When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still
And with all who will trust and obey

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey

(Song by Don Moen)

I know Whom I have believèd,
And am persuaded that He is able
To keep that which I’ve committed
Unto Him against that day.

Two separate hymns I grew up singing in church describe what it means to commit to obedience to Christ who saves us and sets us free to love like He loves us.  The lyrics come from scriptures of men and women who committed their lives to obedience to our Lord.  We gratefully call Jesus Savior for what He did for us; but we cross over the line from human to the supernatural when we call Him Lord of our lives.  All that is within us now desires to listen for His voice above all other voices clamoring for our attention and follow what HE says for us to be and do.

Paul is committed to Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord of all He thinks, says, and does—no matter what.  Paul believed, truly believed, as He wrote the inspired words of God’s Holy Spirit: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good,^[a] for those who are called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28, ESV

In Paul’s heart, mind, and deep within his soul; Jesus is Savior and He is Lord of his life. 

Paul will trust and obey God’s Voice of direction and guidance.

Acts 21, The Message

Tyre and Caesarea

^1-4 And so, with the tearful good-byes behind us, we were on our way. We made a straight run to Cos, the next day reached Rhodes, and then Patara. There we found a ship going direct to Phoenicia, got on board, and set sail. Cyprus came into view on our left, but was soon out of sight as we kept on course for Syria, and eventually docked in the port of Tyre. While the cargo was being unloaded, we looked up the local disciples and stayed with them seven days. Their message to Paul, from insight given by the Spirit, was “Don’t go to Jerusalem.”

^5-6 When our time was up, they escorted us out of the city to the docks. Everyone came along—men, women, children. They made a farewell party of the occasion! We all kneeled together on the beach and prayed. Then, after another round of saying good-bye, we climbed on board the ship while they drifted back to their homes.

^7-9 A short run from Tyre to Ptolemais completed the voyage. We greeted our Christian friends there and stayed with them a day. In the morning we went on to Caesarea and stayed with Philip the Evangelist, one of “the Seven.” Philip had four virgin daughters who prophesied.

^10-11 After several days of visiting, a prophet from Judea by the name of Agabus came down to see us. He went right up to Paul, took Paul’s belt, and, in a dramatic gesture, tied himself up, hands and feet. He said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: The Jews in Jerusalem are going to tie up the man who owns this belt just like this and hand him over to godless unbelievers.”

^12-13 When we heard that, we and everyone there that day begged Paul not to be stubborn and persist in going to Jerusalem. But Paul wouldn’t budge: “Why all this hysteria? Why do you insist on making a scene and making it even harder for me? You’re looking at this backward. The issue in Jerusalem is not what they do to me, whether arrest or murder, but what the Master Jesus does through my obedience. Can’t you see that?”

¹⁴ We saw that we weren’t making even a dent in his resolve, and gave up. “It’s in God’s hands now,” we said. “Master, you handle it.”

^15-16 It wasn’t long before we had our luggage together and were on our way to Jerusalem. Some of the disciples from Caesarea went with us and took us to the home of Mnason, who received us warmly as his guests. A native of Cyprus, he had been among the earliest disciples.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

By Paul’s example of trust and obedience to God; all those around him finally admitted that “It’s in God’s hands” and prayed; “Master, you handle it.”  Was this giving up?  Or resolve in trusting and obeying the God who knows all and is in all?

We pray, listen, and obey.  God works!  It is we who make life more complicated than necessary!

All conditions of the political climate in Jerusalem, verified by a prophet, pointed to danger for Paul with possible beatings, bound in chains and thrown into jail.  But Paul knew whom He had believed and knew God was able to accomplish HIS purpose through Paul—even if Paul was jailed for preaching Jesus.  Remember, all the great letters (now called epistles) to the churches that we rely on today for salvation, wisdom, clarity, and direction were written as Paul was sitting incarcerated, imprisoned in chains by those who did not believe. 

But prison did not stop Paul from getting the Message of Jesus out to the world.  In fact, anyone who visited Paul and his friends in prison would hear singing and rejoicing the Name of the Lord of his life before seeing him.  Paul received EVERY opportunity given to him to speak the words of Jesus boldly and clearly so that others might be saved and made whole, restored and forgiven, ready to tell others of salvation! 

Still need proof of Paul’s confidence in Jesus?  Paul writes often to his friends and asks them to pray very specifically for him while he sits in jail and for themselves who are free to tell of Jesus:

“Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ. That is why I am here in chains. Pray that I will proclaim this message as clearly as I should.

Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone.” Colossians 4:2-6, NLT

Paul would be the first to tell all who believe—don’t be like Paul—be like Jesus who Paul believed and obeyed! Paul shared that he wanted “to know Christ” and “to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death…” (3:10-11). Time and time again, Paul shared from his own experience what it was to follow and become like Jesus.  

Paul didn’t just believe certain things in his head. He didn’t just say “these things are true.” He structured his thoughts, actions, and passions around Jesus. He took steps that Jesus took (even – or especially – the ones that hurt).

This means we have two very important things to prayerfully consider:

First, are you becoming more like Jesus, like Paul was?

Do we actively find ways to walk in Jesus’ footsteps?

It is easy to find some other ideal in this life to chase after. It’s not hard to read our Bible and go to church without actually changing.

Do the things you learn translate to active steps of obedience to the One we call Lord?

Second, who are you following right now?

Lord,

You are Savior to me. Thank you for forgiving me of all my sins.  You are Lord of my life. Thank you for delighting in all the details of our lives.  I love to tell you everything and then listen for your direction.  You never change in your love, mercy, and grace. Why would I trust and obey anyone else?  You are God.  I am not.

In Jesus Name, Amen