Once there was a Brahmin poojari, who heard about Jesus, and respected Jesus so much that he went in search of Jesus to a church. He took a flower basket, a bell and camphor with him. He reverently entered the church, and came to the altar, kept the flower basket near the altar, and started worshiping by lighting the camphor and ringing the bell, as he used to do in the temple. On hearing this, the pastor came and he was shocked on seeing this. He shouted to stop the pooja and said this is not the Christian way of worshiping. On hearing the pastor’s rebuke, the poojari was very much offended and he told the Pastor that he was honouring Jesus in the way which he knew. But the pastor did not listen to him and said, he’s profaning the holy place. On this the poojari went away silently thinking that ‘My Jesus is not here in this Church.’
This may be an imaginative story but this is what would happen in reality if at all. The background of this passage also reflects the same thing. Here we see Paul coming to Jerusalem temple to take over purification rites and when it was over, the problem started. Already the Jews were angry on Paul, on hearing that he was preaching a different doctrine from theirs. So when the Jews saw him in the temple, they caught hold of him and plotted to kill him. On seeing this, the Roman soldiers rescued Paul from the Mob and brought him bound up into the fortress to know what crime he had done. When he was taken in, Paul asks permission to the tribune to speak to the people and thus began addressing the crowd in Hebrew. So the people who were shouting became very quiet when they heard him speak in Hebrew. So they all became quiet listening to him and he was explaining to them about his Apostolic call. When he mentioned as in vs.21 that the Lord has sent him to the Gentiles as well, the crowd could no longer bear it and was asked for his head.
And this passage explains that, the tribune ordered Paul to be taken in and enquired by flogging. This is a Roman practice of punishing a criminal, tying him up to the poles and beating with a leather thong to which pieces of dry bones and metal pieces are attached. Many died during it and mostly crippled for life. This is a brutal way of punishing people. But here Paul defended himself by saying that he is a Roman citizen. And again when he was taken before the Sanhedrin, where Sadducees and Pharisees were present, he introduced himself to be a Pharisee and won the support of Pharisees thereby instigating conflict between the two groups. Again he was taken safely by the soldiers.
From these incidents I could not restrict myself in bringing two things that this passage as a whole would reflect. First is that,
In the beginning of this passage in vs .22 ff, explains clearly that the crowd were outrageous, pent up with anger on Paul, that they tore their clothes and threw dust into the air, and shouted that Paul should not live anymore. What was the reason for their sudden change and anger?
Its nothing but the mention of ‘Gentiles.’ They listened to him quietly till his mention of the Gentiles. They burst out into anger when they heard him say that he was sent by the Lord to the Gentiles as well. It was hard for them to accept the unclean Gentiles into their fold as they are. They could no longer bear that God would save both Jews and the Gentiles in the same way. They insisted that the Gentiles should accept circumcision and the law. If Paul would’ve preached the restricting demands of Judaism to the Gentiles, all would’ve been well. But it was because he preached the grace of Christianity they were enraged. But Paul broke out their traditional inbuilt ideas and boldly proclaimed even after being caught up them, that he was an Apostle to the Gentiles as well.
Paul in all his manner of proclaiming the Gospel, presented the Gospel to the people in their own culture and language. There are many examples to quote this attitude of Paul. In Athens he introduced Jesus as the ‘UNKNOWN GOD,’ here he claims his Roman citizenship, in the second part of this passage that is 23:1-11, he introduces himself as a Pharisee and so on. His stand is very clear from his first letter to the Corinthians 9: 20 -23, where he says for the sake of Gospel, he became a Jew, weak, to those under the law as under the law and became all things to all people, so as to save them. This is how Paul Presented the Gospel. He did not impose a so called ‘Christian culture’, but presented Jesus to the people in their own way.
This is what is probing us to ask a question to ourselves, How are we going to present the Gospel, the Good news of Jesus Christ to the people around us? Are we going to impose our culture, our values and in-built ideas? Or are we going to present Jesus as the one whom they knew? How about taking Paul as an example?
Secondly, here in these two incidents when Paul was caught up before the authorities, he wisely escapes punishment by defending himself as a Roman citizen in one place where it would be appropriate and as a Pharisee before the Sanhedrin. For it is against the law to punish or bind a Roman citizen during those times. When he said that he is a Roman citizen by birth, the tribune was afraid and they stopped enquiring him. In the Sanhedrin, Paul saw Sadducees and Pharisees being present and he successfully divided the assembly by claiming the doctrine of the Pharisees in believing in the resurrection. A tumult broke out and again he has to be taken in safely by the soldiers.
This attitude of Paul reminds me of Jesus’ saying in the Gospel according to St. Matthew 10:16, ‘Be as wise as serpents and harmless as doves.’ Jesus when sending out the disciples advised them that they are being sent as sheep into the wolves and so they ought to communicate His message wisely but without hurting people who heard it, as harmless as dove.
Defending the truth requires the wisdom of a serpent so as to discern the situation and act accordingly. Jesus Himself in Luke 4: 29 -30, when the people led him to the brow of the hill, that they might cast him off headlong, he passed through the midst of them and went his way. There was Christ’s wisdom in not giving himself into the hands of his enemy, as he had to preach the Gospel in other cities too. In the same way, Paul also many times has proven himself willing to suffer for the cause of Christ, but at the same time, he do not want to do the same needlessly as here in this passage. So he claimed his right as a Roman citizen, thereby obeying Jesus’ word of being wise as serpent, so that the gospel will be proclaimed elsewhere through him.
Therefore the second question that this passage puts before us is, taking this example of Paul, How is our conduct today in defending the truth? Are we being as wise as serpents?
As we close lets ponder upon these two questions.. Is it hard for us to embrace the truth to include the excluded and grant access to God’s liberating grace via a different route than the one we’ve already taken? And are we being as wise as serpents? How about Paul’s example in these two aspects?
Let us examine ourselves and may the Lord speak to us through his word. Amen.
