All Things to All Men for All of God’s Glory
February 21, 2021
Preached by Benjamin Vrbicek
Scripture Reading
Acts 21:1-36
1 And when we had parted from them and set sail, we came by a straight course to Cos, and the next day to Rhodes, and from there to Patara. 2 And having found a ship crossing to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. 3 When we had come in sight of Cyprus, leaving it on the left we sailed to Syria and landed at Tyre, for there the ship was to unload its cargo. 4 And having sought out the disciples, we stayed there for seven days. And through the Spirit they were telling Paul not to go on to Jerusalem. 5 When our days there were ended, we departed and went on our journey, and they all, with wives and children, accompanied us until we were outside the city. And kneeling down on the beach, we prayed 6 and said farewell to one another. Then we went on board the ship, and they returned home.
7 When we had finished the voyage from Tyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, and we greeted the brothers and stayed with them for one day. 8 On the next day we departed and came to Caesarea, and we entered the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, and stayed with him. 9 He had four unmarried daughters, who prophesied. 10 While we were staying for many days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 11 And coming to us, he took Paul's belt and bound his own feet and hands and said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ‘This is how the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’”12 When we heard this, we and the people there urged him not to go up to Jerusalem. 13 Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” 14 And since he would not be persuaded, we ceased and said, “Let the will of the Lord be done.”
15 After these days we got ready and went up to Jerusalem.16 And some of the disciples from Caesarea went with us, bringing us to the house of Mnason of Cyprus, an early disciple, with whom we should lodge.
17 When we had come to Jerusalem, the brothers received us gladly. 18 On the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present. 19 After greeting them, he related one by one the things that God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. 20 And when they heard it, they glorified God. And they said to him, “You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed. They are all zealous for the law, 21 and they have been told about you that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or walk according to our customs. 22 What then is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come. 23 Do therefore what we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow; 24 take these men and purify yourself along with them and pay their expenses, so that they may shave their heads. Thus all will know that there is nothing in what they have been told about you, but that you yourself also live in observance of the law. 25 But as for the Gentiles who have believed, we have sent a letter with our judgment that they should abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality.” 26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day he purified himself along with them and went into the temple, giving notice when the days of purification would be fulfilled and the offering presented for each one of them.
27 When the seven days were almost completed, the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him, 28 crying out, “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who is teaching everyone everywhere against the people and the law and this place. Moreover, he even brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.” 29 For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple. 30 Then all the city was stirred up, and the people ran together. They seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple, and at once the gates were shut. 31 And as they were seeking to kill him, word came to the tribune of the cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion. 32 He at once took soldiers and centurions and ran down to them. And when they saw the tribune and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. 33 Then the tribune came up and arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains. He inquired who he was and what he had done.34 Some in the crowd were shouting one thing, some another. And as he could not learn the facts because of the uproar, he ordered him to be brought into the barracks. 35 And when he came to the steps, he was actually carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the crowd, 36 for the mob of the people followed, crying out, “Away with him!”
We have the cultural phrase, “That escalated quickly.”
When Paul goes to Jerusalem in the spring of AD 57, Paul’s presence among zealous Jews incites a riot that nearly kills him. He’s only saved when a few Roman centurions commanders, along with several hundred trained and armed soldiers, swarm into a huge crowd of people to break up the fight. Acts 21, we could say, escalated quickly. Why?
The Slow and Quick Build
I’ll start with this question—why?—and we’ll work from here toward what the passage has to say to us. To answer the question of why, we’ll need to cover some history. I’ll pick five places, and we’ll count them backward: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, and boom.
There are many places we could begin our history lesson, but we’ll pick about 600 BC. In a series of attacks over several years, God caused his people to be exiled from Jerusalem and their temple destroyed. That’s 5.
About one hundred years later, another foreign king was in charge, and God caused that king to allow God’s people to return and rebuild their temple. So they did. When they returned and rebuilt, they had heightened regard for God’s commands. That’s 4.
A few hundred years after that, around 200 BC, an Egyptian ruler tried to enter the temple, something strictly forbidden. We can read about this even in the book 3 Maccabees, which is not in the Bible but recounts some of the history of that time.
11 When they [the Jews] said that this was not permitted, because not even members of their own nation were allowed to enter, not even all of the priests, but only the high priest who was pre-eminent over all—and he only once a year—the king was by no means persuaded. 12 Even after the law had been read to him, he did not cease to maintain that he ought to enter, saying, “Even if those men are deprived of this honor, I ought not to be.” (3 Maccabees 1:11–12)
That king’s attempt to enter the temple leads to an urgent time of prayer among God’s people. In fact, some of what the author calls “the bolder of the citizens” (1:22) almost fight the king at the cost of their lives but are instead persuaded to return to prayer. “If he goes in, we’ll kill ’em.” And as a result of their prayers, this Egyptian ruler became paralyzed, his guards brought him out of the area, and he left Jerusalem without going to the temple (3 Maccabees 2:1–4). That’s 3.
Another fifty years after this, a foreign ruler does go into the temple. A historian named Josephus who lived at the same time as Paul wrote this in his book Antiquities of the Jews:
And when the king had built an idol altar upon God’s altar, he slew swine upon it, and so offered a sacrifice neither according to the law, nor the Jewish religious worship in that country. (Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, 12.5.5, 253, quoted in Elwell and Yarbrough, Readings from the First-Century World, reading #12, 26)
Besides this desecration, which is the equivalent of crashing a plane into the Pentagon, the foreign king pillaged the city and the people, killing many. This led to what we call the Maccabean revolt where people successfully threw out that ruler. The temple was then rededicated with special oil and candle lights. This story is central to the Hanukkah story, which you’ve all probably heard about. That’s 2.
A little more than a hundred years later, a Jewish leader named Harrod expanded the temple grounds in significant ways, such that, around the time of Jesus, the temple grounds might have look something like this (picture taken from the ESV Study Bible, Mark 13, 1,924–5).
There are two things I want to point out to help us understand our passage. First, notice that in the back, upper corner, there is a structure called The Antonia Fortress, which was a garrison for soldiers. This is where the soldiers came rushing out to stop the riot. Second, notice there is a low wall around the perimeter of the temple. That wall was as close as a Gentile, a non-Jewish person, was allowed to get to the temple. There was a sign on that wall that read,
Foreigners must not enter inside the balustrade [wall] or into the forecourt around the sanctuary. Whoever is caught will have himself to blame for the ensuing death. (Elwell and Yarbrough, Readings from the First-Century World, reading #120, 83).
Not exactly mi casa su casa. That’s 1.
So, in Acts 21, Paul goes to Jerusalem. And he’s accused of taking a Greek into the temple grounds. That’s the boom. And with all this in mind, you can see why, in one sense, we can say that, yes, it escalated quickly. But, in another sense, years and years of history went into the moment that is Acts 21 to make it so explosive. Maybe they were right to be so leery of Paul. It sounds like he did something wrong. Did he? We’ll see.
All Things to All Men for All God’s Glory
In the interest of time, we really only have one point I should make from this passage: Christians are willing to become all things to all men for all of God’s glory. That’s the point I want to make. Christians are willing to become all things to all men for all of God’s glory. That line is an adaption of something Paul wrote in one of his letters to the church in Corinth.
19 For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. 20 To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. 21 To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. 23 I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings. (1 Corinthians 9:19–23)
This desire to do whatever he could, whatever was necessary so others would encounter the living God in the person of Jesus Christ, was Paul’s heartbeat. And we see it in action in this passage, just as we see others who do not share his same passion. Paul is ready to die for Jesus, but not everyone thinks he should. Consider, for example, those lines about the Holy Spirit, in v. 4 and vv. 11–12. This will take us a bit into the weeds, but look with me at those verses again.
4 And having sought out the disciples, we stayed there for seven days. And through the Spirit they were telling Paul not to go on to Jerusalem.
11 And coming to us, he [the prophet named Agabus] took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands and said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ‘This is how the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’” 12 When we heard this, we and the people there urged him not to go up to Jerusalem.
In both passages, we’re told that the Holy Spirit is warning Paul of the dangers of going to Jerusalem. In v. 4 we’re told that “through the Spirit they were telling Paul not to go on to Jerusalem.” That’s strange. Because Luke has already told us that the Spirit had told Paul to go to Jerusalem (19:21; 20:22–24; cf. 21:14). So, is the Spirit lying? Is God saying both “go” and “don’t go.” That can’t be. God does not contradict himself. For example, Hebrews 6:18 says that “it is impossible for God to lie.” So what’s going on?
I think the second set of verses about the Holy Spirit helps us understand v. 4. If you look at vv. 11, 12 closely, the prophet Agabus does his dramatic taking of Paul’s belt and tying himself up. Then prophet even says, “Thus says the Holy Spirit.” But then, if we look carefully, the people then urge Paul not to go, even though they eventually give up and say, “Let the will of the Lord be done” (v. 14). In other words, yes, the Spirit was correct to say that Paul would go to Jerusalem and suffer. But, no, the interpretation of that event was not that Paul should stay away. The Spirit did say it would be hard, but Paul should go anyway. In other words, both groups of Christians were likely messing up the interpretation of what God was telling them. The promise of difficulty did not mean that Christians should stay away. They likely had all sorts of spiritual reasons to offer. “Paul, you’re too important,” they said. “Paul, if you just stay away, you can write more letters.” And Paul says, “No, I’ll become all things to all men for all of God’s glory—even if that cost me my life.”
So he goes. And the Christians who were with him eventually come around. Even in Jerusalem, those Christian leaders come around too. They devise this plan for Paul to appear to support the Jewish people while at the same time not disrespecting the Gentile Christian leaders with him nor compromising the gospel. It really is a tight rope to walk. Paul is ready to die, but his hope is not death, but winning more people for Jesus, and the way that will look is a tight rope to walk.
On the one hand, if he doesn’t do something to move toward these Jews in Jerusalem, they won’t take Jesus seriously because they will write Paul off as not caring about the Old Testament, which Paul clearly does. The Old Testament is what promises the Messiah. Without the Old Testament, we wouldn’t understand who Jesus was.
But on the other hand, Paul could fall out of favor with the Gentiles who had become Christians, and if Paul does all these Jewish things, perhaps the significance Jesus would be lost. If Paul becomes “too Jewish” and does Old Testament things, maybe some will take Paul to mean that following the Old Testament Jewish laws save us, not Jesus. Paul didn’t want people to come to that conclusion. Only Jesus saves us. It is a tight rope to walk. He’s going to try to love the Jews but not lose the Gentiles nor the gospel.
I think about all the Christian leaders have been navigating over this last year—race and elections and Covid. It’s been a tight rope to walk. Sometimes our church has done it better than at other times, but at the heart of things, we’ve been trying to stay focused on the gospel while not following off into a ditch. It’s hard.
So Paul tries his best, along with the leaders in Jerusalem. Together they try to become all things to all men for all of God’s glory. But, it turns out, the religious fanatics in Jerusalem actually don’t care about the truth. Do you remember as I recounted that history, I said that maybe the Jewish people were right to be so leery of Paul? It sounds like he did something wrong. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, boom. Did he do something wrong? Look with me again at vv. 28–29 and at what causes the riot to break out.
[“Paul,” they say] “even brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.” For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple.
Notice the word “supposed.” What does that mean? The religious mob didn’t care to fact-check. Their accusation was built on a falsehood, and they did not care. Contrast this with the way Luke portrays the Roman military commander in vv. 33–34.
Then the tribune came up and arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains. He inquired who he was and what he had done. Some in the crowd were shouting one thing, some another. And as he could not learn the facts because of the uproar, he ordered him to be brought into the barracks. (vv. 33–34)
When the military leader can’t figure out the facts, he slows down. Luke writes this as a rebuke to the religious mob and perhaps us. It’s a roundabout way for Luke to remind readers, to remind us, that Christians care about the truth.
I think of something I read from Christian author Russell Moore recently. Moore was commenting on a fringe, cult-like conspiracy theory that has sucked in many Christians. In the article, he’s counseling Christians about caring for those caught up in the conspiracy. He writes this sober warning: “one cannot reason someone out of something one was never reasoned into in the first place” (Russell Moore, “Christ Over Q-Anon,” Moore to the Point Newsletter, February 1, 2021). This statement would describe these Jews. They yell about Paul, “String ’em up”—not because they care about the truth but because Paul and Christianity threaten their power. This mob loved power, and the Lordship of Jesus threatens their power. We’ll see this more clearly next week as Pastor Ben teaches Part II of this passage and Paul’s speech to the crowd.
Did Paul Fail?
Some modern commentators think that Paul’s mission failed when he went to Jerusalem. I mean, he was doing so good before this, right? This event gets him arrested and that drives the rest of the book, all the way to when Paul ends up in a prison in Rome. So clearly Paul failed. Maybe he should have listened to others and stayed away. Maybe his desire to become all things to all people got away from him. What do you think?
I don’t think he failed. I think that at the final judgment, when God opens the books of all the deeds all of his people and puts them on display, God will hold up this event. Among the many deeds that God will hold up on that day to show how Paul was in fact changed by the gospel, this event will be one of them. Jesus will point here and say, “Although Paul knew he’d be misunderstood, although Paul knew he’d be persecuted and beaten and eventually killed (because the Holy Spirit told him as much), my servant Paul went anyway, trying to become all things to all men for all of God’s glory so that more people would know me—my death, my resurrection, my love, my forgiveness. Look how I changed Paul!”
Perhaps there are people in your life right now, and you look at what it might cost to reach them, to share about Jesus, what it might cost you socially, what you might have to give up in your free time or family or money, and you wonder if it’s worth it. Is it worth it to love them? Is it worth it to commit to the local church with all her problems? Maybe you’ve been loving a spouse for a decade who doesn’t care about Jesus, and you’re already have been pouring yourself out and you wonder if God even cares? I think if we could have sat with Paul in prison, he’d tell us that Jesus is worth it, and that Jesus sees and knows and cares.
Speaking of Jesus, there’s a pivotal verse in Luke’s gospel. We read in chapter 9:51, that “When the days drew near for [Jesus] to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.” It’s an obscure line that should be precious to us. Paul could set his face to Jerusalem, just as we can set our face to serve God, because Jesus first set his face to Jerusalem for us. The Bible describes Jesus’s work of redemption by saying that Jesus appeared as our high priest, going into the temple, going into the holy of holies, not to sacrifice an animal but to be sacrificed himself on the altar for his people (Hebrews 9:11ff). If we praise Paul for being all things to all people, if Christians live to be all things to all people, if you and I serve God, it’s only because Jesus became all things for all of us.
I’ll invite the music team back up as we pray . . .
