Acts 22:30-23:35: "The Hand of Sovereign Providence"

Let’s take our Bibles together and turn to Acts 22. Our passage for today is Acts 22:30–23:35, as part of our series, “No Other Name.” And the key word for today’s message is providence. And we’re going to see in the book of Acts God’s hand of providence.

When I was about age 12, my pastor preached a series on marriage. I remember that series very vividly. It stirred something inside of me that set me on a course of hopeful anticipation for my future bride. And one of the things that my pastor encouraged me to do was to begin praying for a wife. So I started praying in earnest. And that might sound a bit strange to you for a 12-year-old to start praying for a wife, but I was really moved by that sermon. 

Well sure enough, my future bride around that same time moved from Croatia to Minden, Louisiana, as an exchange student. And while she was being enculturated by southern hospitality and learning the Louisianan dialect of English, I kept praying. And lo and behold, about ten years later we met up in Longview, Texas. Sanja was working as a tax accountant. I was finishing college. And God’s grand plan for our life together was unveiled. And we got married.

Now I look back on that whole situation as one of God’s great evidences in my life that he is in control, and that he is working out things in my life for the greater good. Even the hard things! I could tell you about all the bumps and bruises that Sanja and I experienced along the way before we got married. God used those things too for his greater purposes. 

And again, there’s a word that summarizes these magnificent acts of God that bring about his greater purposes. I want everyone in the room to be familiar with this word, and fond of this word, because we’re going to see evidence of it in our text today—providence.

Providence is God’s omniscient directing of our universe and all the affairs of humankind. It’s parallel to the term sovereignty, but slightly different. God’s sovereignty is his supreme authority to rule all things. God’s providence is his wise and faithful ordering of all things toward his purposes. Sovereignty answers the question: Who is in charge? Providence answers the question: How does God actively govern the world?

 Wayne Grudem writes in his Systematic Theology, “All things come to pass by God’s wise providence… The universe is not governed by impersonal fate or luck, but by a personal God. Nothing “just happens”—we should see God’s hand in events throughout the day, causing all things to work together for good for those who love him… A deepened appreciation for the doctrine of providence will not make us more superstitious; it will make us trust in God more and obey him more fully.” That’s providence.

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Now how is this relevant for the passage that we are studying today? Well let me show you in the text. When we last saw Paul, he was having a pretty rough day. After coming to Jerusalem, he was looked on with suspicion by the Jerusalemite believers. So he tried to appease them by taking part in this vow to demonstrate his Jewishness. That didn’t work… not really. Because during that vow ritual, he is spotted by the crowd in the temple and gets beaten to a bloody pulp. 

After that, he’s rescued by the Roman soldiers near the temple. He talks the tribune into letting him talk to the crowd. The soldier agrees, and Paul tried to defend himself before the crowd by telling his story and evangelizing them. That didn’t work at all. But you got to love Paul for trying. 

In fact, the crowd gets even angrier this time around. And they start hollering for Paul to be executed. And the tribune is so confused by this scene that he decides to have Paul flogged until he gets some answers. Paul uses a bit of shrewdness at that point to get out of the torture that the tribune wants to inflict on him. He informs them that he’s a Roman citizen, and therefore they can’t flog him. And that makes the Roman officer really uncomfortable. And they decide (the Romans anyway) to treat Paul with a little more dignity and respect. 

But Paul’s troubles aren’t over. Look at chapter 22, verse 30. This is where our passage today picks up.   

30 But on the next day, desiring to know the real reason why [Paul] was being accused by the Jews, he [that’s the tribune, a high-ranking Roman officer] unbound [Paul] and commanded the chief priests and all the council to meet, and he brought Paul down and set him before them. 

This tribune decides, “I’m going to get to the bottom of this little skirmish between Paul and the Jews.” So he calls the Sanhedrin together and orders them to deliberate. 

The tribune knows now that he can’t beat Paul and interrogate him, because he’s a Roman citizen. He can’t risk another scene with the crowds; that’ll turn into a nightmare. So maybe he can get a group of honorable Jewish leaders to gather together and quietly, non-violently discuss this issue. 

Sounds like a good plan, right? Not a horrible idea. But he doesn’t realize how much these Jewish leaders hate Paul… he’s about to find out.

So he gathers all these Jewish leaders together and Paul starts to give a defense. Look at chapter 23, verse 1.

1 And looking intently at the council [the Sanhedrin], Paul said, “Brothers, I have lived my life before God in all good conscience up to this day.” 

So Paul is unfettered at this point. And he’s in the middle of this room with these seventy Jewish leaders. And he looks intently at them. Everyone see that in verse 1? Paul is unafraid with a good conscience. 

And Paul starts to talk. And I get the sense that he’s going to start preaching the gospel again. That’s what Paul does. Come hell or high-water, he’s going to tell people about Jesus. 

But unfortunately here, he never gets the chance. Look at verse 2.   

2 And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by [Paul] to strike him on the mouth. 

I don’t know why Ananias does this. I don’t know if he thinks Paul was being blasphemous with his statement. Or maybe he thought Paul was being dishonest by saying “I have lived my life before God in all good conscience.” I don’t know. Honestly, I just think this was just a power play. This high priest Ananias wasn’t about to let Paul start being persuasive. So he smacks him around a little bit to cut him down to size. 

And here’s a bit of historical background for you. This high priest, Ananias, was a very disreputable high priest. This was not the Annas (related to Caiphas) who interrogated Jesus in John 18. This is a different guy about twenty-five years after Christ’s crucifixion. 

And this guy, Ananias, was infamous as a priest. He was notorious for his greed. His tenure as the high priest was filled with scandal and misbehavior. Josephus records that he was quick-tempered and ruthless. He was eventually murdered by Jewish zealots in AD 66 for his pro-Roman sympathies. He was not a good man, so his cruelty here shouldn’t surprise us. 

What does surprise us is Paul’s response! Because look at verse 3.

3 Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall!

Goodness gracious! That doesn’t sound like Paul, does it? A whitewashed wall is a wall that is structurally unsound but is covered over with white plaster so that it looks okay. This is a very descriptive statement about a person’s hypocrisy. Paul is calling this high priest a “stinking hypocrite!” 

Are you sitting to judge me according to the law, and yet contrary to the law you order me to be struck?” 

Paul just loses it with this guy. Paul is saying here, “I should be innocent until proven guilty. That’s the Jewish law! So who do you think you are judging me according to the law when you are a lawbreaker?” 

You might say, “Yeah, Paul give it to ‘em. Give it to ‘em. Don’t let them intimidate you. Don’t back down, man. Stand up for yourself. Exact your revenge!” 

Here’s the problem though. The Bible says, “Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing” (1 Pet 3:9). Even Paul himself said, “Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all” (Rom 12:17–18).

You might say, “That’s easy for you to say, Tony. You weren’t the one who just got punched in the face.” Touché. 

But let me ask you a question. Who’s this spoken of in the Bible? “When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly” (1 Pet 2:23). Who’s that spoken of? That’s Jesus. That Peter talking about Jesus in his letter, 1 Peter. 

And Paul, who up to this point in Jerusalem has humbly and admirably imitated his Savior, in this instance, his flesh got the best of him and he snapped. “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall!” I mean, what is that? That’s a curse. And I don’t think Paul said this with a calm tone… I’m sure Paul said that red-faced, blood-boiling as an invective against this high priest. And that is not the same display of love and tenderness that Paul so admirably demonstrated to the crowd that had beaten him up in the temple. Something snapped in Paul and his flesh got the best of him!

Go ahead and take your notes and write this down. I want to give you today four summary statements of what happens to Paul in this passage. And I want to follow up each of those statements with the big idea for this message. The big idea is this: “God providentially works all things together for good.” 

And the first of these statements is as follows:

1) When a saint stumbles, God providentially works all things together for good (22:30–23:5)

When a saint does less than Jesus… when a saint lets his or her flesh get the best of him or her… when a saint screws up royally… God providentially works all things together for good.

I’m drawing that phraseology, by the way, from Romans 8:28 where Paul himself writes, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” That Paul’s own statement in Romans 8:28! That not the ivory-tower philosophizing of a man unaccustomed to suffering. 

Alistair Begg said about Paul that he did not work “his theology in the context of some cloistered tranquility, but he [hammered] out his theology on the anvil of experience.” Paul suffered and was persecuted severely. And he even failed the Lord on occasion. Paul was not sinless like Jesus. And even so, he could say “God works all things together for the good (the good things and the bad things and even my failures!) … Why? … to accomplish his sovereign purposes.” 

You might say, “What does that have to do with me, Pastor Tony? I’m not a saint.” Well, it has everything to do with you. And yes, you are a saint. I’m not using that word in the way the Catholics use it—Saint Paul. And I’m not using it to describe someone who is supposedly sinless. That’s not possible on this side of eternity other than Christ. If you are a born-again follower of Jesus, then you are a saint according to the NT. 

And who in here hasn’t stumbled like Paul does in Acts 23? Who in here hasn’t lost their temper or lashed out sinfully from time to time? Or who in here has failed to speak lovingly of those who oppose Christ? 

Let’s take a vote… Has anyone here failed to meet up to the perfect standard of Christ? Some of you might say, “Pastor Tony, I didn’t even make it through this morning without failing to meet the perfect standard of Christ!” If that’s you, here’s my encouragement to you. God loves you. His blood covers over your sins—past, present, and future. You are still a child of God. And God will providentially use even your stumbling for his ultimate purposes. 

Now does that excuse you sin? No, in fact Paul doesn’t excuse his sin. Look at verse 4.

4 Those who stood by said, “Would you revile God’s high priest?”

These guys in the Sanhedrin were just shocked at Paul’s insolence. “Would you revile God’s high priest?” A lesser man like myself might say, “You bet, I do! And another thing…” 

But watch what Paul does. Look at verse 5.

 5 And Paul said, “I did not know, brothers, that he was the high priest, 

Paul’s been in Gentile lands for the last few years, he hasn’t kept track of Jewish politics. 

for it is written, ‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’ ” 

Now what is that, right there? That’s repentance. Was the high priest right for striking Paul? No. But Paul doesn’t make excuses. Paul doesn’t blame-shift or say “The devil made me do it.” Paul says simply, “I was wrong; and according to Scriptures (Exod 22:28) I shouldn’t have said that.” Good for Paul. 

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And look what happens next in verse 6. If you thought Paul’s honest repentance would have taken the temperature down a bit in the Sanhedrin, you were wrong. 

6 Now when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, 

The Sanhedrin had two separate political parties that had significant philosophical differences between them, even though they were both Jewish. And if you thought there was rancor between Republicans and Democrats in America, you ain’t seen nothing yet! 

And Paul is about to exploit those differences!

“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.” 7 And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. 8 For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all. 

Here’s the issue historically. The Sadducees were the liberal party of the Jews. They were anti-supernaturalists, so they didn’t believe in any kind of afterlife. They didn’t believe in any Scriptures, other than the first five books of the OT. They were liberal. And they were the majority in the Sanhedrin. Ananias the high priest was a Sadducee. 

The Pharisees, on the other hand, they had their own problems. But they were conservative theologically. They believed in a resurrection. They believed in the coming of the Messiah. They just didn’t believe Jesus was the Messiah. 

And Paul was a Pharisee. He had come to believe in Jesus. So perhaps he’s thinking, “I might be able to win some of these Pharisees over to Jesus. They’ve got more in common with me than the Sadducees.” So he starts this little debate in the Sanhedrin. Maybe that was his intention here—to start this debate. Or perhaps he was trying to get the attention off of him and onto a more important topic, “the resurrection.” Maybe then, he could talk to them about Jesus’s resurrection. Or perhaps, Paul was just mischievously trying to discredit all of these men in front of the tribune by starting this argument. 

Whatever the case, I doubt it was Paul’s intention to start another ruckus. But unfortunately that’s what happened. Because look at verse 9.

9 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. 

Wow! That’s a shocking reversal, right there!

What if a spirit or an angel spoke to him?” 

What? I don’t know about that. 

10 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. 

Another attempt to preach the gospel by Paul. Another failure! Everywhere Paul goes in Jerusalem he is failing miserably. In Corinth and Ephesus, all he had to do what say a few words and people gave their lives to Christ! Here Paul can’t do anything right. And everywhere he goes people respond to him with violence.

Can you imagine how discouraging that would be? All kinds of suffering and persecution with no conversions to counterbalance it! I mean people wanted to kill him in Corinth and Ephesus too, but at least he had people coming to Christ! But in Jerusalem, Paul courageously tries to preach the gospel to his Jewish brethren and what does he have to show for it? Two riots. Multiple attempts to kill him! Paul’s whole trip to Jerusalem has been a complete disaster. From a human perspective, nothing good has happened. 

But watch this in verse 11. You know, I have found that in some of my darkest days, when I feel like a complete failure, that is when God shows up with his best displays of grace and comfort. And I can just imagine Paul sitting up late at night trying to sleep. His face still hurting from the blow he suffered in the Sanhedrin. His body still smarting from getting beaten up in the temple. 

But worse than the physical pain is the emotional pain of a missed opportunity. “Why did I have to smart off like that to the high priest?” “Why didn’t I just play it cool and tell them about Jesus?” “Why did I mention the resurrection and get that debate started between the Pharisees and Sadducees?” “What a wasted opportunity!”

But was it a wasted opportunity? Let’s see what Jesus says. Look at verse 11.

11 The following night 

That’s the day after the riot in the Sanhedrin. 

11 The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage, 

By the way, this Greek expression for “take courage” is only uttered by Jesus in the NT. Similar to what Jesus does with his disciples in the gospels, he stands by Paul in the middle of the night as his servant is suffering. In one of Paul’s darkest moments, when Paul feels like an absolute failure, Jesus says to him: “Take courage.”

“Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome.”  

Paul’s like, “Testified about you in Jerusalem. All I’ve done here is start riots all over the city.” But that’s not how Jesus sees it. Jesus is pleased with his efforts. Jesus is proud of him. And Jesus gives him a new lease on life. Jesus tells him, “Not only are you going to survive this predicament in Jerusalem, but you are going to go to Rome and testify about me there.” 

Write this down as a second point from the message:

2) When a saint “fails to succeed,” God providentially works all things together for good (23:6–11)

The story is told about the famous pianist Paderewski who was to perform at a great concert hall in America. It was to be a grand affair with all of the social and intellectual elites of the country gathered. But also gathered in that concert hall was a fidgety nine-year boy who failed to appreciate this Paderewski brilliance. This boy had started piano lessons, and his mother brought him to see the great Polish pianist perform. But the boy was there against his wishes. And as she turned to talk to some friends, the nervous little boy mischievously jumped up onto the stage and drew near to the magnificent Steinway Grand Piano. And he sat down and started playing “Chopsticks.” It’s a simple little piano piece for beginners. 

Well the audience was incensed by the impudence of this little boy. And they began to shout with agitation, “Get the boy away from that piano! Who’d bring a kid like that to a concert? Where’s his mother?” I’m sure you can imagine how mortified his mother was. 

Well backstage Paderewski heard this commotion. And so he quickly grabbed his coat and rushed on stage without any introduction. And he stooped behind the boy with his arms over and around the boy and he began to improvise a countermelody to chopsticks. And they played together. And Paderewski kept whispering in the boy’s ear, “Keep going. Keep playing, son. Don’t stop. Don’t quit.” And so this brilliant pianist virtuoso took the miserable failure of this little boy and his mother and made it into something beautiful. 

And so it is with our service to Christ. I don’t tell you that story to encourage mischievous behavior in our congregation. I tell you that story to comfort you with the fact that Jesus improvises our mistakes and failures and turns them into something good. God providentially works all things together for good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose. 

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Now God’s providence is going to be tested in the next few verses of Acts 23. Or maybe it’s better to say it this way—Paul’s confidence in God’s providence is about to be tested in the next few verses. And Luke is going to show us, the readers, just how in control of everything God is. 

But before we get to that, write this down as the third point from this passage.

3) When a saint is endangered, God providentially works all things together for good (23:12–24)

Now just to clarify, I can’t say that when a saint is endangered that God will always rescue him or her from that danger. I can’t say that, because that’s not a universal principle. Because what happened to John the Baptist? He was beheaded. What happened to James? He was killed by Herod. What happened to Stephen? He was stoned to death. I can’t promise you that God rescues every saint from adversity. But I can promise you this—God providentially works all things together for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose.

I can’t promise you that God will remove the cancer in your body. I can’t promise you that God will give you that thing that your heart so desperately desires. I can’t promise you that God will remove the pain or the suffering or the hardship in your life. But I can promise you that, if you are a child of God, God loves you and will providentially work for your good. Even if you have to wait for eternity to experience that goodness—which by the way will be a million times better than anything we’ve ever experienced in this world—you will experience God’s goodness. I promise you.

One commentator, the church father, John Chrysostom, asks this question, “Why didn’t [Jesus] appear to [Paul] before he fell into danger?” In other words, why didn’t Jesus appear to Paul before he made a mess of things and suffered great persecution at the hands of the Jews and Romans? And this is how John Chrysostom answers that question. “Because, as always, it is in affliction that God consoles. For then he appears more desirable, as he trains us even in the midst of dangers.” 

Let me put that a little more succinctly—we as Christians grow through pain. Sometimes we say things like, “God, please take this painful thing away!” And God’s like, “Take this thing away. That’s the thing that is making you stronger. That’s the thing that’s forcing you to come on me. Why would I take that away?” 

When a saint is suffering… when a saint is hurting… God stands by you in that. Just like Jesus stood by Paul. And God won’t waste that suffering. He will use it to bring about his greater purpose in your life. 

Now watch this. You want evidence that God’s promises are true? Look what happens with Paul in verse 12.

12 When it was day, the Jews made a plot and bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they had killed Paul. 

These guys take an oath (literally they “anathematize” themselves) saying that they won’t eat or drink until they kill Paul. That’s how much these guys hate Paul and the gospel he proclaims.

Look at verse 13.

13 There were more than forty who made this conspiracy. 14 They went to the chief priests and elders and said, “We have strictly bound ourselves by an oath [literally we have anathematized ourselves with an anathema] to taste no food till we have killed Paul. 15 Now therefore you,

By the way, these are the conspirators telling the chief priests and elders what to do! These guys are as insolent and dismissive as Paul was earlier. But the leaders don’t have a problem with it here. 

15 Now therefore you, along with the council, give notice to the tribune to bring [Paul] down to you, as though you were going to determine his case more exactly. And we are ready to kill him before he comes near.” 

So these conspirators devise a plot to kill Paul. And what’s shocking about this plot is that not only are they willing to anathematize themselves and take no food or drink until Paul is dead. They are conspiring now against the Roman Empire. 

Inevitably if this plot is carried out, they will kill Paul, but also a good number of Roman soldiers. And whenever people did that to the Romans, you can be sure that the Romans retaliated with vengeance. So this was a dastardly plot that would involve a lot of innocent bloodshed. That’s how much these guys hated Paul and the message that he has brought to Jerusalem.

Now watch what happens next. By the way, who’s in control of this situation? The conspirators or God? Jesus said that Paul was going to Rome. These conspirators say he’s not getting out of Jerusalem alive? Who’s going to be right? Watch what God does! 

16 Now the son of Paul’s sister heard of their ambush, so he went and entered the barracks and told Paul. 

Now we don’t know anything else about Paul’s sister or his nephew. We didn’t even know Paul had a nephew! And we don’t know what his nephew was doing in Jerusalem. Maybe he was in Jerusalem training to be a Pharisee just like his uncle Paul was thirty years earlier. We don’t know how his nephew heard about this ambush. Maybe he was related to one of the conspirators and heard about the plot to kill Paul. Maybe he had a soft spot for uncle Paul and doesn’t want him to die. 

We don’t even know if this nephew is a believer. He may have just been a Jew in the city who didn’t want to see bloodshed with his uncle. Whatever the case, God sovereignly works it out to where now the conspiracy is uncovered and Paul can be protected. 

Look at verse 17.

17 Paul called one of the centurions and said, “Take this young man to the tribune, for he has something to tell him.” 18 So [the centurion] took [Paul’s nephew] and brought him to the tribune and said, “Paul the prisoner called me and asked me to bring this young man to you, as he has something to say to you.” 19 The tribune took [the young man] by the hand, and going aside asked him privately, “What is it that you have to tell me?” 20 And he said, “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down to the council tomorrow, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more closely about him. 21 But do not be persuaded by them, for more than forty of their men are lying in ambush for him, who have bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they have killed [Paul]. And now they are ready, waiting for your consent.”

22 So the tribune dismissed the young man, charging him, “Tell no one that you have informed me of these things.” 23 Then he called two of the centurions and said, “Get ready two hundred soldiers, with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen to go as far as Caesarea at the third hour of the night. 24 Also provide mounts for Paul to ride and bring him safely to Felix the governor.” 

Now let me point out a couple things here. First notice in verse 23 that they leave in the third hour of the night. That’s like 9pm by our reckoning. They are leaving immediately to get Paul out of there and avoid this bloodshed. 

Secondly notice Paul’s military entourage to Caesarea. The tribune sends 200 foot soldiers, 70 horsemen and 200 spearmen to go with Paul. That’s 470 well-armed, well-trained soldiers. That’s a small army, right there, for one Jewish guy! 

And here’s the point. If God wants something done, he’s going to get it done. In this case, God raises up an army of Roman soldiers to protect Paul. (How ironic is that! These are the guys who wanted to flog Paul a few days before this). God raises up a small army of Roman soldiers to transport Paul to Caesarea, which will be his first stop on the long voyage to Rome. 

Jesus promised Paul that he’s going to Rome. Sure enough, the first leg of that adventure is now underway.   

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Now watch what happens next. This’ll be a nice little set up for next week’s message. Look at verse 25.

25 And he [that’s the tribune] wrote a letter to this effect: 26 “Claudius Lysias, to his Excellency the governor Felix, greetings. 27 This man was seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them when I came upon them with the soldiers and rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman citizen. 

Okay, there’s a little bit of revisionist history here with this letter. This guy, Claudius, is a little loose with the facts. If you remember, he didn’t find out Paul was a Roman citizen until after he had bound him and ordered him to be flogged. But it’s probably best that he leave that out of the official report. 

28 And desiring to know the charge for which they were accusing him, I brought him down to their council. 29 I found that he was being accused about questions of their law, but charged with nothing deserving death or imprisonment. 30 And when it was disclosed to me that there would be a plot against the man, I sent him to you at once, ordering his accusers also to state before you what they have against him.” 

So that’s the letter that the tribune, Claudius Lysias, sends with Paul. And he’s sending Paul to Caesarea to get a fair trial and to get out of harm’s way in Jerusalem.

And here’s where the narrative picks up after that letter. Look at verse 31.

31 So the soldiers, according to their instructions, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris.

Paul is sent to Felix in Caesarea - (Click for map)

Here’s the map showing Paul’s travels to Antipatris. He spend a day there, before continuing on to Caesarea. He’s been to Caesarea before. Of course, this is the place where Paul met with Phillip and the other believers. They tried to persuade him not to go to Jerusalem. Paul went anyway. And now the Romans are bringing Paul back to Caesarea in chains awaiting trial. 

Look at verse 32.

 32 And on the next day they returned to the barracks, letting the horsemen go on with [Paul]. 33 When they had come to Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they presented Paul also before him. 34 On reading the letter, he asked what province he was from. And when [Felix] learned that he was from Cilicia, 35 he said, “I will give you a hearing when your accusers arrive.” And he commanded him to be guarded in Herod’s praetorium.

By the way, Herod’s praetorium was a large palatial dwelling in Caesarea. Paul is imprisoned, but he’s imprisoned in style, at least, as he awaits a formal trial. And that’s where we’ll pick up the narrative next time. 

But go ahead and write this down as a last point from our message:

4) When a saint is protected, God providentially works all things together for good (23:25–35)

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When a saint is endangered, God providentially works all things together for good. When a saint is protected, God providentially works all things together for good. Providence. Providence. Providence. 

God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform:

He plants His footsteps in the sea, and rides upon the storm.

Deep in unfathomable mines, with never-failing skill,

He treasures up His bright designs, and works His sovereign will.

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take; the clouds ye so much dread

are big with mercy, and shall break in blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, but trust Him for His grace;

behind a frowning providence He hides a smiling face.

His purposes will ripen fast, unfolding every hour:

the bud may have a bitter taste, but sweet will be the flower.

Blind unbelief is sure to err, and scan His work in vain;

God is His own interpreter, and He will make it plain.”

Paul was not in the hands of sinners in Acts 23—Romans or Jews. It might have looked like that. But that’s not the case. Paul was in the hands of Almighty God. As are we. And the mighty hand of providence guides and guards us all the way to the end of our lives and on into eternity. 

Deep in unfathomable mines, with never-failing skill,

He treasures up His bright designs, and works His sovereign will.

R. Kent Hughes tells the story about a missionary named V. Raymond Edman who in 1926 fell ill from Typhus Fever in the mountains of Ecuador.  He was so ill that they despaired of his life and actually ordered a coffin for his body. The doctor said his feet had already turned cold. He was sure to be dead soon. So his wife made preparations for the funeral. She didn’t have a black dress for the funeral so she dyed her wedding dress black. They set the date for the funeral. July 4th at 3pm, 1926. The funeral for V. Raymond Edman. 

Well forty-one years later in 1967, Dr. V. Raymond Edman, the fourth president of Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois, was addressing the student body in the school chapel when at 10:53am, he suddenly stopped speaking and collapse to his death and immediately went into the presence of the King of kings. Dr. Edman whose funeral was scheduled for July 4, 1926, instead experienced another forty-one years of faithful service to the Lord, before dying suddenly. Why? Here’s the answer that Hughes gives, “God’s servants are immortal until their work is done. No servant of God dies a premature death.” 

Now hear me on this, church. I know two things about every one of you right now. These two facts are irrefutable. The first fact is that you’re alive this morning. God has given you life! The second fact is that everyone here will eventually die. You’ll either die or you will be raptured when Christ returns, whichever comes first. But soon enough your time here on planet earth will cease. 

And in-between those two realities: life and death (this life and the life ever-after)… the Bible says that“he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil 1:6). 

For those of you who know Jesus Christ as your Savior… Everything in your life… every good thing, every bad thing, every joyful thing, every difficult thing, every pleasurable thing, every painful thing… God is using all of that for your good… For the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose. 

And I don’t have any other instruction for you today, other than just to rest in that. I don’t have any other application for you… other than this… Just trust him.  Trust in the providence of God!

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, but trust Him for His grace;

behind a frowning providence He hides a smiling face.