Chains and Real Freedom

Posted by Randy | Labels: , , , , , , , , , | Posted On Monday, October 26, 2009 at 12:01 AM

As I read Acts 24-26, I at first felt that a lot of Paul's precious time and experience was being wasted in jail. He has been jailed because he was accused by Jews of stirring up a riot in the Temple. As we saw yesterday, he was brought to Caesarea, the lead Roman city of the area, located on the Mediterranean Sea.

Paul stayed there at least two years, according to Acts 24:27. Apparently, Felix, the governor, was quite a politician. He knew the Jews wanted Paul killed, but he also knew there were no legitimate Roman charges. Yet, to keep the Jews happy, he didn't let Paul go. Instead, he subtly searched for a bribe from Paul, but nothing ever came of it (24:26).

After two years, however, a new governor, Festus, was appointed. Felix had delayed and delayed, but now Festus seemed determined to find some resolution to the situation. He invited the Jews to come and again make their case against Paul. The Jews religious leaders pushed for Paul to be given a hearing in Jerusalem, but they planned to use the opportunity to have him killed. Paul refused to go to Jerusalem, and instead, as a Roman citizen, exercised his right to appeal to Caesar (25:11). With that, Festus was obligated to send Paul to Rome, the seat of power in the 1st Century Western World. As I've studied this part of Paul's life, I've come to see that Paul probably saw real value in this as a way of spreading his message even further.

A few days later King Agrippa arrived, and chose to hear Paul's case. This was Agrippa II, son of King Herod Agrippa, who had had the apostle James killed to please the Jews and sought to have Peter executed (12:2-4). King Herod Agrippa died, the Bible tells us, because he accepted the praise of men that he was a god (12:20-23). Both kings ruled under Roman rule, at the whim of Caesar, yet they wielded significant power in their realms. Agrippa II was enough of a politician to know Jewish culture, since Palestine was a significant part of his realm.

Paul stands before King Agrippa, his sister Bernice, and Festus, as well as many prominent citizens in what the New Living Translation (NLT) calls the auditorium (25:23), thought it was really more like a small coliseum. Paul explains his innocence and tells his conversion story on the road to Damascus. You really get the feeling Paul is trying to convert King Agrippa, who was familiar with the Jewish faith. Paul says to him, "...'I pray to God that both you and everyone here in this audience might become the same as I am, except for these chains.'" (26:29, italics added)

Agrippa and Festus realize Paul has done nothing wrong, but because he has appealed to Caesar, they cannot just release him but must now send him on to Rome. Again, this doesn't seem to be a disappointment to Paul, for he has desired to go to Rome for some time.

My wife Susan and I visited the Holy Land - Israel - in 1990, and one of the places we traveled was to this location, often called Caesarea by the Sea. Many ruins remain there from biblical times, including the auditorium (coliseum) where it is believed Paul spoke to Agrippa and Festus. It is essentially an amphitheater in the round, with rising levels of rock, much like our "bleachers" at Gateway, except without the cushioned seats. We sat in this place, and listened to these passages being read aloud by members of our tour group.

I remember in particular one older pastor who really relished reading the quote above (26:29) and holding his arms up as if in chains. He made us feel like we had traveled 2000 years back in time to that day as Paul proclaimed his freedom in Christ, a freedom that was greater than any form of political freedom that could be won or bought. Paul knew the people who were really in chains (of sin and death) were Agrippa and Festus, for they had not put their faith in Jesus Christ.

There are many people today who are still bound by these chains. Paul's desire for their freedom drove his life and mission, and it drives our mission at Gateway. We are a gateway to faith and freedom, through Jesus Christ. It is our desire to free people from their chains and bondage, and we know only Christ can do this. It's exciting to see lives freed and to hear their stories of grace. And like Paul, we won't stop as long as there are those around us who have not yet committed their life to Jesus Christ. The "chains" of this earth are nothing compared to the eternal freedom we have in Jesus. Paul knew this, and so, in a very real sense, even though he was "in chains," he really was free. The Good News is that nothing and no one can ultimately take this freedom from us!