THE KING’ S BUSINESS
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safe thing to do, that is go right on. Obe dience to the Spirit’s guidance brought Paul to the place he had so. long desired to visit -—Rome, and that too not at his own expense, but at the expense o f the Empire. His obeying the Spirit in this matter, in spite o f all the protesst o f others, and all the perils through which he must pass, gave him an entree into the very court o f the Emperor. It gave him an opportunity to testify to the truth to Felix, Festus, and Agrippa. It opened such doors o f oppor tunity as he had never had before, and inci dentally it gave to the church for all com ing ages the Epistles to the Ephesians, Colossians and Philippians. It also gave the church o f Christ some o f the most glorious pages o f her history. But while the Holy Spirit led Paul on, He also frankly told the faithful servant what lay ahead. In every city, through a variety o f agents, He testified to Paul that bonds and afflic tions awaited him. There are many today who seek God’s guidance by asking God to “ remove all obstacles” if it be His will that they go a certain way, and they take the fact that obstacles are removed as a cer tain indication that God wills that they go that way, and if obstacles are not removed they take |it as an indication that it is not God’s will that they go that way. But it is clear from this verse that God some times guides by putting obstacles in the way, rather than by removing obstacles from the way. It is by no means sure that the apparently open way, the easy path, - is always a Divine path. God would not always have His servants fake the path “ of least resistancer” A faithful servant o f Christ may always expect hardships (2 Tim. 3:12). W e might rather distrust a way that is made too easy, than to be sure that it is His way. Our Master’s way led through Gethsemane and up to Calvary, and He has told us plainly that we must take that way too if we would follow Him (Matt. 16:24). But the way o f suffering, the way o f the cross is the best way after all (2 Tim. 2:12; Rom. 8:18; Acts 14:22; 2 Cor. 4:17).
that a certain part o f the New Testament is for Jews and another part .for Gentiles, and that it is not right to preach repentance to Gentiles, because that is a Jewish mes sage. It is very clear that Paul did not think so. He had the same message for unsaved Jews as he had for unsaved Gen tiles, and' when Jews were converted and when Gentiles were converted, i.e., when thfey turned from sin and self unto God, and when they had faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, there was no difference between them, for they were both “ in Christ,” and “ in Christ” “there is neither Jew nor Greek,” and the message that the Jewish believer needs is exactly the message that the Gen tile believer needs (Gal. 3:28). vs. 22, 23. “And now (add ,) behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there: save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth (testifieth) unto me in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me." The journey which Paul here describes was one o f the most notable and epoch-making jour neys o f all history. It suggests in many respects the Savior’s last journey to the same city (Luke 9:51). Like his Master, Paul knew that there was sore trial ahead, but like his Master, he also knew that God was leading him on. Many think and teach that it was stubbornness on Paul’s part that led him to go to. Jerusalem at this time, in spite o f so many protests, but Paul himself tells us that he went “ bound in the Spirit," i.e., under the Holy Spirit’s constraint. Some interpreters say that “ in the Spirit” here means in his own spirit, but the expres sion is never so used, and this is only a Subterfuge of exegesis to support a theory, a theory that contradicts the facts. It was the Holy Spirit who urged Paul on to Jerusalem. It was a part o f God’s way o f answering Paul’s prayer to go to Rome. When the Holy Spirit leads us as we are told He led Paul here, though we may not know what may befall us in following the Holy Spirit’s leading, yea, though we know bonds and afflictions abide us, there is but one right thing, and one wise thing, and one
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