Doing It God’s Way
Acts 21:27-40
Intro: As we have followed Paul through the past few chapters of Acts, we have witnessed someone who was willing to give up his own way in order to do what God had called him to do. That is not always easy to do because we are too easily convinced that our way is the best way. We tend to naturally assume that danger, difficulty, and pain must be avoided at all costs. However, Paul shows us that God has a bigger plan than just keeping us away from danger. The HS told several people that Paul was going to face difficulties when he went to Jerusalem. Most of these people told Paul that he should not go. However, Paul knew that God had called him to go there, and that He would see him through whatever difficulties he would encounter. That leads us to the main point of the message today.
Prop: If we want to see God’s will done in our lives, then we must commit ourselves to doing things His way.
Interrogative: Our enemy has a plan for our lives too, so how can we survive his attacks and do things God’s way?
TS: Let’s look at both the enemy’s plan and God’s plan for us so we will not miss what God is doing in and through our lives.
I. Our Enemy Will Use False Accusations against Us (Acts 21:27-29)
27 When the seven days were nearly over, some Jews from the province of Asia saw Paul at the temple. They stirred up the whole crowd and seized him, 28 shouting, "Men of Israel, help us! This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against our people and our law and this place. And besides, he has brought Greeks into the temple area and defiled this holy place." 29 (They had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with Paul and assumed that Paul had brought him into the temple area.)
-False accusations can discourage us, derail us, make us defensive, and cause us to take our eyes off of the Lord. Furthermore, at times, these false accusations can get us in trouble with other people, hindering relationships and eroding people’s trust in us. Paul’s enemies were accusing him of things they had never bothered to check into themselves. They were much more interested in stopping Paul’s ministry efforts than they were in finding the truth.
-Some of us don’t deal so well with false accusations. We would immediately get angry and defensive and set out to prove our innocence and demand justice. What is the proper response to false accusations? Jesus addressed this in His teachings.
Matthew 5:11-12 11 "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Jesus told His followers that they were blessed when people falsely accused them. He said to rejoice because they would be rewarded in heaven – even if they did not see justice here on earth.
-How else should we deal with false accusations? Paul gives wise counsel to Titus in 2:7-8 7 “In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness 8and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us.” In another place we are told to avoid the appearance of evil. Even if something is not necessarily wrong in and of itself, if it looks bad, we should avoid it so there will not be much ammunition for the enemy to use against us.
-Ultimately, we need to be aware that the enemy of our souls will stir up people to say things about us that are not true. And our reaction needs to be one that comes out of trust in God’s ability to turn seemingly bad situations into opportunities to honor Him.
-It helps for us to remember that people are not our enemies. Yes, people will oppose us, but our real enemy is the devil and the dark forces who do his bidding. So don’t allow yourself to hate the people who are slandering you and trying to bring you down. Recognize that they have been trapped and deceived into doing the devil’s dirty work. They need the deliverance and freedom that comes from Christ alone. Pray for them. Matthew 5:44 “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Romans 12:14 “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.”
-TS: Well, perhaps you are aware what the enemy’s plan for our lives is. He wants to do a lot more to you than just tell lies about you. But just in case you aren’t quite sure what he’s up to, let’s take a look at it.
II. Our Enemy’s Goal Is to Destroy Us (Acts 21:30-31)
30 The whole city was aroused, and the people came running from all directions. Seizing Paul, they dragged him from the temple, and immediately the gates were shut. 31 While they were trying to kill him, news reached the commander of the Roman troops that the whole city of Jerusalem was in an uproar.
-The enemy of our souls does not just want to discredit us and stop us from being effective for Christ, he wants to completely take us out. We see what he incited these religious people to do against Paul. They would have killed him with their bare hands if the Roman commander had not come.
-Jesus revealed Satan’s agenda to the disciples. John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
-Satan is not just out to ruin your day or give you a bad week. Satan wants to steal every good thing God has done in your life and blessed you with. He wants to kill you, your family, your friends, and every single human being on the face of the earth. Why? Because we bear the image of God our Creator. Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” When the devil sees us, it reminds him of our Creator. He hates us and harbors no kind thoughts for any of us.
-I’m fairly certain that we’ve all seen the results of Satan’s hatred for mankind. Just watch a little news sometime. People are blowing themselves up just to take out a few others whom they hate. What a win-win proposition for Satan! I don’t even enjoy watching the news because the first several minutes are spent showing us how well Satan is doing with his plan to destroy lives. Countless victims are shot, stabbed, beaten, raped, robbed, mugged, carjacked, swindled, betrayed, and so on. Families are filled with dysfunction, anger and hostility, sexual and physical abuse, materialism, workaholism, alcoholism, and other vices and bondages too numerous and too shocking to name. Based on these kinds of reports, it sure looks like the devil has the upper hand sometimes.
-But if you look in the right places, you will find men and women who have been delivered from drug and alcohol addiction. You can find survivors of all kinds of abuse who have found acceptance and healing, and have even found it in their hearts to forgive their abusers. Look around you (even right here at CLC), and you’ll see people who have found peace and forgiveness from some very dark deeds in their past. You will find some whose marriages have been restored, and who have become loving parents or loving sons or daughters or siblings, rather than what they were before their lives were miraculously changed. People have been delivered from sexual addictions, codependent relationships, mental illnesses, and so many other types of bondage.
-It may look like the devil is winning with his agenda to steal, kill, and destroy, but God’s grace is greater than the dark rage of the enemy. God’s grace brings healing, deliverance, forgiveness, and restoration. His love never fails, and it is what will bring us victory. That leads us to our next point. God knows our situation and wants to help us.
III. God Will Come to our Rescue (Acts 21:32-34)
32 He at once took some officers and soldiers and ran down to the crowd. When the rioters saw the commander and his soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. 33 The commander came up and arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains. Then he asked who he was and what he had done. 34 Some in the crowd shouted one thing and some another, and since the commander could not get at the truth because of the uproar, he ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks.
-While physical safety is not the #1 concern in God’s plan for us, He often does come to our rescue and save us from trouble or even from death. There were countless times that God delivered the apostles from almost certain death sentences or danger. However, all of them but one were eventually put to death for their faith in Jesus Christ. I feel it is important to qualify this because sometimes we get the idea that being a Christian means we should be exempt from physical harm or anything uncomfortable. Please understand, I am not taking anything away from the healing power of God, nor from His protection and care for His children. However, the apostles would have been shocked to hear that Christians are exempt from suffering, pain, and persecution. Jesus promised His disciples that they would have tribulation and troubles in this world. But then He said, “But take heart and have courage, because I have overcome the world.”
-If you believe the Bible, there is no question that God can do anything, and if it is within His plan, God can keep us from all harm. The key, of course, is God’s plan. What is God trying to accomplish in us and through us? What was He trying to accomplish through Paul’s life? He wasn’t trying to make Paul comfortable; He was trying to make Paul effective at sharing the good news of God’s grace and forgiveness.
-So here is the lay of the land. God loves us and is working in us for our own good and the good of His kingdom. When we face difficult times or times of persecution and danger, we can be assured that He is with us and will help us. He may not always remove the danger from us, because His plan may require us to suffer for awhile, in order to accomplish something significant for the gospel. However, God will never abandon us or leave us to fend for ourselves.
-As His children, it is okay for us to ask for His protection over ourselves and our loved ones. We can expect God to come to our rescue when we are facing danger or persecution from our enemy. However, we must also learn to place our every fear, desire, and our need for self-preservation at the foot of His cross. We can learn from Jesus, who prayed, “Not My will, but Your will be done, Father.”
-TS: That leads us to the final point today.
IV. God Will Accomplish His Purposes through our Lives (Acts 21:35-40)
35 When Paul reached the steps, the violence of the mob was so great he had to be carried by the soldiers. 36 The crowd that followed kept shouting, "Away with him!" 37 As the soldiers were about to take Paul into the barracks, he asked the commander, "May I say something to you?" "Do you speak Greek?" he replied. 38 "Aren’t you the Egyptian who started a revolt and led four thousand terrorists out into the desert some time ago?" 39 Paul answered, "I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Please let me speak to the people." 40 Having received the commander’s permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When they were all silent, he said to them in Aramaic [or Hebrew]:
-What was God’s purpose for Paul’s life? We’ve covered it before, but let’s review it. After Paul was knocked to the ground and blinded by a bright light, Jesus spoke to him and told him to go into Damascus and see a man named Ananias. In Acts 9:15-16 the Lord spoke to Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name." Now, if you look ahead of our text into the next chapter, Paul tells the crowd what Ananias said to him: Acts 22:14-15 14 "Ananias said: ’The God of our fathers has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth. 15 You will be his witness to all men of what you have seen and heard.”
-So the Lord showed Paul that he would suffer for the name of Jesus, and that he would know God’s will and hear from God’s mouth. He would be God’s witness to all kinds of people, telling them what he’d seen and heard from the Lord.
-This is what mattered most in Paul’s life. God was carrying out His plan for Paul and using him to tell others the good news about Jesus. That is why Paul, even after the crowd had tried to kill him, asked the commander if he could speak to the people. He wanted to use this opportunity to tell them about a loving Savior who wanted to cleanse and forgive them.
-That is what God wants to do in and through our lives. Yes, He wants to make us whole and restore the joy in our lives. However, the ultimate goal, after we come to Christ, is to help others receive His grace and joy. It’s all about passing it on, helping others escape the grasp of the enemy, and come into the embrace of a loving Creator.
-What were you created for? What is your purpose in life? God has gifted each of us in different ways and has a unique blueprint for each of our lives. However, there is a two-fold purpose that we all have in common: to know God and to make Him known. True success in life is measured by how well we accomplish those 2 goals.
Conclusion: As we close, Satan has a plan for us: to steal, kill, and destroy, and he sometimes uses false accusations to trip us up. However, God will come to our rescue as we pursue His will for our lives. He will accomplish His purposes in us if we let Him.
-Knowing God and making Him known to others – I wonder how well we are doing in those areas? If you do not yet know God, I invite you to make things right with Him today. I’d be happy to pray with you for that to happen. [Pray- make Him known.]
