ACTS
Lessons in Courage Part 7 Series Final
Dr. Tom Bartlett
November 3, 2019
Acts 26:1-32 (ESV)
OUTLINE
“You have permission to speak for yourself”
(Vs. 1-3) So Agrippa said to Paul, “You have permission to speak for yourself.” Then Paul stretched out his hand and made his defense:
Telling Your Story
Paul: “My manner of life”
(Vs. 4-8) “My manner of life from my youth, spent from the beginning among my own nation and in Jerusalem, is known by all the Jews. They have known for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that according to the strictest party of our religion I have lived as a Pharisee. And now I stand here on trial because of my hope in the promise made by God to our fathers, to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly worship night and day. And for this hope I am accused by Jews, O king! Why is it thought incredible by any of you that God raises the dead?
(Vs. 9-10) “I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority from the chief priests, but when they were put to death I cast my vote against them.
Paul says these people who once hated are “saints”. That means faithful and holy people, in other words they were right and I was wrong.
This reference to “cast my vote” was regarding the way the Sanhedrin, the group of 70 that ruled over the Jewish people made decisions. Paul may have been part of that group. They would cast a white stone or a black stone each signaling a yes or no over matters. That would mean that Paul was part of their highest ruling body, like the supreme court. It’s also interesting that if that’s so and many believe it was, he would have had to have been married since all members in that group were required to be 30 years of age and married. So, we know from other scripture that Paul was now single either his wife left him or died or something else. He continues about his zeal.
(Vs. 11) And I punished them often in all the synagogues and tried to make them blaspheme, and in raging fury against them I persecuted them even to foreign cities.
You: Describe your life before Christ
Paul: “I saw a light from heaven”
(Vs. 12) “In this connection I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests.
(Vs. 13-15) At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.
You: Tell how God got your attention
Paul: “I appoint you as a servant and witness”
(Vs. 16) But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you,
(Vs. 17-18) delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
(Vs. 19-20) “Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance.
You: Share how God has redirected your life
Paul: “The Jews tried to kill me”
(Vs. 21-23) For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: that the Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles.”
You: Tell them what God has brought you through
Paul: “do you believe?”
(Vs. 24-28) And as he was saying these things in his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, you are out of your mind; your great learning is driving you out of your mind.” But Paul said, “I am not out of my mind, most excellent Festus, but I am speaking true and rational words. For the king knows about these things, and to him I speak boldly. For I am persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this has not been done in a corner. King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe.”
(Vs. 29a) And Agrippa said to Paul, “In a short time would you persuade me to be a Christian?”
(Vs. 29b) And Paul said, “Whether short or long, I would to God that not only you but also all who hear me this day might become such as I am—except for these chains.”
So, now we turn to you and to me. It’s not enough to be a good person or to have a “silent witness”. There is no such thing. We must tell them and offer them Christ.
You: Boldly offer them Christ
Them: They can accept or reject
(vs. 30) Then the king rose, and the governor and Bernice and those who were sitting with them.
(vs. 31) And when they had withdrawn, they said to one another, “This man is doing nothing to deserve death or imprisonment.” And Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”
MANUSCRIPT
Among the top fears that people face, after spiders and snakes, comes things like public speaking and death. Public speaking comes before death in most lists. Most people cannot see themselves getting in front of others and speaking anything coherent. I think the reason is that no nobody wants to appear to be dumb or be so conspicuous with so many people watching. I think that fear extends to talking to anyone about their personal lives, or for that matter their eternal destiny.
Growing up in the church, I’ve heard all my life about the need to approach strangers and to begin to explain to them why they’re so evil and why they need to recognize it and cry out to God for forgiveness. As a young preacher at around the age of 19 I took this so seriously that I often went down to a major corner in downtown Clearwater Florida where I grew up and began street preaching. There I was on the corner of Ft. Harrison and Missouri Avenues nearly overlooking the bay, holding a bible in my hand, reading it from time to time and then shouting at people who walked or drove by. I felt a little exposed but thought I must do this. I was always hoping that no one in my family would find out. One day I was out there shouting my sermons and scriptures as people passed by that intersection and I see my brother in his 1972 Chevelle Super Sport drive by slowly with a troubled look that said, “I know that’s not my little brother”.
Now, I am in no way trying to belittle street preaching. I’ve met some wonderful people who feel called of God to be on corners and do just that. BUT, what I want you to see is that yes, God calls all of us to represent Him, we don’t have to stand on a corner to do it, but even if we do, the best way may be a softer approach of telling people what Jesus has done for you.
Now, if you are a person who is exploring faith here today, this is a great day for you as you get a look into the life changing message of Jesus and maybe some of the back-story of why people are so excited about Him.
For the rest of us, in the twists and turns of life, in chance meetings and over long-time relationships, there will come opportunities to simply tell people what Jesus has done for you. The word witness simply means to tell what you heard/saw/experienced and no more. You see no one can refute what God has done in your life.
Now as we progress in the book of Acts, in chapter 26 we see Paul standing trial once again for his faith. In the last chapter we were introduced to Festus, King Agrippa, and Bernice his sister. Paul is about to give his story of life change to the king and the king grants him this opportunity by telling Paul, “you have permission to speak for yourself”.
Now, the last thing they want to hear is Paul talking about any other subject than what he alone is the leading authority in the world on; HIS OWN CONVERSION. BTW – you’re the leading authority in the world on your own conversion.
“You have permission to speak for yourself”
(Vs. 1-3) So Agrippa said to Paul, “You have permission to speak for yourself.” Then Paul stretched out his hand and made his defense:
Now we know that Paul was a Jew, but also a Roman citizen. We see here he had some Italian in him as he always speaks with his hands.
“I consider myself fortunate that it is before you, King Agrippa, I am going to make my defense today against all the accusations of the Jews, especially because you are familiar with all the customs and controversies of the Jews. Therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.
Paul politely thanks the king and recognizes that many of the things he will speak about, the king is already aware of. From what Paul tells the king and this room full of pompous people, we get a glimpse in how to tell others our own story of life change. So today, I’ll give you what Paul said and how you can use that as a guide for our own life-change story.
Telling Your Story
Paul starts by telling of his life before his encounter with Jesus. Many of the Jews there would have known him. Many were probably students at the same time as he studied the law and became a leader among them.
Paul: “My manner of life”
(Vs. 4-8) “My manner of life from my youth, spent from the beginning among my own nation and in Jerusalem, is known by all the Jews. They have known for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that according to the strictest party of our religion I have lived as a Pharisee. And now I stand here on trial because of my hope in the promise made by God to our fathers, to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly worship night and day. And for this hope I am accused by Jews, O king! Why is it thought incredible by any of you that God raises the dead?
The divide that Paul has with these Jewish leaders is over the resurrection of Jesus proving He was and is their long-awaited Messiah. These people are aware as well, the passion Paul had in pursuing their way of life before his conversion.
(Vs. 9-10) “I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority from the chief priests, but when they were put to death I cast my vote against them.
Paul says these people who once hated are “saints”. That means faithful and holy people, in other words they were right and I was wrong.
This reference to “cast my vote” was regarding the way the Sanhedrin, the group of 70 that ruled over the Jewish people made decisions. Paul may have been part of that group. They would cast a white stone or a black stone each signaling a yes or no over matters. That would mean that Paul was part of their highest ruling body, like the supreme court. It’s also interesting that if that’s so and many believe it was, he would have had to have been married since all members in that group were required to be 30 years of age and married. So, we know from other scripture that Paul was now single either his wife left him or died or something else. He continues about his zeal.
(Vs. 11) And I punished them often in all the synagogues and tried to make them blaspheme, and in raging fury against them I persecuted them even to foreign cities.
So, before meeting Christ, Paul is this ferocious terrorist-type person who would hunt down Christians and punish them. He was so zealous for this he would travel to other cities to do harm against people all because they didn’t agree with him.
Now think about your life. What was it like before you encountered the truth of God’s word and love and forgiveness of Jesus changed you? Were you self-focused? Scared all the time of death and other things? No meaning and purpose in life? Were evil and sinful practices a part of your daily routine? Have you encountered your old friends who, like Paul, can’t seem to understand this change?
My advice to you is when you tell people your story, take time and. . .
You: Describe your life before Christ
So, Paul explains to the king what he was like and that these men all knew it, but then he goes onto the most incredible account of something that happened to him. He says. . .
Paul: “I saw a light from heaven”
Now we all know that light can refer to a mental understanding or a new-found knowledge or truth. But Paul’s experience was that before he could “see the light” or truth of who Jesus is, he first saw a physically bright light that was so bright that all he could see was brightness. He continues to the king recounting what Luke writes about Paul’s conversion in Acts 9 . . .
(Vs. 12) “In this connection I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests.
Because of his zealous ways for what he believed he headed to a known infestation of those who accepted Jesus as the resurrected Messiah; Damascus.
(Vs. 13-15) At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.
The Lord stops Paul dead in his tracks, right on the road toward Damascus and speaks to him in his own dialect, Aramaic, which BTW the Lord could have spoken in Hebrew or Greek but He chose to speak to Paul in his own mother tongue. You’ll also notice the personal nature of this communication. Jesus knows who Paul is, He calls him by name.
Even if you’re not aware of God, He’s aware of you. Even if you don’t believe in Him, He believes in you and desires so much for you. The voice tells Paul, it only hurts when you kick against the sharp prods. In other words, God had been trying to get Paul’s attention to direct Him to Himself and like cattle that push against the sharp sticks used to direct them, Paul was only causing pain for himself.
Paul immediately recognizing that this entity was not human says, “Lord who are you?” Paul was about to get the surprise of his life. All of his anger, all of his energy, passion, calling and position were tied to hating Jesus and His followers. Now Paul is going to learn the truth about who Jesus is – He is the Promised Messiah.
Jesus says, “I’m the one you are persecuting”. I thought Paul was persecuting Jesus’ followers? Yes, but these are the family, the children of God. The ultimate persecution was against Jesus. Talk about a wake-up call. Everything he thought he was doing for God was actually against God. The direction his life was headed was the wrong direction.
So, think about your life. How did God get your attention? What circumstances or situations caused you to “see the light” and surrender to the love of God? Were you headed in thw rong direction, working for the wrong things?
So tell people about your life before Christ and also. . .
You: Tell how God got your attention
For some it’s a difficult time, a relational breakup, or when you were caught. For others it’s a near-death situation or a death in the family. Whatever it is, God will get our attention and for Paul, it seems that God had been trying all the while Paul was kicking against it.
Paul now redirects his comments to his new calling in life. After this encounter, Paul never even goes back to his old way of life, and for all we know, even returned from this trip. His life was so changed from that moment on. In this encounter, Jesus tells him what to do next, and gives Paul a direction that will guide his for the rest of His life.
Paul: “I appoint you as a servant and witness”
(Vs. 16) But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you,
This week, these words, “in which I will appear to you,” stood out to me. Jesus says you’re going to tell people about this encounter with me and more encounters with me. We know that Jesus appeared to Paul in Jerusalem to encourage Paul in chapter 23. Paul would also write much of the New Testament under the direction of the Lord.
(Vs. 17-18) delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
Jesus is saying, Paul with this new understanding and enlightenment, I want you to take the message to those who also need this truth. Paul then expresses how seriously he took this new life-calling.
(Vs. 19-20) “Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance.
Paul was serious about his new calling and no matter what was in front of him he pressed on.
So, how about your life? How has God redirected you? What purpose and meaning, what ministry and sense of caring for others has He brought to you? Tell them that too.
You: Share how God has redirected your life
This act of a new direction is conveyed in scripture as the word repentance; a change of mind and direction. Paul repented of his old way and so did you when you turned to follow Jesus.
Paul continues to express all that has happened. He tells Agrippa, this is so serious that I’ve almost lost my life for this new calling.
Paul: “The Jews tried to kill me”
(Vs. 21-23) For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: that the Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles.”
Paul says, I’m only telling them what God has already told them and shown them repeatedly in the scriptures, the very ones they believe. This truth is in the writings of Moses and the prophets that tell us that Christ would suffer, die and rise again.
Genesis 22
Isa. 7, 53
Psalm 22
Hosea 6:2 "HE WILL REVIVE US AFTER TWO DAYS, HE WILL RAISE US UP ON THE THIRD DAY. That we may live before Him."
Paul says, I’ve told this story when it was convenient and when it wasn’t. When it was easy and when it wasn’t easy. Every step of the way, God has been with me and the whole time I’ve experienced opposition, it wasn’t easy, but God has brought me through every step of the way.
You can do the same. . . Tell them about your previous life, how God got you attention, how he redirected you and tell them . . .
You: Tell them what God has brought you through
Finally, like a great leader, Paul presses for a decision with the king. Knowing that Agrippa is aware of all of these things, he boldly presses him.
Paul: “do you believe?”
(Vs. 24-28) And as he was saying these things in his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, you are out of your mind; your great learning is driving you out of your mind.” But Paul said, “I am not out of my mind, most excellent Festus, but I am speaking true and rational words. For the king knows about these things, and to him I speak boldly. For I am persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this has not been done in a corner. King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe.”
Now Paul is standing before the king who is in all of his royal robes and all of his commanders and all the trappings of royalty. Paul, humble clothing, short stature, unibrow, nearly blind, frumpy, YET THE FIRE OF GOD IS IN HIM.
This man has gumption, guts, grit. He’s fearless. Festus tells Paul he’s nuts, Paul says I’m not nuts and sensing conviction coming on the king, Paul presses the king for a response.
For a moment we might forget who’s on trial here.
The king needing to respond does so.
(Vs. 29a) And Agrippa said to Paul, “In a short time would you persuade me to be a Christian?”
The king, probably looking around the room and trying to save face asks Paul if he thinks he can persuade him in such a short time. Paul’s response is so in line with his commitment.
(Vs. 29b) And Paul said, “Whether short or long, I would to God that not only you but also all who hear me this day might become such as I am—except for these chains.”
So, now we turn to you and to me. It’s not enough to be a good person or to have a “silent witness”. There is no such thing. We must tell them and offer them Christ.
You: Boldly offer them Christ
Finally, it’s up to them.
Them: They can accept or reject
Here we see the king’s response to Paul’s question.
(vs. 30) Then the king rose, and the governor and Bernice and those who were sitting with them.
(vs. 31) And when they had withdrawn, they said to one another, “This man is doing nothing to deserve death or imprisonment.” And Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”
STORY OF SHARING CHRIST AT THE TENNIS COURTS WITH DUSTIN
TIME OF COMMITMENT
