Loading... Acts 21:40 - HE SPOKE UNTO THEM
Acts 21:40 And when he had given him license, Paul stood on the stairs, and beckoned with the hand unto the people. And when there was made a great silence, he spake unto them in the Hebrew tongue, saying,
Paul was in Jerusalem because God had called him to come to Jerusalem and preach. However, once Paul reached Jerusalem, the believers instructed him that before he let the multitudes know that he was in Jerusalem, Paul should purify himself. It was during this time of purification that some Jews from Asia saw Paul in the temple and they created a riot by falsely accusing Paul of bringing a gentile into the temple.
Paul was called by God to preach in Jerusalem and he took the time to listen to the believers about how he should prepare himself to do the perfect work of God. Paul knew that there would be trouble once he started to preach, one would have to doubt that he thought there would be trouble while he was quietly worshiping God in the temple.
Paul had been talking for some time about going to Jerusalem and preaching. Paul probably was a little disappointed when he got to Jerusalem and the believers instructed him that he needed to wait another seven days and purify himself. It had been a long journey and Paul was a man of action, a man who desired to do the will of God as quickly as possible.
Paul showed some wisdom when he chose to wait a couple of days before things heated up. It would be good to stop and worship the Lord. Paul probably assumed that once his days of purification were over, he would start preaching and then he would be arrested as had been foretold.
Paul ended up being arrested before he started to preach. However, once he was arrested, Paul was diligent to look for an opportunity to preach. Paul knew he was sent to Jerusalem to preach and since he was already arrested before he had the opportunity to preach, Paul was active in asking the centurion that he be allowed to speak to his accusers.
We like to have our life all planned out in advance. We think we know what is best for ourselves and we quickly start pursuing it. However, we must understand that just because we think we know what God is going to do in our life, it does not mean that God is under any obligation to make things happen in our timing or in accordance with our plans.
Paul was patient and he listened to those around him and first renewed his relationship with God. When we think we are about to go through a major life changing position, we need to stop and follow the example of Paul and renew our relationship with God. We do not know what God has in store for our lives, but when things start happening, the time we spent drawing closer to God will be helpful when we have to make split second decisions for the cause of Christ.
Unless we take the time to get alone and draw closer to God, our ability to seek opportunities to continue to do the perfect will of God will be weakened. We need to understand that if we put God first in our lives, then when life throws us a curveball, we will be ready to hear the still small voice of God and we will be in the position that we can make quick decisions that can bring much glory to the kingdom of God. Paul was able to make the decision to stop the centurion and ask to speak because he had first taken the time purifying himself and ensuring that his relationship with God was right.