysias. He was so serious with his work, his job as a military man that he planned everything to the minutest detail. Halfway mark, not every one of the soldiers would need to escort Paul. Two hundred of them, plus the two hundred javelin throwers, will come back. Four hundred soldiers will come back, only seventy horsemen will remain with Paul, sufficient enough to bring him to Caesarea. What a wise decision! A man who is committed to his job as a military officer, that's something for us to learn.
So verse 32 says, "On the morrow they left the horsemen to go with him,” — to go with Paul. Seventy of them, — “and [the rest] returned to the castle". Verse 33, “Who” — referring to the entire entourage — “when they came to Caesarea and delivered the epistle” — or the letter — “to the governor, presented Paul also before him. And when the governor had read the letter, he asked of what province he was.” If Paul was not under his jurisdiction, he would have no authority to hear his case. So he wanted to know where was this man from? Which province was he from? “And when he understood that he was of Cilicia” — Cilicia, like Judea, was under his jurisdiction. He had no choice but to try Paul's case.
We will focus more on Felix in the next chapter, but at this point, we will just say that Felix was nothing like Claudius Lysias. He was a very cruel and wicked man. So the next chapter, we will see how Paul had to deal with such a wicked and immoral man like Felix. Verse 35, Felix said, "I will hear thee, said he, when thine accusers are also come. And he commanded him to be kept in Herod's judgment hall.” In other words, you wait until the accusers, the Jewish leaders, the chief priests, and elders arrive from Jerusalem. Then he will hear the case. In the meantime, Paul will be kept in the government house of King Herod. I read Pastor Khoo’s note on this chapter, and he says that Paul was kept in a five-star hotel. How interesting! He was kept in the palace of King Herod. My friends, God could have used a supernatural miracle to deliver Paul. He could easily have used an earthquake, sent fire from heaven to deliver His servant. He could have used anyone, but He chose to use a Gentile. And not just any ordinary Gentile, a wise and responsible military man. And He used him as an instrument to deliver his servant.
Can you see God's hand at work at every step of the way? You have considered this chapter. Think about this: from Paul's nephew to the centurion to the chief captain, Claudius Lysias, to the 470 men and a series of events, all of us must understand that it is God Himself who ordered the circumstances, who used the people to deliver His servant, Paul. God is in control of all things. He has ordained all things. Remember, God had already told Paul, promised him in Acts 23:11, God said this to him, "Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome." In other words, you will not die in Jerusalem. You will be delivered, and then you will testify for me at Rome. God has ordained everything. Will it come to pass? Surely, it will come to pass. Do you believe that all things are ordained by God? If you believe, it will come to pass. Sometimes God would use people to help us, to deliver us, including unbelievers. Like the way, he used Claudius Lysias to help Paul. It could be your teacher in school. It could be your colleagues at work. As much as we are grateful, thankful to all these people, we must understand that God is at work. God is the one who uses them as instruments to fulfil what he has ordained for you and me.
On Monday morning after the Monash worship service, an elderly man who used to attend our services came to me and requested for me to pray for his medical conditions and then some confidential matters he shared with me. And he said that he believes prayers changes things. I asked him if he believes that God has ordained everything, the circumstances, the events, the situations, our lives, our deaths. And he replied, "Yes, of course, I believe God has ordained everything." Then how can our prayers change what God had already ordained? Prayers do not change things, but it changes us. We may cry out to God, telling Him what we are going through, telling Him what we need. We tell Him what we desire, and through prayers, we learn to accept what He has ordained for us. Whatever He has ordained for us, we accept. The things that will happen will happen, the events, the circumstances, the people we will meet, we will meet, including our deaths. When death knocks, he knocks. Prayer cannot change our appointment with death. It comes, it comes, but it changes us. We accept it because God has ordained our deaths too.
Nothing happens by chance nor coincidence. Do you believe that? This elderly man said to me, "Yes, I believe. I will accept whatever God will allow to happen in my life." For Paul, he was delivered miraculously from Jerusalem, but ultimately, he died at Rome. Was he willing to accept his death at Rome? Most certainly. Remember, he was the one who said, "I have fought a good fight. I have kept the faith. I have finished the course." So, my friends, let us learn. As believers, we must be better than those who are outside God's kingdom. But there are wonderful lessons for us to learn even from the unbelievers. If they are responsible, reasonable, precise, committed, even to serve the Roman Emperor, how much more you and I must be committed to serve the King of kings and the Lord of lords. If Claudius Lysias can do anything he can, providing 470 men to escort just one Roman citizen, just one physical life. You and I are dealing with the souls of men. How can we not be serious? We cannot be careless, irresponsible, not committed, not putting our whole heart into serving God, doing things at the last moment. God forbids. So may we learn even from an unbeliever like Claudius Lysias. So may the Spirit of God use us that we will serve Him until He calls us home. Okay, let us pray.
Our Father in Heaven, we thank Thee for this opportunity that we can have to look into a portion of Thy Word, even to draw valuable lessons from Thy precious truth. Help us, O Lord. Help us to humble ourselves and know that nothing happens by chance nor coincidence. Thou art almighty, sovereign, in control of all things. If Thou could raise up Claudius Lysias to deliver Thy servant, Thou could raise up faithful men and women in our midst to serve Thee. It is a privilege that we have to serve Thee. Help us to remember that we are serving the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Forgive us if there are times whereby we are careless, irresponsible, not committed to Thy work. Help us, Lord, that we will always put our hands on the plow, moving forward and not look back, serving Thee faithfully. Everything is ordained by Thee. We believe that prayer changes us. It changes us in that we accept whatever Thou has ordained for our lives, including our deaths. So when death knocks, we are willing to accept. If the Lord calls me home, I want to see Him face to face. If the Lord allows me to live one more day, I will serve Him faithfully one more day. This is our perspective. Help us, O Lord. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
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