Acts 25:1-12 | Bondage to Bitternessਨਮੂਨਾ

Under whose Authority?

Paul’s response put Festus in a bind. He might have suspected what the Jewish leaders were up to, but did not want to alienate them. There was a growing resentment in Judah against the Roman Empire, and Festus didn’t want to add any more fuel to their discontent. (No governor wants riots or revolution on his record.) So he asks Paul if he would go up to Jerusalem with him to stand trial for these charges. Regardless if Festus was making this offer in good faith as a compromise, Paul understood what the Jewish leaders were up to.

Going to Jerusalem was a no-win situation for Paul. Jerusalem was the seat of power for the religious leaders, and if they tried him there, he wouldn’t get a fair trial. That’s if he’d ever make it there to begin with. So Paul responds to Festus by again claiming his innocence and reminding Festus that he is standing in a court higher than the one in Jerusalem. The Roman court had authority over the Jewish court, and Paul was not about to trust himself into the Jewish leader’s hands. As a Roman citizen, Paul has the right to appeal to Caesar. The Jewish court in Jerusalem had no authority to stop this.

Rome might have thought of themselves as the ultimate authority, but Paul saw himself ultimately under Jesus’s authority. He knew his innocence, no matter what accusations were being brought against him. He knew that while he might suffer under corrupt human justice, God’s justice would ultimately prevail. Jesus sent Paul to spread the gospel, and his allegiance was to God, even though he was under Roman law. Paul was so devoted to the call of Jesus and his innocence that he said,

“If, however, I am guilty of doing anything deserving death, I do not refuse to die. But if the charges brought against me by these Jews are not true, no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar!” (Acts 25:11, NIV).

Paul recognized that the Jewish religious leaders didn’t have authority over him—in this world or in heaven. He was not in bondage to their rule and didn’t allow them to bend him to their will. Because he belonged to Jesus.

Pray

Give your allegiance to God and pray that God would rule your life. Pray that you don’t allow others to compromise your allegiance to him.