Acts 21 "Listen Up"

Acts 21 – Brandon Hatmaker “Listen Up”
Friday, May 9, 2008


“Paul answered, "I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Please let me speak to the people." Having received the commander's permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When they were all silent, he said to them in Aramaic” – Acts 21:39-40

Talk about your cliff-hangers. Paul had just been beaten, bound, and was being dragged away by the Roman soldiers. And God gave him platform to speak. The entire rioting crowd became silent and listened to the testimony of Paul. I found this absolutely amazing.

We work so hard to be heard. We position ourselves. We interrupt.

This makes me think this morning about our evangelical methods. So many times we speak out of our own strength. So many times we share out of zeal and excitement, but not necessarily on the leading of the Spirit. I think about people I’ve seen standing on street corners with their Bibles shouting at people as they walk by. I’ve seen how people respond to our methods. I think there is a different picture being painted in Acts 21. The difference; the Spirit was moving, the Spirit was drawing, and the Spirit was opening the door. We need to learn how to identify when that door is open and when it’s closed.

We need to be reminded that whether it’s a moment of sharing our testimony or anything we do in faith, we must seek out the Spirit’s leading more than our own methods or timing. That can only happen when we abide in Christ. That can only happen when we deny ourselves.

One other thing I thought interesting about today’s reading. Throughout Acts 21, the brothers begged Paul not to go to Jerusalem. They prayed and they wept together. But Paul had a firm word from God. What a great word for us today. The disciples loved Paul. They did not want him to go because they knew his fate. That scared them indeed. But Paul trusted God’s leading.

This was a test for Paul. Take a look at verse 4 again, “

“Finding the disciples there, we stayed with them seven days. Through the Spirit they urged Paul not to go on to Jerusalem. But when our time was up, we left and continued on our way.” – Acts 21:4-5

This clearly says that it was through the Spirit they urged Paul not to go. I think it’s amazing how multi-faceted our faith journey is. In the middle of all that is going on, Paul is being given an opportunity to show His faith strong. Even when everyone else was giving him an “out”, he stayed the course.

What a reminder to us. The Spirit is leading us into situations that will test our faith and our path. As we saw in Acts 20, this does not mean the absence of God’s hand. Sometimes it proves it. It means an opportunity for our faith to be proven true.