Walking Through Acts

We are continuing our walk through Acts where we have placed ourselves at

ground level with the people and the events that have transpired over the course

of Luke’s recorded account. We began in chapter one and today, we find ourselves

in chapter 26. Paul has gained an audience before men of renown; men of great

influence. You’ve got the new governor, Festus, as well as King Agrippa heading up

this big spectacle where every eye is fixed and every ear attentive on one man. It

is the man that we were introduced to for the first time in Acts chapter seven. At

the time, he was one of the greatest opponents of Christianity in the first century,

and today he stands defending it.

Last week, I ended with this thought. Almost everyone would have looked upon

Paul in this moment and would’ve felt a sense of pity or maybe gratitude that it

was not them who stood there in his place. For who would want to be in the

spotlight while bound in chains and subject to scrutiny beyond anything they’ve

ever experienced before. No, I doubt anyone would envy Paul’s plight here in

chapter 26. However, I am quite confident that Paul didn’t feel the same. He had a

calling on his life and a moment that he could go back to and reflect on which

changed his entire paradigm about life’s meaning and his purpose. Where he

stands today, in front of kings and governors and men of great influence, this was

the moment that he was made for.

Acts 26:1

So Agrippa said to Paul, “You have permission to speak for yourself.” Then Paul

stretched out his hand and made his defense:

Now this phrase, “stretched out his hand” is one that we’ve seen before. We’ve

seen it in earlier chapters in the book of Acts where it was meant to invite silence

before he spoke. But here, the Greek is a little different between the uses. Here in

chapter 26 it is meant to invoke the picture of Paul speaking in confidence and

with authority. One commentator puts it that he begins to “preach with power.”Lenski, a German born theologian says this, “Paul converted this great hall into a

church and acted as a preacher.”

It's the same thing we saw with Stephen in chapter 6. He took the Sanhedrin that

day to Church. Today, Paul is taking his audience to Church. From a worldly lens,

one would simply see a man bound in chains. From a spiritual lens, Paul saw

opportunity, not to win them to his side in the case, but to win them to Christ.

Now, most people today live their lives observing people and things and events

around them through a worldly lens. To them, the only things that are real are

those they can see, taste, touch, hear and feel. There is no thought about a

spiritual realm superimposed upon the physical world. And it is a very limited

perspective when one doesn’t grasp eternity in the present reality. It is

sleepwalking in the noonday, having a sense about the things around you, getting

from here to there and back again, but not truly being able to see.

But those who walk by faith and not just by sight are the ones who can see the

most clearly. And here today in our reading, Paul has a clear heart, a clear mind

and clear vision as he seizes the opportunity to preach to an auditorium full of

people who otherwise would have never heard the gospel under different

circumstances. How ironic that the man bound in chains had the opportunity to

set his listeners free through the preaching of the gospel.

Acts 26:2

2 “I consider myself fortunate that it is before you, King Agrippa, I am going to

make my defense today against all the accusations of the Jews

Now there is a bit of a double meaning here with the word “defense”. Sure, Paul is

going to address the allegations made against him. But the Greek word translated

into “defense” is apologeia. It’s where we get the term apologetics. It is literally

giving an answer for the hope he has in Jesus.

Remember Peter’s words in 1 Peter 3:15?

15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to

make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.Paul sees this informal trial as the door of opportunity to share the hope that he

has. And because Paul’s attention is directed toward King Agrippa, so should we

turn our attention to him in the next verse.

Acts 26:3

3 especially because you are familiar with all the customs and controversies of the

Jews. Therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.

Now King Agrippa, unlike Felix and Festus, had a deep knowledge of Jewish

religion and customs. He was, after all, the primary authority over the Temple and

it’s hiring and firing of priests.

Have you ever tried to talk to someone about something you were deeply

invested in (time/money) only to find out later they had no idea what you were

talking about? It’s not that they weren’t interested. It’s just that they didn’t know

enough about the subject to engage meaningfully in conversation about it. One of

the indications of this is when you get the response, “that’s wild.” After about the

third or fourth time getting that response, it’s probably time to move on to the

next subject.

Governor Felix and Governor Festus were both very interested in Paul’s case, but

they were unable to grasp the nuance that could only come from a previous

knowledge about the Jewish religion. And King Agrippa had that. And so now we

can better understand Paul when he says, back in verse two, “I consider myself

fortunate that it is before you, King Agrippa, I am going to make my defense

today.” Paul knew that he had someone that wouldn’t just listen to him, but one

that actually heard and understood him.

Acts 26:4-5

4 “My manner of life from my youth, spent from the beginning among my own

nation and in Jerusalem, is known by all the Jews. 5 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.Paul had been taught under Gamaliel. He was advanced for his age in his

knowledge of the law and quickly distinguished himself from his peers.

Remember, he has previously referred to himself as a Hebrew of Hebrews. He

even became a Pharisee, which out of all the sects of Judaism, was the most exact

and the most rigorous when it came to interpreting the law and its ceremonial

observances.

What Paul is doing here is sharing his testimony. And all testimonies have the

same formula. I was once this, but now I’m this. And this doesn’t just apply to

religion. If you go to various business websites, there are portions on their landing

page dedicated to testimonials. Why? Because there is very little else more

convincing than the firsthand experience of someone who has tried one of their

products.

Testimonies are powerful. “I had a very difficult time getting stains out of my

laundry, then I tried stain destroyer detergent 1000 and I no longer have any

stains.” “I used to always worry someone was going to break into my house

without me knowing, and so I installed burglar buster’s home security system and

I can finally sleep with peace of mind.” “I used to have spiders crawling all over my

walls, but Spider Fighter Max made them disappear.”

You want to know how I know testimonies are powerful? It’s because they work

even if the product being sold isn’t that great. This is a formula as old as time, and

it works over and over again. As Christians, we have a hope that will never fail us.

Don’t you think it’s worth telling someone about?

One may think that bringing a friend to Church to hear a compelling sermon is the

most effective way to win someone to Christ, but that isn’t true. And please

continue to invite your friends to Church, because that’s still needed, but it’s not

the most effective way to win someone to Christ. Your friends, co-workers, family

members want to hear it from you. They want to hear your testimony and your

story about how Jesus transformed your life. And because of their proximity to

you observing the difference your faith has made will be more effective than any

sermon I or any other preacher could preach. Your life is your witness to an ever-

watching world. There is power in your testimony.We are still in our three year plan called “One” where one of our areas of focus is

evangelism (Reach One). Our metric of success is this, “Over these three years, we

are to befriend one person and share Jesus with them.” We’re about a year and a

half into our three year plan. How are we doing with this challenge?

Let’s continue with Paul’s testimony. He is not ashamed of sharing it. In fact, it is

the very reason he stands before his audience today.

Acts 26:6-7

6 And now I stand here on trial because of my hope in the promise made by God

to our fathers, 7 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!

Paul is affirming that the very thing he preaches, Jesus as Savior of the whole

world, is that which the Law and the Prophets pointed to. And the hope that the

Jews have been long awaiting is finally here. The disagreement between Paul and

the Jews was not about the fine details of the Law and its observances, but that

the culmination and fulfillment of that Law became manifest through the person

and work of Jesus Christ.

Acts 26:8

8 Why is it thought incredible by any of you that God raises the dead?

Paul directs this both to King Agrippa and the rest of his audience. It is a question

pointed directly at an intellectual inconsistency regarding the doctrine that most

of the Jews held to. They were simply being disingenuous. They believed in

resurrection, but they couldn’t accept for themselves that Jesus himself was

resurrected. Because if Jesus had been raised from the dead, the claim that He

was the promised Messiah would be irrefutable.

Acts 26:9-11

9 “I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of

Jesus of Nazareth. 10 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 theywere put to death I cast my vote against them. 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.

Paul is telling everyone there, hey I understand where you’re at in your worldview.

I once held the exact same one. What Paul is doing here is identifying with his

audience. He’s saying, I’m no better than you. In fact, I was full of passion against

this thing called Christianity.

Can I just say, that in our evangelistic efforts, there is nothing more off putting

than a Christian carrying an air of superiority or arrogance towards those who are

lost. Yes, as a Christian, we can think in our minds, “we’re better off than them”,

(speaking of eternity), but we’re not “better than.” We’re “better off than”, but

not “better than.”

And here’s another thing. This may sound completely ridiculous, but I think it

needs to be said. We as Christians, beset upon accomplishing the mission Jesus

began all those years ago to seek and save the lost, we must want and deeply

desire non-Christians to come to saving faith in Jesus. We must want that. And you

may say, “well of course we all want that. Why wouldn’t we?”

Let me ask you this. Does your body language show it? Does the tone of your

voice show it? What would your social media posts reveal about how you really

feel about non-Christians? Many Christians today are angry and trust me, I know

there are a lot of things to be angry about. But we must be very careful not to fall

into the trap of self-righteousness.

One thing that changed my whole perspective about the world that is constantly

engaged in things that are not in accordance with God’s Word is this question.

“Why do we expect non-Christians to act like Christians?” We don’t even act as

Christians should sometimes. So why do we expect non-Christians to act like

Christians? The answer is simply this. We shouldn’t.

Here’s a good reminder directly from the mouth of the Apostle Paul.Ephesians 6:12

12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against

the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the

spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

When we understand this, our approach in witnessing to the lost becomes more

Christlike. And we’ve seen this time and again with Paul in his gospel

presentations. He doesn’t brow beat anyone and he isn’t condescending toward

them. He tries as much as he can to point them to Jesus.

We all know how we used to live and how we used to think before we were saved.

Every single Christian in here today had at one time or another, prior to our

conversions, a moment when God transformed us from the inside out. There was

a moment in time where we were confronted with our sin and convicted by the

Holy Spirit that prompted us to surrender ourselves completely to Jesus.

I can describe my own experience like this. I was at Church camp and I grew up

going to Church camp every year. 1st grade, 2nd grade, 3rd grade, 4th grade, and I

saw many kids getting baptized year after year and never felt the prompting to be

baptized myself until the summer between my 6th and 7th grade year. I remember

during our time of singing worship songs in the chapel, and you know me, I love

singing during worship songs. But this time, I remained completely silent, because

something struck me to my core. No doubt it was the Holy Spirit. The internal

dialogue being, there’s no way I could be forgiven for the things I’ve done. But the

Holy Spirit saying, Jesus died for you. But what about the hold that lust has over

my heart and my mind? Jesus can forgive you for those things and will give you a

new heart and a new mind. What about my selfishness? What about my

insecurities? What about all the hurt I’ve caused people in my past? What are you

waiting for Mark. Lay them down at the cross. God wrecked me that day (Logging

truck story). I did not leave the camp that year unchanged. I was baptized by my

Dad and it is a moment I will never forget. Let us not forget our own conversions.I know this is the third time we will be covering Paul’s conversion through our

Walk Through Acts, but no matter how many times we retell it, it should never get

old.

Acts 26:12-18

12 “In this connection I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and

commission of the chief priests. 13 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. 14 And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice

saying to me in the Hebrew language,[a] ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?

It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ 15 And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’

And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16 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, 17 delivering you from your people and from the

Gentiles—to whom I am sending you 18 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.’

Paul was on his way to persecute Christians, but had an encounter with Jesus that

changed him forever. When Jesus speaks to him, he says, “it is hard for you to kick

against the goads.” I love this phrase. It is one that was used to describe farmers

using sharp sticks to prod oxen. Every time the oxen would fight and kick back,

they would only cause themselves further pain. Isn’t that just like us from time to

time? We fight against God, and we only end up causing ourselves more pain and

grief that could have been completely avoidable.

Piano to play here.

Paul, as he threw Christians in prison and saw them executed, got himself deeper

and deeper in a hole, entrenched in his hate toward them. Little did he know, he

was fighting against the very God he thought he was serving, a battle that he

could not win. And on that day when Jesus appeared to him on the road to

Damascus, Paul’s opposition against him ended. And understanding that Paul was

blind at this point, gives another dimension of meaning in verses 17-18.“17 delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am

sending you 18 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.’”

Although Paul was physically blind, he was able to see with greater clarity than he

ever had before. As the account goes in Acts chapter nine, he receives his sight

back and is baptized commencing his newfound purpose as a Christian.

And it is for this very reason that Paul stands before his audience here in chapter

26. Who knows what the room felt like in that moment. Perhaps we can imagine it

being completely silent as everyone leaned in to hear what this man in chains had

to say. If we placed ourselves in that audience, what conclusions would we have

come to at this point in Paul’s discourse? Could all of these things be true of what

Paul is speaking about? Could Paul actually be innocent of all the allegations? No

doubt, these were the questions that were at the front of King Agrippa’s mind as

he sat there listening.