DAILY STUDY OF ACTS
MESSAGE SIXTY-FIVE
PROPAGATION IN ASIA MINOR AND EUROPE
THROUGH THE MINISTRY OF PAUL AND HIS COMPANIONS (30)
WEEK 30 – TUESDAY
Bible Reading: Matthew 21:33-46 and 22:1-14
Read and Pray: "Jesus said to them, 'Have you never read in the Scriptures: 'The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone; this was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes'?" (Matthew 21:42)
Weakness, Concessions, and Lack of Revelation
As someone who had an abundance of divine revelation stored within him, Paul encountered situations among the Jews, Roman politicians, and the church members. Among the Jewish religious leaders, he saw hypocrisy, and among the Roman politicians, he saw corruption. Moreover, within the church, he saw weakness, concessions, and a lack of light and revelation.
It seemed that no one in the church was bold enough to defend the revelation and vision they had received. In the midst of this situation, Peter should have boldly defended the revelation he had received from the Lord, but he did not.
In Acts chapters two through five, Peter and John were very strong and bold. As a result of their boldness, they were brought before the Sanhedrin in chapter four and placed in public prison by the Sanhedrin in chapter five. There was no sign of weakness or concessions in them in these early chapters. There is no indication that they were afraid of the Jewish religious leaders or that they were in any way compromising with them. However, when reading from chapter 15 onward and also Galatians 2, we see that Peter was eventually exposed in his weakness and even hypocrisy.
The Destruction of Jerusalem
Due to the strong stance taken by Peter, John, and the other believers, the Jews persecuted the saints to the point that, except for the apostles, everyone left Jerusalem (Acts 8:1). But when Paul made his last visit to that city in Acts 21, James could speak of "how many thousands there are among the Jews who have believed, and all are zealous for the law" (v. 20).
These thousands of believers had remained there. Had Peter and John taken a strong stance and position in chapter 21 as they did in chapters two through five, most of these Jewish believers would have been scattered, and this would have been their salvation in regard to the religious mixture of Jerusalem. However, these thousands of believers, still zealous for the law, remained in Jerusalem, which put them in great danger.
Shortly after Paul's final visit there, perhaps within ten years, Titus and the Roman army destroyed Jerusalem and killed its inhabitants. Likely, many Christians were killed at that time.
In the parables of Matthew 21:33-46 and 22:1-14, the Lord Jesus expressed God's anger regarding the situation in Jerusalem. He said that God, "the owner of the vineyard," would horribly destroy the wicked tenants. This was fulfilled when Titus, the Roman general, and his army destroyed Jerusalem in 70 AD. In Matthew 22:7, the Lord prophesied that God would send "his armies," the Roman troops led by Titus, and destroy the city of Jerusalem.
This destruction likely included the church there. Due to James' compromising attitude and Peter's weakness, the church in Jerusalem may have been destroyed along with the city. However, the situation of the church would have been different had Peter and John been as bold in Acts 21 as they were in the beginning. If they had continued to be strong and bold, the saints would have been scattered or persecuted to death by the Jewish religious leaders.
The Martyrdom of James
According to history, the James of Acts 21 was martyred at the hands of the Jewish opponents. The leaders of the Sanhedrin thought he was very favorable to Judaism. They called a meeting and asked him to speak, thinking he would speak positively about Judaism. James, however, remained faithful in preaching Christ emphatically. The Sanhedrin leaders were offended and killed him. They had received a wrong impression of him, since so many Jewish believers in Jerusalem were zealous for the law. This may have led them to think that he was in favor of Judaism.
In the account of Acts 21, we see that James pushed Paul into the "trap" of a very difficult situation. As we have highlighted, the Lord did not tolerate this compromising situation in Jerusalem.
PAUL'S FINAL JOURNEY TO JERUSALEM
It is hard to believe that Peter and John remained silent about the situation in Jerusalem. They should have taken the responsibility to clarify the issue. It should not have been necessary for Paul to do so. But they did not fulfill their duty in Jerusalem. Instead, the church there was left in a declining condition, and Paul must have been very dissatisfied with this. Although he had a heavy burden to carry out the New Testament economy of God in the Gentile world, he realized that the source in Jerusalem had been contaminated, and the poison was spreading into the Gentile world.
As Paul's Epistles show us, he had to face the Judaizers everywhere. According to the book of Galatians, the churches in Galatia were troubled by them. Thus, he knew he could not continue his work in the Gentile world until the situation in Jerusalem was resolved. Knowing that what most damaged the life of the church in the Gentile world was Judaism, he had the burden to return to Jerusalem. This was the reason he resolved in his spirit to go there (Acts 19:21). He had the burden to purify the source of contamination.
When reading Acts chapters eighteen through twenty-one, it is hard to say whether Paul was right or wrong in going to Jerusalem for the last time. Acts 19:21 says: "When these things were accomplished, Paul purposed in the Spirit to go to Jerusalem, passing through Macedonia and Achaia, saying, 'After I have been there, I must also see Rome.'" In 20:22-23, he said, "And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me."
The testimony of the Holy Spirit was a prophecy, a prediction, and not a command. When he was in Tyre, the disciples "through the Spirit urged him not to go up to Jerusalem" (21:4). Here, having already made Paul aware that chains and afflictions awaited him in Jerusalem, the Spirit went a step further, telling him, through some members of the Body, not to go to Jerusalem.
Furthermore, the prophet Agabus "took Paul's belt, bound his own hands and feet, and said, 'Thus says the Holy Spirit: So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt, and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles'" (21:11). Luke also says, "When we heard these things, both we and those from that place pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, 'What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.' So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, 'The will of the Lord be done!'" (vs. 12-14).
The more we consider all these verses, the more we realize how difficult it is to determine whether Paul was right or wrong in going to Jerusalem for the last time. On one hand, the Spirit indicated that chains and afflictions awaited him there. On the other, through members of the Body, the Spirit told him not to go. The Lord had great clarity about the situation there.
Enjoy more: Hymn S-99
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