SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 9/13/2018 7:58 AM
My Worship Time Focus: PT-3 “The
Consultation Regarding Paul’s Testimony”
Bible Reading &
Meditation Reference: Acts
25:13-22
Message of the verses: “13 Now when
several days had elapsed, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea and paid
their respects to Festus. 14 While they were spending many days there, Festus
laid Paul’s case before the king, saying, "There is a man who was left as
a prisoner by Felix; 15 and when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the
elders of the Jews brought charges against him, asking for a sentence of
condemnation against him. 16 “I answered them that it is not the custom of the
Romans to hand over any man before the accused meets his accusers face to face
and has an opportunity to make his defense against the charges. 17 “So after
they had assembled here, I did not delay, but on the next day took my seat on
the tribunal and ordered the man to be brought before me. 18 “When the accusers
stood up, they began bringing charges against him not of such crimes as
I was expecting, 19 but they simply had some points of disagreement with
him about their own religion and about a dead man, Jesus, whom Paul asserted to
be alive. 20 “Being at a loss how to investigate such matters, I asked whether
he was willing to go to Jerusalem and there stand trial on these matters. 21
“But when Paul appealed to be held in custody for the Emperor’s decision, I
ordered him to be kept in custody until I send him to Caesar." 22 Then
Agrippa said to Festus, "I also would like to hear the man
myself." "Tomorrow," he said, "you shall hear him."
Can you imagine what Festus thought, knowing that Paul was
a highly intelligent and educated man, and yet Paul told Festus that this man
Jesus had been raised from the dead, and is now alive. We have mentioned that Festus did not know
much about what the Jews taught, and so it is no wonder that he wanted to talk
to Agrippa about this. The resurrection
of Jesus Christ is exactly what sets Christianity apart from Judaism, and is
the cornerstone of the gospel.
Perplexed “and being at a loss how to investigate such
matters,” Festus had “asked whether he was willing to go to Jerusalem and there
stand trial on these matters.” We know
why Paul refused, and that was because he knew that the Jews would try and kill
him once he got to Jerusalem. Paul knew
that as a Roman citizen he had the right to appeal to Caesar, which is what he
did.
Festus explained to Agrippa “Being at a loss how to
investigate such matters, I asked whether he was willing to go to Jerusalem and
there stand trial on these matters.” MacArthur adds “Festus’s words put the blame
for the present dilemma on Paul; the implication is that had the apostle been
willing to go to Jerusalem, the matter could have been settled. Yet it was Festus’s obvious desire to do the
Jews a favor (25:9) that forced Paul’s appeal.
Had the governor done what justice demanded and released the obviously
innocent apostle, no appeal would have been necessary. In God’s providence, Paul was kept in Roman
custody as a protection against being assassinated.”
MacArthur explains that “the term “Emperor” is an
adjective, Sebastos, and literally
means ‘the revered or worshiped one.’ It
is the Greek equivalent of the Latin title ‘Augustus,’
which was commonly applied to the emperor.
Because of Paul’s appeal, Festus was duty-bound to order him ‘to be kept
in custody until’ he could ‘send him to Caesar.’”
Agrippa was no doubt flattered that he was involved in what
was going on with Paul and so Festus tells him after Agrippa desired to hear
from Paul “Tomorrow," he said, "you shall hear him."
Answer to yesterday’s
Bible question: “From evening to
evening” (Leviticus 23:32).
Today’s Bible
question: “What did Paul tell the
Philippian jailer to do in order to be saved?”
Important answer in our
next SD
9/13/2018 11:26 AM
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