Standing On Trial Before Felix
Notes
Transcript
Review
Review
Turn to Acts 24.
In the previous chapter, Paul began his journey through the legal system of the Roman Empire. As Paul began to make his defense before the Jewish supreme court, the high priest committed a terrible injustice against Paul, but Paul humbled himself and let God handle the matter. Paul did not allow anger and bitterness to control him. Paul would be imprisoned and eventually taken to Caesarea where he would stand on trial before Felix.
Message
Message
Read Acts 24:1-9.
I have never stood on trial before a judge, but I kind of felt like I was on trial on August 22nd, 2020. That was the day I was questioned by an ordination council of nine Baptist ministers concerning my salvation, God’s calling me to ministry, my doctrine, and my philosophy of ministry. For three hours, I was asked questions concerning twelve doctrines of the Bible. I liken the experience to a trial because it was a test of what I believed from the Scriptures.
Two of the men on the council had been my Bible college professors. Another man was a deacon in our church. One of the pastors had been a missionary to Africa. Another had been a missionary in Micronesia. In all, there was roughly 200 years of ministry experience among those nine men. One of my fondest memories I have of that experience is that those men were gracious. The questioning was thorough and difficult, but they were not out to get me. They were for me, and they wanted to make sure that I was ready to shepherd a church family.
Paul had no such luxury when he stood on trial before Felix. On one side was his accusers, who hired a professional orator - a legal advocate - to bring charges against him. And in front of him, sitting on the judgment seat, was Felix.
Felix had been born a slave, but he gained freedom and the emperor’s favor. He ruled the province of Judaea from AD 52-60.
One Roman historian says of him:
The Lexham Bible Dictionary Evidence in Extrabiblical Sources
“Antonius Felix practiced every kind of cruelty and lust, wielding the power of a king with the instincts of a slave”
That was the man who began to consider Paul’s case.
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Lofty rhetoric and wild accusations - Acts 24:1-9.
Tertullus heaped lavish praise on Felix even though none of it was true. History indicates that Felix brought neither great quietness to the region nor committed any worthy deeds. Flattery is impressive only to those of ill character - so it suited Felix very well.
Application: Don’t be swayed by flattery. Be of a higher character than that. It’s not wrong to compliment others when it is earned and it is not wrong to receive compliments - but do so graciously and humbly.
Tertullus was hired because the Jews needed to convince Felix that Paul’s doctrine and ministry constituted a threat to the Roman order. To do this, Tertullus brought three accusations against Paul:
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That Paul was an insurrectionist
That Paul was the head of a revolutionary movement: the Nazarenes
That Paul attempted to profane the Jewish temple
None of these things were remotely true.
“The charge that he was an agitator who caused insurrection assumed that it was political agitation. But all of Paul’s teachings were religious.” Witness to Christ: A Commentary on Acts, Ac 24:1–9, p 341
Whether or not the accusations were true didn’t really matter. If you lived in the Roman Empire, you did not want to be accused of insurrection because there was nothing the Empire valued more than law and order. Being accused of insurrection in Roman society would be the equivalent of being accused of racism or abuse in our society. It didn’t matter of it was true or not, the accusation alone was powerful enough to destroy a person.
Application: My mentors in ministry taught me many wise lessons. Some of the best people will be accused of the worst of things. Paul was an example of this. When you take a stand for what is right, you may face accusations. Some must be resisted, but others aren’t worth fighting. It takes spiritual maturity to know the difference between the two. Good character is one of the best defenses against such things.
As Paul stands on Trial Before Felix, first we see lofty rhetoric and wild accusations. Secondly…
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Simple speech and sound defense - Acts 24:10-21.
Let’s see how Paul handled these accusations in this court.
Read Acts 24:10-21.
Paul brilliantly counters every accusation.
Verse 11 - He had been in Israel only twelve days - hardly enough time to stir up a revolution.
Verse 12-13 - He had kept a low profile the entire time - he hadn’t visited the synagogues, he hadn’t been debating any of the other rabbis in the temple, nor had he been out among the people. He did those things when ministering in other cities, but he hadn’t in Jerusalem.
Verses 14-15 - Paul argues that from the perspective of the Romans, he was just worshipping God differently than the Jews did - in other words, this was a religious dispute.
Verse 19 - finally, if the charges were so serious, then the Jews from the province of Asia should have come to bring the accusations themselves.
Application: Paul’s example is refreshing to me in this regard: he didn’t get angry while standing for the truth and defending himself. He doesn’t get angry about these wild accusations. He doesn’t get angry that his name is being dragged through the mud by these con artists.
There’s a real danger in knowing that you’re right and they’re wrong and getting angry about it.
You may be right and they may be wrong but you getting angry about it certainly doesn’t help the situation.
You may have the truth while someone else may have nothing but lies, but you getting angry only hurts the cause of Christ.
In this situation, Paul was right. He was on the side of right. But being right doesn’t give you the right to be angry.
He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: But he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly.
He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; And he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.
The discretion of a man deferreth his anger; And it is his glory to pass over a transgression.
As Paul stands on trial before Felix, we’ve seen lofty rhetoric and wild accusations, we’ve seen simple speech and sound defense, now thirdly…
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Deferred decision and deferred judgment - Acts 24:22-27.
Read Acts 24:22-27.
Deferred: to put off, to delay or postpone
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A deferred judgment of Paul
Felix chose to postpone his ruling on the case. In verse 22, Felix said that the reason was so he could hear from Lysias and get his perspective, but there was more to the story than that. Look at verse 26.
Read Acts 24:26.
That was the real reason behind the delay. Felix was corrupt. He secretly hoped that Paul would offer him a bribe and they could cut a backroom deal.
Thou shalt not wrest judgment; thou shalt not respect persons, neither take a gift: for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words of the righteous.
Application: I would like to think that judgment is never perverted in our country, but I pay attention too much to think so. Human nature is no different now than in Paul’s day. Let that reality be a reminder to always stand for right no matter how much it will cost you. Paul wasn’t going to cut a deal just to get his freedom. He would do right no matter how much it cost him personally. May we have such men and women today.
Although the ruling was delayed, Felix allowed Paul a measure of freedom and to be visited by his friends. Do you remember Philip the evangelist? Acts 21:8 tells us that he lived in Caesarea. I’m sure they spent a lot of time together during these years of Paul’s life.
Read Acts 24:24-27.
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A deferred judgment of Felix
Paul wasn’t the only one who had to face a delayed judgment. Felix did also.
You see, time after time, Felix invited Paul to come and speak about faith in Christ Jesus. Time after time, Felix and his wife sat and conversed with Paul as he reasoned with them of righteousness, temperance, and of the judgment to come!
Felix was not a righteous man.
Felix was not a self-controlled man - he was a bloodthirsty, ruthless tyrant.
Felix was not prepared for the judgment to come when he would stand before God!
Paul warned him, pleaded with him to trust Christ as his Savior from sin. Felix trembled at Paul’s words, but he kept telling Paul,
“Not now Paul! I’m not ready to put my faith in Jesus Christ! For now, you can depart. When I have a better opportunity, I’ll call for you and hear you again.”
Time after time, Felix heard Paul, but two years passed until one day, Felix received a letter from Rome. The emperor had heard of Felix’s poor governance of the province and Felix was being recalled from his position of power. He would answer to the emperor.
There is no indication that Felix ever prepared himself for the judgment to come. He postponed his decision on Christ. He thought he had more time, but he could not defer it forever! One day, he too will stand before the Great White Throne of God and there he will stand on trial before the king of kings and lord of lords.
Application: It’s one thing to stand on trial before man; it’s quite another to stand on trial before a holy God. It’s one thing to be tested by an ordination council, it’s quite another to be tested by God’s standard of righteousness. My dear friend, I plead with you as a fellow American: are you ready to stand on trial before God?
But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.
Jesus taught that even the very smallest of things we do - like saying empty, useless words - even those things will be judged by a holy God.
I preach to you the same message that Paul preached to Felix: judgment day is coming! Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and the Bible says that you will be immediately justified in the sight of God! You will be declared righteous in God’s court because the righteousness of Christ will be applied to your account! So don’t delay! Don’t just believe that Jesus existed and walked this earth, make the choice to trust Him alone to save your soul! Take Him at His word and he will!
If you’ve never done so, I invite you today to call upon the Lord to save your soul.
For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Make that decision. Do what Felix probably never did. Trust Christ alone to be saved from your sins today.
Invitation
Invitation