Acts 28:23-31 (NIV)
They arranged to meet Paul on a certain day, and came in even larger numbers to the place where he was staying. From morning till evening he explained and declared to them the kingdom of God and tried to convince them about Jesus from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. Some were convinced by what he said, but others would not believe. They disagreed among themselves and began to leave after Paul had made this final statement: “The Holy Spirit spoke the truth to your forefathers when he said through Isaiah the prophet: “‘Go to this people and say, “You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.” For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’
“Therefore I want you to know that God’s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!”
For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him. Boldly and without hindrance he preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul was very anxious that these Jewish leaders listen, understand, and receive the good news of the reality of the kingdom of God through faith in Jesus, the Messiah. He had been praying intently for all the intervening days, so when they came, he was prayed up and ready.
But, as was too often the case, arguments and objections immediately arose. Paul had lots of experience answering those exact objections, so he ably answered them from the Jews’ own Scriptures and pushed forward.
The end result was that some believed, but many others just continued to argue. They were so stuck in the old interpretation of the Scriptures given to them by the rabbis of old that they were not open at all to new light or expanded understanding, even if that light and understanding were entirely consistent with the Scriptures that they read and studied.
Finally, as the sun was setting and their time was drawing to a close, the Holy Spirit led Paul to prick the objectors’ consciences with the well-known passage from Isaiah 6:9-10. This passage was not about gentiles, but about God’s own people whose rebellion and closed hearts were even in Isaiah’s day leading them so far from God that destruction, dispersal and exile were just around the corner. The same fates were only a few years ahead for those who were rejecting Jesus now.
As usual, Paul had first taken his message of the kingdom to the Jews, to those who had been prepared for it by covenant, history and instruction in the Scriptures. But, as usual, when many of them rejected the message, rejecting not the messenger but God Himself, he moved his attention to the gentiles, who, ironically, were usually much more receptive to the gospel than the Jews!
Paul was under house arrest until his case was heard by the emperor. In this case, that stretched on for two years. Thus, his whole time of imprisonment lasted for more than four years, including his time imprisoned in Israel. But it was not idle time. He had a constant flow of visitors, some believers whom he encouraged, and some unbelievers who needed persuasion. But whoever came, Paul graciously received them, and the kingdom was built up and continued to grow.
Father, it is interesting to note the huge difference between the way we share the gospel and the way Paul did it. Usually we share briefly, and if there is not a positive response we move on, figuring that that person must just not be ready. But we frequently see Paul engaging in long discussions, reasoning with the Scriptures and answering questions in the power of the Holy Spirit. In some cases, this went on for days (Acts 13:42), or even over several weeks (Acts 14:3, 19:8). But he didn’t give up until the people unequivocally rejected the gospel despite all their objections being adequately answered from the Scriptures. Even then, if one wanted to come back and discuss the matter further, Paul welcomed them. It was the people and their salvation that mattered most to Paul, and whatever time and energy it took to bring them into the kingdom (and sometimes wrestle them in!) was fine with him. Lord, inspire in me that same level of passion for the lost all around me, so that I willingly give the work of sharing the good news the same focus that Paul did. Amen.
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