Now, what's your busiest day of the week?
You probably think that mine is Sunday.
It's the only day minister to work, isn't it?
But it's not actually.
The busiest day of my week
is the same day as the busiest day of your week.
And it's tomorrow.
Because tomorrow is always going to be the day, isn't it?
When you get all those things done
that you never got round to doing today.
And of course we know, don't we,
that tomorrow never comes.
I'll get down to it one of these days, we say.
But one of these days becomes none of these days.
And it actually never happens.
And that is what Felix did with the gospel.
Can you just look at verse 25?
25 are the little numbers on page 934.
And the apostle Paul, as he reasoned
about righteousness and self-control
and the coming judgment,
Felix was alarmed and said,
go away to the present.
To the present.
When I get an opportunity, I will summon you.
That's what Felix said.
The fancy word for it is procrastination.
I like that word.
I like the sound of it, don't you?
To procrastinate.
To put off to tomorrow
what ought to be done today.
You're a terrible procrastinator
you can say to someone tomorrow.
And that's what lots of people do
when it comes to the Lord Jesus.
It's not that they reject it outright.
They're not against him, they'd say.
It's just they've never got around
to do anything about it.
They just keep putting it off.
Of course, not everybody's got the same advantage
as Felix did.
Felix had the apostle Paul,
who's probably the greatest preacher
that Christianity has ever had.
And he had the apostle Paul
as his private chaplain for two whole years.
He had the gospel explained to him
by the best gospel preacher
who's ever lived.
And if he didn't understand it,
well all he had to do
was press the replay button, didn't he?
Which he did frequently.
Look at verse 26.
At the same time,
well it says at the end of the verse,
isn't it,
so he sent for him often
and conversed with him.
He says tomorrow.
Many are.
Tomorrow.
Well I've got a more convenient time
but there is never
a more convenient time
than right now.
And so tonight,
I want to challenge you.
I want to challenge you,
whatever your relationship is
to the gospel of the Lord Jesus,
to right now give full attention
to what is happening.
Because you are under the sound
of the word.
And God is speaking to us
through his word.
Somebody has said
that the past is history,
the future is mystery,
the present is a gift.
And that is why we call it the present,
which is a bit corny, isn't it?
I quite like it to have got past it.
So let's make the most.
Let's make the most of this present moment.
It is God's gift to us.
And if you're not sure
where you stand in relationship
to the Lord Jesus,
seize the moment.
Carpe diem, is that right?
Seize the day.
Make this the night
when you sort it out.
So all I want to do
is I want to consider
three things about Felix,
all beginning with M.
The man he was,
the mistake he made,
the message he missed.
The man he was.
Let me introduce you
to this man Felix.
He named himself.
He chose his own name
according to Acts
from Biblical Literature.
He was a slave
who gained his freedom.
And he took a new name,
Felix,
which means in Latin,
happy.
But I don't think
he's a very happy man at all
when you read about him.
It's often the case,
isn't it,
that those who appear
most happy on the outside
are often inwardly sad.
Some of the greatest comics
that there have ever been
are often the saddest of people.
It's a strange phenomenon,
isn't it?
So who is this man?
What kind of man was Felix?
Felix,
secular history,
knows him as Felix,
the procurator,
the governor,
the governor of Samaria
and probably Judea.
He was Pilate's successor.
The procurator of Palestine,
the man in charge,
as far as the Romans
were concerned.
So he knew all about Jesus.
From a job like that,
you couldn't possibly know
about Jesus.
Look at verse 22,
it says,
isn't it,
but Felix having a rather
accurate knowledge
of the way.
Do you notice that?
That's the description
of Christians in those days.
They were known as the way.
He'd been properly breathed
when he took over
as the governor of Palestine.
There was no way
that he could not have known
about the way
because by this time
in mystery,
there's probably
tens,
twenty,
thirty thousand people
who would become Christians.
That's what they think
by Acts chapter 6.
So he would have known
about Christians.
He would have access
to the official records
of the crucifixion
and the empty tomb.
And Paul says
to his immediate successor,
Festus,
in chapter 26,
these things were not
done in a corner.
It's all on the public record.
It's all in the newspapers.
It's all in the public domain.
And as procurator of Palestine,
Felix was responsible
for public order.
But he didn't do
a very good job
at the verses 1-3
of Paul's trial
before Felix
in chapter 24.
The Jews arrived,
don't they,
in record time
with their lawyer,
Tertullus.
And he sounds like a lawyer,
doesn't he?
Look at verse 1.
After five days,
the high priest
and the house
came down with some elders
and it spoke from one
Tertullus.
They laid before the governor
that case against Paul.
And they say this.
When he'd been summoned,
Tertullus began to accuse him,
saying,
since though,
through you,
we enjoy much peace
and since by your foresight
and most excellent Felix,
reforms are being made
for this nation
in every way
and everywhere.
We accept this
with all gratitude.
But to detain you
no further,
I beg you in your kindness
to hear us briefly.
Now that is what is called
flannel,
isn't it?
Isn't that what it's called?
It's lawyer's talk.
There's a lawyer,
and obviously it's the front
and the back side.
But that's what you paid him for,
isn't it?
It's the blatant rewriting
of history.
It's enough to make any Jew
choke on his cornflakes
because the reality
was very different.
Josephus,
the Jewish historian,
tells us that Felix
was the worst ruler
that Judea ever had.
Tacitus,
the Roman historian,
writes to him
as a master of cruelty
and lust
to exercise the powers
of a king
with the mind of a slave.
In other words,
there was nothing noble
about him.
There was nothing
about this man,
Felix,
that commanded respect
or loyalty.
He was mean,
he was corrupt,
he was cruel.
So mean and so corrupt
that eventually
his superiors,
very soon after,
summoned Felix to Rome.
And Felix kept his life
but lost his job.
Nero sacked him.
Fancy being sacked
by Emperor Nero
for being cruel.
He was summoned
by Nero
for his crimes
against humanity
when the guy
was, well,
that is the kind
of man he was.
There's a saying,
isn't there,
power corrupts
and absolute power
corrupts absolutely
and Felix demonstrates
that here.
You see in the way
he deals with Paul
in verse 19.
They ought to be here
before you
to make an accusation.
Should they have
anything against me?
But there are no witnesses
in this court case.
So the case
should have been
thrown out
straight away.
Roman law
took it very seriously.
If your original
accusers didn't
turn up in court,
if the original
accusers were absent,
it should be thrown out
and that was the case
here.
The Jews
turned up with their
lawyer,
who's obviously
a very good lawyer
judging by those
opening remarks,
to try and get the
judge on his side,
but there's no case
to answer.
There are no witnesses
and the original
accusers are not
in court.
And so Felix
should have thrown
the case out of court
and set Paul free.
And not only that,
Paul has been handed
over to the Romans
on trumped up charges.
He's an innocent man.
There's three S's,
lots of alliteration
tonight.
Sedition,
sectarianism,
sacrilege.
Three words
we hardly use.
Sedition,
sectarianism,
sacrilege.
Don't worry if you
don't understand them.
Basically,
they say Paul's
a troublemaker.
He's a rim leader.
He's a desecrator
of temples.
These are the sort
of charges that were
brought against Paul.
Now I'm not going
to go into it.
You can read
Luke's transcript
of the court case
if you want
in these chapters.
And Felix knows
that.
But instead of
acquitting Paul,
he adjourns the
case indefinitely.
So look at verse 22
he puts Paul on
remand.
It's just on page
934.
Felix having a rather
accurate knowledge
of the way he put
them on.
Saying when Lysias,
the tribune,
comes down,
I will decide your
case.
But as far as we know,
Lysias never arrives.
And as far as we know,
Felix never sends him.
And so for two whole
years,
two whole years,
an innocent man is
kept under arrest
without trial.
So that is Felix,
the man in charge
of law and order,
the procurator.
Now let's move on
to Felix,
the procrastinator.
Felix,
the procrastinator,
his mistake.
We've seen the man,
let's see the mistake.
And again,
it's a mistake many
people make.
Let me quote to you
Pink Floyd,
the song Time.
Ticking away,
the moments that make
up a dull day.
Fritter and waste the
hours in an offhand
way.
Kicking around on a
piece of ground in
your hometown,
waiting for someone
or something to show
you the way.
Tired of lying in the
sunshine,
staying home to watch
the rain.
You are young and life
is long and there is
time to kill today.
And then one day
you'll find ten years
have got behind you.
No one told you
when to run,
you missed the
starting gun.
So you run and you
run to catch up with
the sun but it's
sinking.
Racing around to come
up behind you again.
The sun is the same
in a relative way
but you're older,
shorter of breath
and one day closer
to death.
Every year is getting
shorter,
never seem to find
the time.
Plans that either
come to naught or
half a page of
scribbled lines.
Hanging on in quiet
desperation is the
English way.
The time is gone,
the song is over.
Thought I had
something more to say.
Now that's the
mistake Felix made.
Waiting for someone
to show you the way.
And somebody did
come and show
Felix the way.
In verse 14,
Paul manages to get
his testimony in
in the midst of the
trial and it's
interesting.
He says in verse 14,
if you can see it on
page 933,
but this I confess to
you, that according
to the way which
they call a sect.
See what he's saying?
He's saying,
they call us a sect
but I follow the
God of the Jews.
As a Christian,
I haven't exchanged
one God for another
Felix.
I believe the same
God that they
believe and I follow
the God of the Jews
as a follower of the
way as a Christian.
The way is an
interesting term because
it comes up again and
again in this chapter.
I've thought about it
this week.
What a weird thing to
call people, the way.
But what's the question
that comes up in your
mind, that springs to
your mind when you
think of the way?
It's this, where are
you going?
Which way are you
going?
It's a title, isn't it,
that begs a question,
the way.
And Jesus, of course,
in John's Gospel, if
you know anything about
the Bible, he said,
I am the way, the
truth and the life.
There's no way to the
Father except through me.
Jesus is the way.
Chinese have got a
proverb, haven't they?
The journey of a
thousand miles begins
with one step.
And so if you want to
come to know God, if
you want to come to
know the God of the
Jews, if you want to
come to know the God
of the Bible, if you
want to come to know
God as your Father,
then Jesus is the way
and that's the first
step you must take.
And Felix was well
acquainted with that,
wasn't he?
That's fine too.
Lots of people reject
Christianity without
knowing anything about
it, but Felix knew
a lot about it.
He was well
acquainted.
He knew a lot
about it.
With the way he'd
researched it.
He'd be briefed on
it.
He'd have Paul
explained to him the
way of salvation.
He knew the
gospel.
In other words, he
endured the starting
gun, but he didn't
run.
He knew the way, but
he didn't start on
it.
And instead he
stalled, he
prevaricated, he
procrastinated.
Look at verses
24 and 25.
This is out of
court now, isn't it?
Verse 24, he's out
of court.
He's back.
And Felix has
put him on
remand.
After some days,
Felix came with
his wife, Drusilla,
who was Jewish, and
he sang for Paul and
she'd have to speak
about faith in
Christ Jesus.
He's been shown the
way of salvation.
Faith in Christ
Jesus is the way.
He was being urged to
run for his life, and
again and again it
was explained to him
this way of salvation,
but he never set out.
Look at verse 25.
And as he reasoned
about righteousness
and self-control and
the coming judgment,
Felix was alarmed and
said, go away for the
present.
When I get an
opportunity, I'll
summon you.
Now that word is
very, very strong.
Very, very strong in
verse 25.
Do you see that
Felix was alarmed?
He was afraid.
He was trembling in
his boots.
He was quaking.
He heard Paul preach
about faith in Jesus
and he trembled.
Felix trembled, but he
didn't turn from his
sin.
He trembled, but he
didn't trust in Jesus
as the way to go on
his Savior.
He was convicted, but
not converted.
He knows the way, but
he never sets out on
it.
Instead, he
procrastinates.
He prevaricates.
Do you see what he
says?
That's enough for now.
Don't call me.
I'll call you Paul.
When it's convenient,
I'll send for you
again.
So instead of
listening to the
voice of his
conscience, which was
screaming at him,
he stifles it.
And again and
again for two
whole years until
it's silenced
altogether.
Why would
anyone do that?
For two whole
years, he hears
this message until
it's silenced in
his conscience.
Now why would
anyone do that?
And there are
three reasons hinted
at in the passage,
and they are
interesting because
we'll all be
familiar with him.
Because the three
things that are
stopping Felix from
going on the way,
from exercising faith
in Jesus Christ,
are the things that
will damn him and
stifle his conscience.
And the three
things that Paul
warns about are
actually the same
three things Paul
warns leaders about
in 1 Timothy
chapter 3.
Three temptations
for leaders in
God's church,
yeah, but three
temptations also for
leaders in society.
What are they?
Money, sex and
power.
So let me show
you that.
2 Timothy
is 25 and 26,
and we get the
reason he was
stalling.
As he reasoned
about righteousness
and self-control
and becoming
judgment,
Felix was alarmed
and said,
go away for the
present.
When I get an
activity, I will
summon you.
At the same
time, he hoped
that money would
be given him
by Paul.
So he sent
him off to
and conversed
with him.
Now again,
if you were
listening when
Rachel read,
you'll notice
that Paul let
something slip
in verse 17.
Do you see that?
Just a look at
the page.
Now after several
years, I came to
bring arms to
my nation and
to present
offerings.
Now if this
was a Disney
cartoon, you
would hear the
cash register
tingle at that
and Felix's
eyes would roll
around and
there would be
dollar signs
wouldn't there
on Felix's
eyes.
How many have
stifled their
consciences and
ruined their
souls for the
love of money?
And what can
money buy?
It's not
convenient right
now to be a
Christian.
I know if I
become a
Christian, it's
going to cramp
my style.
There would
be decisions
that I've
got to make
that I just
don't want
to make.
How many
have stifled
their conscience
for the love
of money?
And the
apostle says
it's the love
of money.
Money is a
neutral thing.
It's a
neutral thing,
but we just
can't help
loving the
stuff, can
we?
It's the
love of money
that is the
root of all
evil and you
don't have to
have money
to love it.
Think of all
the people who
are in hell
tonight because
of the love
of money.
Think of
Judas.
Judas Iscariot.
He betrayed
the Lord Jesus
for 30 pieces
of silver.
It's hardly
anything.
What motivated
him to betray
Jesus?
Well the Bible
says very
clearly that
Judas was a
greedy man.
He was the
treasurer of the
twelve and he
liked to put his
hand in the
till and he
used to spend
what was put in
the treasurer's
account for
himself.
And 30 pieces
of silver is not
very much to
damn yourself with
for eternity.
It's not a lot
of money you've
got to hell
with.
But Judas
did.
30 pieces of
silver and he
sold his
soul.
The New Testament
talks about a
man called
Demas.
Demas was one
of Paul's
colleagues.
He was a
church worker.
He travelled
with Paul.
Can you imagine
how exciting
that was?
And in 2
Timothy Paul
says Demas
has forsaken
me having
loved this
present age.
Loved the
world.
And Demas
has forsaken.
He's gone
back into it.
He's gone
back into
making money.
He's been
blinded by
Satan into
thinking this
world is the
only world that
matters.
And the only
thing that
matters in this
world is to be
comfortable and
well off.
And so he's
forsaken me.
He's abandoned
the gospel.
Think of the
rich young ruler
in Luke chapter
18.
You cannot
help but love
the man in
Luke 18.
He's earnest.
He comes running
to Jesus.
It's not a
philosophy class
at Oxford
University.
It's not a
cool, detached,
theoretical discussion.
He's a man who's
concerned about
his soul.
And he
falls at
Jesus' feet.
And he says,
what must I do
to inherit a
eternal life?
How can I get
to know God?
How can I get
into heaven?
And Jesus
says, well,
what you have
give to the
poor.
That's not the
11th commandment.
Jesus is simply
dealing with this
man's need.
It's not that
he's rich that's
the problem.
It's not that
he's got money
that's the problem,
but that money
has got him.
And Jesus
says, you're
going to have
to deal with
that.
With that
idolatry in
life, you
can't be
saved otherwise.
And we're
told that the
man goes away
sad and
Jesus lets
him go.
Reason number
one, and it
may be that
this is one of
the reasons in
your life why
you're not
taking Jesus
seriously in
your life.
It's the love
of money.
Reason number
two is right
by his side
and her name
is Drusilla.
It says in
verse 24 that
she was his
wife, but in
fact, she was
somebody else's
wife.
Felix had
had three
wives.
Two of
them were
called
Drusilla,
which I
would have
thought would
be very
confusing.
But apparently
he'd taken
this woman.
She belonged
to someone
else.
He fancied
her, so
he took
her.
And it's
a sort of
smash and
grab mentality,
isn't it,
that sadly we
know only too
well.
You know, it
destroys
relationships.
And it
destroys families
and children.
Never mind
what self-control
and judgment
is.
Just go
for it.
Don't
worry.
Don't let
a preacher
spoil your
fun.
Don't let
a Christian
upbringing,
cramp your
style.
Fly away
Peter, fly
away Paul,
come again
another day.
It's not
convenient right
now.
And of
course, it's
not.
It's never
convenient, is
it?
If you're
involved in
that kind
of lifestyle,
it never
will be.
Felix was
not prepared
to change
his lifestyle.
There were
things I
just don't
want to
let go,
he would
say.
It's what
the Bible
calls the
pleasure of
sin.
And we've
got to be
honest,
and we are
going to be
honest as a
Christian preacher
and say there
is pleasure
in sin.
Living to
please
yourself.
Living
independently of
God, there
is pleasure in
that, but the
Bible says it
is for a
season.
And the
devil says to
you tonight,
he says go
for it, eat,
drink and be
merry.
For tomorrow
you die.
Live for now,
eat, drink and
watch telly.
Live for the
moment, you
deserve it.
That's what
every advert
says.
You deserve
it, you're
worth it.
Spoil yourself,
there's pleasure
in sin, but
there's only
for a season.
Do you
know what the
psalmist says?
The Bible
says there is
pleasure at
God's right
hand forever
more.
And what
is at God's
right hand?
Jesus is at
God's right
hand.
But Felix
prefers
through
the letter
Jesus.
Reason number
three is in
verse 27,
and it's the
most damning
of all.
He keeps
chanting for
Paul for
putting him
off.
Do you
see that
verse 27?
So the
tribune came
and said to
him, tell
me, are
you a
Roman
citizen?
And he
said, yes.
The tribune
said, I
bought the
citizenship for
a large sum.
Sorry, I'm
in the wrong
chapter.
I thought that
wasn't there.
Verse 27.
Good grief,
what's
happened?
Right.
Verse 27.
When two
years had
elapsed, Felix
was succeeded
by Porcius
Festus.
That is
probably the
best name
in the
whole of
the Bible
system.
Can you
imagine what
he was
called in
the school
playground?
Porcius
Festus.
When two
years had
elapsed, Felix
was succeeded
by Porcius
Festus, and
desiring to
give him a
favor to
the Jews,
Felix left
him in
prison.
Because he
wanted to
grant a
favor to
the Jews,
he left
him in
prison.
He showed
the case.
Why?
Because of
his career.
He wanted
to protect
himself.
And he
wanted to
desperately
cling to
power.
And he
must have
known which
way the
wind was
blowing.
You cannot
read
second history
and not
think it
was not
going to be
very long
that after
this there
was going
to be a
massive
civil war and
the Romans
have got to
clamp down and
Felix is
largely responsible
for civil
unrest in
Palestine.
He must
have known
which way the
wind was
blowing.
And he's
desperate to
cling on to
his job,
desperate to
find favor
with the
Jews so
he wouldn't
get in
trouble with
the superiors.
Isn't that
ironic?
Here he is,
he's willing to
shrug off the
claims of
almighty God
but he's
desperately
bowing and
scraping the
man.
He's a
man pleaser
and not a
God fearer.
And is that
you?
Is that me?
For as long
as you care
more for what
people think
than what God
says,
you're never
going to
move from
where you
are.
For as long
as you care
more for what
people think
than what God
thinks you're
lost.
It's not
convenient now
Paul.
It doesn't
quite fit in
with my
lifestyle,
with my
career,
my promotion
plan.
He's not the
first and he
won't be the
last.
And you
can't help
thinking
those who
know the
story of
Pharaoh.
The man
who faced
Moses and
he wouldn't
let God's
people go.
And ten
times God
sends these
plays and
comes into
Pharaoh's
life in a
really dramatic
way and it
says Pharaoh
hardened his
heart and
he hardened
his heart and
he hardened
his heart and
he stifled his
conscience and
he stifled his
conscience and
he stifled his
conscience and
until in the
end God
hardened his
heart and
gave him
over.
Think of
Pontius
Pilate,
Felix's
predecessor.
Do you
remember what
he did?
In front of
the crowd he
got a bowl and
he washed
his hands
because he
thought he
could wash
his hands
of the
whole affair
of Jesus.
He thought
he could wash
his hands
of Jesus
and every
Sunday there
are people
who confess
what you
have confessed
he suffered
under
Pontius
Pilate.
Reminding
themselves that
Jesus Christ
suffered under
Pontius
Pilate.
You cannot
wash your
hands of
Jesus.
Listen to
Charles Darwin.
Charles Darwin
wrote to a
friend called
J.D.
Hooker in
1868.
And Hooker
had been to
see and
been to
listen to
Hamlet's
Messiah and
Darwin wrote
this.
He said
I'm glad
you are
at the
Messiah.
I should
like to
hear it
again but
I dare
say I
should find
my soul
too dried
up to
appreciate it
as in
olden
days.
For it
is a
horrid
bore that
I am a
withered
leaf for
everything
except
science.
Charles
Darwin
looking back
at earlier
days when
his heart
was softer
and his
conscience
was active
realising
that those
days are
probably
gone.
I've
hardened
my
heart.
It's
such a
horrid
bore that
I am a
withered
leaf for
everything
except
science.
He's
sold his
soul for
science.
We've
looked at
the man
and I
hope we've
learnt
something about
the mistake
that he
made.
He
postpones.
He puts
off to
tomorrow
what he
ought to
have done
that day
and he
fails to
understand
this that
to not
decide is
in fact
to decide.
Have you
got that?
to not
decide about
the Lord
Jesus is
in fact
to decide
when it
comes to
the gospel.
Hardening
his heart,
resisting
his conscience,
putting off
to tomorrow
what needs
to be done
today.
And that
is such a
dangerous game
to play.
and if
your
plan
it's a
pretty
hellish
place
this
earth
and so
it is
sometimes
isn't it?
It's
easy for
me
who's
lived a
pretty
charmed
life
in a
decent
country
not to
appreciate
that for
some
people
life is
a real
hell.
!
But even
in the
most
hellish
spots on
earth,
even
tonight,
in the
most
hellish
spots on
earth,
there is
always
some
extenuating
circumstances,
isn't there?
There's always
someone trying to
improve something.
There's always a
red cross,
isn't there?
Or
medicine
sans
frontier,
there's an
emergency,
a relief
organisation that
will come and
try and make
the situation
matter.
But imagine
living in a
world where
there's none
of that.
Where you're
cut off forever
from every
source of
good.
There's no
goodness
anymore.
There are no
friendships
anymore.
And friendship
is a good
thing that
comes from
God.
There are no
friends in
hell.
Let's learn
from the
mistake
Felix made.
Let me
share with you
finally the
message that he
missed in
verses 24 and
25.
Paul here
gives us three
reasons why
Felix should
have believed
in Jesus.
Every time
Felix sent
for him it
was the same
message.
Imagine that
for two years
the same
sermon every
second year.
And it's
about faith
in Jesus
Christ.
And you
have it
there in
verse 25.
I feel like
it's the
fleshing out
of that.
There are
the reasons
that Paul
marshalled
to persuade
Felix to
go down the
way of
believing
in Jesus
Christ.
He
reasoned
with him
about
righteousness
and about
self-control
and coming
judgment.
Now I
don't know
if that
echoes
in you.
If you're
a Christian
you know
your Bible
at all.
That's what
we're told
is the
ministry of
the Holy
Spirit.
That's what
the Holy
Spirit does.
So in
John's
Gospel when
the Holy
Spirit comes
he will
convict of
righteousness
self-control
and judgment
to come.
That's the
Holy Spirit's
ministry.
And so Paul
is preaching
to this man
and the power
of the Holy
Spirit and
he's reasoning
with him.
And he's
pleading with
him about
rightness.
And self-control
and judgment
to come.
Now how
brave is that
of Paul?
How much
Felix needed to
hear that
message and
Drusilla for
that matter?
And they
needed to be
told right
from wrong
didn't they?
And they
needed to be
reminded that
it is God's
world and that
it is God
who determines
what is right
and what is
wrong.
That's not
your choice
Felix.
It's not my
choice and not
yours and it's
certainly your
public opinions.
And the way
you are living
Felix and
Drusilla is
not right in
God's sight.
Actually it is
wrong.
And they
need to be
challenged on
self-control.
And you may
be the great
governor of
Palestine,
Felix, but
actually you
can't govern
yourself.
And you
might even be
able to
acknowledge what
you're doing
is wrong, but
you can't
stop it,
Felix, can
you?
And you
might be
able to see
what is
right, but
you can't
do the right
thing because
you're not in
control of
yourself.
Neither are you
or I.
And that
is the
desperate
thing about
the human
condition,
isn't it?
It's not
just that we
make mistakes,
like making
mistakes in
an exam,
we fail the
exam so we
take the
research six
months later.
We are
controlled.
We can't
control ourselves.
We are
controlled by
sin.
And sin is
a power in
our lives that
destroys us.
And this proud
couple need to
be told that and
they need to be
reminded of it.
And they need to
be told the
judgment to come.
Now you've got to
give credit to
Paul.
You might hate
Christianity,
you might hate
the apostle Paul,
but Paul told
his judge,
you will be
judged.
Isn't that
something?
I had an
Oscar
story of
saying that
this week.
He told this
proud,
arrogant man
who would
be playing
God with
other people's
lives that
one day,
very soon,
you will have
to face
God himself.
And the
truth is,
tonight,
as much as
you may not
like it,
so will
you and
I.
And there's
no escape
from that.
death,
there is
no escape.
It's no
good as many
people say,
or think,
well,
when I'm
dead,
I'm dead.
No,
you're not.
Look at
verse 15.
If you look at
verse 15,
Paul says
there's going
to be a
resurrection,
there's going
to be a
resurrection of
the righteous,
the just,
and the unjust.
That's what
Christians and
Jews are
in common.
You say,
we both
believe the
same thing,
there'll be a
resurrection of
the righteous and
the wicked,
and that is
why faith in
Jesus Christ
is so important
tonight.
Because there
is no other
way that you
can be right
with God.
Jesus is the
only way that
you can be
right with
God.
And that is
the message
that this
man missed.
Jesus comes
to you this
evening in the
gospel that I'm
trying to preach
to you and he's
saying to you,
take my
righteousness.
Jesus is the
only one who
got it right.
And he comes
to you and he
says to you,
you can take
my rightness
and I'll
take your
wrongness.
The
Apostle Peter
said he died
the just for
the unjust,
he died the
right for the
wrong,
the innocent for
the guilty,
take my
rightness and
I'll take your
wrongness.
And it's too
good to be true
isn't it?
There is now no
condemnation for
those who are in
Christ's
lives.
Romans 8.
Whoever believes
in him,
John says,
in his gospel,
whoever believes
in him,
Jesus Christ is
not condemned
and has eternal
life.
Whoever does
not believe is
condemned already.
So people say,
well let's just
wait and find out
when it's too
late when judgment
day comes,
isn't it?
And it will be
too late then.
And you need to
find out now,
tonight,
what's the verdict
going to be?
And the amazing
good news of
Christianity in the
gospel is that if
you believe in
Jesus Christ,
you can hear and
now know what
the verdict is
going to be on
your life on
the day of
judgment.
And so you
don't have to
fear.
Not guilty.
What a weight
to be lifted
off your
shoulders.
You can live
the rest of
your life knowing
that on judgment
day, God is
going to say
about you,
not guilty.
Isn't that
wonderful?
That is the
gospel.
Don't you see
how urgent it
is?
And it's
something that
we need to
decide right
here, right
now.
There's a story
about Satan.
I'm not sure
if it's from
the scripted
letters or
not.
It's a famous
story.
The story is
Satan gets
together some
of his top
demons and
they have a
bit of a
brainstorm about
how they can
do a better
job of destroying
the human race.
And so they
have this little
get together,
I think there
were four of
them, and
they have this
brainstorming
session, and
the question is
how can we
capture more
people for
hell?
One of the
demons says,
well let's
tell them that
there's no
God.
Satan says,
well that's
not going to
do.
Everyone knows
that there's
a God,
everyone knows
that, they
just suppress
their truth,
they deny it,
they push it
down.
It's no good
telling them
that there is
no God,
because deep
down inside
they won't
believe it.
Well clearly
the second
demon says,
well why don't
we tell them
that there's
no heaven?
Satan says,
well everyone
wants to go to
heaven, don't
they?
Haven't you
noticed that?
That's true,
isn't it?
Every food
I take,
everybody wants
to go to
heaven.
Everyone goes
to heaven,
people want to
believe.
Well the
third demon says,
well let's
tell them
there's no
hell.
Well that
won't work
either,
because everyone
has got a
conscience,
and even
though they
try and
stifle it,
they know
that they're
going to
be judged,
people know
that there's
a right and
a wrong,
isn't it?
The first
word it seems
to me that
kids speak in
the playground
is that's
not fair.
Everybody's
got a sense
of justice.
Okay,
says the
fourth demon,
why don't
I go and
tell them
there's no
hurry.
brilliant,
says Satan.
No hurry,
no worries
mate,
she'll be
all right.
Billy Graham,
an American
evangelist,
he came to
London many
times in the
last 50
years,
probably preached
to more
people in the
world than
anyone else
has in
history,
and he
came to
London in
the 1970s
and he
was interviewed
on the BBC.
On the
interviewer,
who was very
sceptical of
this man's
Christian faith,
asked him
this question
how many
converts
are you
expecting in
this message,
Dr Graham?
And expecting
Billy to
say the
figures hundreds
or thousands
or hundreds
of thousands,
or expecting
to maybe even
for Billy to
be a bit more
spiritual and
pious to say
well we'll
have to leave
it up to
God.
But what
big Billy
said was
this,
just one,
if we can
make one
real
convert,
it would
have been
worth coming
across the
Atlantic.
In fact
he said
if I
can just
win you
to Jesus
Christ,
it would
be worth
coming.
And of
course the
interviewer
immediately
changed the
subject,
which is
what people
do.
And it's
what Felix
is doing,
and it's
what you
will do
as soon
as I
finish.
You'll
go on to
other things,
you'll go
home to
supper,
you'll
watch the
telly,
you'll
forget.
There is
no time
like the
present to
sort these
things out.
And if
you're not
sure of
where you
stand in
relationship to
Jesus,
now is the
time to
sort it out
before you
leave.
Between you
and the
Lord,
now is the
time.
The
problem with
Felix is if
he'd put his
faith in
Jesus,
he would
have been
safe.
But he
didn't,
he put his
faith somewhere
else.
Do you know
where he put
his faith in?
He put his
faith in
tomorrow.
What a silly
thing to do
because tomorrow
never comes.
Tomorrow
never comes.
But Jesus
Christ is
coming,
you can be
sure of that.
This man
that God
raised from
the dead
is coming
again,
the judge
of the
living and
the dead.
So let
me plead
with you
tonight,
let me
plead with
you tonight,
do not
make the
mistake of
Felix.
Do not
keep putting
off till
tomorrow what
needs to be
done today.
Augustine,
the famous
saint,
has said
this,
God has
promised
forgiveness
to your
repentance,
but he
hasn't
promised
tomorrow for
your
procrastination.
So tonight,
if you will
come to
God,
and you
will say
sorry,
and you
will ask
him to
forgive you,
and you
say to
him,
I realise
I've
messed up,
and there
is lots
and lots
of mess
to sort
out,
but I
believe in
the Lord
Jesus
Christ,
he has
died for
my sin,
he paid
the punishment
for my
sin,
please,
God
forgive me,
he will
forgive you.
But he
hasn't
promised
tomorrow for
your
procrastination,
today is
all you've
got.
Today,
why
there is
still
cause
today,
says the
psalmist,
harden not
your heart.
Let's bow
ahead to
him.
Thank you.