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Back to the Bible. Let it be our plea. God's Word alone, our authority, every word, every step in the name of Christ. Back to the Bible for the way of life. Hello and welcome to this period of Bible study. We are delighted to have the opportunity to share with you in a consideration of God's Word. Indeed, back to the Bible is our plea. We want every teaching that we present and we want our lives to be shaped by God's Word. We want God's Word alone to be the ultimate authority for what we say and think and do as we serve the Lord. And we want that to indeed be our plea in it may be that in the course of our studies together that you have questions, concerns or criticisms of what we have to say. That's alright. We would not be hurt or bothered by that. We want to be teaching the truth in a clear way. And if there's ever a place where we're either not true or we're not clear, we want that to be addressed and we want it to be addressed as quickly as possible because we want to be teaching the right thing. We want to be teaching what the Bible says because for our own soul's sake, but also for the souls of those who hear us. So we have taken a little bit of a break from our study of the Book of Acts. We spent an extra lesson thinking about that idea of speaking in tongues and it may be that that raised questions or maybe you have further follow up questions that you would like to ask. We would love to take care of those, address those from God's Word as best we can. And so if you have questions, just reach out to us. I think the easiest place to do that would be backtothebiblepodcast.com backtothebiblepodcast.Com there you can listen to those episodes. You can listen to all of our previous programs for the last several years. You can reach out to us. There's chat information boxes where you can type in your information and send us a question. And there's just more information there and resources that you can have access to. And we are trying to add to that all along the way. So we are ready today to come to Acts 21. And in Acts 21 we have a, a major shift. I think we have already Paul making his way back toward Jerusalem. But in chapter 20 he leaves the elders at Ephesus, at the city of Miletus. So the elders of the congregation at Ephesus met him at the isle of Miletus. And remember he gives them that kind of farewell Speech, if you will, about the fact that he is going to Jerusalem, not knowing what's going to happen, except for danger awaits. But he reminds them of his work in teaching and in preaching, encouraging them to be on the alert, to be aware of what is happening and the danger of false teaching that is coming so that they can be ready and so that they can be equipped face these false teachers. And of course they are brokenhearted because they suppose that they would not see his face again. They don't think that they will see him now. It may be that they do, but under the circumstances, Paul is saying, don't count on it for sure. So now we come to Acts 21. And Acts 21 is a the passage that we read that brings Paul down from isle of Miletus and we get some travel records and he comes all the way to the coast of Palestine. And so let's read what we've got going on there. This is chapter 21 of the book of Acts, beginning at verse one. Now, when we notice that Luke is with him, had parted from them and had set sail, we came by a straight course to Cos, and the next day to Rhodes, and from there to Patara. And having found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. And when we came in sight of Cyprus, leaving it on the left, we kept sailing to Syria and landed at Tyre. For there the ship was to unload its cargo. And after looking up the disciples, we stayed there seven days. And they kept telling Paul through the Spirit not to set foot in Jerusalem. And when our days there ended, we left and started on our journey, while they all with wives and children escorted us until we were out of the city. After kneeling down on the beach and praying, we said farewell to one another. Then we went aboard the ship and they returned home again. And when we had finished the voyage from Tyre, we arrived at Ptolemais. And after greeting the brothers, we stayed with them for a day. And on the next day we left and came to Caesarea. And entering the house of Philip the Evangelist, who was one of the seven, we stayed with him. Now this man had four virgin daughters who prophesied. And as we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. And coming to us, he took Paul's belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, this is what the Holy Spirit says. In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles. And when we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, what are you doing? Crying and breaking my heart, for I am not ready only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of Jesus. And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, saying, the will of the Lord be done. Now, after these days, we got ready and started on our way up to Jerusalem. And some of the disciples from Caesarea also came with us, taking us to Nason of Cyprus, an early disciple with whom we were to lodge. All right, so they have come from. They sail straight by Cos and come down by Rhodes and then to Tyre. And it's interesting. Here we are going to see that there are disciples in Tyre and they are going to spend seven days with them. And they keep telling Paul not to go to Jerusalem. Now they are telling him not to go to Jerusalem through the Spirit, because the Spirit is revealing to them what is going to happen as well. And they're encouraging not to go. But what I want you to see is that Paul is still headed that way. Let me be clear here. I don't think that Paul is disobeying the Spirit here. I think they are getting understanding of what's going to happen in Jerusalem, are expressing that as, then you don't need to go. But we're going to see in just a second that we already know, first of all, that Paul is being instructed by the Spirit regarding what is coming and sees his need to go. And so they're both getting the same information from the Spirit. But the disciples are understanding that as Paul doesn't need to go. And Paul is saying, this means that I've got to be prepared for what's coming when I go. So they escort them to the city and notice they kneel down on the beach and pray and say farewell to one another. I love the idea here that you can picture. You can imagine all of them, men, women and children, walking with Paul out of the city and they kneel down on the beach and pray as they say farewell to one another. I don't know that we emphasize enough how many times we see people kneeling down in prayer. Of course, I think you see in Luke 18, you see a man standing as he's praying. And I think that there are other places where the posture is not referenced. But at least here and in a number of other places, I think the way that we would say it is just about every time, if not every time, we see someone being described as taking A position. They are kneeling. I think that shows humility. I think it shows in our body what we recognize that we are doing. And I know that it does not necessarily make a difference what position your body is in. But there is something, isn't there, about our bodily position demonstrating respect and reverence? And if that was not the case, then we would not see kneeling or laying prostrate or standing when the bride comes down the aisle. We know that certain bodily postures show respect or reverence or honor. So if the king was to come in and we knelt down, that would say, okay, this man's respectful. Now if we stand up and we look at him eye to eye and we say, oh, yes, of course we respect you, but we're just standing there. There would be ages. I don't know that today would be the age. There would be times where people would say, yeah, that person may be saying that, but they don't mean it because look at their body. Now, of course, the Lord sees our heart. The Lord does not look at the external. He looks at our hearts. But. But we see people over and over, taking this kneeling position down on the beach. And they're kneeling and they are praying and they're saying goodbye. So they are in the land of Palestine, basically. They're in the old area of Phoenicia. They land in Tyre, and they go from Tyre to another port city called Ptolemais. Ptolemais is a city on the Palestinian border, on the coast, I should say. And the reason that is significant is it's named after the house of Ptolemy, which was an Egyptian. Greek ruler. So he was Greek, but ruled over the area of Egypt and for a time over the land of Israel. Anytime you see Ptolemais or Antioch or Caesarea, which is the next city they're going to go to. Those are all indicators of cities that are named after Greek or Roman conquerors in the land of Palestine. Now they're going to go to Caesarea. And you can see Caesar's name in that, right, Caesarea. And they go to the house of Philip the Evangelist, who was one of the seven. We stayed with him. Now, I want you to remember that the last time that we saw Philip was with regards to the Ethiopian eunuch. He's called away to Azotus, and he makes his way all the way up to Caesarea. Now he is there still, and he has four daughters who are prophesying. And we don't have any information about the messages that they were prophesying, but we do know that he had been there, and this has been a number of years, years that he has been there. And so maybe while we don't. Wouldn't necessarily, I don't know what we would think of him as. But perhaps he's there kind of as a local evangelist, working there with the folks at Caesarea for years and years. So they're staying there. And then the prophet Agabus comes. Now, Agabus is from Judea, and he comes and he gets Paul's belt. That would kind of bind together his cloak. And he binds his own feet and his own hands, ties them all together and says, this is what the Holy Spirit says. The Jews at Jerusalem are going to bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles. Now, everybody knows who owns the belt. This is not some mystery of trying to figure out whose belt it is. They see that. And I want you to notice verse 12 when we. This is Luke here. When we heard this, as well as the local residents began begging him not to go up to Jerusalem. Luke is among those who are begging Paul not to go to Jerusalem. The inspired writer here says, I was right there with them, begging him not to go, seeing what was going to happen. Now Paul says, you know, I'm not ready just to be bound. I'm ready to die if I have to. With regards to the name of Jesus. If I go to Jerusalem and they bind me, okay, I'm even ready to be executed for the name, for the glory, for the honor, for the power of Jesus. And so he says, what are you doing? Crying and breaking my heart. It's almost as if he's saying, your tears. And you're crying and you're weeping and you're pleading with me, are trying to pull me away from this task that is set before me. And when they would not. When he would not be persuaded, they were quiet. They fell silent. Not with regards to. They didn't make a peep. But they didn't say anything about that issue anymore because they said, the will of the Lord be done. That is, they didn't plead with him not to go. They say, the will of the Lord be done. I think that is such a significant statement there. When we know that doing right is going to cause us pain and difficulty. Oh, that the people around us would not say, you don't have to do that, but that they would say, the will of the Lord be done. And I realize I don't believe that the Spirit is telling us which city we need to go to or Revealing that doing this or that is going to cause us our death. But we do know from time to time, don't we, that telling the truth or being faithful or doing what we know needs to be done. Sometimes those things can put us in difficult, if not dangerous positions and say, so can we have the attitude of the will of the Lord be done. Now, after the time that they spent there in Caesarea, they get ready to go to Jerusalem. And some of the disciples from Caesarea go with them. And they go to a man named Nason of Cyprus, an early disciple with whom they were to lot. Now I want you to notice here we meet Philip in verse eight again. And he's from over in chapter six as well. And now we come to a man named Nason, who is mentioned again as well. And they're going to stay with him there in Jerusalem. So he appears first there in chapter 21. Nason does but notice he's from Cyprus, but he's an early disciple, and they're going to stay with him. Now let's go to chapter 21 and verse 17 and read there it says. Now, after we had arrived in Jerusalem, the brothers welcomed us gladly. And the following day Paul went in with us to James. And the elders were present. And after he had greeted them, he began to relate, one by one, the things which God did among the Gentiles through his ministry. And they began glorifying God. And they said to him, you see, brothers, how many thousands here among the Jews who have believed, and they are all zealous for the law. And they have been told about you, that you are teaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children, nor to walk according to the customs. What then is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come. Therefore do this that we tell you we have four men who are under a vow. Take them and purify yourself along with them, and pay their expenses so that they may shave their heads. Then all will know that there is nothing to the things which they have been told about you, but that you yourself also walk orderly, keeping the law. But concerning the Gentiles who have believed, we wrote having decided that they should keep from meat sacrificed to idols and from blood, and from what is strangled and from sexual immorality. Then Paul took them in, and the next day, purifying himself along with them, went into the temple, giving notice of the completion of the days of purification until the sacrifice was offered for each one of them. Alright, now this is perhaps in some ways a challenging passage and I want to talk about that as we go. So what happens is Paul goes and particularly he's going to see James, this would be the half brother of Jesus and they're going to see, he's going to see all the Jerusalem church elders there. Now these are Jewish Christians. And when Paul talks about what God is doing among the Gentiles through his preaching, they glorify God. In view of that, these people are not opposed to Gentiles obeying the Gospel. However, however there were those in Jerusalem who believed that Paul was going around the Mediterranean telling people telling Jews to abandon the ways of Moses, including circumcision and other customs. Now I want you to consider this. When we look at Paul going around preaching, he is telling people they don't have to follow the law of Moses. But who is he telling that to? He's telling that to the gentiles, remember Acts 15, they have the meeting and that the Gentiles, they don't have to be circumcised, they don't have to keep the law of Moses. Now James is going to mention here the meat sacrifice to idols. I say James, the group there is going to mention the meat sacrifice to idols, the blood, the strangled, the sexual immorality that they need to avoid. But evidently word is spreading, maybe rumor, maybe slander is spreading, that he is telling the Jews who have been scattered, who live all over the Mediterranean Sea, around the border there and in the Roman Empire, they imagine that he is telling the Jews themselves not to follow the law of Moses, not to circumcise their sons and not to follow the customs of the law. Now there is a challenge there for us as we're reading because wouldn't we say that Paul would say that the law has been fulfilled? Wouldn't we say that Jesus is the end of the law? Yes, the goal of the law, the telos of the law is the Greek word there. But here's something that I think we should see. I don't think that Paul is opposed to Jewish Christians continuing to follow in Jewish traditions. Now of course Paul is wholly opposed to one, those things being imposed on Gentiles. And number two, he's wholly opposed to Jews thinking that this is where their justification comes from, without Christ in view. But I think we should understand that Paul is not hostile to the law. This is really significant because when we read the New Testament, especially like the books of Romans or Galatians, I think sometimes when we read that, we think that Paul is openly hostile to the law and he is not. In Romans, chapter seven, he will say that the law is holy and righteous and good. And let me also say this. It is not as if people could not be right with God under the law. I think we can point to examples of people like one of my favorites is Zacharias and Elizabeth, who in Luke chapter one and verse five are described as being righteous and blameless. And so you say, well, didn't they sin? Of course they sinned, but God had made provision for that even through the law. Now, of course, it was always in view of Christ. But let me come back to this point. Paul's contention, his argument, his problem is not with the law. It was not as if the law was some unreachable, unattainable standard. If so, explain to me what's going on in Deuteronomy, chapter 30, where Moses telling the people, says, it's not as if I put it in heaven where you can't reach it, or in hell where you can't go get it, but. But I've brought it right to you so that you can do it. And he says, so choose life. Here's death and life set before you, and you can choose life. Do you see that? It is not as if Moses or God is saying, oh, this law is unattainable and the only purpose that I'm giving it to you for is to show you how sinful you are. Now that is what it ended up showing, isn't it? But what it was intended to be was a means by which God could dwell among them and by which they could be a light to the nations and by which people would be drawn to them, always pointing to Jesus, always keeping their eyes to the future of the Promised One who was coming. Now all that is to say with regards to Acts 21, verse 21, and I think this is significant, is that Paul is not telling the disciples who are Jewish not to follow the law. He is not telling them not to circumcise their son. He is not telling them not to walk according to the Mosaic customs. He's not telling them. Now, of course we know it's okay if they want to eat meat that was once considered unclean. Acts, chapter 10. God Himself is telling Peter, rise, kill and eat. But if Peter and if the other Jewish people don't want to kill and eat, that's alright, they can eat. You know, they can do without the pork, they can do without the catfish. They can do without all of those things if that is what they want to do. And so they have this idea that Paul is going around trying to upset, trying to teach all the Jews to forsake the Mosaic Law. He is not, evidently. Now, let me give you an example of a place where I see something happening that I think is similar. And it seems to be that Paul accommodates the Jewish people in lots of ways. And one way is. So Timothy, who is going to work with him, had a Jewish mother, but he had never been circumcised. Well, Paul is going to have him circumcised so that he is able to access the synagogues and he is able to be more effective in reaching Jewish people to make them disciples of Jesus. But then there is Titus, that is with Paul. And Titus is a Greek person. And they're going to try. People are going to try to emphasize that Titus should be circumcised. And what does Paul say? Absolutely not. Somebody described it like this to me. Anything that Paul could do to reach the Jews and bring them to Christ, he was willing to do. But anything that would take the Gentiles and put them back under the law of Moses, he was hostile to. He was absolutely against it. But he is not opposed to Jews circumcising their sons or walking according to customs. He's not telling them to forsake Moses, as we see. Because here in the Book of Acts, we see that Paul goes along with the plan that they have. Notice the end of verse 24. Then all will know there is nothing to the things which they have been told about you. But. But that you yourself also walk orderly, keeping the law. Now, if Paul wants to say, no, Jews don't have to keep the law, I'm not keeping the law, they need to throw that thing off, then verse 24 doesn't make any sense, does it? Especially considering that verse 26, Paul takes them in and goes through exactly what they were saying to do. Now Paul does what they ask. This might raise questions. Does Paul think observance of the law is necessary for Jews? I don't think so. So because in First Corinthians 9, he says, when I'm among Gentiles, I act as them. When I'm among Jews, I act as them. But he did think that it was good, that it was God given, that it was inspired. And if he, through the observance of certain aspects, not things that would invalidate, not things that would weaken his commitment to the fact that the law had been fulfilled in Christ, if he thought that he could draw Jewish people closer to Jesus, he would. And to be sure, he would never do anything that would impose any of the law on a Gentile. And what I want you also to see is they describe him as walking orderly, keeping the law. And so that he was not opposed to people believing that that was his stance towards the law. Here's why I spent so long talking about that. I believe that sometimes when people read the books of Romans and Galatians, they come away from that, believing that Paul's attack is against the law itself. It is not. His attack is against misinterpretations of the law. And I think we see this very clearly in Galatians, is that it's about people who want to impose the law on the Gentiles. It's about Judaizers who are trying to impose it on Gentiles. Let me also say I make the case that that is what's happening in the Book of Romans, that this is not written to Jews. That doesn't mean that Jews don't read it. That doesn't mean that Jewish Christians didn't need it. But that means that the problem that's going on in the churches in Rome was that Judaizers, whether it's Gentiles or Jews, are coming. And they're trying to say that Gentiles need to obey the law. And what Paul is saying is that misses the whole point because God promised to Abraham that in him all nations of the earth would be blessed. He did not say in him all nations would convert to Judaism and be blessed. No, he says in him all nations, whether they're Jew or Gentile, whether they're Jewish or Greek, whether they're. Whatever race they are, all nations would be blessed through Abraham. And that's the point Paul is going to make in Romans. My plan is, after we finish the Book of Acts, is to take a look at the Book of Romans. And of course, I think that view there, that this is primarily written to Gentiles and that that's the focus of the book, is a minority view, even among brethren, who I consider to be great Bible students. But I'm going to try to walk through the Book of Romans at a good pace and see if we can make sense of some of the things that Paul has said. And so now we're going to leave this off here because Paul does go in, he does offer this sacrifice, and we're going to see how the Jewish nation reacts to Paul's efforts to show them that he is not trying to overthrow Moses. Until next time, Good day. Back to the Bible. Let it be our plea. God's word alone are authority Every word, every step in the name of Christ Back to the Bible for the way of life.