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The Acts of the Apostles
to influence the emperor in their favor. Delay would further their ob-
ject, as it would afford them time to perfect and execute their plans,
and so they waited for a while before preferring their charges in person
against the apostle.
In the providence of God this delay resulted in the furtherance of
the gospel. Through the favor of those who had Paul in charge, he was
permitted to dwell in a commodious house, where he could meet freely
with his friends and also present the truth daily to those who came
to hear. Thus for two years he continued his labors, “preaching the
kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord
Jesus Christ, will all confidence, no man forbidding him.”
During this time the churches that he had established in many lands
were not forgotten. Realizing the dangers that threatened the converts
to the new faith, the apostle sought so far as possible to meet their
needs by letters of warning and practical instruction. And from Rome
he sent out consecrated workers to labor not only for these churches,
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but in fields that he himself had not visited. These workers, as wise
shepherds, strengthened the work so well begun by Paul; and the
apostle, kept informed of the condition and dangers of the churches
by constant communication with them, was enabled to exercise a wise
supervision over all.
Thus, while apparently cut off from active labor, Paul exerted a
wider and more lasting influence than if he had been free to travel
among the churches as in former years. As a prisoner of the Lord, he
had a firmer hold upon the affections of his brethren; and his words,
written by one under bonds for the sake of Christ, commanded greater
attention and respect than they did when he was personally with them.
Not until Paul was removed from them, did the believers realize how
heavy were the burdens he had borne in their behalf. Heretofore they
had largely excused themselves from responsibility and burden bearing
because they lacked his wisdom, tact, and indomitable energy; but
now, left in their inexperience to learn the lessons they had shunned,
they prized his warnings, counsels, and instructions as they had not
prized his personal work. And as they learned of his courage and faith
during his long imprisonment they were stimulated to greater fidelity
and zeal in the cause of Christ.
Among Paul’s assistants at Rome were many of his former com-
panions and fellow workers. Luke, “the beloved physician,” who had