Week 38 Discussion Guide: To Jerusalem

Opening Question

Paul knew that chains and affliction awaited him in Jerusalem. His friends begged him not to go. Prophets confirmed the danger. Yet he went anyway, saying, “I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die” (Acts 21:13). If you knew with certainty that obeying God’s calling would lead to suffering, imprisonment, or loss – would you still go? What would it take for you to say, “Let the will of the Lord be done”?

Review

This week we witnessed the completion of Paul’s greatest letter and the beginning of his most harrowing journey. Romans 15 revealed Paul’s global missionary vision – from Jerusalem to Illyricum to Rome to Spain – grounded in the theological conviction that the gospel creates one new humanity of Jews and Gentiles. Romans 16 opened a window into the living network of the early church: Phoebe the deacon, Priscilla and Aquila the co-workers, Junia the apostle, and more than twenty-six named individuals spanning every social class. Then the scene shifted dramatically: Paul’s farewell to the Ephesian elders at Miletus, the prophetic warnings along the road to Jerusalem, the accommodation of the Nazarite vow, the riot in the Temple, and Paul’s defense on the fortress steps – a conversion testimony so powerful that it held a murderous crowd in silence until the single word “Gentiles” shattered the peace.

Study Questions

1. The Network of Faith (Romans 16): Paul greets more than twenty-six individuals by name, including Phoebe (deacon and patron), Priscilla (co-worker), and Junia (“outstanding among the apostles”). What does the diversity of this list – in gender, ethnicity, and social status – tell us about the composition of the early church? How does this reality challenge or confirm your assumptions about early Christianity?

2. Farewell at Miletus (Acts 20:7-38): Paul warned the Ephesian elders that “fierce wolves” would come from outside and “from among your own selves” would arise people who distort the truth (20:29-30). Why is the internal threat more dangerous than the external one? What practices can a church adopt to guard against false teaching without becoming suspiciously inquisitorial?

3. Prophetic Warnings and Paul’s Resolve (Acts 21): Agabus prophesied that Paul would be bound and delivered to the Gentiles, and the disciples urged Paul not to go. Paul went anyway. How do you reconcile the Spirit’s revelation of suffering with Paul’s insistence on continuing the journey? Is it possible for a prophecy to be true and the advice based on it to be wrong?

4. Cultural Accommodation (Acts 21:17-26): Paul agreed to participate in a Nazarite vow to demonstrate that he “lives in observance of the law” – even though he taught that Gentiles are free from Torah requirements. How do you evaluate this decision? Was it wise pastoral flexibility or dangerous compromise? Where is the line between accommodation and capitulation in your own context?

5. The Explosive Word (Acts 22): The Jerusalem crowd listened to Paul’s entire testimony until he said the word “Gentiles,” at which point they erupted in violent rage. What does this reaction reveal about the deepest anxieties of Paul’s Jewish audience? What are the equivalent “explosive words” in your own community – truths about God’s character or purposes that provoke resistance?

Going Deeper

Consider the interplay between Romans 16 and Acts 21-22 as a study in contrasts. In Romans 16, we see the gospel’s fruit: a diverse, interconnected, multi-ethnic community of men and women, slaves and free, Jews and Gentiles – all named, all valued, all contributing to the mission. In Acts 21-22, we see the gospel’s cost: mob violence, false accusations, chains, and the threat of execution. The community Paul describes in Romans 16 exists precisely because Paul was willing to endure the suffering described in Acts 21-22. What does this tell us about the relationship between the beauty of Christian community and the cost of creating it? Can you have the Romans 16 community without the Acts 21 suffering?

Application

• Personal: Paul told his conversion story on the fortress steps, tailoring it for his audience but never softening the essential truth. Write out your own testimony in a single page – how God interrupted your life and redirected it. Practice telling it in a way that is honest, specific, and attuned to the person you are addressing.
• Communal: Romans 16 reveals a church composed of multiple house churches connected by shared faith and personal relationships. Discuss with your group: how well connected is your community to other believing communities in your area? What would it look like to build the kind of relational network Paul describes?
• Missional: Paul used his Roman citizenship strategically to protect himself and advance the gospel. Consider what “citizenships” you hold – legal rights, social privileges, professional credentials, cultural access – and discuss how these might be deployed in service of the mission rather than hoarded for personal comfort.

Prayer Focus

Pray for the courage to walk toward suffering when God’s call is clear, and for the wisdom to distinguish between the Spirit’s revelation and human fear. Pray for church leaders who shepherd the flock with the humility and vigilance Paul modeled at Miletus – leaders who warn of wolves, work with their own hands, and commend their people to God’s grace. Pray for communities that reflect the diversity of Romans 16 – where Phoebe and Priscilla and Junia have space to serve, where slave and free worship side by side, and where no one is given the best seat because of their wealth. Pray for those who face violence and false accusation for the sake of the gospel today, that they would find the calm and clarity Paul displayed on the fortress steps.