Sunday, November 10: Bound by the Spirit

Acts 23:12–35

Have you ever been in a situation where things did not turn out the way you had planned? Maybe you scheduled a romantic getaway, only to be foiled by a sick kid. Maybe you planned a huge holiday meal for your family, but the turkey didn’t get thawed or the potatoes burned.

What about in the bigger areas of life? Have you ever thought, “My career isn’t what I thought it would be?” Or, “My family isn’t what I thought it would be?”

What do we do when life does not live up to our plans?

We read in Paul’s letters to the Romans and Corinthians that he had big plans for what he thought would happen when he arrived in Jerusalem. Accompanied by representatives bearing financial gifts from his Gentile church plants, Paul thought he would be received in Judea with joy and praise to God.

Far from it.

Instead, he was seized by an angry mob and only saved when a Roman tribune arrived on the scene to break up the riot. Assuming Paul was the instigator, the Romans locked him up while they investigated his misdeeds.

In Acts 23:12–35, Paul’s troubles go from bad to worse. Not only is he jailed in an army barracks awaiting trial, but then a conspiracy forms to murder him when he’s being transferred to trial. Things were not turning out the way he had envisioned!

And yet, things were going exactly as God had planned. Paul didn’t realize it, but he was exactly where he needed to be to get the gospel to Rome and beyond.

Join us this week as we look at Paul’s plan and God’s plan, and see how we can rest in a sovereign God when things do not turn out the way we planned.

See you Sunday!