Context No. 2736 of 4322 · Acts

Acts 17:1-9: in context

1Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2Paul, as was his custom, went in to them; and for three Sabbath days reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” 4Some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas: of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and not a few of the chief women. 5But the unpersuaded Jews took along some wicked men from the marketplace and gathering a crowd, set the city in an uproar. Assaulting the house of Jason, they sought to bring them out to the people. 6When they didn’t find them, they dragged Jason and certain brothers before the rulers of the city, crying, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here also, 7whom Jason has received. These all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus!” 8The multitude and the rulers of the city were troubled when they heard these things. 9When they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

In Thessalonica Paul does what he always does: he goes to the synagogue and for three Sabbaths reasons from the Scriptures, explaining that the Christ had to suffer and rise, and that this Jesus is the Christ. Some are persuaded. But others gather a mob, storm Jason's house looking for Paul, and when they cannot find him, drag Jason before the rulers with a charge: these men who have turned the world upside down say there is another king, Jesus.

The accusation is meant as slander, but it names something true. The gospel does unsettle a world that had settled comfortably under Caesar. To confess Jesus as king is to say that Caesar is not the final word, and that claim has always looked like trouble to those heavily invested in the way things already are. The charge is hostile, and it is also, in its way, an accurate compliment.

Does my faith actually unsettle anything in the world's arrangements, or have I made it quiet enough to cause no trouble at all?

Sources

Acts 17:7: "These all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus!"
Daniel 2:44: "The God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed... it will stand forever."
Acts 5:29: "We must obey God rather than men."