Today’s passage: Acts 23:12-35
Helpful thoughts:
- God said Paul was going to Rome, men said Paul was going to die. Paul went to Rome.
- The severity of their oath was a means to get the Sanhedrin on board with the plan.
- These “devout” men vowed to God to kill a man and sought to use manipulation and lies in order to do it.
- Lysias utilized 470 trained soldiers to carry Paul safely away from Jerusalem.
- The letter that accompanied Paul was…mostly true. “Rescued” was a bit of a stretch. Remember, Paul was arrested and stretched out to be scourged by Lysias. But, he wasn’t about to let Felix know that.
- Paul’s all-expenses-paid trip to Rome has officially begun.
- God used men who thought they were serving God by trying to execute Paul and a commander who did not follow the God of the Jews to accomplish His will.
Questions to consider:
- These Jewish men felt very strongly about their cause. They believed they were fighting for God! Were they right? Does feeling very strongly about something mean you must be right? How do we rightly discern truth? By what standard?
- Back in verse 11, Jesus told Paul to take courage or to be of good cheer. Why would Paul have been right to rest at ease even while people were plotting to kill him? What reason has God given all of us to take heart? (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18)
- What promise has God made to His children? If you have put your faith in Jesus Christ, what do you know is in your future? (Romans 8:29-39)