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The apostle Paul traveled thousands of miles on land and sea, preaching the message of Jesus, establishing Christian communities and often revisiting his congregations in their formative years. Between trips, and sometimes in the midst of them, he composed pastoral letters to churches and individuals that today form a substantial section of the Holy Bible. He was outspoken on most occasions, fiery in tone and seldom afraid to face any person or circumstance. He did and said what he thought was correct and, if others did not agree, he was not dissuaded. Since he was rarely intimidated when facing a particular challenge, he always seemed to find a way either to talk or maneuver himself out of the difficulty.

One day Paul and some of his Gentile friends came to Jerusalem to visit the apostle James. After they cordially greeted each other, lamenting their prolonged separation, they happily sat down to share a meal.

"Paul, I've been worried about you," said Paul's host, following their toast for mutual good health.

"Oh, and why is that?" asked James' adventurous guest, with his normal self-confident smile.

James broke a piece of bread and, holding a small morsel in his hand, replied, "I've been hearing violent threats against you from the Jewish leaders, and even from some who are Jewish converts to Christianity."

Being threatened and even condemned was nothing new for this untiring globetrotter for Christ. He treated his illustrious friend's concern very lightly, quipping, "What is it this time?"

"They're disturbed that you advise against circumcision and the study of the law of Moses and, in general, that you disregard all the old and sacred traditions."

"Do you think these Jewish practices are necessary for Christians, James?" Paul asked after a moment of silence.

"Well ... not really, but we do have to live at peace with each other."

Their conversation soon took another direction, but Paul was about to learn the warning from James was real and timely.

While walking through the old city that afternoon, Paul and his Gentile companions went into the sacred temple where he began preaching about Jesus. He had entered with the Gentiles who were forbidden inside and then expounded the merits of Christianity in Judaism's most hallowed shrine. After a few minutes of his sermon, the Jewish people present had heard enough and they rose up as a group and dragged Paul outside. They were so infuriated they tried to kill him on the spot, which naturally attracted much attention.

The police commander soon arrived and tried to stop the fighting and determine the cause. Everyone was pointing an accusing finger at Paul with shouts of "Troublemaker!" and "Disturber of the peace!" Quickly, he was arrested and roughly escorted to the commander's headquarters. As they mounted the steps to enter the barracks, Paul persuaded the commander to let him address the hostile crowd to "explain the matter."

Speaking in fluent Aramaic, he began telling the story of his conversion to Christianity on the way to Damascus, a story that he had told numerous times. "Away with him! Kill him! He's not fit to live!" were the vicious shouts that drowned out his words as the people began tossing dirt in the air and hurling stones and sticks at Paul.

The commander canceled the remainder of the apostle's speech and, once they were inside the barracks, he ordered him to be scourged so he would confess the truth about the cause of the disturbance.

"Is it permissible to scourge a Roman citizen without a trial?" Paul asked just before the first lash. The would-be torturer dutifully relayed the question to the commander, who was quickly at Paul's side.

"Are you a Roman?" he asked, greatly surprised.

"Yes, I am!"

"Well, so am I. I purchased my citizenship at a great price."

"Ah," replied Paul smugly, "but I was born a Roman citizen." The whipping order was immediately canceled.

Since the commander still did not know the true reason for the disturbance, the next day he brought Paul before the Jewish Temple Court, the Sanhedrin, for interrogation and possible punishment. In this formidable setting even the courageous spirit of Paul began to weaken as he directly faced 71 unyielding elders, high priests, and scribes. While the official preliminaries were being conducted, he analyzed the supreme council and noted that more belonged to the Pharisee party than the Sadducee group. Paul personally knew a number of members in the Sanhedrin, for he and they had at one time studied together under the noted Rabbi Gamaliel. A smile slowly came to his face as his brilliant mind carefully plotted his defense strategy, one he was sure would work.

The public accusations leveled against him were:

• preaching about Jesus (a forbidden subject);
• disregarding the sacred law; and, in general
• being a troublemaker.

If convicted on these charges, the punishment could be a long prison term or even death. Well aware of the serious situation, Paul was asked to present his defense. He looked directly into the accusing faces of those who were breathing anger and contempt for him. After a few opening remarks about his past, he unexpectedly said, "I am on trial concerning the resurrection of the dead." Although that was not actually the case, he made it the issue -- Sadducees do not believe in the resurrection, but the Pharisees do. Reminding himself that the majority present were Pharisees, he shouted with all the native pride he could summon, "I am a Pharisee!"

Immediately, a disturbance ensued in the body of the assembled council. Paul had succeeded in turning their bitter hatred away from him and redirecting it against the opposing religious party. With the Pharisees and Sadducees now in a fierce battle with each other over the hotly debated point of the resurrection, he complacently stood in the witness stand, completely ignored.

The commander was obliged to summon extra troops to quell this unexpected melee in the religious courtroom and Paul was quickly hustled away, untried and unsentenced. Back in the barracks, he again reminded the now-frustrated commander that he was a Roman citizen and, as such, had the right to appeal his case to Caesar in Rome. Thus he made his formal petition to travel to Rome, something he had been planning to do for a long time. The resourceful apostle took the whole incident in stride as simply another day's work. He was able to see in it God's will leading and directing him on to his next mission.

After a time, following a most adventurous journey, he arrived in Rome for his trial. There he received a very slight sentence of house arrest with many privileges, including the freedom to move about and to apply himself in the writing of his famous "Captivity Epistles." Two years later, still in the imperial city, he willingly died as a martyr for Jesus.

If you have a living faith like Paul did,
In a life with Christ beyond the grave,
You can minister with a strength and courage,
Whether rich or poor or free or slave.

Since Paul knew there was a resurrection
He was hopeful, like a Pharisee.
But the Sadducees had hope for this life only
(That's the reason they were "Sad-you-see").

Read Acts 23