CAESAREA This story begins in Caesarea, a town in Israel located mid-way between Tel Aviv and Haifa on the Israeli coastal plain. The town was built by Herod the Great about 25–13 BCE as the port city Caesarea Maritima. It served as an administrative center of Judaea Province of the Roman Empire. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caesarea We find the Apostle Paul, a prisoner for the Lord, jailed now for almost two years and awaiting transfer by boat to Rome for a hearing before Caesar himself. He has been accused of blasphemy by the leaders of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, but because he is a Roman citizen, he has demanded the right as such to a hearing before Caesar in Rome. What brought him to this point (and his eventual martyrdom in Rome) is a series of events which he could not, and would not, try to escape. Time and again during his last missionary journey to Turkey, Greece and Lebanon, he had been warned numerous times by his friends and followers not to return to Jerusalem where arrest and torture would await him. Sometime during this final journey, he tells his followers he expects to be imprisoned in Jerusalem and of course, they warn him, they plead with him, not to go there. This is his reply: “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there.” Acts 20:22 He states he is compelled (urged) by the Holy Spirit to go there! Notice he is not being forced to do this. The Greek meaning is different for the word “compelled.” Luke tells the story as it resumes during Paul’s stop off in Caesarea prior to his leaving for Jerusalem. “During our stay of several days, a man named Agabus, who had the gift of prophecy, arrived from Judea and visited us. He took Paul’s belt, bound his own feet and hands with it, and said, “The Holy Spirit declares, ‘So shall the owner of this belt be bound by the Jews in Jerusalem and turned over to the Romans.’” Hearing this, all of us—the local believers and his traveling companions—begged Paul not to go on to Jerusalem.” Acts 21: 10 – 12. Note, too, that Argabus states that the Holy Spirit has declared this will happen. Argabus and Paul had both heard from the Holy Spirit. The others who were with him did not and denied the reality of what was ahead for their friend and leader Paul. That’s a normal reaction, isn’t it? Paul is indeed arrested and bound in double chains (Acts 21:33) while worshipping at the Temple in Jerusalem and returned to Caesarea for trials. One thing in Paul’s favor at this time is the fact that he is a Roman citizen. He demands to be taken to Rome to states his case before Caesar. Walking among the ruins of Caesarea, one could almost hear his powerful voice proclaiming, “I appeal to Caesar!” After several more years in a Roman prison, Paul was executed, dying a martyr’s death. Some years prior, another man was compelled to go to Jerusalem knowing full well that to do so surely meant His death. His name was Jesus. As he walked southward from Galilee toward Judea with his disciples, the Bible tells us that “He steadfastly and determinedly set His face to go to Jerusalem.” Luke 9:51 AMP. The Living Bible says it this way: “As the time drew near for his return to heaven, he moved steadily onward toward Jerusalem with an iron will.” Luke 9:51 Note the words “steadfastly,” “determinedly,” “steadily” and “with an iron will.” Isaiah 50:7 prophesied as he spoke about our triumphant Savior: “Because the Lord God helps me, I will not be dismayed; therefore, I have set my face like flint to do his will, and I know that I will triumph.” I like the phrase “I have set my face like flint…” Do you know how hard flint is? On the Mohs Hardness Scale, 1-10 (10 being the hardest), flint, a form of quartz, is #7 or only three down from being the hardest mineral on earth; the diamond is # 10. Flint was used by Native Americans for their arrows and they traveled hundreds of miles to a specific area in Ohio to chip out their flint. Flint Ridge State Memorial Park is not too far from where I raised my family in Somerset, Ohio. Perhaps you would like to learn a bit more about the hardness of a mineral to which Isaiah likens our Lord’s determination to be obedient. If so, you can click on this link: flintridgeohio.org/ Two men destined to die moved steadily forward toward their goal of Jerusalem. Paul’s friends believed what they had heard, seen and understood. They begged him not to go to Jerusalem. Jesus’ friends never understood why He had to go to Jerusalem until he sat down and explained it to them. Even then, they misunderstood. It wasn’t until after His resurrection that they finally realized the impact of who it was they had lived with and traveled with for three years. Perhaps you are hearing from the Lord about something specific, or perhaps non-specific, that He has called you to do. Might you be confused as to what it is specifically that He wants you to do? Might you be ignoring His call? Are you perhaps wondering what will others think? Or how you can ever do this? Pray, seek Christian counsel, read the Word of God and ask for the guidance of the Holy Spirit. He will show you the way. Then follow the example of Jesus and Paul. Set your face like flint to do the will of the Father and you will overcome. “Because the Lord God helps me, I will not be dismayed; therefore, I have set my face like flint to do his will, and I know that I will triumph.” Isaiah 50:7 TLB © Carol A. Krejci October 28, 2014
Posted on: Fri, 07 Nov 2014 22:27:35 +0000
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