Acts 28:17-31

¹⁷ After three days he called together the local leaders of the Jews, and when they had gathered, he said to them, “Brothers, though I had done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers, yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. ¹⁸ When they had examined me, they wished to set me at liberty, because there was no reason for the death penalty in my case. ¹⁹ But because the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar—though I had no charge to bring against my nation. ²⁰ For this reason, therefore, I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am wearing this chain.” ²¹ And they said to him, “We have received no letters from Judea about you, and none of the brothers coming here has reported or spoken any evil about you. ²² But we desire to hear from you what your views are, for with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against.” ²³ When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. ²⁴ And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved. ²⁵ And disagreeing among themselves, they departed after Paul had made one statement: “The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet: ²⁶ “‘Go to this people, and say,
“You will indeed hear but never understand,
and you will indeed see but never perceive.” ²⁷ For this people’s heart has grown dull,
and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed;
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.’ ²⁸ Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.” ³⁰ He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, ³¹ proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.

Sometimes the best part of a movie is the final scene. In fact, the final scene of a film can make or break it, and, in the best films, the final scene usually makes it. For instance, let me show you some shots of a few final scenes. See if you recognize these and why they were memorable final scenes.

This is the final scene from “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” Do you remember? After all of Indiana Jones’ amazing adventures to find the ark of the covenant and after all of his brushes with death, the ark is crated up and stored in a massive warehouse. As the camera pans back and reveals just how many crates are there, you realize that the ark of the covenant is now lost again, this time in a cavernous warehouse to be forgotten forever. I would say that this final scenes communicates a kind of irony.

Or what about this scene? Do you remember? This is from the 1978 film, “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” I remember seeing this as a kid. In the final scene, Nancy walks up to Matthew, assuming that they are the only two people who have yet to be turned into pod people by the aliens. However, when Matthew sees her he points at her and screams an unearthly, horrible scream, revealing that he has already been turned. Ugh!!! When I first saw this as a kid, it jarred me for days!

Or here is the opposite kind of final scene: a shot from the final scene of “The Shawshank Redemption.” Here, Red walks towards Andy on the shore of Mexico. This is a powerful scene because it shows a beautiful and peaceful contrast to the dark horrors of grey, foreboding Shawshank Prison. Red and Andy are finally free and a new life can now begin for them both.

Sometimes the final scenes of movies are enigmatic and perhaps perplexing. Here is a shot of the final scene from “No Country From Old Men.” Here, Sheriff Bell is telling his wife about the dream he had the night before, the dream of his father passed him riding a horse in the cold night carrying fire in a horn on ahead where he would be waiting for his son. And then the screen goes black. Wow! What does that mean?!

Ah, then there is this: the final scene of “Planet of the Apes.” Do you remember when you first saw this? Here, Taylor and Nova walk on the shore of this planet of the Apes only to find the Statue of the Liberty and realize that they have been on earth all along! Mind…blown!!!

And what about the final scene of “The Godfather.” The movie ends with Kay asking Michael Corleone if he was responsible for Carlo’s death. He denies that he was. Kay seems to believe him but then she turns to see all of Michael’s capos come to greet him as the new Godfather just as the door is closed between him and her.

Wow! The final scene really can make or break a film!

And what about the final scene of this guy’s story: the Apostle Paul? When the camera fades to black here at the end of Acts 28, what is Paul doing? What is our final vision of the great missionary hero in Acts? Acts 28:17-31 offers us the final scene, and it too caps off a great story!

In the final scene, we see Paul taking the initiative to create opportunities to tell people about Jesus.

One thing that must be said about the final scene of Acts is that it presents us nothing new, nothing startling, no great plot twist. M. Night Shyamalan would not enjoy the end of Acts. In fact, the final scene of this great book shows Paul doing exactly Paul had always done since meeting Jesus on the Damascus Road.

¹⁷ After three days he called together the local leaders of the Jews, and when they had gathered, he said to them, “Brothers, though I had done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers, yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. ¹⁸ When they had examined me, they wished to set me at liberty, because there was no reason for the death penalty in my case. ¹⁹ But because the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar—though I had no charge to bring against my nation. ²⁰ For this reason, therefore, I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am wearing this chain.” ²¹ And they said to him, “We have received no letters from Judea about you, and none of the brothers coming here has reported or spoken any evil about you. ²² But we desire to hear from you what your views are, for with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against.”

Paul, under house arrest in Rome, invited the Jewish leaders to come see him. “House arrest,” R.C. Sproul tells us, “meant that Paul could enjoy the company of his friends even tough he was kept under guard twenty-four hours a day, chained by his wrist to one of the guards. The guards changed shifts every four hours, so in a twenty-four-hour period, six different guards were chained to the Apostle Paul.” Sproul goes on to say that “there were no more blessed prison guards in the history of the world than those six men who had the unspeakable privilege of being cuffed to the wrist of the world’s greatest preacher of all time.”[1]

That is true! And there was no more blessed group than these Jewish elders who were invited into his home so that he could speak to them. They came and Paul told them generally how he came to be in Rome. They responded, surprisingly, that they knew nothing about him but they did know a little about Christianity primarily because it was criticized by Jews. Thus, they told Paul that they wanted him to share what was on his mind. So Luke says this:

²³ When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. ²⁴ And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved.

Beautiful! Paul, burning with missionary zeal for the salvation of these Jewish elders “from morning till evening…expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets.” Note: he could not go to synagogue, as was his normal custom, so he invited the synagogue to him. Then, he laid out his case.

Dear church, when the camera fades to black on Paul in the book of Acts, he is sitting in his living room beseeching the Jewish religious leaders to trust in Christ! When the camera fades to black on you, what will it show?

This raises another practical question: do we know enough of the gospel and are we grounded firmly enough in the truths of God’s Word to be able to expound them from morning till evening? I recently spoke with an American missionary who was telling me of visiting the country of Nepal. He shared how he and another American brother got off of the plane in a state of exhaustion from the long travel to that far away country. When they exited the plane, they were taken to a local Christian church. There, the missionary was met by an apologetic pastor who greeted the two men but told him that, due to unforeseen circumstances, the two brothers would only be able to preach for three hours each instead of the customary longer sermon! The missionary I was speaking to said he was stunned and managed to get out about an hour and a half before calling it quits.

My point is not that there is anything inherently godly in a longer sermon. My point is that Paul was so filled with passion for the gospel that he was able to talk about it all day long, reasoning and trying to persuade the lost to accept Christ.

I would also like to remind all of us that our church is here today because Christians in the past took their responsibility to share the gospel seriously. They, like Paul, took the initiative to reach out to a lost and dying world. We are therefore the beneficiaries of the boldness of our forefathers and foremothers. We are here because way back then somebody said, “I will not wait. I will go. I will speak of Jesus. I will spread the gospel. Everybody must know, and I must make sure they do!”

In the final scene, we see Paul looking for the gospel to advance further and further into the world.

Luke reveals that the reaction to Paul’s message was mixed. Some believed and some did not. Paul, in response, quoted Isaiah to the Jews in order to explain to them what they were doing.

²⁵ And disagreeing among themselves, they departed after Paul had made one statement: “The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet: ²⁶ “‘Go to this people, and say,
“You will indeed hear but never understand,
and you will indeed see but never perceive.” ²⁷ For this people’s heart has grown dull,
and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed;
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.’ ²⁸ Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.” [²⁹ And when he had said these words, the Jews departed, having much dispute among themselves.]

Paul announced that the gospel had been sent even to the Jews and informed the Jews that “they will listen.” When the camera fades to black on Paul he is announcing the worldwide spread of the gospel. He is announcing that this gospel of Christ is not the plaything of the Jews. Rather, it is intended for the entire world. Indeed, “that salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles.” It has been. It will be. It will continue onward!

There can be no doubt that one of the great marks of a missionary heart is a desire to see the gospel reach the nations. All of them. This creates problems, for it also cannot be doubted that we live in an age in which evangelism itself is seen as offensive and contrary to the unspoken and assumed codes of modern behavior. Indicative are the 1999 comments of K.R. Malkani, then spokesman of the Bharatiya Janata Party in India, concerning the Southern Baptist Convention’s call for the evangelization of Hindus.

I have read the…report of U.S. Baptists’ bid to convert Hindus to Christianity during Divali. I must say I am not surprised. The missionary approach to Hindus and Hinduism has always been illiterate and offensive…Firstly, India is more religious than any other country in the world. Morally, it is more Christian than any other Christian country. Secondly, is it not an insult to India to tell Hindus that they are all sinners and that only Jesus can save them?[2]

Paul would have answered that question, “No! No, it is not an insult to India to tell Hindus that they are all sinners and that only Jesus can save them! It is, in fact, good news, for only in admitting our need for a Savior are we in a position to receive a Savior.”

Paul announced to the Jews that the gospel had spilled the banks and was flowing everywhere. I am trying to say to some of you who may perhaps still be in a position of uncertainty over the legitimacy of worldwide efforts at evangelization that the evangelization of the world is in the very heart of God. It is in the heart of God to want all people to know Jesus. It is also in the hearts of His champions, like Paul. So must it be in ours!

In the final scene, we see Paul being consistent and bold on behalf of the Kingdom of God.

Finally, we see the boldness of Paul in the final scene of Acts. Here are Luke’s closing words:

³⁰ He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, ³¹ proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.

What an ending! What a final scene! There we find Paul under house arrest still doing his thing! And what was that? “Proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.” The 6^th century monk and former Roman Senator Flavius Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorus Senator wrote of this passage in these terms: “Although he was bound with chains of iron, he daily set believers free from the chains of their sins.”[3]

That is well said, and a nice summary. Modern interpreters have also tried to make sense of the way in which Luke ended Acts. For instance, Ajith Fernando writes:

Luke’s decision to close his book with a report of ongoing evangelism reminds us that evangelism is the passion that ignites our activity. God has acted decisively in Christ to save the human race. Herein lies the ultimate answer to the problems of the human race. If we love this world as God does, we will want to tell it of this liberating good news. This business will consume our passion to the day we die.[4]

John Stott put it like this:

Now the next generation must step into his shoes and continue to work. Just as Luke’s Gospel ended with the prospect of a mission to the nations, so the Acts ends with the prospect of a mission radiating from Rome to the world. Luke’s description of Paul preaching ‘with boldness’ and ‘without hindrance’ symbolizes a wide open door, through which we in our day have to pass. The Acts of the Apostles have long ago finished. But the acts of the followers of Jesus will continue until the end of the world, and their words will spread to the ends of the earth.[5]

I think Stott is getting at something important. Why, after all, does Luke not end the book of Acts with Paul’s martyrdom, his death? Tradition tells us that Paul was martyred by being beheaded. Why not end with Paul’s death? Why end with Paul evangelizing?

Is it not because Luke is saying something about the continuation of the book of Acts in and through the Church today? Is he not saying that the story of the Church does not end with the death of a champion, it continues in the lives of numerous heroes of the gospel today? Which is to say this: Church, the book of Acts continues now in you! It is your story, our story! Do you see? It does not end with the death of Paul because the Church today is still about the business that Paul was about, or we should be. And Paul was simply about the business of Jesus.

Church, let us write our chapter of Acts well. May our chapter say of us what the first twenty eight said of the early Church: that we were fired with gospel passion, that we spent ourselves on reaching out to everybody everywhere with the good news of Jesus Christ.

Let us write our chapter well, Church.

Let us write our chapter well.

 

[1] Sproul, R.C. Acts (St. Andrews Expositional Commentary) (Location 6633-6641). Crossway Books. Kindle Edition.

[2] RNS, “Hindus react to Southern Baptist prayer plans,” The Christian Index (November 4, 1999), p.6.

[3] Jaroslav Pelikan, Acts. Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible. (Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos Press, 2005), p.295.

[4] Fernando, Ajith (2010-12-21). Acts (The NIV Application Commentary) (p.583-584). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

[5] Stott, John (2014-04-02). The Message of Acts (The Bible Speaks Today Series) (Kindle Locations 7351-7355). InterVarsity Press. Kindle Edition.