Lysias, who was Greek by birth, purchased his Roman citizenship (Acts 22:28), at which time, it is believed, he picked up the forename Claudius. His role as a commander in the Roman army probably put him in charge of over a thousand men.

Paul, on the other hand, was a Roman citizen by birth As such, he had the full rights of citizenship, including the right to a Roman trial. When Paul ran afoul of the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem, they falsely accused him of being a troublemaker who stirred up rebellions against his own government as well as defiling the temple.

Once Lysias sorted out the details, however, especially after learning that Paul was a Roman citizen, he and his men removed Paul by force so he could get a fair trial.

Lysias stepped into a difficult situation, against the will of the people, to do the right thing even though it was difficult and requited force. That’s what genuine leadership looks like. Is there a situation in your life that may require a similar response, even if it just requires you to take a forceful stand?

[Paul] also hath gone about to profane the temple: whom we took, and would have judged according to our law. But the chief captain Lysias came upon us, and with great violence took him away out of our hands. Acts 24:6-7