Tag Archives: appeal

THE BOOK OF ACTS – A HOSTAGE OF HOPE

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A HOSTAGE OF HOPE

“Three days later Paul called the Jewish leaders together for a meeting at his house and said, ‘The Jews in Jerusalem arrested me on a trumped-up charge, and I was taken into custody by the Romans. I assure you that I did absolutely nothing against Jewish laws or Jewish customs. After the Romans investigated the charges and found there was nothing to them, they wanted to set me free but the Jews objected so fiercely that I was forced to appeal to Caesar. I did this not to accuse them of any wrongdoing or to get people in trouble with Rome. We’ve had enough trouble through the years that way. I did it for Israel. I asked you to come and listen to me today to make it clear that I’m on Israel’s side, not against her. I’m a hostage here for hope, not doom.'” Acts 28:17-20 (The Message).

Paul was finally in Rome. What would be his first step on this tightrope he was walking across an uncharted chasm? He was not out to curry favour or to get the Jews on his side. He was above that sort of thing.

It was always his earnest desire to set before them Jesus as the fulfilment of their Scriptures and the Messiah they were expecting. But from town to town, city to city across Europe and Asia he had been rejected because of one thing — the cross. No self-respecting Jew was prepared to accept a crucified Messiah. Not all the proof in the world would convince them that the man Jesus, the humble Galilean, was the Son of God and the fulfilment of the prophecies of the Old Testament.

It was Paul’s hope that here in Rome he would be able to communicate this truth to the Jewish leaders by his own mouth before they were contaminated by misinformation from their fellow countrymen. Their eternal destiny was at stake. He wanted to share with them the unadulterated truth that Jesus of Nazareth was sent from God, not to get rid of the Romans and make them rulers of the world, but to get rid of sin and make them kings and priests of God.

Because he was already a dead man as far as his own life was concerned, he did not see his imprisonment as a hopeless situation but as a stepping stone to bringing hope to as many people in Rome as he could influence. It did not matter to him where he was or who was in the company. His circumstances were always an explosion of potential and opportunity.

In his letters Paul tried hard to make his readers understand what had happened to them when they bowed the knee to Jesus. Everything changed. This was not a new religion they were espousing but a new domain they had entered. Their allegiance to their old masters, self, sin and the world, had been broken and they had entered a new realm, the realm of God’s rule. They were under the dominion of a new Master, Jesus. He had rescued them from a life of selfishness and self-destruction and set their feet on a new path — loving service fired by a passionate love for Jesus.

They were dead to all their old slave-drivers and alive to their new Master, motivated by His selfless sacrifice for them, and this message was not confined to the Jews but was for the whole world, regardless of their contempt for the Gentiles. They were no better than the Gentiles in their hypocritical attitude, as Paul pointed out in his letter to the Romans. Since Jew and Gentile were both guilty before God, Paul’s message was equally applicable to the whole world and he was going to deliver that message, come what may.

It was Paul’s hope that, on the threshold of his sojourn in Rome, whatever the outcome, he would be able to win as many of his countrymen to Jesus as he could before the crazy crackpot Caesar, Nero, decided on his fate. Dying was not his problem. He was ready for that. It was the interlude before his death that occupied his attention and he would do everything he could to win his brothers before he left.

Eternity was a long time to enjoy the fruit of his sacrifice!

No Way, Festus!

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NO WAY, FESTUS!

“About eight or ten days later, Festus returned to Caesarea. The next morning he took his place in the courtroom and had Paul brought in. The minute he walked in, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem were all over him, hurling the most extreme accusations, none of which they could prove.

“Then Paul took the stand and said simply, ‘I’ve done nothing wrong against the Jewish religion, or the Temple, or Caesar. Period.’

“Festus, though, wanted to get on the good side of the Jews and so said, ‘How would you like to go up to Jerusalem, and let me conduct your trial there?'” Acts 25:6-9 (The Message).

Oh no! Not another crowd-pleaser! Paul might have had high hopes that Festus would give him justice, but he was turning out no better than Felix.

What was it with these Roman governors? Was it their fear of the volatile Jews who could stir up a riot in a flash that kept them from doing the right thing? Was there anything in it for them other than their maintaining their position by keeping the peace in Israel? They all seem to have been tarred with the same brush.

Festus was giving him the option of being tried in Jerusalem instead of in Caesarea when, a few days before he had insisted that Paul remain in Caesarea where he, Festus had jurisdiction over Paul. Jerusalem was the turf of the Jewish hierarchy where they had power and influence. Paul knew that at all costs he must stay away from Jerusalem.

He had been whisked out of Jerusalem in the dead of night because his life was in danger there, and now Festus wanted to send him back into enemy territory? Paul was well aware of Festus’ strategy. Sacrifice Paul for peace so that Festus could look like a good governor in the eyes of Rome. As long as there was no trouble in this little colony, internal issues did not matter, especially petty religious ones!

“Paul answered, ‘I’m standing at this moment before Caesar’s bar of justice, where I have a perfect right to stand. And I’m going to keep standing here. I’ve done nothing wrong to the Jews, and you know it as well as I do. If I’ve committed a crime and deserve death, name the day. I can face it. But if there’s nothing to their accusations — and you know there isn’t — nobody can force me to go along with their nonsense. We’ve fooled around long enough. I appeal to Caesar.’

“Festus huddled with his advisors briefly and then gave his verdict: ‘You’ve appealed to Caesar; you’ll go to Caesar!” Acts 25:10-12 (The Message).

Paul held the trump card. As a Roman citizen he had the right to a fair trial before Caesar. If Festus did not have the guts to do the right thing, he was certainly not going to subject himself to any more abuse from the Jews. It was with an air of contempt that he made his decision. Festus was too lily-livered to stand up to the Jews. He, Paul, was not going to be a pawn to be pushed around on their little chessboard. Caesar was his only option to get out of checkmate.

That pulled the rug from under Festus’ feet! He was obligated to grant Paul his request. This was a legally binding appeal and once granted, like the law of the Medes and Persians, it could not be changed. Paul was actively co-operating with God’s plan to move him to Rome. Did the penny drop for him at that moment? Did he have a flash of understanding, remembering the assurance from the Lord Himself that he was on his way to Rome in spite of all the carry-on in Jerusalem?

Slowly but surely God’s plan was coming together. Throughout all the seemingly impossible circumstances, and the long drawn-out process, Paul was exactly where and when God wanted him, putting all the structures in place to plant His son right in the palace of Caesar himself. There’s no getting away from it — God is smart!