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Hello and welcome to the
Middletown Baptist Church Podcast,

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where we are proclaiming the
truth to the world.

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My name is Pastor Josh, and I
want to thank you for listening to

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this podcast.

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I hope that this podcast can
be a blessing to you and strengthen

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you in the word of God.

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Now, come along.

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Let's look into the Bible and
see what God has for us here today.

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We're going to get into the
scriptures here this evening.

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If you have your Bibles, turn
there with me to Acts 26.

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And it's been a couple weeks
since we've been here because last

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week was Father's Day and we
didn't have an evening service.

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But if you can remember, let's.

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Let me.

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Let me quiz you guys on this.

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Okay?

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Where we left Paul off, was he
in what we would call a circumstantial

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good place or a bad place?

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Bad place.

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Okay, He's.

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He's in prison.

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He's been held for over now
two years for essentially doing nothing

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wrong.

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And he was promised a fair trial.

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They didn't give him one.

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And so basically, there was
this guy that basically said this.

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He said, you know what?

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I.

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I can't make a decision, so
I'm just going to leave you there

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in jail.

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That was Felix.

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And we saw a guy named Festus.

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Festus is like, I don't know
what to do with this guy named Paul.

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I've tried to deal with his
own people, and he's not really.

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They're not really cooperating
with me.

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And so he gives it over to a
guy named Agrippa.

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Now, in the meantime, Paul has
appealed to talk to Caesar.

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Now, why is that important?

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Because Paul is a Roman
citizen, and he had the opportunity

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to appeal his case to the
highest court in the land, and that

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would be Caesar.

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And so Paul in this process
says, I want to talk to Caesar.

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And so they said, if that's
what you want, that's what you'll

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get.

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But here in chapter 26, we see
Agrippa come before Paul.

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And Paul is going to, essentially.

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Well, Agrippa's plan is for
Paul to tell him why he's innocent.

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But Paul takes this as an
opportunity to give the gospel.

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But I want to go back a little
bit here, because if we were to be

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watching this as a movie, we
would say, while Paul has made a

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lot of bad decisions to get to
where he is, he should have been

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smarter.

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He should have avoided this.

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Well, believe it or not, back
In Acts chapter 21, Paul had an opportunity

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to avoid this whole situation.

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And if you Go back.

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If you remember what happens
is that Paul believes that God is

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calling him to go back to
Jerusalem, if you remember the phrase

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that he used.

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He says, I am bound by the
Spirit to go to Jerusalem.

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Didn't have to go to
Jerusalem, but he believed that God

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was leading him there.

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And then he had all these
people on the path to get back to

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Jerusalem, telling him, God
has told us that you're going to

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face persecution there, Paul,
so don't go.

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And Paul says, well, I'm going
to go.

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And a lot of commentators will
say that he was disobeying God.

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I don't believe that he was actually.

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I believe that God did reveal
to these people that he would face

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persecution.

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But I believe that these
people took it further and said,

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hey, there's going to be
persecution, so you should avoid

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it.

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But what we're learning here
in this passage is that even though

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there was persecution in the
path of Paul, it was God's plan for

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him to go through this.

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And if you go back to Acts
chapter 21 and you go to verse 13,

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you're going to see where
Paul's heart was through all of this.

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Now, it doesn't mean that Paul
doubted God.

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It doesn't mean that he didn't
doubt God.

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It just means that when Paul
went to this trial, right before

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this trial, he had a decision
that he had to make.

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Was he going to be committed
to what God had called him to do,

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or would he be kind of what we
would call lukewarm in his decision?

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But we see in verse number 13
in Acts chapter 21.

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Then Paul answered, what mean
ye to weep and to break mine heart?

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For I am ready not to be bound
only, but also to die at Jerusalem

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for the name of the Lord Jesus.

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And so Paul says, two years
ago, over two years ago, I gotta

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go to Jerusalem.

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I'm willing to be thrown in prison.

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I'm willing to die for the
gospel of Jesus Christ.

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And so Paul here is
demonstrating full commitment.

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He's demonstrating being sold
out for what God has called him to

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do, no matter what people are
doing around him, no matter how difficult

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the path might be.

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And I think this is an awesome
example of patience and faithfulness

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in the face of difficulty.

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Because God has given Paul a call.

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And we know that call came all
the way back in Acts chapter 9.

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Paul's goal was to not only
preach to the Jews, to the Gentiles,

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but to kings and leaders.

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And that was God's plan for
Paul at the very beginning.

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And so here in this case, we
know that Paul is just fulfilling

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God's plan in his life.

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And so let's go to chapter 26,
and we're going to look at Paul and

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Agrippa's conversation here,
and it's a very interesting one.

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It's a very popular one when
it comes to the idea of presenting

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the gospel to difficult people.

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By the way, Agrippa is.

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Is Herod, basically, he's one
of the lines of.

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Of the people that, you know,
named Herod.

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So he's a descendant of the
Herod that tried to kill baby Jesus.

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He's a descendant of Herod
that saw Jesus before Jesus went

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to the cross.

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And so Herod Agrippa is his
name, is living here with his wife,

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and they're living a life of sin.

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And we're going to talk a
little bit more about that in a little

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bit, but that's the setting
that we have here.

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Verse 1.

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Then Agrippa said unto Paul,
thou art permitted to speak for thyself.

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So essentially, what Agrippa
says is, a lot of people have been

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speaking for you.

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A lot of people have been
telling me what you're all about.

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But it's your chance now to
tell me anything.

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You have an open floor.

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You, you can tell me whatever
you want.

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Appeal to me for your innocence.

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He says, you're permitted to
speak for yourself.

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So Paul could have said a lot
of things.

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Paul could have decided to
basically wiggle his way out of the

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situation that he's in.

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But Paul takes this
opportunity not only to prove that

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he's innocent, but also to
preach the gospel.

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And that's his number one
decision here.

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And so it says, then Paul
stretched forth the hand and answered

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for Himself.

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Verse 2.

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I think myself happy, King Agrippa.

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Now, how many of us could say
that we were happy to do what he's

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doing right now?

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I don't think that I could say
that I was happy, but he says, I

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think myself happy, King
Agrippa, because I shall answer for

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myself this day before thee,
touching all the things whereof I

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am accused of the Jews.

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And so though Paul was a
prisoner, he was pleased, he was

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blessed to speak before
Agrippa one because he was giving

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evidence to prove that he was
innocent, but also he's pleased to

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preach the gospel to kings and
rulers like God had called him to

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do.

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And sometimes it's difficult
for us to have any joy and happiness

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in the midst of a difficulty,
but it's seeing the gospel purpose

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in what God has for us.

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And so we know that no Doubt.

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Paul saw the Gospel purpose in
this opportunity to speak to Agrippa.

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Verse 3.

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Especially because I know thee
to be expert in all customs and questions

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which are among the Jews.

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So Paul says, I'm glad to talk
to you because you know a lot about

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the Jewish customs, you know a
lot about the Jewish beliefs.

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And so you're going to
understand me when I tell you what

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I'm about to tell you.

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He says, wherefore I beseech
thee to hear me patiently.

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So he basically says, I know
you know a lot about Jewish customs,

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so please be patient because
I'm going to build a case.

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I'm going to point you to the truth.

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Verse 4.

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My manner of life from my
youth, which was at the first among

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my own nation at Jerusalem,
know all the Jews which knew me from

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the beginning, if they would
testify that after the most straightest

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sect of our religion, I lived
a Pharisee.

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So, so what is he doing here?

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Basically, Paul is giving his
biography and he says, I I.

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Even though we know he was
born in Tarsus, very shortly after

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he was born, the Bible clearly
teaches that he did move to Jerusalem.

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And probably at a young age he
was living in Jerusalem.

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And we know that he took that
next step of being in the strictest

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sect of the Pharisees.

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And so Paul was a faithful
Jew, but he was known to be a faithful

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Jew above all other Jews.

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And so he comes there and he
is well known in that way.

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And so all the people in
Jerusalem would have known Paul for

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his religion, for his.

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For his beliefs, for his
traditional actions in the Jewish

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customs.

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Verse 5, which knew me from
the beginning, if they would testify

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that after the most
straightest sect of our religion,

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I lived a Pharisee.

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And now I stand and am judged
for the hope of the promise made

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of God unto our fathers.

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So he says, the reason why
they're judging me is because what

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I preached unto which promise
are 12 tribes instantly serving God,

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day and night, hope to come,
meaning remember what he was thrown

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in jail for?

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Preaching the resurrection,
preaching the truth of Jesus resurrecting

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from the dead.

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Because they were okay with
Paul teaching religion and teaching

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morality and teaching the law.

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What they're upset about is
Paul teaching that there's the resurrection

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of the dead in Jesus Christ
and in those that believe in him.

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So he says, why is everyone
upset with me?

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Because they believe that
there is going to be a resurrection

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of the dead.

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He says they're hoping for that.

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So why are they upset?

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He says, for which hope's
sake, King Agrippa, I am accused

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of the Jews.

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He says, I'm being accused of
preaching about the resurrection.

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And so Paul is trying to
explain his case to Agrippa here.

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And so that's really what his
initial door opening conversation

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is.

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Verse 8.

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Why should it be, though a
thing incredible with you that God

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should raise the dead?

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He says, why do you think that
it's weird or strange that God would

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raise the dead?

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Because that's obviously
something that they would have believed.

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That is obviously something
that they were totally comfortable

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with talking about, that God
would raise people from the dead

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one day.

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They had a problem with Jesus
doing that.

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But he says he's trying to
build a case for, for the truth of

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Jesus.

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Verse 9.

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I barely thought with myself
that I ought to do many things contrary

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to the name of Jesus of
Nazareth, which thing I also did

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in Jerusalem.

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He says, there's a lot of
people that were against Jesus.

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I understand that because I
was against Jesus.

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At one point he says, I did
that in Jerusalem.

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And many of the saints did.

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I shut up in prison.

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So now he's given his
testimony of his sinful past.

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He says, I threw people in
prison for worshiping Jesus, having

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received authority from the
chief priests.

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And when they were put to
death, I gave my voice against them.

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And so we even see that he was
part of putting people to death for

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believing in Jesus.

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And I punished them oft in
every synagogue and compelled them

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to blaspheme.

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Think about that.

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Think about what Paul's goal
was before he became a believer.

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It was his goal not only just
to kill Christians, but you see here,

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he says he compelled them to
blaspheme, to become heretics.

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Think about the opposite of
Paul's calling now.

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00:10:28,690 --> 00:10:31,330
At one point in Paul's life,
he was trying to get people not to

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believe in Jesus, to.

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To recant their faith.

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And now it's the complete opposite.

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00:10:35,650 --> 00:10:36,810
He's trying to get people to believe.

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00:10:37,130 --> 00:10:39,930
And so he's showing this
change that's happened in his life.

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00:10:40,489 --> 00:10:42,610
And so he says, I compelled
them to blaspheme.

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And being exceedingly mad
against them, I persecuted them even

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unto strange cities.

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00:10:48,730 --> 00:10:51,370
And so at the end of the day,
what we can see here is that Paul

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is describing really his heart.

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00:10:52,890 --> 00:10:56,620
Before he came to the place
of, of salvation.

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He said he compelled them to blaspheme.

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He was upset against them, he
persecuted them.

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00:11:02,300 --> 00:11:06,060
And so ultimately we see that
Paul's heart was a heart of anger.

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And really that's what we see
with persecution anyway when, when

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people are persecuting it
doesn't come necessarily out of a

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heart of joy and love.

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It's coming out of a heart of evil.

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It's coming out of a heart of
anger and rage.

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And so we see that Paul,
before he was saved, was characterized

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00:11:19,620 --> 00:11:21,820
by anger and bitterness and persecution.

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00:11:22,710 --> 00:11:25,750
And so ultimately we know that
Paul's heart was in the wrong place

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before he came to Christ.

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00:11:27,150 --> 00:11:29,110
And so he's explaining this transformation.

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So now in verse 12, Paul is
going to start talking about what

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changed him.

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And this is really what we
have to do when we're giving the

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gospel to people, even people
like Agrippa, who knew the Jewish

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customs, who in some ways was
religious or at least understood

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religion, and probably held
some power in the land and had some

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sway and some influence with people.

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We could say a lot of
different things.

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We.

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We could appeal to a lot of
different aspects.

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But what does Paul do?

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00:11:54,570 --> 00:11:57,050
Paul appeals to his own
personal testimony.

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00:11:57,050 --> 00:11:58,690
He says, this is who I was.

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00:11:58,690 --> 00:11:59,930
I was a religious person.

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00:12:00,250 --> 00:12:01,930
I was a person filled with anger.

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00:12:02,010 --> 00:12:05,290
I was a person that persecuted
people, that worshiped Jesus.

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00:12:05,530 --> 00:12:08,330
But then he's going to talk
about his conversion, his change.

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00:12:08,650 --> 00:12:09,850
And when we share our.

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00:12:09,850 --> 00:12:12,250
Our faith with people, I think
it's important for us to share our

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00:12:12,250 --> 00:12:15,750
testimony, to share what Jesus
Christ did for us, what he changed

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00:12:15,750 --> 00:12:16,310
in our life.

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Verse 12.

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00:12:17,150 --> 00:12:20,350
Whereupon, as I went to
Damascus, with authority and commission

294
00:12:20,350 --> 00:12:23,830
from the chief priest, he
says, so I was leaving to persecute

295
00:12:23,830 --> 00:12:27,310
people there In Damascus at
midday, O King, I saw in the way

296
00:12:27,310 --> 00:12:30,430
a light from heaven above, the
brightness of the sun shining round

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00:12:30,430 --> 00:12:32,990
about me and them which
journeyed with me.

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00:12:33,230 --> 00:12:36,070
And when we were fallen to the
earth, I heard a voice speaking to

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00:12:36,070 --> 00:12:39,830
me and saying in the Hebrew
tongue, saul, Saul, why persecutest

300
00:12:39,830 --> 00:12:40,350
thou me?

301
00:12:40,600 --> 00:12:42,760
It is hard for thee to kick
against the pricks.

302
00:12:43,080 --> 00:12:44,320
Now you guys know the story.

303
00:12:44,320 --> 00:12:46,760
Paul has probably told the
story three or four times already

304
00:12:46,760 --> 00:12:49,320
in giving the testimony of his salvation.

305
00:12:49,880 --> 00:12:50,520
Verse 15.

306
00:12:50,520 --> 00:12:52,120
And I said, who art thou, Lord?

307
00:12:52,120 --> 00:12:54,360
And he said, I am Jesus whom
thou persecuted.

308
00:12:54,360 --> 00:12:58,080
But rise and stand upon thy
feet, for I have appeared unto thee

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00:12:58,080 --> 00:12:59,240
for this purpose.

310
00:13:00,040 --> 00:13:04,960
And so right here we're going
to see what God told Paul as his

311
00:13:04,960 --> 00:13:05,480
purpose.

312
00:13:06,050 --> 00:13:06,170
And.

313
00:13:06,170 --> 00:13:08,050
And Paul takes this purpose seriously.

314
00:13:08,370 --> 00:13:13,690
It says, to make the a
minister or a servant and a witness

315
00:13:13,690 --> 00:13:17,730
both of these things which
thou has seen and of those things

316
00:13:17,730 --> 00:13:19,970
in which I will appear unto thee.

317
00:13:20,770 --> 00:13:25,650
And so Paul's purpose from the
very beginning was to proclaim the

318
00:13:25,650 --> 00:13:29,330
message of God, to be a
servant and a witness of the things

319
00:13:29,330 --> 00:13:30,530
that God has done.

320
00:13:30,690 --> 00:13:32,770
What he continues to do and
what he will do.

321
00:13:33,440 --> 00:13:35,800
And that's really ultimately
who we are when we're presenting

322
00:13:35,800 --> 00:13:38,880
the gospel to people is we're
presenting the truth of what Jesus

323
00:13:38,880 --> 00:13:42,360
has done for us, what he
continues to do for us, and what

324
00:13:42,360 --> 00:13:45,840
he will continue to do for
other people that believe in him.

325
00:13:46,640 --> 00:13:48,360
And so Paul understood his purpose.

326
00:13:48,360 --> 00:13:50,800
He says, I was changed.

327
00:13:50,880 --> 00:13:55,120
I went from trying to get
Christians to blaspheme Christ to

328
00:13:55,120 --> 00:13:58,400
now bring people to become
believers in Jesus Christ.

329
00:13:58,400 --> 00:14:02,820
From blasphemy to belief, from
persecution to preaching.

330
00:14:02,820 --> 00:14:05,620
That's an amazing thing to
think about in the transformation

331
00:14:05,620 --> 00:14:06,500
of the life of Paul.

332
00:14:06,500 --> 00:14:08,020
And so he's appealing to Agrippa.

333
00:14:08,020 --> 00:14:09,180
This is what changed me.

334
00:14:09,660 --> 00:14:13,020
And folks, I know that
probably most of us in this room

335
00:14:13,020 --> 00:14:14,060
weren't where Paul was.

336
00:14:14,460 --> 00:14:17,780
Hopefully none of you were
persecuting people and getting people

337
00:14:17,780 --> 00:14:18,780
to blaspheme Christ.

338
00:14:18,860 --> 00:14:21,060
But at the end of the day, God
has changed us.

339
00:14:21,060 --> 00:14:22,060
He has changed our heart.

340
00:14:22,060 --> 00:14:23,460
He has changed our desires.

341
00:14:23,460 --> 00:14:25,180
And that's how we present the
gospel to people.

342
00:14:25,180 --> 00:14:25,740
Verse 17.

343
00:14:26,220 --> 00:14:29,420
Delivering thee from the
people and from the Gentiles, unto

344
00:14:29,420 --> 00:14:33,820
whom now I send thee to open
their eyes and to turn them from

345
00:14:33,820 --> 00:14:34,940
darkness to light.

346
00:14:35,340 --> 00:14:38,700
That's one of my favorite
analogies when it comes to the aspect

347
00:14:38,700 --> 00:14:39,420
of salvation.

348
00:14:39,420 --> 00:14:43,340
From taking ourselves to a
place of light and the Lord brings

349
00:14:43,340 --> 00:14:44,380
us from darkness to light.

350
00:14:44,380 --> 00:14:45,740
That's the picture of the Gospel.

351
00:14:45,820 --> 00:14:49,620
And from the power of Satan
unto God that they may receive forgiveness

352
00:14:49,620 --> 00:14:54,010
of sins and inheritance among
them which are sanctified by faith

353
00:14:54,170 --> 00:14:56,530
that is in me, man.

354
00:14:56,530 --> 00:15:01,570
Verse number 18 is a really
great summary of what happens in

355
00:15:01,570 --> 00:15:02,330
the gospel.

356
00:15:03,130 --> 00:15:06,250
And folks, I think that so
many times we cloud up the gospel

357
00:15:06,250 --> 00:15:09,129
with things that we've been
told or things that make sense to

358
00:15:09,129 --> 00:15:09,450
us.

359
00:15:09,930 --> 00:15:13,490
It's very, very important for
us to stay in the word of God and

360
00:15:13,490 --> 00:15:16,130
define the gospel and
salvation by what the word of God

361
00:15:16,130 --> 00:15:17,130
says in the verse 18.

362
00:15:17,690 --> 00:15:18,970
What happens in salvation?

363
00:15:18,970 --> 00:15:19,770
Our eyes are open.

364
00:15:20,170 --> 00:15:21,610
We turn from darkness to light.

365
00:15:22,090 --> 00:15:24,730
We turn from the power of
Satan into the power of God.

366
00:15:24,810 --> 00:15:26,490
We receive forgiveness of sins.

367
00:15:26,570 --> 00:15:29,610
We have an inheritance or a
blessing among us as.

368
00:15:29,610 --> 00:15:33,050
As we are sanctified by faith
that is in me.

369
00:15:33,130 --> 00:15:33,730
Verse 19.

370
00:15:33,730 --> 00:15:37,090
Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I
was not disobedient unto the heavenly

371
00:15:37,090 --> 00:15:37,330
vision.

372
00:15:37,330 --> 00:15:40,130
He says, no, I wasn't going to
disobey what God called me to do.

373
00:15:40,130 --> 00:15:40,970
I'm going to do it.

374
00:15:41,370 --> 00:15:42,250
I'm obedient.

375
00:15:42,330 --> 00:15:42,890
Verse 20.

376
00:15:42,890 --> 00:15:47,260
But show first unto them of
Damascus and at Jerusalem and throughout

377
00:15:47,260 --> 00:15:50,660
all the coast of Judea and
then to the Gentiles that they should

378
00:15:50,660 --> 00:15:54,420
repent and turn to God and do
works meet for repentance.

379
00:15:55,140 --> 00:15:58,940
So Paul's heart here is to get
people to turn away from their wicked

380
00:15:58,940 --> 00:16:02,820
lives, to repent and turn to
God and to work for him.

381
00:16:03,300 --> 00:16:04,100
Verse 21.

382
00:16:04,100 --> 00:16:07,500
For these causes, the Jews
caught me in the temple and went

383
00:16:07,500 --> 00:16:08,220
about to kill me.

384
00:16:08,220 --> 00:16:10,460
So he says, you really want to
know why they threw me in jail?

385
00:16:10,460 --> 00:16:12,880
It's not because I was
persecuting them.

386
00:16:12,880 --> 00:16:15,360
It's not because I was telling
them that they can't believe what

387
00:16:15,520 --> 00:16:16,400
they're believing.

388
00:16:16,560 --> 00:16:18,400
It's because I preached the gospel.

389
00:16:18,720 --> 00:16:20,120
Paul holds nothing back here.

390
00:16:20,120 --> 00:16:21,520
He says, I'm preaching the truth.

391
00:16:21,920 --> 00:16:22,640
Verse 22.

392
00:16:22,640 --> 00:16:25,760
Having therefore obtained help
of God, I continued unto this day,

393
00:16:25,760 --> 00:16:29,160
witnessing both to great, to
small, and to great, saying none

394
00:16:29,160 --> 00:16:32,680
other things than those which
the prophets and Moses did say should

395
00:16:32,680 --> 00:16:32,920
come.

396
00:16:32,920 --> 00:16:36,240
So he says, all I'm doing is
preaching the fulfillment of the

397
00:16:36,240 --> 00:16:40,290
Old Testament, that Christ
should suffer and that he should

398
00:16:40,290 --> 00:16:44,330
be the first that should rise
from the dead and should show light

399
00:16:44,330 --> 00:16:46,330
unto the people and to the Gentiles.

400
00:16:47,530 --> 00:16:51,450
What we're seeing here is what
we would call a master class in appealing

401
00:16:51,450 --> 00:16:53,690
to the Gospel, to people, no
matter who they are.

402
00:16:53,690 --> 00:16:55,810
And all Paul is doing is
pointing to the truth.

403
00:16:55,810 --> 00:16:59,010
He knows that Agrippa
understands what has been taught

404
00:16:59,010 --> 00:17:00,010
in the Old Testament.

405
00:17:00,010 --> 00:17:02,810
He understands that Agrippa
knows the prophets and believes the

406
00:17:02,810 --> 00:17:05,570
prophets and says, well, if
you believe the prophets and if you

407
00:17:05,570 --> 00:17:08,370
believe the Old Testament,
you're going to see that Jesus is

408
00:17:08,370 --> 00:17:09,690
the fulfillment of all of that.

409
00:17:09,770 --> 00:17:12,210
And he's just the first one
that's going to rise from the dead.

410
00:17:12,210 --> 00:17:15,010
But everyone's going to rise
from the dead that believe in Jesus

411
00:17:15,010 --> 00:17:15,370
Christ.

412
00:17:15,850 --> 00:17:16,570
And so he.

413
00:17:16,810 --> 00:17:18,890
He paints this beautiful picture.

414
00:17:18,890 --> 00:17:22,290
He preaches this strong gospel
message, and we're going to see the

415
00:17:22,290 --> 00:17:23,050
outcome of this.

416
00:17:23,370 --> 00:17:24,250
Verse 24.

417
00:17:24,330 --> 00:17:27,410
And as he thus spake for
himself, Festus said with a loud

418
00:17:27,410 --> 00:17:30,250
voice, paul, thou art beside thyself.

419
00:17:30,970 --> 00:17:33,130
Much learning doth make thee mad.

420
00:17:34,410 --> 00:17:36,890
You don't know what Festus is
saying in.

421
00:17:36,890 --> 00:17:38,130
In the.

422
00:17:38,130 --> 00:17:39,250
The language of their day.

423
00:17:39,250 --> 00:17:42,970
He's basically saying, you
have become so smart, you've become

424
00:17:42,970 --> 00:17:43,410
foolish.

425
00:17:43,410 --> 00:17:44,090
You're crazy.

426
00:17:44,090 --> 00:17:45,810
You're crazy for preaching
this message.

427
00:17:45,810 --> 00:17:47,610
You're crazy for living this life.

428
00:17:47,610 --> 00:17:51,530
You're crazy for going to jail
and being willing to be persecuted

429
00:17:51,530 --> 00:17:52,970
and die for this faith.

430
00:17:53,290 --> 00:17:54,650
Festus did not understand.

431
00:17:54,650 --> 00:17:55,770
It was silly to him.

432
00:17:56,030 --> 00:17:58,470
But we do know that the Bible
says that preaching the cross to

433
00:17:58,470 --> 00:18:01,150
those that are perishing is
going to be foolishness.

434
00:18:01,310 --> 00:18:04,390
Folks, what, what we do on
Sunday mornings, what we do in our

435
00:18:04,390 --> 00:18:08,070
Christian life, how we raise
our children, what we do in giving

436
00:18:08,070 --> 00:18:10,510
to God through our talents and
through our treasures.

437
00:18:10,750 --> 00:18:14,190
What we do in commitment to
him makes no sense to people who

438
00:18:14,190 --> 00:18:16,750
don't understand the truth of
Jesus Christ, who don't understand

439
00:18:16,750 --> 00:18:17,470
the Gospel.

440
00:18:18,030 --> 00:18:20,430
There's a lot of things that
we could be doing in our lives that

441
00:18:20,430 --> 00:18:23,150
are going to be what we would
call more beneficial to our good.

442
00:18:23,580 --> 00:18:25,860
But at the end of the day,
what we have to do is we have to

443
00:18:25,860 --> 00:18:29,740
understand that the Bible says
very clearly that there is no other

444
00:18:29,740 --> 00:18:30,060
way.

445
00:18:30,060 --> 00:18:31,180
There is a narrow way.

446
00:18:31,180 --> 00:18:32,300
There is one path.

447
00:18:32,460 --> 00:18:35,140
And so what we see here is
that Festus is looking at Paul and

448
00:18:35,140 --> 00:18:37,580
says, paul, you preaching this
message is silliness.

449
00:18:37,580 --> 00:18:38,340
It's foolishness.

450
00:18:38,340 --> 00:18:39,420
It doesn't make any sense.

451
00:18:40,060 --> 00:18:42,780
Obviously Paul was, was very educated.

452
00:18:42,860 --> 00:18:44,500
We know that through what he
says here.

453
00:18:44,500 --> 00:18:46,620
He says, much learning doth
make thee mad.

454
00:18:47,500 --> 00:18:49,180
And so Festus does not understand.

455
00:18:49,260 --> 00:18:51,380
Festus is just stiff arming
the Gospel.

456
00:18:51,380 --> 00:18:52,940
He says, this doesn't make any sense.

457
00:18:53,290 --> 00:18:53,850
Verse 25.

458
00:18:53,850 --> 00:18:56,810
But he said, I am not mad,
most noble Festus.

459
00:18:56,890 --> 00:19:00,690
So Paul turns around, he says,
I'm not mad, but speak forth the

460
00:19:00,690 --> 00:19:02,650
words of truth and soberness.

461
00:19:03,930 --> 00:19:06,570
I think that one of the
statements I heard not too long ago

462
00:19:06,570 --> 00:19:07,130
was this.

463
00:19:07,530 --> 00:19:12,170
When we live in a world of
lies, the truth seems crazy, right?

464
00:19:12,170 --> 00:19:16,450
Because we're around so much
deception, right?

465
00:19:16,450 --> 00:19:18,130
And the deception starts from
the enemy.

466
00:19:18,130 --> 00:19:20,170
We know that Satan is the
father of lies.

467
00:19:20,750 --> 00:19:24,630
But when, when Satan gives
those lies to the world.

468
00:19:24,630 --> 00:19:25,150
The world.

469
00:19:25,150 --> 00:19:26,190
Now we know the Bible.

470
00:19:26,270 --> 00:19:28,550
When we say the world, we're
not talking about like the physical

471
00:19:28,550 --> 00:19:28,870
dirt.

472
00:19:28,870 --> 00:19:30,510
We're talking about the world system.

473
00:19:30,750 --> 00:19:33,070
The world system is full of
lies, right?

474
00:19:33,230 --> 00:19:34,510
And that's really evident today.

475
00:19:34,510 --> 00:19:35,390
We don't know what to believe.

476
00:19:35,390 --> 00:19:38,910
Like you turn on the Internet,
turn on the tv.

477
00:19:39,310 --> 00:19:41,230
It's hard for us to know what
is truth, right?

478
00:19:41,230 --> 00:19:44,710
And so if we start appealing
to what is more compelling, we might

479
00:19:44,710 --> 00:19:46,670
be pulled over to a compelling lie.

480
00:19:47,950 --> 00:19:51,950
I don't know if any of you
have, probably most of you have a

481
00:19:51,950 --> 00:19:54,590
better understanding of
artificial intelligence than I do.

482
00:19:54,830 --> 00:19:57,670
But the truth is, is that you
can turn on and watch a video that's

483
00:19:57,670 --> 00:20:00,270
not really happening, but it
can look really convincing.

484
00:20:00,670 --> 00:20:03,550
And today if you turn on your
phone, you can pull up a video, you

485
00:20:03,550 --> 00:20:05,950
can see a video pretty much
playing and doing anything.

486
00:20:06,350 --> 00:20:09,270
And what's happening today is
that many people are being deceived

487
00:20:09,270 --> 00:20:11,590
and saying, well, that looks
compelling, that looks real.

488
00:20:11,590 --> 00:20:12,670
So I'VE got to believe that.

489
00:20:13,070 --> 00:20:14,790
But that's been happening from
the very beginning.

490
00:20:14,790 --> 00:20:18,910
Satan is going to package his
lies in a very compelling, very attractive

491
00:20:18,910 --> 00:20:19,230
way.

492
00:20:19,710 --> 00:20:21,110
And so what Paul says is this.

493
00:20:21,110 --> 00:20:22,510
No, I'm not mad.

494
00:20:22,510 --> 00:20:23,470
You're the one that's mad.

495
00:20:23,470 --> 00:20:24,470
That's what he's essentially saying.

496
00:20:24,470 --> 00:20:31,110
He says, I'm preaching the
words of truth and soberness and

497
00:20:31,110 --> 00:20:33,470
the word of God will always
bring us to that place of truth.

498
00:20:33,470 --> 00:20:36,510
That, that word of God is
always going to be bringing us to

499
00:20:36,510 --> 00:20:38,510
a place of being sober minded.

500
00:20:38,510 --> 00:20:41,420
And so obviously when we
preach the truth, people are going

501
00:20:41,420 --> 00:20:42,740
to really be upset with that.

502
00:20:43,140 --> 00:20:47,620
I mean, very, very quickly,
just preach the gospel for about

503
00:20:47,620 --> 00:20:48,140
five minutes.

504
00:20:48,140 --> 00:20:49,300
People are going to be upset
with that.

505
00:20:49,460 --> 00:20:52,540
People are going to be upset
with the fact that the Bible calls

506
00:20:52,540 --> 00:20:53,140
us sinners.

507
00:20:53,140 --> 00:20:56,060
The Bible's going to tell
people that there's only one way

508
00:20:56,060 --> 00:20:56,660
to salvation.

509
00:20:56,660 --> 00:20:59,420
The Bible's going to tell
people a lot of things that go against

510
00:20:59,420 --> 00:21:00,180
culture today.

511
00:21:00,180 --> 00:21:02,020
And people are going to call
us mad.

512
00:21:02,180 --> 00:21:03,620
People are going to be upset
with that.

513
00:21:03,940 --> 00:21:06,540
I don't know if you guys saw
that today in the news.

514
00:21:06,540 --> 00:21:09,940
There was a church up in
Michigan, they got attacked and they're

515
00:21:09,940 --> 00:21:10,980
calling it a terrorist attack.

516
00:21:10,980 --> 00:21:13,940
And thank goodness the
security team was able to come together

517
00:21:13,940 --> 00:21:15,060
and protect the people.

518
00:21:15,700 --> 00:21:18,380
But the truth of the matter
is, is that the more we live for

519
00:21:18,380 --> 00:21:20,420
the truth, the more people are
going to come against that.

520
00:21:20,740 --> 00:21:24,580
People that are living in
darkness don't want to be revealed.

521
00:21:24,740 --> 00:21:25,140
Right?

522
00:21:25,300 --> 00:21:28,140
If we turned out all these
lights in this room and we, we sat

523
00:21:28,140 --> 00:21:31,460
in here for like a day, all
right, maybe even like eight hours,

524
00:21:31,620 --> 00:21:33,220
we would get used to the darkness.

525
00:21:33,660 --> 00:21:36,500
And the moment we flip that
bright light on, it would make all

526
00:21:36,500 --> 00:21:37,220
of us recoil.

527
00:21:37,220 --> 00:21:38,780
It would make all of us, it
would hurt.

528
00:21:38,780 --> 00:21:40,540
And that's what's happening in
the world today.

529
00:21:40,540 --> 00:21:43,660
Everyone has been living in
darkness for so long that when the

530
00:21:43,660 --> 00:21:46,820
light of the truth is shining
on them, it hurts.

531
00:21:46,820 --> 00:21:47,940
They recoil from that.

532
00:21:47,940 --> 00:21:49,260
That doesn't make any sense to them.

533
00:21:49,980 --> 00:21:53,740
And so I remember it was
Pastor Spicer.

534
00:21:53,740 --> 00:21:56,620
He always like, he would
always want the lights on in the

535
00:21:56,620 --> 00:21:56,820
office.

536
00:21:56,820 --> 00:21:59,060
He's like, hey, men, men love
darkness rather than light.

537
00:21:59,060 --> 00:21:59,940
We should have light in here.

538
00:21:59,940 --> 00:22:00,860
No darkness in here.

539
00:22:01,150 --> 00:22:02,150
Always want to turn all the
lights on.

540
00:22:02,150 --> 00:22:03,390
And I appreciated that.

541
00:22:03,870 --> 00:22:06,310
But the truth of the matter
is, is that that's exactly what's

542
00:22:06,310 --> 00:22:06,990
happening here.

543
00:22:07,230 --> 00:22:10,070
Festus cannot understand the truth.

544
00:22:10,070 --> 00:22:11,950
And for him it seems crazy.

545
00:22:11,950 --> 00:22:14,190
Paul says, no, I'm preaching
truth and soberness.

546
00:22:14,350 --> 00:22:15,150
Verse 26.

547
00:22:15,150 --> 00:22:19,790
For the king knoweth of These
things before whom also I speak freely.

548
00:22:20,110 --> 00:22:25,350
So Paul says, no, Festus
Agrippa understands what I'm saying

549
00:22:25,350 --> 00:22:26,650
about the Old Testament.

550
00:22:26,720 --> 00:22:28,160
He understands what I'm saying.

551
00:22:28,160 --> 00:22:29,800
He says, and I'm speaking
freely to him.

552
00:22:29,800 --> 00:22:32,560
For I am persuaded that none
of these things are hidden from him,

553
00:22:32,960 --> 00:22:35,360
for this thing was not done in
a corner.

554
00:22:35,840 --> 00:22:39,720
So he says, look, the thing
that Jesus did, the things that we

555
00:22:39,720 --> 00:22:41,400
see in Scripture, they're not
done in private.

556
00:22:41,400 --> 00:22:42,720
It's very evident to people.

557
00:22:42,800 --> 00:22:45,240
It would have been evident for
the people that live back at that

558
00:22:45,240 --> 00:22:48,640
time frame to know what Jesus
did and to know his miracles and

559
00:22:48,640 --> 00:22:51,960
to know his power, but yet
they were turning a blind eye to

560
00:22:51,960 --> 00:22:53,520
the evident truth right before them.

561
00:22:54,810 --> 00:22:55,810
And that's what we see today.

562
00:22:55,810 --> 00:22:58,250
You know, there's a lot of
people that say, you know what?

563
00:22:58,250 --> 00:23:00,730
I would just believe if there
was enough proof.

564
00:23:01,770 --> 00:23:06,210
If God would just come down
right now and show me the truth,

565
00:23:06,210 --> 00:23:06,890
I would believe.

566
00:23:07,450 --> 00:23:09,929
And the answer to that is he
already has, right?

567
00:23:09,929 --> 00:23:12,610
2,000 years ago, Jesus came
down and demonstrated everything

568
00:23:12,610 --> 00:23:13,850
that he needed to demonstrate.

569
00:23:13,850 --> 00:23:16,490
It's recorded in his Word, and
we have everything that we need.

570
00:23:16,570 --> 00:23:19,210
And the vast majority of the
people that say, I need to have proof,

571
00:23:19,590 --> 00:23:22,110
even if Jesus came down and
showed himself to them, they would

572
00:23:22,110 --> 00:23:23,470
deny it, and they would say,
it's a.

573
00:23:23,470 --> 00:23:24,190
It's a vision.

574
00:23:24,190 --> 00:23:24,630
It's a.

575
00:23:24,630 --> 00:23:25,590
It's an hallucination.

576
00:23:25,590 --> 00:23:27,830
It's some kind of artificial intelligence.

577
00:23:28,150 --> 00:23:28,990
And I even.

578
00:23:28,990 --> 00:23:31,510
I saw that one time there was this.

579
00:23:31,750 --> 00:23:33,110
This famous atheist.

580
00:23:33,110 --> 00:23:33,590
He was.

581
00:23:33,670 --> 00:23:36,630
He was debating somebody and
they said, well, what if, you know,

582
00:23:37,430 --> 00:23:39,710
the intelligent design
basically was the debate.

583
00:23:39,710 --> 00:23:41,110
And they were saying, you
know, could.

584
00:23:41,190 --> 00:23:44,990
Would you concede that, you
know, something implanted this on

585
00:23:44,990 --> 00:23:47,030
the Earth and something grew
to who we are today?

586
00:23:47,420 --> 00:23:48,540
And he says, yes, maybe.

587
00:23:48,540 --> 00:23:52,620
He goes, possibly it could
have been aliens that came and dropped,

588
00:23:52,700 --> 00:23:53,900
you know, some things down.

589
00:23:53,980 --> 00:23:57,740
So this guy was willing to
believe in aliens that came and planted

590
00:23:57,740 --> 00:24:00,180
in this earth people and could
not believe and couldn't.

591
00:24:00,180 --> 00:24:00,780
His could.

592
00:24:00,780 --> 00:24:03,820
He couldn't, in his brain,
come to the fact of identifying who

593
00:24:03,820 --> 00:24:07,020
God was and identifying that
that could actually happen.

594
00:24:07,420 --> 00:24:08,460
What I would say is this.

595
00:24:08,460 --> 00:24:11,180
There's a lot of people that
are rejecting the truth of God because

596
00:24:11,580 --> 00:24:14,260
of the fact that they don't
want to be accountable to the truth

597
00:24:14,260 --> 00:24:14,580
of God.

598
00:24:14,580 --> 00:24:16,380
They don't want to be
accountable to a higher power.

599
00:24:16,850 --> 00:24:17,370
Verse 28.

600
00:24:17,370 --> 00:24:20,410
Then Agrippa said unto Paul,
excuse me, go back.

601
00:24:20,410 --> 00:24:23,410
Verse 27, Paul turns the king Agrippa.

602
00:24:23,410 --> 00:24:27,010
So this is Paul's invitation,
and this is important.

603
00:24:27,010 --> 00:24:30,930
This is why we talk to people
when it comes to the understanding

604
00:24:30,930 --> 00:24:31,730
of the Gospel.

605
00:24:31,730 --> 00:24:34,930
Because if you just talk and
leave it out there, that's one thing.

606
00:24:35,010 --> 00:24:38,210
Another thing is to put the
test out there.

607
00:24:38,210 --> 00:24:39,410
Are you willing to believe this?

608
00:24:39,570 --> 00:24:40,290
Verse 27.

609
00:24:40,290 --> 00:24:42,210
King Agrippa believest thou
the prophets.

610
00:24:42,440 --> 00:24:44,840
He says, hey, Agrippa, do you
believe in the prophets?

611
00:24:45,480 --> 00:24:46,720
I know that thou believest.

612
00:24:46,720 --> 00:24:49,040
He says, so if you believe in
the prophets, then you have to believe

613
00:24:49,040 --> 00:24:49,640
in Jesus.

614
00:24:49,640 --> 00:24:50,360
Verse 28.

615
00:24:50,360 --> 00:24:54,920
Then Agrippa said unto Paul,
almost, this is some of the saddest,

616
00:24:54,920 --> 00:24:56,320
you know, words in Scripture.

617
00:24:56,320 --> 00:25:00,920
Almost, thou persuadest me to
be a Christian almost.

618
00:25:02,280 --> 00:25:03,720
And what was holding Agrippa back?

619
00:25:03,720 --> 00:25:06,000
There's a lot of theories
about what was holding King Agrippa

620
00:25:06,000 --> 00:25:06,280
back.

621
00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:08,560
Some would say that it was.

622
00:25:08,560 --> 00:25:10,080
It was Festus over there.

623
00:25:10,080 --> 00:25:12,140
Festus was a man of power.

624
00:25:12,220 --> 00:25:15,220
And you just called Paul crazy
for believing in this.

625
00:25:15,220 --> 00:25:18,340
And so maybe Agrippa was
afraid of what Festus would say if

626
00:25:18,340 --> 00:25:19,020
he believed.

627
00:25:19,260 --> 00:25:19,540
Or.

628
00:25:19,540 --> 00:25:22,020
Or some would say that maybe
it was his wife that was holding

629
00:25:22,020 --> 00:25:22,980
him back, who was there.

630
00:25:22,980 --> 00:25:24,060
We don't know for certain.

631
00:25:24,380 --> 00:25:26,140
Ultimately, it was a lack of belief.

632
00:25:26,540 --> 00:25:28,860
But he says, almost thou
persuaded me.

633
00:25:28,860 --> 00:25:29,860
And basically in the.

634
00:25:29,860 --> 00:25:33,180
In the Greek, it literally
means in a little bit you could persuade

635
00:25:33,180 --> 00:25:33,500
me.

636
00:25:33,900 --> 00:25:34,780
And it just.

637
00:25:35,180 --> 00:25:36,940
If maybe I just need a little
bit more.

638
00:25:37,220 --> 00:25:38,140
I just need a little bit more.

639
00:25:38,140 --> 00:25:38,700
I need a little bit.

640
00:25:38,700 --> 00:25:41,820
Maybe it's a little bit more
time, a little bit more proof, whatever

641
00:25:41,820 --> 00:25:42,100
it is.

642
00:25:42,100 --> 00:25:44,100
He says, in a little bit you
could persuade me.

643
00:25:44,340 --> 00:25:45,060
Verse 29.

644
00:25:45,060 --> 00:25:51,340
And Paul said, I would to God
that not only thou, but also all

645
00:25:51,340 --> 00:25:56,860
that hear me this day were
both almost and altogether such as

646
00:25:56,860 --> 00:25:58,660
I am, except these bonds.

647
00:25:58,660 --> 00:25:59,580
And so what does he say here?

648
00:25:59,580 --> 00:26:02,860
He says, you know what,
Agrippa, I hope you and everybody

649
00:26:02,860 --> 00:26:06,270
else, you don't just come
close to being saved, but you completely

650
00:26:06,270 --> 00:26:07,390
trust in Jesus Christ.

651
00:26:07,390 --> 00:26:09,230
He says, I hope you have what
I have.

652
00:26:09,550 --> 00:26:10,030
Except.

653
00:26:10,030 --> 00:26:11,350
He says, except for these bonds.

654
00:26:11,350 --> 00:26:12,150
He says, I don't.

655
00:26:12,150 --> 00:26:13,270
I don't wish this on anybody.

656
00:26:13,270 --> 00:26:15,590
I don't wish anyone this type
of persecution.

657
00:26:15,590 --> 00:26:17,390
He goes, but I wish that you.

658
00:26:17,550 --> 00:26:19,710
I pray that you would come to Christ.

659
00:26:19,870 --> 00:26:21,870
And that's really the way that
our prayer should be, that.

660
00:26:21,870 --> 00:26:25,470
That people could understand
the blessings that we have in our

661
00:26:25,470 --> 00:26:28,270
life, to understand the hope
that we have in our life, to understand

662
00:26:28,270 --> 00:26:30,030
the confidence that we have in
our life.

663
00:26:30,660 --> 00:26:32,420
And so Paul says, I.

664
00:26:32,740 --> 00:26:33,460
I hope that.

665
00:26:33,460 --> 00:26:37,580
I pray that God would save not
only you, but all those that are

666
00:26:37,580 --> 00:26:38,020
here today.

667
00:26:38,820 --> 00:26:39,420
Verse 30.

668
00:26:39,420 --> 00:26:43,100
And when he had thus spoken,
the king rose up and the governor

669
00:26:43,100 --> 00:26:46,580
and Bernice, his wife, and
they that sat with them.

670
00:26:46,580 --> 00:26:50,020
And when they were gone aside,
they talked between themselves, saying,

671
00:26:50,020 --> 00:26:53,460
this man doeth nothing worthy
of death or of bonds.

672
00:26:53,780 --> 00:26:54,420
He said, this.

673
00:26:54,420 --> 00:26:55,780
This guy is not guilty of anything.

674
00:26:55,850 --> 00:26:57,250
He doesn't deserve to die.

675
00:26:57,250 --> 00:26:58,970
He doesn't even deserve to be
in jail.

676
00:26:59,930 --> 00:27:04,650
Then said Agrippa to Festus,
this man might have been set at liberty,

677
00:27:06,090 --> 00:27:09,370
let go, if he had not appealed
unto Caesar.

678
00:27:09,850 --> 00:27:12,250
So even at this point,
Agrippa's like this guy.

679
00:27:12,250 --> 00:27:13,210
Paul made the wrong decision.

680
00:27:13,210 --> 00:27:14,690
He should have never appealed
to Caesar.

681
00:27:14,690 --> 00:27:15,970
He could have been out right now.

682
00:27:15,970 --> 00:27:19,530
But Paul knows that God has a
purpose for him to preach the gospel,

683
00:27:19,770 --> 00:27:22,730
preach the gospel to the
highest court, the highest authority.

684
00:27:23,770 --> 00:27:25,850
And so Paul preaches the
gospel message.

685
00:27:25,930 --> 00:27:27,050
So what can we learn from this?

686
00:27:27,050 --> 00:27:30,250
What can we learn from the
lesson of Paul preaching to Agrippa?

687
00:27:30,250 --> 00:27:33,810
I think there's a couple
things that we can learn here that

688
00:27:33,810 --> 00:27:38,130
we should be joyful when we
have the opportunity to preach the

689
00:27:38,130 --> 00:27:42,250
gospel to anyone, specifically
people of high authority.

690
00:27:42,810 --> 00:27:47,050
And though he was a prisoner
in chains, Paul said he was joyful.

691
00:27:48,410 --> 00:27:50,920
And so that's one lesson that
we could learn.

692
00:27:51,880 --> 00:27:54,760
One other thing that we could
see is that Paul preaches the gospel

693
00:27:54,760 --> 00:27:56,520
unapologetically and completely.

694
00:27:56,600 --> 00:27:59,080
I think it's important for us
when we preach the gospel to people,

695
00:27:59,080 --> 00:28:02,840
to preach it unapologetically
and completely, persistently.

696
00:28:03,880 --> 00:28:08,680
Paul understood and knew how
he should appeal the gospel to Agrippa.

697
00:28:08,680 --> 00:28:09,560
So know our audience.

698
00:28:09,880 --> 00:28:12,440
Agrippa knew the prophets.

699
00:28:12,440 --> 00:28:14,320
Agrippa knew the Jewish customs.

700
00:28:14,320 --> 00:28:15,960
And so that's what Paul
appeals to there.

701
00:28:16,340 --> 00:28:19,540
Paul appeals to the truth that
Agrippa understood.

702
00:28:19,940 --> 00:28:24,180
And so Paul used Festus's
outbursts to appeal to the king.

703
00:28:24,500 --> 00:28:28,420
And so Paul brought this to
Agrippa and says, do you believe?

704
00:28:28,580 --> 00:28:30,340
And there's that point of
decision there.

705
00:28:30,500 --> 00:28:31,220
Do you believe?

706
00:28:31,460 --> 00:28:32,900
He doesn't say, what do you do?

707
00:28:32,900 --> 00:28:34,860
He doesn't say, how much
church do you go to?

708
00:28:34,860 --> 00:28:36,860
He doesn't say, how many
offerings do you give?

709
00:28:36,860 --> 00:28:38,340
He says, do you believe?

710
00:28:38,340 --> 00:28:39,540
Do you believe the prophets?

711
00:28:39,540 --> 00:28:40,740
Do you believe the Scriptures?

712
00:28:41,140 --> 00:28:44,260
And so when Paul called
Agrippa to faith in the prophets

713
00:28:44,260 --> 00:28:47,380
and ultimately to Jesus, what
does Agrippa do?

714
00:28:47,380 --> 00:28:48,820
Agrippa refuses to believe.

715
00:28:49,540 --> 00:28:51,020
And he says, you know what, Paul?

716
00:28:51,020 --> 00:28:52,580
You almost persuaded me.

717
00:28:52,580 --> 00:28:54,100
You almost got me there.

718
00:28:54,660 --> 00:28:56,780
And I think another lesson
that we can learn here is that no

719
00:28:56,780 --> 00:29:00,780
matter what case we bring to a
person, it's ultimately the Holy

720
00:29:00,780 --> 00:29:01,780
Spirit that saves them.

721
00:29:02,260 --> 00:29:04,820
I can have the greatest
argument, I can have the greatest

722
00:29:04,820 --> 00:29:06,500
message that I've ever
preached in my life.

723
00:29:06,580 --> 00:29:09,580
But at the end of the day,
it's the Holy Spirit's work in that

724
00:29:09,580 --> 00:29:11,060
individual's life to come to faith.

725
00:29:11,950 --> 00:29:15,550
And so Agrippa's reply
basically is you can actually almost,

726
00:29:15,630 --> 00:29:17,310
through the text, see his.

727
00:29:17,390 --> 00:29:18,510
His sorrow in it.

728
00:29:18,750 --> 00:29:19,470
You almost.

729
00:29:19,470 --> 00:29:20,830
You almost convince me.

730
00:29:21,630 --> 00:29:24,590
And so almost being a
Christian means what?

731
00:29:24,590 --> 00:29:25,790
That I'm not a Christian.

732
00:29:26,270 --> 00:29:28,910
And there's a lot of people
out there that are almost there,

733
00:29:29,230 --> 00:29:31,510
and there's a lot of people
that maybe we're tempted to give

734
00:29:31,510 --> 00:29:31,910
up on.

735
00:29:31,910 --> 00:29:35,630
The Bible says that we have to
keep going, we have to be consistent,

736
00:29:35,630 --> 00:29:37,150
we have to be persistent.

737
00:29:38,620 --> 00:29:41,460
And so ultimately, what we can
see here is that there's a lot of

738
00:29:41,460 --> 00:29:41,900
lessons.

739
00:29:41,900 --> 00:29:46,860
And so what stopped Agrippa, I
don't know.

740
00:29:46,860 --> 00:29:49,460
But I think the biggest thing
that we can point to is the fact

741
00:29:49,460 --> 00:29:50,380
that he did not believe.

742
00:29:51,420 --> 00:29:55,100
But Paul appeals with his
testimony, with the power of God

743
00:29:55,500 --> 00:29:57,740
to Agrippa and all those that
were there.

744
00:29:58,860 --> 00:30:01,860
And so what I would say here
tonight is, is the challenge for

745
00:30:01,860 --> 00:30:05,630
us, and it's a challenge for
me is a lot of times I see sharing

746
00:30:05,630 --> 00:30:07,630
my faith as a burden.

747
00:30:07,710 --> 00:30:10,110
I see sharing my faith as an inconvenience.

748
00:30:10,510 --> 00:30:13,830
I see sharing my faith as
something that is going to cause

749
00:30:13,830 --> 00:30:15,070
me fear and trepidation.

750
00:30:15,070 --> 00:30:17,350
But what I would say is that
let's be like Paul.

751
00:30:17,350 --> 00:30:17,750
Let's.

752
00:30:17,750 --> 00:30:19,150
Let's get to a place in our life.

753
00:30:20,350 --> 00:30:24,670
As Acts 26, verse 2 says that
he was happy to share with the king,

754
00:30:24,830 --> 00:30:26,670
he was happy to share his faith.

755
00:30:26,910 --> 00:30:30,290
And I think all of us at some
point in time could have a testimony

756
00:30:30,290 --> 00:30:31,330
of God's power in our life.

757
00:30:31,330 --> 00:30:33,090
I mean, think about the
testimonies that were given this

758
00:30:33,090 --> 00:30:33,370
morning.

759
00:30:34,010 --> 00:30:37,850
The fact that that fella had
all these things that happened in

760
00:30:37,850 --> 00:30:41,090
his life and transpired that
protected him from a plane crash

761
00:30:41,090 --> 00:30:41,450
and.

762
00:30:41,450 --> 00:30:42,890
And God healed him from cancer.

763
00:30:42,890 --> 00:30:44,490
Like, we all have testimonies
like that.

764
00:30:44,490 --> 00:30:46,850
We all have times in our life
that we can point to and say, wow,

765
00:30:46,850 --> 00:30:47,850
that was a God thing.

766
00:30:47,850 --> 00:30:50,250
That was something that I
could not explain for myself.

767
00:30:50,250 --> 00:30:52,610
Hey, those are things that we
should be excited about telling other

768
00:30:52,610 --> 00:30:54,290
people to.

769
00:30:54,290 --> 00:30:54,650
To.

770
00:30:54,650 --> 00:30:56,570
So, so he appeals to Caesar.

771
00:30:56,830 --> 00:30:59,790
And so that's what King
Agrippa thinks is Paul's worst decision.

772
00:30:59,790 --> 00:31:03,430
He says Paul could have been
free, but no, he appealed to Caesar.

773
00:31:03,430 --> 00:31:04,590
Why did he have to do that?

774
00:31:04,590 --> 00:31:05,990
Well, we know why he had to do that.

775
00:31:05,990 --> 00:31:08,870
Because it was ultimately
God's plan for him to present the

776
00:31:08,870 --> 00:31:13,069
gospel to Caesar and to all
those that were in Rome.

777
00:31:13,310 --> 00:31:15,470
And so Paul Says, I wish that
you could believe.

778
00:31:15,470 --> 00:31:16,710
I hope that you can believe.

779
00:31:16,710 --> 00:31:17,950
I pray that you can believe.

780
00:31:18,030 --> 00:31:20,510
But ultimately, you have to
make that decision for yourself.

781
00:31:20,590 --> 00:31:24,910
And so we're going to see in
chapter 27, Paul is going to be sent

782
00:31:24,910 --> 00:31:27,150
to Rome, and Paul is going to.

783
00:31:27,150 --> 00:31:30,310
We, you know, today, in
today's time, we jump on a plane,

784
00:31:30,310 --> 00:31:32,030
we're there within a day.

785
00:31:32,430 --> 00:31:35,470
We're going to see that Paul
is going to get on a ship and there's

786
00:31:35,470 --> 00:31:37,430
going to be a storm and
there's going to be a shipwreck,

787
00:31:37,430 --> 00:31:39,950
and there's going to be a lot
of things that happen between the

788
00:31:39,950 --> 00:31:42,110
time Paul gets to Rome.

789
00:31:42,910 --> 00:31:45,630
And then, even after Paul gets
to Rome, he doesn't immediately go

790
00:31:45,630 --> 00:31:46,150
to Caesar.

791
00:31:46,150 --> 00:31:48,750
He isn't immediately
persecuted for his faith.

792
00:31:48,750 --> 00:31:50,390
He's thrown in prison there,
and he's got to wait.

793
00:31:50,390 --> 00:31:53,950
So a lot of Paul's latter life
is a lot of waiting and a lot of

794
00:31:53,950 --> 00:31:54,270
thinking.

795
00:31:54,270 --> 00:31:57,510
And we know a lot of writing,
all the prison epistles came through

796
00:31:57,510 --> 00:31:57,910
the time.

797
00:31:57,910 --> 00:32:00,230
And so we know that God had a
plan for Paul in prison.

798
00:32:00,870 --> 00:32:03,430
And I, I, one of the, one of the.

799
00:32:03,590 --> 00:32:06,350
I mean, honestly, we were
going to be announcing here very

800
00:32:06,350 --> 00:32:11,110
soon that we were planning a
trip to Israel in 2026.

801
00:32:11,750 --> 00:32:15,630
And obviously, you guys see
the news and know that that might

802
00:32:15,630 --> 00:32:16,310
not be happening.

803
00:32:16,310 --> 00:32:17,270
Probably not happening.

804
00:32:17,850 --> 00:32:20,970
We had just gotten word that
everything was clearing up over there.

805
00:32:20,970 --> 00:32:21,490
Believe it or not.

806
00:32:21,490 --> 00:32:24,050
I was talking to the
representative, and we were.

807
00:32:24,050 --> 00:32:25,290
We were, like, praying about it.

808
00:32:25,290 --> 00:32:26,890
We're like, okay, we're gonna
bring it to the church.

809
00:32:27,050 --> 00:32:28,650
And, you know, we were excited.

810
00:32:28,650 --> 00:32:31,250
And literally, like, three
days later, all this stuff started

811
00:32:31,250 --> 00:32:34,410
transpiring, and we're like,
okay, all right, so maybe God doesn't

812
00:32:34,410 --> 00:32:34,850
have that plan.

813
00:32:34,850 --> 00:32:37,330
But the point I'm trying to
make is one of the places that was

814
00:32:37,330 --> 00:32:39,930
a really sobering place was
when we went to Caesarea.

815
00:32:40,410 --> 00:32:43,130
When we went to Caesarea
Maritime, that's where Paul was held.

816
00:32:43,130 --> 00:32:46,160
And we saw all the different
places, and then we went to this

817
00:32:46,160 --> 00:32:48,240
place and it was, it was.

818
00:32:48,240 --> 00:32:49,640
You could tell it was a room.

819
00:32:49,640 --> 00:32:53,000
And a lot of people, the, the
archaeologists there said that this

820
00:32:53,000 --> 00:32:54,000
would have been a prison cell.

821
00:32:54,000 --> 00:32:54,600
And I thought about.

822
00:32:54,600 --> 00:32:59,040
I'm like, I wonder, I wonder
if this is the exact place that Paul

823
00:32:59,040 --> 00:33:02,160
was being held while he was
waiting in captivity there for two

824
00:33:02,160 --> 00:33:02,360
years.

825
00:33:02,360 --> 00:33:04,480
I don't know for sure, but it
took me back.

826
00:33:04,480 --> 00:33:06,640
And it took me back to that
place in my mind where I thought

827
00:33:06,640 --> 00:33:09,360
about, hey, you know what,
what was Paul thinking when he was

828
00:33:09,360 --> 00:33:11,320
there, when he was writing
these letters.

829
00:33:11,320 --> 00:33:13,480
And ultimately, we know what
his thinking was.

830
00:33:13,480 --> 00:33:15,960
If you go to the book of
Philippians, Philippians, chapter

831
00:33:15,960 --> 00:33:18,840
one, he said, you know what,
if it takes me to go to jail and

832
00:33:18,840 --> 00:33:21,840
go through all these problems,
and if it takes me to go to death

833
00:33:22,320 --> 00:33:24,480
for people to trust in Jesus, great.

834
00:33:24,560 --> 00:33:25,680
That's what I want.

835
00:33:26,320 --> 00:33:26,840
And that's.

836
00:33:26,840 --> 00:33:29,720
That's amazing to see that
Paul's heart for his people, his

837
00:33:29,720 --> 00:33:30,480
heart for the j.

838
00:33:30,560 --> 00:33:33,440
It's one thing that he had
heart for his own people, by the

839
00:33:33,440 --> 00:33:35,360
way, his people are the ones
that betrayed him.

840
00:33:36,410 --> 00:33:40,250
But then Paul had a heart for
the Gentiles, Paul had a heart for

841
00:33:40,250 --> 00:33:40,770
those leaders.

842
00:33:40,770 --> 00:33:42,090
Paul had a heart for all these people.

843
00:33:42,090 --> 00:33:45,290
And so the Bible very clearly
tells us as a believer, we should

844
00:33:45,290 --> 00:33:46,050
have that same heart.

845
00:33:46,050 --> 00:33:47,210
We should have that same desire.

846
00:33:47,210 --> 00:33:50,010
Now, God hasn't called you
maybe to preach to a king.

847
00:33:50,090 --> 00:33:53,330
He hasn't necessarily called
you to go to prison, but he has called

848
00:33:53,330 --> 00:33:54,490
you to do something in your life.

849
00:33:54,490 --> 00:33:58,250
And I think that all of us
understand to some degree the basics

850
00:33:58,250 --> 00:33:58,970
of our call.

851
00:33:59,290 --> 00:34:02,250
And if you want to know the
basics of the call, you can go to

852
00:34:02,250 --> 00:34:05,130
the very end of the Book of
Matthew, you can go to the very beginning

853
00:34:05,130 --> 00:34:06,090
of the Book of Acts.

854
00:34:06,400 --> 00:34:07,840
And we have what's called the
Great Commission.

855
00:34:08,000 --> 00:34:10,320
We have the Great Commission
to tell people about Jesus.

856
00:34:10,640 --> 00:34:13,320
But more than just tell people
about Jesus, the Bible says to teach

857
00:34:13,320 --> 00:34:14,400
them to make disciples.

858
00:34:15,200 --> 00:34:20,720
And I know for me, one of the
goals in my life is to help people

859
00:34:21,280 --> 00:34:23,000
find the truth of Jesus.

860
00:34:23,000 --> 00:34:26,040
But not only find the truth of
Jesus, but also follow the truth

861
00:34:26,040 --> 00:34:26,640
of Jesus.

862
00:34:27,040 --> 00:34:29,600
Because it's one thing to come
to Jesus and believe in him, it's

863
00:34:29,600 --> 00:34:31,760
another thing to grow in our
understanding of him.

864
00:34:32,080 --> 00:34:34,360
And I believe that that is
something that all of us have been

865
00:34:34,360 --> 00:34:37,520
called to do in our lives, is
to bring people to Jesus and to teach

866
00:34:37,520 --> 00:34:40,320
them what it means to walk in
the truth of his word.

867
00:34:40,640 --> 00:34:44,920
So Paul comes to Agrippa, and
Agrippa says, almost out persuaded

868
00:34:44,920 --> 00:34:45,200
me.

869
00:34:45,840 --> 00:34:50,080
And so we see God working even
in the midst of difficulty with Paul.

870
00:34:50,080 --> 00:34:52,680
You can go back to Acts,
chapter 9, verse 15.

871
00:34:52,680 --> 00:34:56,480
From the very beginning, we
know that it was God's plan for Paul

872
00:34:56,480 --> 00:34:59,340
to bear witness to the kings
and to the leaders.

873
00:34:59,340 --> 00:35:03,580
And we see that happening
through Felix Festus Agrippa.

874
00:35:03,660 --> 00:35:06,740
And ultimately we're going to
see that not necessarily in Scripture,

875
00:35:06,740 --> 00:35:09,780
but we are going to see that
as he goes in church history and

876
00:35:09,780 --> 00:35:11,020
appeals to Nero.

877
00:35:11,020 --> 00:35:16,500
And Nero is an evil, evil
leader who is going to persecute

878
00:35:16,500 --> 00:35:18,900
Paul and ultimately put him to death.

879
00:35:18,900 --> 00:35:21,580
But nonetheless, Paul was
faithful through it all.

880
00:35:21,580 --> 00:35:23,660
And I hope that we can stay
faithful as well.

881
00:35:25,210 --> 00:35:29,570
Well, we're going to go ahead
and close out here in chapter 26.

882
00:35:29,570 --> 00:35:33,130
And next week, Lord willing,
we'll be back and we're going to

883
00:35:33,130 --> 00:35:37,930
read and go through chapter 27
and we're going to see Paul's path

884
00:35:38,170 --> 00:35:43,370
because Paul is going to be
shipwrecked, he's going to be snake

885
00:35:43,370 --> 00:35:43,690
bit.

886
00:35:44,250 --> 00:35:45,290
Some of you guys know that story.

887
00:35:45,290 --> 00:35:46,250
It's a pretty neat story.

888
00:35:46,730 --> 00:35:50,810
But we're going to see Paul's
ups and downs, circumstances, ups

889
00:35:50,810 --> 00:35:51,370
and downs.

890
00:35:51,530 --> 00:35:53,770
But we're going to see a
standard of faithfulness in his life,

891
00:35:53,770 --> 00:35:56,810
not only his faithfulness, but
most importantly, God's faithfulness

892
00:35:56,890 --> 00:35:57,450
to him.

893
00:35:57,610 --> 00:36:00,210
And so we're getting closer
and closer to the end of the Book

894
00:36:00,210 --> 00:36:00,890
of Acts.

895
00:36:01,290 --> 00:36:03,930
It goes there Through Acts,
Chapter 28.

896
00:36:04,170 --> 00:36:05,410
And then we'll be done.

897
00:36:05,410 --> 00:36:08,170
And some people will ask, what
are we going to be doing next?

898
00:36:08,170 --> 00:36:10,170
I'll be announcing that here
in the next few weeks.

899
00:36:10,490 --> 00:36:13,530
We're going to be moving on to
another study here on Sunday evenings.

900
00:36:13,610 --> 00:36:16,250
And I hope that this studying
the Book of Acts has helped you.

901
00:36:16,330 --> 00:36:18,970
I think that one of the things
that has helped me in the study of

902
00:36:18,970 --> 00:36:23,370
the Book of Acts and is just
to understand what mattered to God

903
00:36:23,370 --> 00:36:24,410
in the early church.

904
00:36:25,530 --> 00:36:28,730
And, and what, what it's, what
it's taught me through this study

905
00:36:28,730 --> 00:36:34,250
is that many of the things
that we believe are so important

906
00:36:35,290 --> 00:36:40,250
in today's church really
weren't important to the Lord back

907
00:36:40,250 --> 00:36:41,530
at the time of the early church.

908
00:36:42,090 --> 00:36:45,290
I don't, and I'm gonna speak
frankly here, and I don't want to

909
00:36:45,290 --> 00:36:49,380
get anyone upset, but I don't
see anybody in the Book of Acts saying

910
00:36:49,380 --> 00:36:51,500
that they weren't picking a
church because there wasn't enough

911
00:36:51,500 --> 00:36:52,460
programs for them.

912
00:36:52,700 --> 00:36:53,340
Okay.

913
00:36:54,940 --> 00:37:00,820
They, they were there because
of the fellowship that they had ultimately

914
00:37:00,820 --> 00:37:02,300
with Christ and with each other.

915
00:37:02,300 --> 00:37:03,180
It was a family.

916
00:37:03,980 --> 00:37:07,420
It wasn't like we have today
with churches being consumeristic.

917
00:37:07,820 --> 00:37:09,580
Well, this church is going to
bring this, this and this.

918
00:37:09,580 --> 00:37:13,580
I like the music here, I like
the programs here.

919
00:37:13,580 --> 00:37:15,020
I like the preaching here.

920
00:37:15,460 --> 00:37:17,620
And so therefore I'm just
going to, you know, the truth is,

921
00:37:17,620 --> 00:37:21,260
is that back then, yes, I do
believe that at the core of it, you

922
00:37:21,260 --> 00:37:24,660
could go to Acts, chapter 2,
verse 42, and you could see was at

923
00:37:24,660 --> 00:37:25,660
the heart of their fellowship.

924
00:37:25,660 --> 00:37:27,780
It was, it was fellowshipping
with one another.

925
00:37:27,860 --> 00:37:29,620
It was the preaching of the
word of God.

926
00:37:29,700 --> 00:37:32,860
It was the breaking of bread
and the, in the remembrance, in that

927
00:37:32,860 --> 00:37:34,020
regard, and it was prayer.

928
00:37:34,580 --> 00:37:37,860
And one of the things that
I've seen is that we've so commercialized

929
00:37:37,940 --> 00:37:39,700
Christianity in our world today.

930
00:37:39,700 --> 00:37:41,660
And I'm not saying there's
anything wrong with trying to seek

931
00:37:41,660 --> 00:37:44,330
a good Bible believing church
and pick the church that's right

932
00:37:44,330 --> 00:37:44,770
for you.

933
00:37:44,930 --> 00:37:48,250
But what I am saying is that
so many times in churches we can

934
00:37:48,250 --> 00:37:50,810
look at the things that really
didn't matter so much to the Lord

935
00:37:50,810 --> 00:37:52,930
back then and put that as our priority.

936
00:37:53,090 --> 00:37:56,330
And the things that really did
matter for the Lord back then, we

937
00:37:56,330 --> 00:37:58,130
just kind of put as a back burner.

938
00:37:58,530 --> 00:38:01,170
And so what I would say is
that there's nothing wrong with ministries.

939
00:38:01,170 --> 00:38:03,090
There's nothing wrong with
children's ministries, there's nothing

940
00:38:03,090 --> 00:38:07,850
wrong with men's ministries,
ladies ministries, you know, different

941
00:38:07,850 --> 00:38:08,930
ministries that we have.

942
00:38:09,220 --> 00:38:12,980
But what we would say is this,
that at the core of that, it's why

943
00:38:12,980 --> 00:38:14,420
are we doing what we're doing?

944
00:38:14,820 --> 00:38:17,660
And the big thing that has
gone through my mind as we've been

945
00:38:17,660 --> 00:38:20,140
studying the book of Acts is
this, why are we doing.

946
00:38:20,140 --> 00:38:21,300
And fill in the blank.

947
00:38:21,380 --> 00:38:22,980
Why do we have this ministry?

948
00:38:23,140 --> 00:38:24,260
Why do we do this?

949
00:38:24,660 --> 00:38:25,940
Why do we meet here?

950
00:38:25,940 --> 00:38:27,140
Why do we meet now?

951
00:38:27,300 --> 00:38:28,660
Why do we give this way?

952
00:38:28,740 --> 00:38:31,580
And a lot of the things in my
own life, I've had to realize that

953
00:38:31,580 --> 00:38:35,470
a lot of the things that I'm
the most comfortable with are things

954
00:38:35,470 --> 00:38:37,670
that I'm just comfortable with
because that's traditionally what

955
00:38:37,670 --> 00:38:38,270
we've always done.

956
00:38:38,270 --> 00:38:39,630
And there's nothing wrong with tradition.

957
00:38:39,710 --> 00:38:42,190
There's nothing wrong with
understanding that to be that.

958
00:38:42,190 --> 00:38:43,470
That's what I'm comfortable with.

959
00:38:43,550 --> 00:38:46,630
But at the end, what we
understand is that, and Paul taught

960
00:38:46,630 --> 00:38:51,950
against this, if the
traditions take precedent over what

961
00:38:51,950 --> 00:38:54,910
God says, then that's when we
have an issue.

962
00:38:55,470 --> 00:38:59,350
And so if we have everything
in line and our priorities, the big

963
00:38:59,350 --> 00:39:00,670
thing is priorities, right?

964
00:39:01,310 --> 00:39:02,590
The biggest thing is priorities.

965
00:39:03,070 --> 00:39:03,950
Think about this.

966
00:39:04,670 --> 00:39:07,830
How many of you, how many of
you were hungry today?

967
00:39:07,830 --> 00:39:08,510
Raise your hand.

968
00:39:10,190 --> 00:39:11,310
Some of you were hungry.

969
00:39:11,390 --> 00:39:13,630
During my preaching this
morning, I heard some of the stomachs

970
00:39:13,630 --> 00:39:14,510
growling from up here.

971
00:39:14,670 --> 00:39:15,350
Just kidding, I.

972
00:39:15,350 --> 00:39:18,150
Did you guys smelt that, those
hot dogs cooking out there?

973
00:39:18,150 --> 00:39:18,510
No.

974
00:39:19,070 --> 00:39:22,350
How many of you were hungry
and you ate?

975
00:39:22,830 --> 00:39:24,030
You remembered to eat.

976
00:39:24,190 --> 00:39:25,390
It was a priority, right?

977
00:39:25,550 --> 00:39:26,990
Some of you said, no, I
skipped a meal.

978
00:39:26,990 --> 00:39:27,270
Okay?

979
00:39:27,270 --> 00:39:28,830
Your priority is that you skip
that meal.

980
00:39:28,830 --> 00:39:30,920
But we all understand priorities.

981
00:39:31,240 --> 00:39:34,200
We, we, we all understand that
list of priorities.

982
00:39:34,280 --> 00:39:37,720
And, and so for some of us,
what happens is, is that though that

983
00:39:37,720 --> 00:39:39,080
priority list, okay?

984
00:39:39,080 --> 00:39:42,200
So putting God first and all
the things that God calls us to do.

985
00:39:43,000 --> 00:39:43,320
And.

986
00:39:43,320 --> 00:39:44,360
And then it goes down like.

987
00:39:44,360 --> 00:39:44,880
And so there.

988
00:39:44,880 --> 00:39:48,280
There are certainly things in
our life that should take priority

989
00:39:48,280 --> 00:39:49,160
over other things.

990
00:39:49,320 --> 00:39:52,960
But what happens is, is that
God being the top priority and ourselves

991
00:39:52,960 --> 00:39:53,280
being.

992
00:39:53,280 --> 00:39:55,160
Should be the bottom priority
in many cases.

993
00:39:55,570 --> 00:39:57,850
What we usually do is we
usually flip the script and we put

994
00:39:57,850 --> 00:40:01,290
ourselves up here and we put
everything else that God has when

995
00:40:01,290 --> 00:40:02,850
we have enough time, right?

996
00:40:02,930 --> 00:40:06,290
When, When I get to it, when,
When I have enough here, when I.

997
00:40:06,450 --> 00:40:09,010
We could be like Agrippa,
like, in a little bit, I'll believe,

998
00:40:09,090 --> 00:40:09,490
right?

999
00:40:09,570 --> 00:40:11,330
And remember what happened with.

1000
00:40:11,410 --> 00:40:13,410
There was a Felix when he
said, there's a.

1001
00:40:13,410 --> 00:40:17,770
At a more convenient time,
I'll believe at a more convenient

1002
00:40:17,770 --> 00:40:18,130
time.

1003
00:40:18,290 --> 00:40:20,050
I'll do that at a better time.

1004
00:40:20,290 --> 00:40:22,210
And what's happened for me is
sometimes my.

1005
00:40:22,920 --> 00:40:25,680
My priorities have shifted to,
hey, you know what.

1006
00:40:25,680 --> 00:40:26,920
What brings me pleasure.

1007
00:40:27,160 --> 00:40:29,960
Instead, our priorities should
be, ultimately, how do I glorify

1008
00:40:29,960 --> 00:40:30,360
God?

1009
00:40:30,760 --> 00:40:36,120
Because when something is a
priority for us, we will make sure

1010
00:40:36,520 --> 00:40:38,120
that we are getting it done.

1011
00:40:38,200 --> 00:40:40,720
We will make sure that it's
important to us and that we will

1012
00:40:40,720 --> 00:40:41,240
be there.

1013
00:40:41,400 --> 00:40:44,200
And so what I'm saying here
this evening is that I think all

1014
00:40:44,200 --> 00:40:48,400
of us, including myself,
everyone, everyone needs to reevaluate

1015
00:40:48,400 --> 00:40:51,220
priorities and say, what is my
spiritual priorities?

1016
00:40:51,220 --> 00:40:53,700
And I would encourage you,
actually, not just to make it a theoretical

1017
00:40:53,700 --> 00:40:57,580
thing, like, I'm actually
encouraging you to either write it

1018
00:40:57,580 --> 00:41:00,100
down or record what are your priorities?

1019
00:41:00,100 --> 00:41:01,300
What's your list of priorities?

1020
00:41:01,540 --> 00:41:02,580
Because if you don't.

1021
00:41:02,660 --> 00:41:05,780
If you don't plan for
something, it's not going to happen.

1022
00:41:05,860 --> 00:41:09,300
So if you say, well, you know
what, Pastor, I do have a priority.

1023
00:41:09,300 --> 00:41:10,700
I want to read my Bible every day.

1024
00:41:10,700 --> 00:41:11,780
It's a priority for me.

1025
00:41:12,020 --> 00:41:13,780
Okay, fantastic.

1026
00:41:13,940 --> 00:41:16,900
We'll put that priority over
something else that isn't as important

1027
00:41:16,900 --> 00:41:18,420
to you in the spiritual realm.

1028
00:41:19,060 --> 00:41:19,460
Okay.

1029
00:41:19,780 --> 00:41:20,420
You know, I.

1030
00:41:20,420 --> 00:41:22,460
I want to make sure that I'm
serving in this ministry.

1031
00:41:22,460 --> 00:41:24,700
I want to make sure that I'm
doing this for the Lord.

1032
00:41:24,700 --> 00:41:27,300
Well, put that on the list and
make sure that's the top priority.

1033
00:41:27,620 --> 00:41:28,460
My family's.

1034
00:41:28,460 --> 00:41:30,180
My family's high on that
priority list.

1035
00:41:30,340 --> 00:41:33,140
It's not at the top because if
I put my family before Christ, I'm

1036
00:41:33,140 --> 00:41:33,700
missing out.

1037
00:41:33,860 --> 00:41:36,340
But what I'm saying is, is
that my family is high in the priority

1038
00:41:36,340 --> 00:41:36,660
list.

1039
00:41:36,980 --> 00:41:38,740
Sometimes my priorities get shifted.

1040
00:41:38,740 --> 00:41:42,140
Sometimes my hobbies take
priority over the things that I should

1041
00:41:42,140 --> 00:41:42,620
be doing.

1042
00:41:42,620 --> 00:41:44,100
And I go here and I go there.

1043
00:41:44,470 --> 00:41:46,950
The truth is, is at the end of
the day, we have to look and we have

1044
00:41:46,950 --> 00:41:51,430
to say, lord, align Allow me
to align myself with what your priorities

1045
00:41:51,430 --> 00:41:51,750
are.

1046
00:41:51,750 --> 00:41:54,950
So align my priorities with
his priorities.

1047
00:41:55,110 --> 00:41:57,390
And I think that's a lesson
from the Book of Acts that we can

1048
00:41:57,390 --> 00:41:57,990
take with us.

1049
00:41:58,390 --> 00:42:00,629
And I hope that it's been a
blessing for you.

1050
00:42:00,629 --> 00:42:02,950
I encourage you to read
through the Book of Acts here and

1051
00:42:02,950 --> 00:42:04,870
there, remind yourself of what happened.

1052
00:42:04,870 --> 00:42:07,550
Because a lot of the things
that are happening with Paul and

1053
00:42:07,550 --> 00:42:10,960
the book of Philippians, in
the book of Romans and the book of

1054
00:42:10,960 --> 00:42:16,120
Ephesians, Colossians, all
these books that you know of, a lot

1055
00:42:16,120 --> 00:42:18,880
of that is tied together with
what's happening in the Book of Acts.

1056
00:42:18,880 --> 00:42:21,280
And so it pieces the puzzle
together for us.

1057
00:42:21,280 --> 00:42:22,840
It helps us understand it better.

1058
00:42:23,160 --> 00:42:26,280
So when we hear in Philippians
chapter one about Paul being in prison

1059
00:42:26,359 --> 00:42:29,440
and we see his heart there, we
can connect the dots and say, yeah,

1060
00:42:29,440 --> 00:42:31,720
that was his heart back there
in the Book of Acts.

1061
00:42:31,960 --> 00:42:32,520
And it.

1062
00:42:32,520 --> 00:42:36,330
I believe that when we see the
Bible from that perspective, from.

1063
00:42:36,330 --> 00:42:39,930
From it not just being 66
separate books, but when we see it

1064
00:42:39,930 --> 00:42:43,290
as one book, we understand it
from the perspective of, hey, this

1065
00:42:43,290 --> 00:42:43,970
makes more sense.

1066
00:42:43,970 --> 00:42:47,450
And for me, that's what made
things click in my brain when I used

1067
00:42:47,450 --> 00:42:47,650
to.

1068
00:42:47,650 --> 00:42:48,930
You know how I used to read my Bible?

1069
00:42:48,930 --> 00:42:50,930
I'm getting off on a tangent
here, Brother Dan, but I'm just going

1070
00:42:50,930 --> 00:42:51,370
to keep going.

1071
00:42:51,370 --> 00:42:52,730
I used to read my Bible like this.

1072
00:42:52,730 --> 00:42:54,690
I would sit at home and I go,
what am I going to read?

1073
00:42:54,930 --> 00:42:57,490
So when I was a high schooler,
I would just open my Bible to any

1074
00:42:57,490 --> 00:42:57,890
page.

1075
00:42:57,970 --> 00:43:00,650
I would just open it up and I
would just read three or four verses

1076
00:43:00,650 --> 00:43:00,970
and I would.

1077
00:43:00,970 --> 00:43:02,370
That would be my Bible reading
for the day.

1078
00:43:02,510 --> 00:43:05,710
I might open up the Song of
Solomon, I might open up to Ezekiel.

1079
00:43:05,790 --> 00:43:08,590
I might not know what I'm
talking about there, what I'm reading.

1080
00:43:08,670 --> 00:43:11,830
But when we have a formulated
plan of, okay, I'm going to read

1081
00:43:11,830 --> 00:43:14,270
this book of the Bible, I'm
going to understand it in context.

1082
00:43:14,350 --> 00:43:16,790
I'm going to understand it
from the perspective of who Jesus

1083
00:43:16,790 --> 00:43:18,110
is and what he has done for me.

1084
00:43:18,110 --> 00:43:19,590
Then it's going to make a lot
more sense.

1085
00:43:19,590 --> 00:43:21,110
And so that's why we go book
by book.

1086
00:43:21,110 --> 00:43:24,830
Sometimes it's long, sometimes
it's tiresome when we go through

1087
00:43:24,830 --> 00:43:25,350
long books.

1088
00:43:25,350 --> 00:43:27,710
But the reason why we do it is
because it's helping us understand

1089
00:43:27,710 --> 00:43:30,100
the bigger picture of the Word
of God.

1090
00:43:30,100 --> 00:43:32,580
So I wanted to share that with
you guys before we.

1091
00:43:32,580 --> 00:43:33,940
We stopped here this evening.

1092
00:43:33,940 --> 00:43:35,660
Well, let's go ahead and close
in a word of prayer.

1093
00:43:35,660 --> 00:43:37,780
I've got a few announcements
and then you guys can be dismissed.

1094
00:43:37,780 --> 00:43:39,340
Lord, I thank you for this
time that you've given us.

1095
00:43:39,340 --> 00:43:41,260
I thank you for the
opportunity to come together tonight

1096
00:43:41,660 --> 00:43:45,700
to study your word, to look
into this wonderful story of Paul

1097
00:43:45,700 --> 00:43:49,340
appealing to Agrippa with the
truth of the gospel and ultimately

1098
00:43:49,820 --> 00:43:51,580
going to appeal to Caesar.

1099
00:43:51,900 --> 00:43:55,380
And so Lord, I pray that we
can present the truth of the Gospel

1100
00:43:55,380 --> 00:43:56,100
to those around us.

1101
00:43:56,100 --> 00:43:57,380
We don't know who our Agrippa is.

1102
00:43:57,380 --> 00:43:59,490
We don't know who our Felix
and Festus is.

1103
00:43:59,490 --> 00:44:01,570
But Lord, open that door for us.

1104
00:44:01,570 --> 00:44:03,210
Give us eyes to see, Lord.

1105
00:44:03,210 --> 00:44:04,530
Help us to see those opportunities.

1106
00:44:04,850 --> 00:44:07,730
Lord, help us to have someone
this year, just maybe one person

1107
00:44:08,050 --> 00:44:12,090
that we can tell the truth of
Jesus Christ to and ultimately teach

1108
00:44:12,090 --> 00:44:14,850
them what it means to walk in
accordance to your word.

1109
00:44:15,170 --> 00:44:16,930
Pray that you be with our
fellowship to follow.

1110
00:44:17,330 --> 00:44:19,370
Pray that you keep us safe as
we go our separate ways.

1111
00:44:19,370 --> 00:44:21,810
This evening we ask all these
things in Jesus name, Amen.

1112
00:44:23,490 --> 00:44:26,090
Thank you again for listening
to the Middletown Baptist Church

1113
00:44:26,090 --> 00:44:26,690
Podcast.

1114
00:44:26,930 --> 00:44:28,960
I hope that this sermon has
been a blessing for you.

1115
00:44:29,110 --> 00:44:32,270
You you would like to find out
more information about our church

1116
00:44:32,270 --> 00:44:35,750
or this sermon, you can find
us at middletownbaptistchurch.org

1117
00:44:35,990 --> 00:44:38,550
or find us on Facebook or YouTube.

1118
00:44:39,350 --> 00:44:44,230
You can also email me directly
at Josh Massaro Middletown BaptistChurch.com

1119
00:44:44,710 --> 00:44:46,390
if you've enjoyed this podcast.

1120
00:44:46,630 --> 00:44:51,030
Please subscribe and follow
along for future podcast and updates.

1121
00:44:51,670 --> 00:44:52,630
Thank you so much.

1122
00:44:52,870 --> 00:44:53,590
God Bless.

1123
00:44:53,830 --> 00:44:55,110
Have a wonderful day.