WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:15.019 We are in a series looking at the book of Acts, and it's been a delightful series as we regather 00:00:15.019 --> 00:00:21.100 and figure out how to do all of the logistics of being together and dismissing kids and 00:00:21.100 --> 00:00:27.640 all of those various details. We are also spending time remembering what a church is supposed to be, 00:00:27.640 --> 00:00:31.560 and there's no better way to do that than to look at the story of the early church. 00:00:32.259 --> 00:00:39.140 And we're now in the final section of the book of Acts where we're looking at the apostle Paul who is 00:00:39.140 --> 00:00:47.200 on trial. Paul is facing various government leaders. He's on trial. He's been accused of all kinds of 00:00:47.200 --> 00:00:53.219 things by the Jews who are trying to shut him down. And so he's on trial, and we see these kind of 00:00:53.219 --> 00:01:00.519 confrontations between Paul, who has no power or influence whatsoever, and these powerful 00:01:00.519 --> 00:01:05.480 government leaders who have all kinds of power, who have the power of life and death over him. 00:01:05.959 --> 00:01:11.560 And in some ways, this is really a picture of the church in the world, what it feels like to be a 00:01:11.560 --> 00:01:16.980 Christian in the West, especially for those of us who live in a place like Washington, D.C., 00:01:16.980 --> 00:01:22.980 people who feel like they have very little cultural influence, and yet we are nevertheless called to 00:01:22.980 --> 00:01:30.780 have a public faith and to be public witnesses of the truth of Jesus Christ. And so we're looking 00:01:30.780 --> 00:01:35.260 at Paul through that lens, and this week we're looking at the passage that Evan read a moment ago, 00:01:35.359 --> 00:01:42.980 Acts chapter 26, verses 19 through 29. This is Paul facing off against King Agrippa and Festus, 00:01:42.980 --> 00:01:48.579 the local governor. And we're going to see three things about Paul that help shape how we think 00:01:48.579 --> 00:01:53.859 about what it means to be a church in the 21st century West in Washington, D.C. First of all, 00:01:53.900 --> 00:02:00.080 Paul's aim. What's he aiming at? What should we be aiming at? Number two, Paul's method. How does Paul 00:02:00.080 --> 00:02:05.980 actually go about doing what he aims to accomplish? And then third, Paul's bizarre confidence. 00:02:06.920 --> 00:02:12.500 How does Paul stand there in chains and maybe rags, surrounded by these powerful leaders, 00:02:12.979 --> 00:02:17.859 and have such confidence and poise? Where does that come from? Let's pray. 00:02:19.379 --> 00:02:26.699 Lord, we thank you for your word. We thank you for its inherent power. We thank you that you're not a 00:02:26.699 --> 00:02:33.500 dead God. You're not like the idols of the world, deaf and mute and dumb, but you're a living God who 00:02:33.500 --> 00:02:42.939 speaks. Your word shaped the mountains. Your word filled in the oceans. Your word put the stars in the 00:02:42.939 --> 00:02:50.659 sky, causes the sun to rise. Lord, your word has the power to work in us as well. Even as you created 00:02:50.659 --> 00:02:57.439 all things, so we ask now that through your word you would recreate us. We pray this for our good and 00:02:57.439 --> 00:03:07.219 for your glory in Jesus's name. Amen. So first of all, Paul's aim as he faces off against these leaders. 00:03:07.219 --> 00:03:13.340 Let me give you a little context. Paul is under house arrest at this point in the story, pending the 00:03:13.340 --> 00:03:21.280 resolution of his ongoing, never-ending trial. Knowing that he's not likely to get a fair trial where he is, 00:03:21.919 --> 00:03:26.120 because the Jewish lobby is very powerful and has a lot of influence over the local leaders, 00:03:26.719 --> 00:03:33.419 Paul has used his privilege as a Roman citizen and appealed to Caesar. He says, I want to go and I want to be 00:03:33.419 --> 00:03:39.919 tried before Caesar where I'm more likely to get a fair trial. And so he's made this appeal. Festus is 00:03:39.919 --> 00:03:47.319 the local governor. He needs to do the paperwork to send Paul on to Rome, but the problem is that 00:03:47.319 --> 00:03:53.899 Festus is new. He's come in to replace Felix. He's not familiar with the area. He's not familiar with 00:03:53.899 --> 00:03:59.199 the culture. He has no idea what to make of Paul. I mean, to him, this whole thing is very bizarre. 00:03:59.199 --> 00:04:04.199 But he hears that King Agrippa is going to be visiting and he knows that King Agrippa's family 00:04:04.199 --> 00:04:09.319 has lived in the region for generations. Agrippa's very familiar with all of the ins and outs and 00:04:09.319 --> 00:04:18.680 nuances of this situation with Paul. And so Festus essentially asks Agrippa to consult with him 00:04:18.680 --> 00:04:25.779 so that he can move Paul on to Rome. And so here we have, in this particular passage, Paul standing in 00:04:25.779 --> 00:04:31.759 the audience hall before Agrippa and Bernice and it describes all of the great pomp with which they 00:04:31.759 --> 00:04:38.139 entered. There's all of the city's most prominent leaders are all in this audience hall. And there 00:04:38.139 --> 00:04:44.399 Paul is standing there in his chains and Paul begins to make his argument. So that's where we are. 00:04:45.559 --> 00:04:51.779 And Agrippa very quickly realizes that Paul is not just trying to defend himself. His aim is not just to 00:04:51.779 --> 00:04:55.879 prove his innocence. That's been proven again and again and again. There's more going on here. 00:04:56.399 --> 00:05:01.059 And so Agrippa really starts to figure out pretty quickly what Paul's actually going for. And he says 00:05:01.059 --> 00:05:09.579 in verse 28, are you trying to convert me? That's essentially what he says. He's flabbergasted. 00:05:10.359 --> 00:05:18.339 Are you trying to get me to become a Christian? And Paul says, no. No, I'm trying to convert all of you. 00:05:18.339 --> 00:05:26.079 Not just you, O king. Everybody in this room. In fact, everybody who can hear me. Anybody who can hear my words. 00:05:28.519 --> 00:05:36.379 I wish you would all become like me in every way. Except for the chains. But in every other way. 00:05:36.959 --> 00:05:43.239 I'm trying to convert everybody in this room. And we have to ask why in this moment, of all moments, 00:05:43.240 --> 00:05:50.379 is Paul choosing this time to try to convert his hearers. He's on trial. Right? His life is hanging 00:05:50.379 --> 00:05:57.199 in the balance. And as it says in verse 19, Paul's doing this because this is exactly what Jesus 00:05:57.199 --> 00:06:02.579 himself had commissioned him to do. He says, I don't want to be disobedient to the vision that I had 00:06:02.579 --> 00:06:08.480 where Jesus told me what he wants me to do. He had seen Jesus face to face. Jesus had commissioned 00:06:08.480 --> 00:06:14.900 Paul to share the gospel. He says, go to everyone, great and small, Jew and Gentile. Everybody needs 00:06:14.900 --> 00:06:21.080 to hear the gospel. Paul, you're going to be my guy to go and make that happen. And this isn't just 00:06:21.080 --> 00:06:26.220 limited to Paul. Here's where it begins to kind of touch our lives. This is not just a job that Jesus 00:06:26.220 --> 00:06:33.920 gave to Paul. Christianity is, by definition, a religion that is meant to be shared. It's meant to be spread. 00:06:33.920 --> 00:06:39.840 Matthew 28, Jesus says to his disciples after his resurrection, all authority in heaven and on earth 00:06:39.840 --> 00:06:44.960 has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the 00:06:44.960 --> 00:06:50.080 name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have 00:06:50.080 --> 00:06:56.080 commanded you. And behold, I am with you always to the end of the age. When he says teaching them to 00:06:56.080 --> 00:07:02.139 observe all that I have commanded you, that includes the command to go and make disciples. Right? So what 00:07:02.139 --> 00:07:07.639 Jesus says to his disciples are, I want you to go and make disciples who make disciples who make 00:07:07.639 --> 00:07:14.879 disciples on down to us. So part of what it means to be a disciple is to be a disciple maker. 00:07:16.779 --> 00:07:22.139 Christianity is meant to be spread. And that is really anathema to our culture. I don't have to 00:07:22.139 --> 00:07:28.659 tell you that. I'm sure you're feeling that right now. According to Barna research, the majority of 00:07:28.660 --> 00:07:33.520 people in our country, the majority of people in our country think that if you share your faith and 00:07:33.520 --> 00:07:38.360 try to convert other people to your faith, that means that you are a religious extremist. 00:07:39.420 --> 00:07:46.860 That's something that religious wackos do. And in fact, Christians themselves are trending in this 00:07:46.860 --> 00:07:53.140 direction. The latest research says that almost half of Christian millennials, that would be a number 00:07:53.139 --> 00:08:00.399 of us in this room, believe that evangelism is wrong. That we shouldn't be doing it at all. It's 00:08:00.399 --> 00:08:06.000 actually morally wrong to try to convert other people to your faith. This is Christians who believe 00:08:06.000 --> 00:08:09.959 that. And I think it's safe to assume that there are probably some people listening who would agree. 00:08:10.979 --> 00:08:15.699 Right? Some people in this room who would say, yeah, why can't we just keep our faith to ourselves? 00:08:15.899 --> 00:08:21.500 Why do we need to share it? And that's gone wrong so many times in the past. And you think about all of the 00:08:21.500 --> 00:08:25.540 coercion and the manipulation. And why do we have to do this? It makes me so uncomfortable. 00:08:27.399 --> 00:08:32.779 Well, the answer is pretty straightforward. It's because the gospel is public truth. 00:08:33.820 --> 00:08:40.279 The gospel is public truth. That comes from Leslie Newbigin, who was an Anglican missionary in India 00:08:40.279 --> 00:08:48.440 for decades. The gospel is not like other religions. See, the gospel isn't like a set of teachings 00:08:48.440 --> 00:08:57.760 or metaphysical propositions. It's not really a lifestyle or a moral to-do list that we impose 00:08:57.760 --> 00:09:03.480 on other people. It has implications for all of those spheres, but at its core, that's not what 00:09:03.480 --> 00:09:10.920 the gospel is. At its core, the gospel is public truth. What is a public truth? Public truth is an 00:09:10.920 --> 00:09:17.580 account of things that have happened in history and what those things mean. That's what public truth 00:09:17.580 --> 00:09:23.360 means. So this is why Paul says in verse 26, the king knows about these things, and to him I speak 00:09:23.360 --> 00:09:29.200 boldly, for I'm persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this has not been done 00:09:29.200 --> 00:09:35.820 in a corner. Paul's saying everybody knows that this happened. I'm not telling you anything that you 00:09:35.820 --> 00:09:42.440 don't know already because you've been alive. Anybody who hasn't been living in a closet knows what's been 00:09:42.440 --> 00:09:51.460 happening? See, there are people in our society who deny things like the Holocaust or who deny that the 00:09:51.460 --> 00:09:59.300 Apollo moon landing ever happened. You know, Stanley Kubrick produced it or who say that all racism ended 00:09:59.300 --> 00:10:04.160 when slavery was abolished, right? So there are a lot of people in our society who believe things like this. 00:10:04.520 --> 00:10:07.920 So let me ask you this. If you're talking to somebody who's a Holocaust denier, 00:10:07.919 --> 00:10:15.759 do you feel like it's morally wrong to try to change their mind? You know, to try to convince them 00:10:15.759 --> 00:10:21.879 that it did happen? Is that an area where you feel like you should just say, well, you have your truth 00:10:21.879 --> 00:10:28.179 and I'll do my truth? See, I think most people in this room, and probably most people out on the street, 00:10:28.379 --> 00:10:34.219 would actually feel the opposite. You'd feel almost a moral imperative to try to change their mind, 00:10:34.220 --> 00:10:40.639 to try to convince them that it did happen, that these things are true, that even though slavery was 00:10:40.639 --> 00:10:45.680 abolished, racism continues in all kinds of other ways, right? You would try to change their mind. 00:10:46.220 --> 00:10:51.680 And the reason that you would want to do that is because these are all examples of public truth. 00:10:51.940 --> 00:10:56.000 These are things that happened in history, and these are accounts of what those things mean 00:10:56.000 --> 00:11:05.279 or what they don't mean. And what we believe about these things, like abolition or like the Holocaust, 00:11:06.659 --> 00:11:13.539 those profoundly impact how we live our lives and how we order our society. 00:11:13.879 --> 00:11:16.740 So it really matters what you believe about these things. 00:11:16.740 --> 00:11:25.759 And if it's true that God has actually entered into history through His Son, who died on the cross, 00:11:26.180 --> 00:11:34.220 and then rose from the grave, and that God has done this in order to redeem and renew all of creation, 00:11:34.500 --> 00:11:38.259 that is the single most important public truth there is. 00:11:38.259 --> 00:11:44.819 So it raises the question, should we not try to persuade people that this happened, 00:11:45.240 --> 00:11:48.159 and that it means all of those things, right? 00:11:48.720 --> 00:11:53.039 Yes, the Holocaust happened, right? Yes, we landed on the moon, and yes, 00:11:53.879 --> 00:12:00.600 when Jesus died on the cross and rose from death, that was God entering into history to redeem all of creation. 00:12:01.279 --> 00:12:02.519 That's what it means. 00:12:02.519 --> 00:12:07.860 People are free to accept that or to reject it, right? 00:12:08.000 --> 00:12:14.139 But let us not make the mistake of thinking that this is merely private religious sentimentality. 00:12:14.840 --> 00:12:17.179 That is simply not what we're dealing with here. 00:12:18.039 --> 00:12:23.240 The gospel is a claim about events that have happened in history that have implications for every human, 00:12:23.860 --> 00:12:30.179 every child, every animal, every blade of grass, every atom in the entire universe. 00:12:30.179 --> 00:12:36.919 So Paul's aim is to persuade as many people as he can to believe this truth about Jesus. 00:12:37.059 --> 00:12:41.019 Not just you, O King Agrippa, but everybody in this room, everybody who can hear me. 00:12:41.779 --> 00:12:45.120 So now we have to ask, well, how does Paul go about doing this? 00:12:45.939 --> 00:12:46.699 Paul's method. 00:12:48.059 --> 00:12:54.139 Paul doesn't, if you notice, lay out a series of life principles or moral imperatives. 00:12:55.279 --> 00:12:58.139 Paul begins by telling his own story. 00:12:58.139 --> 00:13:01.740 He says, let me tell you my experience with Jesus. 00:13:02.039 --> 00:13:03.639 This is what it's been like for me. 00:13:04.399 --> 00:13:07.379 So he begins by telling history, right? 00:13:07.740 --> 00:13:11.539 And when he gets to the part about the resurrection of Jesus, it's interesting. 00:13:11.860 --> 00:13:18.019 It often seems that when Paul gets to the part about the resurrection, that's when he loses his audience, right? 00:13:18.100 --> 00:13:21.919 They're with him up to that point and they say, bah, I can't hear anymore, right? 00:13:22.000 --> 00:13:23.299 And that's exactly what happens. 00:13:23.299 --> 00:13:31.419 But, you know, he gets to verse 24 and Festus interrupts him and he essentially says to Paul, Paul, you're insane. 00:13:32.579 --> 00:13:34.559 You know, the things that you're saying sound crazy. 00:13:34.599 --> 00:13:35.919 You sound like a crazy person. 00:13:36.959 --> 00:13:38.379 You know, you're clearly smart. 00:13:38.379 --> 00:13:41.980 So maybe you've just read so many books that it's just driven you mad. 00:13:43.159 --> 00:13:44.179 But you're crazy. 00:13:44.539 --> 00:13:46.120 And he's kind of mocking Paul. 00:13:46.200 --> 00:13:48.059 You can imagine, he says, Paul, you're insane. 00:13:48.279 --> 00:13:53.200 And you can imagine all of these people kind of around kind of chuckling and murmuring and whispering under their breath. 00:13:53.240 --> 00:13:54.200 This guy's a nut job. 00:13:54.200 --> 00:14:03.120 And this is basically what many people in the West think of Christians and what Christians believe these days. 00:14:03.640 --> 00:14:10.360 You know, Christianity is often portrayed in the West as a faith for the weak or the psychologically disabled. 00:14:10.560 --> 00:14:13.759 Friedrich Nietzsche said that Christianity was the religion of the weak. 00:14:15.040 --> 00:14:21.360 Karl Marx said Christianity was a fantasy that distracts people from their real economic problems. 00:14:21.360 --> 00:14:26.740 Lenin called Christianity a drug that enables people to tolerate oppression. 00:14:27.180 --> 00:14:33.759 You know, Sigmund Freud said religion is basically just a form of wish fulfillment rooted in the Oedipal complex. 00:14:34.120 --> 00:14:34.320 Right? 00:14:34.940 --> 00:14:36.019 You guys are crazy. 00:14:36.779 --> 00:14:37.500 You're weak. 00:14:37.960 --> 00:14:39.120 You're mentally feeble. 00:14:39.800 --> 00:14:41.060 That's why you're religious. 00:14:41.980 --> 00:14:50.539 And Paul responds not by getting defensive, not with a counterattack, but he responds with tremendous grace and poise. 00:14:51.360 --> 00:14:54.759 He simply looks Festus right in the eye and he says, I'm not out of my mind. 00:14:56.600 --> 00:14:59.100 I'm not out of my mind, most excellent Festus. 00:15:00.000 --> 00:15:00.840 Incredible grace. 00:15:01.620 --> 00:15:04.399 But I'm speaking true and rational words. 00:15:04.980 --> 00:15:07.440 And that is how Christianity is meant to be shared. 00:15:07.600 --> 00:15:09.000 That's how it's meant to be spread. 00:15:09.000 --> 00:15:10.320 That's how it's meant to be conveyed. 00:15:10.720 --> 00:15:13.399 Through true and rational words. 00:15:13.860 --> 00:15:14.960 Not through coercion. 00:15:15.519 --> 00:15:16.659 That has happened in history. 00:15:16.759 --> 00:15:17.639 That is not of the Lord. 00:15:17.639 --> 00:15:19.580 Not through force. 00:15:19.799 --> 00:15:21.000 That is not of the Lord. 00:15:21.159 --> 00:15:22.279 Not through manipulation. 00:15:22.600 --> 00:15:23.699 That is not of the Lord. 00:15:24.840 --> 00:15:30.740 Through logical, persuasive argumentation based on historic events. 00:15:30.939 --> 00:15:32.000 Public truth. 00:15:32.460 --> 00:15:33.439 This is what happened. 00:15:33.580 --> 00:15:34.919 This is why we believe it happened. 00:15:34.919 --> 00:15:36.500 This is what it means for you. 00:15:36.500 --> 00:15:56.940 While there are some people who try to claim that Jesus never existed, the overwhelming consensus among a very wide range of scholars of all faiths is that Jesus did, in fact, exist. 00:15:57.059 --> 00:16:00.379 There's simply too much evidence to deny it. 00:16:00.379 --> 00:16:04.740 So we have this historic reality that we have to figure out what to do with. 00:16:05.840 --> 00:16:10.399 And we have multiple eyewitness accounts of Jesus' public life and his ministry. 00:16:10.879 --> 00:16:17.320 You know, scholars used to claim that the Gospels were very obviously written hundreds of years after the fact. 00:16:17.419 --> 00:16:20.200 But that idea is actually more and more outdated. 00:16:20.399 --> 00:16:26.899 The most recent scholarship has determined that these accounts were written much earlier than previously thought. 00:16:26.899 --> 00:16:31.079 If you want to read more about that, read Richard Baucom's Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. 00:16:31.340 --> 00:16:36.860 You know, these accounts were written within the lifetime of people who heard and saw Jesus for themselves. 00:16:37.079 --> 00:16:47.379 And this is very important for us to understand because many other religions hinge on the private religious experience or revelation of one single individual. 00:16:48.980 --> 00:16:54.319 And everything hinges on that person telling the truth. 00:16:54.819 --> 00:16:55.000 Right? 00:16:55.000 --> 00:16:55.059 Right? 00:16:55.059 --> 00:16:55.719 Right? 00:16:55.839 --> 00:16:59.279 So Joseph Smith or even the prophet Muhammad. 00:16:59.779 --> 00:17:00.179 Right? 00:17:00.239 --> 00:17:06.159 There's this experience or this revelation that they are given that they then spread to all of their followers. 00:17:06.339 --> 00:17:09.700 And it hinges on the credibility of their testimony. 00:17:10.759 --> 00:17:14.339 Jesus, by contrast, had a very public ministry. 00:17:14.519 --> 00:17:16.000 He had a very public death. 00:17:16.259 --> 00:17:17.799 He had a very public burial. 00:17:17.940 --> 00:17:19.799 He had a very public resurrection. 00:17:19.799 --> 00:17:25.339 It says in 1 Corinthians 15 that there were over 500 witnesses to his resurrection alone. 00:17:25.339 --> 00:17:33.439 So you don't have just one person making a whole lot of claims and saying, trust me, believe me, God told me all this and now I'm telling you. 00:17:33.440 --> 00:17:44.259 You have multiple eyewitness accounts written by different people that focus on different themes and include different details and omit other details. 00:17:44.259 --> 00:17:46.200 And they're all kind of unique in their own way. 00:17:46.279 --> 00:17:48.580 And they reflect the author or authors. 00:17:48.880 --> 00:17:51.420 And they reflect the audience that they had in mind. 00:17:51.420 --> 00:17:53.860 And yet, they all agree on what happened. 00:17:55.039 --> 00:17:56.820 And they all agree on what it means. 00:17:58.740 --> 00:17:59.120 Right? 00:17:59.160 --> 00:18:00.120 That's very compelling. 00:18:01.420 --> 00:18:06.600 You know, in Acts chapter 26, as I said a moment ago, Paul says to King Agrippa, you know these things are true. 00:18:07.320 --> 00:18:08.779 This did not happen in a corner. 00:18:09.180 --> 00:18:10.120 That person saw it. 00:18:10.180 --> 00:18:10.740 He saw it. 00:18:10.800 --> 00:18:11.340 She saw it. 00:18:11.420 --> 00:18:11.960 They saw it. 00:18:12.060 --> 00:18:12.880 They were all there. 00:18:13.080 --> 00:18:13.759 They were there. 00:18:14.060 --> 00:18:14.980 Everybody saw it. 00:18:14.980 --> 00:18:22.500 You know, what's really interesting about this is, think about this, for several years, Jesus had a very public ministry. 00:18:22.500 --> 00:18:27.700 And there was a very powerful, influential group of people bent on shutting him down. 00:18:27.940 --> 00:18:31.819 They wanted to do everything they could to discredit and shut Jesus down. 00:18:34.720 --> 00:18:37.380 Never once did they deny that the miracles happened. 00:18:38.759 --> 00:18:38.960 Right? 00:18:39.059 --> 00:18:42.880 I mean, if you're trying to discredit this local rabble rouser, and people are saying, 00:18:42.880 --> 00:18:47.920 did you see what he did the other day when he healed that guy, got up off the mat and walked, 00:18:48.100 --> 00:18:51.800 and that person was blind, and then that person came into the temple and said, 00:18:51.860 --> 00:18:52.320 I can see. 00:18:52.460 --> 00:18:57.180 And then Lazarus, who wasn't just dead, but it stunk. 00:18:57.700 --> 00:19:01.000 You know, you could smell the decay, and then all of a sudden Lazarus comes out of the tomb. 00:19:01.320 --> 00:19:02.800 Did you know that he did those things? 00:19:02.960 --> 00:19:05.700 The easiest thing, if you were one of Jesus' opponents, 00:19:05.800 --> 00:19:07.460 the easiest way to shut him down would be to say, 00:19:07.580 --> 00:19:08.620 those things never happened. 00:19:08.619 --> 00:19:13.439 Those are myths that his followers made up to make him seem larger than life. 00:19:13.879 --> 00:19:14.719 They never happen. 00:19:16.119 --> 00:19:17.339 They never do that once. 00:19:18.639 --> 00:19:21.779 The only thing that his opponents can do throughout all of the gospel accounts 00:19:21.779 --> 00:19:26.619 is to attribute the miracles to the work of Satan rather than God. 00:19:26.619 --> 00:19:29.699 Now, why wouldn't they just say they never happened? 00:19:29.839 --> 00:19:35.479 Well, the only plausible explanation is that there were simply too many witnesses. 00:19:36.500 --> 00:19:36.599 Right? 00:19:36.719 --> 00:19:38.599 There's no point in trying to deny that it happened. 00:19:38.759 --> 00:19:39.799 Everybody knew it had happened. 00:19:40.139 --> 00:19:43.539 So all they could do was to try to discredit the source of the power. 00:19:44.599 --> 00:19:48.599 Yeah, I know Lazarus was raised, but it was obviously Satan that did that. 00:19:49.619 --> 00:19:50.019 Right? 00:19:50.059 --> 00:19:51.179 That was the only thing they could do. 00:19:52.479 --> 00:19:54.799 So Paul says, these things didn't happen in a corner. 00:19:54.799 --> 00:19:56.019 This is public truth. 00:19:56.180 --> 00:19:57.460 This is public knowledge. 00:19:58.599 --> 00:20:01.700 So Paul's method is to lay out the arguments for the truth of Christianity 00:20:01.700 --> 00:20:06.799 based on the historic evidence about Jesus in a logical and rational way. 00:20:07.579 --> 00:20:09.980 And I want to say one more thing about his method before we move on 00:20:09.980 --> 00:20:10.879 that's every bit as important. 00:20:11.339 --> 00:20:12.500 Notice Paul's posture. 00:20:13.359 --> 00:20:14.200 Notice his tone. 00:20:15.759 --> 00:20:17.720 Even though Festus is mocking him, 00:20:17.799 --> 00:20:20.720 even though there are probably people who are sort of snickering under their breath, 00:20:22.720 --> 00:20:24.180 thinking that Paul is ridiculous, 00:20:24.799 --> 00:20:27.500 Paul's tone is extraordinarily respectful 00:20:27.500 --> 00:20:31.180 and extraordinarily gracious all throughout this conversation. 00:20:31.859 --> 00:20:35.039 He shows tremendous respect to his audience. 00:20:36.299 --> 00:20:38.019 In any argument or debate, 00:20:38.159 --> 00:20:41.259 the first person to lose their cool typically loses the debate. 00:20:42.259 --> 00:20:42.379 Right? 00:20:42.460 --> 00:20:45.019 That's just a good word of wisdom to live by. 00:20:45.240 --> 00:20:46.639 But there's more going on here. 00:20:46.640 --> 00:20:49.540 When you're talking about the gospel, 00:20:49.840 --> 00:20:52.200 the tone matters as much as the content. 00:20:52.840 --> 00:20:54.759 If you're talking about grace, 00:20:54.940 --> 00:20:57.400 but you do it in a way that is not gracious, 00:20:57.900 --> 00:21:01.660 you undermine the truth of the words that you speak. 00:21:02.920 --> 00:21:03.340 Right? 00:21:03.420 --> 00:21:05.540 So one of our values at Church of the Advent 00:21:05.540 --> 00:21:08.520 is the value of gracious orthodoxy. 00:21:08.700 --> 00:21:11.460 It is very important to contend for the truth. 00:21:11.460 --> 00:21:15.519 But the way we do that is every bit as essential. 00:21:15.680 --> 00:21:23.000 And if your tone is not a tone of grace and respect and generosity and compassion and love, 00:21:23.120 --> 00:21:26.759 you will undermine the orthodoxy that you proclaim. 00:21:27.400 --> 00:21:28.539 So that's Paul's method. 00:21:28.539 --> 00:21:33.659 Finally, I want to look briefly just at Paul's confidence. 00:21:33.879 --> 00:21:36.980 Again, you know, I think of myself standing where Paul is standing, 00:21:37.359 --> 00:21:40.180 maybe in rags, chains, 00:21:40.339 --> 00:21:42.420 surrounded by all of these powerful people. 00:21:42.579 --> 00:21:44.220 And I think about the poise, 00:21:44.859 --> 00:21:47.819 the presence of mind that Paul exhibits. 00:21:48.019 --> 00:21:49.960 And you ask, how in the world, you know, 00:21:50.039 --> 00:21:53.420 if I'm ever in a situation where somebody is taking me to task, 00:21:53.899 --> 00:21:55.960 calling me crazy over what I believe. 00:21:55.960 --> 00:21:58.779 You know, I had somebody one time say, 00:21:58.900 --> 00:21:59.880 you actually believe that? 00:21:59.940 --> 00:22:00.440 And I said, yeah. 00:22:00.480 --> 00:22:02.160 And she spit on the ground at my feet. 00:22:02.620 --> 00:22:04.640 And I remember at that time, I did not feel poised. 00:22:05.920 --> 00:22:07.259 I didn't feel gracious. 00:22:08.380 --> 00:22:10.779 You know, I was in full fight or flight mode. 00:22:11.640 --> 00:22:15.400 You know, I either wanted to hurl something back at her or run away. 00:22:16.200 --> 00:22:17.480 I felt so uncomfortable. 00:22:18.940 --> 00:22:20.900 And yet Paul is so poised. 00:22:21.200 --> 00:22:21.500 How? 00:22:22.759 --> 00:22:24.180 Verse 22, Paul says, 00:22:24.180 --> 00:22:26.799 To this day, I've had the help that comes from God. 00:22:27.660 --> 00:22:31.340 And so I stand here testifying to both small and great. 00:22:31.539 --> 00:22:32.320 Here's the answer. 00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:33.519 Paul knows he's not alone. 00:22:34.480 --> 00:22:35.660 He may look alone. 00:22:36.080 --> 00:22:38.860 He may look like he's standing there all powerless, chained up. 00:22:39.560 --> 00:22:41.820 But he knows that that's far from true. 00:22:42.620 --> 00:22:45.519 And Paul knows that even as he tries to persuade people, 00:22:45.960 --> 00:22:48.400 the Spirit of God is pursuing people. 00:22:49.000 --> 00:22:50.880 He knows that there are people in that room 00:22:50.880 --> 00:22:53.960 that the Spirit is working in their hearts right then and there, 00:22:54.100 --> 00:22:55.160 even as he is speaking. 00:22:55.500 --> 00:22:59.180 People in whom God has been working maybe for years and years and years. 00:23:00.980 --> 00:23:01.740 Can't see it. 00:23:02.480 --> 00:23:03.700 But he knows it's happening. 00:23:04.540 --> 00:23:05.780 The Spirit of God is pursuing people. 00:23:06.020 --> 00:23:06.900 How does Paul know? 00:23:06.980 --> 00:23:08.740 Because that's exactly what happened to Paul. 00:23:08.820 --> 00:23:11.500 That's how Paul converted and became a believer. 00:23:11.500 --> 00:23:14.759 You know, when Paul meets Jesus on the road, 00:23:14.859 --> 00:23:17.579 this is the third time in Acts he tells his conversion story. 00:23:18.240 --> 00:23:21.619 And this comes a little bit before the passage that Evan read a little while ago. 00:23:22.039 --> 00:23:22.940 Jesus says to him, 00:23:23.259 --> 00:23:25.599 Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? 00:23:25.859 --> 00:23:28.619 It is hard for you to kick against the goads. 00:23:29.660 --> 00:23:30.779 Now, what's a goad? 00:23:31.359 --> 00:23:32.720 Well, a goad's like a pointed stick. 00:23:32.819 --> 00:23:36.119 And you use it to get livestock moving in the right direction. 00:23:36.740 --> 00:23:37.000 Right? 00:23:37.220 --> 00:23:38.039 You prod them. 00:23:38.119 --> 00:23:40.259 You poke them so that they will move in the right direction. 00:23:40.259 --> 00:23:42.539 And so here's what Jesus is saying. 00:23:42.619 --> 00:23:45.460 He's essentially saying that when Paul persecuted Christians, 00:23:46.259 --> 00:23:48.339 when you were persecuting those people, 00:23:48.599 --> 00:23:54.680 you were actually doing that as a way to kick against the goading of the Holy Spirit in your life. 00:23:54.879 --> 00:23:56.559 That's why you were such a fanatic. 00:23:56.779 --> 00:23:58.259 That's why you were so zealous. 00:23:59.720 --> 00:24:00.220 Right? 00:24:00.299 --> 00:24:03.980 You went above and beyond in trying to shut the Christians down. 00:24:04.200 --> 00:24:06.460 You were kicking against the goads the whole time. 00:24:06.460 --> 00:24:14.299 Paul's fanaticism was very likely an attempt to compensate for secret doubts that he had been harboring for who knows how long. 00:24:15.860 --> 00:24:18.400 Another way of saying it is, Paul was in denial. 00:24:20.100 --> 00:24:23.660 And it took the Holy Spirit to break through that denial. 00:24:25.259 --> 00:24:29.920 You know, Paul Applebaum is the former head of the American Psychiatric Association. 00:24:29.920 --> 00:24:32.519 And this is what he says about denial. 00:24:32.700 --> 00:24:34.060 He says denial is, quote, 00:24:34.600 --> 00:24:45.700 the deliberate, often psychologically motivated neglect of information that would be too upsetting or anxiety-provoking to allow into one's belief system. 00:24:46.420 --> 00:24:47.860 Now, that's really important. 00:24:48.380 --> 00:24:55.200 There are lots of bits of information out there that we won't even allow ourselves to consider might be true 00:24:55.200 --> 00:24:59.120 because it would be too anxiety-provoking if it were to be true. 00:25:00.019 --> 00:25:06.720 I can't even consider that as a possibility because it would wreck my life if it were true. 00:25:07.840 --> 00:25:07.980 Right? 00:25:08.120 --> 00:25:12.319 So cigarette manufacturers long denied that smoking was harmful. 00:25:13.539 --> 00:25:20.080 You know, oil companies have funded groups questioning climate change and anthropogenic climate change. 00:25:20.220 --> 00:25:21.960 And you ask, well, why would they do that? 00:25:21.960 --> 00:25:30.680 Well, in the words of Upton Sinclair, it is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends on his not understanding it. 00:25:33.799 --> 00:25:37.600 Paul's entire career depended on Jesus not being the Son of God. 00:25:39.039 --> 00:25:39.160 Right? 00:25:39.279 --> 00:25:42.299 Paul's salary depended on him not believing that. 00:25:43.200 --> 00:25:43.400 Right? 00:25:43.420 --> 00:25:44.819 If he believes that, then what? 00:25:44.940 --> 00:25:48.160 He loses his salary, his job, his credibility, his reputation. 00:25:48.160 --> 00:25:52.740 Then he becomes the crazy guy in chains getting laughed at by a whole room full of people. 00:25:54.080 --> 00:25:55.180 And that was not Paul. 00:25:55.279 --> 00:25:57.740 Paul was brilliant, highly educated, Ivy League. 00:25:58.440 --> 00:25:58.620 Right? 00:25:59.140 --> 00:26:02.880 On a rocket ship to the very top upper echelon of society. 00:26:03.920 --> 00:26:05.600 He didn't want to be the crazy guy in chains. 00:26:08.400 --> 00:26:09.640 Same with Festus. 00:26:09.759 --> 00:26:10.660 Same with King Agrippa. 00:26:10.759 --> 00:26:14.920 Scripture tells us that both of these men were very motivated to keep the Jews happy. 00:26:15.320 --> 00:26:16.560 How do you keep the Jews happy? 00:26:16.559 --> 00:26:18.179 Christians are crazy. 00:26:19.559 --> 00:26:20.940 They don't know what they're talking about. 00:26:21.659 --> 00:26:26.119 So conversion for either of these men would be career suicide. 00:26:26.259 --> 00:26:27.779 Agrippa says, you're trying to convert me? 00:26:28.299 --> 00:26:31.980 And then you can almost see him looking around and say, that's crazy. 00:26:33.639 --> 00:26:35.799 You know, he's signaling to his Jewish listeners. 00:26:35.899 --> 00:26:36.379 Don't worry. 00:26:36.639 --> 00:26:37.480 I'm still with you. 00:26:37.859 --> 00:26:38.839 You can still trust me. 00:26:38.839 --> 00:26:51.899 So there are some people out there, I think, who reject the public truth of the gospel not because they have examined the evidence and they found it lacking. 00:26:51.900 --> 00:26:57.380 They've rejected the gospel outright because the implications are too upsetting. 00:26:57.820 --> 00:27:00.040 They are too anxiety provoking. 00:27:00.460 --> 00:27:03.560 And so they won't even consider the possibility that it might be true. 00:27:03.640 --> 00:27:09.320 It has been said in the past by people like Jesse Ventura that Christianity is a crutch for the weak. 00:27:09.319 --> 00:27:16.039 I actually think these days, if you live in a place like D.C., agnosticism is a crutch. 00:27:16.939 --> 00:27:24.759 It's way easier to say, I don't really know what I believe, than to actually say, I believe this, and to be mocked, yelled at, or spit upon. 00:27:24.759 --> 00:27:26.000 Right? 00:27:27.259 --> 00:27:30.460 So agnosticism is a very helpful crutch. 00:27:32.180 --> 00:27:32.579 Right? 00:27:32.700 --> 00:27:35.079 Coming to faith in Jesus might wreck your life. 00:27:36.180 --> 00:27:38.519 You know, it might mean for some of you career suicide. 00:27:39.980 --> 00:27:44.079 It might massively impact the relationship that you have with your family. 00:27:44.180 --> 00:27:51.319 There are some people in our church who, after they came to faith, were completely disowned by their families because they grew up in another religion. 00:27:51.319 --> 00:27:55.099 And the one thing you don't do in that religion is to become a Christian. 00:27:56.159 --> 00:28:05.500 So we baptized somebody years ago who, that act of baptism was almost a kind of separation ceremony from her mom and dad. 00:28:06.899 --> 00:28:11.220 We baptized somebody else who, because of that, wasn't able to go back to her country of origin. 00:28:12.639 --> 00:28:19.740 She tried to go back one time, and word had gotten around that she had become a Christian and was baptized in the U.S. 00:28:19.740 --> 00:28:22.359 before going back to see her family, and she was attacked. 00:28:23.960 --> 00:28:30.859 They yelled threats and slurs at her outside of her own house, back in her home country. 00:28:31.700 --> 00:28:31.859 Right? 00:28:31.900 --> 00:28:32.779 So it might wreck your life. 00:28:32.839 --> 00:28:39.660 It might have massive implications for how you use your body, or your time, or your money. 00:28:39.660 --> 00:28:45.779 But some of us, some people, nevertheless, like Paul, have secret doubts. 00:28:46.400 --> 00:28:50.240 A little voice in your head saying, maybe Jesus is who he claimed to be. 00:28:50.320 --> 00:28:55.400 Maybe the fact that roughly a third of the world's population in some way believes this is compelling. 00:28:55.680 --> 00:28:57.420 I've never really looked at the evidence. 00:28:57.519 --> 00:28:59.580 I've never really considered what it might mean. 00:28:59.620 --> 00:29:02.820 And maybe the Spirit is at work in you even now. 00:29:02.819 --> 00:29:04.099 So let me ask you this. 00:29:05.599 --> 00:29:10.299 What would you say to a cigarette manufacturer who denies that cigarettes are harmful? 00:29:12.599 --> 00:29:13.000 Right? 00:29:13.079 --> 00:29:18.019 Most people would say, listen, I know you make a lot of money off this. 00:29:18.319 --> 00:29:19.019 That's no secret. 00:29:19.539 --> 00:29:20.980 I know you make a lot of money off this. 00:29:21.039 --> 00:29:22.460 I know you live a very comfortable life. 00:29:22.779 --> 00:29:25.980 I know you have a vested interest in denying that cigarettes are harmful, 00:29:25.980 --> 00:29:28.279 because the more you sell, the more you make. 00:29:28.279 --> 00:29:32.720 But listen, man, if there is even the slightest chance that this is true, 00:29:32.839 --> 00:29:35.460 is it not worth you looking at the evidence? 00:29:37.019 --> 00:29:39.779 If it is true, the implications are too massive. 00:29:41.039 --> 00:29:46.160 You can't simply deny something is true, because it makes your life easier. 00:29:46.399 --> 00:29:47.539 At least look at the evidence. 00:29:47.619 --> 00:29:48.879 That's what you would say, right? 00:29:50.839 --> 00:29:53.019 Now, would you be willing to take your own advice? 00:29:54.299 --> 00:29:57.539 If there is even a chance that Jesus might be the risen Son of God, 00:29:57.539 --> 00:30:01.180 you cannot simply ignore it, because it makes your life easier. 00:30:02.200 --> 00:30:04.659 The implications are too massive. 00:30:05.159 --> 00:30:07.720 Paul spent years kicking against the goads, 00:30:08.059 --> 00:30:10.980 denying what he secretly feared might be true. 00:30:11.139 --> 00:30:12.599 But eventually he realized this, 00:30:12.599 --> 00:30:16.480 that having a relationship with Jesus is worth whatever it might cost him, 00:30:16.779 --> 00:30:18.779 whatever it might do to his life. 00:30:19.220 --> 00:30:20.659 It's worth being in chains. 00:30:20.920 --> 00:30:24.240 It's worth being ridiculed and called crazy and insane. 00:30:24.240 --> 00:30:28.039 Because at the end of the day, the thing that Paul most longed for 00:30:28.039 --> 00:30:30.120 and the thing that we all most long for 00:30:30.120 --> 00:30:34.180 is to know that we are fully known and fully loved. 00:30:35.519 --> 00:30:39.940 And there is no one who knows you better than the God who made you. 00:30:40.460 --> 00:30:46.380 And there is no one who loves you more than the God who sacrificed himself for you. 00:30:46.380 --> 00:30:51.880 And a relationship with a God like that is worth everything we have. 00:30:51.980 --> 00:30:53.360 It is the treasure in the field. 00:30:53.600 --> 00:30:55.060 It is the pearl of great price. 00:30:55.300 --> 00:30:56.960 It is worth whatever it might cost. 00:30:57.200 --> 00:31:01.080 Because there is no way whatever we sacrifice will ever come close 00:31:01.080 --> 00:31:04.840 to the price he paid to have a relationship with us. 00:31:06.280 --> 00:31:07.020 Let's pray. 00:31:07.019 --> 00:31:21.059 Lord, we know as Paul knew that mere words don't change hearts and lives. 00:31:21.500 --> 00:31:24.019 That that is the work of your Holy Spirit. 00:31:25.379 --> 00:31:33.279 You say in Philippians that God will bring to completion the good work that he has begun in his people. 00:31:33.279 --> 00:31:38.819 And we are all at different stages of that renovation, Lord. 00:31:39.359 --> 00:31:42.980 Some of us are well into our renovation. 00:31:43.139 --> 00:31:44.259 It has been happening for years. 00:31:44.420 --> 00:31:46.980 You have been at work in us since our earliest memories. 00:31:48.399 --> 00:31:52.559 Others of us, maybe we are still unsure if we even need you. 00:31:52.660 --> 00:31:54.379 If you are even there, Lord. 00:31:54.440 --> 00:31:55.839 We are still filled with doubts. 00:31:56.940 --> 00:31:59.960 Others yet, maybe we have been so wrecked in our lives 00:31:59.960 --> 00:32:02.859 that you have torn the house down to the studs. 00:32:03.279 --> 00:32:04.599 Lord, it is a gut job. 00:32:04.799 --> 00:32:07.399 It has been brought down to the foundation. 00:32:08.299 --> 00:32:10.039 And you are rebuilding us from the ground up, Lord. 00:32:10.079 --> 00:32:13.599 Wherever we are, we trust and know that you are the kind of God 00:32:13.599 --> 00:32:17.539 who can begin a good work in us and bring it to completion. 00:32:18.240 --> 00:32:22.099 And we pray in the hope of your work in us 00:32:22.099 --> 00:32:26.879 and in the name of Jesus Christ that you would do that for all of us this morning. 00:32:27.700 --> 00:32:28.779 In his name we pray. 00:32:28.960 --> 00:32:29.180 Amen. 00:32:29.180 --> 00:32:29.259 Amen. 00:32:29.259 --> 00:32:29.680 Amen. 00:32:29.680 --> 00:32:30.180 Amen. 00:32:30.180 --> 00:32:30.259 Amen. 00:32:33.279 --> 00:32:34.319 Amen. 00:32:34.940 --> 00:32:38.980 Amen. 00:32:38.980 --> 00:32:39.160 Amen. 00:32:39.200 --> 00:32:39.539 Amen. 00:32:39.779 --> 00:32:39.819 Amen. 00:32:40.059 --> 00:32:40.079 Amen. 00:32:40.079 --> 00:32:40.899 Amen. 00:32:40.899 --> 00:32:42.079 Amen. 00:32:42.119 --> 00:32:43.420 Amen. 00:32:43.420 --> 00:32:43.619 Amen. 00:32:43.680 --> 00:32:43.960 Amen. 00:32:43.960 --> 00:32:44.160 Amen. 00:32:44.160 --> 00:32:44.319 Amen. 00:32:44.319 --> 00:32:45.059 Amen. 00:32:45.059 --> 00:32:46.180 Amen. 00:32:46.180 --> 00:32:46.460 Amen. 00:32:46.879 --> 00:32:47.799 Amen. 00:32:48.039 --> 00:32:49.440 Amen. 00:32:50.139 --> 00:32:51.180 Amen. 00:33:01.319 --> 00:33:02.039 Amen. 00:33:02.039 --> 00:33:02.220 Amen.