Pauls Defence — Acts 25-26

0:02 Well, it's good to be back. Thanks for having me back. I feel like there's been a lot of changes around these parts since I was last here. Some people got married. Some people got engaged.

0:20 We had a baby. Her name's Taylor. And everyone that I feel like I say that to, I have to say, not after Swift. I don't... It didn't even cross our minds.

0:33 If anything, it'd be named after that guitar because that's a Taylor brand guitar. So we'll we'll see. But it is good to be back. As you turn in your Bibles to Acts 26, know not to make anybody nervous, but I do listen to the messages even when I'm not here. And in the weeks leading up to this, Devin mentioned a couple weeks ago how he wanted to get in character so he didn't shave and came in here looking rather homely, I guess.

1:06 I didn't see him. I heard him. Last week, John said he wore sandals to try and get in character. Bible times, you know. And I told Amanda on the way here, I was like, I don't...

1:17 I got nothing. I can't think... I told Jeremy before this. And then I thought, my middle name is Paul. So I have come well equipped with everything I need to get in character.

1:30 And I would say that's probably one of the few things maybe Paul and I have in common. I aspire. But we'll be in Acts chapter 26. Let's read through our passage. It'll be eight verses.

1:42 Like John said last week, he wanted to go into chapter 26. I find myself wanting to go back into 25 a little bit. It's hard to do these these together, but we'll read. It says, now Agrippa said to Paul, you are permitted to speak for yourself. Then Paul stretching out his hand began to make his defense.

2:03 Concerning all the things of which I am accused by the Jews, I regard myself blessed, King Agrippa, that I am about to make my defense before you today, especially because you are an expert in all customs and questions among the Jews. Therefore, I beg you to listen to me patiently. So then all Jews know my manner of life from my youth, which from the beginning was spent among my own nation and at Jerusalem since they have known about me for a long time and if they are willing to testify that I have lived as a Pharisee according to the strictest sect of our religion. Now I am standing here being tried for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers. The promise which our 12 tribes hope to attain as they earnestly serve God night and day.

2:58 And for this hope, O king, I am being accused by the Jews. Why is it considered unbelievable among all of you if God does raise the dead? Let's pray. Father, we thank you again for the time to be here as we look at your word. Thank you for giving it to us that we can have a map to guide our way, Lord, that we might become more like you, those who are Christians in this room and those who maybe are here and are not, Lord, can read about you.

3:32 About the love that the God, the creator of all the universe, as was mentioned earlier in the earlier meeting, the God of all the universe who created all things would also be the one to send his son to die for us on the cross and we could receive forgiveness. Thankful for that this morning. Pray for your word this morning to bless it. In your name we pray, amen. So who was king Agrippa?

3:57 I won't spend a lot of time on this because John talked about it last week. But it's king Herod Agrippa II. Now, I know what you're thinking, and like John, I was also keen enough to pick up on if there's a second, there had to be a first. So we're looking at King Agrippa Junior here. And so he has come into town to congratulate Festus on his new appointment.

4:28 King Agrippa wants to hear about Paul from Paul himself. He's got to send a letter basically with Paul. I'm not going give a whole lot of background, so you've got to go listen to last week's if you want more of that. But Paul is there and he's going to be sent to the emperor to have an actual trial. King Agrippa comes to town who is, according to this, an expert in all things related to Jewish culture and customs.

4:59 And Festus has no idea what to write in these documents to send to the emperor, to Claudius. And so he asked basically for Agrippa to give him a little bit of help. And so King Agrippa says, I'd like to hear from him myself. And here we are. Verse one, and so Agrippa is there, Bernice is there.

6:09 And so right now, this is being fulfilled. I'm not real fast at math, but how many chapters later is that from nine to 26? How many years later is that in Paul's actual life? And I can't help but thinking I'm assuming this is an assumption on my part, so hopefully you give me this liberty but I'm assuming Ananias probably mentioned to Paul along the way, hey, just so you know, this is what God told me that you're going be doing. You're going to be before kings and the Gentiles and the people of Israel.

6:44 I wonder if he ever thought about that. You ever think about that? Did Paul ever consider like, alright, I've lived all these years. So far I'm working serving the Lord, but I've yet to be before a king. And I can't help but wonder if he thought when that day actually comes, if it played out how he maybe thought it was or would.

7:08 You know, if somebody came to me and said, Brian, I got a plan for your life and it involves you meeting the president of The United States, I would assume that I probably wouldn't be in shackles in front of the president. That would be my assumption. It would be some great award that I was getting for something I've done. But yet we find Paul here in shackles, in prison for two years at this point. And so he's standing before Agrippa.

7:40 He's already appealed. So last chapter, he's appealed to Caesar. And in Festus says, you've appealed to Caesar and to Caesar you will go. Paul actually could have went to this meeting and I know they didn't have the constitution, but he could have pled the fifth. He really didn't have to say anything else.

8:00 He's appealed to Caesar and really that should be his next step is go to Caesar. You make your case before Caesar. About this same time though, somewhere else over in The Middle East, there was another apostle. I don't know if you've heard of him before. His name is Peter.

8:21 And he writes this in one of his letters in first Peter chapter one or chapter three. It says, but even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed and do not fear their fear and do not be troubled, but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, being always ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you. I think, boy, that's literally what has happened here. Like he's literally standing before Festus and he wants to hear an account for this hope that is in him. Paul says it in verse six to jump a little bit ahead.

9:04 Peter says, the hope that's in you Paul says, verse six, being tried for the hope of the promise made by God. The hope that's in him. And so the emperor would have the final say ultimately in what happens with Paul. But it reminds me of several other spots in Paul's letters. We have a lot written by Paul in the New Testament.

9:36 And I took Jeremy's advice and I did not read every one of Paul's letters leading up to this as he said not to do that right before speaking. So I didn't. But I remember from Philippians chapter one, and you don't you don't have to turn there, but in verse 13, it's the one verse I didn't mark before this. In verse 13, it says, so that my chains in Christ have become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else. So Paul's going to ultimately make his defense before the emperor.

11:01 But we find that that is so not true. So to further illustrate this, back in chapter 25, right right toward the end, it says that that all of these people came in with pomp. You got Agrippa, again Bernice, Festus. They entered the hall accompanied by the commanders and the prominent men of the city at the order of Festus. And so they're all there.

11:35 And I looked up this word because I thought I don't ever remember reading anywhere else in the Bible the word pump. I could be wrong. Actually, know I'm not wrong because I looked it up and this is the only instance where I found it. It's according to Blue Letter Bible. But this word pump is fantasia.

11:58 That's the Greek word for it. And translated here, it's more meant as like a showy appearance. So like all the flash and you know the big parades and everybody is coming in and everybody's happy and dressed fancy and all of those things. Translated here, it's showy appearance. But this is where we get our English word, and I just said it a minute ago, for fancy or fantastic or fantasy.

12:25 And so the feelings, I can't help but think, the feelings of those in that room surrounding Paul, who were, if you read a little bit about church history, most people agree that Paul was a shorter man, not very appealing to the eyes. It's one of those things that I guess that's kind of relative, but just going off of what I've read. And he's been in prison, even if you want to debate that. He's been in prison for two years. Now, prison now versus prison back then, little bit different.

13:01 Probably in the same clothes that he was for two years. Maybe he got to change clothes, I don't know. Probably didn't have his old spice with him. He didn't have his favorite comb and all these things to get ready. And he's there and he's brought and set in the middle of all these people who are dressed in their best stuff that they have to offer.

13:23 The word pomp though, meaning fantasy. Two thousand years later, you and I have the completed word of God. And how opposite it actually was in that situation. You have the high and lofty people looking down on Paul, but we know two thousand years later, it really was quite the opposite. Paul, even in his chains, and he says this in his letters, has more freedom than any of those people in that room unless there were some silent Christians in there we don't know about.

13:56 Complete freedom. He was adorned in far more beauty than they were because he was adorned in Christ. And so picking back up in our text here, Paul eagerly outstretches his hands to make his defense for the hope that's in him as Peter would say, or the hope of the promise as Paul said in verse six. This is his fifth defense of the six defenses that he's ultimately going to give. Why would he eagerly consider himself blessed though to once again make his defense?

15:04 So then all the Jews know my manner of life from my youth which from the beginning was spent among my own nation at Jerusalem, since they have known about me for a long time if they are willing to testify that I lived as a Pharisee according to the strictest sect of our religion. Before Paul's conversion, if you remember back or have read this before, he was known as Saul. And throughout the ranks of the Jewish nation, there probably were very few people that knew who Saul was. Or very few people who did not know who Saul was rather. As a youth, he was not just born into the Jewish nation, but he was raised in it.

15:49 It's kind of like, well, I don't want to go down all these rabbit holes. But he wasn't just raised anywhere. He literally says in Jerusalem, there was no obscurity to his teaching, to what he was saying. So like, I say this affectionately because we homeschool our kids. And actually, I think all of my immediate family homeschools their kids.

16:14 But if you ever been in a situation, we do this in our house, where one of the kids maybe does something a little obscure. Didn't really have a great example to share, but they do something a little silly. And as parents, what do we say? You have to forgive them. They're homeschooled.

16:32 You know, we make a joke about it. And people do that with public schools. Like maybe they read a word wrong or spelled, so oh, sorry, was in public school. And so there's this obscurity to what people may say. Well, they ain't from around here, so that's just how they taught things there.

16:50 That wasn't the case here with Paul. He was trained in Jerusalem, The heart of all of it. So there was no obscurity to what was being taught. They were taught the same things. One commentator says, Jerusalem, this is where religion and learning flourished.

17:13 And so he was not just born there. He was raised there. He was educated there. And he wasn't just educated in... I'm having trouble getting the right words out here today.

17:25 He wasn't just educated in Judaism, but he observed it all and held to it. I know a lot about the piano, but I can't play the piano. Paul knew a lot about the Jewish cultures, the customs, all the Old Testament law, all those things, and he held to it. And there's a difference there. He didn't just know it in his head, he lived it.

17:55 And he wasn't just observing these things as a common man. He says, I a Pharisee. Not just a Pharisee. Verse five, mine says that I lived as a Pharisee. If you look it up in the actual Greek Bible, the word as is an applied or supplied word in the English.

18:18 So literally it reads, I lived a Pharisee. It wasn't like he was acting. He lived it. He lived what he had been taught. And he goes on even a little bit further.

18:30 If that wasn't far enough for you, he says, according to the strictest sect of our religion. The strictest sect. And his accusers knew this. And they could testify as much. Paul says it here.

18:48 Matthew Henry says it this way, the Puritan commentator. He says, talking about Paul, he was a better sort of Pharisees, for he was brought up at the feet of Gamaliel, who was an eminent rabbi of the school of the house of Hillel, is in much greater reputation for religion than the school or house of Sami. So it's kind of like today we'd say, well, I grew up on this side of the railroad tracks or this side of town. It had a better reputation. So the point I'm trying to make and what Paul is making is I did everything right.

20:29 I have done all of them right in my life. There's literally nothing in his past life that the Pharisees could point to that he could be accused of. Well, that they would want to point to that he was accused of because he did some things on behalf of the Pharisees that they probably didn't want to maybe mention. And so this takes us to verse six. It says, and now I'm standing here being tried for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers.

21:02 So I'm here on trial for having the audacity to actually believe all the promises that were made to our fathers. That's what he's saying. Because they all agreed on these things, but Paul actually believed that this had happened. That there really was a Messiah and he really came and he really did die and he really did raise again and then was resurrected. He says, the ones made by our fathers.

21:32 It goes all the way back to creation. Genesis three, it says, from the seed of a woman. That was like kind of one of the first promises that was made by God about this coming Messiah. And the Jews had hoped in this for their whole existence. It predates the Jewish nation actually when you go back to creation.

21:57 And so what was this promise? Again, the first one, the seed of the woman from Genesis chapter three. Then you have Genesis chapter 12. You have the story of Abraham. And Abraham is promised to be a father of many nations.

22:15 The Jewish nation, through him, all nations will be blessed. Leviticus 17 talks about blood making an atonement for sin. Now we have the whole completed Bible, so we can go to Hebrews chapter nine, and we know that without the shedding of blood there is no remission for sins. We have that. They had the establishment of the kinsman redeemer in Leviticus 25, the entire book of Ruth.

22:49 Numbers 2four 17 talks about Jesus says, a star will come from Jacob, a scepter shall rise from Israel. Verse 19 talks about him again, says, and one from Jacob will have dominion. You have the Davidic covenant where David is promised that someone on his throne will reign forever. His throne will never come to an end. And just a few generations later, this is...

23:19 Well, I'm thankful we have the whole Bible because I'm already confused enough at what the Lord's doing just in my little circle. But when you talk about basically writing and making the whole Bible and everything that's in here, man, sometimes I think I need to give a little bit more grace when I read about some of the silly things that people in the Old Testament or the New Testament have done, not understanding what God is doing. Anyway, we have a few generations later, Israel is split under Rehoboam. Eventually, that leads to some exiling and at two different times, you have the northern and the southern tribes. And eventually, they're both overtaken and Israel no longer has a king.

24:05 Now, if I'm the Jewish people, I'm going be thinking, wait a minute. You told David that someone will be reigning on his throne forever. It will never come to an end. Kind of God seems like it just came to an end. And so he sends prophets who come after them reaffirming the coming seed of Abraham.

24:27 Isaiah seven talks about the virgin birth, a son named Immanuel. Two chapters later in chapter nine, he's described as a mighty god, everlasting father, prince of peace. Isaiah 53 talks about the suffering of the Messiah that would take place. Micah tells us he'll be born in Bethlehem. Zechariah tells us he'll humbly come riding a donkey.

24:50 This is just to name a few. Probably if you just Google search, these are going be the highlights that come up. But this book is full of them, pointing to Jesus. And so that was the promise, the coming Messiah. But he mentions it was made by the fathers.

25:29 And Satan will crush his heel. Then you have Abraham's seed. Again, which there's really a lot that happened between Adam and Abraham too. Narrowed though down even further about this coming Messiah, when we get to Abraham and he has a son who has a son named Jacob. And so it's narrowed further.

25:50 We're told that this would come through the tribe of Judah, one of Jacob's sons. You kind of think like maybe I think way too much outside the box when I'm reading, but were all of the Israelites' ladies around that time thinking I really hope that it's my child? And then when it was announced that it's going to come through the tribe of Judah that the other 11 tribes were disappointed. I don't know. But going to come through Judah.

26:22 Gets even more narrow though when we get to David because we know it's specifically going to come through David's line. It would reign forever. And that brings us all the way up to date with what Paul is making the case for now. In verse seven, says, the promise which our 12 tribes hope to attain as they earnestly serve God night and day. And for this hope, O king, I am being accused by the Jews.

26:50 Have you ever committed to doing something with a group of people just to have them all back out at the last minute and laugh at you? I couldn't think of a time in my life where that happened. I've had people laugh at me, but not for that same reason. So the example I kind of was thinking of is people like to pull or plunge now. It was like a health thing.

27:13 But before that got popular, I'm imagining a time where there was a group of probably young men under the age of 25 because this is how we think. Hey, why don't we on this Saturday all get up in January and go jump into Lake Erie? It's going to be nice and cold. Let's just do it. It'll be fun.

27:33 And so everyone gets up and you go and you go to the pier and the algae bloom wasn't as bad back then. And so you actually wanted to get in Lake Erie. And they say on three, let's jump in. They count to three, and you find yourself the only one jumping into Lake Erie. And after you jump in, you get out.

27:55 They don't even hand you a towel. They just point at you and laugh. Like, man, how dumb are you? Why would you actually go in and do that? And he's left there like, this is what we said we were going to do.

28:07 Like, this was... We committed to this and y'all left me hanging. Silly example, but that's what is happening here. He's saying, we've all been taught these same things. But the difference was Paul seemed to actually believe it.

28:30 And so, again, in verse seven he's saying, so I'm here on trial for having the audacity to actually have belief in this hope of the promise made by God. You know, the one made by our fathers. All those people that we just talked about. So Paul had hope. And the hope of Christ as promised from creation.

28:52 The hope of blessing that started with Adam and Eve and passed down from generation to generation. But I would say this ultimately was the breaking point. Because Paul's hope did not just stop there. That there would be a Messiah. But his hope continued because he knew that that Messiah had come and he had died.

29:34 You can read all about that in one Corinthians 15. It paints a really beautiful picture of looking forward to heaven and what's to come. Death's been defeated. And as a side note to this, speaking of one Corinthians 15, I don't know that the Pharisees ever read Paul's letters that he wrote to these churches. But he says in one Corinthians 15 that if Christ came and died but wasn't resurrected, then of all people you should pity Christians because we're hoping in a lost cause.

30:16 You should feel sorry for us. But the Pharisees didn't do that. They went for blood. And I want to make one important note a little bit outside of this because I don't want there to be any confusion on this. And I'm not really going to get to where Paul talks about his conversion.

30:41 That'll be for a later date. I don't know if Andy's picking up somewhere in there, but but I don't want there to be any confusion. And so in... Back in Philippians chapter three, Paul continues. I marked that page and I went to that page earlier and I pulled my bookmark out.

31:10 So I really shot myself to the foot with that. Continuing what Paul was saying that I read earlier in chapter three about him doing everything right. He lived the Pharisee life, the Jewish life, everything that they thought it needed and entailed, he did it. As he would say probably even flawlessly. But he continues what he was saying in verse seven.

31:38 But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be lost because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them but rubbish, so that I may gain Christ and be found in him. Not having a righteousness of my own which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God upon faith. And so Paul is laying out this case again about how he lived the Pharisee life, how he did all of these things, was fully committed to the promises that were made to the fathers.

32:29 But his hope didn't end there. His hope continued in Christ. Once he was converted on that road, all of that stuff that he held as great in the past was considered nothing. The things he had lived his whole life for, he said, I consider it rubbish compared to the knowledge of Christ. And so I just don't want to leave us or there be any confusion because I know there's a lot of and I say this because in some of our circles back towards Norwalk, have some folks that are leaning more into works based salvation.

33:14 Earning your way to heaven through the things that you do or pray or give. And so, I don't want you to leave here this morning and think that Paul believed that all of those things gained him eternity in heaven. It's only through Christ. And so back to our text. He mentions these 12 tribes and I mentioned how they were split earlier.

33:45 We're never told in the New Testament that they come back together and reunite. However, Jesus talks about them as 12 tribes. When Paul says the 12 tribes here, he uses a word, not even going to try and pronounce it for you, but it's a noun and it's in the singular which tells me that he's not talking about 12 tribes plural that are all still separate, but one united uniting of 12 tribes. So regardless of their location, the 12 tribes though, according to this word, for all their lives have been placing their faith in this hope of the promises. And so again, the point of me mentioning all this is to show that Paul was saying I'm not out on an island with these thoughts.

34:33 Some obscure thoughts. This is what we have all been taught. And he tracks it all the way back to Adam which Adam predates the Jewish nation which for us who have the completed word of God, we know that Christ actually predated creation even. Because Peter tells us that Christ was foreordained. Like how big our God is in putting this together.

35:04 So I'll make this this last point and then we'll... What time am I... Nobody gave me the... Okay. I hope I'm not over.

35:45 I mean, we don't have all that in these couple verses, but that's what he's referring to. All of those things. And verse eight says, why is it considered unbelievable among all of you if God does raise the dead? And you think, of all the things God has done through the whole Old Testament. I mean, pardon the Red Sea.

36:08 You can go back and read all the different things, great things that he did. But yet, they don't have enough faith that he could be resurrected from the dead. It seems like an odd place to stop. To have faith that God would do all those things but he couldn't send someone to come die for their sins and then be resurrected. And so they were accusing Paul.

36:34 Why? Because a certain Jesus, a dead man who Paul asserted to be alive. That's why they were accusing him. And so as we do close, we are not the Jewish nation. God still has a plan for them.

36:53 You could see that in the book of Revelation. But I'm hoping I'm not the only person in here that could be a little bit selfish sometimes. I want to know, well, what does this mean for me though? Like how do I fit into this story? Do I fit into this story at all if I'm not the Jewish nation?

37:36 Titus chapter two verse thirteen and fourteen. This is kind of the reason I picked that song that we did. Because as a church, this is what we have. Titus chapter two verse 13, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all lawlessness and purify for himself a people for his own possession zealous for good works. And so friends, I appreciate the opportunity to come back here and to share with you.

38:19 I hope that as we leave here, we wouldn't forget that. That our hope is in Christ. It's not in works. It's not in the things that we could do. People will accuse us of anything.

38:32 I mean, go post something on social media. You'll have all kinds of accusations of people being critical of you. But as Christians, our hope is in Christ. We look forward to spending eternity in heaven with him. Let's pray.

38:46 Father, thank you for the opportunity to look at your word. I pray that if there were any things that I said wrong or didn't get something right, Lord, I pray that you would miraculously change it as it entered the ears and the minds of us and that we leave here more like your son, challenged and encouraged through your word. We pray these in your son's name. Amen.