Acts 24:18

Friday, 9 February 2024

“in the midst of which some Jews from Asia found me purified in the temple, neither with a mob nor with tumult. Acts 24:18

The verse is incomplete without the next verse. For now, a more literal rendering is, “In which they found me purified in the temple, not with a crowd, nor with a tumult. And who, Jews from Asia...” (CG).

In the previous verse, Paul noted that after many years away, he came to bring alms to his nation, and offerings. Now, he says, “In which they found me purified in the temple.” This is a key point concerning his right to be in the temple area that stems from Chapter 21. Upon his arrival, he was exhorted by the elders of the church to pay the expenses of those who had taken a vow. In compliance with that, and going further by joining them in purification, it said –

“Then Paul took the men, and the next day, having been purified with them, entered the temple to announce the expiration of the days of purification, at which time an offering should be made for each one of them.” Acts 21:26

This was something that could easily be validated and which proved he had the right to be in the temple area, and he was obviously there for proper religious purposes. He continues further, saying, “not with a crowd, nor with a tumult.”

It would be improbable that a person who was bringing alms and making sacrifices after an extended absence would suddenly decide to start a tumult. As his words could be proven on those points, his innocence in the matter logically follows.

As for the introductory words to the verse, “in which,” they mean that he was actually in the process of performing his sacrifices. At the very time he was conducting his religious affairs in a purified state, he was interrupted. To support that, he then begins his next thought. His words will continue into the next verse. For now, he begins with, “And who, Jews from Asia...”

These are those mentioned in Chapter 21 –

“Now when the seven days were almost ended, the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him, 28 crying out, ‘Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against the people, the law, and this place; and furthermore he also brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.’ 29 (For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple.)”

It is these Asian Jews who certainly saw him among the Gentiles in the past and who had hounded him all along. When they saw him in Jerusalem, they realized it was a perfect opportunity to cause him grief.

Life application: When people are ideologically at odds with others, it is hard to come to a reconciliation over those differences. It is human nature to not “live and let live.” Muslims, particularly because of the words of the Koran, feel it is a sacred obligation to kill or enslave unbelievers. Those who hold to this are not the extremists but rather the fundamentalists.

They hold their writings as sacred and feel it is their duty to act in this way. Likewise, the Jews, depending on how they interpret Scripture and their later writings, feel that they are God’s chosen people – above and apart from all others. When Paul went among the Gentiles and communed with them, it was taken as a great and blasphemous thing.

His actions were seen as defiling and worthy of death. This is not so much because he associated with Gentiles, something all of the diaspora Jews did to some extent. Rather, it was because he taught that Jesus was the Messiah and that His message accepted Gentiles on an equal footing with Jews. To them, this was intolerable. This totally nullified the “above and apart from all others” attitude that still permeates Jewish society today.

Christians are not expected to have such an idea about themselves. Rather, we are to acknowledge that we are sinners in need of a Messiah who alone can save us. But this is a problem that the world doesn’t understand. Instead, they look at the result, not the process.

In other words, true Christians believe that Jesus is the only way to be saved. This is because Jesus said it, and it is also logically true. As such, the meaning is that only true Christians are saved. This is the result of faith in Christ. It is what the world sees, and they perceive this as a point of arrogance – “How dare you say I am not saved!”

The process, however, is that we first acknowledged that we were sinners and that we understood Jesus could save us. This excludes all arrogance. Rather, it is a point of extreme humility to stand before the Creator and say, “I leave myself totally at your mercy. Without you, I am lost. I trust in Your grace alone to save me.”

If the world more fully understood this, it may relieve the tension to some extent. However, much of the world refuses to simply acknowledge that they are sinners. If they are, they have a need for a Savior. But this would then require them to have the same humility saved believers once demonstrated. As such, this is still a great cause for a feeling of contempt towards Christians.

In understanding this, we can then understand why Christianity is so quickly becoming aberrant to the people of the world. With each new “freedom” that governments proclaim, there is a new wall put up. If people are free to be homosexuals, then they cannot be “sinners” for their conduct. If people are free to murder their unborn, then they cannot be “sinners” for aborting babies.

As wickedness increases, a hatred of what you stand for will logically increase. Be ready to focus on the process of your salvation when talking to others. Some of them may get it. But to focus on the result, I am saved, and you are not, is a point of theology, though true, that we now find is almost completely impossible to state without being hated all the more. Until people see their sin as something God cannot accept, they will never believe that they are in need of a Savior.

Heavenly Father, we, as believers, came to You with empty hands, realizing our fallen state before You. We believe that because of the cross of Jesus Christ, we are saved. Help us to properly and faithfully communicate this truth to the world around us. May we not waffle in our proclamation that it is sin that separates us from You. We are saved because we were first sinners who needed to be saved. Thank You, O God, for Your saving grace that is found in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.