Let's stand together for the reading of God's word. Continuing ahead in the book of Acts. What a glorious time this has been in the book of Acts. And it's coming to a close as we come to the end of the book, seeing Paul as such a wonderful example to us. And like usual, today we'll look at Paul and say, am I like Paul? We'll also see other examples. We'll see Festus and Agrippa and Bernice. And we have to ask ourselves, well, am I like those people? So please listen carefully, brothers and sisters, because this is God's holy and infallible word. Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea and then to the Gentiles that they should repent. turn to God and do works befitting repentance. For these reasons, the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. Therefore, having obtained help from God to this day, I stand witnessing both the small and great, saying no other things than those which the prophets and Moses said would come, that the Christ would suffer, that he would be the first to rise from the dead and would proclaim light to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles. Now as he thus made his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, you are beside yourself. Much learning is driving you mad. But he said, I am not mad, most noble Festus, but speak the words of truth and reason. For the king before whom I also speak freely knows these things. For I am convinced that none of these things escapes his attention, since this thing was not done in a corner. King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you do believe. Then Agrippa said to Paul, you almost persuade me to become a Christian. And Paul said, I would to God that not only you, but also all who hear me today might become both almost and altogether such as I am, except for these chains. When he had said these things, the king stood up as well as the governor and Bernice and those who sat with them. And when they had gone aside, they talked among themselves saying, This man is doing nothing deserving of death or chains. Then Agrippa said to Festus, this man might have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar. And when it was decided that we should sail to Italy, they delivered Paul and some other prisoners to one named Julius, a centurion of the Augustan regiment. So entering a ship of Adramidium, we put to sea, meaning to sail along the coasts of Asia. Aristarchus, a Macedonian of Thessalonica, was with us. And the next day we landed at Sidon. And Julius treated Paul kindly and gave him liberty to go to his friends and receive care. Thus ends the reading of God's word. Amen. Amen. Please be seated. You can see the title is Paul and the Perishing Princes. I don't mean to say that we know for sure the end of each of these men. But certainly at this time, the path they're on is not a path of promise. It's more certainly a path of the perishing. And it's a reference to Psalm 2, where the princes of the world are called to repent and worship Christ while they still may, lest they perish in their way. Today we're going to look first at Festus, seeing that he is faithless and irrational. We see what happens when people do not believe the Gospel, when they hear it and they respond to it without faith. We'll see Paul in contrast, demonstrating faith and reason. And then Paul giving the question to Agrippa, do you believe the Word of God? And Agrippa, we're told, is almost persuaded, which seems maybe encouraging on the surface of it, Wow, if he went on to destruction, you know we're judged according to the light we've received. And then Paul, in response to Agrippa, continues to be that bold and friendly evangelist to the very end. And then we see the verdict that Paul is innocent, which really this final Roman verdict there in Judea, all the courts had said the same thing, Paul is innocent, showing here again the Jews in their futility and in really the deception of their efforts to have Paul killed. And along the way, some questions for us to examine ourselves to see how we can know God more, love God more, and obey God more. And it'll be for little ones and for big ones, for young and old and everything in between. So the first verse there that we're looking at is verse 24. It says, now as he thus made his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, you are beside yourself. Much learning is driving you mad. So the first thing I want us to focus on here is that Paul's defense, I mentioned this in prior sermons, we're gonna go into it more now, it is a gospel message. Paul presents the gospel as his defense. I want us to see a few things. Paul's defense against these false charges did not require a gospel proclamation. It was unnecessary for him to preach the gospel in order for him to defend himself. Next, his defense did not require him to describe the conflict that he had between himself and the Jews. It was not necessary to go into that in order to defend himself. In addition, Paul's defense did not require him to tell of his own salvation and his own encounter with Jesus Christ and his subsequent service to Jesus Christ. It was not necessary. You see, all that was necessary in the Roman courts was for him to make the Jews, all he had to do was to make the Jews prove that he had broken Roman laws. And the Jews failed to do this. In fact, their failure was so terrible that he only has to give a few words to that concept along the way. It's very clear the Jews did not bring any evidence to convict this man of breaking any Roman laws, whether it's laws worthy of being bound, or laws worthy of being beaten, or laws worthy of being executed. They failed to do it. But what did Paul choose to do? He chose to include in his defense the good news. And here's the things, if you go back through what he said that he included. That Jesus of Nazareth, this man, is the foretold Messiah of the Jewish scriptures. And that this man suffered, died, did not stay in the grave, was raised from the dead bodily, and then appeared to Paul in a heavenly vision. Certainly there we see Paul pointing towards his ascension and his enthronement. And then how this vision, how Jesus worked in this to miraculously transform Paul from a hater of Christ to a lover of Christ, a persecutor of his church to a servant of his church. And that Jesus commissioned him and then went on to help him to fulfill this heavenly vision. He also included in this the call for everyone present to repent and to receive the forgiveness of their sins. Yes, he spoke of sin, their sin, Festus' sin, Agrippa's sin, the Caesarean sin, Bernice's sin, everyone who's listening. And that they would be delivered from Satan. He was not afraid to speak of the dark devils of hell that cannot be seen in the courtroom. This august chamber we've discussed there in Caesarea, the Praetorium, Herod's great palace, this glorious location. He says, you're bound up in the dark deceptions of Satan, the leader of all evil. And in this, he included the supremacy of Jesus of Nazareth over all of it. How's this? That he would bring light to the whole world, not just to the Jews, but to the Jews and the Gentiles. He's making it clear that the polytheism of Festus is to be done away with, is to be thrown aside. Jesus is Lord over all of it. And Paul included the blindness of all men outside of Christ. It's not just a message for the Jews. It is for the Jews, but not just for them. You see, Paul, unnecessarily for his defense, let that sink in, unnecessarily for his defense, preached the full gospel, the details of the gospel, sin, repentance, turning to God, trusting in the one Savior, Jesus Christ, and his death upon the cross, and understanding that you are bound up in your own sin and in darkness and by the Lord and Prince of Hell if you do not do that. You see, he preached the full gospel and there was no legal obligation upon him to do this. Now, you could also think that it might have actually hurt his case. Has anyone here ever met someone who didn't like to hear about their own sin? Have you ever met someone? Would you maybe consider that if you told your judge, your judges, your jury, that they're bound up in their own sin and they're in bondage with the shackles of hell and Satan is their Lord, would that help their case? You see, Paul was not most interested in whether he was found guilty or not guilty. Very important. He was not most interested in the success of that moment. He was interested in his having the opportunity, as Peter says, to praise the excellencies of Christ, to speak of his praises, to speak of his excellencies before the greatest of men. You see, Paul saw no secular, sacred distinction. And the question for you is, do you? And I think we most of us have to admit we do. We do. Paul did not agree to keep his religion to himself. Paul saw no place or time for Christ is not to be extolled and proclaimed. Think of it, the cosmos declares his praises at all times and all places, shouldn't we? Psalm 19, the heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows his handiwork. Day unto day utters speech and night unto night reveals knowledge. There's no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. Their line has gone out through all the earth and their words to the end of the world. You see, creation constantly everywhere extols the praises of God, the one God, the true God. Think of it. If the stars constantly declare God's glory, these glorious bits of creation that were never lost lovers of death, never enemies of God, how can my mouth, your mouth ever be silent, whom he rescued with his blood while I hated him? If dark night reveals the knowledge of God, how much more should I brought from darkness to light by His gracious suffering and death? Where do you agree to close your mouth because the gospel's not necessary for that moment? That's really the question that should come to each one of us. Where do you agree to close your mouth and not declare His excellencies because it's not necessary to the moment? Children, I'll ask the young ones here. I'll pick on my own kids. You know, being a pastor's kid, it's dangerous during the sermon, right? So Josie, Caleb, Nessa, Sarah, is it necessary for you to declare the praises of Jesus while you're doing your math? It's not necessary, is it? You can get your math done without speaking of the glories of Christ. How about you older brothers and sisters? Is it necessary for you to extol the Lord Jesus Christ as you are vacuuming and doing the dishes in order to get the job done? No. Moms, is it necessary for you to extol and praise him and speak of his glories while you are teaching your children that two plus two is four? It's not necessary in order to get them to do the work and learn the work. But you see, you're missing the point of the needful thing, that one thing, Jesus and his glory and his greatness and his majesty at all times and in all places everywhere you go. I sit in my office with my patients and I think to myself, it's not necessary for me to share the gospel with this patient in order to make them see the importance of putting the spray up their nose. But do I share the gospel? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Right? Now, of course, time and expectations, and there's limitations in the time that we have, but it doesn't take long for me to say, And the way God made the nose, right, that's an easy thing for me to do, right? And so that's what I try to do. And maybe you can think of things like that too, just little things here and there because isn't it glorious that God gave us county government that we can work in and that we can serve him in? Isn't it wonderful that God has given us a hospital where we can go and do His will and serve Him in this place? Isn't the human body amazing? Isn't nuclear science incredibly demonstrating the glory of God in creation? It's not necessary. You make that perfect cabinet. It's not necessary to preach the gospel and share the glories of Christ when you install it. Not necessary. But will we be like Paul and do the better thing that is not necessary to complete the task? You see, Paul understood the real task of our lives, and that is to declare his praises, to give him praise and thanks with every breath and to live for him First Peter 2, 9 and 10, I've already referenced it, but you are a chosen generation. See, it wasn't just Paul, right? He wasn't a unique Christian. He wasn't a unique apostle. A royal priesthood, a holy nation, his own special people. Why? Why? Why did all this happen? That you may proclaim the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. You see, it's our gratitude, right? Who once were not a people, but are now the people of God. Lost. Darkness. Devil. Shackles. Bondage. Sin. Misery. Done away with by Jesus Christ. For his people. Who had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. You see, we've got to think about Paul. The mercies of Christ to him were his sweetest treasures. It was like Jeremiah said, it's like a fire inside of me. I try to, but it's going to come out. You see, if you have to discipline yourself to share the gospel, no, that's not what I'm saying. Paul was overflowing because he was drinking from Christ's fountain. That's what we need. We need to be baptized by the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist said, look, I just baptized with water. but there's one coming after me who's before me and who's greater than me, whose sandal I am not even fit to unloose, and he will baptize you with his Holy Spirit. That's what we're talking about here. That's what Paul was experiencing. And that's what we need as well. Otherwise, we like Festus. You see, Festus, he gives us an example of someone who does the necessary. You see, in this life, to do the necessary, you don't need faith. You can be a great engineer, you can be a great doctor, you can be a great whatever in this world, competence-wise, and not have faith in God. Festus may have been a fairly good civil leader. First of all, we see an example of his faithlessness, his flesh on display as if he was loud. There's the appearance here that Festus may have kind of lost control of himself a little bit when he's shocked by what he perceives to be Paul's madness. You see, fleshly, unbelieving living can often be disorderly, lacking self-control, with body language and speech volume flowing out before any filters can be activated. Unlike Paul, who was walking in the Spirit, controlled as a slave of God by the Spirit of God and the Word of God, we see Festus walking in his flesh. Now, Paul was the first one to say, who will rescue me from this body of death? He never claimed to be perfect. but we see him walking in the spirit. Faithlessness also leads to confusion. Festus' faithless response to the gospel causes him to be groping for any explanation that he can find in the darkness of his mind to explain Paul's behavior. So he comes to this false conclusion that he's just been studying too much. He's put his head in too many strange books. Infestus manufactured reality, that's another thing that goes along with a lack of faith, and it can happen to us too, where our faith won't meet the world that we're bumping into. We have to fabricate some way to explain it. We create a false reality. So infestus manufactured reality, Paul's mind is just simply the victim of too much learning. That's all that's going on here. Heavenly vision, resurrection, you've been reading too many books. That's what it is. Maybe Festus had an uncle that went mad in books or something, we don't know. Festus is also rude. I've also talked about how he got loud. See, the faithless response forgets courtesy. When we're not walking in the spirit, we forget that we're talking to another human being made in God's image. We lose courtesy when we're walking in the flesh. become rude. So he interrupted Paul, and he used a rude phrase with Paul. He said, the New King James says, you are beside yourself. And it means to be mad, to be raving mad, to be crazy. Later he says, driving you mad, it's the same Greek root. And it's if you call somebody a maniac, you're acting like a maniac. You need to calm down. He just jumps right into talking about his intellectual and mental well-being. So he interrupts him, he gets loud, he calls him a maniac. Festus doesn't know how to deal with what he's hearing. He becomes irrational. Isn't it funny? The irrational one accuses Paul of being crazy. That's what we see today in the world as well. Lacking faith, Festus' mind is incapable of considering all the possibilities regarding Paul's testimony. Because he's not born again from above, because the light of God has not entered his mind and heart, he is incapable, literally impossible for him to consider all the possibilities of what Paul is presenting to him. Because he cannot even see the kingdom of God, that's what I'm talking about. Jesus said, you cannot see the kingdom of God unless you're first born again. And then he goes on to say, nor can you enter the kingdom of God unless you're first born again. So Festus is a blind man in a cave. We talked about that before. He's groping around. He's looking for answers to the echoes that he's hearing in the darkness. Because he cannot accept Paul's testimony of some resurrected Lord of all things saving him and giving him commandments. That's just, to him, that's stranger than any of the myths that he's heard in the Roman Pantheon. He just can't accept it. And so therefore, Festus' reasoning continues to be based upon false maxims. So he starts from a position of false presuppositions. And this leads him to what? The need to speculate. So he comes up with too much learning. And then false conclusions as he speculates that Paul must be crazy. He must need one of the special healers. I don't know what they called their psychiatrist back then. And ultimately what we're seeing here is Festus has deceived himself. He has deceived himself and he needed to do this. He has to remain deceived in order for the false world that he's created to continue to make sense to him. So who's not in their right mind? Festus. Who's the one creating a false reality? Festus. He's crazy. And if we were there, we'd probably say he was the one who was actually raving. It happens in our world. It happens to us. When we walk the path of sin, we can become just like this. We have to repent, don't we, when we do these things. You know, he eventually gets to just stating a straight out falsehood about Paul. You see, because to see and accept reality requires faith in God. In order to see, we have to have faith. Faith is like the light. that helps us to see what's actually going on. And I'm talking about supernatural faith granted from God. I'm not talking about the empty unbelief that Agrippa will display. Not that kind of belief. You see, Festus' faithless response ultimately leads to these false accusations against Paul. This is slander. Festus slanders Paul because he has no faith. And we do the same thing. We can end up thinking wrongly about people and saying things about people we should not say. We don't see the situation through the eyes of faith. Paul is different. Paul demonstrates faith in Christ and true biblical reasoning. In his simple response to Festus, we see a perfect contrast to all the dark, faithless ways of Festus compared to Paul's simple faith. Paul said, I am not mad, most noble Festus, but speak the words of truth and reason. So beautiful. So simple. He didn't join the fool in his folly. He just told him the truth. First, how did he not join the fool in his folly? He remains calm. There's no evidence he was waving his arms or that he raised his voice in order to get his decibel level louder than Festus. He maintains his poise. We've talked about this before with Paul. We've seen this in multiple situations. He maintains his poise because of his faith in God. Listen, especially young men, all of us need this, but especially young men, you are going to be in battles in your life. You're going to be in battles, and there's nothing more dangerous in battle than panicking. Nothing more dangerous in battle than panicking. And this is a kind of a running away, and it can create all kinds of bad behavior in the midst of stress. Some run away in the fight, some just start shooting blindly. Poise does neither, understands where the battle is and stays put and focuses appropriately upon the battle. That's what Paul did here. Paul's speech volume and his body language, there's nothing made of it by Luke. Now, we can't know decisively from silence, but everything about Paul tells us very likely he's still calm. He's lucid as well, in contrast to the confusion of foolish Festus. Paul's line of thought begins with knowing and believing what he calls the words of truth and reason. Of course, you can't speak the words of truth and reason and really mean it unless you first believe it. So Paul has faith in the Word of God, and he goes on, therefore, to be able to use true reason. See, Paul sees his own status accurately. He knows that he is not crazy. He knows what he saw. when he encountered Jesus Christ. He knows what his ears heard. He knows what the Bible says. He knows what God has done for him through the time that he served and preached to the Jews and the Gentiles throughout the Roman world. Believing God's word sheds light on Paul's soul that Paul can see. Paul needs no partially informed conjecture. He doesn't need any confused speculation about himself and what's going on in his life. We could talk a lot about the assurance of salvation here. Paul certainly demonstrates that. The Word of God has shown into his own soul and he knows that he's not crazy. He knows that he's not believing lies. He knows that he hasn't made this up. He knows that this has come to him from outside of himself. And he's come to believe it. It's almost said in Psalm 36 9, for with you is the fountain of life. In your light, we see light. It's a connection between faith and reason. You know, fallen man can grasp the laws of logic and put them to use. Along the way, sin will bend it and they'll want to logic in different directions. But the biggest problem is they start with false maxims. And you can use perfect logic, but if you start with false maxims, you will have false conclusions. We must have our lives built on the truth of God's word. And Paul shows this to us, unlike Festus. Now, in the midst of the battle, you can remain courteous because he remembers who his enemy is. Right? He knows that Festus, ultimately, is not the ultimate enemy. The devil is, that he's already mentioned. The spiritual forces of darkness in high places, as we read about this morning, as Joshua read during prayer time. So, he knows it's not Festus, and he remembers that God has appointed every ruler that exists. And he demonstrates this amazing honor and respect for this leader who has mistreated him, who has used him as a pawn, and who has now insulted him, and for all of Roman rule, because he's been mistreated by Festus as well, about the only one that really did him right the whole way through, it seems like, Felicius, the commander there from Jerusalem. And he calls him, he remains courteous, he says, most noble Festus. So this is an amazing thing, that he would say this kind word to Festus, who just insulted him, who's used him as a pawn. Now he's treated him pretty well also, that he was able to receive his friends there at Caesarea, so Festus wasn't all bad towards Paul. And that he continues to honor Roman rule in his life. Festus has insulted him, he's interrupted him, he's raised his voice, he's called him a maniac, right? I mean, think about somebody yelling at you and calling you a maniac. Who's your judge? And then you just say, I am not mad, most noble Festus. It's a beautiful thing. It's a great display of the glory of God in a hot moment. You see, how can he do this? Because of his faith in Christ. Now, even his response here can't be explained by Festus. Like if he's mad, he's not going to have this kind of response. If he's insane, he's going to go insane with Festus. You see, reviled yet not reviling, Paul rests in the shepherd and overseer of his soul. When you're mistreated, when you're looked down on, when you're used, when you are cast aside, when you are reviled, do you rest, like Paul, in the shepherd and overseer of your soul? Is that your first response? First, Peter to servants, be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh. So this context here is being mistreated by a master, being mistreated by someone over you, which really fits with what Paul is going through. For this is commendable if because of conscience toward God, one endures grief, suffering wrongfully. But what credit is it if when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, and this is what Paul's going through, when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. You see, if you've done wrong and you know you've done wrong, it's not some credit to you to take your medicine. I mean, it's better than not taking your medicine. But the great credit to you is when you've not done wrong and you're mistreated and for you to act like Jesus. For to this you were called because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow his steps. I know I've brought this scripture in so many times as we've looked at the life of Paul. about Jesus, who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in his mouth, who, when he was reviled, did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but committed himself to him who judges righteously, who himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness, by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the shepherd and overseer of your souls. So we can be like Jesus if we have found his mercy to be so sweet. We want to live like him in the midst of mistreatment when we have tasted of his favor and his grace towards us. She leads to Paul being courteous. This is what's under the surface of Paul's response. Most noble Festus. See, Paul remains reasonable here. He doesn't get irrational because of an emotional response out of faithlessness like Festus. You see, from the eyes of faith in God's truth, because Paul has already referenced the Old Testament Scripture, he knows what he saw when he spoke to Jesus. And with these eyes of faith, his mind is able to receive the necessary facts of his own life, and then use them properly through rational thought that's being further illuminated by God's Word, by God, and by His Spirit. So it remains reasonable. This word here means soundness of mind, self-control, sobriety, another frequent text we look at, 2 Timothy 1.7. For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. And really, so often, we contrast Faith and unbelief. Belief and unbelief. And that's reasonable. But on the unbelief side, where you don't have faith, you will have fear. Life maxim. Where you do not have faith, you will have fear. Are you afraid? Do you lie in your bed? Do you perseverate? Do you catastrophize? Do you think of things? Do fears get a hold of you? In that spot, you don't have faith. In that spot, you don't have faith that Jesus is with you. You don't have faith in God's promises or His goodness is to you. In that spot where you know that you deal with fears. See, Paul didn't have this. Paul didn't have this fear to deal with. Instead, he just had reasonableness. In addition, Paul tells the truth. Because of his faith in God, he not only can see and believe the key facts, but he can then speak the truth plainly and without shame or fear. Without shame or fear, he speaks the truth. It's another moment where he's opposing the word of his judge before the entire court. Think about that. He has the courage to speak the truth. Now, of course, it's about himself and he's defending himself, but ultimately, big picture, he's speaking truth in the midst of a situation that disagrees with what's just been said by his judge. Well, he goes on from there to look to Agrippa and he gives him this question that's really a question we all need to consider. For the king before whom I also speak freely knows these things, for I am convinced that none of these things escapes his attention, since this thing was not done in a corner. King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you do believe. So first of all, you know, you've all seen you put your hand on the Bible. Do you promise to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? That's what Paul's doing here. Paul withheld nothing from this assembled jury of princes and leaders. He speaks freely. That's what he means when he says speak freely. He's not holding anything back from them. Okay, and I think he's probably referencing the fact that he preached the full gospel to them. He told them the whole story of the gospel message. He was not a Gnostic, it wasn't some secret thing that you kept to yourself until you went through the right ritual. He shared freely the whole gospel with them. And he says Agrippa knows it's true. It wasn't just the whole truth, it was the plain truth. It was right there in front of everybody. Paul didn't just tell them the whole story, But the history itself of that generation spoke clearly to the whole world. He says it wasn't hidden in a corner. It didn't stay in Nazareth. It didn't stay up in the north country. It didn't stay in Judea. It didn't stay along the Jordan. It didn't stay there at Golgotha. It didn't stay at the tomb. It didn't stay in Antioch. It's everywhere. This is shaking up the whole world. Anybody who's been alive knows this, especially you Agrippa. Kaiser says he cannot excuse his unbelief, this is about Agrippa, because of ignorance. He knows all about Jesus, life and death, and he must have been familiar with at least the basics of the gospel from either his knowledge of the Old Testament or his familiarity with the Christianity within his borders. He has been king for 12 years now, but Christianity had been in his region for much longer. But my point is that he has unbelief despite the fact that Paul says Agrippa knows these things. He knows it is true, but he does not submit. He knows that the story that Paul is telling is true. So the question is, here it is. Agrippa, do you believe the word of God? Paul's gospel message is here equated by Paul to the prophets. You see that? The prophets of the Old Testament scripture. the gospel message he's been preaching, it's all brought together as one message. Again, we've talked about the continuity of Old and New Testament and the need to be a covenant theologian and not a dispensational theologian. Paul places before Herod the question of not only intellectual ascent, but heart belief, saving belief, miraculous faith. Knowing the truth is not the same as personally submitting in faith to Jesus Christ as Savior and King. Listen carefully. Everyone, please. So important. Especially children growing up in Christian homes. Listen carefully. Knowing the truth is not the same thing as personally submitting in faith to Jesus Christ as Savior and King. I shared my testimony from this pulpit before. The man who shared the gospel with me the first time, the day I became a Christian, August 23rd, 1991, he went through all the tenets of the faith just like Paul did here. And I said, I believe, I believe, I believe, I believe, I believe, I believe. He said, then you're a Christian. I said, no, I'm not. Come follow me around. You'll see. I'm not living like a Christian. I've tried. It's not working. And he asked me, tell me about your prayer life. You see, he brought it home. And I realized at that moment that I had never confessed my sins to God. Now, do I have to convince anyone here that you are a sinner? I mean, children, do you have any doubt that you have sinned against God? But that's not the big question. The big question is, have you confessed your sins to God? Unlike Agrippa, is it going to go beyond intellectual knowledge into an interaction that you have with Jesus Christ, confessing your sins to him? Like I said last time, it's not about intellectual knowledge, it's about intimacy with God through Christ. Knowing that your God forgives you because you've confessed your sins to him in Christ. Rising up in power and gladness and eagerness like Paul to serve him and to do his will. Agrippa is a very sad example of probably what we see in James 2.19. You believe that there is one God, you do well. Listen now. Even the demons believe and tremble. Oh, how scary that should be to each and every one of us. The question should come to you, do you have a demonic faith? Oh. And even the demons even tremble. Kaiser says first, verse 27 indicates that this unbelief is even able to affirm the truth of the Bible yet still reject its demands and fail to understand it. King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you do believe. Those are amazing words. You can believe the Bible and still not be saved. Did you know that the devil believes the Bible is true? He can quote it, but he hates it. Our hearts can be so deceitful that we can believe the Bible and still not have a saving faith that submits to King Jesus. That was James' point when he said that the demons believe that there is one God and tremble over it. So let Agrippa stand as a caution to all of us. First of all, have you confessed your sins to God? And secondly, to see that you can get back into this kind of Agrippa-like living. to where we believe the word, but we don't actually trust it and implement it and think it through and look to apply it in our lives. It's just more intellectual knowledge. So really Agrippa has the faith of a curious unbeliever. Another question you could ask is, hey, am I just a curious unbeliever along the path of perishing like Agrippa? It's a really important question. You know, I know folks who've been raised in Christian families and who have sat under preaching like this week after week after week, hearing the Word of God, hearing the gospel truth, hearing the need to confess their sins to God, and apparently they never did it. Because now they say, I don't believe, I don't follow Him, I don't believe it's true. Children, do you want that to be the story of your life? Because you don't want to be like Agrippa, who was almost persuaded. Because he says, Agrippa said to Paul, you almost persuaded me to become a Christian. And notice he says Christian. He understands the transition that's in view here. So was he just a Jew who rejected Jesus? Did he have some kind of true belief in the Old Testament scriptures? Was he a Jew who just refused to submit to Jesus of Nazareth? Or was he a pretending Jew, a total unbeliever? He didn't really believe the scriptures at all. In either case, at this point, we can tell he seems curious, he seems interested, he seems intrigued with Jesus Christ. He's been given so many details of the faith throughout his life, just like you. He knows that Paul's faith centers on Jesus. He gets what's going on here because he says, you almost persuade me to become a Christian. Kaiser says Agrippa, who knows the scriptures, almost convinced that what Paul is telling him is true. What keeps him from going over the edge and being persuaded altogether? It seems that his heart almost wishes that he could become a Christian. Maybe he sees something there that his heart longs for, but he just can't do it. I'm almost there with you, Paul, but I just can't go there. So what held Agrippa back? from believing in Jesus as the promised Messiah. Do you think Agrippa has had more light than you? I don't know if I'd quite say it like that, but he's had some up-close personal experiences with the dawning New Kingdom age. What kept him back? What was he unwilling to lose? What are you unwilling to lose? What suffering did he refuse to hazard? Do you sense any such hesitancy in your own soul? You know, if anyone sitting here today knows in their heart that they're like Agrippa, that you haven't really become a Christian, what is it that's holding you back? Why can't today be the day of salvation when you confess your sins to God for the first time? Now, the next point I make here is unto salvation. That's what I just said. Or what's holding you back unto dedicated sanctification and service? What's holding you back unto dedicated sanctification and service? What are the things in your life you don't want to let go of? What are the things in your life you're afraid to lose? Why is it that you're not living a life devoted to sanctification? And again, we can go back, as we always do. Tell me about your relationship with God's Word. Tell me about your prayer life, like that dear friend said to me. Where is your walk with God during the day? How do you treat your siblings? Children, how do you treat your mom and dad? How do we treat one another? How do we treat those around us? How do we spend our money? How do we spend our time? What are we focused on? What is the treasure of your heart? He is as near being persuaded to believe in Christ as Felix was when he trembled was to leave his sins. He sees a great deal of reason for Christianity. The proofs of it he owns are strong. and such as he cannot answer the objection against trifling and such as he cannot for shame insist on, so that if it were not for his obligations to the ceremonial law and his respect to the religion of his fathers and of his country, or his regard to his dignity as a king and to his secular interests, he would turn Christian immediately. Note, many are almost persuaded to be religious who are not quite persuaded. They are under strong convictions of their duty and of the excellency of the ways of God, but yet are overruled by some external inducements and do not pursue their convictions." It sounds like Agrippa may have had good intentions at this moment. What does he do instead? He doesn't follow. So how does Paul respond to this? You know, think again of his situation and the pressure. See, every step along the way is more pressure on the consciences of these unbelievers who are his judges. Every step of the way, they're getting pressed more and more by the requirements of the gospel. And what does he do? He doesn't back off. He doesn't shrink back. He said, I would to God that not only you, but also all who hear me today might become both almost and altogether such as I am, except for these chains. You see, what could have just been a conversation about his innocence is now a conversation. The question is, will you trust in and follow Jesus Christ? What an amazing apologist. What an amazing evangelist. The whole court is now focused on the question of, do you trust Jesus? Will you become a Christian? Oh, that our lives would be the same way, that everywhere we went, the question would be, will you become a Christian through the way we speak and the way we live? So the first thing we see is his boldness does not turn down. He calls all his hearers to repent, to turn to God and to trust in Christ. Everything he said, he doubles down on again. You see, as the moment of judgment is drawing near, he doesn't waver in his preaching of the gospel. He doesn't think, well, maybe now's the time I should back off. He doesn't ease the gospel pressure that Agrippa is experiencing, but rather he confirms it and expands it from Agrippa to everyone present. in the room, you know this feeling that when you're sharing the gospel with someone and they're resisting it, you know that there might be relational outcomes. It's uncomfortable. It's awkward. How will it affect your future with them? Paul seemed little interested in those questions. He doesn't ease the immediacy of the gospel call either. Today is the day of salvation. Paul saw no reason why everyone in that courtroom might not bow down and praise the name of Jesus Christ on the spot that day. That's a true evangelist who understands the power of God is never limited by the moment. He can come anytime he wants and strike with the power of heaven on any soul listening to the word of God. Now again, consider Paul's desire to be freed. Surely he wanted to be freed. He says it. Consider the moment. All present at this moment are now judged by the word of God. It's no longer just Festus and Agrippa. He's saying all of you need to repent. All of you are under the devil. All of you are bound in your sin. All of you are bound in judgment. Lest you come to Christ, the resurrected one who appeared to me and spoke to me. That's a tight moment and he does not shrink back. He presses in. He professes his resolution to cleave to his religion, Matthew Henry says, as that which he was entirely satisfied in and determined to live and die by. In wishing that they were all as he was, he does in effect declare against ever being as they were, whether Jews or Gentiles, how much so ever it might be to his worldly advantage. See, Paul is wise. He understands the give and take of politics. He was in it. He understands you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. He understands the subtle influence of rhetoric and charismatic personality. He understands all of these things. And he puts every bit of his ability to use for Jesus Christ, not for his own acquittal. And he's friendly. Again, he was courteous before and now he's friendly again as he continues to be bold. This is that humility, that supernatural blend of boldness and humility that no man can have on his own. He says, almost and altogether, right? So he references what Agrippa says, which is a hard word to say, but he says, oh, and altogether. And then, and you can hear the lightheartedness except for these chains. It's very serious, but he's also like, well, except for these chains. So he takes up a grip of his own word, almost, and he kindly emphasizes it, not, it is not enough, going on to altogether. So he could have said, almost, almost, well, you're gonna go to hell, right? Almost isn't good enough. No, he says, well, I wish almost and altogether. So the commentary says he intimates his trouble and concern that Agrippa went no further than being almost such a one as he was, almost a Christian and not altogether one, for he wishes that he and the rest of them might be not only almost, and what good would that do anyways, but altogether such as he was. And what is that? Sincere, thorough-paced Christians. You see, that's really normal Christianity. We live in a world of abnormal Christianity. We live in a world of abnormal Christianity. We live in a world of what Jesus described as being lukewarm. We live in that world and that is what we've been steeped in, in our world. And even the most serious Christians often still just give him a piece of the pie instead of realizing that he is the pie maker and everything comes from him and everything is from him and through him and to him. Paul displays his bonds to them, or maybe the bondage of his situation. It's unclear whether he was actually in chains, he probably was, or whether he was just bound there and he couldn't leave. And this again shows his poise and his levity, even in the midst of a very heavy situation. He could think on his feet. And this is what Jesus had promised. He said, you don't have to give any thought to it ahead of time. They're gonna bring him before kings and judges and synagogue leaders, right? Didn't Jesus say that? But I will give you the words you need to speak. So Jesus is here speaking through Paul. Paul knows who in that room is truly in bondage. Paul knows where the shackles really lie in that room. You see, they had made light of his imprisonment and were no concern for him. Felix detained him in bonds to gratify the Jews. That was Felix. Now this would have tempted many a one to wish them all to be in bonds, that they might know what it was to be confined as he was. And then they would know the better how to pity him. He might have been wishing, I wish I could put you in chains. That's what, you know, in our flesh we'd be tempted to. Commentary going on, but he was so far from this that when he wished them in bonds to Christ, he desired they might never be in bonds for Christ. He wished them to be in bonds, to bonds in Christ, but never in bonds for Christ. Nothing could be said more tenderly nor with a better grace. Such a wonderful ending to this whole drama that Paul has been through. He is innocent. He is innocent. When he had said these things, the king stood up as well as the governor and Bernice and those who sat with him. And when they had gone inside, they talked among themselves, saying this man is doing nothing deserving of death or change. Then Agrippa said to Festus, this man might have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar. First thing we see here is that Agrippa, instead of repenting and turning to God and trusting Christ, he adjourns the trial and gathers the judges. Continues on undeterred. Agrippa makes his choice, shrinking back from faith in Christ, and instead of standing with Paul, he stands up, joining pagan rulers in judgment against Paul, instead of acknowledging his own soul had just been judged by God's word. The light that had shined upon him, he now steps away from. And so that's why I'm calling this deliberations in darkness. These people have dark minds and dark hearts because they don't have faith. And so how much of God's grace is on display that the darkness of deliberation is occurring, and yet they come to the truth? Consider their dark hearts and their minds. Festus, he's faithless. He's got no interest. He's confused. He's rude. He's irrational. He's littered with pagan idols. Herod, belief without true faith, maybe the faith of a demon. tinkering with God, afraid to believe truly and submit fully to Christ. Bernice, was she really only a sister of Herod or were the rumors really true about her and Herod? The leaders of Caesarea, they're just voiceless placeholders. And yet, in the midst of this darkness, God grants them enough light to see the truth of Paul's innocence. They are neither deceived or bribed into a false judgment. Now look, we need to pause right here and say, who holds the hands of rulers? Who holds the hearts of rulers in his hand? What's his name? Jesus. Now, what if that ruler is named Kamala? Does he hold her heart in his hand? Everybody say yes and amen. Yes and amen. So I have to do a little bit of, you know, election preaching right here. Paul understood that the deliberations of darkness never stepped outside the providence of almighty God. and no government on earth ever, no matter how evil and defiled and dark and malicious and bloodthirsty they are, no matter how utterly controlled by the halls of hell and the demons of darkness they are, they can never be anything but God's servants to you, His people. They can never be anything but God's servants to you, His people. Now, he may have them serve you as the ones who bring affliction and pain and suffering and thievery from your bank account. Maybe you'll be imprisoned. Maybe you'll lose your life. Maybe someone you love will die. These people who are in charge of governments can never be anything to you, brothers and sisters, those in Christ, except a blessing. I'm not talking about those like Agrippa. I'm not talking about those like Festus and Felix and the voiceless Caesareans. I'm not talking about those who are unbelievers. They very may well just experience nothing but wrath and judgment and misery. Not so for you, Christian. So as you stay up late on Tuesday night waiting for the results that probably won't come for three months, listen, it doesn't matter who rules this world because ultimately his name is Jesus Christ. He'll never be on the ballot. The polling doesn't matter when it comes to him. He is the one true king, brothers and sisters. Let us rest in that like Paul displays to us. He just preached the gospel and did his duty and left their deliberations where? In the hand of God. And it should really encourage us to see how lost and dark minded these people are, that they're able to not be bribed, not be deceived and reach a true judgment. Thus was he made manifest in the conscience of those who yet would not receive his doctrine. So even those who reject the gospel that you preach to them may yet hold you in esteem and in affection in their hearts, may think true things about you, even though they don't believe the gospel that you believe. No crime's been committed by Paul. He deserves no punishment whatsoever. They say it aloud, no bonds, no beatings, no executions, no fines. And as we've said along the way, this would have not just been the story of Paul and the Acts of the Apostles, But it seems very likely that it was also created as a courtroom document, a courtroom document for Christians to bring and say, look, I'm with Paul. And Paul was not guilty. Paul deserves freedom according to Roman law. And the only reason he goes to Rome, to Caesar, we've said this, is because he had appealed to Caesar instead of going back to Jerusalem. You remember, I think it was Felix, maybe Bethesda, I can't remember, gave him the choice. Why don't you go back to, you can go back to Jerusalem and be judged by the Jews. Well, he knew where that would go. And they wouldn't set him free. They should have set him free. They wouldn't because they were using him as a bargaining chip. They would have sent him back to the malicious Jews. So what does he do? He appeals to Caesar. Now, he knew he was going to go there anyways. Right. Jesus had told him that. So the commentary says something very helpful. Paul was forced to do it to screen himself from their fury when he saw the governor did not take the care he ought to have done for his protection. and therefore others think that Agrippa and Festus, being unwilling to disoblige the Jews by setting Paul free, make this serve for an excuse to the Jews of their continuing him in custody when they themselves knew they might have justified the discharging of him. Agrippa, who was but almost persuaded to be a Christian, proves no better than if he had not been at all persuaded. Paul's appeal to Caesar, was in accord with the word of Christ to him at night in the fortress Antonio in Jerusalem at the very beginning of this whole ordeal, his bondage when Lysias had put him in the fortress there. Following the night, the Lord stood by him and said, be of good cheer, Paul, for as you have testified for me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome. So Paul was told in a vision that he must bear witness to Christ at Rome. And it is all one to him, right? It's all one to him whether he goes there as a prisoner or with liberty. He knows the counsel of the Lord shall stand and says, let it stand. The will of the Lord be done. So here we have the final word against the Jewish plots, brothers and sisters. Every Roman authority on multiple occasions has ruled against the Jewish plots. And now the final Roman word in Judea is delivered. He is not guilty. And it stands for us as an example in human terms. of the finality of our assurance of pardon, the finality that we are not guilty. Christ has said so. These Jews, these hot-headed Jews, wanted him killed, away with him. It's not fit that he should live, and they were shamed by the moderate councils of this court. And in the same way the devil in all of his lies, he is shamed and shall forever be shamed by the proclamation of Jesus Christ when he said, it is finished. The gavel falls and the courtroom is adjourned. And we are the forgiven ones in Christ. So we want to be rejoicing as Paul rejoiced and serving Christ and declaring the gospel everywhere we go, not because it's necessary, but because we can't help it. Oh, it's necessary, but because His mercies capture us and His glories enthrall us and we can't help but speak of His praises everywhere we go, as a child, as a sibling, as a parent, as a father, as a mother, as an employer, wherever you are, whatever you're doing, shedding the light of Christ. Everywhere you go and not being dissuaded by those who come against you and threaten you and not becoming discourteous towards them but loving them and remembering that Christ did not revile when he was reviled being like Paul and Taking this cautionary picture here Do you receive the cautionary tale of the life of Festus and the life of Agrippa? and do you see that this serves as a helpful way for you to see your own sin and Your own patterns of sin that slow down your sanctification, that impede your growth in Christ, are shown to us here by Festus and by Agrippa as well. But instead we can, by God's grace, be like Paul and continue to grow up in the love of Christ and the declaration of His praises everywhere we go. Let us pray. Almighty and gracious Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word to us. We thank you, Lord, for the example of faithful Paul and for the warnings of faithful Festus and faithless Festus and faithless Agrippa. Lord, we want to be like Jesus. Bless us to that end, we pray in his name.