Daily Blog Acts 25
Daily Bread Acts 25
Paul Before Agrippa
23The next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp and entered the audience room with the high ranking officers and the leading men of the city. At the command of Festus, Paul was brought in. 24Festus said: "King Agrippa, and all who are present with us, you see this man! The whole Jewish community has petitioned me about him in Jerusalem and here in Caesarea, shouting that he ought not to live any longer. 25I found he had done nothing deserving of death, but because he made his appeal to the Emperor I decided to send him to Rome. 26But I have nothing definite to write to His Majesty about him. Therefore I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that as a result of this investigation I may have something to write. 27For I think it is unreasonable to send on a prisoner without specifying the charges against him
Observation:
We see Paul continuing to defend himself, and how he keeps getting sent to higher and higher Roman authorities to have his case tried. Paul goes from Governor Felix, then to Festus, and finally today he arrives before King Agrippa and his wife Bernice, who comes in with much pomp and circumstance.
At this point Paul has been able to outwit his detractors and avoid two ambushes to and from Caesarea to Jerusalem, and now is about to about to be sent to Rome to have his case heard by the top dog the Roman Emperor, Caesar. All the while, Paul is able to share his testimony, which had enraged the Jewish leaders, but caused great curiosity among the Roman authorities and rulers.
Application:
We continue to see Paul leveraging his situation for the sake of the Gospel. While he is in the midst of all this worldly power, we can see the One who is truly in control. On the one hand he is foiling the Jewish leaders, but also he is using the system to his advantage and gaining an audience with Kings and Queens to promote the Gospel.
As we look further down the road, we will see the Emperor Constantine accepted Christianity and declare the Roman Empire to be Christian (in 325 AD). Some of the roots of his faith might have come from those who Paul converted to Christ in the 1st century.
Paul is living life on the edge, as this story reads like a Tom Clancy adventure novel. As Paul himself exclaimed, “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” When we step out in faith to take a risk for the sake of the Gospel, God can do amazing things with our lives. Who knows we even may end up before Kings and Queens!
Prayer: God you have called us out of the world to give witness to the Good News we have received through Christ. Help us to be like Paul and not be ashamed of the Gospel which has the power to save lives. Give us courage to stand by our convictions even in the face of the mini trials we face each day. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Paul Before Agrippa
23The next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp and entered the audience room with the high ranking officers and the leading men of the city. At the command of Festus, Paul was brought in. 24Festus said: "King Agrippa, and all who are present with us, you see this man! The whole Jewish community has petitioned me about him in Jerusalem and here in Caesarea, shouting that he ought not to live any longer. 25I found he had done nothing deserving of death, but because he made his appeal to the Emperor I decided to send him to Rome. 26But I have nothing definite to write to His Majesty about him. Therefore I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that as a result of this investigation I may have something to write. 27For I think it is unreasonable to send on a prisoner without specifying the charges against him
Observation:
We see Paul continuing to defend himself, and how he keeps getting sent to higher and higher Roman authorities to have his case tried. Paul goes from Governor Felix, then to Festus, and finally today he arrives before King Agrippa and his wife Bernice, who comes in with much pomp and circumstance.
At this point Paul has been able to outwit his detractors and avoid two ambushes to and from Caesarea to Jerusalem, and now is about to about to be sent to Rome to have his case heard by the top dog the Roman Emperor, Caesar. All the while, Paul is able to share his testimony, which had enraged the Jewish leaders, but caused great curiosity among the Roman authorities and rulers.
Application:
We continue to see Paul leveraging his situation for the sake of the Gospel. While he is in the midst of all this worldly power, we can see the One who is truly in control. On the one hand he is foiling the Jewish leaders, but also he is using the system to his advantage and gaining an audience with Kings and Queens to promote the Gospel.
As we look further down the road, we will see the Emperor Constantine accepted Christianity and declare the Roman Empire to be Christian (in 325 AD). Some of the roots of his faith might have come from those who Paul converted to Christ in the 1st century.
Paul is living life on the edge, as this story reads like a Tom Clancy adventure novel. As Paul himself exclaimed, “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” When we step out in faith to take a risk for the sake of the Gospel, God can do amazing things with our lives. Who knows we even may end up before Kings and Queens!
Prayer: God you have called us out of the world to give witness to the Good News we have received through Christ. Help us to be like Paul and not be ashamed of the Gospel which has the power to save lives. Give us courage to stand by our convictions even in the face of the mini trials we face each day. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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