Paul set sail and eventually arrived a Tyre. Paul spent time with the disciples at Tyre. We then come to an interesting incident. It says that "through the Spirit they urged Paul not to go to Jerusalem". Presumably they believed that God was telling them that Paul should not go. How can the Spirit have been telling them something that was apparently wrong? We are not told the reason in the Bible, but I think the most likely reason is this. The Spirit gave them insight into what was going to happen, the disciples then took this as an indication that Paul should not go. Similarly, Peter urged Jesus not to go to the cross. This is a warning about the use of prophecy. There are a number of key things to bear in mind:
1. Words of prophecy NEVER have greater authority than the Bible, or to put it another way "rhema" words do not have authority over the "logos" word. (In fact way too much is often made of the distinction between the two.)
2. When someone gives us a word we have responsibility to assess that word.
3. When someone gives us a word the responsibility to act or not to act on that word rests with us.
Paul knew that he had to go to Jerusalem, because the Spirit had told him so (Acts 20:22). Never feel pressured by "words" from God. We all have personal relationship with the Lord through the Spirit, and while He may well use other people to help direct us, He will also communicate directly with us.
So Paul set off on his way.
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