The Strategic Element In Paul'S Work
all the world the riches of God's grace in that Christ, Whom he had seen enthroned in heaven; Whom he had persecuted, but now worshipped.
THE STRATEGIC ELEMENT IN PAUL'S
WORK One of the most stupendous facts of history, a fact that baffled many scholars, is the rapid spread of Christianity in the first centuries of our Christian era. It was small and weak in its beginning, without any external glory and physical force, and yet it rolled on like an avalanche conquering one country after another. Small wonder indeed that a great number of comtemporaries looked on, and that many later generations glance back at the spectacle with little understanding and with great amazement. Let us for a moment think of the facts, in order that we may grasp the historical situation in which Christianity took its rise, and may realize that what God did through the simple gospel of Jesus Christ was little short of the miraculous. It may serve to encourage those that are now following the banner of the cross, engaged in spiritual warfare, as they battle with unbelief and superstition and seek to win the world for Christ.
The Roman empire was a vast imposing edifice, branching out into the various countries of Europe, Asia and Africa. It was mighty in its
unity, dominated by a single personality,—a deified emperor at Rome. All power, military, legislative, judicial and executive, was concentrated in his hands. He was supreme not only in civil, but also in religious matters, the pontifex maximus, the earthly director of the great ritual machinery of the state religion. And while the Hebrews had a genius for religion, and the Greeks for beauty, the Romans had a genius for law that enabled them to enjoy permanently the fruit of their continual conquests, thus satisfying their love of power. The deification of the emperor was one of the cornerstones of the great empire. It greatly enhanced the authority of the rulers and gave stability to their realm. To advocate any other than the state religion could only be regarded as high treason in the Roman empire, and would therefore necessarily lead to conflict.
In that great and mighty empire Christ was born, not in imperial Rome itself, but in a small village of a distant little country. To all appearances he was a man like other men, even without form and comeliness. There was none of the stateliness of the aristocrat, none of the glitter and military bearing of the warrior, none of the splendid apparel of kings or emperors. He was a carpenter's son, accustomed to a rustic life, living in daily association with the Galilean peasants.
And as he visited the cities and villages and hamlets of Galilee, he preached the gospel of the Kingdom of God. It was a gospel not only for the Jews, but for all the world. Yet he limited himself in his work almost exclusively to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Before he departed from this world he entrusted the fortunes of his Kingdom to a mere handful of his trusted followers, men that had not enjoyed the privilege of a liberal education and that had been chosen from the lower ranks of society. It was their task to be His witnesses unto the ends of the earth. They were to propagate in the Roman empire a universal religion. In faithful obedience to their heavenly Lord they performed this task, but, as could be expected, there were difficulties
on all sides. The Jews condemned the new religion and persecuted its professors, because it disregarded the prerogatives that were their boast. And the Romans, when once they understood its claims, and realized that it was advocated as the only true religion, as the religion not of a select few, but of all the world, of all nations and of all classes of men, had to encounter it in a life and death struggle. Victory to Christ meant defeat to the state religion of the Roman empire, which was its main support. If it lost its hold on the masses, the authority of the emperors would be undermined, and the government would lose its stability.
And yet, though the beginning of the new religion was inauspicious, though it was often sorely pressed, and though Jews and gentiles united in persecuting those "that were of the way", seeking to exterminate the new cult, it proved victorious in the unequal struggle, and after three hundred years a Christian emperor was seated on the imperial throne. How can we account for this truly marvelous fact?—Gibbon found its explanation in five different facts, viz. the zeal of the early Christians in propagating their religion, their belief in future rewards and punishments, the convincing power of miracles, the austere (pure) morals of the Christians, and the compact church organisation of the new community. But he certainly left out the most important cause in his attempt to account for the rapid spread of the Christian religion. His causes themselves need explanation. Lecky shows deeper insight, when he finds the main cause for the success of early Christianity in its intrinsic excellency, and in its remarkable adaptation to the wants of the times in the old
Roman empire. The Christian religion is a religion adapted to all nations and races and classes; it changes the entire life of man, elevating the woman, ameliorating the condition of the poor, and binding hearts together in holy love. Subsidiary to this great primary cause were other secondary causes, such as: the testimony of
prophecies and miracles, the unity and order of the Roman empire, and the spread of the Greek language in the time of Christ.
Negatively the decay of the Roman empire too was favorable to the acceptance of the gospel. We shall not enlarge on these causes in this lecture, but rather direct our attention to another. The seed to be sown was of the greatest value; the soil was ready for its acceptance; and—this is the point we wish to emphasize—the seed was wisely distributed. We see this clearly in the case of that first missionary to the gentiles,—the apostle Paul.
* * * We are to speak on the strategic element in the work of Paul.
Strategy and tactics are two closely related military terms that are not always clearly distinguished. The soundest distinction seems to be that made by general Lewal, who says: Strategy is the conceptive and directing element in war, while tactics are the executive element; strategy is the science of combinations, tactics that of their execution.
The part of strategy is "the conception of a plan of campaign and its modification as the war progresses: the choice of the objective, the selection of a base and of lines of communication, the recognition of the value and possibilities of strategical points, and the direction and combination of the componants of the army." Along with many other sciences the science of strategy found its greatest development in the nineteenth century, but strategy has been an important factor in warfare from the earliest times.
Joshua's conquest of Canaan, as we find it narrated in the first twelve chapters of his book, was certainly characterized by strategy. In three separate well directed campaigns the land was taken. In the first place the central part of the land was attacked, where the rather peaceful Hivites and Perizzites dwelt. Jericho and Ai were taken and
destroyed, while the cities of the Gibeonites escaped a similar fate only through the strategy of their inhabitants. In the second place the host of the Israel, strong in the Lord, faced the confederacy of Adonizedek, the king of Jerusalem. The enemies could not stand before the victorious army of Israel, and soon fled in wild confusion toward the passes of Upperand Nether-Beth-Horon, pursued and slain by their conquerors. This put Joshua in possession of the South country. Finally the victorious Israelites turned to the allied forces of the Northern enemy that were led by Jabin, the king of Hazor. They utterly routed them and captured many of their cities. Thus we find that the enemies of the North and of the South were first effectively separated, and then severally routed by Joshua. And by means of this three-fold campaign Israel had in a general way taken possession of the land, though many of the enemies still remained, especially in the cities. The Israelites now had several points of vantage from which they could gradually continue their work of conquest. If the strategic element had been wanting in this campaign, it would have terminated neither so quickly nor so succesfully. Valor and bravery has won many battles, but strategy has won more.
Strategy has a legitimate and important place, not only in natural warfare, but also in the spiritual conquest of the world. In this relation too its importance has been emphasized in the last half a century far more than in previous ages. Now that ever larger fields are opening up the necessity of statesmanship and generalship in the work of missions is increasingly felt. But we should not think that the element of strategy was absent from the work of missionaries in former centuries. We believe it can be pointed out in the labors of the earliest messengers of the cross. In this respect the study of Paul's work in instructive, as it is in every other. There are some who object to this element in the missionary work of to-day. They hold that human calculations thus assume too great proportions in the work of
God's Kingdom. Right here a consideration of Paul's work may serve to clarify our vision. The question may be asked, whether human strategy should be the final determining factor for a missionary in choosing his fields of labor and his points of attack. A careful examination of Paul's work will answer that question.
Let us start out with the question, whether there was a strategic element in the work of Paul, because some may doubt this. Did the apostle have some definite plan in his work among the gentiles or did he labor in a haphazzard way like so many do in life? Did he simply cast himself on the turbulent waves of the surging sea of humanity to have them bear him whither they would: to a sandy reef,—to a rockbound shore,—or to a fertile land of promise? Did he follow the example of hundreds and thousands around him in simply following the path of least resistance?—Rev. F. B. Meyer says in his little work on Paul that the apostle really had no plan, that his way was determined and prepared for him from eterny by God, and that he needed but to discover its course. Now it goes without saying that the entire life and work of Paul was but a part of the execution of the eternal council of God. It does not admit of honest doubt that God mapped out the whole course of his life for him. Moreover it is clear that the lines along which he proceded in his work were not always those of his own choosing. There was at times a conflict between the designs of the apostle and the providential guidance of God.
Therefore we think it more correct to speak of the strategic element in the work of Paul than to speak of Paul's strategy. But this does not imply that Paul did no planning, that he did not scan the almost boundless field that lay before him, and did not choose his objective, the places that he would visit with the greatest care, and did not determine beforehand along what routes he would travel. He certainly made his plans, in which he aimed at a most fruitful ministry. This was the course dictated by common sense. If any man
in the short course of his life wishes to accomplish some great task, it is the part of wisdom to plan one's work carefully, choosing the proper means to reach the desired end.
We have clear evidence both from the Acts of the Apostles and from the epistles of Paul that he did considerable planning in his work, as he went from place to place, preaching the gospel of the cross. He was guided in all his work by a few general principles; and it was in harmony with these that he fixed his mind on certain countries and cities as his proper field of labor. In Acts 16:6, 7 we read: "Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden by the Holy Ghost to preach the Word in Asia, after they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia; but the Spirit suffered them not." It was the apostle's plan at this time to preach the gospel in Asia and Bithynia, but the Spirit of God, that was his infallible guide, did not permit him to do this. The very fact, however, that he and his co-laborers were prohibited from entering these fields, is proof positive that they had some definite intention.
According to Acts 18:21 the apostle in bidding the Ephesians farewell promises them to return unto them again, God willing. It is clear therefore that he had his mind fixed on a subsequent visit already at this time. And in the 21st verse of the 19th chapter we read that Paul purposed in the Spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying: "After I have been there, I must also see Rome." Thus we find that even as early as the year 54 A. D. the great missionary general had his eye on Rome, the capital of the empire. It is not unlikely that he, as soon as he entered Europe, about the year 51 A. D., had in mind the line from Jerusalem to Rome, from the center of the Jewish theocracy, that was a symbol of the Old Testament religion, to the great center of the world, a course that would be symbolical of the great change that was brougth about, when the dispensation of the Spirit was ushered in.
To the Romans he writes in the year 58 that he oftentimes purposed to come unto them, but was hindered up to that time. At the same time he already indicated his desire to go beyond the metropolis to Spain, "to the boundery of the West", as Clement of Rome calls it. In 1 Cor. 16:5–8 we read: "Now I will come unto you, when I shall pass through Macedonia. And it may be that I will abide, yea and winter with you, that ye may bring me on my journey whithersoever I go.
For I will not see you now by the way; but I trust to tarry a while with you, if the Lord permit. But I will tarry at Ephesus until Pentecost."
According to 2 Cor. 1:15, 16 the plan laid down in the preceding words was not the original one. His intention had been to visit
Corinth first and to pass into Macedonia afterwards. For some reason or other he changed his plans, and this gave some in the congregation of Corinth a reason for slander. They insinuated that the apostle was an inconstant, vacillating, irresolute person, unworthy of their confidence.
We receive an inkling of the principles that governed Paul in determining his course from such passages as the following: Acts
16:11, 12: "Therefore loosing from Troas, we came with a straight course to Samotracia, and the next day to Neapolis; and from thence to Philippi, which is the chief city of that part of Macedonia and a colony; and were in that city abiding certain days." Rom. 15:20; "Yea so have I striven to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build upon another man's foundation; but as it is written, To whom He was not spoken of, they shall see; and they that have not heard shall understand." It would seem that the evidence adduced certainly warrants us in stating that Paul unquestionably did some planning is his missionary labors, and that he selected strategic points in the great field that lay before him. It was indeed the only sensible way in which to proceed, where the whole world was waiting for the gospel, the laborers were few and life short.
It is quite another question, whether Paul's plans were always carried out. It is patent to us all that this was not the case. Paul's entire life, as the life of every man, was a living commentary on the word of Solomon: "A man's heart deviseth his way; but the Lord directeth his steps." How clearly we see this exemplified in the missionary career of the great apostle to the gentiles. Truly, there was strategy in the labors of Paul, but it was not all the fruit ot his own thinking. There is clear evidence, so to speak, of a higher, a divine strategy. God had
His wise and all-comprehensive plan for the spiritual conquest of the world,—His plan too for that limited but very important part that Paul was to take in carryring out his design. Now it was Paul's concern, and it is the duty of every missionary, to discover God's design, to fathom as far as may be His divine purposes and to carry them out. To be sure, this is not always easy; it is often one of the most difficult tasks we have in life; but it is absolutely necessary. And therefore it is incumbant on us that we apply ourselves to it with unceasing diligence. In order to discover God's ways, it was necessary for Paul, as it is imperative for us all, that we in the first place study the present in the light of the past. If a great masterbuilder begins the erection of some magnificent edifice, but dies before its completion, his successor in the work will find the lines along which he must labor indicated in the partly completed building. So it is with all that are co-laborers with Christ in the rearing of that spiritual temple of which Christ is the chief cornerstone. By what has been done in the past their course of procedure is indicated. In the light of what has been accomplished in former ages the laborers of to-day can discern the lines along which they must proceed. And this will, of course be the easier for them, the more that spiritual temple nears its completion. In the second place it was incumbant on Paul, as it is on us at the present time, that he should note carefully the provident guidance of God in all his work.
Again we say, it is not always easy to discover the ways of God.
"God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform; He plants His footsteps in the sea, And ride upon the storm."
"Deep in unfathomable mines Of never failing skill, He treasures up His bright designs, And works is sovereign will."
"Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take, The clouds ye so much dread Are big with mercy, and shall break In blessings on your head."
"Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, But trust Him for His grace; Behind a frowning Providence He hides a smiling face."
"His purposes will ripen fast, Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste, But sweet will be the flower."
"Blind unbelief is sure to err, And scan His work in vain; God is His own interpreter, And He will make it plain."
We feel that there is in the work in God's Kingdom, as there is in the whole life of man, a wonderful interpenetration of divine and human causes. As intelligent beings we are and should be continually planning. As moral responsible creatures it should be our constant endeavor to direct our course in harmony with the will of God. But being finite and fallible beings, whose vision is obscured by sin, we do not always hit upon the right course. Oftentimes our plans and God's de not coincide, and it becomes necessary that God override our thoughts and actions, leading us in ways that we had not thought of, or nullifying the effects of our self-willed procedure. This is just what Paul often experienced in the course of his work. The highest strategy in all such cases was to follow, where God led the way. Let us look at his travels once more to see how the Spirit of God, that infallible guide in all the work that is te be done in the Lord's vineyard, directed his course. On doing this we soon find that God often in devious ways and bij various means changes the line of Paul's activities.
After Paul and his companions left the island Cyprus they journeyed to Pamphylia, evidently to evangelize that country. The first place they reached was Perga, where for one reason or another they did not
bring the message that was entrusted to their care, but hastened on to Antioch in Pisidia, the first place in Asia Minor, where they preached the gospel. Was this in harmony with their original plan?
This seems rather doubtful in view of the fact that, when they were on their homeward journey, they did preach in the place they now left unevangelized. It seems likely to us that they intended to labor in Perga first of all on reaching the continent, but that for some reason they changed their plan. Probably too this was one of the causes, why
John Mark left them at this place and did not accompany them into the interior. But what was it that led to this supposed change of plan?
—It may be, as some judge, that they arrived there during the hot season, and that the population of the cities there was accustomed then, just as it is now, to seek higher and cooler places during that period of the year. If we accept the south Galatian theory, the theory that the churches of Galatia were those organized in the Roman province of that name, the suggestion of Ramsay is certainly very plausible that Paul, who was subject to physical weakness, suffered from an attack of malaria in the unhealthy lowlands of Pamphylia, and was therefore compelled to seek the purer atmosphere of the inland plateau. This would also explain those words of difficult interpretation that we find in Gal. 4:13: "For you know that on account of weakness of my flesh I preached the gospel to you the first time."
Oftentimes Paul was thwarted in his endeavors by persecutions. We notice this especially in his first and second missionary journeys.
From Antioch in Pisidia he flees to Iconium, from Iconium to Lystre, where he is stoned and whence he, restored as by a miracle, hastens to Derbe. God's hand was guiding him through persecutions from place to place. On his second missionary journey he had a similar experience. At Philippi he was incarcerated and after his release requested to depart from the city. In Thessalonica he was once more
persecuted and compelled to repair to Berea. Thus he was led along ways that must often have seemed mysterious to him in working out the eternal purpose of God.
There was still another way in which God directed his servant. It was not only sickness and persecution that served this purpose. On the second missionary journey Paul was anxious to preach the word in Asia, but this was forbidden; he assayed to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit suffered him not. We are not told by what means the Spirit of God checked him in his career. It may be that He gave him direct revelations pointing to different fields of labor than the ones on which he had determined. It is also possible, however, that he led him to encounter insurmountable difficulties and thus guided his steps in another direction. He was guided West,—ever West, until at last he came to Troas, the site of ancient Troy.
In this city he received a new intimation of the divine will, and on this occasion by means of a direct revelation from God. In a vision
Paul saw the Macedonian man, and across the seas he heard the urgent call of the millions of Europe: "Come over and help us!" Thus he was led away from what he at first undoubtedly considered his proper field of labor. And now it seems that he, soon after the Lord had enlarged his vision and had guided him into Europe, cast his eye on that great bustling city, built on seven hills, that center of commerce and industry,—Rome, the so-called eternal city, Rome.
But now he moved too fast for the Spirit that was directing his ways.
Time and again he was hindered from visiting that cosmopolitan city on the banks of the Tiber, and from preaching the gospel to the throngs that gathered there from the East and from the West.
Finally, however, when he had visited all the important centers of the East, he journeyed to the West, though not according to his desire as a free man that could move about at will in the performance of his
great task, but as a prisoner bound in chains. The foregoing makes it perfectly clear that in choosing his field of labor Paul's wisdom was subjected to the wisdom of God. And the outcome abundantly justified the course of his labors. There were indeed showers of blessings, wherever he labored: many were turned from darkness to light, from rank idolatry to the pure service of the only true God, and from the bondage of sin to the spiritual liberty of the children of God; life in the homes and in the community was raised to a higher level; the songs of revelry were replaced by psalms of thanksgiving and praise; and churches were founded from place to place as monuments to the glory of God.
But now the question arises, whether we can point out in any way the strategic significance of Paul's course of action, and of the places in which he labored. Deissmann says in his work on Paul p. 38: "If anyone, not being a specialist in geography, wished to characterize this Mediterranian world, which is the world of St. Paul, by a single concrete formule, he might call it the world of the olive-tree etc." It is very remarkable that nearly all the important places in the history of Paul lie within the olive-zone, so that the world of Paul may indeed be called the world of the olive. In itself this may seem a rather insignificant fact in connection with the subject that we are now treating; aside from the explanation it offers for the frequent reference that Paul makes in his epistles to the olive-tree, it would appear to have little meaning. Nevertheless it indicates a fact that we may well bear in mind, viz. that there was a certain uniformity in the climate of the countries in which the great apostle labored. This certainly explains to some extent, how it was possible that Paul who, according to several indications in his letters, was not a strong and robust man, could labor in so many lands without great physical discomfiture. He might have gone into countries, where it would not have been possible for him to work for any length of time. Had he
done this, the progress of the gospel would have been retarded considerably.
Again the principal scene of Paul's activity is found in a belt along the Northern shore of the Mediterranean sea. This sea is called the Mare
Internum, and rightly so, for it is in reality a great inland sea, a sea surrounded by three continents, having Asia to the North and to the East, Europe to the North and Africa to the South. On the one hand it separated these continents, but on the other hand it also formed a great highway connecting them. Taking it in connection with the lands that surrounded it, we may say that it was a real center of spiritual influence, a center which, being enlightened itself, would send its rays to every part of the world. I like to picture the Mediterranean of that time to myself as dotted with white sails, with vessels that like doves of peace bring the message of salvation to every land.
Once more, the world of Paul was the world of the Western Diaspora.
This too had great significance in connection with the work of the apostle. No other part of the world was so well prepared to receive the gospel of Jesus Christ, as the lands in which the Western
Dispersion was found. On the one hand the Jews that lived there were less fanatic, less legalistic than their brethren in Palestine.
Being away from Jerusalem, comparitively free from the domination of the untra-legalistic scribes, and dwelling among the gentiles, their religious temper had been toned down and they had embraced more liberal, more tolerant views. Through their separation from the temple and their far more simple service of God in the synagogues, they had gradually been weaned from the shadowy ceremonies of the Old Testament, and prepared for the more spiritual service of God under the new dispensation. On the other hand the gentiles in whose midst these Jews of the Diaspora made their abode, through them
came in touch with the Word of God, and were to some extent introduced to the truth as it is revealed in the Old Testament. Hence they were not entirely strangers to the oracles of God, and they could very well appreciate the argument from prophecy, so often employed by Paul. Truly, this world had been providentially prepared to receive the good seed, and on scattering it there one might look for a plentiful harvest.
But Paul did not work in all the lands around the Mediterranean sea; he had to make a choice out of the many countries that encircled it.
And the apostle chose the lands that lay nearest at hand and were at the same time the most inhabited parts of Asia and Europe. He did not go the sparcely settled north coast of Africa, nor to the northern parts of Europe, but to the thickly populated countries of Asia Minor,
Macedonia, Greece and Italy. Starting out from Asia, he was led on and on until he crossed the sea to Europe and finally reached the imperial city. And in this way the prophecy of Noah found fulfilment:
"God shall enlarge Japhet, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem."
But we find the strategic element in the work of Paul, not only in his choice of the district, but also in his selection of the cities in which he labored most abundantly. There are especially three particulars to which we would call attention in this connection, since they give us an insight into the main facts that determined his course.
In the first place it was a matter of principle with the apostle not to preach the gospel, where others had already brought the glad tidings of salvation, Rom. 15:20. We should undoubtedly consider this principle of Paul in connection with his consciousness of being an apostle. The special task of the apostles was to lay foundations, and not to build on foundations that were already laid. This was the work of evangelists and pastors. We find that throughout the Word of God
the work of the apostles is connected with the foundations. Scripture tells in more than one place that the Church is built on the foundation of the apostles, Christ himself being the chief cornerstone. When John, the lonely seer on Patmos, saw the Holy
City, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband, he found that the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. The fact that Paul understood that it was his special duty to lay foundations was, so it seems, one of the reasons that long deterred him from going to Rome, where others had already sown the seed of the gospel. At least, after he laid down the principles we stated in Rom. 15:20, 21, he says in the 22nd verse:
"For which cause also I have been hindered from coming to you."
The great work of Paul was to organize congregations and to appoint the necessary elders to rule these churches. He would launch the little vessel of Christianity and then leave it to others to guide it on in its course. This is not saying that he paid no more attention to the congregations he had organized. History teaches us quite the contrary. He maintained a general supervision of the whole field that he had cultivated. Daily he thought of all the congregations.
In the second place Paul generally selected cities, where a synagogue of the Jews was found. It was not accidental that Paul always preached in the synagogues first. This was in harmony with the general principle by which it seems Paul was guided, to offer the free gift of salvation first to the Jews, and only after they had rejected it, to go unto the gentiles with the glad tidings of grace in Jesus Christ.
We find clear evidence of this in his labors at Antioch in Pisidia, where the Jews waxed indignant on hearing the preaching of Paul, while the gentiles had a desire for further instruction. On seeing this
Paul makes bold to say: "It was necessary that the Word of God should first have been spoken to you; but seeing ye put it from you,
and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the gentiles." Acts 13:46. But why should Paul address the Jews first, and only after their rejection of the truth turn to the gentiles? This was demanded by the general economy of God's work, and it was also the most fitting way of approach to the gentiles. Through the Jews that were acquainted with the truth, as it had been revealed in the Old
Testament, and that were at the same time in close touch with the gentiles round about them, he sought to approach those that were still afar off. Moreover the synagogues offered the best opportunity to Paul and his colaborers for bringing their message to the masses, since both Jews and gentiles gathered there. In every place there were many proselytes who had not bound themselves to keep the whole law of Moses. These were probably the so-called devout men and women of whom Luke speaks in the Acts of the Apostles. They especially proved ready to receive the gospel message. The synagogues became centers of great blessings. They were as so many torches lit up in a desert land. When I think of that long line of synagogues from Jerusalem to Rome, each shining with the light of the new day, it seems to me that they bear some resemblance to the festal signals that, starting at Jerusalem, were lit from mountain to mountaintop to announce to the Jews in far-off Babylon on the Euphrates that the feast of the new moon had arrived.
Lastly the places in which Paul labored were, with but few exceptions, centrally located and of great importance. Of course, they were not all of equal prominence. Take a glance at Pisidian Antioch.
It was the center of a Roman regio or region, an administrative and military center of a larger territory. People were continually coming and going. Small wonder therefore that the result of Paul's work in that city was "that the Word of the Lord was published throughout the whole region." Acts 13:49. Or consider Ephesus, one of the most busy ports of the Mediterranean, the capital of Asia, where people of
all countries met, a stronghold of idolatry and sorcery, within easy reach of the cities of the Lycus valley, such as Laodicea, Colosse and Hierapolis. Ephesus meant Asia to Paul, for while he labored there for a period of about three years, Acts 20:31, "all they which dwelt in Asia heard the Word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks." Or think of Corinth, the worldly wise, the profligate Corinth, the commercial and political metropolis of Greece, where East and West constantly met, and from where vessels went forth to the uttermost parts of the world. Corinth offered Paul an almost unlimited opportunity. As Ephesus meant Asia to him, so Corinth meant
Achaia. Hence he addresses his second epistle to the Corinthians to "the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints which are in all Achaia." 2 Cor. 1:1. Need we point to the significance of Rome, that veritable microcosmos, with its ever changing, ever shifting population, that stronghold of idolatry, where the emperor sat as a God upon his throne, where all nations where represented, where people came and people went in endless progression, where religion and immorality went hand in hand, and the deepest poverty existed alongside of the greatest, even effeminating luxury,—of Rome, where the greatest strength and the greatest weakness of the empire met?—
Paul understood the strategic significance of his stay at Rome, though it was as a prisoner. He writes from his prison at Rome to the Philippians: "But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; so that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places. And many of the brethren, waying confident in my bonds, are much more bold to speak the Word without fear. Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and of strife; and some also of good will. The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my bonds: but the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defense of the gospel. What then? notwithstanding every way, whether in pretence
or in truth, Christ is preached: and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice."
All the cities of Paul, or nearly all, were great centers of trade. They were on the most important highways connecting the East and the West. It is a striking fact, as Deissmann observes, who went over all the routes of the great apostle, that to-day all these cities can be reached either by boat or train or by both. This testifies to the importance of those cities. Thus the highway of commerce was made the highway of the gospel of Jesus Christ, on which the messengers of peace sped on, until at last the banner of the cross was planted on the hills of Rome. Glorious achievement of divine and human strategy, of a life that allowed itself to be guided by a wisdom from on high! That guiding Spirit of God is still with us. Let us willingly follow where he leads; let us be thankful for his guidance; let us rejoice with the poet:
"He leadeth me! oh! blessed thought, Oh! words with heavenly comfort fraught; Whate'er I do, where'er I be, Still 't is God's hand that leadeth me."
"Sometimes 'mid scenes of deepest gloom, Sometimes where Eden's bowers bloom.
By waters still, o'er troubled sea, Still 't is His hand that leadeth me."
"Lord, I would clasp Thy hand in mine,