Acts 16:35-40: Christians & Government

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The Text

1) The problem

A)   Paul and Silas were accused of something that was not true (vv. 19-21).

B)    Their accusers started a riot and the crowd joined in attacking them.

C)    Their clothes were torn off, they were beaten, and they were thrown into maximum security jail and locked in stocks.

D)   IMPORTANT: Who beat Paul and Silas?

1) v. 22 – The crowd joined, but who started?

2) There is a position called the Lictor. They were civil servants who acted as bodyguards, escorts (push crowds aside), and legal enforcers for Roman magistrates.

3) They carried out the magistrate’s orders to make arrests and carry out beatings and executions.

4) They carried the fasces, a bundle of wooden rods enclosed by an axe, symbolizing the state’s power to punish by flogging or execution. (Benito Mussolini invented the word, fascism, from this word to symbolize totalitarian control.)

5) POINT: This wasn’t just mob action but officially sanctioned Roman punishment.

E)    This was a major violation of Roman law since Paul was a Roman citizen.

1) Lex Julia de Vi Publica – It was illegal to bind, beat, or torture a Roman citizen without a proper trial.

(a)   Citizens had to be formally charged, and they had an opportunity to present a defense.

2) Citizen were exempt from humiliating or dishonorable executions. They could not be crucified, exposed to wild beasts in an arena, or tortured to death.

3) lus Provocationis – If a citizen believed they were not getting a fair trial, or if they faced a capital charge, they could appeal director to the Roman Emperor.

4) Falsely claiming Roman citizenship was punishable by death.

F)    The consequences of violating these laws were considered a direct offense against the authority and majesty of Rome.

1) Infamia – The official was stripped of his role, and could never hold political office, serve as a judge, or have public honors from the local government.

2) The colony of Philippi could lose its status (i.e. tax benefits and local governance).

3) vis publica (illegal violence) – Relegatio: Exile and partial or full loss of property and wealth.

4) Capital punishment if the magistrate’s action was deemed treasonous or a willful defiance of imperial law.

G)   POINT: Paul and Silas were legally wronged.

1) Maybe the earthquake spooked the magistrates.

2) But, more likely, they knew they had committed a federal crime that wasn’t just embarrassing. There was potential for big trouble.

2) vv. 35-37

A)   This sounds like a corporation who has done something illegal, so they pay people off, have them sign NDAs, and let’s all just pretend like this never happened.

B)    The magistrates sent the lictors: “Let’s not make a big deal out of this. You guys are free to go. Just slip out the back door, and we’ll all pretend this never happened.”

1) How many of us would say, “Great! I don’t have to spend another minute in jail. Let’s call it a win and head for the hills.”

2) Paul: “I’m not going anywhere until the magistrates come and apologize to my face.

C)   vv. 38-39

1) Note: They asked them to leave the city (not told).

Question: What can we learn from this text about how are Christians supposed to interact with their government?

(Note: The question of the Christian and government, generally, is too big for this lesson. We are just zooming in on lessons from this text.)

1) First, it is wrong when people either say or imply that Christians are just supposed to silently, passively submit to everything without objection.

A)   If something like this happened today, the internet would fill up with Christians quoting the Bible at Paul and telling him that he was a sinner.

1) Matt. 5:10-12

2) Matt. 5:38-41

3) “You’re not being very loving to your neighbor, Paul.”

4) Rom. 13:1-2, 5 – “be subject to the governing authorities”

5) 1 Pet. 2:13-14 – “Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or governors as sent by him…”

6) “Don’t make a scene, Paul. Just put your clothes back on and leave, and stop being stubborn.”

B)    In this text, Paul pushes back against the government authorities, tells them that what they are doing is not right, and he demands his legal rights as a Roman citizen.

1) He is essentially holding them hostage in their own jail.

2) Acts 22:23-27, 29

3) Acts 25:10-11

C)    John MacArthur’s Grace Community Church during Covid

1) California Gov., Gavin Newsom, and LA County made executive orders to restrict indoor meetings.

2) In July, Grace Church said no.

3) Government

(a)   LA County issued cease-and-desists, fined the church $1000/day and potential arrest.

(b)   They revoked a 45-year-old parking lot lease. (We’ll bus people.)

(c)   They threatened to cut his power off. He said he would rent generators.

(d)   They issued restraining orders.

(e)   And tried to have MacArthur held in contempt of court.

4) The US Supreme Court (multiple church situations)

(a)   If grocery stores can be open, then churches can be open.

(b)   Should another public emergency, natural disaster, or pandemic occur, local magistrates and governors face clear legal boundaries. Government officials who violate these rulings risk immediate federal court injunctions and severe financial penalties, including paying millions in legal fee reimbursements to churches.

5) Grace Church sued the State and County

(a)   They settled for $400,000 each.

(b)   They got their parking lot back.

(c)   State and federal courts issued permanent injunctions barring California from imposing similar discriminatory restrictions on churches in the future.

D)   Conclusion

1) Without question, the baseline is that Christians are commanded to be model citizens in every way (be subject, and respectful, and pay your taxes, etc.)

2) THIS TEXT: But this does not mean that we must silently, passively submit to things that are wrong without objection.

2) More important than what Paul did is why he did it.

A)   Why Paul did NOT do this: To be obnoxious, prideful, arrogant, vengeful, etc.

1) This situation was not about Paul himself.

2) If it were, then he would have flashed his Roman passport before he got beaten, and he would have escaped the jail after the earthquake.

B)    Everything Paul did was for the Lord, and for the Lord’s people.

1) He forced the government to acknowledge that they did not do anything illegal.

2) And now they get to live with the knowledge that if they want to give the Philippian church a hard time, then maybe Paul and Silas can write a letter to the Emperor letting him know about their illegal behavior.

3) Paul was acting as a human shield (i.e. a shepherd) for the baby Philippian church.

4) v. 40

Conclusions

1) Without question, the baseline is that Christians are commanded to be model citizens in every way (be subject, and respectful, and pay your taxes, etc.)

2) But this does not mean that we must silently, passively submit to things that are wrong without objection.

3) In all things, let Jesus be our motivation:

A)   I will be a model citizen in my service to Jesus.

B)    But I will not deny my faith or disown my Lord.

C)    I will not stop preaching about him or working for him.

D)   And I will not disobey him, even if the government tells me that I must.