The End of the Beginning

As we stop and look back on where we began in the book of Acts, we see how far the early church has come. This infant church started strong then almost immediately became the target of systematic abuse—beaten black and blue even before it ever crawled out of the crib, as it were. The early church survived those early days through the nurture of God’s servant-leaders—Peter Barnabas, John and James, the brother of Jesus—good men who devoted their lives to helping the church mature into a world-changing force. Persecution pushed the people of God out of Jerusalem to carry the good news throughout Judea and Samaria.

Then God transformed an enemy of the church into the apostle who would make the greatest impact. Through Paul’s ministry, the kingdom of God spanned the empire between Jerusalem and Rome. He had scored crucial victories in the war against evil, but the struggle had only begun. Paul would now take the fight to the seat of world power, Rome.

Paul had desired to use Rome as a launching pad to the western frontier of the empire, but God had other plans. Paul had carried the gospel far and wide, but the time had come to carry it high up the political ladder to the pinnacle of power, where the good news of the gospel might influence entire regions as rulers submitted to King Jesus. Paul, arriving as a free man, would probably not have received an audience with a politician with any kind of power. But thanks to the jealousy of the temple officials and the petty maneuvering of local procurators, Paul had an audience with the emperor himself.

I. The end of the trip to Rome, 28:12-16.

Acts 28:12–14 NASB95

After we put in at Syracuse, we stayed there for three days. From there we sailed around and arrived at Rhegium, and a day later a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli. There we found some brethren, and were invited to stay with them for seven days; and thus we came to Rome.

A. From Malta to Puteoli by sea, 28:12-14.

After a much-needed three month rest on Malta, Paul and his men board another Alexandrian grain ship bound for Syracuse, located 60 mile north of Malta, the capital city of the Roman province of Sicily, a city praised by Cicero as “the most beautiful and highly decorated of all.” Here was a three- day layover, probably loading and unloading. The next leg of the journey, sailing against the wind, the ship worked its way up and across the strait of Messina to Rhegium, where they could wait for a more favorable south wind. They got it the day after their arrival and made the 180-mile trip in three days to Puteoli, the principle port of Rome for grain (on the northern side of today’s Bay of Naples) and a popular resort for rich Romans, famous for its sulfur springs. The estimated population of this port was at 100,00 people in the 1st c. AD. Josephus knew of Jews who lived there.

Paul and his companions discovered a community of believers there, possible Jewish converts but may have included Gentiles as well, who graciously offered their homes and provided hospitality for them. The centurion permitted Paul and the others to stay for seven days; I wonder what the impact of Paul and those around him had on Julius during these four-plus months of close contact with Paul and what that reinforced about his understandings of Paul and his ministry. As far as Luke was concerned, they were on dry land for good now and had made their destination, though Rome was still about 140 miles away by foot, about a five-day walk by means of two well-travelled roads, the Campanian Way and the Appian Way.

B. From Puteoli to Rome by land, 28:15-16.

Acts 28:15–16 NASB95

And the brethren, when they heard about us, came from there as far as the Market of Appius and Three Inns to meet us; and when Paul saw them, he thanked God and took courage. When we entered Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself, with the soldier who was guarding him.

Word apparently traveled fast to the believers in Rome about Paul’s arrival. They heard and they came, some traveling to the Market of Appius, a forty-three-mile trip south from Rome, to greet Paul. The reputation of this place, infamous for its rough setting, did not dissuade these believers. Paul and his growing entourage traveled farther north 10 miles to another post on the Appian Way called Three Taverns, where several more believers met Paul. This filled him with confidence and greatly encouraged him.

Finally entering Rome, Paul was not a free man, so Julius had to bring Paul to a prison reception facility, where it was decided that Paul would be granted a lightened form of military custody. He is given the freedom to rent an apartment and live by himself, but still with a common soldier attached to him by means of a chain around his wrist.

Rome had an estimated population of one million in the 1st c. AD. It was the wealthiest and most powerful city in the world in the 1st century, yet only a privileged few enjoyed its great wealth. Many slaves and poor people lived in Rome, dwelling in large blocks of apartment buildings, ranging from three to five stories high in size. There have been estimates by some scholars that as many as 200,000 people relied on a government welfare system that provided free grain to the unemployed masses of the city.

There were an estimated 10,000 to 60,000 Jews living in Rome, many along the Appian Way in the south, near the circus Maximus, but not limited only to that part of the city.

II. The review of Paul’s situation, 28:17-22.

Acts 28:17–22 NASB95

After three days Paul called together those who were the leading men of the Jews, and when they came together, he began saying to them, “Brethren, though I had done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers, yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. “And when they had examined me, they were willing to release me because there was no ground for putting me to death. “But when the Jews objected, I was forced to appeal to Caesar, not that I had any accusation against my nation. “For this reason, therefore, I requested to see you and to speak with you, for I am wearing this chain for the sake of the hope of Israel.” They said to him, “We have neither received letters from Judea concerning you, nor have any of the brethren come here and reported or spoken anything bad about you. “But we desire to hear from you what your views are; for concerning this sect, it is known to us that it is spoken against everywhere.”

Taking three days to settle in, Paul then calls together the leading men of the Jews to come see him, since he himself is essentially under house arrest. His friends could run errands for him, and he was allowed visitors. He is inviting the rulers of the synagogues and the elders to come and dialogue with him. The Jewish community in Rome seemed to be structured as a loosely networked set of religious associations, according to Emil Shürer in his work, “A History of the Jewish People in the Time of Jesus Christ.”

When they came together, Paul these Jewish leaders. Luke is providing a concise summary of what Paul said to them, and it is a condensed version of the events found in Acts 22-26. In his reason for calling them together, there are four things Paul is emphasizing:

1) Paul had done nothing wrong against the Jewish people or their Jewish customs;

2) The Roman authorities had declared him innocent;

3) Paul appealed to the Emperor because of the Jews challenging the verdict of the Roman authorities; not because he had any grievance against them.

4) Paul asserts that the reason he is in chains for the sake of the hope of Israel. Paul believes that Jesus of Nazareth is the fulfillment of that messianic hope. Closely tied to this is the belief that Jesus rose from the dead and that there will be a future resurrection.

The response of the leaders is surprising, considering the animosity of the leaders in Jerusalem; according to these men, they had not received any letters from Judea concerning Paul, nor any visitors from Judea with the purpose of speaking against Paul. It seems hard to believe; it probably was only a matter of time before they would receive such a letter from Jerusalem. Would any of those leaders come to Rome, enduring the expense and trouble of prosecuting their case against Paul, especially knowing the weakness of the case against Paul according to Roman law?

Though they may be neutral about Paul, they knew of the Christian sect. By this time, the Jewish community in Rome has already debated intensely over whether Jesus was “the Christ,” which led to violent confrontations and rioting—apparently the final straw leading to Claudius’s expulsion of Jews from the city, according to Suetonius in his biography of Claudius:

“Because the Jews at Rome caused continuous disturbances at the instigation of Chrestus, he expelled them from the city” (Claud. 25. 4).

Most scholars believe ‘Chrestus’ refers to Christ, implying their were heated debates among the Jews in the synagogues of Rome with the Jewish Christians who contended that Jesus is the Messiah (Christos), which did not go unnoticed by the Roman authorities. It is clear that these Jewish leaders were continuing to hear reports from Jews around the empire about how disruptive this messianic sect had been in their own communities.

III. The solemn testimony of God’s witness and Word, 28:23-29.

Acts 28:23–29 NASB95

When they had set a day for Paul, they came to him at his lodging in large numbers; and he was explaining to them by solemnly testifying about the kingdom of God and trying to persuade them concerning Jesus, from both the Law of Moses and from the Prophets, from morning until evening. Some were being persuaded by the things spoken, but others would not believe. And when they did not agree with one another, they began leaving after Paul had spoken one parting word, “The Holy Spirit rightly spoke through Isaiah the prophet to your fathers, saying, ‘Go to this people and say, “You will keep on hearing, but will not understand; And you will keep on seeing, but will not perceive; For the heart of this people has become dull, And with their ears they scarcely hear, And they have closed their eyes; Otherwise they might see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And understand with their heart and return, And I would heal them.” ’ “Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will also listen.” When he had spoken these words, the Jews departed, having a great dispute among themselves.

A. The exposition of the witness through the Word, 28:23-24.

Yet in spite of their initial prejudice against Christianity, these leaders show an interest in hearing Paul and debating him. They may have been wondering also about why this former prominent Pharisee would join such a sect and become an important leader in the movement. A larger group came together to hear Paul, and Paul did not disappoint. He sought to witness by sharing his personal knowledge regarding Jesus, asserting both the truths of the kingdom of God and about God’s Messiah as they were spoken of in the Law of Moses and the Prophets. He sought to persuade them that Jesus was indeed the Messiah whom the holy scriptures promised would come. It was a marathon session, starting in the morning and continuing until evening. Paul’s ministry bore some fruit here. All those present had been exposed to some Christian teaching; now as a result of Paul’s exposition and discussion, there were some who changed allegiance; they were being persuaded by what Paul shared. Others would not believe.

When we share the gospel and evidences of faith to support why we believe, the Holy Spirit works in the heart to convict. There are only two responses – to receive the witness or to reject the witness. To not choose, or to choose to wait, is to reject the truth; there is no third choice, there is no fence-sitting.

B. The testimony of the Word through the witness, 28:25-29.

I think that is why Paul solemnly warned those who listened and were not persuaded through the Law and the Prophets, under the inspiration of the same Spirit who inspired the prophet Isaiah of their father’s hardness of heart, spiritual blindness, and their dullness of hearing the voice of their God (Isaiah 6:9-10). In his earlier letter to the Christian church in Rome he wrote of the hardness of heart of the Jewish people in Romans. They need to turn to God to be healed by Him; their refusal to do so indicates their heart condition. Paul, by citing this passage, warns his listeners that the nation of Israel is once again falling into the national pattern of not believing and of reflecting hardheartedness. It is a prophetic warning that should they refuse to hear the word is to risk reaching a point where it will never be heard.

The Paul gives a solemn call to understand what is taking place, that salvation goes to the Gentiles because they will hear the message and respond. They will do what the Jews, who had the Law and the Prophets should have done—to receive Jesus as their Messiah. This may provoke some to jealousy, others it may have prodded them to be obedient to God. Regardless, they left after Paul said these things at the end of their time. Verse 29 is not well-attested by the manuscripts that we have of the book of Acts. It has the Jews disputing among themselves as they depart from Paul’s place.

IV. The end of the beginning, 28:30-31.

Acts 28:30–31 NASB95

And he stayed two full years in his own rented quarters and was welcoming all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all openness, unhindered.

Here we have the triumphant note that ends this narrative written by Luke. Paul, still under guard, lives at his own expense at a locale distinct from a prison and receives any who would come to visit him. The resources were most likely from his own pocket or through the support he received from other Christians, such as the letter to the Philippians suggests.

To all who seek Paul out, he does the same thing: preach the kingdom and teach about the Lord Jesus Christ. He speaks openly and unhindered, concluding this book on an emphatic note. Darrell Bock wrote:

The kingdom is the delivering promise of the rule of God among people found through Jesus. As the first speech of Acts 2 told us, with it come forgiveness and the provision of the enabling Spirit for the mission to which believers are called. In Acts we have bookends in the use of the concepts of the kingdom and Jesus (1:1–3; 28:23, 31). The kingdom is restored to all who respond to Jesus Christ, as the contrast to Jewish rejection shows. At whatever point God decides, the kingdom will be restored to Israel (1:6), and this also will happen through Jesus (3:14–26). It will be a time when judgment takes place through this one whom God has appointed judge of the living and the dead (10:40–42; 17:30–31). As with the earlier messengers, at the center of Paul’s discussion is Jesus, the one who was exalted to be Lord and who serves as the Anointed One of God, the Christ. Paul emphasizes the combination of Jesus’s authority and his right to rule over God’s promised kingdom. It is to Jesus that people must come because they are accountable to the one whom God has shown to be the Messiah. It is on this positive note that Acts ends. This message of salvation is beginning to reach the “end of the earth” as it comes to the Gentile capital of Rome (1:8), a long, perilous journey from Jerusalem (Acts 27). The gospel is spreading to the entire world. Even if Paul later died for this testimony, the fact that God’s word is preached and people make their choice about the message is the point (Acts, 758-759).

This was Luke’s final testimony to the credibility and positive value of the gospel of Christ.

In sum, the book of Acts, a book of witnesses to the risen Jesus, ends with one of the key witnesses living out his calling despite having suffered unjustly. We see the continued tragic nature of Jewish unbelief, yet Paul continues to keep an open door to anyone who will listen to him and consider his message. Paul loves his enemies, whom he views as brothers who have lost their way. We see what makes for good evangelism: (1) a confidence and readiness to share because God is sovereign, (2) a focus on God and God’s kingdom program through Jesus, (3) an open door to any who will hear, and (4) a recognition that evangelism and mission are a priority, even the most fundamental calling of the church in the world (Fernando 1998: 628–32). Nothing, including prison, persecution, or possible death, has hindered Paul’s ability to minister and preach the message. We are to marvel at how God has protected Paul and accomplished his word (Stott 1990: 402). We also can see in this book that Paul suffered well. He kept the faith and continued to serve, living out his call.

The book also has an open ending, with the word still being preached. In fact, the Great Commission anticipated in Luke 24 is realized here as the word goes out. The Spirit of God has directed the operation, and the Spirit has been a Spirit of enabling boldness. The word spreads even when some try to keep it from doing so. Faithful witnesses make sure that this happens. Faithful witnesses understand God’s calling and support, just as Paul did.

All of this is the work of an active God. God has been directing events throughout the book. God set forth the call for the mission. God gave the Spirit. God directed the church to the Gentiles. God called out Paul with Barnabas and then sent Paul to Jerusalem and Rome. God protected Paul as he brought the word there as God’s faithful witness. God can be trusted, and his calling is to be followed. Paul shows us that the combination of divine aid and our faithfulness to God’s calling is powerful.

Despite all the obstacles we see in Acts, the book ends with the gospel going out unhindered, for wherever the gospel is shared, there is offered an open door to the presence of God, no matter how tension-filled or restricted life is. God is the hero of Acts, and the plot line is how he reveals his word through Jesus and a faithful church. God will make sure it happens, and so will a faithful church.