Fit For the Kingdom
May 16, 2021
Preached by Ben Bechtel
Scripture Reading
Acts 28:1-28
28:1 After we were brought safely through, we then learned that the island was called Malta. 2 The native people showed us unusual kindness, for they kindled a fire and welcomed us all, because it had begun to rain and was cold. 3 When Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and put them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened on his hand. 4 When the native people saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “No doubt this man is a murderer. Though he has escaped from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live.” 5 He, however, shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. 6 They were waiting for him to swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But when they had waited a long time and saw no misfortune come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god.
7 Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the chief man of the island, named Publius, who received us and entertained us hospitably for three days. 8 It happened that the father of Publius lay sick with fever and dysentery. And Paul visited him and prayed, and putting his hands on him, healed him. 9 And when this had taken place, the rest of the people on the island who had diseases also came and were cured. 10 They also honored us greatly, and when we were about to sail, they put on board whatever we needed.
11 After three months we set sail in a ship that had wintered in the island, a ship of Alexandria, with the twin gods as a figurehead. 12 Putting in at Syracuse, we stayed there for three days. 13 And from there we made a circuit and arrived at Rhegium. And after one day a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli. 14 There we found brothers and were invited to stay with them for seven days. And so we came to Rome.15 And the brothers there, when they heard about us, came as far as the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns to meet us. On seeing them, Paul thanked God and took courage. 16 And when we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself, with the soldier who guarded him.
17 After three days he called together the local leaders of the Jews, and when they had gathered, he said to them, “Brothers, though I had done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers, yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. 18 When they had examined me, they wished to set me at liberty, because there was no reason for the death penalty in my case. 19 But because the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar—though I had no charge to bring against my nation. 20 For this reason, therefore, I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am wearing this chain.” 21 And they said to him, “We have received no letters from Judea about you, and none of the brothers coming here has reported or spoken any evil about you. 22 But we desire to hear from you what your views are, for with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against.”
23 When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. 24 And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved. 25 And disagreeing among themselves, they departed after Paul had made one statement: “The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet:
26 “‘Go to this people, and say,
“You will indeed hear but never understand,
and you will indeed see but never perceive.”
27 For this people's heart has grown dull,
and with their ears they can barely hear,
and their eyes they have closed;
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.’
28 Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.”
As human beings, although we do not consciously think like this, we see ourselves as part of a larger, overarching story. Underlying all of our decisions and actions is a story that helps us to make sense of the world. One helpful way to dig down and discover the story you use to make sense of life is to ask yourself these three questions: where have we been? Where are we now? Where are we going? For instance, a typical person in our world today would probably answer those three questions in the following ways:
Where have we been?—The universe came to be by some mysterious instance billions of years ago. Since then, the universe has been expanding and evolving by scientific processes at random.
Where are we now?—Human beings came on the scene late in this evolutionary process. Humans now dominate the hierarchy of creatures here on earth as the most intelligent, highly evolved creature.
Where are we going?—Our sun will die, the solar system will cool, and eventually the entire universe will contract back into itself.
That story is one that underlies the choices and actions of many modern people. Some of you here this morning likely resonate with that story.
We have now come to the final chapter in our study of the Book of Acts. As the concluding chapter, Luke the author inspired by God’s Spirit ends his book in a way we might not expect. Luke has been recounting Paul’s journey as he has stood on trial several times and has been sent to Rome to stand trial before Caesar. However, rather than highlighting Paul’s action and how he stands up to Caesar, Luke foregrounds a different theme. In verses 23 and 30, which Benjamin will cover more next week, Luke foregrounds the theme of the kingdom of God. The story that animated Jesus, Paul, the early church, and as we read in verse 23, the story of the whole Bible, is the story of the kingdom of God, of heaven coming to earth. When the Bible speaks of the kingdom of God it refers to a community in which God is present with a people that submits to his kingship and upholds his laws. In contrast to all of our self-authored stories, the book of Acts puts on display the kingdom of God as the true story of reality, a story which should result in our worship of God as king.
1. Seek First the Kingdom
As we left Paul, Luke, and the other 274 passengers onboard last week, they got caught in a storm. But God was faithful to his promise to Paul, and they all safely crash landed onto an island. In verse 1 we find out this island is Malta. Now these first 16 verses of chapter 28 record the journey of these men from Malta to Rome. Just to get a little reference as to where they came from and where they end up, here is a map.
These 16 verses feel a lot like if the TV shows Crocodile Hunter, Lost, and Gilligan’s Island were all to be combined into one TV program. The crew is brought in and shown hospitality by the natives to this island, Paul gets bit by a deadly snake and doesn’t die after which the people think he is a god, they meet the leader of the island, heal people in the name of Jesus, set sail for Rome, and meet Christian brothers on the way. Then in verse 16 we see the fulfillment of Paul’s desires and God’s plan to send Paul to Rome:
16 And when we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself, with the soldier who guarded him.
We should read this verse and breathe a sigh relief. All the way back in 19:21 Paul states his desire to go to Rome. All of chapters 20-28:16 show the faithfulness and providence of God in bringing Paul to Rome for the spread of the gospel. The leader of the newborn church has come to the belly of the beast of the Roman empire. God’s kingdom is poised to be proclaimed to the ends of the earth (1:8). This all happened through a man who sought first the kingdom of God and had all things added to him (Matt. 6:33).
The journey on which Paul embarks in these final chapters is amazing. It makes any modern person’s heart leap for joy with wanderlust. Paul is caught up in the story of God’s kingdom and seeks to tell everyone of King Jesus. And as he does, his life is a wild ride. So many of us try to fill the boredom of our secular age, brought on by swiping on screens and clicking buttons on a remote, through the means of travel. We get a treehouse Airbnb in the woods surrounded by grizzly bears or we go on backpacking trips to remote mountain forests. In doing this, what we are all longing for is glory, for our lives to have significance, adventure, importance.
In seeking the kingdom of God as Paul does, a vision for life opens up to us that rejects the bored malaise of this age. Paul trusted that his life was about a mission and kingdom bigger than his own personal pleasure and happiness and thus his life was opened up to true glory. Do you believe that God is up to big things around you? Do you have faith he can use your life for his grand, glorious purpose of drawing the nations to himself? In Christ your life is not boring! As the author Paul Tripp puts it, “Unbelief shrinks the size of our own life down to the size of our own life.”[1]
Notice this though: even as the leading apostle of the church, the way in which Paul pursued the kingdom was through daily acts of faithfulness no matter the circumstances. His grand work of being an apostle included two years in jail in Jerusalem and two more years in house arrest in Rome. These are not glamorous circumstances, not what we typically think of as glorious and grand. And yet, these years in Rome were some of his most productive for the kingdom, as he penned many NT letters. Paul simply kept his focus on seeking the kingdom of God one step at a time, one day at a time. His mundane faithfulness to pursuing the kingdom in jail cells, backwater towns, and under house arrest led to him preaching the gospel in Rome.
Jesus desires to work mightily through his church. But the means by which he does that is our ordinary faithfulness. Wherever the Lord has put you, seek his kingdom. Commit to faithfully pray for your community group. Love and teach your children well. Serve the poor and vulnerable in our community. Seek to get to know your non-Christian friends. Kill sin in your life. You don’t have to strive after glory. Rather, as you perform these ordinary acts of faithfulness Jesus will use you to bring about the glorious effects of his kingdom.
2. The Lies of False Kings
From his providentially granted location in house arrest, Paul begins to minister starting with the Jews. He invites the leading Jewish people over to his house for a Bible study and he gets a great turnout. These Jewish people seem eager to learn about Christianity. As Paul opens the pages of Scripture to teach them about the kingdom of God, we think maybe this is the time when the Jewish people will respond. But then we receive what has now become an expected response in the book of Acts (vv. 24-27):
24 And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved. 25 And disagreeing among themselves, they departed after Paul had made one statement: “The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet:
26 “‘Go to this people, and say,
“You will indeed hear but never understand,
and you will indeed see but never perceive.”
27 For this people's heart has grown dull,
and with their ears they can barely hear,
and their eyes they have closed;
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.’
There is a split response to Paul’s message, a response which elicits this warning from the apostle Paul cited from Is. 6:9-10. A key word to understanding this warning is the word “dull” in verse 27. That word “dull” is actually better translated as “fat.” The medical image here is of a heart that has so much fat built up around it that it cannot function properly.
The question then becomes what is it that causes the heart of this people to grow fat? The quotation from Is. 6:9-10 here in Acts 28 also has parallels to Ps. 115, a psalm about the superiority of the Lord over the gods of the nations. This psalm gives us a clue into how to answer this question (vv. 4-8):
[The people’s] idols are silver and gold,
the work of human hands.
5 They have mouths, but do not speak;
eyes, but do not see.
6 They have ears, but do not hear;
noses, but do not smell.
7 They have hands, but do not feel;
feet, but do not walk;
and they do not make a sound in their throat.
8 Those who make them become like them;
so do all who trust in them.
Did you catch that at the end? Those who make and worship these lifeless, inanimate, deaf and dumb idols become like them. Do you see that the language used to describe the idols there is used to describe Israel’s leaders here in v. 27? They have become like the idols they worship.
We are no less religious than these ancient people. We all worship things which are not God, things which are not meant to be worshipped, as God. This is the definition of idolatry. You see, as our hearts tune into the lies of false gods we become deaf to hear the promises of the true God. The true spiritual state of these Jewish people here in Acts 28 is that of sedentary people eating only the junk food of idolatrous worship. If you eat Doritos and drink soda the night before you may be able to get out of bed and run the next morning but you’re going to feel it. If you eat Doritos and drink soda for 6 months and try to do the same, you’ll be gasping for breath and likely quit before you run a mile.
The warning of this passage is that the same reality is true of our hearts. The more you suck the lies of a false god down your gullet the harder it will be to hear the promise of the true God and respond in seeking his kingdom rather than the petty kingdoms of your idols. Believing the false promises of idols makes us as lifeless as those idols, making it harder and harder to respond to the promises of God’s kingdom.
We don’t know the particular nature of these Jewish people’s idolatry, but we can make an educated guess based on the rest of the book of Acts that it had to do with their own religious symbols and customs. The false gods and the stories of their false kingdoms we fall for take different forms. We might believe the idol of sex that promises fulfillment of all our sexual desires. We might believe the idol of family that promises us the perfect idyllic domestic life. We might believe the idol of self that promises us that if we can just find and express our true self then we will be happy and whole. And notice the thrust of this warning from Acts 28: these idols can exist with our Bibles wide open. These Jewish leaders were Bible experts. And yet, because they had listened to the lie that they deserved a special place in God’s kingdom, they couldn’t hear the true promise of Jesus and his kingdom of grace. The warning goes a step further: every time they ignore that message and cling to the false promises of their idols their hearts get a little harder, a little fatter.
Here is one diagnostic question to ask yourself to see if you are currently enamored with the lies of your idols: what has been your heart’s response in recent days and weeks when you hear the word preached or when you read the word? Have you been bored or unenthused? Are there parts of the Bible you’ve tried to ignore or keep at arm’s length? Have you been quick to apply the word to your own heart or to jump quickly to applying it to others? Have your ears only perked up in a sermon when we are talking about your pet theological or political issue from the pulpit? You are either believing in, worshipping, and becoming like an idol or you are believing in, worshipping, and becoming like the true God. God is speaking his promises even this morning and we desperately need to hear them. The question is are you listening or has your worship and pursuit of the junk food promises of false gods caused you to grow numb to the promises of the true God?
3. The Promise of the True King
To those who pursue the fatty and false promises of our idols, the end of this text holds out a wonderful promise from King Jesus (vv. 26-28):
26 “‘Go to this people, and say,
“You will indeed hear but never understand,
and you will indeed see but never perceive.”
27 For this people's heart has grown dull,
and with their ears they can barely hear,
and their eyes they have closed;
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.’
28 Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.”
Now the first question you may have as you read that is, does this text mean that God is forsaking his mission to reach the Jewish people? On the surface it may sound like that. It sounds like God has his missionary sights set on the target of the Jews but since they reject his message, he turns his missionary sights to another target of the Gentiles. However, this is to misunderstand what is going on here. Rather than changing targets, in this new age in which Jesus reigns as king, God is widening out his scope and broadening the target of his missionary love. The bullseye of God’s mission is expanding to encompass the nations. Clearly God isn’t excluding the Jewish people from embracing the gospel because in v. 24 we clearly read that some Jews accepted the gospel.
In fact, this passage teaches that God holds out his gracious promise to all who worship idols, to all people. He has expanded his promises of grace to the Gentiles who are lost worshipping the pagan gods of sex, power, nature (v. 28). Yet in expanding that promise he still holds out hope to the Jewish people, those who worship the gods of morality and religious duty (v. 27). In both of these realities, the expanding of the scope of God’s mission to idolatrous nations and the hope held out for idolatrous Israel, we behold the essence of what makes Jesus’s kingdom beautiful.
You see, Jesus’s kingdom is not one in which spiritually unfit people have to start eating healthy and get to a certain level of fitness before they can join. The only requirement of welcome into the kingdom of Jesus is to turn, as verse 27 states. The only fitness you need for the kingdom is to recognize that you are spiritually obese and weighed down. As the great hymn Come Ye Sinners says about coming to Jesus, “All the fitness he requires is to feel your need of him.” The beauty of our King is that he doesn’t come to you as a personal trainer, who tells you how to shed the pounds. He comes to heal you completely. He comes to give you a better story, a story of grace, a story about himself.
Friends, as you hear this promise of the kingdom today, see in his kingdom a life story better than any we could write ourselves.
Where have we been?—The world was created good by God, and we were created in his image to worship him. Yet, we all have chosen to listen to the lies of idols and rebel against the voice of our loving King. Our lives are dull, boring, painful, broken, and torn apart as a result of our continual pursuit of these false kingdoms.
Where are we?—We now live in an age in which, by his sacrificial death and glorious resurrection Jesus is King. For all who are members of that kingdom by grace through trusting in Jesus our life consists in displaying the glories of King Jesus by seeking his kingdom and its righteousness in all of life. Thus, despite our sin we have a glorious and grand purpose.
Where are we going?—We are headed for a future in which Jesus sets up his kingdom fully here on earth and where all of our idols are trampled under his feet.
Look outside of yourself to King Jesus and his better story. The size of your life is not limited to the size of your life. Jesus is Lord and this changes everything. This is the promise of the kingdom of God. This is the story of the book of Acts. The question is, is this your story? Come to him and find healing for your weighed down hearts and a purpose for your life more significant, more weighty, than any other story can offer.
[1] Cited in the sermon The Unstoppable Kingdom preached by Dave Cover at The Crossing Church. https://www.thecrossingchurch.com/media-feeds/the-unstoppable-kingdom/
Family Discussion Questions:
1. What are some areas in which God is calling you to faithfully pursue his kingdom in your everyday life? How does viewing life like this change your perspective of those “ordinary” things?
2. What idols are you worshipping? What false promises of theirs are you buying into?
3. How do the true promises of Jesus in the message of the kingdom proclaim something better to you than the lies of your idols?
