Good morning to everyone. It's wonderful to see you all again. I feel like one of these oak leaves dried up on the end of a branch the last week because I haven't been around any believers or any fellowship or hearing teaching. So it's so good to be back and to see you all and enjoy this time of worship. The great songs we sang this morning have tremendous meaning in those words about our salvation in Jesus and his promises to us.

We're going to be continuing our study in the book of Acts, chapter 21. We come to another passage that's a kind of historical narrative. This chapter brings us the culmination of the long journey of Paul to Jerusalem to bring the gift of money from the Gentile churches to the poor saints in the church there. We also see that the prophecies and the indications of the Holy Spirit in our text come to pass in the life and ministry of Paul as his freedom is taken from him. He's bound and handed over to the Gentiles. He'll spend the rest of his evangelistic ministry as a prisoner of Christ.

As I studied this, the thing that strikes me most as I read through the end of the journey of Paul and his various stops with his companions is the encouragement of fellowship that Paul experiences everywhere he goes. He continually runs into believers, the brethren, and he spends time with them. He encourages them and is encouraged and strengthened by them as well.

As I studied this passage over and over this past week, this truth became especially meaningful to me, particularly because I spent the last 10 days or so without any Christian fellowship. I was down in Indiana guiding my friends from Sweden on a whitetail bow hunt. For the last several years, we've conducted this hunt together with my nephew and his friend, who are both solid believers in Jesus Christ, but this year they were both unavailable. We had to move the hunt to another friend's house over by Bloomington, so I pretty much spent my days alone after getting these guys breakfast or lunch and out to hunt. 

At dinner, the conversation revolved around politics and worldviews, with a very definite atheistic evolutionary perspective from my socialist friends from Sweden. I've witnessed to some of these men for many years, and it was clear that they were not interested in revisiting the gospel message and the hope of salvation in Christ. There were sometimes open jabs at my faith in Christ and his word, especially regarding a young earth. I tried to take one opportunity to turn the conversation one-on-one with one of the young men that came, and I talked to him about happiness and how to be happy. 

I mentioned all the people who are in the lie of trying to attain material things and highlighted how we see those people who attain these things yet are not satisfied—people like Whitney Houston and Robin Williams and Michael Jackson. They end up taking their lives because they find that having everything doesn't fulfill them. He said, "Well, they need to hunt because when you hunt, you're happy." Well, okay, it really didn't go where I was headed, but they are pleasant; these guys are well-mannered men and quite enjoyable to spend time with in the context of hunting. However, I felt a great need and fervent desire to spend time with brothers and sisters in Christ—to talk of the truths of the Word of God to encourage and to be encouraged.

As I read through Acts 21 over the week, I noticed that this was a great theme of the chapter for Paul and his friends as they made their way toward what they knew would be joy and trouble in Jerusalem. Let's look at our text together again. 

It's a long text in chapter 21 beginning at verse 1. "Now it came to pass that when we had departed from them and set sail running a straight course, we came to Kos. The following day to Rhodes, and from there to Patara. Finding a ship sailing over to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. When we had sighted Cyprus, we passed it on the left, sailed to Syria, and landed at Tyre, for there the ship was to unload her cargo. Finding disciples, we stayed there seven days. They told Paul through the Spirit not to go up to Jerusalem. 

When we had come to the end of those days, we departed and went on our way, and they all accompanied us with wives and children till we were out of the city. We knelt down on the shore and prayed. When we had taken our leave of one another, we boarded the ship and they returned home. 

When we had finished our voyage from Tyre, we came to Ptolemaeus, greeted the brethren, and stayed with them one day. On the next day, we who were Paul's companions departed and came to Caesarea and entered the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, and stayed with him. Now this man had four virgin daughters who prophesied. As we stayed many days, a certain prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 

When he had come to us, he took Paul's belt, bound his own hands and feet, and said, 'Thus says the Holy Spirit: So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.' And when we heard these things, both we and those from that place pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, 'What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.' So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, 'The will of the Lord be done.' 

After those days, we packed and went up to Jerusalem. Also, some of the disciples from Caesarea went with us and brought with them a certain nation of Cyprus, an early disciple with whom we were to lodge. When we came to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly." 

Let's stop there. I've given you four points on your outline: first, we're looking at, in these first 17 verses, personal relationships; then we will see practical problems; third, patient understanding; and fourth, perfectly clear. 

Well first, we see in our text personal relationships. Over and over, wherever Paul and his companions travel, they run into believers, those who share a like-precious faith in Jesus, and they are encouraged along their way. They're traveling from port to port, making their way back to Jerusalem. We see in verse 4 that when they had come to Tyre, they found disciples there and stayed with them for seven days. You can imagine, as we've seen so many times, that Paul would be teaching, instructing, and exhorting the believers during their stay in Tyre.

What I began to think about as I studied this passage and saw again Paul’s steadfast focus on his mission to take the offering to Jerusalem, his imminent arrest, and persecution by the Jews and Gentiles, is that the continual clear revelation of what was to come for him must have encouraged Paul. These precious brothers and sisters were so concerned for Paul, begging him not to go up to Jerusalem, moved in their spirits not wanting to see him harmed. 

We see in verses 5 and 6 that when it was time to go and Paul would not be dissuaded from his mission, they all, with their families—little children and their wives—accompanied him out to the shore where they knelt and prayed together. It says in verse 6, "When we had taken our leave of one another," which literally means in folding in one another's arms, they embraced, and then there's a taking away, literally a tearing apart. 

So, the idea is that they were embracing one another with an unwillingness to let go, holding on. When they had taken their leave of one another, it says they boarded their ship and were on their way while the believers returned home. I imagine that as they went about their daily lives back in Tyre, they often wondered about Paul and his friends and what was going on in Jerusalem. You see, there was a sweet fellowship among them.

Then in verse 7, we see that they came to Ptolemaeus, where they found brethren as well, and they spent a day with them. Then they made their way to Caesarea and to the house of Philip. It says in the New King James, "We who were Paul's companions came to the house of Philip." I don't think the wording here indicates that Paul was not with them; rather, he may have come a couple of days later. The text says that Philip was one of the seven. 

So, who are these seven that it refers to? Turn over to Acts 6 with me, please, and we'll look at that again. Acts 6, verse 1. "Now in those days when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a complaint against the Hebrews by the Hellenists because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution. Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, 'It is not desirable that we should leave the Word of God and serve tables. Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business, but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.' 

And the saying pleased the whole multitude, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, and Philip—this is our friend Philip chosen in Acts 6 to be one of the seven. They set these men before the apostles, and when they prayed, they laid hands on them. Then it says in verse 7, 'Then the Word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith.' 

Well, after the persecution of Stephen, we see in Acts 8—if you flip over to page Acts 8, verse 4—"Therefore, those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the Word. Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to them. The multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. For unclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came out of many who were possessed, and many who were paralyzed and lame were healed. There was great joy in that city."

Now, look down to verse 26 with me in chapter 8. "Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, 'Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.' This is desert. So he arose and went obediently, and behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace, the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasury and had come to Jerusalem to worship, was returning, and sitting in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah the prophet." 

Then the Spirit said to Philip, "Go near and overtake this chariot." We see that Philip goes and overtakes him and he's reading Isaiah 53. Philip explains to him the gospel and preaches Christ to him, he believes, and then Philip baptizes him. So this is Philip, one of the seven, and they came to his house in Caesarea. It says that he had four virgin daughters who prophesied.

It says they stayed many days with Philip. You can imagine the fellowship they had, how they were encouraged spending time with Philip. Then we see an interesting and graphic event by this man Agabus, starting in verse 10 of our text, Acts 21:10. "And we stayed many days, and a certain prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. When he had come to us, he took Paul's belt, bound his own hands and feet, and said, 'Thus says the Holy Spirit: So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.'"

Now, when we heard these things, both we and those from that place pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, "What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? For I'm ready not only to be bound but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus." So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, "The will of the Lord be done." 

Agabus brings the reality of the situation again to Paul and his friends. I don't think this is a warning to Paul; I don’t think he was going to Jerusalem against the will of God. Rather, the Holy Spirit is revealing to Paul, perhaps preparing him for what would happen. But his friends, his brothers and sisters in Christ, do not want him to go. They don't want him to be hurt, to be arrested, to suffer. Yet this is the very thing that Jesus promised to those who would follow him, who preach the truth, who bring the good news to lost men. 

Just as Paul also wrote to the believers at Philippi in chapter 1, verse 29: "It has been appointed unto you not only to believe but to suffer for His sake." To Timothy, he reinforced the promise of Jesus when he wrote that all who desire to live godly will suffer persecution. My friends, this was no strange thing to Paul. It was no deterrent for his mission, his calling. In verse 13 he said, "What do you mean by breaking my heart? Don't talk to me like this. For I'm ready not only to be bound, but I'm ready to die for the name of the Lord Jesus." 

Paul knew and understood that with a faithful witness would come suffering and persecution. He had lived it for so many years. None of these things moved him or deterred him; he was committed to the ministry to which Jesus had called him. Verse 14 gives us a wonderful statement for our understanding of these things, for our comfort in the midst of great difficulty. So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased saying, "The will of the Lord be done." 

They didn't want him to go; they were confused; they didn't want him to be hurt. They just wanted him to stay here and be safe. But he would go. The will of the Lord be done. 

This is really the great key to understanding the life we live each day on this earth, my friends. In joy or in pain, in triumph or in trial, in success or in suffering, we must come back to this prayer, this focus, this trust: the will of the Lord be done. We see the ultimate example of this by our Lord in the garden when He sweated great drops of blood during incredible grief, unknown by men as He faced the cross, separation from the Father, bearing the sins of men and the wrath of God. 

He prayed, "If there's any other way, let this cup pass from before me, but nevertheless, Thy will be done." That must be our prayer, and it must be our commitment, our trust, our comfort. Sometimes it's so difficult in the course of the ups and downs, the highs and lows, and the great sufferings in this life to know what to do, what to think. 

When we lose a loved one, such as we've just experienced here with our brother Roger going to be with the Lord, I was shocked to hear that news while I was down in Indiana. He was such an encouragement to me. Just to see him every Sunday morning and shake his hand—he always said, "You're getting there, preacher man; you're coming along." How do we deal with a loss like this? 

First, we must know the promises of our Lord, that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord, that Roger is so much better off today. But we also know that the Lord always does what is right and what is best. He works all things together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. We trust His wisdom, His love, His faithfulness to us. 

We believe His sovereignty, that He’s in control of all things and that He is indeed working all things together for our good. We can pray, we can know, we can accept, and rejoice in the truth that God's will shall be done. And that is what we want most for our lives: His will to be carried out through us for His glory. What a joy! What a privilege it is to know Him and to live for Him. 

So, no matter what we face, just as we see Paul here facing certain persecution, arrest, and imprisonment, we can set our face toward our goal, embrace our calling, be faithful today, and we can leave all of the details to God, trusting that His will, His power, for His purpose will be done in our lives. 

Now please notice in verses 15 and 16 that all these brothers went with Paul. They were all saying, "Don't go, Paul; please don't go; stay here. If you go down there, they're going to arrest you, they're going to bind you and persecute you and who knows what." Paul says, "Hey, don't break my heart with this talk; I'm going; I have to go; I'm here to go." It says they all went with him. I love that! 

After those days, we packed and went up to Jerusalem. Also, some of the disciples from Caesarea went with us and brought with them a certain nation of Cyprus, an early disciple with whom we were to lodge. When they got to Jerusalem, it says, "The brethren gladly received them." Fellowship! Everywhere they went, there was fellowship, encouragement, joy, rejoicing. 

The life of Paul, the Christian life for every believer is largely about personal relationships—brothers and sisters in Christ to encourage and strengthen us along our way because we need each other. We need encouragement because there's a reality of trials and troubles continually in this world.

Well, next, we see in our text that there are also practical problems. Look at verse 18 with me, please. "On the following day, Paul went in with us to James and all the elders were present. When he had greeted them, he told in detail those things which God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. When they heard it, they glorified the Lord. And they said to him, 'You see, brother, how many myriads of Jews there are who have believed, and they are all zealous for the law. But they have been informed about you that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children nor walk according to the customs. But then the assembly must certainly meet, for they will hear that you have come.'"

Now Paul's been on this very long, very difficult journey. He's traveled all across the Gentile regions to the churches, collecting the gifts of money to bring to the poor in the church in Jerusalem. His motive, remember, is to bring unity in the church, to have the Gentiles show their love to the Jewish believers. We have to keep all this in mind as we come to this portion of our text. 

The whole point of all this, in Paul's mind, is to bring the Jews and the Gentiles together, to have the Jews see the love of Christ poured out from their Gentile brethren through this gift of money. He even brought with him believers—representatives from each of the regions—to present their gifts to them. This is what Paul wants. This is what God wants: unity in the church built on truth. 

When Paul gets there, there's great joy and rejoicing and fellowship, and he's meeting with James and the elders, who have now assumed authority in the church in Jerusalem. We see a bit of a transition here, I think, as the churches take the intended form in the New Testament. At first, it was that the apostles were in charge. But now, perhaps 25 years after Pentecost, we see that the elders have been appointed to every city, even in Jerusalem, to oversee the church—probably many elders in Jerusalem. 

In the midst of all this, we see practical problems arise. And this is not uncommon in the church, my brothers and sisters. These practical problems do arise, and we must be careful to apply truth and wisdom. Now here's what's going on. There are many, many Jewish believers in Jerusalem. The church is made up of almost exclusively Jews, very likely tens of thousands, these many days after Pentecost. It says that they are all zealous for the law. Now, I don’t think this is a bad thing; it simply means that they're still keeping some of the traditions of Judaism as a way of living and expressing their faith. 

I don't think the idea here is that they are depending on the law of Moses for their salvation. I don't see that at all in the believers there that James and these elders are overseeing. Rather, they’re still practicing many of the traditions of their fathers and living as Jews. Notice the first word of verse 21. It's the word "but." This is a contrast, an adversative. James says there's myriads, tens of thousands of believers, true believers here, and they’re all still very Jewish in the way they live and think, but—they have been informed about you, or Paul. Always a source of controversy. 

A hot-button issue was Paul. They've been informed, it says—the word here is where we get the word catechize or catechism. It means that someone had drilled them over and over, telling them things about Paul. What did they tell the Jewish believers about Paul? Verse 21: that you, Paul, teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses. The word "forsake" means to apostatize or to defect from the truth. 

They said they’ve been telling them over and over, Paul, that everywhere you’ve been going in the Gentile churches you teach all the Jews that they must defect from Moses. Someone had been drilling the Jewish believers, warning about Paul, that he said they shouldn’t circumcise their children, that they shouldn’t walk according to the customs. Here were the charges against Paul, and my friends, they were all false. 

Paul did not teach any Jews that they had to forsake their Jewishness, their traditions, even circumcising their children. This is a cultural thing, a tradition, identification. It's interesting; my Swedish friends find it very odd that we circumcise our children in America. They don't have any concept of that at all. It's been something that we do here in our culture, an accepted norm. Is it wrong? Is it a moral issue? Is it wrong that we circumcise our children? Is it wrong that they don't circumcise their children? Paul taught the Gentiles they did not need to do these things. 

He taught vehemently against the Judaizers who taught that these things were necessary for salvation, but he did not say that it was wrong to walk after the traditions or to circumcise their boys. He even circumcised Timothy, you’ll remember, so that he would not be an offense to the Jews that he was trying to evangelize. These were false accusations against Paul, and they likely came from those same Judaizers who had dogged his steps all these years. 

The believers in Jerusalem were Jews and they were zealous for traditions and Jewish customs. The Judaizers were making false accusations against Paul, stirring up trouble, bringing confusion because they taught a false gospel. This is a tricky thing we have going on here in Acts 21, my friends. The truth is there are many tricky things in the church that we must deal with many times. 

The question is really posed succinctly by James in verse 22 when he says, "What then shall we do about this situation? What are we going to do about this, Paul? It's going to have to be resolved." 

I thought about what was going on here at great length, and I'm not sure that I fully understand it all. But what I do see is that Paul's heart and motive was right here. He came to Jerusalem with the express purpose of bringing unity in the church. What I think we see as an attempt to resolve some of these tricky circumstances by James and the elders, and also Paul, is patient understanding. 

I want to try to flesh this out a bit for our understanding, but there's one important thing to see in this text to make clear. In verse 25 you see they'd already settled the doctrinal issues concerning the gospel back in the council in Acts 15. To bring this last point in, I see clarification by James in verse 25. There's a desire to be perfectly clear about what is going on here. Following verse 23, he says to Paul, "I think this is really... Therefore, do what we tell you. We have four men who have taken a vow. Take them and be purified with them, and pay their expenses so that they may shave their heads, and that all may know that those things of which they were informed concerning you are nothing, but that you yourself also walk orderly and keep the law." 

Look at verse 25: "But concerning the Gentiles who believe, we have written and decided that they should observe no such thing, except that they should keep themselves from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality—these things that were particularly offensive to the Jews." 

Then Paul, verse 26, took the men, and the next day, having been purified with them... You see, as I’ve searched through the text, trying to be sure I was right about this, I believe Paul has not fulfilled his Nazarite vow at this point. He’s made his way back to Jerusalem, he has his hair that he cut off in Sincrea, and he was purified with them. He came to do the same thing they were doing. He entered the temple to announce the expiration of the days of purification, at which time an offering should be made for each one of them. 

James says, "Do what we tell you." That’s most interesting to me. James and the elders are giving Paul the Apostle a command. Things are changing as we move through the transition period here, and the elders seem to be in full authority over the church in Jerusalem. But James makes clear again in verse 25 that this is not an issue of salvation. 

Keeping the traditions is in no way binding concerning the salvation of those who believe, and the Gentiles were not to become Jews as the Judaizers said; they didn’t have to keep the customs in order to be saved. But at the same time, there was nothing wrong with participating in some of the feasts or circumcising your children if that was your conviction. 

So, here we have this tricky area of convictions among believers. We have to be so careful about not making our convictions binding on others. At the same time, we have these false teachers, these Judaizers complicating things, teaching a false gospel trying to lead people into legalism. 

So we want to be cautious about that, and it will be better, I think, and I believe Paul agreed, if we could just chuck the whole ceremonial thing and sit down and have a pork chop together. But there were those who held convictions about what they should and should not do as believers in Jesus Christ, and we have the same thing today.

And Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 8 and in Romans 14 extensively about the need to yield to the weaker brother, not to cause my brother to stumble by exercising my liberty. He concludes that if a man acts against his conscience, does something that he feels is wrong, then he sins. If eating and drinking causes my weaker brother to stumble, then Paul says, "I will neither eat meat nor drink wine." 

I believe that this is the heart of Paul in this passage. He also wanted an opportunity to reach more Jews who did not believe and be a witness to his brethren, his countrymen according to the flesh. So, James has this idea to resolve this issue, to give Paul credibility with the brethren and show that the Judaizers were lying about him. 

Four men had taken a Nazarite vow, and James tells Paul to go with them, perform their vow, offer sacrifices, and even assist them financially—pay for all their animals that have to be sacrificed and all the requirements of fulfilling the vow. 

Now there’s no indication that Paul had any reservation about this, and remember he’s under a Nazarite vow at this point as well. He has to go into the temple and do this. He took it back in Corinth; he cut off his hair in Sincrea. Was it a wise decision? Was it confusing? Did it cross lines? I’m not sure. I tend to think that Paul was all right to become as a Jew to the Jews. 

Remember, Paul was a Jew. In 1 Corinthians 9:19 he said, “For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all that I might win the more. To the Jews, I became as a Jew, that I might win the Jews. To those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law." He said, "I have become all things to all men in order that I might win some." 

I think it’s hard for us to understand the heart and mind of Paul and James and these Jewish believers, and I know in my heart I feel so cautious about confusing the gospel and doing anything that might make it cloudy. There are those today who say that I am weak in that way and that I don’t understand all of my liberties in Christ. These could be hard things to sort out, but what we do know is that Paul wanted to bring unity. 

He wanted to bring the Jew and Gentile together in Christ and see fellowship among them. We also know that the church in Jerusalem had been soured a bit on Paul by the false accusations, and so I think James and Paul thought this was the best way to go. So Paul willingly did it in response to the command of James and the elders, and he took the men in there and performed the vow and paid for their expenses.

Now, as I read this knowing what's coming next, I wonder—not at the response of the unbelieving Jews and the Romans and what they're going to do—but I wonder if Paul’s efforts to show that he was not against the customs of the Jews and that he was willing to participate in these things had the desired effect on the church. Did Paul's gifts from the Gentiles, his presenting of the four men in the temple, did all of these things bring the unity he desired, bring the Jew and Gentile believers together? 

Because that was the goal, my friends. What we see is that Paul did all he could do, and I believe he did it in good conscience before God. As for the rest, we must leave to the will of the Lord. God takes care of the details, and we will see that Paul's going to be arrested and taken prisoner for a long period of time, eventually making his way to Rome. 

Paul was faithful. He was not self-seeking in this. He was filled with love for the churches and especially for the Jews. He did all that he could. This is the application for you and for me. He did all that he could, what he thought was right. He sacrificed himself and preached everywhere he went, and now even as a prisoner, he would keep preaching Christ. He did everything he could do that he thought was right, and then he trusted God for the details. 

Did he do everything right? Probably not. I'm so thankful for that truth because I don't do much right, but God knows my heart. God's overruling grace works in my life, and His will is accomplished through me as He conforms me to the likeness of Christ, as He is so patient and long-suffering with me to use me as a witness for Him in this world to bring glory to Him. 

I'm so thankful for His grace and His mercies that are new every morning. I'm so thankful for His love and His faithfulness, His patience with me and for His purpose in me and His promises to me. My friends, I'm thankful for Paul because we see his heart in his actions—an amazing example for us of a man, a believer, completely and solely focused on the Christ who died for him and on the people for whom Christ died to bring them the good news message of salvation by grace through faith alone in Jesus alone.

No matter what comes in this life—no matter what pain or joy or triumph, or trial—we can always say with Paul and his friends, when we take this example and have this attitude, "The will of the Lord be done." 

Let's close in prayer. Father, we’re so thankful for the book of Acts and this chronicle of the early church and the lives and ministries of the believers and of Paul and Peter and Stephen and Philip. We just thank You, Lord, for the truth of imperfect men through whom You worked to accomplish Your will, and we thank You for the truth that You're working through us to be witnesses to bring glory to You, to show the transforming power of the gospel. 

Lord, we pray that would be our focus, that would be our lives—that men might come to Christ and believe. It's in His name we pray.