1 Corinthians - 1 Introduction

Corinth, at the time of Paul’s epistle (AD 50), was a wealthy place. It was strategically located on an isthmus and had two harbors. You could sail from one harbor to Asia or you could sail from the other harbor to Italy. The two harbors were connected by a paved roadway called the diolkos. It was built in the sixth century BC to cross the isthmus at the narrowest point. The diolkos was about 6 km in length. It made transport of cargo and even light ships possible between the Aegean and the Ionian Seas. It may seem like a difficult thing to move a light ship six miles over this road but remember how dangerous the winds were if you tried the sea route to the south. The sailors had a maxim that said “When you double Maleae, forget your home.” As Paul experienced, the winds were bad and navigation was especially treacherous in winter.

In 146 BC the city of Corinth was involved in a failed rebellion against Rome. The Romans were not forgiving and so the city was looted, demolished, and the people were sold into slavery. Subsequently, in 44 BC, Julius Caesar rebuilt the city and it was populated primarily with freedmen, veterans, and tradesmen. The full name of Corinth was Colonia Laus Julia Corinthiensis or Colony of Corinth in Honor of Julius. It is not surprising that the patronage of Julius Caesar resulted in the community and city culture of Corinth taking a Roman rather than Greek emphasis because the rebuilt city felt it was clearly part of the Roman Empire in spite of its location.

The residents of the city felt that they were prosperous and self-sufficient even though there were many people living in poverty. The core culture of the city was trade, business, and entrepreneurial effort in the pursuit of success and prosperity. Many who were born without money became prosperous but there were also losers in this atmosphere of stiff competition.

The Corinthians loved sports. They hosted the Isthmian Games every 2 years so they were either preparing to host or hosting sporting events constantly. Paul likely saw the remains of the AD 49 games when he got to Corinth in AD 50 and would have preached to the crowds attending the games in AD 51. This activity by the Corinthians resulted in an atmosphere of celebration. It likely had the flavor of a more or less continuous tailgate party.

Financial winners, like sports winners, were celebrated and losers were just losers. Many Corinthians had a “self-made-person-escapes-humble-origins syndrome.” Consequently, many were relatively insecure in their success and they were careful to have their names attached to anything they contributed. These attitudes and cultural tendencies were problems within the Christian Church. There is an inscription in a portion of limestone pavement in Corinth that says, “Erastus in return for his aedileship laid the pavement at his own expense.”  His “aedileship” was a job like a modern city manager and he likely bought his position as a result of his entrepreneurial efforts. This is probably the Erastus of Romans 16:23. He position may have exempted him from making an oath to Rome that would have violated his oath to Christ. Remember that Gallio heard Paul and essentially made being a Christian temporarily legal as a form of Judaism. Of course this didn’t last and eventually Roman persecution became intense.

The Corinthians had an honor versus shame culture in which public recognition could be more important than facts. Their sense of worth was based on recognition by others of their accomplishments. People were trained in rhetoric and marketed their skills in a manner similar to public relations or media specialists today in order to spin public perceptions and belief. Surprisingly, they were so steeped in religious pluralism and relativism that they would be called post-modern in their approach to truth. That is simply mind boggling because you can’t really feel comfortable calling an AD 50 Corinthian postmodern. Even the church in Corinth followed personality and style rather than truth and logic. They devalued tradition, devalued universal values, and had contempt for those who were not “somebody” at least “somewhere”.

We will go verse by verse through the epistle but, for the moment, please note that Paul refused to play the game by the rules of Corinth. In fact, it seems Paul likes to poke the Corinthian “hot buttons” from time to time. Paul determined not to be a rhetorician.

1 Corinthians 1:17-19 … For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”

Paul used Scripture and reason even when it first required him to develop a shared basis of words and values for discussion. But Paul doesn’t just use Scripture and reason without the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit makes the words of Paul alive and sharper than a double edged sword and the Holy Spirit makes the heart alive in the lost person so that the Word can find a home. To forget your utter dependency on the Holy Spirit in ministry and lean on your own skills is to empty the Cross of its power. Think about how central that is to evangelism. If you lift up eloquent wisdom in the style and delivery of the culture you are called to teach and evangelize then God will turn off the power of the Cross. Clarity in Scripture and reason are good and we’ll see Paul stress those points. However, Paul tells the Corinthians up front that he will not play by their style rules. Apollos was a tremendous speaker. Why not bring in Apollos? The problem with sending Apollos to Corinth was that the preaching of Apollos would only feed the problem of style over substance in the Corinthian culture. In fact, that had already happened and Paul was writing to correct it (1 Corinthians 1:12). The nature of the gospel of Jesus Christ excludes it from being treated as a market commodity tailored to the tastes and desires of consumerism. You can’t pick the parts of the Gospel the consumer wants to hear and ignore the parts the consumer doesn’t want to hear without sinning as a minister and opening yourself up to discipline by God. Paul would earn his keep as a tentmaker and proclaim the Cross of Christ.

The nature of the Cross was offensive in Corinth. Jesus was poor and he died the death of a criminal. This was not a Gospel that would naturally influence a Corinthian. Jesus would have needed to be rich and die a glorious death to naturally influence a Corinthian. You can’t preach the Cross as naturally rich and glorious. To a regenerate heart it is wonderfully rich and glorious but to those who are perishing, to those who love money and power, it is an offence and foolish. Paul refuses to be clever and enticing. In fact, Paul worked with Aquila and Priscilla as a menial tradesman. That was one more strike against him in Corinth and he didn’t hide these offensive items from Corinthian view. Paul was not a professional “wise man”, rhetorician, or speaker-performer. All those were paid positions. Paul wasn’t paid and would not be paid via patronage by the rich in Corinth. Paul was part of the non-elite and he was poor. The Christians of Corinth were pretentious and brought a worldly set of standards into their church fellowship.

The Corinthians had cultural aspects that were unique but still, in principle, can yield universal applications. For example, a woman with her head uncovered in public signaled sexual availability or lack of respectability. We wouldn’t require head covering today but we would require modesty and an attempt to avoid an appearance of evil. They had a tradition of “patronage” and so they brought their “secular rank” into communion and tried to classify and stratify Christians by wealth and power. We still struggle sometimes with status at church but we generally realize the error of that attitude. Imagine having to wait until the wealthy and powerful had their plates full and were seated before you got your food at a potluck. We don’t do that but we do sometimes elevate those with secular rank above those who do not have secular rank. We can be well warned about that habit by studying the Corinthians.

So why bother with Corinth? Why didn’t Paul pick Athens instead? I don’t want to pretend that I know why the Holy Spirit does what He does but there are things about Corinth that are interesting. Corinth was strategically placed for spreading the Gospel to traveling businessmen. If the Gideons would have been there putting Bibles in those hotel rooms. Corinth had a Jewish community to begin Paul’s ministry. They had the religious background and we have seen that Paul tended to start in the synagogue and then move out to the Gentiles. The Corinthians needed lots of tents and awnings. That was Paul’s business so it would have been easy to find profitable work. These tents and awnings were used for the athletic events, the retail vendors in the market, and even on ships. Paul would not be an economic burden and that was one of his goals. In contrast, Athens was a mediocre university town celebrating their past without much productivity or creativity while Corinth was a boom town like San Francisco in the gold rush.

The Church in the United States today is frighteningly similar to the church in Corinth. The church in Corinth breathed in the culture that surrounded them, bowed to their local peer groups, and adopted their value systems. Corinth had become steeped in a postmodern pragmatic view of the market for religion. Corinth devalued truth, tradition, rational thought, and universals. Paul worked to correct the Corinthian church as he preached biblically, logically, and most importantly under the annointing of the Holy Spirit. Corinth needed to develop an awarness of Grace and realize what was done for them on the Cross. They needed to adopt a different set of values and to be transformed as the Holy Spirit made the Gosple live in their hearts. Paul wanted to be a transparent instrument through whom Christ was portrayed in lifestyle, thought, and word. It isn't clear that the Corinthian church was ever corrected. We know that Clement needed to write letters to Corinth in the second and third centuries. I pray we, today, will hear what the Holy Spirit is saying through Paul. The letter was to be read aloud in public and even read aloud in Beech Haven Baptist Church in the twenty-first century. 

Acts to Constantine

Persecution of the Church is really a way of speaking about Church and State relationships. The Roman Empire in th e first few centuries was often very harsh toward early Christianity. The Church has always had to face internal and external challenges. Heresy was addressed as an internal challenge but the external challenge came in the form of persecution from the Roman State. The Church endured relatively little persecution from the Romans as long as Christianity was seen as a sect of Judaism. Judaism was a “Religio Licita” or, in other words, a legal religion. As long as Christianity was perceived as a subcomponent of Judaism there was little persecution but as soon as Christianity emerged from the umbrella of Judaism it came under the eye of Rome and became a “Religio Illicita” or, in other words, an illegal religion. 

1) Christianity places an exclusive claim on the religious affections (an more) of members and this placed it in conflict with the Roman State. As a result of their unwillingness to participate in the State Religion the Christians were perceived as trying to establish a state within a state. They were correctly perceived as having their highest allegiance to God and incorrectly assumed to be disloyal to the Roman State. The Christians (those who were faithful to the Apostle’s teachings) were unwilling to offer incense on the altars to the Roman Emperor. They refused to participate in Emperor Worship. The Romans didn’t think of the Emperor as a god necessarily or even as having supernatural power but they deified the Emperor in a way that was similar to canonizing a saint and celebrating their leadership of the great Roman State. There were exceptions to the rule. Domitian, for example, required that correspondence addressed to him refer to him as, “our lord and god”.  Some Jews complied with requirements for emperor worship in public and would burn incense but worshiped God privately. Some members of the Church also did that. The majority of Christians would not accept this public-private dichotomy. So they were viewed as being disloyal to the state. 

2) Christians would sometimes meet at night and this inflamed suspicions of the Roman Authorities that they were hatching conspiracies. 

3) The secrecy in the Christian meetings early in the morning or late at night prompted accusations of immorality against the early Christians. Rumors of incest and cannibalism were common. Some of the slaves of Christians were taken and tortured. Under torture they quickly said that the Christians were into incest and cannibalism. Marcus Cornelius Fronto, a North African intellectual, accused Christians of drunkenness and sexual orgies. 

So over all the perception of Christians by the Romans became very bad. They were thought to be immoral and to lack loyalty to the state. The Romans misunderstood communion and developed strange ideas since they didn’t like the Christians anyway. The Romans didn’t understand the kiss of peace and twisted that into charges of immorality. The Roman Empire was faced with multiple problems of unrest, plague, and famine so these odd Christians who talk of eating and drinking the blood of their leader were a natural target. Persecution followed ignorance and became a matter of government policy to preserve and promote the integrity of the Roman State. 

There are a number of misconceptions about persecution in the early Church. Before AD 250, persecution was mainly local and sporadic. It was not a government policy that was Empire wide. Many of the early persecutions arose as a result of mob action. After AD 250, persecution, at times, became the deliberate policy of the Roman Empire and it could be very violent. Tertullian rightly said that the blood of the martyrs was the seed of the Church. 

Jewish persecution from AD 33 to AD 64

Initially, the Jewish authorities handled the Christians as a subset of Judaism and the Romans said OK. So the Christians were largely tolerated by the Romans but persecution came from the Jewish Authorities. Herod Agrippa the First (Rome’s appointed King of the Jews), in support of the Jewish Authorities, executed James, the brother of John in AD 44. In AD 62 the Jewish High Priest Ananous, executed James the brother of Jesus. Eusebius of Caesarea provides a valuable summary of early Church history and says this about the martyrdom of James the Brother of Jesus.

 “So the scribes and Pharisees made James stand on the sanctuary parapet and shouted to him, ‘Righteous one, whose words we are all obliged to accept, the people are going astray after Jesus who was crucified. So tell us what is meant by the door of Jesus.’  He replied as loudly as he could, ‘Why do you question me about the Son of Man? I tell you, He is sitting in heaven at the right hand of the Great Power and He will come on the clouds of heaven. Many were convinced by James’ testimony crying, ‘Hosanna to the Son of David.’ Others responded, ‘We had better go and throw him down so they will be frightened and not believe him.’ So they went up and threw down James. Then they said to each other, ‘Let us stone James the Righteous’ and they began to stone him as if, in spite of his fall, he was still alive but he turned and he knelt uttering these words, ‘I beseech thee Lord God and Father, forgive them, they do not know what they are doing.  And while they pelted him with stones, one of the descendants of Rechab, the priestly family to which the Prophet Jeremiah bore witness, called out, ‘Stop! What are you doing? The Righteous One, James, is praying for you!’ And then one of them took a club which he had used to beat out the clothes and he brought it down on the head of James. Such was his martyrdom.”

Roman Persecution from AD 64 to AD 250

The Rule of Nero, 54 to 68

Nero was the first Roman Emperor to persecute the Christian Church apart from any Jewish instigation. The fire in the summer of AD 64 in Rome was blamed on Christians. The Roman historian Tacitus says that Nero used the incident to deflect attention from himself to the Christians. Nero accused the Christians of setting the fire that destroyed a significant part of Rome. 

Eusebius says;

“When Nero’s power was now firmly established; he gave himself up to unholy practices and took up arms against the God of the Universe. To describe the monster of depravity that he became lies outside the scope of this present work. Many writers have recorded the facts about him in minute detail enabling anyone who wishes to get a complete picture of his perverse and extraordinary madness which led him to the senseless destruction of innumerable lives and drove him in the end to such a lust for blood that he did not spare even his nearest and dearest but employed a variety of methods to do away with his mother, his brothers, and his wife to say nothing of the countless other members of his family. He was the first of the emperors to be the declared enemy of the worship of Almighty God. And so it came about that this man, the first to be heralded as a conspicuous fighter against God, was led on to murder the Apostles. It is recorded that in his reign, Paul was beheaded in Rome itself and that Peter likewise was crucified. And the record is confirmed by the fact that the cemeteries there are still called by the names of Peter and Paul.”

It is generally agreed that Nero’s persecution was confined to the city of Rome and lasted only about 4 years (AD 64 to AD 68). Note that under Nero it became a legal matter that to be a Christian was a capital offense. According to Eusebius and others, both Peter and Paul were martyred under Nero. Some sources also say he used Christians to light his garden at night. Nero committed suicide in AD 68. 

Emperor Galba - AD 68 to 69, assassinated but 120 people claimed to have done it

Emperor Otho - AD 69, only lasted 3 months, committed suicide

Emperor Vitellius - AD 69, only lasted 9 months, resigned and was killed

Emperor Vespasian - AD 69 to 79, destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple, Josephus called him the predicted messiah and would be emperor, He tried to hunt down and kill all descendants of King David, died of fever, had them stand him on his feet, Last words, “Oh, I think I’m becoming a god.”

Emperor Titus - Son of Vespasian, AD 79 to 81, Died of fever or poisoning by Domitian, Last words, “I only made one mistake.” 

The Rule of Emperor Domitian, AD 81 to AD 96

Persecution broke out in AD 95 toward the end of his reign. It is hard to find the motive behind this persecution but Domitian was a micromanager who wanted the traditional Roman religion to be followed. The refusal of Christians to swear loyalty to the emperor may have been the cause. There was a political attempt to overthrow his government and so Domitian began a reign of terror. The refusal to swear loyalty may have been a cause of the persecution because of the attempt to overthrow his government. They had a great deal of political intrigue during this time and Domitian reacted with a great paranoia. Tradition (i.e., Irenaeus) indicates that it was at this time that John was exiled to Patmos. Up to this point, there was still no compelling evidence that Christians throughout the Empire were persecuted as a matter of policy. 

Emperor Nerva - AD 96 to 98, died from stroke and fever

Emperor Trajan - Son of Nerva, AD 98 to 117 

Trajan’s rule was the first policy driven persecution of believers.The first organized persecution of Christians as a deliberate government policy came in the reign of the Roman Emperor Trajan. The evidence we have is a series of letters from Pliny the Governor of Bithynia in Northern Turkey. The letter articulates his policy regarding the spread of Christianity. Pliny notes that the Pagan temples are becoming empty and he calls Christianity a superstition. In Pliny’s mind, to be a Christian is a capital offense and he is bringing Christians to trial. A number of Christians are then led away to be executed. What was the policy of Trajan? Trajan says;

1. Christians are not to be hunted down to persecute them but if someone else brings a charge of someone being a Christian then the alleged Christian is brought to trial, and
2. At trial the suspect is asked if they are a Christian. If they say no then they are free but if they say yes then ask two more times. Three times they must say publically that they are a Christian and if they don’t recant then they are sentenced to death.

Eusebius mentions two people who were killed by Trajan. First, Simon the Bishop of Jerusalem was arrested after being accused by the Jews of being a Christian. He said yes, yes, yes, and then he was tortured and crucified. Secondly, Ignatius of Antioch was accused tried and then sent to Rome for execution under Trajan. 

Emperor Hadrian AD 117 to 138, died from heart attack, built wall in England and was first openly homosexual emperor, had no offspring

Emperor Antonius Pius AD 138 to 161, Adopted son of Hadrian

Polycarp, the disciple of John, was executed about AD 155 and Eusebius gives us an account of his martyrdom: 

Polycarp had been arrested and at length he stepped forward. He was asked by the Proconsul if he was really Polycarp. We he said yes the Proconsul urged him, “Deny the charge, swear by Caesar’s fortune, change your attitude, and say away with the godless.” But Polycarp, with his face set, looked at all the crowd in the stadium and waved his hand toward them. He sighed and he looked up to heaven and he cried, “Away with the godless!” The governor pressed him further, “Swear and I will set you free. Deny Christ.” Polycarp says, “For, 86 years have I served Him, and He never did me wrong: how can I blaspheme my King and my Savoir?" And when other people persisted and said to him, ”Swear by Caesar’s name” then Polycarp responded, “If you imagine I will swear by Caesar, as you put it, pretending not to know who I am, I will tell you plainly … I am a Christian. If you wish to study the Christian doctrine, choose a day and you will hear it.” The Proconsul replied, “Convince the people with you. I have wild beasts. I will throw them to you if you don’t change your attitude.” The old man replied, “Call them. We cannot change our attitude.” The governor responded, “If you make light of the beasts I’ll have you destroyed by fire unless you change your attitude.” Polycarp answered, “The fire you threaten burns for a time and is soon extinguished. There is a fire you know nothing about, the fire of the judgment to come and eternal punishment, the fire reserved for the ungodly. But why do you hesitate? Do what you want.” 

Even to say, I am a Christian is a death sentence so this was a particularly powerful and courageous testimony by Polycarp.

Emperor Marcus Aurelius AD 161 to 169 with Lucius Verus

AD 169 to 177 alone

AD 177 to 180 with Commodus

Emperor Marcus Aurelius AD 161 to 180 also persecuted Christians. He was a stoic and was strongly influenced toward a negative opinion of Christians by a pagan teacher named Fronto. Christians were being martyred in Philadelphia and Smyrna. Marcus was emperor during the execution of Justin Martyr about AD 165. He was turned in to the authorities by a man named Crescens. In AD 177 there was mass persecution in Gaul (modern day France). A violent mob seemed to take over in Gaul. This was one of the most intensive persecutions and was centered in Lyon. A 90 year Christian named Pothinus the Bishop of Lyons was tortured and killed. Great mobs went out and brought suspected Christians to the amphitheater. More than 100 were questioned in public and about 50 answered yes and were violently killed. A Christian leader named Attalus was forced him to sit on a red hot iron chair while being roasted. He yelled, “Look! Eating men is what you are doing! We neither eat men nor engage in any immoral practices” with the false charge of cannibalism in his mind. 

A slave girl named Blandina in Lyon was tortured without mercy. She was filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. The pagans were amazed that she was still breathing. She continued to proclaim her faith and found refreshment in the words “I am a Christian” while hung on a post in the arena for the wild beasts. She set an example for those others that were suffering. None of the wild beasts touched her and then she was returned to jail. On the last day Ponticus (a teenager) along with Blandina were brought in and they stood firm. The mob was enraged. Ponticus was encouraged by Blandina. Ponticus was tortured to death. Then Blandina was tortured to death. The used all sorts of tortures and in the end she was dropped in a basket and thrown to a bull. The heathen were struck by her ability to withstand torture and hold fast to Christ.

Emperor Commodus 177 to 192, Assassinated - Loved to kill in the colosseum, animals and people including Romans

Emperor Pertinax 193 to 193

Emperor Didius Julianus 193 to 193

Emperor Septimus Severus 193 to 211

Emperor Caracalla (with Severus and Geta at times) AD 211 to 217

Emperor Macrinus AD 217 to 218

Emperor Elagabus AD 218 to 222

Emperor Alexander Severus AD 222 to 235

Emperor Maximus Thrax AD 235 to 238 vs Gordian 1 with Gordian II; then vs Pupienus and Balbinus

Emperor Gordian III AD 238 to 244 government through the Senate

Emperor Phillip the Arab AD 244 to 249

Persecution after 250 AD

Before AD 250 there were some severe persecutions. Then from AD 249 to 251 the Emperor Decius ruled. Rome was struggling with internal and external attacks on the stability. Decius thought that enforcing support of the classical beliefs would be central to confidence in the government. The Christians had rapidly increased in numbers and didn’t burn incense to the emperor so they became a target. In 250 AD Decius issued an edict that required everyone to make an offering at the Roman altar to the genius of the Emperor. Those who offered got a certificate called a libellus. The Christians mostly refused and were persecuted. Many Christians were sacrificed. The bishops of Rome, Antioch, and Jerusalem died. Many Christians were torn to pieces by wild animals. The persecution forced some Christians to compromise their faith. Many eminent persons caved in and offered sacrifices to pagan Gods. The Bishop of Carthage (Cyprian) and his people fled from their city. Some Christians bought a libellus on the black market. Others actually apostatized. For example, the Bishop of Smyrna is said to have actually apostatized. Decius weakened the Church because of the intense persecution. Hundreds were martyred and thousands apostatized. Fortunately this only lasted until 251 AD. The Roman government was sometimes preoccupied with other problems such as the Goths and at those times the persecution lagged. 

Emperor Trebonianus Gallus AD 251 to 253 (with Hostilian and Volusianus)

Emperor Aemillan AD 253

Emperor Valerian (253 to 260 AD) also tried to require sacrifice by Christians and forbade assemblies of Christians. Cyprian, the famous Bishop of Carthage, did not flee this time and was martyred under the reign of Valerian. 

Emperor Gallienus AD 253 to 268 - Then in 260 AD with the death of Valerian and the sole rule of Gallienus the persecution began to die down and he issued an edict of toleration. Christianity was against the law but only minor persecution was the norm. Then relative peace occurred for a time.

The Great Persecution

The Great Persecution occurred under the Emperor Diocletian. From AD 284 to 305 Diocletian was in power and he was a strong leader. He established the tetrarchs (rule by 4 men) but he really ran the show. To provide stability, he established these tetrarchs by dividing the empire by east and west. He put his lieutenant Maximilian to be the Augustus of the west while he remained the Augustus of the east. Then under each Augustus was a lieutenant. Constantinus and Galerius were the two lieutenants. When the two Augustus then retired they would be succeeded by their lieutenants. Galerius was in the east with Diocletian and Constantinus was under Maximilian. Between 297 and 301 AD the Great Persecution began when some Christians at a public ceremony were present when pagans were worshiping. The Christians made the sign of the cross while the pagans were sacrificing an animal. When the liver was cut out and examined to indicate divine blessing the liver didn’t have the marks of blessing. This was a very bad omen and they blamed the Christians because they had made the sign of the Cross. Galerius the Lieutenant pressed Diocletian for a serious persecution and Diocletian yielded. He issued four major edicts. In February of 303 AD he issued the first edict terminating Christianity and ordering the destruction of all churches and sacred books of the Christians. A second edict imprisoned all of the higher clergy. A third edict offered amnesty to Christians if they would sacrifice to the Roman deities. Then, in the spring of 304 AD the forth edict insisted on sacrifice at the Roman altar under the penalty of death. Any Christian found practicing was to be killed. The cathedral of Nicomedia (Turkey) was burned to start the process. Not all Christians were passive. In Nicomedia a number of Christians burned the emperor’s palace but then 268 Christians were killed in retaliation for that act.  

  

Referring now to the martyrs in Nicomedia, we have the following account from Eusebius. 

“We will describe the manner in which one of them ended his life, and leave our readers to infer from his case the sufferings of the others. A certain man was brought forward in the above-mentioned city, before the rulers of whom we have spoken (i.e. in Nicomedia, before Diocletian and Galerius). He was then commanded to sacrifice, but as he refused, he was ordered to be stripped and raised on high and beaten with rods over his entire body, until, being conquered, he should, even against his will, do what was commanded. But as he was unmoved by these sufferings, and his bones were already appearing, they mixed vinegar with salt and poured it upon the mangled parts of his body. As he scorned these agonies, a gridiron and fire were brought forward. And the remnants of his body, like flesh intended for eating, were placed on the fire, not at once, lest he should expire instantly, but a little at a time. And those who placed him on the pyre were not permitted to desist until, after such sufferings, he should assent to the things commanded. But he held his purpose firmly, and victoriously gave up his life while the tortures were still going on. Such was the martyrdom of one of the servants of the palace, who was indeed well worthy of his name, for he was called Peter.”

This occurred in approximately AD 303 under Diocletian. There was great brutality in this persecution and hence the name, “The Great Persecution”. Some were flogged to death, others were tortured, many were thrown into cages with wild animals, some had their eyes gouged out, one had molten lead poured down his throat, others were beheaded, and others crucified. Diocletian retired in 305. Then Galerius in the east and Constantius I took over the west. Diocletian was in control of the entire empire in reality because he insisted that Maximian retire in the west and he did. Galerius continued the persecutions he suggested. Constantius didn’t kill many Christians but he burned some churches. 

The martyrdoms showed heroism in the face of death brought converts seeking to understand this great strength of character.The cruelty was so severe that the people who were previously filled with mob violence then had sympathy for those being tortured and popular opinion started to turn against the Roman Government. Some pagans seem to have even protected Christians because they were appalled at the brutality of the Roman persecutions. 

In the east in AD 311, the Emperor Galerius had a terminal illness and, under pressure from his wife, the man who started the persecution, conceded defeat in April of AD 311 with an edict of toleration making Christianity a legal religion. The edict even requested prayer for the Roman Empire by the Christians. Galerius was succeeded by Maximus in the east and he attempted to overthrow the edict of toleration but this effort was ineffective. He gave up in AD 313 and issued an edict of toleration. In the west, the more tolerant Constantius died in AD 306 and was succeeded by the Great Constantine. By AD 311 the tetrarchy was unraveling with 4 men claiming the throne. Maxentius, Maximian, Licinius, and Constantine all claimed to be rulers of Rome. The strain made temporary allies of Maxentius and Maximian against Licinius and Constantine. 

Constantine defeated Maxentius at the Milvian Bridge in AD 312 near Rome. Constantine played a major role in bringing a full stop to Christian persecution and in forming the Church Council of Nicea. Constantine was the son of Constantius and his consort Helena (a Bithynian Barmaid).  

Constantine was the leader of a powerful army. He led his army from Gaul across the Alps and began an advance towards Rome. Maxentius was in Rome and so on Oct 28, AD 312 this resulted in the battle of Milvian Bridge that is over the Tiber River. This placed Maxentius with his back against the Tiber river and eventually Maxentius lost his life. On the afternoon of the day before the battle, Constantine said that he looked up into the sky and saw a flaming cross and the words, “In this sign conquer”. So Constantine claims to have had a vision. Then in the early morning he said he had a dream in which he heard a voice saying he must require his soldiers to paint this symbol of Christ on their shields. An X (Chi) and P (Rho) were used for the first two Greek letters of Christ’s name. Constantine won the battle of Milvian Bridge and he entered Rome claiming that Christ helped him win.

In AD 313 Licinius beat Maximian in June and then Constantine and Licinius met in Milan. This resulted in the famous edict of Milan that granted full freedom for Christians. This was better than the granting of toleration because it gave Christianity full legal equality with all other religions. It didn’t make Christianity the official religion of Rome but it granted full equality with other religions. It also required that all Church property be restored that was taken during Diocletian. 

Licinius and Constantine remained as emperors and then Licinius started to renew the persecution of Christians. There is debate about the Christianity of Constantine. It is hard to say if he was really a Christian or not. He refused baptism until the end of his life. He did actively support Christianity. Licinius was banishing Christians and imposing fines. Constantine then led a military operation that defeated Licinius in AD 314 but graciously left Licinius with Thrace in Greece. Licinius eventually renewed his persecution of Christians and in AD 324 Constantine crushed Licinius. Then there was only one Emperor and at this time Constantine declared that he himself was a Christian and he invited everyone to become a Christian. The persecution was then essentially over with the exception of a persecution from AD 360 to 363 under Julian the Apostate (who wished to renew the pagan worship and persecute of Christians). This didn’t last and essentially Constantine ends the persecution.

Didache - Lesson 2

Chapter 11: Traveling Ministers

Chapter 11 gives an interesting look at what was typical in the 1^st Century Church with regard to traveling teachers, preachers, and prophets. The necessity of a life of faith for those ministering to the church while traveling around is stressed. Even the duration of the stay of the minister was kept short. It is interesting that the new Christians were not to test the “Thus saith the Lord” pronouncements of the traveling minister because God would take care of that. Also some prophets lived lives called out of society. Think of Agabus in Acts 11:28 and 21:10. Prophets like this were removed from society, “They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated— of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth” Hebrews 11:37-38. 

Chapter 12: Visitors

Christians who were traveling received help but there were clear limits on the duration and work was expected during extended stays. 

Chapter 13: Resident Ministers

They were to be paid and honored. This is similar to the Old Testament support for the Levites who had no land in the Promised Land. This section sounds very "Old Testament". 

Chapter 14: Church Meeting

Church was on Sunday and not Saturday. Communion was a regular part of worship and each person was to be careful to present themselves only after dealing with known sins.

Chapter 15: Church Organization

The use of both bishops and deacons is mentioned in the Didache. You could argue that we have our staff as bishops and our deacons as deacons. That works pretty well but some deacons are teaching and deacons were largely waiters. With communion and dinner each week it certainly would create a need for people who could organize and distribute to the needs of the congregation. This chapter gives instructions for what to do when someone commits a serious sin. In this case, the congregation is to stop communicating with the unrepentant man until that person repents. 

Chapter 16: Eschatology

The summary encourages keeping watch in your life. It also encourages an application of your resources toward sanctification. Much of what we find in this chapter is also in Scripture. We have another fuzzy bit toward the end of the chapter. We have the following clearer statement from Paul in first Thessalonians.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 … For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 

Maybe the Didache is just was more difficult to translate. You could take it to be saying the same thing but the Didache is not as clear as this Scripture. 

Didache - Lesson 1

http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/didache.html

The Didache is a first century set of instructions identified as the teaching of the Lord given to the Gentiles by the 12 Apostles. It was lost for many centuries but was found by a man named Philotheos Brynennios in 1873. It was a remarkable find. Arguably the Didache predates some books of the New Testament and would likely have been produced during the time that Luke was writing the Acts of the Apostles. It was known to have existed because it was referred to by the early Church but it was lost and no copies were known to exist until Philotheos found a copy. He was born in poverty to a family who sacrificed for his education and he was a worship leader in his local church. His church sent him to seminary near Constantinople and they saw he had talent to they sent him to Germany. The funds came from his sponsor who was a Greek banker named George Zariphe. This resulted in Philotheos being trained in the latest methods for reading and evaluating ancient texts. This was not typical training for those in his denomination. The book that he found the Didache in was actually well known but he was a very careful scholar and he read all of the book and not just the parts of the book. He was working in Jerusalem at the time and found it in a book that was written about 1000 years ago.

While the Didache was considered for inclusion in the Canon of Scripture by the early Church it is not in the Canon of Scripture. We need to keep that in mind as we look at it. God, in His sovereignty, did not include this in our Bible. On the other hand, after 1800 years, God gave it back to us and we can enjoy and learn from it today. I think I see why it was of such value in the early Church because it is relatively short and comprehensive. It could be copied relatively easily and yet it had the key guidelines identified. We’ll see more of this and the need for guidelines when we begin our study of first and second Corinthians. We know the Apostles send a brief set of instructions to the Gentiles with Paul and Barnabas. Think of this as a more extensive set of instructions but of less authority than the New Testament Scriptures. The Didache was used as a means of apprenticing new Christians. It was likely memorized and then you were ready to be a functioning element in the Body of Christ. It is an outline and it is brief so of course you’d be expected to continue to study and learn meatier things about God and salvation but it was sufficient to make you a part of The Way. I’m planning on going briefly over each of the 16 Chapters

Chapter 1: Pick a Way

Deuteronomy 30:15-18 … “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. If you obey the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you today, by loving the LORD your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess.

Chapter 1 is introductory and stresses that there are two ways to go and you need to pick the Way of Life and avoid the Way of Death. I’m sure as you read this section you’ll see the many links to both Old Testament and New Testament Scripture. In giving, the Didache also charges Christians to display generosity with obedience. The Christian is told to be generous in obedience to the Father and not simply generous. The “Golden Rule” is central in Chapter 1.

Chapter 2: Christian Behavior 1

Chapter 2 is a continuation of Chapter 1 but moves away from sharing material possessions to how you interact socially in a moral way. This list is like some of the lists that Paul included in his epistles.

Ephesians 4:17-24 … Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. 20 But that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

The Didache seems to address some specific problems of the Roman Empire including child abuse and pagan religious activities. It also gives a list for people that are especially trying. Instead of hatred and anger you are to correct them, pray for them, or love them more than your life. Some people would probably like another choice.

Chapter 3: Christian Behavior 2

Chapter 3 speaks very directly to the heart of the Christian. Lust, profanity, and entertaining temptation are condemned. All forms of false religion are condemned. We rarely realize how serious grumbling is. We easily can accuse God’s will of being misguided, wrong, and evil. We don’t do it on purpose but that is the end result. We’ve committed blasphemy in ignorance but it is still blasphemy. God’s sovereignty is affirmed by folks who had great trials and martyrdom. They affirm, “nothing happens without God.”

Chapter 4: Authority Structures

This chapter briefly covers the Christian’s responsibility in Church, in society, and in the home. The chapter ends with an encouragement to affirm the Lord’s commands “without addition or subtraction.” Confession is a key in church and in your prayer life. If you remember, Life Action Revival, suggested that we always start each time of private prayer with confession.

Chapter 5: The Way of Death

We have a short list in Chapter 5 of all the ways we sinned when we were by nature the Children of Wrath and all these things are to be left behind in our adoption. You know your maker now. Sin corrupts the image of God and you are to bear that image now as His children.

Chapter 6: The Teaching

The Christian is given some summary encouragement to be careful not to be lead away from this teaching and to be seeking to grow spiritually. This is probably the fuzzy part of the Didache. The encouragement to “do what you can” is likely in regard to the ritual Mosaic Law. The food regulations are included and strongly warn against eating meat from pagan sacrifices. Paul gives a more complete answer to the question in 1 Corinthians.

1 Corinthians 10:25-29 … Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience. For “the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.” If one of the unbelievers invites you to dinner and you are disposed to go, eat whatever is set before you without raising any question on the ground of conscience. But if someone says to you, “This has been offered in sacrifice,” then do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for the sake of conscience— I do not mean your conscience, but his. For why should my liberty be determined by someone else’s conscience?

As we saw in our study of Acts, the early Church and the Apostles had a difficult time moving away from the various aspects of the Ritual Law.

Chapter 7: Baptism

We’ve discussed these ideas before. Immersion in flowing water was the first choice. Secondly, then the Church would look for immersion in a pool of spring (cold) water. Their third choice would be immersion in a pool of warm (not fresh) water. Then the fourth choice would be effusion or possibly sprinkling. Each mode would be done in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Fasting was a regular part of the process. In fact, it was suggested for both participants. Also baptism was only an option for someone who was trained in the Way of Life and the Way of Death. This person was being brought into a community and this was not just an isolated individual.  

Chapter 8: Fasting and The Lord’s Prayer

Fasting is indicated for Wednesday and Friday to differentiate the Christian from any other person who may be fasting and especially from Jews who have rejected the Gospel. The Lord’s prayer is also taught here as a prayer pattern that would be memorized as the entire document was likely memorized.

Chapter 9: Communion

The language for thanksgiving at Cup and the Loaf is given. The Cup is used to indicate that the holy vine of David was the source of Christ. The Loaf is used to indicate that as the wheat was gathered to make one loaf we pray for the gathering of the Church in building God’s kingdom. Notice that the table is fenced. This is important for the holiness of Communion as well as for the protection of the sinner. There are other documents that indicate that only those who were baptized remained for communion.

Chapter 10: Agape Feast

Dinner “on the grounds” was more common and regular. It seems to have been weekly and followed Communion. Keep this in mind when  we come to our study of Corinthians. A prayer is given in Chapter 10 for use at the end of the meal. That is different from our tradition but not a bad idea. This apparently served as a benediction after the meal.

Acts - Lesson 40

Last week we ended with Chapter 27 and the wreck on Malta of the Roman ship that was carrying Paul to Rome. The ship was lost but all the passengers survived. It is a remarkable thing that they ended up on the small island of Malta well over 500 miles from Crete. Remember that God is sovereign and in control. Paul remembered that and we should remember it too when we are in various storms. Paul had Jesus’ promise that he would speak in Rome. Rome had been the center of the empire for about 600 years at this point and would be the center of the empire for about 1000 years. We started our study of Acts in Jerusalem and now we’ll end it in Rome as God has revealed His plan for reaching the Gentiles. 

Acts 28:1-6 … After we were brought safely through, we then learned that the island was called Malta. The native people showed us unusual kindness, for they kindled a fire and welcomed us all, because it had begun to rain and was cold. When Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and put them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened on his hand. When the native people saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “No doubt this man is a murderer. Though he has escaped from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live.” He, however, shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. They were waiting for him to swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But when they had waited a long time and saw no misfortune come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god. 

There are currently no vipers on Malta. However, we have Dr. Luke writing and he loves detail so what do we conclude. Another commentator pointed out that it was also very unlikely that a viper would be hiding in driftwood. This illustrates the problem of being nearly 2000 years from the event. First, mankind, as is our tendency with islands, has deforested Malta and greatly altered the ecology. People hate snakes and especially have an issue with poisonous snakes. It would not be surprising to find a poisonous snake species extinct given human habitation and habits over 2000 years on the island. Secondly, who said driftwood? There were forests on Malta when Paul was there and they were collecting firewood and not necessarily driftwood. T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) in writing about the desert portions of World War 1 describes a very similar event with the exception that the snake was warmed by the fire and took off into the night without biting anyone. So while they events described may be implausible in 2012 they were plausible in the first century. Luke’s details are outstanding and give us confidence that he knew where he was.    

Mankind loves patterns and especially loves the comfort of an explanation that makes them feel safe. We jump to these things. You need to realize that about your brain that you will sometimes find a pattern that isn’t there. Humble yourself under the hand of God and He will lift you up at the appropriate time. The natives of Malta were certain that they could explain misfortune. When Paul was bitten by the snake then he was a bad man who escaped the judgment of the sea but “justice” has found him and not allowed him to live. This was their way of feeling secure. Since they were not bad people then they would not be bitten by snakes and die. That is of course a false security because we live with our sin natures in a fallen world in which we all die. 

Briefly, the Bible gives multiple explanations for suffering:

1)    Common Suffering (Job 5:6-7) – Man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward.

2)    Corrective Suffering (Hebrews 12:5-11) – The Lord disciplines us as His children.

3)    Constructive Suffering (Romans 5:3-4) – Suffering produces perseverance, then character, then hope.

4)    Godly Suffering (Job; The Martyrs; Col 1:24-26) – While we may see how it is profitable for the Body of Christ at time … we largely do not understand it. 

Anyone with a chronic disease or a sick family member or friend will not find a category to be comforting. These are biblical categories but the comfort comes, as Paul demonstrated, in a settled confidence that God is sovereign. We will be reading part of the Didache in a week and that document says, “Accept as blessings whatever happens to you, being aware that nothing happens without God.”

Christ corrected the disciples when they wanted to categorize all suffering as payment for sin. We do a disservice when we insinuate someone must be in sin or lacking in faith when they suffer. Job’s comforters were rebuked for that nonsense.  

Now I’m sure you want to discuss snake handling since we live in Georgia. The other relevant Scripture is found in the Gospel of Mark. 

Mark 16:18 they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”  

Scripture interprets Scripture. That which is less clear is made clear by the plainer portions of Scripture. Luke’s description of Paul in Acts shows what this verse means. It doesn’t mean you run out and grab a snake. It does mean that when the Holy Spirit is taking us someplace – like Paul to Rome – we will have supernatural protection. Extra-biblical literature also has examples of poisons having no effect in the lives of the Apostles. In short, you don’t make a crazy doctrine from half a verse. No the Bible doesn’t teach you to pick up snakes.   

Acts 28:7-10 … Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the chief man of the island, named Publius, who received us and entertained us hospitably for three days. It happened that the father of Publius lay sick with fever and dysentery. And Paul visited him and prayed, and putting his hands on him healed him. And when this had taken place, the rest of the people on the island who had diseases also came and were cured. They also honored us greatly, and when we were about to sail, they put on board whatever we needed.  

Luke tells us the name of the Roman ruler of the island. Publius was there with his father and the doctor tells us the symptoms. They have a fever in that part of the world called Malta fever. It is a bacteria carried by goats that can make you sick from 4 months to years and was identified in 1887. The ministry to the island went on for months and I’m sure it opened many doors. The help they were given when leaving the island was also partly a result of Paul’s ministry. As I mentioned a few times, this material in Acts would also be relevant to Paul’s court defense in Rome.   

Acts 28:11-16 … After three months we set sail in a ship that had wintered in the island, a ship of Alexandria, with the twin gods as a figurehead. Putting in at Syracuse, we stayed there for three days. And from there we made a circuit and arrived at Rhegium. And after one day a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli. There we found brothers and were invited to stay with them for seven days. And so we came to Rome. And the brothers there, when they heard about us, came as far as the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns to meet us. On seeing them, Paul thanked God and took courage. And when we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself, with the soldier who guarded him.

I noticed that one commentator said that three months was too short a time for it to be safe to sail from Malta. I sometimes wonder which batch of humans some commentators have been watching. The first ships in to the final port get the best prices and we will do all sorts of crazy things for money and boredom. The Mediterranean seafloor has enough ships to prove that. They boarded another cargo ship and sailed in February or March (likely with some risk) but they worked their way up the coast and came into Rome. Paul was initially treated as a celebrity by the Christians in Rome.   

Acts 28:17-22 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. When they had examined me, they wished to set me at liberty, because there was no reason for the death penalty in my case. But because the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar—though I had no charge to bring against my nation. 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.” 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. 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.”  

Well it is a little hard to believe they were as ignorant as they claimed. However, the local leaders of the Jews also had no reason to lie about it. They say they have heard bad things about Christianity as a sect but nothing bad about Paul. Maybe the group who took the pledge not to eat until they killed Paul stuck with the pledge. Paul makes three points. First, he didn’t do anything wrong, secondly, the Romans wanted to let him go, and thirdly, he didn’t bring counter charges. We’ve seen Paul work with the Jewish leadership first before. First, he works at the synagogue and then he expands his work to the Gentiles. So they set up an appointment to hear Paul share the Gospel. The Gospel hasn’t changed from Chapter 2 to Chapter 28 of the Book of Acts. 

Acts 28:23-31 … 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. And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved. 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:

“‘Go to this people, and say, “You will indeed hear but never understand,

   and you will indeed see but never perceive.”

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.’  

Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.” He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance. 

Acts doesn’t really end because the acts of the Holy Spirit have not ended. From AD 60 to 62 Paul was preaching and teaching while under house arrest. At the end of Chapter 28, Paul has not yet been tried before Nero and Jesus had told him that he would see Caesar (Acts 27:24). Paul seemed to expect to be acquitted and released (Phil. 1:25; 2:24; Philem. 22) early in his imprisonment. This must have occurred before A.D. 64, when Nero set fire to Rome and accused Christians of that crime.  

When released about AD 62, Paul seems to have taken up his ministry again, going as far as Greece (Nicopolis, Titus 3:12; Thessalonica, 2 Timothy 4:10), Crete (Titus 1:5), and Asia Minor (Ephesus, 2 Timothy 1:18; 4:12; Troas, 2 Timothy 4:13; Miletus, 2 Timothy 4:20). It is even possible he went as far west as Spain (Romans 15:23-28). Writing in the first century, Clement seems to indicate that Paul made it to Spain.  

However, about A.D. 67, Paul was imprisoned again by Nero and then beheaded outside the city. Near the end of his time on earth, Paul wrote: 

2 Timothy 4:6-8 … For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.

Acts - Lesson 39

Today we’ll study Chapter 27 of Acts in which Paul is taken as a prisoner to Rome. This was a particularly long journey in Paul’s day but the Roman Empire was remarkably large for the necessarily long lines of communication and transportation. Paul had ministered extensively in the eastern portion of the empire and would now be taken as a prisoner to Rome in the western portion of the empire.  

This sort of trip was difficult in part because there were no regular commercial passenger carriers. Passengers were added on after the commercial cargo and you needed to know geography just to figure out who would get you closer to your destination. It would often take multiple ships to get from one point to another but travel on the Mediterranean was the fast way to go.   

Acts 27:1-8 … And when it was decided that we should sail for Italy, they delivered Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion of the Augustan Cohort named Julius. And embarking in a ship of Adramyttium, which was about to sail to the ports along the coast of Asia, we put to sea, accompanied by Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica. The next day we put in at Sidon. And Julius treated Paul kindly and gave him leave to go to his friends and be cared for. And putting out to sea from there we sailed under the lee of Cyprus, because the winds were against us. And when we had sailed across the open sea along the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we came to Myra in Lycia. There the centurion found a ship of Alexandria sailing for Italy and put us on board. We sailed slowly for a number of days and arrived with difficulty off Cnidus, and as the wind did not allow us to go farther, we sailed under the lee of Crete off Salmone. Coasting along it with difficulty, we came to a place called Fair Havens, near which was the city of Lasea.  

The ship of Adramyttium was going to Adramyttium and it is near Troas. Paul probably had ministered near there before and was very close when he was headed back from his missionary activities in southern Europe.  

Acts 20:13-14 … But going ahead to the ship, we set sail for Assos, intending to take Paul aboard there, for so he had arranged, intending himself to go by land. And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and went to Mitylene. 

Remember that “we” includes Luke, Paul, and Aristarchus. So Luke was taking care of Paul’s health and Aristarchus was likely an assistant or friend of one or both men. Of course Luke is also writing his observations and this is a unique commentary. There is essentially no other existing description of the details of sailing the Mediterranean from classical literature. Luke gives an eyewitness account from someone who was not a sailor but who was a perceptive and observant passenger of the route, navigation, ship construction, and the actions of the sailors. 

Roman prisoners didn’t get treated very well necessarily. If you wanted food and clothing, and sometimes shelter then it really helped to have friends and be on good terms with your captor. Julius allowed Paul’s friends to take care of him. 

The destination of the first ship would not get them where they wanted to go and Julius switched to a larger vessel heading for Italy when they got to a port in Lycia named Myra. It was getting late in the year and smaller ships were getting pulled out of the water and beached for the winter. It was not a good time to be out on the sea and sailing to the North and West was particularly difficult because of the winds.  

They eventually made it to the leeward side of Crete and were creeping along the southern edge. They made it to a place called Fair Havens which apparently was not fair and really had no havens. Apparently they had a chamber of commerce in charge of naming or it was Fair Havens in the summer and not in the winter.   

Acts 27:9-12 … Since much time had passed, and the voyage was now dangerous because even the Fast was already over, Paul advised them, saying, “Sirs, I perceive that the voyage will be with injury and much loss, not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives.” But the centurion paid more attention to the pilot and to the owner of the ship than to what Paul said. And because the harbor was not suitable to spend the winter in, the majority decided to put out to sea from there, on the chance that somehow they could reach Phoenix, a harbor of Crete, facing both southwest and northwest, and spend the winter there.  

The sailors didn’t listen to the preacher on how to sail a boat. Well … that isn’t surprising since we generally lean to our own understanding and in particularly so in our field of expertise. They wanted to go only 40 miles west to Phoenix. That seems pretty easy but they had to round a cape and expose them to the possibility of weather. Paul was informed by God that this was a voyage that, apart from God’s mercy, would be with damage and loss of cargo, ship, and lives. Paul may have only been a preacher and not a sailor but Paul was informed by the Holy Spirit and Paul was correct.  

Acts 27:13-20 … Now when the south wind blew gently, supposing that they had obtained their purpose, they weighed anchor and sailed along Crete, close to the shore. But soon a tempestuous wind, called the northeaster, struck down from the land. And when the ship was caught and could not face the wind, we gave way to it and were driven along. Running under the lee of a small island called Cauda, we managed with difficulty to secure the ship’s boat. After hoisting it up, they used supports to undergird the ship. Then, fearing that they would run aground on the Syrtis, they lowered the gear, and thus they were driven along. Since we were violently storm-tossed, they began the next day to jettison the cargo. And on the third day they threw the ship’s tackle overboard with their own hands. When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope of our being saved was at last abandoned.  

So they were in it up to their necks. They had no control and could only run in front of the wind. They were able to get the small boat secured up on the deck. It had been in the water and they started securing cables to keep the boat in one piece. They carried these to wrap around the boat’s hull for strength in case of a storm. They were afraid they were going to be driven all the way to the North African coast (Syrtis).  Everything extra went into the water and they gave up hope after being in the storm for many days. The bottom of the Mediterranean is littered with ships that were lost in storms. Remember also that a stormy sea was perceived as judgment from God. Paul had been correct and he had been praying for them since they decided to ignore him. 

Acts 27:21-26 … Since they had been without food for a long time, Paul stood up among them and said, “Men, you should have listened to me and not have set sail from Crete and incurred this injury and loss. Yet now I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship. For this very night there stood before me an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I worship, and he said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar. And behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you.’ So take heart, men, for I have faith in God that it will be exactly as I have been told. But we must run aground on some island.”  

So first of all, Paul pointed out that he had told them this was going to happen. They should have listened. Fair Havens may have been the armpit of Crete but it was still a port. We know Paul was praying for the crew because the Angel told Paul that he must stand before Caesar and that God had given Paul all those who were sailing with him. However, the ship was going to be lost. This was a ship full of exhausted and hopeless individuals but Paul was now the encourager. How could Paul stand in the storm? 

1)    Paul knew God was present,

2)    Paul knew he belonged to God,

3)    Paul knew his life was submitted to God, and

4)    Paul trusted God in all things (Romans 8:28). 

This time was not pleasant for Paul, Luke, or Aristarchus. It was hard. Paul’s life was difficult and suffering was a regular part of his life. Paul wrote: 

Colossians 1:24-26 … Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints.  

He wasn’t indicating that his suffering was in some way part of the atonement of Christ or had anything to do with our justification. Paul is pointing out that as we each walk through difficult times we do so as part of the Body of Christ. Christ is not separate – He does not separate Himself – from His body which is the Church. The martyrs were not accidental casualties or those with less faith. In fact, the martyrs are the capstone of the roll call of faith in Hebrews 11. 

Hebrews 11:35b-40 … Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated— of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.  

There is a certain “fiery furnace” attitude of surrender to God in which we have an “either or” surrender. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s attitude that says, "my God can save me but, even if you see me toasted, I will not commit treason against God." Paul had likewise settled these things in his mind. So much for prosperity doctrine. 

Acts 27:27-32 … When the fourteenth night had come, as we were being driven across the Adriatic Sea, about midnight the sailors suspected that they were nearing land. So they took a sounding and found twenty fathoms. A little farther on they took a sounding again and found fifteen fathoms. And fearing that we might run on the rocks, they let down four anchors from the stern and prayed for day to come. And as the sailors were seeking to escape from the ship, and had lowered the ship’s boat into the sea under pretense of laying out anchors from the bow, Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.” Then the soldiers cut away the ropes of the ship’s boat and let it go. 

The sailors were just trying to save their own lives. A big ship wreck was not likely to be survivable and they thought they could beach a small boat and save themselves. Of course all the other folks would then die. Paul perceives what is really going on and the soldiers cut the boat away so the sailors stay on the ship. They still needed sailors to run the ship aground.  

Acts 27:33-38 … As day was about to dawn, Paul urged them all to take some food, saying, “Today is the fourteenth day that you have continued in suspense and without food, having taken nothing. Therefore I urge you to take some food. For it will give you strength, for not a hair is to perish from the head of any of you.” And when he had said these things, he took bread, and giving thanks to God in the presence of all he broke it and began to eat. Then they all were encouraged and ate some food themselves. (We were in all 276 persons in the ship.) And when they had eaten enough, they lightened the ship, throwing out the wheat into the sea.  

Paul was an encourager and kept speaking the promise that he had from God. He talked them all into eating a real meal and when they had all eaten then they lightened the ship by throwing more cargo overboard. 

Acts 27:39-44 … Now when it was day, they did not recognize the land, but they noticed a bay with a beach, on which they planned if possible to run the ship ashore. So they cast off the anchors and left them in the sea, at the same time loosening the ropes that tied the rudders. Then hoisting the foresail to the wind they made for the beach. But striking a reef, they ran the vessel aground. The bow stuck and remained immovable, and the stern was being broken up by the surf. The soldiers’ plan was to kill the prisoners, lest any should swim away and escape. But the centurion, wishing to save Paul, kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and make for the land, and the rest on planks or on pieces of the ship. And so it was that all were brought safely to land.  

The sea anchors were cut loose and they made a run for a reef or sandbar. This is a place between the island of Malta and Salmonetta. They currents there make sandbars and today it is called St. Paul’s Bay. I think it is amazing that we know with a fairly high degree of confidence where they wrecked. The centurion was risking his life at least and perhaps some of the soldiers. If they went home with the prisoners dead then it would be OK. If they went home having lost the prisoners then they would likely lose their lives. But as the angel said, everyone was brought safely to land.