Welcome to Books of the Book.
I'm Pastor Mark Howard and I'm
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here with my co-host and brother
Pastor Jim Howard. We've been
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studying in the book of Acts
and we finished up, Jim, right
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at the end of Acts chapter 24.
I want to invite our viewers to
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turn in their Bibles or grab
their Bibles if you don't have
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them because we're going to
be starting in Acts chapter 25
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today. Before we do we want
to begin by asking the Lord to
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bless our time in his word.
Father in heaven, we do thank
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you for your word. We thank you
for this testimony that's given
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in the book of Acts and Lord we
just pray the Holy Spirit would
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guide our understanding as we
study today. In Jesus' name Amen
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Now the last time we were
studying we were looking at Paul
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coming on trial before Felix,
the Roman governor and he was
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brought there by Claudius Lysius
Remember in Jerusalem there was
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a tumult in the temple and they
were going to kill Paul. Then
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Lysius basically rescued Paul
from that situation and then
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from that situation Paul went
on to speak to the people and
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Lysius found it important
for the sake of Paul's life to
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whisk him away. The Jews wanted
to have a trial over this thing.
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So they brought him before Felix
and we read about that last time
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Felix promised that he would
rule in the case when he had
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Lysius back in his presence and
he was going to question him.
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Apparently that didn't happen,
Jim, because in verse 26 of
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chapter 24 it says, Meanwhile
he also hoped that money would
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be given him by Paul that he
might release him. Therefore he
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sent for him more often
and conversed with him and its
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sad because Felix had had
the opportunity of salvation and
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when he was convicted, and
the Bible said he was afraid, he
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trembled it says in the King
James Version. He asked Paul to
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go away until he had a
convenient season and he would
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call for him again. Well he met
with Paul again. The problem was
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now he began thinking that maybe
Paul would offer him a bribe and
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all eternal reckoning was
out of his mind. He didn't think
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about it anymore. I
think he was hopeful that Paul
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would pay some money so that
he could let him go so that he
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didn't have to make a decision
on the case because he didn't
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want to lose the favor of the
Jews and so there was a lot of
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political
maneuvering going on here.
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That's right. Well it ends
up that after two years he still
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hadn't let Paul go, probably for
those reasons and others and it
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says that after two years,
in verse 27, Porcius Festus
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succeeded Felix and Felix,
wanting to do the Jews a favor
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left Paul bound. So it tells
us right there. Now we're going
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to chapter 25 in the beginning
of the first verse. A new guy
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comes into town, a new governor
named Festus. It says when
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Festus had come to the province
after three days he went up
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from Caesarea to Jerusalem. Then
the high priest and the chief
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men of the Jews informed him
against Paul and they petitioned
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him asking a favor of him that
he would summon him to Jerusalem
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while they lay in ambush along
the road to kill him They didn't
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him that part. But it's
interesting that here's Festus,
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he's the new guy in town
and you always want to have the
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people under your reign happy
with you and well the Jews are
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asking a favor and he's thinking
well maybe I can help them out
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with this. But they ask him
that they could again try Paul.
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The real reason wasn't that
they wanted a fair trial but
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just like before, if he could
come to Jerusalem they say we
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will hear him there and
we'll give him a fair trial.
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But really they were just
planning to lay in wait and kill
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him on the way. Festus exercises
some wisdom here. In verse 4, it
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says, Festus answered that Paul
should be kept at Caesarea and
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that he himself was going there
shortly and therefore he said,
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Let those who have authority
among you go down with me and
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accuse this man to see
if there's any fault in him.
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In other words, hey listen,
I'm going there in a little bit
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anyway. Why don't you send your
people and we can have the trial
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there. That's
right. When we get to
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verse 6 it says, And when he had
remained among them more than 10
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days he went down to Caesarea,
so he stayed in Jerusalem for 10
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days checking out that area of
his territory and then he goes
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back the Caesarea and the next
day, it says, sitting on the
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judgment seat, he commanded Paul
to be brought. So this gives you
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an idea of how important he felt
it was to maintain the favor of
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the Jews that he deal with this
issue of Paul. The very next day
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that he gets back he's sitting
on the judgment seat and he asks
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Paul to come in. And in verse
7 it says, When he had come the
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Jews who had come down from
Jerusalem stood about and laid
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many serious complaints against
Paul. So they were ready too.
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They sent their representatives
and they were there to lay all
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the same complaints that we've
heard in previous trials about
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Paul. Paul summarizes them in
his own response. Now first it
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says, and it's important that it
notes this, that they laid many
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serious complaints against
Paul which they could not prove.
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So Luke is adding that in
here. There's probably a lot of
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interaction that we're
not seeing here but Luke is
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summarizing it for us, saying
they couldn't prove what they
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were accusing him of. In verse
8 it says, While he answered for
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himself neither against the
law of the Jews nor against the
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temple nor against Caesar have
I offended in anything at all.
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Then these are sort of a summary
of the three claims that they
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had or three accusations. They
claimed that he was opposed to
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the law of Moses and due to his
view on circumcision which the
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churches had determined, they
distorted that and said that he
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told the Jews that they
absolutely couldn't circumcise
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when that was something that
he had never done and various
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different aspects of the
law that they said that he was
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trying to subvert. So that was
a false claim. And then it says,
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Nor against the temple. They
believed that when he was there
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in Jerusalem carrying out his
ritual, we found that he had a
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Gentile with him in town and
they believed that he took the
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Gentile with him into the temple
and so there were Jews from Asia
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that accused him of doing that
which would have defiled the
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temple but there was no evidence
of it because the fact is he
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didn't do it. And then the
next part, Nor against Caesar.
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Of course they were accusing him
of uprisings and some type of
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effort at insurrection. So
these three are the main areas
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and Paul says basically I've not
offended in any of this at all
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and it's very clear that there
was no proof of any of those
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things. So in verse 9 it says,
But Festus, wanting to do the
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Jews a favor... So here we go
again. Back in verse 27 it said,
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Felix, want to do the Jews a
favor. Now it's Festus wanting
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to do the Jews a favor
answered Paul and said,
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are you willing to go up to
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Jerusalem and there be judged
before me concerning these
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things? Now before I look at
that particular issue, I mean
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let's think about this
for a minute. There's so much
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political maneuvering going on
here and while hatred and malice
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are awful sins that we see
the Jews, the unbelieving Jews,
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carrying out toward Paul
throughout this time, plotting
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his murder and everything else,
an equally heinous sin in the
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eyes of God is cowardice and
these men had it in their power
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to free Paul. The could see his
innocence just like Pilate could
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see the innocence of Jesus and
just because Pilate said I wash
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my hands of this did not make
him innocent. They may have been
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trying to justify themselves and
their innocence but the reality
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was they were just as guilty.
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That's right. When God allows
a person to be brought into a
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position of authority they're
responsible for that authority
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they've received
ultimately from the Lord.
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That's right. So this lack
of faithfulness should not be
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excused. It's just as bad in
some ways as what the Jews were
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doing. But anyway his point was,
what he was trying to do was
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say okay since it's obvious
you haven't committed any crimes
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against Roman law, this is
an issue with your religion. Why
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don't we go back to Jerusalem.
I'll go with you. You'll still
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be under Roman protection. But
let's deal with it there amongst
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your own people. Of course, Paul
knows that's not a good idea.
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I have a better chance for
justice in the Roman government
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than I have before my own people
in the Sanhedrin. So this is how
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Paul responds in verse 10.
Paul said, I stand at Caesar's
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judgment seat where I ought
to be judged. To the Jews I have
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done no wrong as you very well
know. He's appealing to Festus'
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sense of justice here. For if I
am an offender or have committed
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anything deserving of death
I do not object to dying but if
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there is nothing in these things
of which these men accuse me
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no one can deliver me to them.
I appeal to Caesar. And when he
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appeals to Caesar here this is a
legal appeal. He's appealing to
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a higher court and as a Roman
citizen he has that right and
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Festus responds in kind. It says
When he had conferred with the
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council he said, You have
appealed to Caesar, to Caesar
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you will go. So he plans to send
him to Caesar but before that
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happens he receives a visit
from the King, King Agrippa, and
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that's where we
pick up the account next.
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That's right. I want to make
a point there that you just made
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that he was a Roman citizen and
so that allowed him this right
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to appeal. The Jews wanted to
put him to death but as a Roman
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citizen regardless of whether
they had their religious laws or
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what he was protected from their
malice. Now in verse 13 it says,
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And after some days King Agrippa
and Bernice came to Caesarea to
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greet Festus, evidently because
he was a new guy in town and
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he'd just taken the office from
Felix and so Herod Agrippa the
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second comes to visit him.
It says, When he had been there
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many days Festus laid Paul's
case before the King saying
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there is a certain man left a
prisoner by Felix about whom the
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chief priests and elders of the
Jews informed me when I was in
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Jerusalem asking for a judgment
against him. Now look at verse
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16. It says, To them I answered,
it is not the custom of the
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Romans to deliver any man to
destruction before the accused
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meets the accusers face to face
and has opportunity to answer
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for himself concerning the
charge against him. Now that's
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interesting in light of the
trial of Christ. I can't help
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but think back. It's not the
custom of the Romans, it wasn't
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the custom of the Romans then
either, but again you have this
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political wrangling that's going
on and so he lays this out and
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fortunately in this case for
Paul and for others, Festus said
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you know it wasn't right. Verse
17, Then when they had come
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together without any delay the
next day I sat on the judgment
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seat and commanded the man to
be brought in. When the accusers
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stood up they brought no
accusation against him of such
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things I supposed but had
some questions against him about
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their own religion and about a
certain Jesus who had died whom
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Paul affirmed to be alive. And
because I was questioned I was
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uncertain of such questions,
I asked whether he was willing
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to go to Jerusalem and there be
judged concerning these matters
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but when Paul appealed to
be reserved for the decision of
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Augustus I commanded him to be
kept until I could send him to
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Caesar. Then Agrippa said
to Festus, I also would like to
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hear the man myself. Tomorrow,
he said, you shall hear him.
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So here he appeals to Caesar.
The case is brought before King
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Agrippa and Festus explains a
little bit about what led him to
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that decision. Okay.
Why don't we take a look
00:12:00.87\00:12:04.04
now at verse 23 where Agrippa
now comes with great pomp.
00:12:04.08\00:12:09.76
I guess before we read this it's
interesting to note that Agrippa
00:12:09.79\00:12:14.60
didn't really have to see Paul
and hear this case. He actually
00:12:14.64\00:12:19.41
requested it of Festus
and later down here in chapter
00:12:19.45\00:12:23.00
26 verse 2 we find out that he
was an expert in all customs and
00:12:23.03\00:12:27.28
questions which have to do with
the Jews. So I'm sure that he
00:12:27.32\00:12:31.28
had a curiosity of some sort
that he wanted to hear this case
00:12:31.32\00:12:34.44
even though in reality Paul
could have just gone to Caesar.
00:12:34.47\00:12:37.72
But while Agrippa was there
he wanted to hear so we get,
00:12:37.75\00:12:40.93
because of that, one of the most
stirring defenses and appeals
00:12:40.96\00:12:44.75
that we have in scripture, Paul
before Agrippa. Anyway, verse 23
00:12:44.79\00:12:48.54
says, The next day when
Agrippa and Bernice, Bernice is
00:12:48.58\00:12:51.16
Agrippa's sister, had come with
great pomp and had entered the
00:12:51.19\00:12:54.45
auditorium with the commanders
and the prominent men of the
00:12:54.48\00:12:58.15
city, at Festus' command Paul
was brought in. And Festus said,
00:12:58.18\00:13:02.18
King Agrippa and all the men who
are here present with us, you
00:13:02.21\00:13:06.17
see this man about whom
the whole assembly of the Jews
00:13:06.21\00:13:08.39
petitioned me both at Jerusalem
and here, crying out that he was
00:13:08.43\00:13:12.25
not fit to live any longer.
But when I found that he had
00:13:12.28\00:13:15.28
committed nothing deserving of
death... Isn't that interesting.
00:13:15.31\00:13:18.36
Right in the middle of the
account he says I already know
00:13:18.39\00:13:21.66
he hadn't done anything
deserving of death. It says that
00:13:21.69\00:13:25.45
he himself had appealed to
August, to Caesar, I decided to
00:13:25.48\00:13:28.74
send him. So he tells of
his decision. But here's his
00:13:28.78\00:13:31.97
conundrum, his problem. In
verse 26 he says, I have nothing
00:13:32.01\00:13:36.29
certain to write to my Lord
concerning him. Here he is, he's
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got to send Paul to Caesar along
with a letter. He doesn't know
00:13:41.37\00:13:44.85
what he supposed to put, what
are the charges I'm supposed to
00:13:44.89\00:13:48.40
put down that I'm going to be
sending here. He says, Therefore
00:13:48.44\00:13:51.98
I have brought him out before
you and especially before you,
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King Agrippa, so that after the
examination has taken place I
00:13:55.66\00:13:58.72
may have something to write.
He's hoping Agrippa can help him
00:13:58.76\00:14:02.21
formulate some charges to put
down on paper to send to Caesar.
00:14:02.25\00:14:04.96
Being more familiar with the
Jewish ways and customs maybe
00:14:04.99\00:14:07.67
he'll grab a hold of
something that will tell him.
00:14:07.70\00:14:10.58
In verse 27 it says, For it
seems to me unreasonable to send
00:14:10.62\00:14:14.17
a prisoner and not to specify
the charges against him. So he's
00:14:14.20\00:14:17.20
looking for a little bit of
help to specify the charges and
00:14:17.24\00:14:20.62
that's why he's going to
let Agrippa hear. So we have all
00:14:20.66\00:14:23.91
this pomp and display, we have
the Apostle Paul finally doing
00:14:23.95\00:14:27.10
what Jesus told him that he was
going to be doing, he was chosen
00:14:27.14\00:14:30.79
to do which was to stand before
kings. Well we're going to hear
00:14:30.83\00:14:34.38
what Paul says but before we do
we need to go to our break, so
00:14:34.41\00:14:37.93
stay tuned and we'll be
back with you in a moment.
00:14:37.97\00:14:39.95