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Paul Needs No Defense in Court in Corinth – Acts 18:12-17 NKJV

Be on the Lookout for Open Displays of God’s Sovereignty and Providence All around You!

There are times to stand up and speak up. Then there are times to stand down, be still, and watch God take over the situation. Even though we are commanded to “be ready always to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you” (I Peter 3:15a NKJV), there are times we recognize that God has divinely orchestrated the details of a scenario so that we do not even have to speak. And while our hearts desire to speak God’s truth as He has commanded us to do, in these particular moments, we quickly realize that God is up to something, and we would do well to simply sit back and watch the providential hand of our sovereign God work in our circumstances.

Acts 18:12-17 provides a scenario where Paul was prepared to fulfill his responsibility to testify about the Gospel, but our sovereign God providentially orchestrated the circumstances so that he did not have to speak. In fact, God made it so he was unable to get a word inserted into the conversation. God did this because He had a divine plan for Paul in that moment in a Roman courthouse.

This court case was an extremely significant case that had the potential of silencing Christianity forever. Should Paul be found guilty of breaking Roman law in this courtroom, Christianity would be considered illegal to be practiced throughout the entire Roman Empire. Usually, cases related to civic disturbances would be taken to a judgment seat that was placed in the public marketplace. There, one of the many local magistrates would hear the case and judge it. But hearings in front of local magistrates would not be able to set any precedent in society. They simply heard one-off cases, resolved that situation, and then moved on to the next case. Knowing that the normal procedure of dealing with the disturbances that Paul was causing would not rid them of this problem forever, if they followed the normal course of action, the opponents of Paul desired for the case against him to go straight to the highest Roman ruler in the region. There, the cases were judged by the “proconsul” (Acts 18:12) or “Governor” of the entire region. And if the governor ruled on a case, his ruling would set a precedent for all jurisdictions. In their minds, if they could get a sitting governor to cast judgment against the preaching of the Gospel by Christians, then preaching would be immediately illegal everywhere in the Roman world. And unless it was overturned on appeal, that would be the end of the legal preaching of the Gospel. This was their chance to once-and-for-all silence the preaching of the Gospel!

Knowing the weight that this case could have upon the Gospel ministry of Paul and every single one of his fellow apostles and ministers, it is safe to assume that Paul probably prepared all night to present a solid case for why his preaching was legal. But Paul was going to quickly learn that God was going to fight this battle, and all Paul had to do was stand down, sit back, and watch the power of God orchestrate all of the circumstances to fulfill His will.

Gallio was the governor of this region, and he was in this area of the region at the time of this court case. Gallio was known for being kind and fair. In addition, Roman courts only heard legal cases of breaking Roman law. They were not interested in settling religious debates. That is why the Jews began their opening statement with a false claim that, “This fellow persuades men to worship God contrary to the [Roman and Jewish] law” (Acts 18:13 NKJV). This was their only way to attempt to keep the Governor’s attention on the case. They had to frame their charge as a legal infraction. They had to claim that Christianity was a religion that had not been sanctioned by the state and thus was declared by Rome as “religio illicita” (Latin), which means “illegal religion. ”Knowing Judaism was an approved religion sanctioned by Rome (“religio licita” = legal religion), they had to demonstrate that Christianity was different than Judaism and thus breaking Roman law. But Gallio saw right through the Jews’ argument for what it was – they did not like hearing the name “Jesus” and did not like hearing Paul proclaim that “Jesus is the Christ [“Messiah”]” (Acts 18:5). Hearing this, Paul was ready to present his well-prepared defense for Christianity that he had done many times already in his ministerial career. But God did not let him. Rather, God allowed Paul to be interrupted and silenced. He was forced to stand down, sit back, and watch the miraculous providence of God play out for all to see.

Acts 18:14 NKJV starts off by saying, “And when Paul was about to open his mouth,” but that is as far as Paul was able to get. God directed Gallio himself to speak up and declare that this was a frivolous case against a man based upon religious disagreements. “Gallio said to the Jews, ‘If it were a matter of wrongdoing [legal wrongdoing] or wicked crimes [something the law forbids in principle without the law already specifying the action], O Jews, there would be reason why I should bear with you. But if it is a question of words and names [Jesus, Messiah] and your own law [religious law], look to it yourselves; for I do not want to be a judge of such matters” (Acts 18:14b-15 NKJV) and dismissed the case. In that one moment, not only was Gospel ministry spared extinction for Paul and so many others, but the case was officially dismissed. This demonstrated that for now, Rome was going to allow the preaching of the Gospel throughout its land. And God brought about this monumental declaration without Paul ever having to open his mouth! And not only did Christianity receive a favorable judgment, but the accusers of the Gospel also received their just reward.

After the case was dismissed, the Jews were furious. Acts 18:16 implies that the Jews kept on insisting that Gallio should rule in their favor, and as a result, Gallio had to “drive them from the judgment seat.” Then the ones who put their hope in a man named Sosthenes (SOSS-then-knees), who must have played a major role in their attempt to quell the Gospel message, “took Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat. But Gallio took no notice of these things” (Acts 18:17 NKJV). For once, Paul was not the one getting beaten up after standing for his convictions! As a result, “Paul still remained a good while” (Acts 18:18a NKJV) in Corinth, free to preach the Gospel.

It would be a safe assumption that while all of this was occurring, Paul was smiling as he recalled to mind what his sovereign, providential God told him earlier in his ministry there in Corinth, “Now the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision, “Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent; for I am with you, and no one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city” (Acts 18:10-11 NKJV).

Ponder & Pray Today…

Reflect on how powerful, sovereign, and providential God is and has been in your life. Review how he has delivered you in the past. Remind yourself how many times He has demonstrated his love towards you, your family, and your loved ones. Then identify the situations or the moments in your life that you find difficult to trust the Lord's protection and His perfect timing.

Pray and confess to God where you could be stronger in your daily trust in Him. Tell the Lord you desire to trust Him more and will put it into practice today. Tell Him you will remember how He protected Paul and the Gospel ministry in Acts 18:12-17 and that you will also stand down, sit back, and trust His sovereign, providential hand to lead your life when you do not know what to do. Read and pray Psalm 139 to the Lord to seal this commitment.