In Rome

God can make the best out of a bad situation.

In this chapter, we find Paul arriving at Rome. There were a few Christians in the area, and the met him upon his arrival to the Italian coast. The Christians requested that Paul stay with them a week, and  this request was granted by the centurion Julius. The soldiers had come to greatly respect Paul, and did everything in their power to accommodate him.

On the eighth day, the prisoners set out to Rome and when they were passing through Appii Forum, about forty miles from Rome. The procession was periodically halted when various believers recognized Paul from his presence at the various towns and cities in which he ministered. The soldiers were a little annoyed at these interruptions, but didn't have the heart to cut them short.

Upon arriving at Rome, Paul was surrendered the captain of the emperor's guard. The positive words of Julius as well as Festus' letter caused Paul to be treated very graciously. Instead of staying in a prison, he was allowed to stay at a house, and although still in chains, he was granted a great deal of freedom.

Paul received many visitors, especially those of the Jewish persuasion, and Paul took this opportunity to share with them the truth regarding his presence there before they could be poisoned by those Jews who hated him so much. The Roman Jews stated that they had not heard anything from these other Jews, and had no bias against him. So, sometime later Paul shared with them the gospel, and how the true knowledge of Christ had led him to be converted.

Paul had been in Rome a long time up to this point with no appearance by his accusers. The malicious designs of those Jews had been so thoroughly thwarted up to this point that they needed quite a bit of time to regroup.  God used this delay to the furtherance of the gospel. For the period of two years Paul was able to receive visitors and send out workers to various places to preach the gospel. E. G. White had this to write about this situation.

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. pg 454

The chapter continues by going into the background of Paul's letter to Philemon, but  I want to stay on this point of how the work was benefited by all the negative circumstances surrounding Paul's Roman experience. We often go through life wondering how anything good can come from the negative circumstances that surround our experience, but we should take this story and let it serve as a reminder that no matter what problems life deals us, God can make the best out of a bad situation.