Acts 25

It was an ad in Christianity Today.

Christianity Today is an American journal.

and the ad at the back was Shoes of the Fisherman.

They were sandals that leave the greatest impression.

! $19.95 per pair.

And the idea is that you walk along the beach

and you leave a message in the sand.

So on one sandal there is a kind of raised impression of the name Jesus.

And on the other sandal is a raised impression with the word loves you.

So as you walk up and down the beach

you put one foot down and you put the other foot down

and you walk up and down the beach all day

and everyone on the beach gets the message

Jesus loves you.

And the text that went along with this

in the British one in Christianity Today was

How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news?

And the challenge of it was

it was possible to get more corny

what kind of impression do you want to leave?

Now it's really tacky isn't it?

Really tacky.

But actually it's a very good question.

What kind of impression do you want to leave?

And here is the Apostle Paul in this chapter

and he's in the hands of the authorities

he's on trial for his life

and the Jews have tried to assassinate him

they've tried to ambush him a few times

and the Romans have taken him into protective custody

for his own good

and they don't know what to do with him

so they pass the parcel with him.

They shunned him from one to the other

before finally sending him up to Rome

first it's Felix 24

then it's Festus

and then Festus brings in King Agrippa

who comes up to Caesarea

on a kind of courtesy call

and then they ship him off to Rome

to appear before the Emperor Nero

they're great names aren't they?

Felix the cat

Nero the dog

they were the great names of those days

weren't they?

Felix and Nero

we call our dogs

and cats

and we call our sons Paul

it just shows you doesn't it?

there's a great reversal

that's happened since

the New Testament

the names of the day

were Nero

he was Emperor in Rome

Felix was the Governor of Palestine

he was the worst Governor they ever had

Felix was eventually summoned to Rome

and was given a sack

and now Festus

now Festus is the guy who takes over

Uncle Festus

and anyway

Paul makes quite an impression

doesn't he?

before these people

Felix trembles

we saw in the last chapter

Agrippa says later on

I am almost persuaded

to become a Christian

whether he's being sarcastic or not

I'm not really sure

but Paul made quite an impression upon him

and this guy Festus loses his cool

he blows his stack

as I say he shouts at Paul

just look over the page

look at chapter 26 and verse 24

and as he was saying these things

as he was saying these things

in his defence

Festus said to the loud voice

Paul you are out of your mind

your great learning

is driving you out of your mind

you're going insane

now we're going to stay in chapter 25

but I think you'll agree

I wanted to talk to David Bansel

whether you'd be able to

just shout at him

in that way

in the courtroom

but it's pretty

it's pretty out of order

isn't it?

in a court of law

the judge should not be shouting

at the man in the dark

and saying

you're mad

you're mad

you're an idiot

Paul made quite an impression

in these circles

as he's shunted

from pillar to post

and there are three sorts of people

in verse 25

there's three attitudes of heart

that I think are quite clear

in Acts 25

attitudes towards the gospel

the first thing is

there is the hard heartedness

of the Jewish leaders

and I want you to be asking yourself

as we look at this chapter

what is the attitude of my heart?

you may think this evening

you can't possibly be hard hearted

I can't possibly be hard hearted

I wouldn't be in church would I?

but let me tell you this

it's very easy to be brought up

in a good church

and sit in a church

week by week

and to be as heart hearted

as you like

I know that I was like that

I was proud

and I was hard hearted

as a teenager

and we look at our hard heartedness

the closed mindedness

of these Jewish leaders

then secondly

we see the half heartedness

and the double mindedness

the half heartedness

of firstness

and then thirdly

the whole heartedness

of the Apostle Paul

so let's see the hard heartedness

of the Jewish leaders

and the key word here

is the word against

keeps cropping up

it comes up

it comes up twelve times

in this chapter

these men are against Paul

and they are against

everything that he stands for

let me show you that

very quickly

let me look at verses 1 and 2

that were three days

after Festus had arrived

in the province

he went up to Jerusalem

from Caesarea

and the chief priests

and the principal men

of the Jews

laid out their case

against Paul

and they urged him

asking us a favour

against Paul

they can't wait

to get their hands on him

can they?

you might have thought

they'd have forgotten about him

it's been two years

we found out that

from the reading

at the end of 24

it's been two years

in the last verse

when two years had elapsed

Phoenix was succeeded

by Porcius Festus

and desiring to do the Jews

a favour

Phoenix left Paul

in prison

so Paul was been

rotting in prison

for two years

and you might have thought

that was about time

for the Jews

to forget about him

but Festus

has not even had time

to unpack his suitcases

and they're knocking

at the door

look at verse 3

asking us a favour

urgently requesting

Festus

to have Paul

transfer to Jerusalem

they're coming for Paul

they carry out

this vendetta

against him

and the tense

of the verb

in verse 3

is they keep on

asking

asking as a favour

against him

against Paul

continually asking

they won't take no

for an answer

and when you look

at verse 3

you see what's

motivating them

isn't just a

simply

a concern

for law and order

what are they wanting

at the end of verse 3

because they were

planning an ambush

to kill him on the way

they want this man dead

and they don't care

how it happens

whether it's legally

through a court of law

or whether it's

illegally

through assassination

they want Paul

silenced

and when Festus

refuses to bring

Paul to Jerusalem

do you notice

verse 4

he invites them

to Caesarea

they don't waste

any time at all

verse 4

as soon as Festus

gets back to Jerusalem

the very next day

they are there

aren't they

they're there again

banging on the door

9 o'clock in the morning

the very next day

they can't even wait

for the child

to start to mob him

they surround him

they gang up on him

and any charge

will do as long

as it'll stick

can't you see

that what you've got here

is indiscriminate

deep seated

implacable

hostility

there's nothing

reasonable about it

oh look at verse 15

verse 15

they ask for the

death sentence

and when I was at Jerusalem

the chief priests

and the elders of the laws

laid out their case

against him

asking for a sentence

of condemnation

against him

but look at the way

in which they ask

him to be condemned

I would have thought

if you believe

in the death penalty

it's a very horrible

thing isn't it

you would be very

serious about that

but look at verse 24

Agrippa gives us

a bit more information

and Fester 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

are here

shouting that he ought

not to live

any longer

do you see the scene

here

they're being for blood

aren't they

Paul the prisoner

is cool

calm and collected

and everyone else

is angry

everyone else

is shouting at him

his accusers

are shouting at him

and the judge

is shouting at him

Paul you're on your mind

you are insane

and the question is

why is it

why such anger

why such hostility

why such unreasonable

implacable

hatred towards Paul

and the message

that he preaches

what lies behind it

why are they so desperate

to silence him

why do they want him dead

it's a strange thing

but I think it's this

it's psychologically proven

isn't it

that often people

will accuse others

unfairly

and passionately

of the very things

that they themselves

are guilty of

won't they

in fact

the more unreasonable

and the more angry

they are

the more likely

they are to be guilty

of the very thing

that they are accusing

other people of

it's a phenomenon

it's well recognised

isn't it

by psychologists

so we live

don't we

in the days

I think it's beginning

to die out a little bit

but we live

in the last five years

in the days

of angry atheists

don't we

have you met them

the Dawkins Delusion

isn't it

oh goodness knows

how many million copies

there's dozens of those

books aren't there

if you go into the bookstore

Christopher Hitchens

book

God Isn't Great

some of us saw a really

good video with

Douglas Wilson

and Christopher Hitchens

have you still got it Chris

probably somebody's borrowed it

and not given it back

it's a really good video

but I came across

this really interesting

article when I was looking

for that DVD this week

about Professor Sir Anthony

Flew

does anybody know him

Stuart

that's encouraging

Sir Anthony Flew

was one of the biggest names

in philosophy of his day

he was behind

logical positivism

which you all know

what that is

but he was for years

and years

most of his career

he was known as

the world's most

outspoken atheist

and then he became

a Christian believer

let me read you

what the article said

one of the 20th

most renowned atheists

and influential philosophers

has accused Richard Dawkins

of the God delusion

theme

of being a secularist

bigot

and an amateur

in his use of

academic scholarship

he goes on to say this

Professor Anthony Flew

now 85

three years ago

was for decades

one of the world's

foremost philosophical

authorities

his work was studied

by hundreds of

thousands of students

it was his intelligence

combined with his

profound atheist views

that led him to be

one of the most

foremost opponents

proponents of Christianity

in the western world

his blistering attack

on Richard Dawkins

the Oxford Don

comes just months

after he shook

the academic world

by publishing the reasons

that he

the world's most

notorious atheist

had changed his mind

he's written a book

called

There Is A God

and this is what he says

about Dawkins

while he acknowledges

the remarkable achievements

of the God delusion

in selling over a million copies

he declares

which is much more remarkable

is that the contents

or rather the lack

of contents of this book

shows Dawkins himself

to have become

what he and his fellow

secularists typically

believe to be

an impossibility

namely

a secularist bigot

secularist bigot

you know what a bigot is?

a bigot is

isn't it

shout loud

the argument's weak

the argument is weak

shout louder

that's what a bigot does

and the argument is weak

so he just hurls insults

did you see Stephen Fry

on YouTube

the other week

just shouting his insults?

Christopher Hitchens' book

God Isn't Great

How Religious Poisons Everything

listen to what

Christopher Hitchens said

about six years ago

religion by its very nature

compels people

to behave cruelly

and violently

religion

educates its children

to hate unbelievers

and its grown-ups

to engage in slaughter

and conquest

in the name of God's glory

religion

obliges its true believers

to restlessly

circle the globe

subduing peoples

and nations

until the whole world

bows their knee

and that is what

people are saying about us

that is the kind of opposition

that is out there

Christians are dangerous

at least the fundamentalist

ones are

real Christians

who believe the Bible

are dangerous

and that is why

they are saying

because according to Hitchens

they hate people

who disagree

with them

they are violent

they are troublemakers

these fundamentalists

are a threat

to our stable

multicultural society

and we're better off

without them

that is what

some people are saying

that is what

the new atheists

are saying

although they're not

new out there

so if you regard yourself

as a true Christian

you are a violent

hate filled

murderous

fundamentalist

and the UK

would be a better place

without you

you feel

don't you like

saying to these people

about a God

who doesn't exist

you seem to protest

too much

why are you so angry

about a God

you don't believe in

there's something else

going on isn't there

what is going on

let me tell you

what's going on

there's a closed mindedness

and there's a hard heartedness

there

so let's move on

from the hard heartedness

of the Jewish leaders

there's nothing new

under the sun there

but notice secondly

the half heartedness

of Festus

look at that

look at verses 9 to 11

don't you love

the apostle Paul

verse 9

speaks to the judge

verse 9

well Festus says

if you wish to go up

to Jerusalem

and there be tried

on these charges

before me

Paul said

I'm standing

before Caesar's tribunal

where I ought to be tried

to the dude

I've done no wrong

as you yourself

know very well

if then I am a wrongdoer

and have committed anything

for which I deserve to die

I do not seek to escape death

but if there's nothing

to their charges

against me

no one can give me up to them

I appeal to Caesar

it's pretty straight talking

to the judge

isn't it

you can't set me up

to Jerusalem

I'm not prepared

to go to Jerusalem

and the point is

the interesting thing

do you notice

Festus has changed

his mind

verse 4 and 5

he refuses

three days after

taking office

he goes up to Jerusalem

and the Jews

want him to bring

Paul to Jerusalem

to stand a kind of

show trial in Jerusalem

and Festus refuses

Festus 4 and 5

Festus is strong

and firm

isn't he

no

but in verse 9

he moots the idea

with Paul

would you like to go up

are you willing to go up

do you fancy a trip

to Jerusalem Paul

what was he thinking

why the change of mind

why this change of policy

well because he's thinking

by himself

he's thinking

if I can pull this off

it looks very good

on TV

the clue is there

in verse 9

isn't it

what does he want

wants to do the Jews

a favour

it's not about justice

it's not about serving

justice

it's about serving

his career

in fact he was

a very very good

politician

he only lasted

two years in office

then he died

but whereas Felix

is known as the

worst ever governor

they ever had

Festus is known

as one of the best

so he was a good

guy in lots of ways

but he was a

double minded man

he's not motivated

by justice

but by self interest

what's good for me

so whereas the

Jewish leaders

had closed their

minds and hardened

their hearts

in truth

Felix is double

minded

look at verses

18 to 20

Felix is talking

to Agrippa

verse 20

verse 18

when the accuser

stood up

they brought no

charge in his

case of such

evils as I

suppose

rather they had

certain points

of dispute

with him

about their

own religion

a certain

Jesus

who was dead

but Paul

asserted to be

alive being at a

loss throughout

how to investigate

these questions

I asked whether

he wanted to go

to Jerusalem

and he tried

there

it's an

interesting

thing isn't

it

a dead man

can't remember

the details

a dead man

Jesus

who Paul claimed

was alive

first I said

I was at a

loss

I didn't know

what he was

talking about

I was quite

surprised

it wasn't

what I was

expecting

I looked

through Roman

legislation

I couldn't

find anything

about resurrection

I saw

something about

insurrection

and how to

deal with that

but resurrection

I had no

experience with

that

I don't know

how to deal

with that

in a court

of law

he's out of

his depth

he's clearly

out of his depth

he's not really

that interesting

in fact he's

quite dismissive

about it

it's some

dispute

some superstition

some finer

point of

doctrine

some sect

of the Jews

about a dead

guy Jesus

who Paul says

is alive

shrugs it off

but that is

the issue

isn't it

that is the

issue

first he's put

his finger

on what the

real issue

is

that is why

the Jews

are so angry

and so murderous

why because of

the resurrection

of Jesus

it's because

you see the

resurrection of

Jesus reverses

the verdict

of history

they thought

they got rid

of him

they thought

they tossed

him on the

scrap heap

like just

one of the

other dozens

of messiahs

so called

who popped

up

there have

been so many

of them

and they got

rid of them

and they thought

that's the end

of it

and this Jesus

whom you crucified

God has raised

from the dead

so where does

that leave you

no wonder

they're so angry

and if Jesus

is alive you see

from the dead

then to live

though he's dead

well then

who's the fool

so if it

really happened

and this is

just about

30 years

after the

event

if it really

happened that

this man

Jesus died

and Paul says

he came back

from the dead

and is alive

you just can't

shrug that off

you can't

shrug it off

as some

finer point of

doctrine

some philosophical

discussion

Paul insists

he is on record

isn't he

saying in

Corinthians

that if you

disprove the

resurrection

you dismantle

Christianity

because if

Christ is not

risen your

faith is in

vain your

preaching is

futile

if Jesus

died and

did not

rise then

the apostle

Paul says

I'm a fool

and so are

you for

being here

tonight

and Paul

is saying

I'm prepared

to admit

that

but if he

died and

then he did

come back

from the dead

then who's

the fool

now

Festus

and you

notice in

verse 26

of chapter 26

he says to

Festus and

Agrippa

this was

not done

this was

something that

was not

done in

a corner

this is

something

Festus said

can be

investigated

here is

something that

is on public

record

just 30

years down

the track

from when

it happened

and it's

the best

attested

fact in

human

history

Chuck

Coulson

he was

involved in

the Watergate

scandal and

he became a

Christian while

he was

serving in

prison

he was in

the White

House

this is

what he

said

commentating

on the 40

years

Christ's

disciples

never

backed

down

on their

witness

to the

resurrection

even to

the point

of martyrdom

he said

speaking about

the Watergate

scandal

we couldn't

hold our

stories together

for three

weeks under

that kind

of pressure

he said

I was around

the most

powerful men

in the world

but we

couldn't

hold the

lie

and if the

resurrection

wasn't true

those disciples

could never

have held

out

someone would

have dug

up the

tapes or

something

or maybe

something

else

maybe you're

a fan of

the Simpsons

I was told

this afternoon

I shouldn't

talk about

the Simpsons

but I want

to use this

illustration

those of you

who watch

the Simpsons

and I'm not

recommending it

you might know

of Lionel

Hatz

Lionel Hatz

is the

lawyer

in the

Simpsons

and Lionel

Hatz is

based on a

real life

lawyer

who is a

very different

character

to the guy

in the

Simpsons

Lionel Hatz

is based

on

Sir Lionel

who according

to the

Guinness

Book of

Records

is the

most successful

lawyer ever

he's apparently

245 consecutive

murder acquittals

which is

pretty impressive

isn't it

but he became

a Christian

at the age

of 64

and what

persuaded him

to change

his mind

was this

dead guy

called Jesus

who Paul

said was

alive

listen to

what the

world's

most successful

lawyer says

he says

I spent

more than

40 years

42 years

as a

defence

lawyer

appearing

in many

parts of

the world

I can say

unequivocally

that the

evidence for

the resurrection

of Jesus

is so

overwhelming

that there

is no

room for

doubt

you see

this is

bomb in

the building

stuff

isn't it

isn't it

let me

explain that

to you

if I

said to

you tonight

there's a

bomb in

the building

you're

obviously

not convinced

you

because

he's

still

sitting

here

but if

I

said

there's

a

bomb

in

the

building

there's

a

bomb

in

the

building

and the

flashing

lights

you start

to see

blue

flashing

lights

and you

hear a

helicopter

overhead

and you

start to hear

silence

coming up

great and

green

and then

some of

the bomb

disposal

rush through

those double

doors of

the back

and they

shout

there's a

bomb

in the

building

you will

not be

sitting here

for five

minutes

will you

go for

five

seconds

you'd

evacuate

the

building

straight

away

and the

resurrection

is that

kind

of

message

it is

not some

point of

doctrine

that the

Jews are

debating

some guy

Paul says

he's dead

but now he

says it's a lie

it is bomb

in the

building

kind of

stuff

and if

this man

called

Jesus

died

and came

back from

the dead

if the

tomb

was empty

in Jerusalem

if this

thing that

was not

dead in

a corner

if this

thing can

be proven

it's

bomb

in the

building

kind of

stuff

and you

cannot

go on

thinking about

your career

festus

if you only

knew it

actually you've

got two

years left

in your

career

anyway

you just

can't shrug

it off

if there

really is a

bomb in

the building

then it's

madness not

to do

anything

about it

and if

Jesus

really did

rise from

the dead

that is

what the

Bible teaches

and it's

the heart

of Paul's

gospel

then that

means the

end of

the world

has come

round

that we're

now living

in the

last days

that's what

the resurrection

signifies

that's what

the Jews

believed

the resurrection

meant

that is

what Paul

had in

common

with these

Jewish

leaders

they believed

that at the

end of the

age

there would

be

resurrection

of the

dead

and in

Jesus

that has

happened

and so

you can't

just shrug

your shoulders

and say

oh that's

interesting

isn't it

it's boring

the building

stuff

and you

cannot

continue

to be a

Jewish

leader

and not

recognise

Jesus

as the

Messiah

you cannot

continue to

be a career

politician

like Festus

and put

your career

first

as if

Jesus

had not

been raised

from the

dead

as the

thirdly

quickly

at the

wholeheartedness

of the

Apostle

Paul

it's

such a

contrast

isn't it

2 verses

24 and

25

of chapter

26

it wasn't

the first

time

and it

wasn't

the last

time

that

Christians

were called

mad

your great

learning is

driving you out

of your mind

George

Whitfield

in June

1736

he was the

great

18th century

preacher

really

and he was

preaching in

the town

of Gloucester

he preached

his first

sermon

in the first

church he

ever preached

it was such

a sermon

that apparently

15 people

were converted

on the spot

it was reported

to the bishop

somebody reported

to the bishop

that George

Whitfield had

driven 15

people mad

to which the bishop

replied

I hope their

madness lasts

till next

Sunday

you see when

somebody is

converted

when somebody

believes in

Jesus

when somebody

is born again

and begins to

take their religion

seriously

you are going

to be accused

of fanaticism

Tim Keller

in his brilliant

book The Reason

for God

says people

accuse us

of fanaticism

but the real

problem with us

as Christians

is that we're

not fanatical

enough

and that is

the problem

because if this

dead guy

Jesus came

back from the

dead and he

is alive

then we ought

to be a lot

more fanatical

aren't we

because that

signals the

end of the

world

that's the

next thing

on God's

calendar

it is

judgment day

and that

is the

significance

of the

resurrection

the very

fact that

it hasn't

happened yet

is because

God is

compassionate

he doesn't

want to be

encouraged

and he's

giving the

opportunity

for the

good news

to get to

the full

corners of

the world

but the

next thing

that is

going to

happen

in God's

scheme of

things is

judgment

he's served

notice on

the human

race by

raising this

man Jesus

from the

dead

and Paul

says to

the Athenians

anyone who

takes their

Christianity

seriously

is going to

be thought of

mad

remember

Jesus

Jesus'

family

thought they

were mad

let me

remind you

he's

preaching

in the

house

and such

a crowd

is gathered

that him

and the

disciples

aren't even

able to

eat

and then

he says

when his

family

heard that

that they

came to

take charge

of Jesus

because they

thought he

was going

out of his

mind

isn't that

strange

here's a

man who

is so

full of

the will

of God

word of

God

he's so

keen to

do the

will of

God

so

zealous

for the

glory

of God

and he

misses a

meal

and they

say you're

out of your

mind

he said

your work

colleagues

what did

you do

last night

I went to

church and I

worshipped God

on a Sunday

night

they think you're

out of your

mind

bizarrely there

are some

Christians who

say you go to

church on

Sunday night

they think you're

out of your

mind

if Jesus is

who he says

he is

and the

resurrection

proves his

claim for

right

who's insane

who's the

fool

so there are

people out there

they think that

the height of

madness is to

miss a meal

their God

is their

belly

it's the

height of

fanaticism

nothing more

important than

filling their

stomachs

at the proper

hour

and when they

see someone

for whom

something is

more important

they say he

is mad

he's out of

his mind

this week I

re-read briefly

a book by

Frankie Schaefer

his parents

Frank and

Edith Schaefer

started

Labrie and

they started

this denomination

and Frankie

Schaefer has

written a

tragic book

called Crazy

for God

and it's so

sad because

as you read

it what you

realise is

Frankie Schaefer

was never

converted

and what

Frankie Schaefer

saw in his

parents

in his

family

he thinks

was madness

fanaticism

fundamentalism

but I want to

say to you

that is exactly

what these

people were

saying to

the apostle

Paul

in the

verses 32

of chapter 26

the very

last verse

and Agrippa

said to

Festus

this man

could have

been set

free if

he had

not appealed

to Caesar

what kind

of nutcase

is he

he could have

been his

freedom

if he had

not appealed

to Caesar

they cannot

understand what

was making

Paul

what was

motivating him

what was

making him

tick

why would he

want to go

to Rome

of course

the reason

he wants

to go to

Rome

do you know

why the reason

he wants

to go to

Rome

is

well look

with me

in Acts

Acts 23:11

23

verse 11

Acts 23

Acts 23:11

verse 11

Jesus told

him

certainly

Acts 23

Acts 23:11

verse 11

and since I

could not see

because of the

brightness of that

light I was

led by the

hand by those

who were with

me and came

into Damascus

that's not the

right verse

because I'm in

the wrong

chapter

23 verse 11

following night

the Lord stood

by him and

said take

courage

for as you've

testified to

the facts about

me in Jerusalem

so you must

testify in Rome

so Paul wants

to go to Rome

Jesus told him

you will go to

Rome it's the

centre of the

world and there

in Rome you'll

appear before

Nero and Nero

will hear the

gospel and not

only will Nero

hear the gospel

but he was

apparently never

converted but the

guard the

praetorian guard

the crack troops

of the empire

who were sent

all around the

world some of

that praetorian

guard were

converted Paul

tells us

some of

Caesar's own

household

believed in

the Lord

Jesus

let me try and

tie this together

I want to ask

you tonight

what is your

attitude to

this message

what makes

you tick

what motivates

you

I've got

my grandfather's

watch

it's an

old fashioned

watch that

ticks

it's got a

loud tick

and the reason

it's got a

tick is because

it's got a

main spring

in the watch

your modern

watch doesn't

have one

but you

have a

main spring

in an old

watch that

makes it

tick

you have a

main spring

inside you

which makes

you tick

as a human

being

what motivates

you

what makes

you tick

what makes

you tick

what drives

you

I want you to

think about

that

is it the

gospel

is it this

message of

a Jesus

who was

dead

and is

alive

is that

what motivates

you

and when it

comes to

this message

you can sit

in church

and you can

be hard

hearted

and closed

minded

like the

Jewish leaders

implacably

hostile

blindly

prejudiced

my mind

is made

up

don't confuse

me with

the facts

I doubt

that is

you

because you

wouldn't

be here

but there

are people

like that

in churches

but it's

often more

subtle

listen to

this quote

by C.S.

Lewis

it's from

the great

divorce

the scene

is the

borders of

heaven

and there's

a lifelong

searcher

is being

invited

in

this is

what he's

told

I can

promise you

here is a

man who's

been searching

all his

life

apparently

I can

promise you

you've got to

scope for

your talents

only for

forgiveness

for having

perverted

them

no atmosphere

of inquiry

for I will

bring you to

the land

not of

questions

but of

answers

and you

will see

the face

of God

ah says