Post by Shepherd on Aug 4, 2009 13:34:59 GMT -6
23
PAUL’S DEFENSE BEFORE THE SANHEDRIN
We will follow his life as a prisoner. He will appear before several rulers. The Jews was plotting his death. As we go along we can see the hand of God in the life of Paul. The same One who moved in the life of Paul wants to move in our life. That is the glory and wonder of it all.
God is moving in our life if we are serving Him. God is concern and interested in us. God wants to give us that leading and guiding that you and I need for today. We are to trust Christ and to walk with Him. He will give the leading, the guidance, and direction in our everyday lives.
The Sanhedrin, composed of the religious rulers, wants to try Paul. Paul makes a futile attempt here to explain his position and his cnduct to the Sanhedrin. You see Paul is a prisoner for Jesus Christ.
ACTS 23:1-2...AND PAUL, EARNESTLY BEHOLDING THE COUNCIL, SAID, MEN AND BRETHREN, I HAVE LIVED IN ALL GOOD CONSCIENCE BEFORE GOD UNTIL THIS DAY. AND THE HIGH PRIEST ANANIAS COMMANDED THEM THAT STOOD BY HIM TO SMITE HIM ON THE MOUTH.
Paul looked straight at the Council an said, “My brothers. My conscience is perfectly clear about my whole life before God, to this very day.” The High Priest Ananias ordered those who were standing close to Paul to strike him on the mouth.
Ananias was not ready to let Paul speak until he was ready to hear him.
ACTS 23:3...THEN SAID PAUL UNTO HIM, GOD SHALL SMITE THEE, THOU WHITED WALL; FOR SITTEST THOU TO JUDGE ME AFTER THE LAW, AND COMMANDEST ME TO BE SMITTEN CONTRARY TO THE LAW?
Paul said to him; “God will certainly strike you–you whitewash wall; you sit there to judge me according to the law, yet you break the law by ordering them to strike me.” Under the Roman law no man was to be punished until judgment had been handed in. A born-again believer has a conviction that the Bible is the Word of God and we respected it. we don’t find that in our leadership today, and yet we wonder why the system won’t work. Do you know what we need? We need to change man’s hearts.
Humility and meekness mean that we submit ourselves to the will of God, regardless of the cost. Paul is a meek man and a humble man, but he is not about to take injustice lying down. A man cannot be condemned or punished before judgment has been handed down.
ACTS 23:4....AND THEY THAT STOOD BY SAID, REVILEST THOU GOD’S HIGH PRIEST.
The men close to Paul said to him, “you are insulting God’s high Priest.” He could not been God’s high Priest by the way he was treating God man. Paul was having trouble with his eye sight also.
ACTS 23:5...THEN SAID PAUL, I WIST NOT, BRETHREN, THAT HE WAS THE HIGH PRIEST; FOR IT IS WRITTEN, THOU SHALT NOT SPEAK EVIL OF THE RULER OF THE THY PEOPLE.
Paul said, “I did not know, my brothers, that he was the high priest. For the scripture said, you must not speak evil of the ruler of your people.” You see Paul knew the law. He knew every detail of it, and that the rulers were to be respected.
ACTS 23:6...BUT WHEN PAUL PERCEIVED THAT THE ONE PART WERE SADDUCEES, AND THE OTHER PHARISEES, HE CRIED OUT IN THE COUNCIL, MEN AND BRETHREN, I AM A PHARISEE, THE SON OF A PHARISEE; IF THE HOPE AND RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD I AM CALLED IN QUESTION.
When Paul saw that some of the group were Sadducees and that others were Pharisees, he called out in the Council; “My brothers. I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees, I am on trial here because I hope that the dead will be raised to life.”
Paul uses the discord between the two parties to further his own defense. And he was saying his hope was in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. You see the Pharisees believed in the resurrection of the dead. And the Sadducees did not. So Paul was trying to get them to be at each others throats.
ACTS 23:7-9...AND WHEN HE HAD SO SAID, THERE AROSE A DISSENSION BETWEEN THE PHARISEES AND THE SADDUCEES AND THE MULTITUDE WAS DIVIDED. FOR THE SADDUCEES SAY THAT THERE IS NO RESURRECTION, NEITHER ANGEL, NOR SPIRIT; BUT THE PHARISEES CONFESS BOTH. AND THERE AROSE A GREAT CRY; AND THE SCRIBES THAT WERE OF THE PHARISEES’ PART AROSE, AND STROVE, SAYING, WE FIND NO EVIL IN THIS MAN; BUT IF A SPIRIT OR AN ANGEL HATH SPOKEN OF HIM, LET US NOT FIGHT AGAINST GOD.
As soon as Paul said what he said in verse 6, the Pharisees and Sadducees started to quarrel, and the group was divided. For the Sadducees say that people will not be raised from death, and that there are no angels or spirits—but the Pharisees believe in all three. So the shouting became louder, and some of the teachers of the law who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and protested strongly; we cannot find a thing wrong with this man. Perhaps a spirit or an angel really did speak to him. You see when they found out that Paul was a Pharisees they came to his defense. Paul really got the devil stirred up. He got the devil mad.
ACTS 23:10...AND WHEN THERE AROSE A GREAT DISSENSION, THE CHIEF CAPTAIN, FEARING LEST PAUL SHOULD HAVE BEEN PULLED IN PIECES OF THEM, COMMANDED THE SOLDIERS TO GO DOWN, AND TO TAKE HIM BY FORCE FROM AMONG THEM, AND TO BRING HIM INTO THE CASTLE.
The argument became so violent that the commander was afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them, so he ordered his soldiers to go down into the group and get Paul away from them, and take him into the fort.
Paul’s life was so in danger that the Roman Captain reaches out and saves him from the angry Sanlhedrin. He did not realize the nature of the hatred again Paul. I believe that God used the Roman Captain to rescue Paul from the mob. I believe that there is times that God see troubles coming our way and He stops them or He gives us power to overcome them.
ACTS 23:11..AND THE NIGHT FOLLOWING THE LORD STOOD BY HIM, AND SAID, BE OF GOOD CHEER, PAUL; FOR AS THOU HAST TESTIFIED OF ME IN JERUSALEM, SO MUST THOU BEAR WITNESS ALSO AT ROME.
The following night the Lord stood by Paul and said; courage. You have given your witness to me here in Jerusalem, and you must do the same in Rome also. This shows that Paul was still in God’s will. The spirit of God warn Paul what could happen. It was God’s that Paul go to Rome also.
[/size]We will follow his life as a prisoner. He will appear before several rulers. The Jews was plotting his death. As we go along we can see the hand of God in the life of Paul. The same One who moved in the life of Paul wants to move in our life. That is the glory and wonder of it all.
God is moving in our life if we are serving Him. God is concern and interested in us. God wants to give us that leading and guiding that you and I need for today. We are to trust Christ and to walk with Him. He will give the leading, the guidance, and direction in our everyday lives.
The Sanhedrin, composed of the religious rulers, wants to try Paul. Paul makes a futile attempt here to explain his position and his cnduct to the Sanhedrin. You see Paul is a prisoner for Jesus Christ.
ACTS 23:1-2...AND PAUL, EARNESTLY BEHOLDING THE COUNCIL, SAID, MEN AND BRETHREN, I HAVE LIVED IN ALL GOOD CONSCIENCE BEFORE GOD UNTIL THIS DAY. AND THE HIGH PRIEST ANANIAS COMMANDED THEM THAT STOOD BY HIM TO SMITE HIM ON THE MOUTH.
Paul looked straight at the Council an said, “My brothers. My conscience is perfectly clear about my whole life before God, to this very day.” The High Priest Ananias ordered those who were standing close to Paul to strike him on the mouth.
Ananias was not ready to let Paul speak until he was ready to hear him.
ACTS 23:3...THEN SAID PAUL UNTO HIM, GOD SHALL SMITE THEE, THOU WHITED WALL; FOR SITTEST THOU TO JUDGE ME AFTER THE LAW, AND COMMANDEST ME TO BE SMITTEN CONTRARY TO THE LAW?
Paul said to him; “God will certainly strike you–you whitewash wall; you sit there to judge me according to the law, yet you break the law by ordering them to strike me.” Under the Roman law no man was to be punished until judgment had been handed in. A born-again believer has a conviction that the Bible is the Word of God and we respected it. we don’t find that in our leadership today, and yet we wonder why the system won’t work. Do you know what we need? We need to change man’s hearts.
Humility and meekness mean that we submit ourselves to the will of God, regardless of the cost. Paul is a meek man and a humble man, but he is not about to take injustice lying down. A man cannot be condemned or punished before judgment has been handed down.
ACTS 23:4....AND THEY THAT STOOD BY SAID, REVILEST THOU GOD’S HIGH PRIEST.
The men close to Paul said to him, “you are insulting God’s high Priest.” He could not been God’s high Priest by the way he was treating God man. Paul was having trouble with his eye sight also.
ACTS 23:5...THEN SAID PAUL, I WIST NOT, BRETHREN, THAT HE WAS THE HIGH PRIEST; FOR IT IS WRITTEN, THOU SHALT NOT SPEAK EVIL OF THE RULER OF THE THY PEOPLE.
Paul said, “I did not know, my brothers, that he was the high priest. For the scripture said, you must not speak evil of the ruler of your people.” You see Paul knew the law. He knew every detail of it, and that the rulers were to be respected.
ACTS 23:6...BUT WHEN PAUL PERCEIVED THAT THE ONE PART WERE SADDUCEES, AND THE OTHER PHARISEES, HE CRIED OUT IN THE COUNCIL, MEN AND BRETHREN, I AM A PHARISEE, THE SON OF A PHARISEE; IF THE HOPE AND RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD I AM CALLED IN QUESTION.
When Paul saw that some of the group were Sadducees and that others were Pharisees, he called out in the Council; “My brothers. I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees, I am on trial here because I hope that the dead will be raised to life.”
Paul uses the discord between the two parties to further his own defense. And he was saying his hope was in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. You see the Pharisees believed in the resurrection of the dead. And the Sadducees did not. So Paul was trying to get them to be at each others throats.
ACTS 23:7-9...AND WHEN HE HAD SO SAID, THERE AROSE A DISSENSION BETWEEN THE PHARISEES AND THE SADDUCEES AND THE MULTITUDE WAS DIVIDED. FOR THE SADDUCEES SAY THAT THERE IS NO RESURRECTION, NEITHER ANGEL, NOR SPIRIT; BUT THE PHARISEES CONFESS BOTH. AND THERE AROSE A GREAT CRY; AND THE SCRIBES THAT WERE OF THE PHARISEES’ PART AROSE, AND STROVE, SAYING, WE FIND NO EVIL IN THIS MAN; BUT IF A SPIRIT OR AN ANGEL HATH SPOKEN OF HIM, LET US NOT FIGHT AGAINST GOD.
As soon as Paul said what he said in verse 6, the Pharisees and Sadducees started to quarrel, and the group was divided. For the Sadducees say that people will not be raised from death, and that there are no angels or spirits—but the Pharisees believe in all three. So the shouting became louder, and some of the teachers of the law who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and protested strongly; we cannot find a thing wrong with this man. Perhaps a spirit or an angel really did speak to him. You see when they found out that Paul was a Pharisees they came to his defense. Paul really got the devil stirred up. He got the devil mad.
ACTS 23:10...AND WHEN THERE AROSE A GREAT DISSENSION, THE CHIEF CAPTAIN, FEARING LEST PAUL SHOULD HAVE BEEN PULLED IN PIECES OF THEM, COMMANDED THE SOLDIERS TO GO DOWN, AND TO TAKE HIM BY FORCE FROM AMONG THEM, AND TO BRING HIM INTO THE CASTLE.
The argument became so violent that the commander was afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them, so he ordered his soldiers to go down into the group and get Paul away from them, and take him into the fort.
Paul’s life was so in danger that the Roman Captain reaches out and saves him from the angry Sanlhedrin. He did not realize the nature of the hatred again Paul. I believe that God used the Roman Captain to rescue Paul from the mob. I believe that there is times that God see troubles coming our way and He stops them or He gives us power to overcome them.
ACTS 23:11..AND THE NIGHT FOLLOWING THE LORD STOOD BY HIM, AND SAID, BE OF GOOD CHEER, PAUL; FOR AS THOU HAST TESTIFIED OF ME IN JERUSALEM, SO MUST THOU BEAR WITNESS ALSO AT ROME.
The following night the Lord stood by Paul and said; courage. You have given your witness to me here in Jerusalem, and you must do the same in Rome also. This shows that Paul was still in God’s will. The spirit of God warn Paul what could happen. It was God’s that Paul go to Rome also.
