Acts 25:13-26:14

It has been so wonderful to spend last week in fasting and prayer. Thank you for the faithfulness in the life of the church, for coming together in the various mediums that we have and in person this weekend, spending time in prayer. I know it’s been a long week for a lot of us, especially as a family, we are very grateful for your continued prayers in our life as well.

A warm welcome to all the guests that are here with us this morning. We’re really grateful that you’re worshipping the Lord with us. We are going through our series through the book of Acts, Church on the Move, and we are in Acts 25, the latter part of it, and the beginning of chapter 26 this morning. I have to cover a lot of verses this morning, but the good news is that it’s a narrative. A lot of them does not require a lot of explanation, so I hope to get through these almost 27 verses this morning.

Acts 25:13, God’s word reads like this. A few days later, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea to pay their respects to Festus. We ended last week by talking about the Apostle Paul in the second appearance that he had before Festus, because Festus wanted to continue to get approval from the Jewish people. Even though he did not find anything wrong with Paul, we read that he left him in prison. In the context of that, Luke writes to us in verse 13, a few days later, maybe a week later, maybe a month later, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea to pay their respects to Festus.

Immediately, you are introduced to two new people in God’s word without any kind of introduction as to who they are, but thankfully, history tells us who they are, King Agrippa and Bernice. King Agrippa is King Herod Agrippa II, who was only 17 years old when his father was eaten by worms back in Acts 12. This King Agrippa is a son of that King Herod. If you remember our sermon from Acts 24, we talked about the fact of how Drusilla was one of the daughters of Herod, who was eaten by worms in Acts 12, the same one who had put James to death and who tried to kill Peter as well. So immediately in your mind, you’re thinking, wait a minute, Drusilla was the daughter of that King and so was Herod. And if you remember that sermon I told you, he also had another daughter by the name of Bernice and that is who we find in Acts 25 as well.

Now why is he coming with Bernice? This is not a normal brother‑sister relationship. So everything that is wrong in the world is already given to us in the relationship between these two people. King Agrippa is the brother of Bernice. They’re also living together as husband and wife, even though they’re not legally married. So everything that is wrong, everything that is evil and immoral, just like in the life of Drusilla and Felix, can also be seen in the life of King Agrippa and Bernice as well.

I told you, Agrippa was only 17 years old when his father died and he was a young man and Claudius, who was the Caesar of Rome at that time, thought that he was too young to become king and so he postponed and he gave him some responsibilities but did not give him the title of a king. But as Claudius died and Nero became the king, he would become the one who would hold the same position as the father. But if you read this verse carefully, the Bible says that he came to pay his tribute to Festus. Even though he has the title of a king, his position in the empire is not any greater than of Festus, who is the governor of Judea. The title of the king is more of an honorable position, kind of like the president of India. The president of India really doesn’t have any power. It is the prime minister that has the power. King Agrippa is kind of a placeholder just like that.

But he had one thing going for him. He was a favorite of Rome. Rome loved his loyalty. And he was kind of the inner man in the courts of the Jewish people to make sure that there was peace between Jewish people and Rome. He was also responsible for appointing the high priest and he had certain responsibilities like that. But the real power and real rule happened through the office of the governor, which was being held by Festus at that time. So they have kind of a relationship like a president and prime minister of India to make it understand better in the relationship between King Agrippa and this governor Festus.

He was so loyal to the Rome that even history tells us when it came to AD 70 and the entire Jewish army marched against the Jewish nation, destroying the temple and scattering the Jews around the world, this man who was part Jewish sided with the Romans. And in fact, he was instrumental in killing a lot of his own people during the insurrection against the Jewish people in AD 70. This made him further favorite and history tells us that he continued, went back to Rome and he lived a life there of luxury and died in AD 90.

But here in this context, before this coming to the court, they are involved in a relationship that is really bad. It is the talk of the town, a brother and a sister living together in sin, but he has the title of a king. She’s not a queen by title. They’re living together and they come to the court of Festus.

Verse 14, since they were spending many days there, Festus discussed Paul’s case with the king. He said, there is a man here whom Felix left as a prisoner. Why is Festus discussing the case of the Apostle Paul with the king who had arrived to stay in the palace for a few days? There’s a reason for that. Roman law was very, very clear. Before you transfer a prisoner to Caesar, you better have it in writing all the charges against him.

After many, many appearances and many hearings before Felix, and even he himself hearing it, Festus has a problem. He has absolutely no idea why this man is in prison. So he does not know what to write to Caesar. And the reason for that is because, unlike Herod Agrippa, Festus is completely ignorant of Jewish customs and laws. So as they were arguing with him in the early passage of Acts 25, he is an ignorant listener to all the conversation. He’s like, your law, your temple, resurrection, none of this makes any sense to him because he is not familiar with Jewish customs as this man, Herod Agrippa, is, who lives in the temple, who is very, very familiar with all of Jewish customs and laws.

So there’s an idea that comes to mind to Felix. I don’t understand why this guy is in prison, but I cannot let him go either because that will enrage the Jewish people. But I do need to find out why they are so mad at him. Maybe you can help me with writing this letter to Caesar as to the charges against him. And he tells him what happens. And the way he describes Paul is kind of funny, also sad as well. Caesar is the greatest preacher, greatest evangelist, greatest apostle that has ever walked on the face of the earth. And he described Festus as a man left behind by Felix. What a way to describe one of the greatest men ever to walk on the face of the earth. But in the eyes of the world, oftentimes people of God are ridiculed and held in contempt just like this.

Verse 15, he tells him the background of why they are there. When I went to Jerusalem, he says, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews brought charges against him and asked that he be condemned.

Verse 16, I told them that it is not the Roman custom to hand over anyone before they’re faced with the accusers and had an opportunity to defend themselves against the charges. I told them, I cannot just hand you over or punish him. I need to hear what the charges are against him.

Verse 17, when they came here with me, I did not delay the case. As we read early on in Acts 25, but convened the court the next day and ordered the man to be brought in.

Verse 18, when his accusers got up to speak, they did not charge him with any of the crimes I had expected. He said, I had this court and I was expecting that this man has stolen something, killed someone, treason, any of those things would have made him to be guilty. But they started talking all this religious nonsense and none of it made any sense to me. They did not bring even a single charge against him as to why this man was in prison.

Verse 19, instead, they had some points of dispute with him about their own religion and about a dead man named Jesus, who Paul claimed was alive. The only thing that they had was some dispute of religion. And then they kept on talking about this dead guy. His name is Jesus. And they say he’s alive. You know how preposterous that is. But that’s what they were arguing about. I have no idea. This guy says he’s alive. They say he’s dead. And I’m caught in the middle of it. The only thing I know that he is in prison and I have no idea why that is such a crime. If you believe he’s alive, good for you. If you believe he’s dead, bad for you. You know, it doesn’t really make a difference at the end of the day. And so he is caught in the middle and he says, none of this makes any sense to me.

Verse 20 and he says in frustration, I was at a loss how to investigate such matters. So I asked if you’d be willing to go to Jerusalem and stand trial on these charges. Now he says, I wanted him to go back to Jerusalem to have a repeat of the trial so I can make sense to him. But we know he’s lying here because early on in Acts 25, the Bible told us he only did that because he wanted to give a favor to the Jewish people who were asking for the very thing. But he’s a politician. So he changes the story by the time you come to verse 20 and he says, I just wanted to find out more. And that’s why I wanted to take him back to Jerusalem.

Verse 21, but when Paul made his appeal to be held over for emperor’s decision, I ordered him held until I could send him to Caesar. That was a requirement. The moment a Roman citizen appeals to Caesar, every court of law, every judge has to send him to Caesar. But he is still being held in Caesarea because why? I have no idea what to write on the charge sheet, on the sheet or the paper containing all the things as to why this man should be condemned.

Verse 22, then Agrippa said to Festus, I would like to hear this man myself. He replied, tomorrow you will hear him. John Phillips has an interesting writing in his book on the book of Acts about what a missed opportunity it was in the life of Festus as well. See, all that he could get at the end of a talk with Paul is that some dispute with the religion and a dispute about a dead man being alive. John Phillips writes, poor Festus, he had in his custody heaven’s greatest ambassador, the most eloquent and gifted missionary ever to bless mankind, a man greater than any Caesar of Rome or any philosopher of Greece. And Festus failed to see it. He was in touch with truths that are the most sublime in all the world, and he did not know it. Thus destiny and eternity came and knocked, but Festus could not be bothered so as much even to open the door. Do you hear that? He said, eternity, destiny came knocking on his door, but he was not even bothered to open the door and see what was really going on in the mind of this man.

So then we come to verse 23, the next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp, entered the audience room with the high‑ranking military officers and the prominent men of the city at the command of Festus, Paul was brought in. Why did you imagine this setting? Governor of Judea, Festus in all of his glory, Herod Agrippa II, the king over the Jewish people, over almost all of Palestine, in all the pomp, wearing the royal robes, they come marching into this place, a room known as the audience room. All the high‑ranking military officials are there. And here comes walking in a man of small stature, wearing coarse garments that probably he had woven himself, striding into that place surrounded by the supposedly greatest people of that time stands this lonely ambassador for Christ. What a contrasting picture here. If you can imagine, if I could describe to you today, it is an assembly of the presidents of that day. It is an assembly of the military officials of that day. It is the assembly of the parliament, the Senate, all the who’s who and wealthy and dignified people coming together, and here comes striding in one man, wearing all the marks of his sufferings for the Lord, a man who had been in prison for more than two years now comes striding in.

And here is the most interesting thing about this. This is the exact place with the same kind of pomp a few years ago, his own father had stood on the same throne in Caesarea. Sometimes we never learn our lesson, don’t we? His father has stood and sat on the same throne in Caesarea back in Hebrew 12. He was a teenager at that time. When he exalted himself, the Bible says the angel of the Lord struck him and he was eaten by worms. He saw what had happened to his father, but he is repeating the same mistake of his father in all the pomp and greatness, forgetting the mistakes of the past. He is sitting and here comes striding before him, the Apostle Paul.

What is very interesting here is that Paul did not have to come to this hearing at all. Remember, he’s already appealed to Caesar. So there was no legal requirement for Paul to walk into that audience that day. That begs the question, why did Paul agree to come to that audience room that day? I believe it is because of the great compelling in his heart to share the gospel at every opportunity that is given to him. But it was also a fulfillment of the prophetic word that came to him at the point of his conversion. Remember, he was told by the Lord, you will stand before the rulers, and then the Holy Spirit said, and the kings of this world. That had not happened until this day. He is standing before a king for the first time, as he is now before King Agrippa, sitting on the throne there. And Paul comes striding in. I believe that Paul was a man who took a hold of every opportunity and did not shy away from any opportunity to share the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

So verse 24, Festus said, King Agrippa and all who are present with us. You see this man, the whole Jewish community has petitioned me about him in Jerusalem and here in Caesarea, shouting that he ought to live, not to live any longer.

Verse 25, I found he had done nothing deserving of death, but because he made his appeal to the emperor, I decided to send him to Rome.

Verses 26 and 27, but I have nothing definite to write to his majesty about him. That’s the problem. Therefore, I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa. But as a result of this investigation, I may have something to write. For I think it is unreasonable. It is not only unreasonable, it is illegal. He doesn’t mention that. It is unreasonable to send a prisoner on to Rome without specifying the charges against him.

And then we come to chapter 26. Then Agrippa said to Paul, you have permission to speak for yourself. Paul motioned with his hand like an orator would, and began his defense, began his apologia, began his defense of the Christian faith. What a tremendous opportunity is given to him by the Holy Spirit. Here are people who are evil in the world, filled with all kinds of immorality and murderous behaviors, and stands before them the righteous man of God, filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, and the words that come from him are anointed with the power of God. What a deep contrast we see as Paul starts to speak to them.

Look at the wisdom that God gives to Paul at that time. Starting in verse 2 and 3, we see the longest defense of his own life ever recorded in Scripture in Acts 26. It is one of the most revering books in the entire book of Acts, because here we see the longest discourse about the Christian faith and his own conversion that we see. Three different times Paul has shared his testimony in different locations in the book of Acts. This is the third and final time he will do this in the book of Acts. As Spurgeon once said, when God’s word repeats something three different times, you better pay very, very close attention to it. See, it is not by accident that the conversion of the Apostle Paul is mentioned three different instances in God’s word, with every single time adding a little more and more detail that we did not have before, giving us a full picture of what happened on that day. So this was a very important event in the mind of God.

Look at the wisdom of the Apostle Paul as he starts to speak. He could have easily started by saying, you are a corrupt person. You are living in sin. All of this would have been maybe in the mind of Paul. Paul knew the history of Agrippa and Bernice. He does not do any of that. Look what he does.

Verse 2, King Agrippa, I consider myself fortunate to stand before you today as I make my defense against all the accusation of the Jews, especially so because you are well acquainted with all the Jewish customs and controversies. Therefore, I beg you to listen to me patiently.

Verses 4 and 5, the Jewish people all know the way I have lived ever since I was a child, from the beginning of my life in my own country and also in Jerusalem. It says, everybody knows my background. They all know that I was Saul who grew up in Tarsus. Eventually, when I was a teenager of early twenties, I moved to Jerusalem to further study under Gamaliel, under the law. And I became a Pharisee and it says they have known me for a long time and can testify if they’re willing that I conformed to the strictest sect of our religion, living as a Pharisee. A Pharisee was one who lived like the law wanted him to and abided by it day and night and made sure that every letter of the law was kept. And it says they cannot tell me that I did anything wrong according to what their law is saying.

Verses 6 and 7, and now it is because of my hope in what God has promised our ancestors that I am on trial today. It says, you know what? The reason I’m on trial, they’ve all been hoping for this thing that I’m hoping for. But I’m here to tell them the hope has already happened. The hope has come. The hope of the nations has come. And what we’ve been waiting for for generations already happened. And because I’m saying that, I am on trial today. This is the promise our 12 tribes are hoping to see fulfilled as they earnestly serve God day and night. King Agrippa, is it because of this hope that these Jews are accusing me? He says, you know what? Our 12 tribes of Israel, day and night for generations have just been hoping for this one thing. What is that? The coming of the Messiah. I am here to proclaim that he has already come and they don’t want to believe it. And that is because of the hope that we have, that we all share that I am on trial today.

Then he makes a detour in his message towards Agrippa.

Verse 8, why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead? He says, if you believe in God, why is it such an incredible, difficult thing to believe that God can raise the dead? If God created the whole earth by the power of his word and every star and every planet and the whole world is being held together by his word, why is it so difficult for us to believe that he can also make all the same molecules that he created to come back together and to bring about resurrection of the dead again? He says, how, why is it so incredible for you to believe that?

And then he tells them his own personal story, verses 9 and 10. I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. I said, you know what? I don’t find it very difficult to believe as a Pharisee that the dead can raise. The problem that I had was that the followers of Jesus of Nazareth was saying that he had risen from the dead. That’s what I had difficulty with. And because of that, I made it my life’s mission to oppose them at all places. And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests, I put many of the Lord’s people in prison. When they were put to death, I cast my vote against them.

He said, I put them in prison. When it came to their trials, guess what? I made sure my vote was always for the killing of these Christians. The only one that is recorded in God’s word is the death of Stephen. But this tells us there are many others that Paul was a party to being killed because of his hatred towards the Christian faith. But standing before them is a man who was willing to kill people because of his zealous nature towards the Jewish faith.

Verse 11, many a time I went from synagogue to synagogue in order to have them punished. And I tried to force them to blaspheme. I was so obsessed with persecuting them that I even hunted them down in foreign cities. Look at the terminology that he used of himself. He says, I put them in prison in Jerusalem. I killed them in Jerusalem. Then when I captured them, I tried to force them to blaspheme the name of their Lord. They were unwilling to do so. So I would kill them. And when it was not enough, I was so obsessed with persecuting them that Jerusalem was not enough. I started hunting them even in other cities. What a murderous man. What a man filled with hatred.

He said, on one of those journeys, verse 12, I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priest.

Verse 13, about noon, King Agrippa, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven brighter than the sun blazing around me and my companions. I was in utter darkness. I was a fool. I was filled with hatred, with that same hatred, with absolutely no desire in his heart to somehow recognize the God of the ages. I was on my way to Damascus, but because of the grace of God in the middle of the day, when the sun was at its brightest, I saw a light that was brighter than the sun. As I mentioned to you a few weeks ago, while sharing another testimony to him, isn’t it wonderful that on that day, the Son of God shone brighter than the sun that he had created? Oh, what a grace of God bent on that day, blazing around me and my companions.

Verse 14, we all fell to the ground. We all fell to the ground. This detail in verse 14 is only found in this testimony of the Apostle Paul. In the earlier version, God’s word said, Paul fell to the ground. He said, I fell to the ground. Here he says, not only him, but also the companions that came with him also fell to the ground. And I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic. In some of your books it says, I heard a voice saying to me in Hebrew, but probably it was in Aramaic language. That’s why NIV translates it as Aramaic. Isn’t it wonderful that our God knows all the languages of the world? When God speaks to you, He will speak to you in Malayalam, if that’s your preferred language. God speaks to you, if Hindi is your preferred language, God knows Hindi. If it is English, God will speak to you in English. My God does not need a translator. My God does not need someone to come and translate from the heavenly language to an earth. Isn’t it wonderful that God does not need a translator? Imagine you heard the heavenly voice and suddenly you have no idea what He said and suddenly you said, let me go find Google Translate and translate. But the problem is that Google cannot translate from heavenly language to earthly language. If you look at Google Translate, you can go from Hindi to Malayalam, Malayalam to English, any language in the world, but you will not find heavenly language in Google Translate. Isn’t it glad that my God knows Aramaic, my God knows Malayalam, my God knows English, my God knows Hindi, my God knows every language in the world, every dialect, every tribe, every nation is known to Him, nobody is outside of His sphere of influence.

So to the Paul’s mind, He speaks to him in Aramaic that day and He says, soul, soul, why do you persecute Me? The Church, the Body of the Lord, the Head feels the pain when the Body is persecuted. So He personifies the persecution that’s coming to the Church, why do you persecute Me? And then Paul adds one more detail not found in the other two testimonies, it is hard for you to kick against the goats. It is hard for you to kick against the goats.

What does it mean by goat? What is he talking about? What the phrase here is in Aramaic, but do you know that this actually phrase is of Greek origin and what he’s saying is this, and I have a picture here to kind of show you what a goat is. A goat is actually a sharp object that is often used by farmers to prod the oxen to walk the right way. So the oxen is plowing the field and to make sure the oxen is going the right way, there’s a, and I have another picture that shows what it looks like, there’s a stick with a sharp metal piece at the end of it. It can be used to control oxen, sheep, even is used on elephants in India quite a bit as well. It’s known as the cattle prod or the God is basically an instrument that the farmer would use to control the animals in the right way.

And God’s word to him is this, why do you keep on kicking against the goat? What is God saying to him, time and time again, I try to convey the grace to you. When Stephen was martyred and he saw how he died, that was a probing of God in your soul, but you resisted it in your rebellion and said, no, I don’t want to believe in this. Time and time again, when Christians would not blaspheme the name of the Lord, that was also a goat in your direction, God probing you and telling you walk in this way, look at the conviction of their heart. But time and time again, you rebelled against God and now God in His mercy is coming to you in a very dramatic way, in a way that you cannot deny. He’s going to strike you to the ground and He’s going to shine a light upon you that you have never seen before. And you are going to hear the audible voice of God from heaven because God is tired of you running away from Him.

But this is also a warning to all of us. When God probes you, when God calls you back to His grace, come back. If you keep on resisting the voice of the Holy Spirit, God will strike you down. God will bring about dramatic events in your life to get your attention. No matter what it takes, God will finally catch you. You cannot run away from God forever.

The Holy Spirit is asking the question of a lot of us this morning. Why do you keep kicking against the goats, the probing of God to lead you in the way you should go? The farmer is not trying to hurt the oxen. The farmer is trying to make sure the oxen is used for the purpose for which it is being used. Same way in our lives, the probing of God is not to hurt us, it is to make sure that our lives are fully used for the glory of His Holy Name. And when you keep on running away from God, when you keep on resisting the Holy Spirit, all you’re doing is wasting time, wasting your life and making an opportunity to arise where God will strike you down in a dramatic way. Do not get to that point. As we have been hearing week after week after here, the Holy Spirit is speaking to you. Today is the day of salvation, today is the day of repentance. Do not shy away from the probing of the Lord.

Three things happens when you kick against God. First one is this, you never accomplish your purpose by resisting against God. If that oxen decides to kick against that sharp instrument, do you think the farmer will give up? No, he will just probe a little bit harder. You’re not going to get your way by resisting against God.

Secondly, this is very important, you only get hurt by each act of resistance and rebellion. Every time an animal resists against the probing, you know what is happening? It is getting injured more and more and more because that object is very, very sharp. The only one that is getting hurt by you kicking against it is not the one that is holding the stick, it is the animal at the end of the stick. That’s why you will only get hurt by resisting and rebelling against God. You’re hurting yourself, you’re hurting your life, you’re hurting your soul, you’re hurting your calling, you’re hurting your purpose, you’re hurting the things for which God has called you. So stop resisting against God, stop kicking against Him, surrender your heart to Him.

Thirdly, you should always know this, He is Lord and He will always accomplish His sovereign purpose and will. You cannot win against God. Man is no match to God. Man cannot do anything to change the purpose and will of God. The sooner you and I realize that and surrender our life, oh, the less the resistance, the less the artist, the journey, less difficult the journey, might as well give in to Him and say, Lord, let not my will, let Your will be done in my life.

The Holy Spirit is telling you to take a decision for the Lord, maybe a dramatic one of surrender, do not resist Him. The longer you go, the more painful your life will be. The longer you go, the more restless your life will be. The longer you go, the more difficult your life will be. You cannot change the purpose of God for your life. You cannot change the will of God for your life. If God has called you for full‑time ministry, don’t run away from it. You will be a restless soul all the days of your life. If God is calling you to go to seminary, do not run away from it. You will be restless all the days of your life. If the Lord is calling you to go back to India as a missionary, do not resist the call of God in your life. Stop kicking against the will of God for your life. Our lives should always be lives of surrender that says, God, not mine, let Your will be done in my life.

We have this wonderful privilege of spending the next couple of weeks in fasting and prayer. Above all prayers, I pray that our prayer as a church would be, God, let Your will be done in each one of our lives. Lead us, O God, guide us, O God, remove everything in my life that is resisting You, O God. Give me a heart that is not rebellious, O God. Give me a heart of surrender, O God. I am tired of resisting You. It is a futile attempt on my part to live my life the way I want to. But the sooner I surrender to You, the sooner I will find fulfillment and purpose in my own life.

This man who thought he was doing God’s work, his life would change on that day as he would hear that word, O soul, soul, why do you persecute Me? And he stands before them with courage and conviction because of the dramatic experience on the way to Damascus on that day. We’ll continue with this testimony in the weeks ahead.

Let’s look to the Lord in prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank You. We thank You, Lord, for Your word. Help us, O God, to be people that are not kicking against the probing of the Lord. You have constantly probed us, tried to get us to walk in the way that we should go. I pray, O God, that resistance and rebellion will be removed from our lives and that we will surrender to You over and over again in our life and allow the Spirit of God to lead us the way we should go. Lord, I pray that You’d be with us in the moments ahead as well. Thank You for this precious time. Its in the name of the Lord Jesus, we pray. Amen.