Worth the Trouble
Do you ever ask yourself, "What could possibly be worth all of this trouble?”
Paul found himself in lots of trouble in the last chapters of Acts. What could possibly keep him going in ministry?
With "all the city" of Jerusalem "stirred up," Paul was arrested in the temple, physically dragged out of there and had its gates slammed on him, all because of false charges (Acts 21:30). The mob was just getting going though. It wasn't enough to oust him from the temple. They sought to expunge him from existence altogether. The Romans intervened. Paul was like Poland or Romania during WWII, caught between Germany and the Soviet Union. Into which hands would you rather fall? Rome, for the moment, was not foaming at the mouth.
In shackles, Paul narrowly missed a Roman flogging that would have ripped open his back, leaving him even more battered than he already was. By the time of this arrest, he had already been flogged five times at the hands of the Jews (II Cor 11:24). Could he survive one more? His body told stories without him saying a word. Do you imagine Paul shriveled, limping, delicate? Some of the Corinthians even scoffed that "his bodily presence [was] weak" (II Cor 10:10).
For the moment, Paul's Roman citizenship shielded him, but he was still on trial. The gospel was still on trial. Paul was brought to stand before the high priest Ananias who unjustly ordered Paul to be struck on the mouth. What did Paul say in response? Something he regretted, despite the desecration of justice he endured. He quickly recanted (Acts 23:5). There is no evidence that Ananias ever did.
When given the opportunity to address the rest of the Jewish Council comprised of the Pharisees and their theological opposites, the Sadducees, Paul zeroed in on the real reason for his arrest: "It is with respect to the hope and the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial" (23:6). This triggered a contentious debate between the opposing parties, since the Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection but the Pharisees did. The Pharisees' verdict was true: "We find nothing wrong in this man," but it did not quench the combat (23:9a).
These were not the first politicians to yell at each other in debates, but the clamor escalated so violently that the Roman Tribune was "afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them" (23:10). I have seen people upset in church or city council meetings. I’ve seen a few doors slammed. But I have never worried that things were degenerating toward dismemberment. For the second time in as many chapters, Paul was in danger of being murdered.
What could possibly be worth all of this trouble? "The hope and the resurrection" (23:6). Paul's freedom mattered less to him than that of his enemies. They needed liberation from sin more than he needed release from chains; therefore, he continued to come back to the gospel over and over. If he had said "the right words," he could have glided out of conflict and into compromise. If you faced your accusers in court, if you were about to die, if you had time for only one speech for the rest of your life, what would you say?
Dear pilgrim, does the gospel matter more to you than your freedom? Does the gospel matter more than anything else you could say? Is the gospel worth the trouble to you?
Taking refuge in a Roman barracks, Paul would need something to encourage him, though, to press on. What could possibly convince this limping lion of the faith to keep going through the difficulty of ministry? Paul had a day to think it over when, behold, he was met by an unexpected visitor! "The following night the Lord stood by him and said, 'Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome'" (Acts 23:11). Jesus Christ suddenly stood in the barracks with his faithful minister and encouraged him to press on. I cannot imagine what an uplift that was! Paul was surely going to Rome to stand before the most powerful man in the world with a message. What would he say? Paul would testify about Jesus just as he did in Jerusalem. What else was there to say? What else could possibly be worth all of this trouble?
Does Scripture’s vision of Christ Jesus in his fullness compel you to keep going despite every difficulty? Do the words of Christ give you courage to testify about Christ wherever you go? Do the words of Christ continue to be your priority over every other message?
The Jews had something else to say and found themselves opposing Christ by opposing his minister. They "bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they had killed Paul" (23:12). Jesus' word, as always, came true. Theirs, however, fell to the ground. How many missed meals did it take before they ate their words?
Beloved, let us live in a way that testifies to the incomparable message of Christ's life, death, and resurrection. That is the only thing worth all of this trouble. And if it is the only message worthy of our labor, if it is the one thing we would share if we only had one more chance to speak, let us not just say it but then live another way. Let us continually live and speak in such a way that we never find ourselves forced to eat our words.
