Acts 23:11 And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome
Not long ago there was a congressional hearing on the CEO of a major corporation who had hobnobbed with one party and was seeking protection from another party against the party with whom he had been in cahoots. One senator, when taking him to task, said, “You’ve helped the other party and now you are asking help of us? Best of luck.” That was, of course, sarcastic. He was saying, “Don’t ask us for help when you have been siding with the other party.” Now whether that is right or wrong, that makes sense. One wonders sometimes, “Whom can you trust? Can you trust the Republicans? Can you trust the Democrats? When you are standing before all of them, whom do you trust?” Better yet, “Who will stand with you?”
Paul was a man who had to contemplate such questions. He was standing before the Roman authorities, having been accused by other Jewish men who objected to his message about Jesus, and the question was, “Who were his allies in that room?” Were the Romans his allies, who would eventually take his life but were at the moment protecting him? Were other Jewish people, like the Sadducees who denied there was a resurrection, his allies? Were his allies the Pharisees, of whom he had been one and who agreed with Paul that there was a resurrection? When he stood before this group of people, Romans, Sadducees, Pharisees, Jews, and Gentiles, whom could Paul trust? More importantly, who would stand with him?
Well, who stands with you depends on who you are. In chapter 22 Paul made very clear who he was. He belonged to Jesus Christ. He was a messenger of Jesus Christ. Was Paul a Roman? He was a Roman citizen. Was he Jewish? He was Jewish. Was he a Pharisee? He did agree with the Pharisees that there was something supernatural, a resurrection, even though the Sadducees denied this.
In Acts 23:11 it says, “And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome.” The fact of the matter is that God was the One Who was propelling him forward. He said, “Just as you have been a witness of Me, you will be a witness of Me, not just there, but also in Rome.” Paul would later say that no man stood with him, but the Lord stood with him. So, the Lord will stand with those who stand for Him.
Now, what did the Lord provide for Paul. First, the Lord provided focus. Verse 6 says, “But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee: of the hope and resurrection of the dead I am called in question.” He was basically trying to drive a wedge between the Pharisees and Sadducees, both of whom were accusing him, causing them to see that he agreed with the Pharisees that there is a resurrection. The Pharisees just didn’t believe it about Jesus. They denied who Jesus is.
Paul’s focus was the resurrection, that was consistent throughout his travels and interactions with other people. His focus was the same as God’s focus. The reason for this story, Paul’s travels in subsequent chapters, was that he was giving the gospel that came from God through Jesus. So, sometimes we don’t know who is with us, but when you stand for God, He will stand with you and give focus.
Second, God gave courage. The Lord very obviously gave courage to Paul. Paul’s life was threatened. There were those who objected to his message of the gospel and planned to kill him. God had just said “Be of good cheer. I’m going to see you through to Rome.” Nonetheless, when Paul’s nephew heard about the plot to kill Paul and told Paul, he replied, “Go tell the authorities.” Paul believed in God’s protection, but he still sent his nephew to inform the authorities and prevent an assassination. So, he rested in the power of God, yet he had to make a wise decision. Paul had courage that came from the presence of the Lord in his life.
Third, God gave Paul discernment. Verse 6 says that when Paul perceived that half the people before whom he stood were Sadducees and the others were Pharisees, he was able to distinguish one from the other. Both were enemies of the gospel and of Paul, but by mentioning the resurrection, which was his central message, there was striving between the Sadducees and the Pharisees. The Pharisees basically said, “We don’t see anything wrong with this guy,” and the reason was because Paul had discernment. He had savvy. He was not lying or manipulating these people, but he had discernment.
In short, Paul had a powerful message because he stood with the Lord of the message. I don’t know what your life may look like today or whom you will be facing, but I do know that when you stand with the Lord, the Lord will stand with you. Paul is a wonderful reminder of that.