Apostle Paul: Paul Tells His Life Story and Shipwreck on the Way to Rome (Day 4-5)

The Bible reading plan comes from here. I am using the Matthew Henry Commentary alongside my Bible (NIV). You can find my Day 1 Reflections here, Day 2 here, Day 3 here.

Day 4: Acts 26- Paul Tells His Life Story
As I have realized that sharing your testimony is a powerful part of sharing your faith, this story has become one of my favorites. However, one thing that I think I misunderstand while reading the Bible, or really any historical story, is the severity of the moment. When we read Paul's testimony, we read that while he was not a Christian, he persecuted them. Then he encountered Christ while he was traveling, and his life turned around; He began to profess truth in Christ. But Paul was not just non-Christian, he thought he was doing the right thing by persecuting Christians.

Historical Side-note I Learned:
King Aggripa was the son of Herod who killed James the apostle, and grandson of Herod the Great, under whom Christ was born (p. 1738). He was a proselyte to the Jewish religion, understood all matters relating to it better than the other Roman governors did (p. 1739). A proselyte is a person who has changed religious beliefs. So it was important for King Aggripa to listen to Paul and not just pass Paul along because he would understand Paul's testimony better than anyone else.

Paul believed that "he did God good service in persecuting those who called on the name of Jesus Christ. It is possible for those to be confident they are in the right who yet are evidently in the wrong... He was very officious [objectionably aggressive] to vote the putting of Christians to death. ...  All imaginable external objections lay against his being a Christian" (p. 1740). It would be incomprehensible for Paul to have become a Christian. Paul was without-a-doubt, unimaginably, non-Christian. Now knowing the severity of Paul's situation, why is he now a Christian? My commentary says, "He did not reason himself into Christianity, but was brought into the highest degree of an assurance of it, immediately from the highest degree of prejudice against it. ... Paul thought Jesus was buried in the earth, and, though stolen out of his own sepulchre, yet laid in some other. All the Jews were taught to say so, and therefore he is amazed to hear him speak from heaven, to see him surrounded with all this glory. This convinced him that the doctrines of Jesus were divine and heavenly, and not to be opposed, but to be cordially embraced; and this is enough to make him a Christian immediately" (p. 1740). Upon seeing Christ, all of Paul's knowledge and understanding of Jesus was flipped upside down. "His conversion in such a miraculous way was not only to himself, but to others also, a convincing proof of the truth of Christianity" (p. 1740).

Day 5: Acts 27- Shipwreck on the Way to Rome

I have to admit: I am writing this post several days after I had read this section. I no longer remember what I thought was important. But I have to remind myself that through writing this series of posts, I am not trying to teach anyone, but merely recording my thoughts. I always find that I learn best be reading and then writing about the topic, whether it is summarizing or picking out key points. So please don't read my posts to try and learn about Paul; read the Bible. Read my posts as a discussion with me. As I read my commentary, there were a few statements that got my attention, and these are what I am going to write about.

In reference to verses 12-20: "See what the wealth of this world is; the time may come when it will be a burden, not only too heavy to be carried safe of itself, but heavy enough to sink him that has it. ... Any man will rather make shipwreck of his goods than of his life, but many will rather make shipwreck of faith and a good conscience than of their goods" (p. 1745). I'm left a little speechless after reading these sentences because I realize how true it is of me. My actions while reading this series on Paul's life is the perfect example. I was planning on reading one day and writing the next; this hasn't happened, and I've made many excuses. In doing so, I've shipwrecked my faith over my goods. By spending time with people, even virtually via facebook and instagram, I've taken away time I could have been spending with God.

In reference to verses 21-44: "No storms nor tempests can hinder the communications of God's favour to his people, for he is a very present help" (p. 1745). This is probably one of my favorite things about God: no matter what I do or where I am at in life, God is always there for me. He will always hold to His promises. He will always love us (read a little about what I think about God's love for us here.) This is a huge comfort. Paul was told by an angel that his life and the lives of those with him would be spared (vs. 24). While on the boat, they were probably thinking that they were going to die. But nonetheless, verse 44 says, "The rest were to get there on planks or on other pieces of the ship. In this way everyone reached land safely," God never promised anything about the boat arriving safely. God keeps his promises, just not in the expected way.

Apostle Paul: Scenes from Paul's Missionary Journey (Day 3)

Day 3: Acts 17- Scenes from Paul's Missionary Journey

The Bible reading plan comes from here. I am using the Matthew Henry Commentary alongside my Bible (NIV). You can find my Day 1 Reflections here, and Day 2 here.

"Be the change you wish to see in the world."

Without having a name beside that quote, you are already thinking about Gandhi. Immediately after reading this quote, I often thought to myself, "How can I change the world? I am just one person." But I think I was looking at this quote too broadly. The world could simply mean the space around you and the people near you. It doesn't have to mean the people across the world you have never met, and may never meet. I think the key take away is that wherever you are, nothing is going to change unless if you set the change into motion.

And now you are probably wondering how this relates to Paul. I think you'll understand soon enough. I cannot say it any better than my commentary does. The following is a snippet of the commentary from Acts 17: 1-9 (p. 1704).

"In one sense it is true that wherever the gospel comes in its power to any place, to any soul, it works such a change there that it may be said to turn the world upside down. The love of the world is rooted out of the heart, and the way of the world contradicted in the life; so that the world is turned upside down there. They would have it thought that the preachers of the gospel were mischief makers wherever they came. Because they persuaded people to turn from idols to the living and true God, from malice and envy to love and peace, they ware charged with turning the world upside down, when it was only the kingdom of the devil in the world that they thus overturned."

The Gospel brings change and this was Paul's mission. He set out to share that Jesus is the Christ who brings salvation. He traveled from place to place with the intent to share the good news. He turned the world upside down in the places he went. We can create mischief in the world by living for God. When we say "no" to the world, we turn the world upside down in the place we are at. With one more step, we can affect another place. We will interact with others who also have the ability to turn the world upside down. Paul met many people during his travelings (Acts 17:34), and they most likely started to turn the world upside down where they lived.

Paul probably thought, "I'm just one person. How can I change the world?" But his teachings and testimony is still being heard today. I'm not saying that we are all going to be a Paul, but I am saying we all have the ability to change something around us.

Be a mischief maker... if only to say, "Mischief Managed."

Apostle Paul: Macedonian Call and a Jailbreak (Day 2)

Day 2: Acts 16- Paul's Macedonian Call and a Jailbreak

   The Bible reading plan comes from here. I am using the Matthew Henry Commentary alongside my Bible (NIV). You can find my Day 1 Reflections here.

An Array of Things I Learned:

I did not understand why Acts 16:3 was important to the story line until I read the historical context. Acts 16:3 says, "Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek." (NIV) I had always read the verse and glanced over it. Paul did not have Timothy circumcised because of the law; Paul was against those who made circumcision necessary for salvation. Paul was going to minister to the Jews, and Timothy's circumcision would make the ministry acceptable among the Jews (p. 1698).

My commentary made an interesting point about Acts 16:11- 15. The question behind the commentary is "Why is Lydia's conversion recorded?" I'm sure there were plenty of others who Paul, Silas, and Timothy had met. Why wasn't someone else's story recorded? Maybe someone of high power, or someone with a unique conversion? We have conversion stories, such as Paul's, that were affected by miracle. But not all conversion stories need to be ornate. Some, such as Lydia's, were brought on by ordinary methods (p. 1699).

Whenever I have read this story before, the beatings Paul and Silas went through were always overlooked. 'They were beaten and thrown in prison' was the extent of my knowledge. Granted, you aren't going to explain all the details to a little kid. But now that I'm grown up... I think I can handle it. Hold on... What mom??... No I won't clean my room!... Anyways. My commentary says, "This was one of those three times that Paul was beaten with rods, according to the Roman usage, which was not under the compassionate limitation of the number of stripes not to exceed forty, which was provided by the Jewish law. It is here said that they laid many stripes upon them (v. 23), without counting how many, one would think, this might have satiated their cruelty; if they must be whipped, surely they must be discharged. No, they are imprisoned" (p. 1700). The beating that Paul and Silas went through was severe, and that is putting it into kind terms. If they were wiped, the beating would have been limited, but Paul and Silas were beaten with rods. To follow their beating, despite one thinking this may be enough punishment, they were thrown in prison. And they weren't thrown into just any prison cell; they were thrown into the inner cell which is the deepest part of the prison.

Despite all that they went through, Paul and Silas still praised God. They prayed, sang, and witnessed to the guard. When they were released (read the Acts 16 for the full story! It's a good one.), Paul finally brought up the issue that he was a Roman citizen. One might wonder why he did not say this earlier, because it would have saved him a beating. But "Paul did not plead this before he was beaten lest he should seem to be afraid of suffering for the truth which he had preached. He had nobler things than this to comfort himself with in his affliction. He did not plead it afterwards, to put an honor upon the cause he suffered for, to let the world know that the preachers of the gospel merited better treatment. He did it likewise to mollify the magistrates towards the Christians at Philippi, and beget in the people a better opinion of the Christian religion" (p. 1702). What I gather from all of this: Paul was a brave and selfless man.

Apostle Paul: The Conversion of Saul (Day 1)

Sometimes I wonder if I lived during the time of Christ, would I follow him. Jesus was very radical for his time, and I tend to follow what I know; I don't branch out. This planted in me the desire to go back in time and put myself to the test. However, since time travel isn't extremely plausible, the second best desire was planted in my mind: I want to know the apostles on a deeper level. What were their lives like? Why did they follow Christ? What can I learn from their knowledge? Thus, the google search for Bible readings on Apostle Paul initiated. Although searching took longer than I thought, I found a two week reading plan that seemed suitable.

Two Weeks on the Life and Teachings of the Apostle Paul
Day 1: Acts 9- The Conversion of Saul
Day 2: Acts 16- Paul's Macedonian Call and a Jailbreak
Day 3: Acts 17- Scenes from Paul's Missionary Journey
Day 4: Acts 26- Paul tells His Life Story to a King
Day 5: Acts 27- Shipwreck on the way to Rome
Day 6: Acts 28- Paul's Arrival in Rome
Day 7: Romans 3- Paul's Theology in a Nutshell
Day 8: Romans 7- The Struggle with Sin
Day 9: Romans 8- Life in the Spirit
Day 10: 1 Corinthians 13- Paul's Description of Love
Day 11: 1 Corinthians 15- Thoughts of the Afterlife
Day 12: Galatians 5- Freedom in Christ
Day 13: Ephesians 3- Paul's Summary of His Mission
Day 14: Philippians 2- Imitating Christ

Along with reading the selected chapter of the Bible, I also read commentary from Matthew Henry's Commentary. This book was a Christmas gift from my brother. I always asked for different commentaries for Christmas; my brother probably was sick of me asking every year that he just bought one that had commentary over the entire Bible. He's probably thinking, "She'll finally shut up about asking for books for Christmas." I'm thinking, "Oh great, it was an easy go-to, and now I don't know what to put on my list." Anyways, I find that I learn a lot more having an outside source to pair with reading my Bible. The commentary points out phrases I would have glanced over, or cultural/historical information that is not intuitive. I would highly suggest pairing a commentary with reading your Bible; I find that my time- when I actually set aside time- and reading has become more meaningful with commentaries.

Despite the fact that this is a two week reading plan, I will probably spend more than two weeks. I want to spend some days reading, but I also want to spend time reflecting and writing what I learned. so here is where my blog posts come in-- I am intimidated to write these posts because I am by no means a theologian or philosopher who knows everything there is about Apostle Paul. What I write is simply knowledge I learned or facts which spurred my interest. If you choose to embark on this two week adventure with me, then please leave comments. I would love to learn from you as well. Without further ado...

Day 1: Acts 9- The Conversion of Saul
Whenever I thought about Saul's conversion, the memories of the pictures Sunday School teachers held up while telling the story flooded my thoughts. The picture snippets, like the one below, represented the story we were learning.

This isn't the exact picture I imagined... what is google useful
for if you can't find the exact picture from 15 years ago?!?

From a young age, I always knew that Saul was traveling in pursuit of persecuting Christians when Jesus came, and the bright light which shown around Saul and blinded him. Saul's life had changed and he began to proclaim Jesus as his Savior; with this new life came a new name: Paul. Although, I am not sure when the name change occurred. However, being able to state the summary of a story is one thing, but knowing the details is much more intriguing.

For instance. Saul killed Christians. You are probably thinking, "Oh, that is bad." But Saul was not a bad guy; he was a horrifying guy. My commentary said, "The matter of the persecution was threaenings and slaughter. There is persecution in threatenings, they terrify and break the spirit. His breathing out threatenings and slaughter intimates that it was natural to him. His very breath, like that of some venomous creatures, was pestilential. He breathed death to the Christians, wherever he came" (p. 1669). If you were like me, you would have read that and thought, "Okay. but what does pestilential mean?" I know... you were all thinking that! Pestilential comes from the word pestilence, a noun which means a deadly or virulent epidemic disease, or something that is considered harmful, destructive, or evil. Saul was not just a murder; he was a plague. Every breath he took brought death to Christians.

After Saul's encounter with Christ, I had always assumed that things were fine and dandy. Saul was a new man, and that was that. But I overlooked a key fact: Whose life is really fine and dandy? No one lives a simply perfect life. Saul had his own trials he had to face after becoming a Christian. God didn't immediately give him direction; Saul was directed to go into Damascus and wait. He was blind for three days! He was probably wondering what the heck was going on-- at one moment he was ready to kill, then he encountered Jesus, was blind and knew Jesus as his Savior, but had no idea what was going to happen next. He was in the dark-- literally, he was blind. The commentary said, "Let [Saul] consider awhile what he and done in persecuting Christ, and be deeply humbled for that, and then he shall be told what he has further to do ... He was in the dark concerning his own spiritual state, and was so wounded in spirit for sin that he could relish neither meat nor drink" (p. 1670). Saul spent those three days fasting and praying (vs. 11). Just like us today, he had no idea of the plans God had for him. Just because he had an unique encounter with Christ does not mean he had all the answers given to him.

My third misconception about Paul was that I thought when Paul became a Christian, all the other Christians accepted him and were joyful. But we cannot forget about the man of who he was- death and destruction. There was no man they were more afraid of. As Saul grew in his faith and defense of the gospel, he faced trials. His new friends did not accept him because of his past persecutions, and his old friends viewed him as a traitor (p. 1671). If I were Saul, I would have thought, "What have I gotten myself into? Are things really better? I use to have some people hate me. Now, everyone does, and they are trying to kill  me." It would be tough to go through a life altering situation, and then come out of it with what seems like no support from others. "Saul was no sooner a Christian than a preacher, no sooner a preacher than a sufferer" (p. 1672). I am beginning to look up to Paul because of his perseverance. Despite immediately being thrown into a difficult situation, he did not revert to his old ways.

Next up: Paul's Macedonian Call and a Jailbreak (Acts 16)