CON CAMPBELL: I'M IN PURSUIT
OF PAUL THE APOSTLE. MY NAME IS CON CAMPBELL. I'VE STUDIED PAUL'S 13 NEW
TESTAMENT LETTERS FOR YEARS. NOW I WANT TO KNOW HIM BETTER. FOR THE FIRST TIME
I'M FOLLOWING HIS JOURNEYS, FROM JERUSALEM ACROSS
THE MEDITERRANEAN, ALL THE WAY TO ROME,
WHERE HE WAS MARTYRED. (JAZZ MUSIC) AS A JAZZ MUSICIAN,
I'M USED TO SEEING EMPTY SEATS, BUT NOT 24,000 EMPTY SEATS. YOU KNOW, AROUND
TWO THOUSAND YEARS AGO, THIS THEATRE WAS FULL
OF PEOPLE FROM EPHESUS WHO WERE PROTESTING PAUL'S PRESENCE IN THEIR CITY AND PROTESTING HIS MESSAGE. LIKE MOST TOURIST SITES, ANCIENT EPHESUS HAS ITS
SHARE OF SOUVENIR SHOPS. THERE ARE PLENTY
OF OPTIONS FOR VISITORS. ABRAHAM LINCOLN, MY HERO. I SHOULD BRING SOMETHING BACK FOR MY WIFE AND KIDS. WHAT'S INTERESTING
IS THAT THE SHOPS SELL REPLICAS OF
THE GODDESS OF FERTILITY THAT THE EPHESIANS
USED TO WORSHIP, JUST AS THEY DID
IN PAUL'S DAY, AND THAT BECAME
PART OF THE PROBLEM. AND SO A BATTLE OF BELIEFS WITH
THE CITIZENS OF EPHESUS ERUPTED ON PAUL'S THIRD AND FINAL MISSIONARY EXPEDITION. TO GET TO EPHESUS, PAUL TOOK
THE ROAD THROUGH THE INTERIOR, ALL THE WAY ACROSS ASIA MINOR,
OR WHAT IS TODAY TURKEY. HE REVISITED THE
CHURCHES HE'D FOUNDED. THEN HE REACHED EPHESUS, A MAJOR SEAPORT CITY OF
ABOUT 250,000 PEOPLE. AS A CENTER OF TRADE
BY LAND AND SEA, EPHESUS BECAME A STRATEGIC
LOCATION FOR PAUL TO SPREAD THE GOOD
NEWS ABOUT JESUS. WE'RE TOLD HE TAUGHT
AND PREACHED HERE NIGHT AND DAY
FOR ABOUT THREE YEARS. HE INVESTED MORE TIME HERE
THAN IN ANY OTHER CITY. AS WAS HIS CUSTOM,
PAUL WOULD BEGIN TEACHING IN A JEWISH SYNAGOGUE TO PROVE THAT JESUS WAS THE MESSIAH, UNTIL THEY STOPPED HIM. AFTER THREE MONTHS, PAUL WAS
FORCED OUT OF THE SYNAGOGUE. INSTEAD, HE TAUGHT
DAILY IN A LECTURE HALL AND FROM HOUSE TO HOUSE. ACCORDING TO THE BOOK OF ACTS,
PAUL USED A LARGE ROOM OF AN EPHESIAN NAMED
TYRANNUS FOR HIS TEACHING. LARGE, BEAUTIFUL HOMES
HAVE BEEN EXCAVATED HERE. WALL FRESCOES AND MOSAIC FLOORS
ARE STILL VISIBLE. IN TIME, PAUL'S IMPACT AND
EXCLUSIVE CLAIMS ABOUT JESUS WOULD CREATE CITYWIDE
HOSTILE OPPOSITION TO PAUL, THE OUTSIDER.
HIS IDEAS WEREN'T WELCOMED BY THE GUARDIANS OF THE
WORLD-FAMOUS TEMPLE OF ARTEMIS, LOCATED AT THE
EDGE OF THE CITY. THE TEMPLE OF ARTEMIS
WAS A MONUMENTAL STRUCTURE MADE ENTIRELY OF MARBLE. THE LARGEST BUILDING
OF THE GREEK WORLD, IT WAS THREE TIMES THE SIZE
OF THE PARTHENON OF ATHENS, AND THE GREATEST OF THE SEVEN WONDERS OF THE ANCIENT WORLD, BUT TODAY ALL THAT REMAINS IS
THIS SINGLE STANDING COLUMN. TODAY IT'S A LITTLE
HARD TO ENVISION A TEMPLE WITH 135 COLUMNS,
EACH 60 FEET HIGH. IT DREW THOUSANDS OF VISITORS AND BROUGHT IN LOTS OF MONEY
TO THE LOCAL ECONOMY. IN THE CENTER OF THE TEMPLE
WAS A GIANT STATUE OF THE GODDESS ARTEMIS, LADEN WITH SYMBOLS OF FERTILITY. AND PEOPLE WOULD TRAVEL FROM
ALL OVER THE WORLD TO SEE HER. SHE AND PAUL HAD A
COMPLICATED RELATIONSHIP AND, WELL, LET'S JUST SAY
IT DIDN'T END WELL FOR HER. DEMETRIUS WAS A SILVERSMITH
IN THE CITY OF EPHESUS WHO MADE HIS LIVING
FROM CRAFTING SILVER SHRINES
TO THE GODDESS ARTEMIS, AND HE REALIZED THAT PAUL'S
MESSAGE WAS BAD FOR BUSINESS. SO HE GOT HIS FELLOW CRAFTSMEN
IN THE CITY OF EPHESUS AND ARTISANS
TOGETHER AND SAID, "EVERYONE KNOWS ABOUT PAUL AND
THE TROUBLE HE'S BEEN MAKING "IN EPHESUS AND THROUGHOUT
THE WHOLE OF ASIA. "HE HAS BEEN SAYING THAT
GODS MADE BY HUMAN HANDS "ARE NOT GODS AT ALL. "AND, OBVIOUSLY, THIS
WILL BE BAD FOR BUSINESS, "AND IT DISHONORS
THE GODDESS ARTEMIS." SO DEMETRIUS AND
HIS FRIENDS DECIDED THAT THEY NEEDED TO DO
SOMETHING ABOUT THIS PROBLEM. DEMETRIUS AND HIS FRIENDS
CREATED A RIOT IN THE CITY, SHOUTING, "GREAT IS ARTEMIS
OF THE EPHESIANS!" AND AS THE CROWD RUSHED
TOWARDS THIS THEATRE, THEY GRABBED HOLD OF TWO OF PAUL'S TRAVELING COMPANIONS, GAIUS AND ARISTARCHUS. THE WHOLE CITY FILLED OUT
INTO THIS THEATRE. NOW PAUL, SENSING
A GREAT OPPORTUNITY, WANTED TO
ADDRESS THE CROWD, BUT HIS FRIENDS DIDN'T WANT
HIM TO COME IN HERE. AND EVEN THE CITY
OFFICIALS BEGGED HIM NOT TO ENTER
THE THEATRE, BECAUSE THIS CROWD WAS CHAOTIC,
AND IT WAS DANGEROUS. AND HALF THE PEOPLE THERE DIDN'T
EVEN KNOW WHY THEY WERE THERE, BUT FOR THE NEXT TWO HOURS
THEY STAYED HERE CHANTING, "GREAT IS ARTEMIS
OF THE EPHESIANS!" THE CITY CLERK TOOK CENTER
STAGE IN THE THEATRE IN ORDER TO CALM
THE CROWD DOWN. HE SAID THAT, "EVERYONE
KNOWS THAT EPHESUS "IS THE GUARDIAN OF
THE TEMPLE OF ARTEMIS, "SO CALM DOWN,
AND DON'T BE RASH. "IF DEMETRIUS AND OTHERS
HAVE A GENUINE GRIEVANCE, "THE COURTS ARE OPEN
AND THEY CAN PRESS CHARGES. "BUT, AS IT IS,
YOU ARE IN DANGER OF BEING "CHARGED WITH RIOTING."
SO HE DISMISSED THE ASSEMBLY. WE'RE AT THE CELSUS LIBRARY, WHICH WAS ONE OF THE GREATEST
LIBRARIES OF THE ANCIENT WORLD. AND IT TESTIFIES TO THE
EPHESIANS' LOVE OF LITERATURE. SEVERAL YEARS AFTER
THE APOSTLE PAUL WAS HERE, WHILE HE WAS IMPRISONED IN ROME, HE WROTE TO THE EPHESIANS
HIS OWN LITERARY MASTERPIECE. IT'S KNOWN AS THE LETTER
TO THE EPHESIANS. THIS IS A MAGNIFICENT LETTER. IN
FACT, IT'S MY FAVORITE LETTER. AND ONE OF THE BIG
THEMES IS A THEME THAT I'VE DEVOTED
MUCH TIME TO RESEARCH. IT'S THE THEME
OF UNION WITH CHRIST. MANY TIMES HE USES THE
LANGUAGE OF BEING "IN CHRIST" AND BEING "WITH CHRIST." IN FACT, IN THE FIRST
13 VERSES OF THE LETTER, HE SAYS THAT
NO LESS THAN 11 TIMES. IT'S A MAJOR THEME FOR HIM.
AND WHAT IT REFERS TO IS THAT WHEN YOU BELIEVE IN CHRIST,
YOU ARE CONNECTED TO HIM. YOU ARE UNITED TO HIM.
YOU BECOME ONE WITH HIM. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR
THE IDENTITY OF THE CHRISTIAN. IT MEANS THAT THE CHRISTIAN, WHEN THEY THINK ABOUT
WHO THEY ARE, THEY WILL PRIMARILY
UNDERSTAND THEMSELVES AS BEING SOMEONE
WHO IS IN CHRIST, ACCEPTED AND LOVED
AND CONNECTED TO HIM. PAUL'S WORDS ABOUT IDENTITY
WERE RADICAL IN THE IMPERSONAL, POLYTHEISTIC ROMAN CULTURE. THERE WASN'T BELIEF IN THE VALUE OF A PERSON.
PAUL TAUGHT THAT PEOPLE WERE NOT ONLY MADE
IN THE IMAGE OF GOD, BUT THAT THEY COULD BE LINKED
SPIRITUALLY WITH CHRIST. ANOTHER MAJOR THEME
OF THE LETTER IS THE SUPREMACY
OF CHRIST. PAUL PORTRAYS CHRIST AS THE
RULER OF THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE, KING OVER ALL
SPIRITUAL AUTHORITIES AND POWERS AND DOMINIONS. AND THAT'S PARTICULARLY APT
FOR A CITY SUCH AS EPHESUS, WHERE THEY LOVED TO WORSHIP
IDOLS. THEY LOVED VARIOUS GODS. BUT PAUL'S MESSAGE IS:
THERE IS ONLY ONE LORD, WHO IS KING ABOVE ALL GODS. THERE IS NO ROOM FOR IDOLS. AND THAT MESSAGE,
IT SEEMS TO ME, HAS JUST AS MUCH
RELEVANCE TODAY. EVEN THOUGH WE MAY NOT WORSHIP
IDOLS MADE OF WOOD AND STONE, OR SILVER AND GOLD, WE HAVE OUR OWN IDOLS, IDOLS OF THE HEART. IN FACT, PAUL REFERS TO GREED
AS IDOLATRY, WHICH MEANS THE... THE ABSOLUTE LOVE OF MONEY
IS AN IDOL THAT PEOPLE WORSHIP. AND THAT'S CERTAINLY
TRUE FOR US TODAY. WE... WE MAY WORSHIP OTHER
IDOLS, SUCH AS FAME OR SUCCESS OR GLORY OR RELATIONSHIPS,
WHATEVER IT MIGHT BE. FOR ME, MY IDOL
USED TO BE MUSIC. NOW, MUSIC IS A GREAT
THING, A WONDERFUL THING, BUT THE PROBLEM COMES
WHEN YOU TURN SOMETHING GOOD INTO SOMETHING ULTIMATE.
FOR ME, MUSIC BECAME THE ULTIMATE THING, WHAT LIFE
WAS ALL ABOUT. IT WAS AN IDOL. SO THE LETTER TO
THE EPHESIANS SAYS, NO, THERE IS ONLY ROOM FOR
THE WORSHIP OF ONE LORD, THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. AFTER ALMOST THREE
YEARS IN EPHESUS, PAUL CONTINUED ON HIS
THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY THROUGH MACEDONIA AND GREECE, REVISITING CHURCHES
HE'D FOUNDED. THEN, ON HIS WAY
TO JERUSALEM, HE STOPPED AT THE CITY OF MILETUS, ABOUT
57 MILES SOUTH OF EPHESUS. AT MILETUS, PAUL SENT FOR
THE LEADERS HE HAD NURTURED IN THE CHURCH AT EPHESUS.
IT'S HARD TO IMAGINE A MORE COMPELLING GOOD-BYE THAN
TO WATCH SOMEONE SAIL AWAY. AND JUST BEFORE DEPARTING
FROM MILETUS, PAUL SAID, "I'M ON MY WAY TO JERUSALEM,
BOUND IN MY SPIRIT, "NOT KNOWING WHAT I WILL
ENCOUNTER THERE, "EXCEPT THAT IN TOWN AFTER TOWN
THE HOLY SPIRIT TESTIFIES "TO ME THAT CHAINS AND
AFFLICTIONS ARE WAITING FOR ME. "BUT I COUNT MY LIFE
OF NO VALUE TO MYSELF, "SO THAT I MAY
FINISH THE COURSE "AND THE MINISTRY I RECEIVED
FROM THE LORD JESUS, "TO TESTIFY TO THE GOSPEL
OF GOD'S GRACE. "AND NOW I KNOW
THAT NONE OF YOU "WILL EVER SEE
MY FACE AGAIN." THEY KNELT, THEY PRAYED,
THEY WEPT, AND THEY EMBRACED. IT HAD BEEN YEARS
SINCE PAUL HAD BEEN BACK HOME
IN JERUSALEM, WHERE IT ALL BEGAN WHEN
JESUS LAID DOWN HIS LIFE, AND NOW PAUL WAS WILLING
TO DO THE SAME. AND I RETURNED TO EXPLORE
THIS PERIOD OF PAUL'S LIFE, WITH ITS ONGOING TENSION
BETWEEN THE FOLLOWERS OF JESUS AND THE
JEWISH LEADERSHIP. EVEN TODAY, IN SOMETHING
AS COMMON AS A MEAL, WE CAN FEEL THE DIFFERENCES
BETWEEN SINCERELY HELD BELIEFS. GONNA HAVE LUNCH
WITH AN OLD FRIEND. CON: HEY, KENNY! HOW ARE YOU? KENNY: HEY, CON! FINE.
GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN. THANKS FOR MAKING TIME
TO JOIN ME FOR LUNCH TODAY. CON: I'M LOOKING
FORWARD TO CATCHING UP. HEY, BUT LISTEN,
I'M STARVING. IS IT RUDE IF WE JUST
ORDER RIGHT AWAY? KENNY: NO, BY ALL MEANS,
GO FOR IT! CON: SO I WAS THINKING
ABOUT HAVING SOME BACON. KENNY: BACON?!! HERE IN ISRAEL? IN A KOSHER RESTAURANT? BIG MISTAKE! NO, NO,
IT'S NOT ON THE MENU. CON: WELL, WHAT ABOUT
A CHEESEBURGER? KENNY: A CHEESEBURGER?! NOT AT
THIS RESTAURANT, MY FRIEND! CON: WELL, I'M REALLY IN
THE MOOD FOR SOME SHRIMP. KENNY: I THINK WE'RE
IN THE WRONG TOWN. OKAY! WE'RE IN A
DAIRY RESTAURANT, A KOSHER DAIRY RESTAURANT,
AND THE COMPLETE SEPARATION BETWEEN MEAT
AND DAIRY DISHES, AND DON'T BE ALARMED.
YOU'LL FIND SOMETHING. HERE IN ISRAEL, A DAIRY
RESTAURANT SIMPLY MEANS NO MEAT ITEMS ON THE MENU. BUT YOU CAN GET FISH, PASTA... CON: THANKS FOR SETTING
ME STRAIGHT ON THAT. WE'RE JUST JOKING AROUND, BUT
WHAT YOU CAN AND CANNOT EAT IS AN IMPORTANT EXPRESSION OF FAITH FOR MANY PEOPLE TODAY. AND IN THE FIRST CENTURY
IT WAS A VERY IMPORTANT ISSUE FOR THE NEW CHURCH.
PAUL HAD TAUGHT THAT THEY SHOULD NOT HAVE TO
KEEP THE DIETARY LAWS, OR OTHERS, IN ORDER
TO BE RIGHT WITH GOD. WHEN PAUL RETURNED TO
JERUSALEM, HIS REPUTATION AS A LAWBREAKER AND
HERETIC HAD PRECEDED HIM, AND IT DIDN'T TAKE LONG
BEFORE HE WAS NOTICED. YOU KNOW, I FIND PAUL'S
COMMITMENT TO CHRIST REALLY CHALLENGING. HE'S
ESCAPED DEATH SO MANY TIMES, AND NOW HE JUST WALKS STRAIGHT BACK TO JERUSALEM, WILLINGLY INTO THE HANDS
OF HIS OPPONENTS. BUT YOU KNOW, HE... HE BELIEVES THAT GOD IS
IN CONTROL OF ALL EVENTS. AND HE'S BEEN CALLED TO
PREACH THE NAME OF CHRIST, COME WHAT MAY,
AND HE REALLY BELIEVES THAT THE WORST THAT HIS OPPONENTS
CAN DO IS DESTROY THE BODY, BECAUSE, FOR PAUL, "TO LIVE
IS CHRIST, AND TO DIE IS GAIN." I LOVE BEING AT THIS
TO-SCALE REPLICA OF THE SECOND
TEMPLE JERUSALEM, THE JERUSALEM OF
THE FIRST CENTURY, JESUS' JERUSALEM
AND THE JERUSALEM OF PAUL. IT'S REALLY AMAZING TO BE ABLE
TO VISUALIZE IT THIS WAY, AND WHAT I'M STRUCK BY
IS HOW HUGE THE TEMPLE IS, AND HOW IT JUST DOMINATES
THE ENTIRE LANDSCAPE. NOW PAUL, WHEN HE CAME TO
JERUSALEM FOR THE LAST TIME, WENT ONCE AGAIN, FOR THE
LAST TIME, TO THE TEMPLE. AND HE WENT THERE TO PRAY,
BUT SOME JEWS FROM ASIA MINOR, FROM PRESENT-DAY TURKEY, THAT
KIND OF AREA, RECOGNIZED HIM BECAUSE HE HAD BECOME
INFAMOUS IN THAT REGION FROM PREACHING IN
THE SYNAGOGUES AND SO ON. THEY RECOGNIZED HIM
AND THEY GATHERED A LARGE CROWD
TOGETHER, SAYING, "THIS MAN PREACHES AGAINST OUR
LAW AND AGAINST THIS PLACE," MEANING THE TEMPLE,
"EVERYWHERE." AND SO A RIOT ENSUES
WITHIN THE TEMPLE COURTS. THE RIOT NOW DRAGS PAUL
OUT OF THE TEMPLE, THROUGH THESE DOORS,
INTO THIS PUBLIC AREA. AND HERE IS AN OPEN SPACE WHERE MORE AND MORE
PEOPLE CAN JOIN IN. THE MOB BECOMES VIOLENT AND
THEY'RE TRYING TO KILL PAUL. NOW, WORD IS SENT UP TO
THE ROMAN COMMANDER ABOUT WHAT IS TAKING PLACE. THE ROMAN BARRACKS,
THE ANTONIA BARRACKS, ARE ON THE OTHER SIDE
OF THE TEMPLE COMPLEX, AND THESE FOUR TOWERS
GIVE AN EXCELLENT VIEW INTO THE TEMPLE COMPLEX,
NO DOUBT SO THE ROMANS CAN KEEP AN EYE ON POTENTIAL
TROUBLE WITHIN THE TEMPLE, AND ALSO TO IMPOSE
ROMAN AUTHORITY OVER THIS
SIGNIFICANT PLACE. SO THE ROMAN COMMANDER COMES
DOWN, HE BRINGS TROOPS WITH HIM, AND THEY PULL PAUL
OUT OF TROUBLE. THEY DRAG HIM AROUND
THE CORNER TO THE RIGHT, ALONG THE WESTERN WALL, AND
UP TO SAFETY IN THE BARRACKS. AS THEY'RE GOING UP THE STEPS, PAUL ASKS THE COMMANDER IF HE COULD BE ALLOWED
TO ADDRESS THE CROWD. PAUL IS GIVEN PERMISSION
AND HE SPEAKS TO THEM IN ARAMAIC,
AND THEY LISTEN. AND AT THIS POINT PAUL RECOUNTS
HIS WHOLE LIFE AND TESTIMONY, HOW HE WAS BORN A JEW
IN TARSUS OF CILICIA, HOW HE CAME TO
JERUSALEM AND STUDIED UNDER THE FEET
OF GAMALIEL, HOW HE BECAME A PERSECUTOR
OF THE FOLLOWERS OF JESUS, AND HOW HE ENCOUNTERED THE RISEN JESUS ON THE ROAD TO DAMASCUS. AS HE'S TELLING HIS STORY,
HE GETS TO THE POINT WHERE JESUS TELLS PAUL
THAT HE WILL SPEAK IN JESUS' NAME TO
THE GENTILES FAR AND WIDE. AND IT'S AT THIS POINT
THAT THE CROWD HAS HAD ENOUGH, SO THE CROWD ERUPTS
INTO A RIOT AGAIN AND THE ROMANS TAKE PAUL
INSIDE THE BARRACKS. ONCE INSIDE THE FORTRESS OF
ANTONIA, THEY TIED PAUL UP IN ORDER TO WHIP HIM, TO FLOG
HIM, AT WHICH POINT PAUL SAYS, "IS IT LAWFUL FOR YOU TO FLOG A
ROMAN CITIZEN WITHOUT A TRIAL?" ALL OF A SUDDEN THEY HAVE
A PROBLEM ON THEIR HANDS. THEY'RE NOT REALLY SURE WHAT
THE CHARGES ARE AGAINST HIM, WHAT THE PROBLEM IS, SO THE ROMAN COMMANDER DECIDES TO CONVENE A SPECIAL MEETING
OF THE TEMPLE LEADERSHIP, THE CHIEF PRIESTS
AND THE SANHEDRIN. THE SANHEDRIN MET IN THIS
TWO-STORY COMPLEX BUILT ON THE SOUTHERN
WALL OF THE TEMPLE. WHEN PAUL ADDRESSES
THE SANHEDRIN, HE REFERS TO THEM
AS "BROTHERS," AND HE REFERS TO HIMSELF AS
"A PHARISEE BORN OF PHARISEES." AND I JUST FIND IT
FASCINATING THAT HE STILL REFERS TO HIMSELF AS A
PHARISEE AFTER ALL THESE YEARS. HE SAYS THAT HE IS ON
TRIAL FOR HIS HOPE IN THE RESURRECTION
OF THE DEAD. NOW, NOT ONLY IS THAT TRUE, AND A GOOD SUMMARY OF HIS PREACHING, BUT IT'S ALSO A CLEVER
PLOY ON PAUL'S PART, BECAUSE HE KNOWS THAT
THE SANHEDRIN CONSISTS OF BOTH PHARISEES AND SADDUCEES. AND THE SADDUCEES DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE
RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD. THAT'S WHY THEY'RE
"SAD, YOU SEE." SO A BIT OF A
COMMOTION BREAKS OUT, A DISPUTE BETWEEN THE
PHARISEES AND THE SADDUCEES. PAUL IS ONCE AGAIN ENDANGERED,
AND HE IS ESCORTED BACK AWAY FROM THE SANHEDRIN
INTO THE ROMAN BARRACKS. THE ROMAN COMMANDER DECIDES THAT
PAUL NEEDS TO APPEAR BEFORE GOVERNOR FELIX IN CAESAREA.
FROM HERE, PAUL IS ESCORTED TO CAESAREA, ACCOMPANIED
BY 470 ROMAN SOLDIERS. CAESAREA IS LOCATED
WEST OF JERUSALEM ON THE MEDITERRANEAN COASTLINE. REMNANTS OF
ITS GREATNESS REMAIN. THE PORT CITY OF CAESAREA
WAS DESIGNED AND BUILT BY HEROD THE GREAT
IN THE FIRST CENTURY. AFTER HEROD'S DEATH, THE ROMANS MADE IT THE
CAPITAL CITY OF JUDEA. THE ROMANS BROUGHT
PAUL HERE TO THIS PALACE
COMPLEX BUILT BY HEROD. PAUL HAD TO STAND
TRIAL BEFORE FELIX, THE ROMAN GOVERNOR
OVER THE ENTIRE REGION. NOW ANANIAS, THE HIGH PRIEST, CAME DOWN FROM JERUSALEM TO PRESENT CHARGES AGAINST PAUL, AND AFTER HE DID SO, FELIX GAVE PAUL THE
OPPORTUNITY TO DEFEND HIMSELF. AFTER PAUL MADE
HIS DEFENSE BEFORE FELIX, HE REMAINED IMPRISONED HERE
IN CAESAREA FOR TWO WHOLE YEARS. TWO YEARS!
PAUL IS A MAN OF ACTION, A MAN STILL ON
A MISSION TO THE WORLD, BUT NOW HE'S STOPPED.
HE'S BLOCKED. HE WAITS. WAITING IS HARD FOR ME. I CAN IMAGINE THE REPETITIVE
SOUND OF WAVES DAY AND NIGHT, ADDING TO THE MONOTONY. PAUL KNOWS THE LORD KNOWS,
BUT HAD GOD'S PLANS CHANGED? DID HE THINK ABOUT
WRITING MORE LETTERS? WE'RE SIMPLY NOT TOLD. PAUL HAD BEEN IMPRISONED
IN CAESAREA FOR TWO YEARS. GOVERNOR FELIX WAS
REPLACED BY GOVERNOR FESTUS, AND PAUL APPEARED
BEFORE THE NEW GOVERNOR WHEN HE MADE HIS APPEAL
TO NERO, THE EMPEROR OF ROME. IT'S NICE THAT PAUL'S
APPEAL TO CAESAR IS RECORDED HERE
AT THE VERY SITE. "FOR IF I BE AN OFFENDER
OR HAVE COMMITTED ANYTHING "WORTHY OF DEATH,
I REFUSE NOT TO DIE. "BUT IF THERE BE NONE OF THESE
THINGS WHEREOF THEY ACCUSE ME, "NO MAN MAY DELIVER ME UNTO
THEM. I APPEAL UNTO CAESAR." THEN FESTUS, WHEN HE HAD
CONFERRED WITH THE COUNCIL, ANSWERED, "HAST THOU
APPEALED UNTO CAESAR? "UNTO CAESAR SHALT THOU GO." SO FROM HERE,
THIS PORT IN CAESAREA, PAUL SET SAIL WITH
THE CENTURION JULIUS FOR HIS LAST TIME ACROSS
THE MEDITERRANEAN. PAUL COULD NOT HAVE FULLY
ANTICIPATED WHAT LAY AHEAD, BUT HE WOULD REMAIN
FAITHFUL TO HIS OWN WORDS: "I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH
CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS ME." FINALLY, PAUL WOULD
REALIZE HIS DESIRE TO BE AN AMBASSADOR
FOR CHRIST IN THE VERY HEART OF THE EMPIRE: TO THE CITY OF ROME.
