Paul Imprisoned Acts 21:27-22:29

Introduction

Paul has arrived in Jerusalem and spent some time reporting of what God did on his missionary journeys, afterwards the church leaders tell him that all of that is great, but there are some who believe he is preaching to forsake Moses, telling people they don’t need to be circumcised, and they no longer need to walk after the customs.

They got Paul to do a seven day purification and pay for a couple mens sacrifices for their nazarite vow to prove that the accusations were false because it was only a matter of time before the Jews caught up with Paul.

This morning we will look at the false accusations and beating Paul took, His defence, and the chief captains response.

False accusations and beatings 21:27-36

As Paul is finishing his seven day purification, the Jews which were of Asia saw him in the temple, stirred up all the people and laid hands on him

Remember Paul was just returning from Asia on his third missionary Journey

Everywhere Paul went the first place he went if there was one in the city he was in was the synagogue, so he would have been a familiar face to the Jews from Asia.

Every one in Asia had heard the word of God, and we know there were lots of unhappy people about that

Acts 19:10 “10 And this continued by the space of two years; so that all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.”

Look at the false accusations in verse 28 and 29

He teaches against the law and the temple every where to every one

All of it was based of an assumption that Paul took Trophimus an Ephesian into the temple

After the city heard the accusations against Paul, they were moved and they ran to get him out of the temple

After they pulled him out of the temple the bible says the door of the temple were closed immediately.

They were killing him, and during that tidings or an account of what was going on made it to the chief captain.

There was an uproar in Jerusalem and something had to be done

Immediately the Chief Captain took soldiers and centurions( a commander of one hundred soldiers) and ran down to them

We know that there was at least 200 soldiers there if not more as the centurions with him were in charge of 100 soldiers each.

As they see the chief captain and soldiers coming they stop beating Paul to avoid being arrested themselves.

As the Captain arrives he arrested Paul, and demanded to know who he is and what he has done to cause this uproar in Jerusalem

After he asks these questions, people start crying out their accusations about Paul.

The captain realizes this isn’t going to work if he really wants to know what is going on because of the tumult or the commotion going on in the streets of Jerusalem so he brings him into the castle

Paul had to be borne which means carried or supported up the stairs because the beating he had taken was so bad he couldn’t support himself.

The captain thought he had avoided the chaos, but the people followed crying out “away with him”

Paul’s Defense 21:37-22:21

As Paul headed to the castle he asked if he could speak to the chief captain and he was surprised that he could speak Greek

They thought he was prophet that led a group called the Sicarri, which were assassin's, out into the wilderness promising he could make the walls of Jerusalem would fall at his word. Felix sent a troop to deal with these imposters and many were killed, some were captured and some fled. In the confusion the Egyptian false prophet fled and disappeared.

The chief captain thought that Paul was this man, and that he had been captured and his mask removed.

Paul quickly denies the claim that he is this man and then tells him, his background

He was from Tarsus a city in Cilicia

He was from “no mean city

The Jews in Tarsus seemed to have full civil rights under Roman law.

Paul asks for a chance to speak to the people that had just beaten him

Paul stands before the people and raised his hand asking for silence, and when there was silence he spoke in the Hebrew tongue.

He addressed them and told them to hear his defense or something that repels or disproves a charge or accusation

When he spoke to them in their native tongue, Hebrew, they were more silent.

Pauls credentials 22:3-5

Paul begins his defense by introducing himself and giving some of his back ground, where he allied himself to both sides of the Jewish crowd, he was both a hellenist and a Hebrew

He was a Jew, from Tarsus which is a city in Cilicia

He was brought up in Jerusalem at the feet of Gamaliel

Gamaliel was the greatest teacher of the day, he was well-known in Jerusalem as a moderate who favoured tolerance, not violence, in dealing with opposing factions of the country

Paul identified himself as a trained rabbi, a man schooled in the law and in the rabbinic interpretation of the law.

He was zealous or warmly engaged towards God

He persecuted “this way” unto death

This way is referring to those who believe in Jesus as the Messiah, who came to earth, lived a sinless life, died on the cross, was buried and rose again the third day

He would bind them and deliver them to prison in Jerusalem

He even had the letters from the high priest to go to Damascus, where he would find any that were in that way and he would bind them and bring them back to Jerusalem.

Paul went to Damascus to persecute Christians, and left preaching Christ

Pauls testimony 22:6-21

Pauls tells of his conversion on the road to Damascus

He was walking to Damascus and out of nowhere a bright line shone from heaven

he was blinded by the light and fell to the ground and heard Jesus asking him Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me

Paul asks who art thou Lord and Jesus replied. I am Jesus of Nazareth whom thou persecutest

The men who accompanied Paul to Damascus, saw the light, and were afraid, but they didn’t hear the voice of the Lord

Paul asks the Lord what he needs to do

Jesus told him to go to Damascus and when he got their he would get the answer to his question.

Notice the wording in verse 10 “it shall be told thee all of the things which are appointed thee to do.

God has appointed all of us to do something, some of us are called to pastor , others missionaries, some evangelist, some doctors, some police officers, some construction workers, but all of us are appointed to share the Gospel.

Paul was blinded by the light but he was led by the men that were with him where he met Ananias

Ananias through the power of the Holy Spirit gave Paul back his sight and then told him what God had appointed him to do

Acts 22:14–15 “14 And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth. 15 For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard.”

This is the appointment that God has for ever believer, that is to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ until all mankind has heard

Ananias then tells him he needs to be baptised

Paul didn’t need baptism for salvation, but it identified him with Christ

Baptism is both a picture of the Gospel and an Identifier with the Gospel

Pauls old man had died with Christ on the Cross and now he Identified with the risen Christ

When Paul got back to Jerusalem he was in the temple praying and the Lord told him to get out of Jerusalem because the would not receive the testimony of what the Lord had done.

Paul seems to have reminded God of what he had done before his conversion

He imprisoned and beat Christians every where he went

He was there when Stephen was martyred, he consented to his death and kept his clothes he was slain in.

Look what the Lord said to him in verse 21

The Lord told him he would send him far from this place unto the Gentiles.

If the crowd had gained any respect for Paul, it had just gone out the window, because of Pauls ministry to the Gentiles.

The Chiefs Response vs. 22-29

First we see the crowds response in verse 22-23

They were ready to kill him

They cried out, cast off their clothes, and started throwing dust into the air

Then we see the chief captains response

He ordered them to bring Paul into the castle to be interrogated by scourging which means the would whip him, lash him with severity and punish him severely

The scourging would consist of leather straps weighted with bits of iron, bound to a handle.

As they were binding him up to scourge him he asks the centurion if it was legal to scourge a man that is a roman and uncondemned

It was illegal to bind a roman citizen that hadn't had formal charges against them and they could get in som serious trouble as they had already bound an uncondemned Roman, which was also illegal.

The centurion told the captain and the captain came to find out what was going on.

The chief told Paul, it had cost him a lot of money to gain the citizenship of Rome

Paul tells him, he was freely born

In the chaos and confusion someone had failed to examine Paul, so the chief captain will hand him over to the sanhedrin to see what they want to do.

Conclusion

God has appointed all of us to share the Gospel, when is the last time we shared the Gospel with the Lost?

Have you had a damascus moment in your life? Will you like Paul trust in the gospel, the death, burial and resurrection and call on his name? If you haven’t come this morning and we can show you from God’s word how you can know!