your Bibles to Acts chapter 21. Acts chapter 21, we come to the end of the third missionary journey this morning. We're going to look at verses 1 to 16, but I'll read the whole chapter, get it before us, and then we'll focus our attention on the journey to Jerusalem. So beginning in Acts 21 at verse 1.
Now it came to pass that when we had departed from them and set sail, running a straight course, we came to Kos. The following day to Rhodes, and from there to Patera. And finding a ship sailing over to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. When we had sighted Cyprus, we passed it on the left, sailed to Syria, and landed at Tyre.
For there the ship was to unload her cargo. And finding disciples, we stayed there seven days. They told Paul, through the Spirit, not to go up to Jerusalem. When we had come to the end of those days, we departed and went on our way.
And they all accompanied us, with wives and children, till we were out of the city. And we knelt down on the shore and prayed. When we had taken our leave of one another, we boarded the ship and they returned home. And when we had finished our voyage from Tyre, we came to Ptolemaes, greeted the brethren, and stayed with them one day.
On the next day, we who were Paul's companions departed and came to Caesarea, and entered the house of Philip the Evangelist, who was one of the seven, and stayed with him. Now this man had four virgin daughters who prophesied. And as we stayed there, or stayed many days, a certain prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. When he had come to us, he took Paul's belt, bound his own hands and feet, and said, thus says the Holy Spirit, so shall all the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.
Now when we heard these things, both we and those from that place pleaded with Him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready, not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done.
And after those days we packed and went up to Jerusalem. Also some of the disciples from Caesarea went with us and brought with them a certain Manassin of Cyprus, an early disciple with whom we were to lodge. And when we had come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly. On the following day, Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present.
When he had greeted them, he told in detail those things which God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord. And they said to him, You see, brother, how many myriads of Jews there are who have believed, and they are all zealous for the law. But they have been informed about you that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, nor to walk according to the customs.
What then? The assembly must certainly meet, for they will hear that you have come. Therefore, do what we tell you. We have four men who have taken a vow.
Take them and be purified with them, and pay their expenses so that they may shave their heads, and that all may know that those things of which they were informed concerning you are nothing, but that you yourself also walk orderly and keep the law. But concerning the Gentiles who believe, we have written and decided that they should observe no such thing, except that they should keep themselves from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. Then Paul took the men, and the next day, having been purified with them, entered the temple to announce the expiration of the days of purification, at which time an offering should be made for each one of them. Now when the seven days were almost ended, the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him, crying out, Men of Israel, help!
This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against the people, the law in this place. And furthermore, he also brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place. For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple. And all the city was disturbed, and the people ran together, seized Paul, and dragged him out of the temple.
And immediately the doors were shut. Now as they were seeking to kill him, news came to the commander of the garrison that all Jerusalem was in an uproar. He immediately took soldiers and centurions and ran down to them. And when they saw the commander and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.
Then the commander came near and took him, and commanded him to be bound with two chains. And he asked who he was and what he had done. And some among the multitude cried one thing and some another. So when he could not ascertain the truth because of the tumult, he commanded him to be taken into the barracks.
When he reached the stairs, he had to be carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the mob. For the multitude of the people followed after him, crying out, away with him." We'll stop the reading there. We'll pray and then, as I said, we'll look at verses 1 to 16.
Opening Prayer
Father, thank you for your word. Thank you for this historical, theological work of Luke, the beloved physician, this book of Acts that gives us the early history of the church, how we praise you for the impact made by a handful of men preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord. Certainly they saw a demonstration of the Spirit and power when they went into Jewish synagogues, when they went among the Gentiles. And our Father, we pray that such would happen in our own day and age.
You are the God of sovereign grace, and You are the God of absolute power and authority, and You are the God who has told us that in the heaven to come there will be a great multitude that no man can number. So bless the Word as it goes forth all over the earth today. May the Spirit attend, may Christ be exalted, and may you be glorified in the saving of sinners and in the sanctifying of the saints. And fill us now with your Spirit and guide our thoughts and mind as we consider this passage again, forgiving us, cleansing us from all sin and all unrighteousness.
And we pray in Jesus' name, amen.
Introduction
Well, as I said, this concludes the third missionary journey. The book of Acts will end with the Apostle Paul in prison. He does get released from that imprisonment and does what some have called a fourth missionary journey. In other words, he continues to preach, he continues to visit, he continues to go everywhere.
But in terms of the book of Acts, there are these three missionary journeys, and this one ends with his arrival in Jerusalem. And then we see that the prophet Agabus, what he says concerning Paul as he enters into Jerusalem, comes to pass. He is immediately bound. He is handed over to civil magistrates.
So the rest of the book of Acts takes up Paul's defenses. His defenses before the Jews and his defenses before the civil government. Defending himself in terms of his role as a preacher of the gospel. He's not a man out there trying to upset the civil authority.
He's not out there trying to engage in revolution. He's not out there trying to foment rebellion. Rather, he is a man called by God's grace into a particular task of apostleship, and he goes preaching from place to place the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord. So the rest of the book of Acts is taken up with that very thing.
He's arrested, he's delivered up into the hands of the Gentiles, and he stands trial before several of these particular persons. And as I said, he ends up in prison by the end of the book. So I want to look at this journey to Jerusalem under two considerations this morning. First, the journey from Miletus to Tyre in verses 1 to 6.
And then secondly, the journey from Tyre to Jerusalem. And if you have maps in the back of your Bible, it's always good to refresh yourself of this. It's a straight shot close to the shore. They go from Tyre, or from Miletus, rather, right down to Jerusalem.
Or they land in Syria, and from there probably took beasts of burden the 65 miles from Caesarea all the way to Jerusalem. So it's a straight shot, makes absolute sense. It's not some sort of a, a mystery, they didn't float, rather they used the means that God had afforded, boat traveled, and then traveled by beast. Well,
Journey from Miletus to Tyre
let's look first at this journey from Miletus to Tyre, and in verses 1 to 3, you see that particular route. But in the first place,
Departure from Miletus
notice what it says in verse 1. Now, it came to pass that when we had departed, Pretty general statement, when we had departed. But the verb is a lot more particular. The verb is a lot more specific, and the verb simply means to tear oneself away.
So when he had left the Ephesian elders in the city of Miletus, it was a difficult parting. He knew, suspected that he would not see their face anymore, and that they neither would see him anymore. So it wasn't just, I hope everything works out for you, but he physically had to tear himself away. It was a painful thing.
And one of the things I want to emphasize as we move through this passage is Paul's love for the brethren. Paul's love for the people of God, Paul's connection to relationship. He wasn't just a theology machine going from place to place, preaching the gospel, and writing wonderful theological treatises. He was that.
He was certainly a man capable and competent, and a man very skillful and intelligent, but he was a man of the people. He loved people, and the people loved him, such that when he left, it was a tough departure for him, because he knew that he would see these Ephesian elders no more. And then the particular route is highlighted there in verses 2 and 3. They go to this place called Kos.
It was an island where Hippocrates was born. You've heard of the Hippocratic Oath, that Doctor of Doctors. There was a medical school there, and it was the birthplace and the place of Hippocrates. And then he also went to Rhodes and then Patera, and then they changed ships and set out for Phoenicia, passed by Cyprus, and then they landed Tyre in Syria.
Now, the particular region is called Phoenicia. The name of the province in the Roman Empire was Syria. And if you look at the map again, you will see all these places. They are all there.
This isn't fairy tale. This isn't some sort of a universe developed by J.R. Tolkien. This is concrete history.
I think I've shared with you before when the Santiago's first went to China. or early on in their ministry there, it was at Christmas time, and Shirley was meeting with a bunch of ladies and talking to them about the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ and naming the various places and the locales, and they were shocked to see that this was on the map, not that Bethlehem was on the map, but shocked to see that this was rooted in history. This isn't just an idea. It's not just a thought. It's not just a fable.
It's not just a fairy tale. It's not a bunch of people that sat around and concocted this story of salvation by Jesus Christ. No, the gospel is rooted in history. It concerns the life and the death and the resurrection of our Lord Jesus.
He lived. He was born in Bethlehem. He grew up in Galilee. He ministers in Judea.
All of these places are on the map. All of this is, in fact, concrete. It's not abstract. It's not a fairy tale.
It's not the stuff of myth. Now, notice this stay and tire in verses four to six. Verse four, and finding disciples, we stayed there seven days. Brethren, this is what brethren do.
They find other brethren. We were never meant to walk alone. And I think ultimately that means God is there with us, God sustains us, God blesses us, and God is our companion upon the way. But with reference to Christianity, we were not meant to function as individuals.
We were not meant to function as mavericks. David said, I was glad when they said unto me, let us go to the house of the Lord. That section of the Psalter are called songs of ascent. And the ascent is simply the pilgrims ascending to the temple mount, going to praise and serve the living and the true God.
The Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwelling places of Jacob. Christianity isn't esoteric. It isn't individualistic. It isn't me alone with my God.
There's certainly some of that in terms of private devotions and reading and that and whatnot, but it's a corporate activity. The disciples, the companions, and Paul himself find other brethren. They find other Christians. They want to be with the people of God.
Again, this may seem odd, that they actually liked each other, but they actually liked each other. They loved one another, they enjoyed praying together, they sang together, they ate the supper together, they treasured one another, and I think that's symptomatic or typical of the blood-bought child of God. He cannot do it alone. He cannot go it on his own.
He is not an individual island unto himself. He needs the brethren. He needs the people of God. He needs the prayers of the people of God.
That sustains, that encourages, and that blesses the soul. Now
The Warning Not to Go to Jerusalem
notice what the brethren suggest to the apostle in 4b. These are brethren in Tyre that had information from the Spirit. Notice in the middle of verse four, they told Paul through the spirit not to go up to Jerusalem. Some would suggest that we don't capitalize this and that it's their own spirit.
No, I think they understood properly what lay in store for the apostle, but they made an improper inference. In other words, they knew that when Paul went, he was going to suffer. So based on that, they then say, no, we don't want you to go. Agabus is going to tell him the same thing, but Agabus isn't going to try to dissuade him.
The Spirit's already told Paul, according to Acts chapter 20, 22 to 24. Paul knows what lay ahead for him in the city of Jerusalem. So these brethren understood that as well. They, through the Spirit, told him not to go.
The Spirit had told them that he was going to suffer, that he was going to be persecuted. And as I said, then they infer that Paul shouldn't go. I think Alexander describes this well. This was not a divine command to Paul, but an inference of the disciples from the fact which was revealed to them that Paul would there be in great danger.
So that's good. It's not ungodly to want to protect your brethren, but it's wrong-headed when your brethren are about the work of the Lord. When we drop down after that prophecy of Agabus, the companions of Paul and the others try to converge upon him in the same way. Again, my brothers and sisters, it's good to live for Jesus.
It's good to take risks for Jesus. It's good to die in the service and in the cause of Jesus. Safety is good. Protection is helpful.
All of that is a blessing. But there are times when the men of God, the people of God, need to step up. And whatever may face them, they nevertheless face it. It's like David, as we'll see tonight, going into the Valley of Elah to do battle with Goliath.
I'm sure there would be a whole host of people today saying, David, you're going to get creamed. You're going to get wiped out. He's twice as tall as you. He is completely loaded down with armor.
And all you have is a slingshot and five smooth stones. Don't do it, David. David says, who is this uncircumcised man who taunts the armies of the living God? David doesn't even entertain the possibility that he's going to lose.
It never comes into his head that he's going to go into the Valley of Elah and actually lose to Goliath. The same sort of thing is here. Paul is going to say, I don't resist or I'm not hesitant about being bound. I'm also ready to die for the cause of Jesus.
Now, if somebody is doing foolish things, if somebody is doing sinful things, if somebody is jeopardizing themselves needlessly, then obviously we try to persuade them not to. Don't shove that fork in your eye is always a good command. But a man who wants to serve his Lord, even inclusive of death itself, is the kind of man that God uses to build churches. If we don't have such men, we wouldn't be in the 21st century of Christ exercising his power and his glory and his majesty in keeping this work together.
Certainly the power is the Lord's, he will build his church and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it, but he raises up Paul's, he raises up Peter's, he raises up James's, he raises up these kinds of men that will stand fast, that are not afraid to be bound, and not afraid to die, should it mean the glory of God Most High. So the brethren tried to prevail upon Paul, and Paul obviously does not take that. And so we
Farewell at Tyre
notice there in verse 5, when we had come to the end of those days, we departed and went on our way. And they all accompanied us with wives and children till we were out of the city. Again, a beautiful picture, isn't it? It's not just Paul and the guys.
It's not just Paul and the students of theology. It's not just Paul and the guys that have proven themselves capable in the church of Christ. It's the brethren, it's their wives, and it's the children. They want to see the Apostle Paul depart.
Now, as far as we know, he had never met these people before. So, in the space of seven days, they had formed this kind of a bond, where they get on their knees before God together, and they pray to the Lord. Again, this is Christian fellowship. This is natural.
This is the reflex when the people of God are brought together. You've had that experience. You've met people before that are blood-bought, and it doesn't take long for you to connect. It doesn't take long for you to find that you enjoy one another's company.
In fact, some find more familiarity and more connection with their spiritual family at times, than with their physical family. You may have physical family that doesn't believe the gospel. They don't know Jesus Christ. And then you have family within the context of the church, where there's just that union, and that companionship, and that fellowship, and that is on display here.
It may seem obscure, and it may seem to be a sideline observation, but again, the point is, Paul didn't sit in an ivory tower and just churn out theology. He was with people, he was with wives, he was with children, and they loved him, and they had that affection for him, and they prayed for him when he was departed. We saw it in the book, in the very previous section. He tore himself away from those Ephesian elders.
Why? Because they hated each other? No, because they loved each other, and they had a tight bond in terms of Christian fellowship. So the obvious connection between these disciples in Tyre and the Apostle Paul is on display.
And then verse 6, when we had taken our leave of one another, we boarded the ship and they returned home. So that's from Miletus to Tyre.
Journey from Tyre to Jerusalem
Now notice from Tyre to Jerusalem. Again, the travel route is highlighted in verses 7 to 9. We have this time in Ptolemaes. It's the older ancient name was Akko.
It's indicated in Judges chapter 1, verse 31. Notice one day there, but look at what they do in this one day. greeted the brethren and stayed with them one day. They didn't say, you know, we're just passing through, y'all just stay there. No, they greeted the brethren and stuck with those brethren at that particular time.
Paul liked companionship. Paul liked friendship. Paul liked to see the people of God growing in their understanding of the grace of God and actually engaging in the sorts of fellowship that had been listed or indicated by him in his letters to the churches.
Philip the Evangelist at Caesarea
Now notice they come to Caesarea in verses 8 and 9. In verses 8 and 9, we have two things we should consider here, the house of Philip and the daughters of Philip. Notice in verse 8, we learn on the next day, we who are, this is a we section, Luke is with that, okay? Luke wrote Acts, Luke obviously wrote Luke.
Bill didn't write Luke. Luke wrote Luke. Makes sense, right? But Luke also wrote Acts.
And initially, early on in the church, they often were distributed, or they often came to the churches as a two-volume set. You had Luke and Acts. So these we sections in the book of Acts indicates when Luke is with Paul, and Luke is one of the companions of Paul. So notice in verse 8, on the next day we who were Paul's companions departed and came to Caesarea and entered the house of Philip the evangelist who was one of the seven and stayed with him.
Now in the first place he's identified as an evangelist. That differentiates him from Philip the apostle. There was a Philip the apostle according to Matthew chapter 10 verse 3. Also, it is indicated that he's one of the seven.
That reminds us of Acts chapter 6. Remember when there was that dispute concerning the Hellenistic widows and the Jewish widows? The apostles said, we want you to appoint seven good men, full of the Holy Spirit, good reputation, that can oversee this particular work so that the apostles could continue to devote themselves to prayer and ministry of the word. So Philip was one of them.
But as well, Philip was an evangelist. That office is indicated in Ephesians 4.11. Christ ascended on high, he led captivity captive, and he gave gifts to men. He gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers.
Paul tells Timothy to do the work of an evangelist in 2 Timothy chapter 4. And so there was this office of evangelist that's a bit more ambiguous than the other offices that are indicated in 1 Timothy 3. But we'll note, or we see, that in Acts 6, once Philip becomes a deacon, he is in the church there in Jerusalem. There is persecution that happens as a result of Stephen.
And then there's this big meeting, and then this persecution is turned up. Stephen is executed, not for any real crime, but because the Jewish leadership despised him. And so there was this persecution, and so brethren in Jerusalem were scattered. And wherever they went, they went preaching the word.
So when we go back to Acts chapter 8, we see that Philip, this man Philip, went to Samaria. And in Samaria, he preached the gospel there. Probably the most famous instance is his dealing with the Ethiopian unit. Well, in 840, it tells us that Philip went to Caesarea.
Obviously, he settled there because this is the selfsame Philip that is present now in Caesarea. So Paul and his companions go and they stay with him. Now that brings us to consider his four virgin daughters. In the first place, the reference to them being virgins does not underscore the Roman Catholic doctrine of nunnery.
These are not the first nuns in the church of Christ. Their virginity is probably mentioned, not in connection with their ability to prophesy, but in connection with them living at home. That's probably why they're identified as virgins, is because they're women, probably of marriable age or marriageable age, and yet they're living at home. It's not that they had this and therefore prophecy came.
No, it's simply the way it was they were living there. But they are identified for us as prophetesses. Notice in verse 9. Now this man had four virgin daughters who prophesied.
Philip's Daughters and Women in Ministry
Now this gives cause to some to say, well there it is, women should be in the ministry. Not so fast. Let's just think through this and let's reflect upon this. In the first place, the prophet Joel in Joel chapter 2 says that the days are coming when the Spirit of God will come powerfully upon the church. your sons and your daughters shall prophesy." So we have biblical warrant to see them as being prophetesses.
In Acts 2, that is applied by Peter to the phenomena associated with the Day of Pentecost. When the Spirit comes, what do people do? They prophesy. They spoke in tongues and they prophesied.
So the fact is, is that God had said there would be prophetesses. But even so, that shouldn't surprise us because in the Old Testament, Exodus 15, 20, Miriam is referred to as a prophetess. Deborah in the book of Judges, I know many want to call her a judge. She wasn't.
Barak was the judge. She was a prophetess. As well, the wife of the prophet Isaiah is referred to as a prophetess in Isaiah 8.3. You also have a Huldah who's a prophetess in 2 Kings 22.14.
You have a Noadiah in Nehemiah 6.14. And in Luke 2, Anna, that woman is identified as well as a prophetess. Now when we come to this particular passage, I would suggest the nature of their prophecy is probably similar to what we find in verse 4, and then what we find with reference to Agabus. They probably prophesied to Paul as well, that if you go to Jerusalem, there's going to be big problems.
If you go to Jerusalem, you're going to be bound, and you're going to be arrested, and you're going to have to face the music. So that was probably the nature of their prophesying. But one of the things that we've observed as we've moved our way through this book of Acts is that some things describe events, and then there are other passages in the Bible that prescribe how things ought to be done. So the argument for no women in the ministry isn't because I'm a male chauvinist pig.
I know that some might suggest that. Perhaps my wife in an off moment might say, no, I don't think she would. Maybe some other things, but not male chauvinist pig. This is not a male chauvinist pig argument.
It is a prescriptive argument mounted and launched by the Apostle Paul. It is absolutely positively clear. 1 Corinthians 11, verses 2 and following. The passage there is not arguing for wearing hats in the corporate worship of God. The passage is arguing that women do not pray and prophesy in the public pulpit among the people of God. 1 Corinthians 14, the Apostle Paul tells them that the women are to say in silence, they're to ask their husbands questions at home. 1 Timothy chapter 2, Paul says, I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority.
That's prescription. That's what we know we're supposed to do when it comes to the church. Because there were prophetesses doesn't mean that prophetesses as an office is even binding upon us today. I would argue the very office is no more.
The prophets in the early church were necessary when God is revealing his word to the people. Now that we have the New Testament, we don't need those revelatory gifts. We don't need prophets and we don't need prophetesses. So that is rendered moot.
But then in terms of a woman serving in public ministry, this is in public ministry. This is in Philip's house. This is in dialogue with the Apostle Paul and his companions. This is not a text that proves the validity for women to be preachers in pulpits today.
Again, it's not male chauvinism. I send you to 1 Timothy chapter 2, which is the clearest expression of this. In fact, let's turn there, because I think many churches are messed up at this particular point. That's not to suggest we're not messed up at other particular points.
Sometimes I feel that inference is made. Well, Butler said they're messed up. We're messed up too! We got a lot of messed-upness.
Every church has their messed-upness. I don't think there's a church that could ever not have messed-upness on this side of having to come. But when there's something that is this obvious, it would be a good thing for them to stop it.
Paul's Prescription in 1 Timothy 2
Notice what Paul says in 1 Timothy 2, verse 8. I desire, therefore, that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands without wrath and doubting." And that isn't spiritual hands, brethren. If during prayer or singing there's the lifting up of the hands, again, those passages in the Psalter, those passages in the New Testament, they're not lift up your spiritual hands. What are spiritual hands?
They're physical hands, they're real hands. And Paul said that the men were to lift them up when they pray. Now those are instructions or that's instruction for men. Now notice in verse nine, in like manner also that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, but which is proper for women professing godliness with good works.
Let a woman learn in silence with all submission. And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence. Again, the declaration is plain. The declaration is clear.
But you see, there are those that will say, well, that was for Ephesus, because there were some obnoxious women in Ephesus. There were some bad teaching women in Ephesus. Paul certainly doesn't mean to exclude all women everywhere from every chance to speak from a pulpit. But that's not how Paul argues.
Paul doesn't say, I know there's some problematic women there in Ephesus, so I don't want the problematic women there in Ephesus to preach in the pulpits there in Ephesus. But if there aren't problematic women in Colossae, then they're free to go ahead and preach. That's not how he reasons, and that's not how he argues. Look at the rationale for his declaration.
Verse 12, again, I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence. Now the word for, in verse 13, indicates that this is a reason, this is the rationale, this is the justification or the confirmation for why he gives the instruction that he does. Verse 13, for Adam was formed first, then Eve. Notice he says nothing about emphasis.
He says nothing about the culture that was facing Timothy in that particular time. He goes to the garden. He goes to creation. Just like he does when he's arguing for male headship in the context of marriage and family.
He doesn't say, it just works better. It's just a better convention. He goes to the garden. The garden is a paradigmatic or a pattern for the way ethics should proceed.
So Paul appeals to the fact that Adam was formed first, but he doesn't stop there. He moves from creation in the garden to the fall from the garden. Verse 14, and Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived fell into transgression. Now this doesn't mean every single woman will always fall into transgression and deception.
This means that, you know, no man will... No, it doesn't mean that at all. But he is appealing to God's created order. And in God's created order, he wants men to lead in the family, and he wants men to lead in the church.
And for whatever reason, that statement now has sent people into an absolute tizzy. That is just, you can't believe it. You must be a male chauvinist. You must be a pig.
You must be antiquated. You must be barbaric. You must be a caveman that wants to go out and bat ladies over the head and drag them back into your cave and tell them, you know, cook my food. No, it is God's Word, God's world, God's order, and God prescribes how His creatures are supposed to function.
So men are to lead in the church, men are to lead in the family. That is bottom line biblical teaching, and for us to rail against it is simply unwise, and it is simply incorrect. And then 1 Timothy 3, if a man is these things. Titus chapter 1, if a man, Paul says, or Paul sees that it's men that will function as elders and deacons in the context of the church.
So going back to Acts 21, the fact that they are prophetesses do not hurt church polity that says women aren't supposed to teach or exercise authority over a man. Okay, they were prophetesses, they prophesied. So was Huldah, so was Deborah, so was Miriam. What's the point?
We look at clear teaching of Scripture to see what we are supposed to do. I think you all understand that. There are things that have been done, and then there are things that we're supposed to do. It's kind of like science.
Science tells us what is, but science doesn't tell us what ought to be. There are things that are in the book of Acts that aren't necessarily duplicated by the church today. The phenomena associated with Acts chapter 2, the outpouring of the Spirit, the speaking in the tongues, the prophesying, and all that sort of thing. Well, we have a sure word from God Most High in 1 Corinthians 13 that those things will come to a cessation.
We have the emphasis in the pastoral epistles on the preaching of sound doctrine, not on tongue speaking and not on prophesying. So the fact that there was tongue speaking doesn't mean that therefore there must be tongue speaking in every church subsequent to that time. That is an incorrect way to read Scripture, and we as God's people need, as ones having the mind of Christ, read the Scripture the way that we're supposed to read the Scripture. So they're there with Philip.
Agabus and the Acted Parable
Go back to Acts 21, and then notice that this fellow Agabus comes. I mean, you got to see that urgency too. Not only is Paul intimate and familiar with all of the people of God, but the people of God are concerned about Paul. They love him.
They really love him. They esteem him highly. They don't want their good friend. They don't want this man who has produced such good doctrine.
They don't want this man who has founded churches all over the empire to go to Jerusalem and to be treated like a common criminal. That's a good thing on their part. They're not saying, yeah, go, Paul, get killed, get victimized. We're right there, right behind you.
So there is this good part where they're hesitant for him to make this journey. But again, when Paul the apostle asserts what he asserts, we ought to respect that because it's a good thing. Now notice, verse 10, and as we stayed many days, a certain prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. We've already met Agabus in Acts chapter 11, around verses 27 and 28.
Agabus predicted a famine in Judea. That famine came to pass. That famine actually obtained. That was a reality.
So we know that Agabus is a true prophet of the living and true God. Now notice what Agabus does. He takes Paul's belt. Commentators say it was probably like a money belt.
You say, well, was he loaded? Yeah, he was. Remember, one of the emphases or emphases as to why he wants to go to Jerusalem is to take the money collected from the Gentile churches to present it to the suffering saints in Jerusalem. You see this in more detail in Romans 15 toward the end.
He basically says to the Gentiles, if you have benefited from the spiritual realities of the Jews, then let them benefit from the temporal realities of you Gentiles who are a bit better off. So Paul is anxious to get to Jerusalem, because we might ask the question, why doesn't he just stop? He's bound. He's determined.
We see it all the way back in 19, and then we see it in chapter 20 at verse 16. He wants to go to Jerusalem, and he wants to be there at a specific time. We might say, just back it down, Paul. No, Paul's determined because he wants to bring this money, and he wants to bring his companions, so that when James sees Paul and these companions, James is going to understand something of the Gentile mission.
So Paul has this anxiousness to get there. So Agabus takes this belt and binds his own hands. The New King James cleans it up a little bit. Some suggest that he bound Paul's hands.
I don't think that's what happened. I think Agabus binds his own hands, and this is something called an acted parable. It's something that you see in the prophets in the Old Testament. There was the prophet Ahijah in 1 Kings chapter 11, who tore his brand new garment into 12 pieces to signify that God was going to bring that division upon the kingdom.
You see it with the prophet Isaiah. He was told to take his shoes off and to walk naked and to prophesy concerning the Assyrians and Ethiopia and Egypt and how it would affect Israel. Ezekiel the prophet in chapters 4 and 5. There are acted parables, there are things done.
Jeremiah's linen sash, Jeremiah's broken flask, all of these things are acted parables. But these things are obvious as we see from the passage. Notice verse 11, when he had come to us, he took Paul's belt, bound his own hands and feet, and said, even if he hadn't said anything, Paul, having already received this message, would have probably been savvy enough to figure out the acted parable. but the acted parable is always accompanied by the revelatory word. You see that with Isaiah, you see that with Ahijah, you see that with Ezekiel, you see that with the Old Testament prophets.
And the same thing obtains here. Notice what he says. Thus says the Holy Spirit, so shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles. That is precisely what is going to happen.
That is precisely the outline for the remainder of the book. They're going to bind him. I read through that section, so you would see that Agabus wasn't just making things up. Agabus wasn't just trying to, you know, participate in what everybody else already knew.
But this actually happens. And Paul will have to stand trial before Felix, and Festus, and Agrippa. He appeals to Caesar, but the book ends before him ever having stood before Caesar. So that's exactly precise with reference to the prophecy.
Now notice, the prophet Agabus predicts Paul's future, but does not try and prevent him the way the men and women entire did according to verse 4. So again, verse four, great. They had the same prophecy, but they wrongly inferred that Paul shouldn't go.
Paul's Resolve to Go to Jerusalem
Now let's see Paul's response in verse 12. Well, first his companions, notice. Now when we heard these things, both we and those from that place pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem. We don't fault them for that.
It's kind of like when Peter says to Jesus, no, Lord, I don't want you to go to Jerusalem. I don't want you to be bound. I don't want you to be cast into the hands of the Gentiles. But what does Jesus say?
Get behind me, Satan. Sometimes, and I know this is a shock to us in this Western world of hyper-individualism and hyper-snowflake-ism, where we think we're the most delicate and unique person on the face of the earth, and that the greatest good is our achievement and our sufficiency and our safety and our status. No, it's God's kingdom. It's God's glory.
It's the mission that he has entrusted to the church. So while these men are obviously in love with the apostle, in esteem and respect, and they don't want him to go, let's listen to the apostle's statement in verse 13. Then Paul answered, What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? He's not cold and callous.
He's not, you know, this righteous, self-righteous, above-the-rest fray. You guys are hurting me here, too. This is affecting me. This is breaking my heart.
I don't want to see my brethren crying. I don't want to see you agonizing. I get this, that we have a close bond, and you don't want it to be the case that I go get bound. But that can't be what dictates our conduct.
It cannot be that emotion trumps doctrine. It cannot be the fact that whatever we feel, or whatever we desire, or whatever people say we should feel or desire, we can't make that the overarching concern. It's the Word of God. It's the mission of God.
It's the glory of Jesus Christ. And in that, we have a wonderful example in the Apostle Paul. So he's affected by their tears. He's affected by their weeping.
He's affected to the point where he says, why are you breaking my heart? What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? Now notice resolve. He says, I am ready, not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.
One of the things that I've often thought about in exegesis or interpretation of the Bible is that we don't get tone. We don't get tone, right? When Pilate says to Jesus, what is truth? How does he say that?
Is it frustration? Is it exasperation? Probably, what is true? Or is there a sense where Pilate might have said, what is truth?
I'm in this mixed up political mess, I have no clue. We don't know how things are said. And I think at least my disposition or my predilection or my tendency is to hear this as this declaration of triumph on the part of the apostle. For I am ready, not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.
He's got his chest puffed out and he's, you know, eight foot tall and bulletproof. Maybe it wasn't that way. Maybe it was, brethren, I'm okay with this. Christ has never failed me.
You ever read the testimony or the scene of, was it Chrysostom, right? They wanted him to renounce the Lord. He's what, 83, 86? He says, 80 and six years, the Lord Jesus has been there. 80 and six years, the Lord has been my constant and ready companion.
And deny him now? That's just not gonna happen. Did he say it with Thundering Chester or Martin Luther? Here I stand, I can do nothing.
We get that concept, like they've got capes and they're wearing masks and they're superheroes. Maybe it was as simple as, I'm ready to do what God calls me to. I'm ready not only to be bound, but if called to die for Jesus, I'm ready to do that as well. Brethren, that's the kind of men that we're looking for relative to gospel ministry, men and women who make up the church, Acts 16, quit ye like men, the old King James Version has.
The New American Standard, I think, captures it the best. It says, act like men. It says that not only to men, but to women. Now, that doesn't mean women grow beards and, you know, scratch yourselves and all that sort of thing.
It means to have courage. It means to stand up. It means to stand fast. So if he's got chest out puffed and he's the mighty apostle and he says what he says, it fits.
But conversely, if he says, brethren, I appreciate your love for me. I appreciate the affection that you're showing to me, but I'm ready. I'm ready to go. I'm ready to be bound and I'm ready to die if necessary.
That's what we're looking for. That's what Christianity is about. The realization that there's something bigger and better than our own individual existence. It's the glory of God that's at stake.
It's the person and the work of the Lord Jesus. It's the doctrine of justification by faith alone. Why does Luther do that? Was Luther brought up as a superhero?
Did he have a cape? Did he wear a mask? No. He saw that the Church of Rome compromised on the issue of authority.
He saw that the Church of Rome compromised on the issue of justification. That's why he says, here I stand, I can do no other. We have the Apostle Paul who's moving and milling about an entire empire that's given over to heathenism and paganism and gross idolatry. He's going to these Jewish synagogues and he's preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ to a people who should have seen it, who should have understood it.
They had Micah 5.2, they had the prophets, they had Isaiah 53, and yet they reject Jesus. He sees that and it affects him. He agonizes as an apostle. And so when it comes time to serve as his Christ, it's not his safety that's first and foremost for him.
It is Jesus. It is the work of gospel ministry that is everything for him. Calvin says it was surely a profitable example of invincible constancy, seeing that he offered himself willingly and wittingly to the violence of the adversaries. and no less profitable is it for us this day that his apostleship should be confirmed with his voluntary and no less constant giving over of his life. There is this resolution on the part of the apostle that come what may, I'm going to do what he's called me to do.
So let's not try to dissuade people from doing that. Again, there are wrong-headed people out there with strange and odd duck motives living in light of bad interpretation that we should certainly rise up and say, you're nuts and you shouldn't go do that. But when it's a man like Paul, who is committed to the truth of the gospel, when it's a man like Paul who's been given this confirmation by the Spirit and he is resolute about it, we ought to say, we'll pray for you, brother. Go in the fear of God and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit and do what the Lord has called you to.
Now, I don't want to go too far, but there seems to be a Paul-Jesus sort of parallel here. Remember Jesus? Luke chapter 9, He set His face like a flint to go to Jerusalem. He's not going to be taken aback.
He is not going to be sidetracked. He is not going to shrink back from doing that which the Father had given Him. And it seems to me that the companions of Paul understood this. Whether they saw the parallel between Paul and his master, notice what they surmised at the end.
Verse 14, So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The language indicates that they tried. They tried to prevail upon him. But notice, the will of the Lord be done. They understand that God's will is foremost, God's will is primary, God's will is uppermost, and Paul is following it, and in that, we will gladly give him leave.
The Lord taught this in Matthew 6.10, and the Lord exemplifies this in the garden in Matthew 26. Not my will, but thine be done. Paul's committed, now the companions are on board, and then they move on in their journey.
Arrival in Jerusalem
And that brings us to the arrival in Jerusalem, verses 15 to 16, the party pact. In verse 15, again, to resume their journey, most commentators suggest they use beasts of burden at this time. It's about a 65 mile trek between Caesarea and Jerusalem. And then they lodge with this fellow Manasseh.
He was a Cypriot. That means he was from Cyprus. And when it says that he was an early disciple, You go back to Acts chapter 11, it seemed like Cyprus had already been evangelized. Acts chapter 13, it's formally evangelized by Paul and Barnabas on that first missionary journey.
So this Manasseh, it wasn't that he was an old man, but he was an early disciple. He had been conquered by God's grace early on. And so this man gave them lodging, this man gave them care, this man gave them the things that they needed.
Application
Well, in conclusion, I want to draw out just a few quick lessons. First, the conclusion of the three missionary journeys. It really is an amazing thing, what happens in the passages that we have surveyed. The first place, the time frame, about AD 47 to 57, so about a span of 10 years.
The first missionary journey was 47 to 48, the second 49 to 52, the third was 53 to 57. The miles covered, about 20,000 kilometers, which, as I understand from my quick Google search, was about 12,400 and something miles. That's a lot of distance. And those weren't frequent flyer miles.
There was a lot covered by a boat. There were beasts of birdhead, but those shoes got a lot of wear on them as well. So they covered quite a bit of distance. But then consider what the impact was with reference to these three missionary journeys.
In sort of a classic book on the missionary enterprises, an Anglican author named Roland Allett. It's called Missionary Methods, and then the subtitle is, Saint Paul's or Ours? And make sure you know he's an Anglican, that's why he uses the saint there. So listen to what he says concerning the missionary journeys.
He says, in little more than 10 years, Saint Paul established the church in four provinces of the empire. We're not talking about the lower mainland, brethren. The Roman Empire was comprehensive. It was huge.
It was massive. Again, 12,000 plus miles were traveled. Paul established the church in four provinces of the empire. Galatia, Macedonia, Achaia, and Asia.
Before AD 47, there were no churches in these provinces. There were no churches. There may have been individuals, there may have been persons that had been to Jerusalem, they heard the gospel, that sort of thing. But in terms of churches, no.
In AD 57, St. Paul could speak as if his work there was done. Why? Because when Paul went, And when Paul planted churches, he emphasized the need for elders, because Paul wasn't always going to be around.
That's why he tells Timothy in 2 Timothy 4, verse 2, preach the word, be ready in season and out of season, convince, rebuke, and exhort with all long-suffering and teaching. Why? Because they're not going to endure sound doctrine. And why?
Because I'm going to lead. My departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race.
I have kept the faith. The apostle Paul knew that the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ was crucial, so churches were established with elders. So he goes on to say, St. Paul could speak as if his work there was done, and could plan extensive tours in the far west without anxiety, lest the churches which he had founded might perish in his absence for want of his guidance and support.
In other words, he did what church planters should always do, strive to make it such that they're self-functioning, they're self-governing. They don't need Paul to come around every few months to make sure everything's okay. No, Paul's whole ministry was aimed at not only getting people saved, but keeping people instructed by an educated ministry that would handle the word and doctrine and make sure that the churches were doing what the churches should have done. These three missionary journeys are absolutely glorious in terms of God's blessing upon the Apostle Paul and his myriad of companions.
Secondly, we ought to appreciate the commitment of the Apostle Paul. Again, we don't worship Paul. We're not of Paul in the sense that he's our guru. But boy, do we respect the fact that God used him.
Do we respect the fact that when it came time to have a man to do what Paul was called to do, Paul was that man. I mean, everything about Paul is the kind of guy you want to be with. Everything about Paul is attractive in the sense of Christianity. Paul embodies the ethics, Paul embodies the practice, and Paul emphasizes the truth every step of the way.
So just in this brief section, we see first his commitment to relationship. Again, verses 1, 4, 7, and 8. Wherever he went, he found brethren. Secondly, the apostle Paul was well loved by other believers.
It's a good thing. Remember in the instance where Jesus in his ministry needs to teach the disciples something about humility, and he has this little child come to him, and he uses this little child, not as a prop, But he uses this little child, not uses, that's probably not even the best language, but he illustrates, he uses, it's an illustration of what it is to be, you know, humble in the sight of God. Notice that the child didn't kick and scream and say, I want nothing to do with you. Notice that the child didn't say, I don't want to be around that man.
I mean, we've seen certain images of certain political figures where kids are pulling themselves away. That's not true with Jesus. That's not true with Paul. It's not only the guys in the church, but their wives and their children.
They get down on their knees and they pray together. So not only does he love, but he's loved. Thirdly, the Apostle Paul was affected by the pain of his brethren. Again, not a theology machine.
Why are you weeping? You're breaking my heart. This affects me. Then ultimately, the Apostle Paul was committed to his blessed Lord.
May God, in his infinite grace and mercy, and may God, in his loving kindness, give us this resolve. I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. And the reason for this is his continual emphasis in his life. He already stated that in chapter 20, verse 21, testifying to both Jews and Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
In other words, why does he do what he does? Because men, women, boys, and girls are under God's wrath and curse for their having sinned against Him. They will suffer everlasting perdition away from the presence of God and the glory of the Lamb. Paul knows that.
He speaks of that in 2 Corinthians 5. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men. He understood God's holiness, he understood man's depravity, and he saw that blessed remedy in the gospel of Jesus Christ. That's what activated him, that's what motivated him, that's what moved him to be the man that we find here in Acts 21 on his way to Jerusalem.
Well, let us pray.
Closing Prayer
Our Father, we thank You for Your Word, and we thank You for that Gospel, that testifying to both Jews and Greeks' repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Our hearts desire and earnest plea is that more and more people would understand this, More and more people would believe on Christ. More and more people would come out of darkness into marvelous light and see that Jesus Christ alone is the one in whom there is salvation. We are jealous for that in our own meeting place.
We are hopeful, Lord God, that you would do that work which is impossible with men, but is possible with you. That you'd open hearts and convict of sin and set forth the glory of Jesus. We pray that for our meeting, we pray that for other churches in Chilliwack, throughout this nation, and to the uttermost parts of the earth. And God, give us all the sort of commitment and resolve that we see here in the Apostle Paul, that if you call upon us to suffer, that if you call upon us even to die for the cause of our Lord Jesus Christ, we would do so.
Not in some sick or twisted way, but in obedience to our blessed God and Father. And we thank you that the gospel is so glorious, that it is worth being bound for, it is worth dying for. And so God, help us to understand it's worth living for as well, and cause us to be faithful witnesses in this world. And we ask this through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Amen.