Daily Thoughts from Acts: Provision in Persecution (Acts 23:1-11)

And looking intently at the council, Paul said, “Brothers, I have lived my life before God in all good conscience up to this day.” And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth. Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Are you sitting to judge me according to the law, and yet contrary to the law you order me to be struck?” Those who stood by said, “Would you revile God’s high priest?” And Paul said, “I did not know, brothers, that he was the high priest, for it is written, ‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’”

Now when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Brothers, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees. It is with respect to the hope and the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial.” And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all. Then a great clamor arose, and some of the scribes of the Pharisees’ party stood up and contended sharply, “We find nothing wrong in this man. What if a spirit or an angel spoke to him?”  And when the dissension became violent, the tribune, afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him away from among them by force and bring him into the barracks.

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 23:1-11 ESV)

The character of the high priest has not changed since the trial of Jesus.  He illegally has Paul struck just to exercise his power over him and threaten him into silence, but Paul won’t be silenced.  Why Paul didn’t know it was the high priest who had ordered him struck is attributed to one of three reasons: (1) he hadn’t been in Jerusalem in years and the appearance of the high priest had changed, (2) he had poor eyesight as Galatians 4:15 and 6:11 might indicate, or (3) he didn’t realize the command had come at the high priest’s initiation.  At any rate, Paul does not retract his words but acknowledges that one must not speak evil of one’s ruler (Exodus 22:28).  The high priest is a whitewashed wall, looking good on the surface but hiding an evil heart.

Paul uses the makeup of the Sanhedrin or council to stir dissension, knowing that the Pharisees believe in the resurrection and Sadducees do not.  His ploy works but the dissension is so great the Tribune feels Paul’s safety is at risk once more and removes him to the barracks.  He is struggling to find out why Paul is the source of so much anger and doesn’t understand why adherence to Jesus as resurrected Messiah preached to the Gentiles brings such a response. 

The Lord has shown Paul through prophecies up to this point that imprisonment awaits him but this night he appears to Paul and assures him that he will end up giving testimony in Rome.  For Paul this at least initially means he won’t be executed here in Israel.  Somehow he must make it to Rome.  Paul knows that he has the right as a Roman citizen to an appeal of any decision against him, an appeal that takes place in Caesar’s court in Rome.  But he must first go through the trial awaiting him in Israel.

The Lord knows how to care for us when we are persecuted.  Paul needed to “take courage” and the Lord Jesus appeared to him to give him that courage.  He will meet our needs in times of suffering and persecution.

Almost every day, it was evident God was supernaturally helping me.

As hard as it was for me, it was harder on my wife, Marina, and our daughters—Masha, Sasha and Vera. They had to travel more than 600 miles to visit me, but they never missed a visitation. Marina had memorized many Psalms and would recite them to me, a blessing because the Bible was forbidden during my four years in prison.

Psalm 118:17 comforted me from my first days in jail: “I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.” Often, I was on the verge of death, and at several points I wished I could die. But God’s mercy prevailed.

I turned 40 years old in jail, praying that day for a gift from God but not telling anyone about my birthday. I was compelled against my will by the prison staff to go to the library with the other inmates that day. I thought I’d read everything worth reading there. While scouring the shelves, I spotted a book titled The Path to a New Life. I looked at it and my heart began to beat faster. It was the New Testament, concealed enough by the title that the censor must have mistaken it for a self-help book.

[for the full story of this pastor’s conversion and God’s provision see https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/march-2017/ready-to-suffer/]