Not My Will...

Let the Will of the Lord Be Done

(Acts 21:1-14, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, May 19, 2013)

[21:1] And when we had parted from them and set sail, we came by a straight course to Cos, and the next day to Rhodes, and from there to Patara. [2] And having found a ship crossing to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. [3] When we had come in sight of Cyprus, leaving it on the left we sailed to Syria and landed at Tyre, for there the ship was to unload its cargo. [4] And having sought out the disciples, we stayed there for seven days. And through the Spirit they were telling Paul not to go on to Jerusalem. [5] When our days there were ended, we departed and went on our journey, and they all, with wives and children, accompanied us until we were outside the city. And kneeling down on the beach, we prayed [6] and said farewell to one another. Then we went on board the ship, and they returned home. [7] When we had finished the voyage from Tyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, and we greeted the brothers and stayed with them for one day. [8] On the next day we departed and came to Caesarea, and we entered the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, and stayed with him. [9] He had four unmarried daughters, who prophesied. [10] While we were staying for many days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. [11] And coming to us, he took Paul's belt and bound his own feet and hands and said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ‘This is how the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’” [12] When we heard this, we and the people there urged him not to go up to Jerusalem.

The Apostle was on his way to Jerusalem, this despite the fact that he knew that there would be trouble for him there. Earlier, in his message to the Ephesian elders, he had said these words:

[22] And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing what will happen to me there, [23] except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me. [24] But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

Yet Paul kept on going. The warnings came by the Holy Spirit working through people who had the gift of prophetic insight. If the messages given to Paul in every city, now reinforced in Tyre and in Caesarea were not intended by the Holy Spirit to cause Paul to turn around and to change his plans, what was the point of these warnings? Paul's God-given determination to continue was a lesson to the churches in his day, and the account of these events remains a lesson for us today. Just as the Spirit of God led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil and ultimately led our Savior to Jerusalem and to the cross, those who follow Jesus today may also face testing. We need to persevere in the right way, even though we may face trouble.

Notice how strong the warnings were for Paul. In verse 4: “And through the Spirit they were telling Paul not to go on to Jerusalem.” Later the prophet Agabus acted out what would happen to Paul. The Jews in Jerusalem would bind his hands and feet and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.

In addition to these true prophetic words, the people who loved Paul added their own voices to the chorus of many Christians who were saying “No” to this trip. This heartfelt recommendation came not just from the local Christians. Paul's own traveling companions urged him not to go. They were the “we” in these verses, including the writer of Acts, his friend Luke: “When we heard this, we and the people there urged him not to go up to Jerusalem.”

[13] Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” [14] And since he would not be persuaded, we ceased and said, “Let the will of the Lord be done.”

Paul's reaction to all of these entreaties and to the Holy Spirit-given directives was astoundingly resolute. He wanted them to stop. Just as Jesus had set His face to Jerusalem knowing that He would die there, Paul did not want to be dissuaded from the task ahead of Him.

He was not questioning whether these warnings were true. He simply knew that the way before Him was both difficult and necessary. He set an apostolic example of steadfastness for the church.

What was His reasoning? He was “ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”

This reasoning and Spirit-inspired apostolic dedication was so powerful that it overruled the Spirit-inspired warning and the Spirit-empowered love and concern for Paul. Paul would not be persuaded to give up His plan to go to Jerusalem because he knew that God was calling him to go there, even if that meant his imminent death.

This determination had an impact on those around Paul. They ceased trying to convince him in a different way. Now of one mind, Paul and those around him gave themselves over to the will of the Lord with these simple words, “Let the will of the Lord be done.”

God's ways are above our ways. His thoughts are above our thoughts. He is building Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem. One stop along the way toward the glory of heaven for Jesus was the Jerusalem below. He knew what it would mean to go when he went there. He knew what would happen when He rode into town on a donkey in fulfillment of the Scriptures.

Jesus went to His death for us. That was absolutely necessary. He was building a kingdom that is not of this world. It does not take any spiritual gift to value the kingdoms of this world. That comes naturally. It does take spiritual eyesight to see today the glories of the Zion that will come tomorrow. And it takes spiritual power to go to the Jerusalem below, possibly to die, in order to fulfill the will of the Lord in His building up of His heavenly kingdom.

The church understands this. Our Savior prayed for us, knowing the challenges that we would face in this world. We have received the truth that Jesus came from the Father, died for our sins, rose from the dead, and returned to the Father. He has prayed for us, that we might be kept in His Name. He also prayed that we would be kept from the evil one. He asked the Father to sanctify us in the truth. By that living Word of truth we are kept in God and kept from the devil.

If we have been sanctified in the truth, we may object to suffering, and we may try to dissuade those we love from difficult paths, even when they are actually called to suffer for the Name of the Lord. But God is able to move us all together to the place where we are finally able to say with one voice, “Let the will of the Lord be done.”

We are called to be a part of an apostolic, worldwide church. We need to protect one another from evil, but we also need to encourage one another in love. Let the will of the Lord be done.

Old Testament Passage: Psalm 87 – Glorious Zion

Gospel Passage: John 18:33-40 – My kingdom is not of this world

Sermon Text: Acts 21:1-14 – From Miletus to Caesarea with warnings for Paul

Sermon Point: It is the will of the Lord that the apostolic church be willing to suffer and even to die for the name of Jesus.