In Rome
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He showed how Moses had pointed Israel forward to Christ as that
Prophet whom they were to hear; how all the prophets had testified
of Him as God’s great remedy for sin, the guiltless One who was to
bear the sins of the guilty. He did not find fault with their observance
of forms and ceremonies, but showed that while they maintained the
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ritual service with great exactness, they were rejecting Him who was
the antitype of all that system.
Paul declared that in his unconverted state he had known Christ,
not by personal acquaintance, but merely by the conception which
he, in common with others, cherished concerning the character and
work of the Messiah to come. He had rejected Jesus of Nazareth as an
impostor because He did not fulfill this conception. But now Paul’s
views of Christ and His mission were far more spiritual and exalted,
for he had been converted. The apostle asserted that he did not present
to them Christ after the flesh. Herod had seen Christ in the days of
His humanity; Annas had seen Him; Pilate and the priests and rulers
had seen Him; the Roman soldiers had seen Him. But they had not
seen Him with the eye of faith; they had not seen Him as the glorified
Redeemer. To apprehend Christ by faith, to have a spiritual knowledge
of Him, was more to be desired than a personal acquaintance with Him
as He appeared on the earth. The communion with Christ which Paul
now enjoyed was more intimate, more enduring, than a mere earthly
and human companionship.
As Paul spoke of what he knew, and testified of what he had seen,
concerning Jesus of Nazareth as the hope of Israel, those who were
honestly seeking for truth were convinced. Upon some minds, at
least, his words made an impression that was never effaced. But others
stubbornly refused to accept the plain testimony of the Scriptures, even
when presented to them by one who had the special illumination of
the Holy Spirit. They could not refute his arguments, but they refused
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to accept his conclusions.
Many months passed by after Paul’s arrival in Rome, before the
Jews of Jerusalem appeared in person to present their accusations
against the prisoner. They had been repeatedly thwarted in their de-
signs; and now that Paul was to be tried before the highest tribunal of
the Roman Empire, they had no desire to risk another defeat. Lysias,
Felix, Festus, and Agrippa had all declared their belief in his inno-
cence. His enemies could hope for success only in seeking by intrigue