Then Agrippa said to Festus, "This man could have been released if he had not appealed to Caesar." - Acts 26:32
Our faith, and our lives as Christ-followers, include both practical and mystical elements.
For example, at the end of his third missionary journey Paul (the apostle) openly declared that he desired to go to Rome to encourage the believers there, but first he needed to return to Jerusalem. Many did their best to dissuade him, rightly thinking that by this time he had become a target of Jewish authorities.
When he went to Jerusalem, they tried to kill him, but he was rescued from their murderous hands when he was arrested by Roman soldiers. These soldiers helped Paul get out of the city and this led to him being "interviewed by two Roman governors. At the end of two years, when Paul was facing the possibility of being returned to Jerusalem, he (as a Roman citizen) appealed to Caesar. God had told Paul that he would one day appear before the emperor. The verse above reveals that if Paul had not appealed to Caesar, he could have gone to Rome under his own power and not in chains!
One conclusion is certain. God is sovereignly guiding the affairs of this life and absolutely nothing is left to chance or fortune. Luck is for pagans. We who know Christ trust in the providential work of an Almighty God.
Nothing whatever, whether great or small, can happen to a believer, without God's ordering and permission. There is no such thing as "chance," "luck" or "accident" in the Christian's journey through this world. All is arranged and appointed by God. And all things are "working together" for the believer's good. - J. C. Ryle
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