TRIAL BEFORE AGRIPPA--ACTS CHAPTER 26

Sermon of the Week – May 20, 2005

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am glad to be with you at this moment speaking on behalf of the Lord Jesus Christ. So I say with Paul, hear me patiently. This was a reasonable request because there were times when Paul had not been heard patiently. And this incident before us is no exception.

Governor Festus has informed King Agrippa about a prisoner, Paul, who has appealed unto Caesar for trial. Festus has no idea what charges are to be made against him. He thinks King Agrippa may help him out if he hears Paul. The Governor tells the King that the only thing he knows about the prisoner is that he says that one Jesus who was dead is now alive.

Evidently, the Governor is completely ignorant of Jesus and Christians. Jesus has arisen from the dead and the church has been around for about thirty years, thousands of people have become Christians, and Governor Festus has never heard of it.

When it was evident to King Agrippa that Festus had never heard of Jesus, he must have laughed up his sleeve. The name of Jesus and His Apostles were all household names in Herod Agrippa’s family. King Agrippa was the great grandson of the Herod who had tried to kill the infant Jesus. He was the nephew of the Herod who tried Jesus at the crucifixion and the son of the Herod who beheaded James. If Festus had told Paul that King Agrippa wanted to see him and cut his head off, it would have been no surprise. What a shock it was that a Herod wanted to hear him preach. So when the audience had assembled, Paul said he was happy to make his defense before him and besought him to, "hear me patiently." In his introduction, he reminded Agrippa that he had been a chief persecutor of the Christians. He knew that Agrippa’s daddy had cut off the head of James and he could tell the King that's not all of it. I, myself, murdered Stephen along with many others. That must have gotten Agrippa’s attention. Killing the followers of Jesus was the great passion of Saul of Tarsus. The King must have thought this man was one of us at one time. What happened to make this great change in him? Is it possible that my family has been wrong all the time? Could this Jesus who was crucified really be alive? Paul is skillfully trying to identify himself withAgrippa. Now hear me patiently. The top item on Paul’s defense was the resurrection.

THE RESURRECTION

Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you that God should raise the dead? It would be incredible if man could raise the dead. One effort to do so was brought forth on one of that documentary, investigative news reports recently. They said on this program that for $100,000 you could get your corpse frozen, re‑thawed in a hundred years, and brought back to life. For those who can’t afford the price, an economy package is available where you get your head frozen for only $35,000. When the head is thawed out it grows a new body. They told how several dozen people have signed up for the freeze job. One was identified as a heavy metal musician. Another who signed up is a psychiatrist. I wish them well. The news reported how the body of a famous Baseball player has been frozen. If this comes to pass in a hundred years from now, it will truly be incredible. But you will have to wait for a hundred years to see if it works.

I saw a cartoon recently in a national news-magazine that showed a dispenser similar to the one where you can buy potato chips and candy bars, only there were frozen bodies stacked side by side, and on the left side was a row of heads. The sign overhead said; maintain a temperature of minus 200 degrees. The cartoon showed a janitor coming in with his lunch pail and he was tripping over the power cord and jerked it out of the wall outlet. What a revolting development! We are all in agreement that to be thawed out and come back to life under that kind of a program would truly be incredible.

Now hear me patiently. It would be incredible if mankind could come up with the answer for the resurrection of the dead, but don’t look for it to happen. Science can never figure it out. Philosophy can never figure it out. Psychology can never figure it out. This is a question that can only be answered by the Almighty.

An article appeared recently in a national magazine that presumed to tell us what happens after death. I did not read the article because I am convinced that no branch of science or learning of man can ever come up with the answer as to what happens after death. If they did we would all agree that it would be incredible? That revelation is in the Bible. But that is not the question that Paul asked. Hear me patiently. He did not say if man should raise the dead that would be incredible, but why is it judged incredible if God should raise the dead? Hear me patiently. You have no doubt heard that the human body changes every seven years. You are completely new after every one of those time cycles. A convict one time after serving seven years asked the warden for a parole on the basis that he was a new man.

But notice if you have blue eyes, after seven years you may have a new set of eyes, but they will still be blue. If your hair is red, in seven years you will have a new head of hair and by nature it will still be red, unless it fades out or falls out. If you are 6 feet tall at 21, in 7 years you will not be 10 feet tall or five feet tall, but still 6 feet tall. Even though you change every 7 years, you are still you.

It naturally follows from this observation that when your dust is reassembled you will still be you. You won't look like somebody else.  Perhaps you might say how could God reassemble the dust? God has already done the hard part when He made man from the dust of the earth the first time. He no doubt remembers how He did it. He still has the blue prints. He can do it again. The Apostle John said, "Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth, they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." Daniel also informs us in a similar way; And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting contempt.

John the Apostle writes again in the Revelation. And I saw the dead, the small and the great stand before God; and the books were opened and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

Not only will they that are dust to be raised, but also John continues in Revelation when he says that the sea will also give up the dead that are in it. At the resurrection you will be you and not somebody else. There will be no mix up. Paul stresses this in Second Corinthians when he declares, For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. He said the deeds done in his body, not somebody else's. You will still be you on the Judgement Day. Hear me patiently. Is there anything incredible that God should raise the dead? An old nursery rhyme says:

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.

All the king's horses and all the king's men,

Can never put Humpty together again.

If all the king’s horses and all the king's men did put Humpty together again, that would be incredible. Hear me patiently. All the King's horses and all the King's men can never put you together again, but the King's Son can put you together again, and that is not incredible. Again with the Apostle Paul I say, "Hear me patiently," as we notice how the Apostle had been travelling on the wrong road.

THE WRONG ROAD

And I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme, and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities. Whereupon as I went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests, at midday 0 King 1 saw on the way a light from heaven above the brightness of the sun. Many of the liberal theologians try to explain what happened to Paul by saying he had sunstroke. This is true; he did have a Son‑stroke, an S.O.N. Son-stroke, and not a S.U.N. sun-stroke.

In a similar way the S.O.N. Son-light of the truth of God's word shines upon all that hear the gospel. However, as Paul reminds us the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them, which believe not lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ should shine upon them. So, the Devil does not object one bit to me preaching the terms of pardon given by Peter on the day of Pentecost, because he has already blinded the minds of them that believe not and they are unable to see the Sonlight of God’s word; S.O.N. Sonlight

Now Paul, at this time, was on the wrong road. He was on the road to Damascus, to persecute the Church of Christ. Any person who persecutes the Church is persecuting Jesus. Paul recognizes this himself when he says, “And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? It is hard for thee to kick against the goad.”

The goad was a long, sharp stick that was used to urge the ox on when he had a tendency to drag and slow down. We need the goad in our lives. The sharp-goad at a time of sickness that goads us on when we are reminded of our mortality. It is felt again at the time of the loss of a loved one or close friend, and it certainly must be when we think of the Day of Judgment. And it is true for us, as well as for Saul of Tarsus; it does no good to kick against the goad. People kick against the goad as rebellious children; they kick against the goad by blasphemy, and by sneering remarks about Christians and the Christian faith. Sometimes they blame God for various misfortunes in life. Keep on kicking, it is not going to get any better. It always hurts to kick against the goad.

             No matter what your life style or circumstances, you are on the wrong road apart from a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. I have often used the incident of a man I knew who was very knowledgeable with the word, but he was somewhat more blunt with the truth than some of us. In his Bible School lessons and daily witness to others outside of the Church services, he was quick to point out that damnation awaits the unbeliever and unrepentant. One day someone asked him, "Jack, you are always talking about Hell. Tell me where is it? How do I get there?" Jack said, "You have just asked me a straight question and I will give you a straight answer. You just keep on going the way you are going and you can’t miss it."

Now hear me patiently. I don't know of any better answer to that question than that. Where is Hell? Paul said it better at one city on his first missionary tour when he told the disobedient: You thrust salvation from you and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life. Again hear me patiently because the request was needed. Paul is about to be interrupted again.

NEEDED

As Paul made his defense, Festus cried with a loud voice, Paul thou art mad thy much learning is turning thee mad. The Christian can’t win in the eyes of the world. When the Apostles Peter and John spoke before the chief priests, they perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, but Paul obviously had much learning so he was called mad. In the eyes of the world, to be a Christian you have to be either ignorant or crazy. Paul denied that he was crazy. He said, "I am not mad, but speak forth words of truth and soberness. The king knoweth of these things unto whom also I speak freely." This has not been done in a corner. Jesus Himself said, "His message is no secret " Look at the Bible. It has always been a best seller. Jesus said I have spoken openly to the world. The story of Jesus is not an obscure publication. Look at the calendar, it always advertises Jesus. Like it or not, whatever the year of your birth it was AD, which means, in the year of our Lord. Whether you believe Jesus or not you can be sure that what He did and said was not done in a corner.

No one in the United States can claim complete ignorance of Jesus. His story has not been hidden. Take the existence of the Christmas season; it may be that Christmas is a man‑made season. No one knows when the Lord was born, but nevertheless, the Christmas season makes people aware of Jesus. What the Lord has done has not been done in a corner.

As you move about in the work place, or any place, just try counting the times during the day you will hear the name of Jesus Christ mentioned, either in praise or profanity. It may be unlawful to mention His name in school, but it is not against the law to mention His name in profanity on television before a national audience. His name cannot be ignored. What He had done has not been done in a corner. Now hear me patiently. That is why we bring you this radio ministry each week. We don't want to keep the message of salvation a secret. We want everybody to hear about Jesus. Hear me patiently.

         Someone sent me a tape of a sermon a preacher preached, obviously in answer to this ministry. The preacher said in his sermon that some people try to prove you need to be immersed for the remission of sins by using some obscure passage of scripture.

The book of Acts is dead center in the middle of the New Testament. What is said there is not obscure. You can’t miss it. The Sermon of Peter on the day of Pentecost was not preached in a corner. Some may try to push it off in a corner but there it is right in the middle of the New Testament. It is the centerpiece of the New Testament scriptures. Hear me patiently. Those who crucified the Lord of glory were told, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

CONCLUSION

    The response of Agrippa is well known. Paul said to the King, "Believest thou the prophets? I know that thou believest." Agrippa’s reply indicated that he was not persuaded to become a Christian. It may sound strange that he did not speak of being persuaded to be a Protestant. Nor did he speak of being persuaded to be a Catholic. The thought of being persuaded had nothing to do with any denomination ancient or modern. The persuasion had nothing to do with anything beyond being a Christian and nothing else but a Christian. Then Paul concluded his message with words that every preacher can understand. I would that not only thou, but all that hear me this day might become such as I am except these bonds.

The Spirit came in childhood and pleaded let me in.

 But 0 the door was bolted with thoughtlessness and sin,

"I am too young" the child replied, "I will not yield today, There is time enough tomorrow." The Spirit went away.

Again He came and pleaded in youths bright happy hour,

Again He found no answer for lured by Satan's power.

The youth lay dreaming then and saying, "Not today,

Not till I've tried earth's pleasures." The Spirit went away. Again He came and pleaded in man-hoods vigorous prime,

Again he found no answer; the merchant had no time.

No time for true repentance, no time to watch and pray,

And so repulsed and saddened, the Spirit went away.

Again He came and pleaded, the man was old an ill,

Again He found no answer; his heart was cold and chill.

"Go leave me when I need thee, I'll call for thee," he cried. And sinking on his pillow, without a hope he died.

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for hearing me patiently.