Acts 28:16,20,30,31

COVID-19 pandemic has developed into a full-fledged force for the last eight months and pushed all the people of the world to an entreched position. The virus-caused disease is driving many hundreds, even thousands, of peope to death bed every day. The future lies in dense fog, since no one can give a definite answer to the question of when the pandemic could be overcome or finished., It is my earnest prayer that almighty God our Father be with you amid this pandemic. May our heavenly Father keep all the missionaries and their children under his guard day and night to the end!

In these days of gloomy darkness and painful suffering, what I want to do is to share the Hope—the Hope of Israel, the Hope of God—with you in the text: Acts 28:16,20,30, and 31.

“And when we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself with the soliders who guarded him.” (16)

In the earlier part of his epistle of Romans, Paul confessed repeatedly his yearning desire to go to Rome. “I long to see you.” (1:11) “I have often intended to come to you.” (1:13) “I am eager to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome.” (1:15) “I have longed for many years to come to you.” (15:23) Since the Rome stood in a unique position at the heart of the vast Roman empire, the capital city was considered as the most strategic place for evangelizing efforts, so as to conquer the world with gospel. That was why Paul had kept his longing and cherishing desire to come to Rome and to preach the gospel there. Now at last he arrived in Rome, after going through all the perils and adverse circumstances on the way. How excited he might have been when he finally anchored his feet on the soil of the Rome! It was the critical moment in his life. The arrival is also recorded as a pivotal point in the church history.

However, unfavorable occasions awaited him. Verses 16, 20, and 30 suggest that Paul was put into prison, bounded with chains and guarded by the Roman soldiers day and night. What a frustrating, hopeless, and dark situation Paul was located in his old age! But, it surprises us when we read Paul’s confession in the situation. Paul confessed that he was full of hope in verse 20. “It is because of the hope of Israel that I am bound with this chains.” Paul confessed that he had found the reason, the meaning, and the purpose of God in his sufferings: ‘because of the hope of Israel’. Then let’s consider what ‘the hope of Israel’ is.

Verses 23 and 31 reveal to us what Paul was doing while staying in prison in Rome. He was devoted to preaching the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ. The kingdom of God and Jesus Christ the Lord, these are the two core contents of Paul’s teaching and preaching. As prophesied in the Law of Moses and the prophets, ‘the kingdom of God’ has been fulfilled by and in our Lord Jesus Christ. ‘The kingdom of God’, this is the hope of Israel, the hope of God, and the core and the summary of the gospel. ‘The kingdom of God’, this was the main theme and contents of Jesus’ teaching and ministry. The gospel begins with the preaching of Jesus, “The time has come. The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe in the good news.” (Mark 1:14) This was the hope and vision of Abraham, Daniel, David, and all the prophets.

Paul, though he was physically restrained and bound by chains in the prison, was full of this hope and vision. This hope drove his heart to be beating boldly, and his eyes to be beaming brightly. All the men of God are the men of the hope of this great, high, and noble cause, of the hope of God. God called us with this hope, to this hope, the hope of the kingdom of God, so that not only may we possess and enjoy the kingdom, but also build and expand it. No matter what our circumstances and conditions of life may be, let’s be men and women of God, full of this hope and vision.

In reality, what could Paul do in his prison without freedom to move? What we find is that the situation did not hinder him from sharing the hope of God. First, for the whole two years in imprisonment Paul preached to the visitors the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ. Though Paul was not allowed to travel out of the prison, he had visitors. Brothers and sisters from the Roman church, and from all over the world gave him a visit constantly. Paul welcomed all who came to him with all his heart, love, and humility. He seized the moment to preach to them and to teach them. The word of God couldn’t be bound. Second, his situation bound by chains and guarded by the soldiers in prison turned into an opportunity that the gospel flowed into the whole palace guard. Because Paul was a prisoner to the court of the emperor, the palace guard took turns to guard him, one by one, each four hours a day. Six of the palace guard, the high-ranked officers of more than three thousand in the number, stayed close by to Paul and guarded him in their turns. When Paul preached to and taught the visitors from morning till night, the guard in close proximity had an open chance to hear the gospel. Paul showed love, kindness, and humility in his prison life. Paul’s humble attitude along with the powerful words of God might have influenced all the three thousand palace guard who came into close contact with him for the duration of two years. In this way the gospel came into the very heart of the palace of Rome. This was the heralding event that the Roman Empire would turn into the kingdom of God. Likewise, the way of God’s work is so mysterious that goes beyond our understanding. Whatever place or circumstances we may be situated in, let’s find what we can do and be faithful to small things, to plant the seed of kingdom of God. God will use it to change the world.

The book of Acts concludes in 28:31 with one word in Greek: ἀκωλύτως. It means ‘unhindered, or without hindrance’. This adverb is derived from the verb, κωλύω, which means ‘to hinder, prevent, stop or forbid’. The letter ἀ is the prefix with the meaning of ‘not’. How great and significant is that the one word ἀκωλύτως is the final conclusion of Acts! No hindrance! No prevention! No stop! There is no one, nothing that hinders, prevents, or stops the work of God, and the steps of our missionaries. Because it is the will of God and the work of the Holy Spirit, triumphant marching-on of the gospel will continue to the end of the earth, during COVID-19 and in the post-COVID-19 era, and until the day of our Lord Jesus’ coming.

Hallelujah, Amen!

Kwangok Koh
Retired pastor
Suwon Mission Church, South Korea