Acts 28:11-31 The End is Just the Beginning
Good morning! Let’s turn back to Acts 28, page 937 in the pew Bibles. We are going to look at verses 11-31 and examine Paul’s arrival in Rome.
As we look at the end of this wonderful book I hope that we can all appreciate that though it is the end of the book, it is just the beginning of the story of the Church.
There are three points of interest in these verses this morning, lucky us. Don’t worry, they don’t all begin with the same letter or rhyme or anything. Let’s pray and take a look at our text.
Now remember that Paul had spent the winter on the island of Malta after being shipwrecked there with 275 other people. All of the passengers and crew were spared just as Jesus had promised Paul.
11 After three months we set sail in a ship that had wintered in the island, a ship of Alexandria, with the twin gods as a figurehead. 12 Putting in at Syracuse, we stayed there for three days. 13 And from there we made a circuit and arrived at Rhegium. And after one day a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli. 14 There we found brothers and were invited to stay with them for seven days. And so we came to Rome. 15 And the brothers there, when they heard about us, came as far as the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns to meet us. On seeing them, Paul thanked God and took courage. 16 And when we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself, with the soldier who guarded him.
Let’s just pause there for a moment.
The first interesting thing here is not one of our three points of interest, sorry.
The ship of Alexandria, another vessel from Egypt carrying grain to Rome like the one that they were on during the storm and ran aground off Malta, obviously got there before them while the weather was still good and safely spent the winter there.
On the bow of the ship was either painted or carved the twin gods as a figurehead. Hese were the twin gods, Castor and Pollux, more sons of Zeus. Supposedly, they gave good fortune to those travelling under their name. The scholars are divided on why Luke chose to include this detail in his account, it was probably just to identify the particular ship, we aren’t sure. And I’m not sure it matters, that isn’t why I brought it up.
To us, in our, oh so evolved thinking, this idea of painting or carving Castor and Pollux on the bow of our ships seems silly, just superstition. Castor and Pollux have no power over life, they aren’t real.
However, Castor and Pollux are known by another name. Do you know what it is? Gemini.
If you were born between May 21st and June 21st you may be more familiar with what I mean. Gemini is the third sign of the Zodiac. Another fruitless superstition that has way more influence today than we might want to give it credit for. Giving the Zodiac any power over your life at all is idolatry and is a practice that should not be tolerated in Christ’s church.
Let’s go back to verse 12.
12 Putting in at Syracuse, (That’s on the coast of Sicily) we stayed there for three days. 13 And from there we made a circuit and arrived at Rhegium (Which is on the toe of the boot of Italy). And after one day a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli (Seven miles from Naples, Italy).
This is where the seafaring part of Paul’s journey ended and the walking started.
14 There we found brothers and were invited to stay with them for seven days. And so we came to Rome. 15 And the brothers there, when they heard about us, came as far as the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns to meet us. On seeing them, Paul thanked God and took courage. 16 And when we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself, with the soldier who guarded him.
So here is the first point of interest, the gospel had already reached Italy.
In Puteoli they found brothers and sisters in Christ. Interestingly, Luke doesn’t write, the brothers, meaning, they found brothers and sisters that they did not expect. If it were a particular group that was known to them, he would have written that they had found the brothers in Puteoli.
Now we know that Paul already knew that the gospel had reached the city of Rome, he knew there was a church there because he had written to them. The gospel was brought to Rome by the visitors from Rome that were mentioned in Acts 2 when Peter preached and the Holy Spirit came on the Day of Pentecost. The letter to the Romans was written from Corinth before Paul even went to Jerusalem and got arrested and started this whole trip over three years prior to this moment.
Paul wrote in Romans 1:8-15,
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world. 9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you 10 always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God’s will I may now at last succeed in coming to you. 11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— 12 that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles. 14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. 15 So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
The surprise was not that there were believers in Rome but that there were believers in Puteoli, over 170 miles from Rome!
After staying a week with them they continued on to Rome. Word had reached the city and some folks from the church traveled 30 to 40 miles to greet Paul. This encouraged the Apostle’s heart, both that he had made it to Rome and that there was such fruitful ministry there already underway. It was a very promising beginning to build on.
16 And when we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself, with the soldier who guarded him.
17 After three days he called together the local leaders of the Jews, and when they had gathered, he said to them, “Brothers, though I had done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers, yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. 18 When they had examined me, they wished to set me at liberty, because there was no reason for the death penalty in my case. 19 But because the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar—though I had no charge to bring against my nation. 20 For this reason, therefore, I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am wearing this chain.” 21 And they said to him, “We have received no letters from Judea about you, and none of the brothers coming here has reported or spoken any evil about you. 22 But we desire to hear from you what your views are, for with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against.”
It’s not that the Roman Jews had not heard of Paul, they just hadn’t heard anything from anybody in Jerusalem about him. Most likely those who had accused him before were just glad that they got him out of town, and that by going to Rome he was as good as dead.
The point of interest here is the reason for Paul’s chains. Why was he wearing a chain? Because of the hope of Israel.
First of all, do you remember what “hope” really means? It’s not a wish, it’s a confident expectation of something good, something they knew was coming.
So, what was the confident expectation of the children of Israel?
Their confident expectation was that God’s promises would be fulfilled and Messiah would come and restore perfect order for God’s people.
This is still the hope of Israel, the problem is, they missed it! Messiah has come just as the Father promised, and He has restored order, in that He has made a way for us to be restored to the Father by the permanent atonement, the permanent forgiveness of sins once and for all!
Jesus told this parable in Luke 14:16-24,
“A man once gave a great banquet and invited many. 17 And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ 18 But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’ 19 And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’ 20 And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ 21 So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ 22 And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ 23 And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled. 24 For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.’ ”
The Jews were the invited guests, the people of God, but, like the invited guests that made excuses why they couldn’t come to the banquet, those who rejected God’s Messiah, Jesus, will never taste the Father’s banquet. And those poor and crippled and blind and lame, those in the highways and the hedges, those are the people who accept the invitation of the gospel and put their trust in Jesus, Jews and Gentiles alike.
Jesus is the hope of Israel and He is the hope of the Gentiles too.
And that thought brings us to the third point of interest in our text, not everyone is going to believe.
23 When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. 24 And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved. 25 And disagreeing among themselves, they departed after Paul had made one statement: “The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet: 26 “ ‘Go to this people, and say, “You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.” 27For this people’s heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed; lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.’ 28 Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.”
30 He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, 31 proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.
Not everybody believed Paul, not everybody accepted his message of deliverance and freedom from sin, not everybody is going to believe us either but Paul kept at it and so should we.
This wasn’t the end of Paul’s story. During those two years in Rome he wrote the “Prison Epistles,” Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. Tradition says that Paul was eventually released and traveled as far as Spain before being arrested again and eventually was beheaded in Rome. During that time He wrote the “Pastoral Epistles,” the letters to Timothy and Titus.
Whether or not that is 100% accurate we don’t know for sure but what we do know is that no matter the opposition, Paul kept at it and so should we.
In the words of John Chrysostom, “Let us, then, imitate Paul, and take his noble, adamantine soul as our pattern, so that, following in his wake, we may safely sail over the stormy ocean of life, and enter the waveless haven of peace, and thus obtain that salvation which God has prepared for those who love Him, through the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, in like majesty and glory, blessed forever.”Amen.
