Acts 28:23

Sunday, 23 June 2024

So when they had appointed him a day, many came to him at his lodging, to whom he explained and solemnly testified of the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus from both the Law of Moses and the Prophets, from morning till evening. Acts 28:23

A literal rendering of the Greek would be, “And, having appointed him a day, they came – many – to him to the accommodation, to whom he set forth, fully testifying the kingdom of God, and persuading them about Jesus from both the Law of Moses and the Prophets from morning until evening” (CG).

In the previous verse, the Jews told Paul that they wanted to hear from him about his sect, knowing that it was spoken against everywhere. Having requested this, it next says, “And, having appointed him a day, they came.”

Paul probably happily agreed to have a chance to tell of his faith. In fact, he was probably overjoyed at the prospect of it. Instead of just telling people to come by at will though, a day was appointed for them to meet and to bring any who would be willing to listen. On that day, it says “many” came.

The word translated as many is pleión. It is a comparative form that would be typified by the use of “er” on a word. If one said, “they were great in number,” it would mean they were “greater in number.”

In essence, it means that more than was anticipated actually showed up. It is the same thing as has been seen at other times. When Paul was to talk about the coming of Christ, the halls would be filled for the first gathering. A good example of this is the account in Acts 13:42-48. Of this multitude in Rome, it says they came “to him to the accommodation.”

This is a new word, xenia. It is found only here and in Philemon 1:22. It is derived from xenos, signifying foreign or a stranger. Thus, xenia signifies hospitality which then gives the sense of an accommodation. When this great number had arrived, Paul then began to convey his message. As Luke says, “to whom he set forth, fully testifying the kingdom of God.”

Paul proclaimed Christ, His kingdom, and all that this entailed. Having already written Galatians, Romans, and his letters to the Corinthians, he would be well prepared to speak through the most detailed of theological matters concerning Christ.

And just as he did even in those letters, he gave New Covenant theology as he had received from Jesus and from what he knew from his own training. Therefore, he was speaking to them “and persuading them about Jesus from both the Law of Moses and the Prophets.”

In other words, he simply went to their own writings in order to demonstrate that what he was saying was both plausible and fully supportable from Scripture, all of it. From both the law and from the prophets, meaning the entire body of Scripture, Jesus is on prominent display. Paul was able to show them this. Therefore, if God gave them these writings, and if they testified to the work of Jesus, then there could be no doubt that they at least had to consider the plausibility that he was correct.

This is one of the obvious reasons that Paul was selected for the position he was given. Jesus instructed him directly through revelation –

“But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. 12 For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.” Galatians 1:11, 12

However, Paul would be asked things during his ministry that Jesus probably did not talk to him about personally. But because of his great wealth of knowledge from Scripture, being a Pharisee, along with inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he could then convey things that were carefully reasoned out. The synergistic working together of Paul, the word, and the Spirit would be evident, just as it is when we read his epistles today.

Once those gathered got to that point, having heard the words of Paul and seen how they match what their own writings stated, they would then need to turn the head knowledge into an active faith. The end of the verse shows the length to which Paul was ready to go to make his point. They met “from morning until evening.”

Paul was willing to speak fully, completely, and at length concerning his beliefs in the Messiah who had come. The Messiah’s name is Jesus.

Life application: As with Paul, it must still be the same with us today. We cannot expect revelation from Scripture to be directly infused into our heads. We need to first read and know what Scripture says.

Paul knew the writings and yet he didn’t know Jesus. He was supernaturally called to be an apostle for a specific purpose. Once he realized, however, that Jesus was the Lord, he was then able to take his giant wealth of knowledge and reexplain the coming of Jesus in accord with the Scriptures.

Today, we are told about Jesus, and by faith in what we hear, we are saved. What happens after that is up to us. How deep do we want to dive into the knowledge of God in Christ? The more we read and learn the Bible, the more we will be able to then unpackage what God is telling us.

However, we can come to erroneous conclusions concerning what is being conveyed. And so, in our study of the word, we need to pray to God that His Spirit will direct us and keep us from what is incorrect. We should also pray that if we are incorrect, that He will alert us to this. From there, we should then drop any pride and accept that we were wrong, correcting our doctrine accordingly.

The study of the knowledge of God through understanding Scripture is a lifelong task. Let us get about it. Our days are numbered and they are few. Let us spend them wisely.

Heavenly Father, be with us as we read and contemplate Your word. Help us to be logical and precise in how we interpret it. Should we come to wrong conclusions, please send us correction so that we will not be at fault in regard to Your precious and sacred word. It speaks of Jesus, and we desire to know Him correctly, intimately, and completely. To Your glory. Amen.