Author: missionspaul

It’s not in the verse, but it is the answer!

Acts 25:24 “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.”

When Festus said ‘the whole Jewish community’ he was referring to all the Sanhedrin and the chief priests who wanted Paul dead.
“You see this man, everyone wants him dead.”
You may know what it is like to be centre stage and have such pressure from all around you that it is strangling the very life out of you. The circumstances and people of your world are looking at you and crushing you, shouting at you, demanding more.
Some days you are just standing there in the crowds of people but alone because no one understands
Paul had waited for trial, imprisoned for 2 years. The same people wanting him dead had also waited. They hadn’t changed their mind, they hadn’t altered their cause. Some people can be so persistent when they want to be. The time rolls by and nothing has changed, if desire was enough then life would be easier by now, but desire isn’t, the pressure is the same.

How do you get through it?
So I look back into the verse for an answer to that question. But I don’t find that answer. There are no people who can help, Festus, Agrippa, the Jewish contingent all play a role in Paul’s life but they don’t give him the answer. They have their own agenda. People will not change till they get what they want from your life. There are no places that can help. If Paul went to Jerusalem it would get worse for him if he remained in Caesarea it wouldn’t change.

If you are in a situation that is similar to Paul today and you are feeling the crush of the crowd. Then there is probably nothing from within your circumstance, whether people or places that can help to change that for you. The answer is outside the verse. God is outside. He has brought this verse into being. In order to get through it then you need to go to Him. We don’t see Paul pray or worship or read the Scriptures. Others may never see your devotional life, all they will see is you and the verse of pressure and challenge and they will ask as we ask of Paul, “How do they get through it?” The answer is not in the verse, it often isn’t. It is hidden, in a secret place, where you go every day in order to get through that day.

Rags and Riches

Acts 25:23 “The next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp and entered the audience room with the high-ranking military officers and the prominent men of the city. At the command of Festus, Paul was brought in.”

The words of Jesus: “They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name.” Luke 21:12

The gospel is not only for the poor and lowly. Jesus said there will be times when people of His name will stand before the highest ranking offices.

The beggars look up and want the gospel that gives to them. The lofty look down and want the gospel that strokes their achievements. The gospel tells both that their sin can be forgiven. Sin isn’t just found behind the rags but also the riches.

Paul said: “To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.” 1 Corinthians 9:22

Are we ready to take the gospel upward? To those with ‘great pomp’ and ‘high-ranking’ and who are ‘prominent’? Maybe God will bring you in to that arena as He did with Paul? Maybe today you shouldn’t dress down but dress up? The rich person across the street needs a friend as much as the poor man in the gutter.

From the horse’s mouth

Acts 25: 22 “Then Agrippa said to Festus, “I would like to hear this man myself.” He replied, “Tomorrow you will hear him.”

We have a phrase that we use in Britain to indicate you are getting information from the closest source, “straight from the horse’s mouth”. It comes from the horse racing industry where the punters are trying to find out which horses are in best form. Of course they could ask the trainers or the stable boys who look after the horse, those who are on the inner circle. But “from the horse’s mouth’” is supposed to indicate there is a closer step than even the inner circle, that is to ask the horse itself, a strange thought I agree!

Agrippa wasn’t content to hear about the trial case from Festus, he wanted to hear from Paul. He wanted to know Paul’s view on things, on what he was being accused of, on his beliefs.

How often we can just take what people say about someone as gospel truth. Yet we forget or we don’t have time to seek out the person concerned to hear their story. We hear from the trainer but not the horse. We focus on facts and not intention, matter not motives and actions above attitudes. That is why we often make wrong judgments. Facts, matter and actions may result in the person being in the wrong but intention, motives and attitudes reveal why they got themselves in that predicament in the first place. As we walk the fine line of righteousness and grace we need to know what people in general leave out of the story telling. They do it because we don’t have time for the full story, we want the headlines and the bare detail not the reasoning.

Why not gear yourself up to always say “I want to hear it from the horse’s mouth”? Make time to speak to the person concerned and more importantly hear from them.

 

It’s okay we have the right of appeal

Acts 25:21 “When Paul made his appeal to be held over for the Emperor’s decision, I ordered him to be held until I could send him to Caesar.”

Paul played his citizen card, his right of appeal to Caesar. He would not go to Jerusalem. The reason was not only because he knew danger awaited him. It was because of the word God gave him in 23:11 “The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, “Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.” That is where Paul wanted to be and that is where he appealed to go.

Friends we have the right of appeal. The enemy of our life wants to accuse and condemn us. He wants to ambush our lives, to steal, kill and destroy. He thinks he has evidence for our guilt, he may well have. But we are not citizens here. We are citizens there. Paul would write in his letter to the Ephesians of being citizens of the heavenly realms. We have the right of appeal and that is to the throne room of God. And one day, the final judgment, we will all stand before Him, not condemned, but free as citizens of heaven. Thanks be to God who through Jesus has stood on trial for us!!

Careful judgment

Acts 25:20 “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.”

Festus knew his limitations of judgment. He didn’t understand the Jewish religion and he had never met Jesus.
Festus could have pretended but integrity meant he had to acknowledge his limitation on the subject.
The KJV says Festus doubted the manner of the questions. He would be easily fooled by the cross-examination and he did not want to be deceived.
It is possible to pass judgments on other people when:
We have limited knowledge about them.
What we do know we do not understand.
We become fooled by what others say about them.
The judgements we make in these situations are often far from perfect. They are not only unjust, the base for that judgment is biased towards the loudest voice.
Let’s hold our judgments until we know more than we do today.

JESUS IS ALIVE!

Acts 25:19 “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.”

Dead or alive, Jesus? The Jewish mob said dead and Paul said alive.

Let us look at some of the things that the Jews still remember Jesus saying or were passed down to them:

• I tell you the truth …

you shall see heaven open and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man. John 1:51

no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. John 3:3

no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. John 3:5

the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees His Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. John 5: 19

whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. John 5: 24

a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. John 5:25

it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. John 6:32

he who believes has everlasting life. John 6: 47

unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood you have no life in you. John 6: 53

everyone who sins is a slave to sin. John 8:34

before Abraham was born, I am! John 8:58

It was the last statement which was the most incredible, confrontational and boldest statement Jesus ever made.

Jesus was fully aware of his pre-existence. This was not some re-incarnation understanding. But rather the incarnation of the Son of God in human life-form on earth.

Jesus was fully aware that He existed before this life on earth.

The one who comes from above is above all. John 3: 31

He would say things like “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven” Luke 10:18

He didn’t come to be the Lamb of God to take away the sins of the world, He didn’t come to be the Saviour, the Forgiver. He is the Lamb of God, slain from the foundation of the world. He is the Ancient of Days, the Creator, with the Father and nothing was made that has been made without Him.

We cannot contain Him to a time and a place and a nation. We cannot hold on to Him, He is beyond our grasp, we cannot understand all that there is to know about Him, He is beyond our capability to think. He is pre-existent, before Abraham was born, I am!

Jesus did not begin 2000 years ago, that was just when the incarnation took place. He had no beginning. He was before beginning. Because of this we can say He has seen it all and He knows it all.

We can invite Jesus into our existence – but there is a far greater invitation. An invitation for us to live our lives in His pre-existence.

Paul knew this, we know this, but the Jews didn’t. They missed it. The work set before us is to declare Jesus is Alive, He always was because He always is!

 

The unexpected schemes of the enemy

Acts 25: 18 “When his accusers got up to speak, they did not charge him with any of the crimes I had expected.”

Festus tells Agrippa how surprised he was with the charges that were brought against Paul. We know from verse 7 and 8 that the charges were to do with the Jewish laws, the Temple worship and causing a revolt against Caesar. But on each of these charges there was no proof.

Whatever Festus expected he didn’t hear and what he heard could not be verified.

Never underestimate the hidden agenda of those who bring their complaints to you. What you might think is the reason for their angst may not be the reason at all. But their complaint can often wrong-foot you.

Who is speaking to you today? We all know not everyone will like us nor agree to walk with us. But some today face the voice of the enemy within. We may be surprised at the charges he brings. You see we would think he would raise the issue of our past and our sins. All those things we would expect, they are there and we are guilty as charged but thankful to the blood of Jesus which covers our sins. But the voice often accuses us in a variety of ways:

You can do more for God. Work longer and harder.

You are not good enough. Look at the other men and women of God.

Look how successful you have become.

Do you hear the praise of man? You like that don’t you?

You failed. God will not use you, want you or like you.

The majority are unexpected accusations.

Ultimately the number one reason for the voice of the accuser is to bring distance between you and God, whether by guilt or by removing grace.

Don’t be wrong-footed.

No delay

Acts 25: 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.”

Paul had waited for 2 years for the trial to begin. Felix had come and gone and now Nero has appointed a new leader, Festus. Within 3 days of his leadership reign he was in Jerusalem and hearing about the case of Paul. Now we see that as soon as the Jewish gang arrived Festus does not delay anymore and convenes the court.

Are you delaying something? More importantly if you are delaying is there someone suffering because of the delay?

Some need to pray.

Some need to give.

Some need to go.

Today.

This is your moment and you have come for such a time as this. No delay. Do what you are being tasked to do. Fulfil your duties. Whatever has been passed to you, no matter if the past couldn’t or wouldn’t deal with it, this is the moment. No delay.

Innocent until proven ….

Acts 25:16 “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.”

Two thousand years ago, Roman custom said there are 2 sides to every story.

But the other side of the story takes time to listen to; it also seems pointless because our mind is made up; it would also suggest that the ‘perfect’ and ‘just’ side may not be completely correct.

Two thousand years later we still don’t like the Roman custom, other than we are a defendant.

Those who are ‘right’ are wanting a quick trial, outcome, sentence, decision and victory.

Sometimes truth is not the goal, being ‘right’ is.

May the Church return to the Roman custom.

 

Watch for own goals.

Acts 25: 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.”

A couple of weeks ago whilst watching my favourite football team I marvelled at the goal scored by one of our great players. It really was a well-timed goal. The goalkeeper had no chance of saving it. The problem was it was an own goal. The player scored against our team, his team! I was speechless! Why did he do it? I am not sure. It was an accident obviously. Well I hope it was!

Paul is chained awaiting trial.

Festus begins to tell Agrippa about the case.

One of the greatest Gentile influencers from the Jewish world was being pursued by his own.

Paul was a Pharisee. He knew every street in Jerusalem. He was familiar with the Temple. In fact the problem had begun there. He knew the chief priests by name. He had journeyed with the elders. He shared the same faith, traditions, the laws and the culture. He was one of their own. Now they were condemning him.

Talk about an own goal!

Who needs an opponent when own goals are scored? Who needs an enemy when we self-defeat? Who needs an attack when we implode from within? Be careful who we try to bring down because if not careful we could end up losing the best thing that has happened in our generation.