LET US PRAY:
Grant us the faith to believe you and trust you fully, for all that you’ve revealed to us in your holy Word. May we be enlightened and encouraged today.
Bless this time, we pray, in Jesus’ Name, AMEN.
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We have been seeing in the book of Acts the fulfilment of the Lord’s words to Ananias regarding Paul’s life and ministry.
• In Acts 9:15 when Paul was converted on the road to Damacus, the Lord said to Ananias, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.” ESV
• Since then Paul has been testifying to the Gentiles, and over the past few chapters, the Roman kings, the governors of the Roman provinces.
• The first Gentile ruler Paul met and witnessed to was the proconsul at Paphos in Cyprus, on his first missionary journey in Acts 13. The proconsul believed.
Here in Acts 24 Paul testified before governor Felix, who left him in prison for two years, and then to Felix’s successor Festus, which we heard last week from Bro Lester.
• The trials were not about Paul per se but the message he preached. It’s about Jesus.
• We saw Paul sharing the Gospel with the rulers. 24:24 Felix “sent for Paul and listened to him as he spoke about faith in Christ Jesus.”
• Although he was hoping for a bribe, Felix sent for Paul frequently and talked with him (24:26). Knowing Paul, the conversation would have covered matters of his faith.
Festus too had the chance to know about the Way from the initial trial he had.
• He reported to Agrippa when he visited that it was “about a dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive.” (25:19)
• And now, with King Agrippa and Bernice here visiting Festus, they would be hearing again the testimony of Paul and the message of the Gospel.
And it didn’t stop here because eventually Paul would be seeing the King, the Emperor of Rome, for he has appealed to Caesar.
• Just as the Lord has said, Paul would be His chosen instrument to proclaim His name to the Gentiles and their kings. (9:15) We see the fulfilment of God’s will in his life.
• If we obey the Lord and do His work, we are fulfilling God’s will for our lives.
Acts 25:13-22 13A few days later King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea to pay their respects to Festus. 14 Since they were spending many days there, Festus discussed Paul’s case with the king. He said: “There is a man here whom Felix left as a prisoner. 15 When I went to Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews brought charges against him and asked that he be condemned.
16“I told them that it is not the Roman custom to hand over anyone before they have faced their accusers and have had an opportunity to defend themselves against the charges. 17 When they came here with me, I did not delay the case, but convened the court the next day and ordered the man to be brought in. 18 When his accusers got up to speak, they did not charge him with any of the crimes I had expected. 19 Instead, they had some points of dispute with him about their own religion and about a dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive. 20 I was at a loss how to investigate such matters; so I asked if he would be willing to go to Jerusalem and stand trial there on these charges. 21 But when Paul made his appeal to be held over for the Emperor’s decision, I ordered him held until I could send him to Caesar.”
22Then Agrippa said to Festus, “I would like to hear this man myself.” He replied, “Tomorrow you will hear him.”
King Agrippa II and his sister Bernice came to visit Festus. He was was the governor of the region North of Judea.
• Agrippa II was the great-grandson of King Herod the Great (who ruled at the time when Jesus was born);
• His father Agrippa I was the one who persecuted the church in Acts 12, when the apostle James was killed.
• Agrippa II was the last one from the Herod dynasty to rule. Bernice was his sister but they had an incestuous relationship.
Paul has appealed to Caesar and would stand trial in Rome, but Festus has a hard time penning down the charge.
• The truth is, Paul has done nothing wrong against the Jewish law, or the temple or Caesar, but they have to create a charge sheet.
• Since Agrippa and Bernice were here, Festus invited them to help him.
Acts 25:23-27 23The next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great splendour and entered the audience room with the high ranking officers and the leading men of the city. At the command of Festus, Paul was brought in. 24 Festus said: "King Agrippa, and all who are present with us, you see this man! The whole Jewish community has petitioned me about him in Jerusalem and here in Caesarea, shouting that he ought not to live any longer.
25I found he had done nothing deserving of death, but because he made his appeal to the Emperor I decided to send him to Rome. 26 But I have nothing definite to write to His Majesty about him. Therefore I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that as a result of this investigation I may have something to write. 27For I think it is unreasonable to send on a prisoner without specifying the charges against him."
Imagine this scene. We have the grandeur of the Roman ceremonial splendour…
• With the presence of the governors Festus, Agrippa and Bernice plus all the important dignitaries, the high ranking officers and the leading men of the city…
• All gathered to hear from one Jewish prisoner named Paul. What an audience!
It would be like us today being given a chance to speak in the Parliament to the cabinet ministers and all the MPs, to the highest echelon in government.
• You have on the one side the Roman elite representing the power of Rome and on the other, a humble “man of the Way” representing King Jesus! What an honour!
• Paul was given the chance to explain himself, but more importantly, to share his faith, the message of the risen Christ.
Paul couldn’t have arranged for this; God provided it. The Gospel will reach the Gentiles and their kings, as the Lord has said.
• This is the grace of God, extends to all people, the young and old, the rich and poor, the educated and uneducated, everyone is within reach of God’s grace.
• The Gospel is not meant for the Jews only but also the Gentiles, the Romans, for the kings and the rulers.
• And this opportunity could not have been made possible without the timely visit of Agrippa and Bernice. God made it possible for the Roman elite to hear the Gospel.
Paul gave his longest testimony here in the book of Acts.
Acts 26:1-23 1Then Agrippa said to Paul, "You have permission to speak for yourself."
So Paul motioned with his hand and began his defense: 2"King Agrippa, I consider myself fortunate to stand before you today as I make my defense against all the accusations of the Jews, 3and especially so because you are well acquainted with all the Jewish customs and controversies. Therefore, I beg you to listen to me patiently.
4"The Jews all know the way I have lived ever since I was a child, from the beginning of my life in my own country, and also in Jerusalem. 5They have known me for a long time and can testify, if they are willing, that according to the strictest sect of our religion, I lived as a Pharisee. 6And now it is because of my hope in what God has promised our fathers that I am on trial today. 7This is the promise our twelve tribes are hoping to see fulfilled as they earnestly serve God day and night. O king, it is because of this hope that the Jews are accusing me. 8Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?
• Judaism, the Jewish Law, points to Jesus Christ as the Messiah. He fulfilled the Law and was raised to life again.
• Why is it so difficult for us to believe that God raises the dead?
9 "I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the saints in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. 11Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. In my obsession against them, I even went to foreign cities to persecute them.
12"On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. 13About noon, O king, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions. 14We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'
• A goad is a stick with a sharp point used to prod animals. This phrase is a Greek proverb, meaning “If it comes from God, it is futile to fight against Him.”
15 "Then I asked, `Who are you, Lord?' "`I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,' the Lord replied. 16`Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen of me and what I will show you. 17I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them 18to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.'
• This is the message of the Gospel that Paul carries as a servant and witness:
• To open our eyes, turn us from darkness to light, free us from the bondage of Satan, grant us forgiveness of sin and an eternal home among the sanctified.
• This is the experience of everyone who puts their trust in Jesus Christ.
19 "So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven. 20First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds. 21That is why the Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me. 22But I have had God's help to this very day, and so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen - 23that the Christ would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would proclaim light to his own people and to the Gentiles."
Nothing that Paul has done was FROM self or FOR self.
• “I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven.” (v.19)
• “I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen.” (v.22)
24 At this point Festus interrupted Paul’s defence. “You are out of your mind, Paul!” he shouted. “Your great learning is driving you insane.”
25“I am not insane, most excellent Festus,” Paul replied. “What I am saying is true and reasonable. 26The king is familiar with these things, and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner. 27King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do.”
• To a closed mind, the message of the Gospel is insane. To the mind opened to God, it is true and reasonable. Are we willing to believe what God has revealed?
28 Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?” 29 Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.”
• That’s the heart of an evangelist. Whether a short or long time, it does not matter.
• Paul: “I hope that you and all who are listening to me today may become believers of Jesus Christ, just like me.”
30 The king rose, and with him the governor and Bernice and those sitting with them. 31After they left the room, they began saying to one another, “This man is not doing anything that deserves death or imprisonment.”
32 Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”
• At that, the royalty left the room, convinced of Paul’s innocence.
• Of all the Herods that have ruled, this was the only positive statement from the Herod dynasty regarding the Christian faith. It came from this last Herod king.
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Paul did what he could, faithfully and without fear. He fulfilled the Lord’s will in proclaiming His Name to the Gentiles and their kings.
• It would not end here. He will be transferred to Rome, because the Lord has said, he must testify for Him in Rome. (23:11)
We see the biography of Paul being written, not so much as the events unfold but as the Lord determines, so to speak.
• God chose him and commissioned him. God prepared him and protected him. God enabled him to testify to the Roman kings and eventually in Rome.
• The truth is, our biography is not being written as we speak. That’s only our human point of view.
• Our biography is written by our God who knows all things and determines all things, looking from His perspective. And He guides us in His path.
• On this side of heaven, we seek Him and follow Him.
God wants me to serve in this ministry. He prepared me by placing me in a Christian family. I grew up knowing him.
• At the end of my first year at the Polytechnic, He led me to join a Christian camp, for me it was out of curiosity then.
• On the final night came the call to serve the Lord full-time and I said yes.
Then came the apprehension; maybe I was too emotional. But I have the time to mull over it - two more years of study and two years of National Service.
• So I told the Lord it’s really Your will, remind me again at the end of my NS when I need to find a job and start a career.
Three months before my ROD we had a retreat in church and the speaker ended with a call to full-time ministry.
• He spoke a word that was directed at an excuse that I had in my mind then. I knew that line was for me.
• God has spoken. It was the reminder that I asked for, four years back.
You see, our biography is not being written as we speak. Our biography has been written from His perspective. God knows everything and He directs our paths.
• Prov 3:5-6 says we trust the Lord and lean not on our own understanding. We submit to Him in all our ways and He will direct our paths.
• We consult Him and let Him guide us. We want to live our lives according to His will because we know it is the best for us. We trust Him.
Paul would go to Rome and continue to proclaim the Gospel, by divine will.
• The Kingdom of God cannot be stopped. Kings and Kingdoms will come and go, and that includes the Roman Empire, but the Kingdom of God remains.
• We are all here today because the Gospel of Jesus Christ is being preached from generation to generation, from place to place.
Let me share with you what happened 500 years today – 18 April 1521.
THE DIET OF WORMS (MARTIN LUTHER ON TRIAL)
On 18 April 1521, exactly 500 years ago today, Martin Luther was put on trial in the Diet of Worms, an imperial assembly presided by Roman Emperor Charles V.
He was summoned to make his stand on the Gospel and his views against the Roman church. Luther defended his views and refused to recant them.
Luther concluded by saying: “Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason (for I do not trust either in the pope or in councils alone, since it is well known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. May God help me. Amen.”
At the end of the Diet, the Emperor issued the Edict of Worms, a decree which condemned Luther as "a notorious heretic" and banned citizens of the Empire from propagating his ideas.
Although the Protestant Reformation is usually considered to have begun in 1517, the edict in 1521 signals the first overt break.
The Kingdom of God cannot be stopped and the message of the Gospel will continue to be preached. We are the proof of that today.
Remember, brothers and sisters, we are commissioned by the Lord to do the same – to proclaim the Gospel and make disciples. So let us testify for Christ.
• His Kingdom will continue to rule and reign through our witness and testimony today, until the Lord returns.
• What are you doing for the Kingdom of God today? In what ways are you fulfilling His will and contributing to the cause of Christ?
We want to be able to say what Paul said at the end of his life:
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Tim 4:7)
May we all be found to be His good and faithful servants.
PRAYER:
Thank you for Your Word, Lord and the testimony of Paul. His obedience to you has brought about many blessings to the people then and to us today.
May we continue to preach and live the Gospel this day. Help us stay faithful and committed to it until the day we see you again. In Jesus’ Name, AMEN.
