Thorburn-Sutherland's River Pastoral Charge

Heavenly Father, source of all wisdom and understanding, amid so many competing voices, let us hear your word for our times. Send your Holy Spirit to help us discern your will and follow the path Jesus sets for us as your Living Word. Amen

As we read through the book of Acts, we see that the Apostle Paul suffered for his ministry and for his obedience to his calling. He was constantly under the threat of death from the Temple leaders in Jerusalem, he had been stoned and left for dead, and his teaching had even caused riots. But Paul was totally committed to his mission which had been given to him by our Lord and Saviour.

This commitment began while he was on his way to the city of Damascus to arrest the Christians who were there, Jesus appeared to Paul and said to him “‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?’ … ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But get up and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.’” (Acts 9:4-6) Upon entering Damascus Paul was met by a Christian by the name of Ananias, who had him baptised and he became one of the strongest defenders of the faith.

Not long after Paul had that encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus and was baptised in Damascus he returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the Temple. Paul was a devout Jew, so much so that he had made it his life’s mission to try and crush this upstart religion, Christianity. He had now gone to the Temple to pray, trying to determine what God’s will for him was. Paul tells us what took place, “After I had returned to Jerusalem and while I was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance and saw Jesus saying to me, “Hurry and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about me.” And I said, “Lord, they themselves know that in every synagogue I imprisoned and beat those who believed in you. And while the blood of your witness Stephen was shed, I myself was standing by, approving and keeping the coats of those who killed him.” Then he said to me, ‘Go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’” (Acts 22:17-21)

So convinced, Paul accepted the command of Jesus and for the next few years began spreading the Gospel message to the Gentile people. And now, in this morning’s reading, he is at the end of his third missionary journey and is determined that he must return to Jerusalem. One of the reasons Paul felt this was because he had with him a gift of money for the people of the church at Jerusalem. Because, after all, Paul had become the minister of the Gospel to the Gentiles, and it was important for him to establish the fact that the Church throughout the world was one church. And if the churches from other places could send this gift, through the Apostle and his friends, to the church in Jerusalem, which was poor and in need, it would express the unity of the one Body of Christ. It meant a great deal to Paul, and that was one of the things that made him determined to go to Jerusalem.

Now, Paul had a conviction, which was, “God wants me to get this money to the believers in Jerusalem. They need it, and it’ll help unify the church. I’ve got to get there.” That was his conviction; that was his objective; that was his goal. And so, he pursued it. He had something to which he was committed.

And while he was on his way, the ship which he was sailing on made a stop at the city of Tyre to unload some cargo, so Paul disembarked and went and stayed a week with some believers who were there. While he was with them, he was given this warning, “Through the Spirit they told Paul not to go on to Jerusalem” But Paul had his convictions and so he continued on towards his goal. As for the believers in Tyre, we’re told, “When our days there were ended, we left and proceeded on our journey; and all of them, with wives and children, escorted us outside the city. There we knelt down on the beach and prayed and said farewell to one another. Then we went on board the ship, and they returned home.” They knew that they would not see Paul again, so they prayed for his safety.

So, Paul sailed away from Tyre, leaving the followers of Jesus there on the beach, knowing that he would never see them again. After a day’s stop along the way he arrived in the city of Caesarea, which was on the shores of the Mediterranean, in what is modern day Israel. Once there, he went and stayed at the house of a believer by the name of Phillip.

We heard about Phillip earlier in the book of Acts, here’s how we were first introduced to him, “Now during those days, when the disciples were increasing in number, the Hellenists complained against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food. And the twelve called together the whole community of the disciples and said, ‘It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait at tables. Therefore, friends, select from among yourselves seven men of good standing, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this task, while we, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word.’ What they said pleased the whole community, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, together with Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch.” (Acts 6:1-5)

So, Philip, because he was blessed by the Holy Spirit, became a leader of the church in Jerusalem. But it wasn’t long after that when the Apostle Paul, who at that time was still a devout Jew, started persecuting the Christians who were in Jerusalem. Things became so dangerous that many of them left the city to escape the wrath of Paul. One of them was Philip, who went into the surrounding regions proclaiming the message of salvation through faith in Jesus to all who would listen to him. He became a powerful evangelist and ended up living and preaching in Caesarea. It had been a number of years since he had left Jerusalem but now his former persecutor, Paul, shows up to stay with him.

And while there Paul gets another warning to stay away from Jerusalem. This is what took place, “While we were staying there for several days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. He came to us and took Paul’s belt, bound his own feet and hands with it, and said, ‘Thus says the Holy Spirit, “This is the way the Jews in Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.”’” A prophet, called Agabus, comes to Paul and tells him that if he goes to Jerusalem, he will be imprisoned by the Temple leaders and handed over to the Gentiles.

So, how does Paul react? Does he doubt his faith, does he question God’s justice or his will? On the contrary, Paul replies,’...I am ready, not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.’ What gave Paul such boldness and what made him so prepared for the fight even though he had just been in a time of peace? It was because he had kept his mind focused on God’s will and purpose in the good times as well as the bad. It didn’t matter whether he was being persecuted or breaking bread with fellow Christians, either way he knew that his purpose was to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ, and he was ready for anything he might encounter along the way.

Paul was moving toward Jerusalem. And he was well aware that all the way along, every step he took, every town he came to, the Holy Spirit kept testifying to him that troubles and afflictions awaited him there. But did that stop him? No, not a bit. He still didn’t stop, because he had a conviction from God, and he had the courage to see it through.

Paul was following the example of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus. When Jesus was preparing to go to Jerusalem for the final time, he knew what awaited him and what would happen to him there. This is what the Apostle Matthew tells us in his gospel, “From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, ‘God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.’ But he turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling-block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.’ Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?” (Matthew 16:21-26)

And doesn’t Paul echo those words of Christ when he says this to his fellow believers who were trying to discourage him from making that same trip, “‘And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem without knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit warns me in town after town that imprisonment and persecutions are waiting for me. But I do not consider my life worth anything to myself, so that I may finish my task and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the good news of God’s grace.’” (Acts 20:22-24). Paul was a committed follower of Jesus.

Paul knew the cost that he would have to pay and yet was determined to follow through on his mission. We see that even the Holy Spirit warned Paul twice about the dangers of going to Jerusalem. After Agabus had given his prophecy about Paul, even Paul’s closest followers begged Paul not to go to Jerusalem. The group wanted to protect the beloved apostle from harm, possibly death, and to keep him for themselves and for the mission of the church.

Keeping our conviction to follow Jesus is a vital aspect of our Christian faith. It means that we are committed to living according to his teachings and example, even when we face challenges, temptations, or opposition. It also means that we are willing to grow in our relationship with him, through prayer, worship, and service. Conviction is not a feeling, but a decision that we make every day, based on the truth of God's word and the power of his Spirit. Conviction gives us courage, strength, and joy, as we follow Jesus in every area of our lives.

Now, there are always the necessary distractions in life, even our work and family, but we need to keep our focus on God throughout. If we can keep our focus on God’s plan and will for our lives, then we will be better equipped to deal with the problems that come along. Are you keeping focused?

After hearing Paul’s conviction to follow God’s will, no matter how hard it is, we’re told how other believers responded: “‘And since he would not be persuaded, we ceased and said, ‘Let the will of God be done.’”  This is a good reminder for all of us. Ultimately, what we want is for the will of God to be done. We need to do what God wants us to do, even if it’s hard. We need to stay committed even when others don’t understand.

Oswald Sanders, a missionary in the 20^th century tells this story of true commitment; “Back in the 1800’s a Coastguard rescue service was established in England. Their responsibility was to monitor the coast for any signs of ships in danger. When a ship was in trouble they were to go out and give them aid. During one particularly fierce storm a ship started to flounder and so a lifeboat and crew started out to give help. Shortly after launching, one of the crewmembers, who was on his first rescue mission, yelled out to the captain, ‘It’s too dangerous, we’ll never get back!’ This was the captain’s reply above the howling wind, ‘We don’t have to come back, but we do have to go out.’”

And wasn’t that what Paul understood, he had to go to Jerusalem, but he didn’t have to come back.

Let us Pray:

Father, we thank you for again opening up our insights to the word. We thank you for what we see in the life of Paul by way of courage and commitment. We pray, Father, that in a special way you would help us to apply these principles that have become ours in terms of hearing, that they may become ours in terms of doing. Help us to be committed and to see the fulfillment of everything God intended for us and give us a courage of conviction. Amen