NOTES for Act 24:1-27

It is unlikely that the Jewish elders truly condemned Paul for teaching the resurrection of the dead. As we recall, this issue had already once helped him disrupt the unity of his accusers, and here one might suspect Paul of trying to use the same tactic again. But if we look more closely at the situation, all of Paul's troubles arise precisely because he proclaims the living, risen Christ. No one would have taken offense at Paul if he had preached the Law. In those days there were quite a few people who had converted from paganism to the Jewish faith—the so-called proselytes. No one required them to undergo circumcision or to observe the Law of Moses exactly. But Paul brought not law, customs, traditions, or religion, but the Gospel—the message of a real, living life with the One who is above the Temple and who abolishes the distinction between Jews and Gentiles.