Acts 25-26

Please take out your copy of God's Word, which I pray you have with you, that it's well read and treasured in your hearts this morning.

And turn with me to the book of Acts, chapter 25.

Acts 25 · chapter mention

If you were with us last spring and then not for the summer and you're back now, yes, we are still in the book of Acts.

We are hastening our way to its end, however, moving rather quickly, not because we are tired of the book of Acts,

but because the story hastens us to the end.

Back in chapter 21, Paul's back in Jerusalem and he's arrested there for no good reason.

But the Jews bring up charges against him, blaspheming the temple, causing false worship of God.

And the Romans, evil men that they were, are used by God to rush in and to rescue Paul from certain death at the hands of the Jews.

And we've been walking now through the subsequent chapters, looking at various trials that Paul is standing.

Different places have been.

Last week, chapter 24, he stood trial before the Roman governor, Felix.

And they concluded there was nothing really he could be charged for, but he held him anyway for two years.

And at the end of chapter 24, Felix is, he wasn't a very good governor, so he's removed from his post.

And he's replaced by a man named Festus.

So we saw that at the very end of chapter 24, verse 27 says,

When two years had elapsed, Felix was succeeded by Portius Festus.

And desiring to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison.

And so today we're going to look at chapters 25 and 26.

Yes, both chapters all together, although we'll come and focus in on just a few verses.

But I am going to read it for our benefit.

It only takes about eight minutes, so hang with me in the text.

I'll pause from time to time and just make some comments, some clarifying comments,

hopefully to keep you on the same page.

You're understanding what's happening in this episode of Paul's life.

But before I do that, let me just introduce to you, in real brief, three characters that you're going to hear in this story.

Obviously, we have Paul as a primary character.

Festus, who I already mentioned, Roman governor of Judea, successor to Felix.

We have King Agrippa, who was the Jewish client ruler of Judea.

And that is to say, he ruled the region that was ruled by a higher power, which in our story is Rome.

He was granted power by Rome to rule the religious life of the Jews in Judea.

He would have appointed the high priest, and he would have judged matters of Jewish law.

So he's underneath the authority of Rome, but still holds quite a bit of power for Jewish worship.

And then we're also going to see Bernice, who is Agrippa's younger sister.

Just as an interesting historical aside to you, it's most likely that they were also lovers.

So you, King Agrippa, but this is what's happening.

This is why she's probably with him at this trial.

So, beloved, this is God's word to us.

It was written for his glory and for our good.

We would all do well to listen to it in order to believe its promises and to obey its commands.

We see in Acts 25, verse 1, Luke writes,

Acts 25:1

Now, three days after Festus had arrived in the province, he went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea.

I'll stop for a moment here to remind you that Caesarea was the Roman capital of Judea,

but Jerusalem is still the center of Jewish life.

It's in a higher elevation, so everything goes up to Jerusalem or down from Jerusalem.

And he travels there to earn favor with the Jewish population.

Festus, as a governor, a Roman governor, was charged with keeping the peace in the province.

And so he goes to pay his dues, as it were.

We also will see that he's apt to grant favors to the Jews to gain their approval of him being there in that region.

Verse 2,

And the chief priests and the principal men of the Jews laid out their case against Paul.

And they urged him, asking as a favor against Paul that he summon him to Jerusalem,

because they were planning an ambush to kill him on the way.

Festus replied that Paul was being kept at Caesarea, and that he himself intended to go there shortly.

So, said he, let the men of authority among you go down with me,

and if there's anything wrong about the man, let them bring charges against him.

After he stayed among them not more than eight or ten days, he went down to Caesarea.

And the next day he took his seat on the tribunal and ordered Paul to be brought.

But when he had arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him,

bringing many and serious charges against him that they could not prove.

Paul argued in his defense,

Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar,

have I committed any offense.

And this is a duplication of Paul's previous trial before Felix,

which was two years prior.

Standing in the same place, he's now again having to defend against these same false accusations.

Verse 9.

But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, said to Paul,

Do you wish to go up to Jerusalem and there be tried on these charges before me?

But Paul said,

To Caesar you have appealed.

To Caesar you shall go.

Now, Paul's appeal to Caesar was his right as a Roman citizen.

Although Festus did not have to grant the request to Paul,

the complication of the matter and his charge to keep the peace in Judea

made Paul's appeal a convenient out for Festus.

It was his chance to say,

Oh, well then okay.

Festus was a fairly unseasoned governor.

He was very young.

And you'll note in verse 12 that he confers with his council.

Is this a thing we should do?

Is he within his right as a Roman citizen?

They say,

Yes, he is.

And he uses it as an opportunity to escape what could happen

if he doesn't put Paul on trial.

Now remember that after Paul's trial before the Sanhedrin in chapter 23,

when he's experiencing a great discouragement,

Jesus shows up and encourages him with the following from Acts chapter 23 verse 11.

Acts 23:11

Luke records this,

The following night the Lord stood by him and said,

Take courage,

for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem,

so you must also testify in Rome.

So Paul has been given clear instruction by Jesus himself, right?

Jesus encourages him by saying,

I'm going to preserve your life unto Rome.

I still have a purpose for you to go to that place.

And Paul seizes the opportunity to bring this to pass.

He exercises his Roman right and he says,

I appeal to Caesar.

Verse 13.

Now when some days had passed,

Agrippa the king and Bernice arrived at Caesarea and greeted Festus.

And as they stayed there many days,

Festus laid Paul's case before the king saying,

There is a man left prisoner by Felix.

And when I was at Jerusalem,

the chief priests and the elders of the Jews laid out their case against him,

asking for a sentence of condemnation against him.

I answered them that it was not the custom of the Romans

to give up anyone before the accused met the accusers face to face

and had opportunity to make his defense concerning the charge laid against him.

So when they came together here,

I made no delay,

but on the next day took my seat in the tribunal

and ordered the man to be brought.

When the accusers stood up,

They brought no charge in his case of such evils as I supposed.

He's saying they brought silly charges.

That wasn't what I thought they were going to be.

Verse 19.

Rather,

they had certain points of dispute with him

about their own religion

and about a certain Jesus

who was dead,

but whom Paul asserted to be alive.

Being at a loss,

how to investigate these questions,

I asked whether he wanted to go to Jerusalem

and be tried there regarding them.

And I love what he basically says is,

I don't have a way of affirming whether or not Jesus is alive.

So I asked him if he wanted to go to another trial.

Verse 21.

But when Paul had appealed to be kept in custody

for the decision of the emperor,

I ordered him to be held until I could send him to Caesar.

Then Agrippa said to Festus,

I would like to hear the man myself.

Tomorrow, said he,

you will hear him.

So on the next day,

Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp

and they entered the audience hall

with the military tribunes

and the prominent men of the city.

Then at the command of Festus,

Paul was brought in.

And Festus said,

King Agrippa and all who are present with us,

you see this man about whom

the whole Jewish people petitioned me,

both in Jerusalem and here,

shouting that he ought not to live any longer.

But I found that he had done nothing deserving death.

And as he himself appealed to the emperor,

I decided to go ahead and send him.

But I have nothing definite to write to my lord about him.

Therefore, I have brought him before you all

and especially before you, King Agrippa,

so that after we have examined him,

I may have something to write.

For it seems to me unreasonable in sending a prisoner

not to indicate the charges against him.

So it's interesting to note at this point

that Festus isn't even sure

under what charges he would send Paul to Rome.

It's very vague,

the charges that are placed against him.

He's hoping to gain some clarity

in matters of Jewish religious law.

All of the injustice that Paul is experiencing

is due to his proclamation of Jesus as the Christ.

And this is not inconsistent with Jewish belief.

They believed in a Messiah,

particularly the part of Judaism that he was,

a Pharisee.

They believed in the resurrection of the dead.

He's just saying,

this has happened.

The thing that you guys believe,

I believe,

but I believe it rightly

because Jesus is the Christ.

And this is infuriating to them.

Just as Jesus was unjustly tried and crucified,

Paul is being held for crimes

that he did not commit.

The student is certainly not greater than his master.

Chapter 26, verse 1.

So Agrippa said to Paul,

you have permission to speak for yourself.

Then Paul stretched out his hand

and made his defense.

I consider myself fortunate

that it is before you, King Agrippa,

I'm 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.

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 and 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?

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.

So he's saying,

I was a Pharisee,

the strictest order of Jews,

looking to the promise of the Old Testament

that the prophets had made.

And I was zealous against what's called the way,

against Jesus of Nazareth.

We know that Paul was present

at the stoning of Stephen,

the first Christian martyr.

It would appear that he voted for the death of others

as well that may not be recorded in the book of Acts.

He possibly, quite possibly,

was part of the Sanhedrin,

part of that ruling group of Jews.

Well known.

He's saying,

these men know the kind of Pharisee that I was.

So it's likely that he's amongst his peers

in Judaism being accused.

Verse 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.

In this connection,

I journeyed to Damascus

with the authority and commission of the chief priests.

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 so that you're not distracted by that.

Goads were sharpened rods used to prod cattle.

So all that Jesus is saying to him,

and he would have understood,

is that it's futile for you to resist

God's will in the world.

What a silly thing for a cow to do

to kick against a stick made

to make them move forward.

Verse 15.

And I said,

Who are you, Lord?

And the Lord said,

I am Jesus,

whom you are persecuting.

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,

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.

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.

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 of Moses said

would come to pass,

that the Christ must suffer,

and that by being the first to rise from the dead,

He will proclaim light both to our people

and to the Gentiles.

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.

That is to say,

the spread of the gospel,

the teaching of the gospel,

wasn't hidden from him.

He was fully aware of the teaching of the gospel

of Jesus Christ.

Verse 27, and we're almost there.

King Agrippa,

do you believe the prophets?

I know that you believe.

And Agrippa said to Paul,

in a short time would you persuade me

to be a Christian?

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.

Then the King rose,

and the governor and Bernice,

and those who were sitting with them.

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.

So, I have posited to you before

that I believe it is correct

to think of Luke's account,

most often referred to

as the Acts of the Apostles,

as the second of a two-volume work.

The first, we call the Gospel according to Luke,

is an account of Jesus' earthly ministry.

The second is an account

of Jesus' ascended ministry

in the life of His apostles

by the agency of the Holy Spirit.

This is why I prefer to call this work

the Acts of the Holy Spirit

or the Acts of the Ascended Jesus.

I'm sure I never will,

but if I ever work as a Bible translator,

that's the way my suggestion would go.

In Matthew 28, verses 18-20,

Matthew 28:18–20

before Jesus ascended,

He said,

I hope you're familiar with this,

He said to His apostles and to us,

all authority in heaven and on earth

has been given to Me.

Go therefore and make disciples

of all nations,

baptizing them in the name of the Father

and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

teaching them to observe

all that I have commanded you,

and behold, I am with you always

to the end of the age.

He says, in essence,

I possess all power over all things,

and I want you to go and make disciples.

Don't be troubled in your making of disciples,

for My power, My provision,

and My presence will be with you.

We often misread this, right?

The Great Commission,

the command for us to go on,

to go and work for Jesus,

and miss that He so carefully sandwiches

in the middle of us going and making disciples

that the authority belongs to Him

and that He is with us.

He's made these beautiful promises for us

in the process of our disciple-making,

of Paul's disciple-making.

And how is it that Jesus' promise is accomplished?

How is it that He is with us?

His authority and His power is with us.

Acts 1.8.

Again, before Jesus is ascended,

He says,

You will receive power

when the Holy Spirit has come upon you,

and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem

and in all Judea and Samaria

and to the end of the earth.

The early disciples received the Spirit

in a unique way on the day of Pentecost.

And now, all who place saving faith

in Jesus Christ have been given the Spirit.

And that Spirit produces in us

obedience to Jesus' commands.

Observe Paul's immediate obedience

from our text today.

Chapter 26, verse 19 and following.

He says,

Therefore, O King Agrippa,

I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision.

But declared first to those in Damascus.

This is where He was, right?

He was in Damascus,

and He began immediately

to be a witness to who Jesus is.

Then, in Jerusalem,

so catch Acts 1.8,

in Jerusalem,

and throughout all the region of Judea,

and also to the Gentiles,

which would be to say,

to Samaria and to the ends of the earth.

That's an immediate obedience

to what Jesus said would happen

in Acts 1.8.

So, Jesus' earthly ministry

is continued in His ascended ministry

in the lives of His followers

by the agency of the Holy Spirit.

Beloved, that's where we find ourselves today,

in the continuation of that ministry.

Luke ceased recording

at the end of Acts 28.

But the church lives on

and carries the ministry of Christ

as He is with us

and as He has all authority.

So today, let's observe

six things that Jesus works to do

through Paul and us.

So this is your outline for today.

Six things that Jesus works to do,

aims to do,

through Paul,

and through us.

Number one,

to go and tell.

To go and tell.

Chapter 26, verse 16.

In the middle of verse 17,

Jesus says,

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.

In verse 17,

the middle portion,

to whom,

the Gentiles,

to whom I am sending you.

Jesus sent Paul

and He sends us

to be a servant

and witness

to what He had done

and to what He would do.

Jesus emptied Himself

of the glories of Heaven

to become a man

in order to be

a servant

and a witness

to the Father.

And He said in John 20,

John 20:21

verse 21,

As the Father has sent Me,

even so,

I am sending you.

So,

go and tell.

This is God's will

for you

in Christ Jesus.

And in our going and telling,

Jesus intends to save

all who call upon His name,

all who believe in Him

for their salvation,

all who He died

to save.

Jesus' ascended ministry

is the justification

and sanctification

of His church.

So we can have

a great confidence

in our going and telling

as we are merely tools

in the hands

of Him

who all authority

in Heaven and on Earth

has been given.

We can join with Paul

in saying,

Romans 1,

Romans 1:16

verse 16,

For I am not ashamed

of the Gospel,

for it is the power

of God

for salvation

to everyone

who believes.

In Paul's telling

of Jesus' words

to him

on the Damascus road,

he presses further

that confidence.

Look at the following things

that Jesus works to do

through Paul

and through us.

That was number one,

to go and to tell.

Number two,

to open the eyes

of unbelievers.

Jesus works to do this

through Paul

and through us.

The first part of verse 18,

to open their eyes.

Paul was made blind

on the Damascus road

to later be given sight.

In the same way,

Jesus makes those blinded

to the truth

able to see

and live.

Paul wrote to the

Corinthian believers

in 2 Corinthians 4,

2 Corinthians 4:4

verse 4,

In their case,

those who don't believe,

in their case,

the God of this world

has blinded the minds

of the unbelievers

to keep them

from seeing

the light of the gospel

of the glory

of Christ

who is the image

of God.

So,

unbelievers

have darkened

vision,

darkened hearts.

They cannot see

the glorious truth

of the gospel.

But,

our text this morning

tells us

that Jesus

aims through

our evangelism

to bring about

spiritual sight,

to take the spiritually

blind

and give them

sight.

But how?

How is it that

He works this?

Paul goes on

in 2 Corinthians 4,

2 Corinthians 4:6

verse 6,

and saying,

For God who said,

Let light shine

out of darkness,

has shown in our hearts

to give the light

of the knowledge

of the glory of God

in the face

of Jesus Christ.

Paul states

that the all-powerful God

who spoke light

into existence,

said it

and it appeared,

births believing faith

into the hearts

of men.

So,

when Jesus says

to Paul,

I am sending you

to open their eyes,

we should rightly

understand

that we are

instruments

in His saving

purpose.

God saves people

through the proclamation

of the Gospel.

So,

we go and

proclaim

as God

works

to make the blind

see.

Jesus also

works

in the life

of Paul

and in our lives

to turn

unbelievers

from darkness

to light.

the second part

of verse 18.

18b,

if you will.

To open their eyes

so that

they may turn

from darkness

to light.

The heart

of an unbeliever

is dark.

John writes

in 1 John 1

1 John 1:5–7

verses 5-7,

this is the message

we have heard

from Him

and proclaim

to you

that God

is light

and in Him

is no darkness

at all.

If we say

we have fellowship

with Him

while we walk

in darkness,

we lie

and do not

practice

the truth.

So,

these metaphors

are being used

for the way

of righteousness

and the way

of wickedness.

The light

is righteousness

and the darkness

is wickedness.

John goes on

to say,

but if we walk

in the light

as He is in the light,

we have fellowship

with one another

and the blood

of Jesus His Son

cleanses us

from all sin.

So,

Jesus works

to make the unbelievers

see with spiritual eyes

so that they will not

walk in the darkness

in the evil ways

of the world

but in the light

of the truth.

And it is good

to be in the light.

Jesus also works

works

to open the eyes

of unbelievers.

Number four,

to deliver unbelievers

from the power

of Satan.

We'll call it

18c,

verse 18c,

so that they may

turn from the power

of Satan

to God.

The unbeliever

is turned from the power

of Satan to God

through the giving

of spiritual sight

because Satan's

only power

is the power

of deception.

In John 8,

John 8:44

verse 44,

Jesus calls Satan

the father of lies.

In Ephesians 6,

Ephesians 6:11

verse 11,

Paul instructs believers

to,

in order to avoid

the powers of the world,

put on the whole

armor of God

that you may be able

to stand against

the schemes

of the devil.

And he lists

as the first

and last

metaphorical items

to put on

as the armor of God.

In verse 14,

the belt of

truth.

In verse 17,

the sword

of the Spirit,

which is the

Word of God,

which is the

Scripture.

Scripture.

Gospel proclamation

has such great power

because by it,

Jesus makes people

believe the truth.

He unbinds them

from the many

varied deceptions

of Satan

and turns their hearts

toward the truth.

If you are in Christ

today,

if you have believed

in Him,

it is because belief

has been worked

in you.

You have believed

the truth

because you are

a child of God

and no longer

a child of the devil.

Well,

Jesus works this

through the life

of Paul

and in our lives

as well.

He also works

to bring about,

and we are going

to take five

and six together,

to grant

unbelievers

forgiveness

of sins.

Five.

Number five.

And number six,

to give unbelievers

a place

in the kingdom.

The last part

of verse 18.

18D.

That they may receive

forgiveness of sins

and a place

among those

who are sanctified

by faith

in me.

That is to say

that by believing

in Jesus Christ,

they would be

justified.

To be justified

is to be declared

righteous.

But it has two

components to it.

It's a legal

declaration.

We stand before God

and we're declared

justified.

And the two sides

of that are

the forgiveness

of sin,

this infinite debt

that we could not

pay because of

our infinite

disobedience

against an infinite

God.

The darkness

not able to dwell

with the light.

We needed

forgiveness of sin.

There's nothing

we could do

in order to gain

that forgiveness.

forgiveness.

But we have it

in Jesus'

sacrifice

on our behalf.

He was put forth

as a propitiation,

as a replacement

sacrifice

for us.

He stood

in our place.

In our stead,

He died.

He was the only

one that could

accomplish this.

That could bear

the infinite

wrath of God

against our

sins.

That's one side

of justification,

right?

The infinite debt

of your sin

has been dismissed

if you've been

declared justified.

Now, that's not enough.

You're just brought

up to zero now.

But we must also

keep the law

to be found

right before God.

We must be

righteous before God.

And so,

the granting

of righteousness

is also part

of justification.

That Jesus came

and lived

a perfect life

was necessary

for us.

He fulfilled

the law

that we might

have His

righteousness.

And so,

when we believe

in Christ,

both things

are imputed

to us.

It's called

double imputation.

Our sin

cast off

onto Christ,

His righteousness

given to us.

Wonderful verse

that sums this up

so well.

2 Corinthians 5,

2 Corinthians 5:21

verse 21.

For our sake,

God made Christ

to be sin

who knew no sin

so that in Him

we might become

the righteousness

of God.

So,

believers are granted,

unbelievers are granted

forgiveness.

They become believers

and they're given

a place by righteousness

in the kingdom.

5 and 6.

So,

Paul,

right,

Paul believed.

Paul believed

in the gospel

of Jesus Christ.

And we see him

as one character

in this story

responding to the truth

proclaimed.

He tells us of it

proclaimed to him

by Christ Himself.

Right?

And he responds

in belief.

Right?

His belief

which is evidenced

by his obedience.

What does he do?

He immediately

goes and does

the thing

that Christ

commanded him

to do.

And in the same way,

beloved,

in our day,

we can't simply say,

right,

when I was a child,

I prayed a prayer.

I can't with confidence

when my young children

say to me,

I believe in Jesus,

go,

yay!

I go,

I really hope so.

Let's see.

Let's see.

Is there an evidencing

of your faith

in Jesus Christ?

Work out your salvation

with fear and trembling.

Make your calling

and election sure.

And I don't want to make this

extra complicated for you.

I'm not trying to make it

mystical for you.

How do we ever know

if we're a Christian?

You obey.

You find in yourself

the desire

to pursue holiness.

If you find that your life

is entirely bent

against the commands of God,

then you're not a Christian.

If you come to church

and you find yourself

offended because you

don't want to change,

you may not

be a Christian.

If you find rather yourself

gladly submitting yourself

to the Word of God,

going,

God has given me

good commands.

I want to please Him.

And I don't do so perfectly,

but oh,

I want to.

Right?

My sin grieves me

and it grieves me

the more I mature

in Christ.

What a wicked,

horrible thing

that I've been set

free from sin

and yet I still,

like a dog,

return to my vomit.

You'll find that impulse

within yourself.

Make your calling

and election sure.

Measure it out

by your obedience.

Not that you're

perfectly obedient,

you hear me say,

but that you are

striving for obedience.

This is an evidence

that the Spirit of God

lives within you

and He's working

to bring about

obedience in you.

We're caught up

in our American

Christian culture

of decisionism.

Right?

It's wicked.

It's deceptive.

And if it's deceptive,

you know who it belongs to?

Amen.

We see another character

in our text today.

Festus.

Who thought that the gospel

was absolute foolishness.

Right?

He doesn't even entertain

the idea.

He says to Paul

in verse 24,

Paul, you're out

of your mind.

Your great learning

is driving you

out of your mind.

He saw Him

as absolutely crazy.

And beloved,

we're going to deal

with people like that

in the world.

That's not changed.

There's no new thing

under the sun.

People are going to think

that the way of Jesus

is insanity.

Right?

These people

have turned the world

upside down

following Christ

is the world

right side up.

Take a confidence

in that.

What a great benefit

it is that we can gather

as a church

and we can all look

around at each other

and say we're not crazy.

Right?

We're not alone

in this world.

Right?

These fantastic stories

that we believe

to be true,

we believe together

that they're true.

I'm so thankful

that Christ saved me

as an individual,

but He saved me

to a church,

a people for His possession.

I am increasingly encouraged

that other people

are crazy like me.

Festus thinks

it's absolute foolishness.

And then Agrippa.

I think Agrippa

is the most sad to me

because he had knowledge

but not belief.

And I think that many people

in our day fall into

this category of person,

the way they respond

to the gospel.

They have knowledge.

They're aware of it,

but they don't believe in it.

Or they say they believe in it,

but they don't believe.

It doesn't actually change

who they are.

Verse 26, Paul says,

For the King knows

about these things,

and to Him I speak boldly.

For I am persuaded

that none of these things

has escaped as noticed,

for it has not been done

in a corner.

He's aware,

he's informed about

this way,

this way of following

Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the fulfillment

of the Old Testament prophecies,

which is why he asks him,

Do you believe the prophets?

I know you believe.

I know you're standing.

You have to believe

the prophets.

And Agrippa's response to him

is in such a short time,

would you persuade me

to be a Christian?

It's particularly sad

when people have

access to

knowledge of the truth,

but don't place

believing faith

in it.

On your bulletin today,

there's a Spurgeon quote

as I like to use.

He said,

Wisdom

is the right use

of knowledge.

To know

is not to be wise.

Many men know

a great deal

and are all

the greater fools

for it.

There is no fool

so great a fool

as a knowing fool,

but to know

how to use knowledge

is to have wisdom.

So,

in conclusion this morning,

believe

the exhortation

this morning

to you.

If you have not placed

saving faith

in Jesus Christ,

find in this moment

the day of your salvation.

You don't need

for me to lead you

in a prayer.

Cry out to God

that He would save

your soul.

Believe that He is

the only Son of God,

made man in order

to live a sinless life.

Sacrifice on a cross

for the forgiveness

of your sin.

Risen and ascended,

exalted

at the right hand

of the Father.

Open your eyes

so that you may turn

from darkness to light

and from the power

of Satan to God

that you may receive

forgiveness of sins

and a place among those

who are sanctified

by faith

in Jesus Christ.

If you have believed

in Christ

for the salvation

of your soul,

evidence that

belief

by obedience

heartily agree

with Paul's response

to Agrippa,

I would to God

that not only you

but also all

who hear me this day

might become

such as I am.

Let's pray together.