All the Apostles,
including Paul, were beaten,
hauled off to jail,
and almost all (with the exception of John)
killed for their beliefs
Christ told them "no man is greater than his master"
(John 13:16),
and He also said, to paraphrase, "they would drink out of His cup."
In both statements,
He was telling them
they would be persecuted and killed as He was.
Jews from Asia, who hate Paul, see him at the
temple in Jerusalem
and believe (wrongly) that he is bringing
unconverted Gentiles into a part of the temple area
where they were forbidden.
They loudly accuse him of wrongdoing
and stir up a riot against him.
The mob violently lays hands upon him and drags him out of the temple.
As they begin to beat the apostle to death
the Roman army shows up and saves his life
(Acts 21:30 - 32).
For Paul's safety, he is taken at night by 200 Roman soldiers to Caesarea.
It is in Caesarea that Governor Felix resides and
where the trial against the apostle can be heard.
Although Felix believes that he is innocent, he keeps him in prison
for more than two years in the hopes someone will offer a bribe
to free him (Acts 24:26 - 27).
Paul is eventually sent to Rome by ship
in order to have Caesar hear his case.
After spending a little more than two years in a Caesarea prison
(Acts 24:27),
the apostle is escorted to Rome by a Centurion. He eventually arrives in the city and spends time in a hired house (28:30), while under arrest, for about two years as he awaits his trial and ultimate acquittal in the spring of 63 A.D. Paul, in mid to late 67, is arrested again but this
time ends up in a jail cell in Rome.
He is incarcerated until he is beheaded by the Romans around May or June of 68.
Technically speaking, the Apostle Paul
is under arrest for about five years
during his ministry
About two and one half years of this period
is spent in a
literal prison cell.
The rest is spent under house arrest
or being escorted by a Roman soldier from Jerusalem to Rome.
Apostle Paul did not hesitate
to
share the Gospel to the people around him.
Even in prison
he
proclaimed the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ
When he was a prisoner in Rome for
preaching the Gospel,
he met a young man called Onesimus who was there for stealing his master Philemon, a leader in the Colossian church.
Paul’s Plea for Onesimus
The apostle preached the Gospel to Onesimus and
he converted to Christianity
After Onesimun became
a new believer, apostol Paul interceded for him
before his master Philemon.
He asked Philemon to forgive the young man for what he did.
Through a letter,
the apostol asked his “dear friend and co-worker”
Philemon to receive Onesimus in his house once again.
The apostol also requested Philemon to receive this new believer,
this time, not as a slave but as
a “brother in Christ”
(Philemon 1:16)
Not only that, the apostol also took Onesimus burdens on him by saying
“If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything,
charge it to me”
(Philemon 1:18)
Apostol Paul’s letter defending Onesimus’ cause before his master, Philemon
Therefore,
although in Christ I could be bold
and
order you to do what you ought to do,
yet I prefer to
appeal to you on the basis of love
It is as none other than Paulan old man and now
also a prisoner of Christ Jesus,
that I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who
became my son while I was in chains.
Formerly he was useless to you,
but now he has become useful both to you and to me.
I am sending him who is my very heartback to you.
I would have liked to keep him with me
so that he could take your place in helping me
while I am
in chains for the gospel
But I did not want to do anything without your consent,
so that
any favor you do would not seem forced
but would be voluntary.
Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while
was that you might have him back forever, no longer as a slave,
but better than a slave, as a dear brother.
He is very dear to me but even dearer to you,
both as a fellow man and as a brother in the Lord.
So if you consider me a partner,
welcome him as you would welcome me.
If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me.
I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand.
I will pay it backnot to mention that you owe me your very self.
I do wish, brother, that I may have some benefit from you in the Lord;
refresh my heart in Christ.
Confident of your obedience, I write to you,
knowing that you will do even more than I ask.
And one thing more:
Prepare a guest room for me, because
I hope to be restored to you in answer to your prayers.
This kind act of love relfects clearly Jesus Christ and us.
Jesus is the one who defends our cause before God.
Christ stripped himself of his rights and
asked the Father to forgive us and receive us as His children.
Philippians 1:21 says,
“For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”
Most people focus on the second part of the verse, “to die is gain,”
and contemplate the joys of heaven.
But we should not overlook what comes before.
The importance of the phrase “to live is Christ” cannot be overstated.
In all honesty, this phrase
should be central to every Christian’s life.
In this statement, the apostle Paul is saying that
everything he has tried to be,
everything he is, and everything
he looked forward to being pointed to Christ.
From the time of Paul’s
conversion until his martyrdom,
every move he made was aimed at advancing
the
knowledge, gospel, and church of Christ.
Paul’s singular aim was to bring glory to Jesus
“To live is Christ”
means that we
proclaim the gospel of Christ
Paul preached in synagogues; he preached at riversides; he preached as a prisoner; he preached as an apostle; he preached as a tentmaker.
His message was consistent and constant:
Jesus Christ and him crucified”
(1 Corinthians 2:2).
He brought the message of Christ’s sacrifice
to kings, soldiers, statesmen, priests, and philosophers, Jews and Gentiles, men and women. He would preach to literally anyone who would listen.
“To live is Christ” means that we pursue the
knowledge of Christ.
We want to know Christ better and better each day.
Not just a set of facts about Christ,
but Christ Himself.
“I want to know Christ—yes, to know the
power of his resurrection
and participation in his sufferings,
becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow,
attaining to the resurrection from the dead”
(Philippians 3:10-11).
“To live is Christ”
means that we are willing to give up anything that
prevents us from having Christ.
Paul’s testimony in this regard:
"Whatever were gains to me
I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.
What is more, I consider everything a loss because of
the
surpassing worth of
knowing Christ Jesus my Lord,
for
whose sake I have lost all things.
I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him” (Philippians 3:7-9). We cling to the promise of our Lord in Mark 10:29-30
that our sacrifices for Jesus’ sake will be repaid a hundredfold.
“To live is Christ”
means that
Christ is our focus, our goal, and our chief desire.
Christ is the center point of our
mind, heart, body and soul
Everything that we do, we do for
Christ’s glory
As we run the “race marked out for us,”
we lay aside the worldly distractions,
“fixing our eyes on Jesus”
(Hebrews 12:1-2). He is our life.
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