Title: Washing the Tools of God and the subject of conviction.
Scripture: Acts 25 & 26
Introduction
We want our children to go to good colleges. Why? Is it because of the programs? Is it because of the location of the school? Is it because of something we read in a college brochure? Not really. Many times it is because we want to live our lives vicariously through our children. We want them to become what we could never be in the areas of music, or sports, or art, or whatever it is we liked when we were children. We place pressure on them, or, more simply put, we try to convince them to follow a certain path. We place conviction on them, or a guilt trip, hoping to burden their hearts to follow a certain path, which, many times, they don’t need to follow. Another reason? We succumb to the burden of conviction that the world itself has placed on us in the area of raising our kids. The world says they need to go to a good elementary school so that they can go to a good middle school, so that they can go to a good high school, so that they can go to a good college, so that they can get a good job.
We succumb to the burden of conviction that the world itself has placed on us in the area raising our kids. The world says they need to take extra classes, in addition to going to school. The world says they need to study other things, in addition to what they study in school. So we get a tutor, or have them go to music class, dance class, or art class because, we know what is right for them.
Additionally, we succumb to the burden of conviction that some churches may place on us in the area of raising our spiritual children. The church may say this or that about how much and how often we need to pray or how much and how often we need to read the Bible. We feel convicted, we feel guilty, so we pray. And, when our prayers are not answered, then we feel more guilt as we believe there must be some sin in our life because God has not answered our prayers.
We also fall prey to the conviction of co-workers, friends and relatives as they try to tell us what we need to be doing with our lives to improve them. Which, if we were to rephrase that to reflect the real truth, it would sound similar to, this is what you should be doing to make my life easier. However it is presented, it usually is cleverly hidden in the disguise of spiritual well-being. Once again guilt is laid on like a coat of paint.
The world revolves around conviction, which revolves around guilt, which revolves around Satan.
But wait, Christians use that word, too. As Christians when we came to know the Lord as our Savior, it was because of the power of conviction by the Holy Spirit, wasn’t it?
In John 16, Jesus tells us:
John 16:7 But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 8 When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me; 10 in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; 11 and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
And in 1 Thessalonians1,
(1 Th 1:4) For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake.
So, what is the meaning of this word, conviction? Well, to begin with in those New International Version verses that we read, they used conviction while in the King James Version they use the word convince. What¡¦s the difference?
Conviction carries three meanings: (1) confidence (or assurance), (2) belief (faith), and (3) a guilty verdict or sentence.
For illustration, we could say:
He stands by his religious convictions (his beliefs).
His conviction carries a life sentence (a guilty verdict).
His hard work shows in his conviction (confidence).
Convince, on the other hand has two meanings that are very similar: (1) to induce (or encourage) and (2) persuade.
Most people wash their cars, at least for the first couple of months that they have them. Many people are under conviction to wash their cars because the general thought is that new cars should be clean. Then the washings may get further and fewer between as the car gets older. Most people wash their clothes, or we pray that they wash their clothes. Most people wash fruits and vegetables before they eat them because they are convince that the company did not do a good job and there is the fear that they’ve been contaminated with some type of pesticide or chemical or acid rain (which, if that had happened, it would have been absorbed by the fruit or vegetable, anyway.)
When I was in high school, I attended a class where we built things out of wood or other materials. We would use various tools such as paintbrushes, hammers, welding tools, saws, drills, lathes, etc. When we would finish with those tools or the class period would be almost over, we would have to begin a cleanup process. We would have to make sure that the paintbrushes were clean, that the saw was clean and oiled, that the lathe was clear of saw dust. If we didn’t clean the tool, or the area, our teacher would first remind us, and, if we didn’t comply soon, well, he was a big teacher.
His power of conviction was very strong.
Convince or Convict? Which word to use? Let¡¦s find out.
The entire two chapters of Acts 25 and 26 deal with conviction in some form or another. Therefore, our outline today has three points:
Conviction
Conviction
Conviction
Conviction
Conviction
Conviction
I. Conviction
25:1 Three days after arriving in the province, Festus went up from Caesarea to Jerusalem, 2 where the chief priests and Jewish leaders appeared before him and presented the charges against Paul. 3 They urgently requested Festus, as a favor to them, to have Paul transferred to Jerusalem, for they were preparing an ambush to kill him along the way. 4 Festus answered, "Paul is being held at Caesarea, and I myself am going there soon. 5 Let some of your leaders come with me and press charges against the man there, if he has done anything wrong." 6 After spending eight or ten days with them, he went down to Caesarea, and the next day he convened the court and ordered that Paul be brought before him. 7 When Paul appeared, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many serious charges against him, which they could not prove.
The Jews’ conviction was to maintain the status quo. To keep things the way they had been for hundreds of years. To keep the poor, middle and upper classes the way they were. They couldn’t live the Christian life and maintain their current lifestyles. These were the convictions of the Jews. How else could they continue to pursue Paul’s prosecution month after month, year after year?
Festus was also under conviction to bring Paul before the court. He was under conviction by the Jews and how they donated money occasionally to insure they received the attention they needed.
3 They urgently requested Festus, as a favor to them,
Conviction of this nature is not healthy and will end up with one of the two sides getting hurt.
II. Conviction
8 Then Paul made his defense: "I have done nothing wrong against the law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar." 9 Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, said to Paul, "Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me there on these charges?" 10 Paul answered: "I am now standing before Caesar’s court, where I ought to be tried. I have not done any wrong to the Jews, as you yourself know very well. 11 If, however, I am guilty of doing anything deserving death, I do not refuse to die. But if the charges brought against me by these Jews are not true, no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar!" 12 After Festus had conferred with his council, he declared: "You have appealed to Caesar. To Caesar you will go!" 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. 27 For I think it is unreasonable to send on a prisoner without specifying the charges against him."
Here we have, in verse 11, the convictions of Paul.
Paul tells us in Philippians 1:13
¡KI am in chains for Christ.
Paul knew the will of God for his own life. He stood by his convictions and would stand by them until his death. Could we do the same?
Other than Paul¡¦s upcoming testimony, none of the other convictions or beliefs in these two chapters amount to very much. They change with the changing of the guard. They adjust to meet the ruler of the day, they modify themselves to embrace the party that is in power.
What about our convictions? What about our beliefs? Will they withstand the pressures of the world? Will they weather the storms of family disputes or cultural differences?
III. Conviction
13 A 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 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 any man before he has faced his accusers and has had an opportunity to defend himself against their 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 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." 22 Then Agrippa said to Festus, "I would like to hear this man myself." He replied, "Tomorrow you will hear him." 23 The next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp 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. 25 I found he had done nothing deserving of death, but because he made his appeal to the Emperor I decided to send him to Rome.
Festus was so afraid that he would get into trouble for trying or condemning an innocent man, he urged Agrippa to listen to Paul¡¦s story. Festus is convicted by a warped conscience, the selfish Jews and Roman laws to do the things that he does.
IV. Conviction
26:1 Then 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, 3 and 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. 5 They 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. 6 And now it is because of my hope in what God has promised our fathers that I am on trial today. 7 This 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. 8 Why should any of you consider it incredible 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. 10 And 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. 11 Many 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. 13 About 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. 14 We 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.’ 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. 17 I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them 18 to 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.’
Paul says in verse 9
I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth.
In the beginning of Paul¡¦s religious life he hunted down Christians and either killed them or put them in prison. He was convinced, he ws persuaded, that what he was doing was the right thing to do. He was sincere in his beliefs, but, as the saying goes, he was sincerely wrong.
Many times we, too, hold on to something that we sincerely believe is the right way or the right tradition. Many times we are unwavering in those beliefs and we don¡¦t listen to those around us. Many times it takes an experience similar to what happened to Paul on the road to Damascus to get us to change our minds.
Paul wanted them to know that if it hadn¡¦t have been for Jesus interceding in his life, he still would be on the wrong path. He still would be following the wrong convictions.
Our simple conviction should be, as we’ve said before, Jesus, and Him crucified. Yet, so many times we let the buzz words of the day cloud our speech and our meaning. We let the culture of the times dictate our decisions, rather than depending on our beliefs, Jesus, and Him crucified.
V. Conviction
19 "So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven. 20 First 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. 21 That is why the Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me. 22 But 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-- 23 that the Christ would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would proclaim light to his own people and to the Gentiles."
Paul tells Agrippa that he followed the conviction of the Spirit. He told Agrippa that he relied on the Spirit to enable him to discern, to preach, to teach, and to live according to travail of Christ.
VI. Conviction
24 At this point Festus interrupted Paul’s defense. "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. 26 The 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. 27 King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do." 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 God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains." 30 The king rose, and with him the governor and Bernice and those sitting with them. 31 They left the room, and while talking with one another, they said, "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."
Finally, we see the conviction that we¡¦ve all been waiting for, the conviction of the Spirit on Festus and Agrippa. The Spirit is moving on the hearts of these two to convince them they needed to turn to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. But, the hearts of Festus and Agrippa have been hardened by living in the palace, by the power, by the money, the influence, the pride. They didn¡¦t follow that conviction, instead, they turned away at the last possible moment.
What about you? Do you feel the conviction of the Spirit? Is He impressing on you His desire for you to live a simpler life. Is He impressing on you the need to turn to Him in all circumstances and rely on Him?
The Spirit of God relies on conviction to move His people to follow His will and His way. Don¡¦t be persuaded by those that think they know the will of God for your life. Don’t be persuaded by those that want to lay a conviction circuit on you to get you to do something for them. Remember, the way of the world is to lay a guilt feeling on you, to convict you that you should be doing something for them, cleverly hidden in the disguise of spiritual well-being. Once again guilt is laid on like a coat of paint.
Chip away that paint! Rely only on the Spirit. If you don’t feel the Spirit moving on you to do something for someone, then don’t feel guilty for not doing it.
(Romans 8:28) And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
