Bible Guys Classics: Acts 24

So, Jeff, you've heard of Felix the Cat. Yes, and if you've. Seen record Ralph, you've heard of fixing Felix. Yes, But have you heard of Felix the Bible Guy? Felix the Bible Guy. Well, well he's not a Bible guy, he's the Bible. Yes. Well that's what we're talking about today. He's Chris and I'm Jeff. Where the Bible guy is? And apparently so it's Felix And apparently so is Felix because I think they kind of had to get it in there to get it in there. Yeah. Hey, so today we're doing a dad joke competition. These are great. I love these. I love dad jokes too. So we each have four jokes. Each of u have four. I have four years. Yes, yes, okay, So. About this, I'll read mine first and then you just respond okay, ready, yes, okay. I told my daughter that I saw a deer on the way to work this morning. She said, how do you know it was on its way to work? That's really good. Yeah. Hey, I had my pastor growing up when I was a teenager. His wife was just like that, and one day they were driving down the road and there was a sign in Michigan, we have deer crossing signs. It's just warning you that there's a lot of deer in that area. And she saw that sign and it said deer crossing, and she said, how do they know across right there? Yeah, she really meant it. Yeah, yeah, funny. Oh she was great. I loved her so much. Okay, here we go, here's mine. The urge to sing the lion sleeps tonight is always just a whim away, a whim away, a whim away away. Wimwa. That's pretty good. That's pretty good. All right about this one. You think gas prices are expensive? Have you seen chimneys? They're through the roof. No, that's terrible. No, I'm going to ban that one. Yeah that ConA. The Egyptians claim there are no crocodiles in their country. I think the in denial denial. The crocodiles are in the nial. Yeah. Yeah, that's really good. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that was a good one. Yeah, that's really good. That's really good. How about this one? Uh, don't worry about your smartphone and TV spying on you. Your vacuum cleaner has been gathering dirt on you for years. Okay, yeah, yeah, that's pretty good. That's not you worried about your smartphone listening to you. I'm not worried about it, but I know it does. Yeah. Yeah, for sure. You talk with Liz and then later on something that you talked about shows up in your feed. Oh and every every other day. So is that just like a coincidence. No, this is proven. This is not is not they know what you're saying. Oh yeah for sure. Wow, yeah, there's there's an algorithm. You know, Zuckerberg went online and talked about all. Of this, and that they just it's I just said what. I said online, I met like on the stand. On the stand, I didn't, So you can anticipate what you're probably going to be wanting, right, Well, yeah, okay, well there's that. Here's an important one. I thought this is good. I saw an old man fall into a well today. I guess he couldn't see that. Well, oh that's the les. I guess he couldn't see that. Well, that's why I fell in it. That's really good. Okay, But this one, I've spent eighty dollars on a belt that doesn't fit. My wife said, it's a huge waste. Really, I'm sure. She said it with love though. Yes, that's really funny. To the person who stole my place in the line. I'm after you now. Oh that's great, that's great. I'm after you now, yah, because I was in front of them and now I'm after that. I get it. I was before you get that Christmas because I was before them and now I'm after them. That's because they stle my spot. You know, I didn't get into you said that. Thanks Jeff, Okay, thanks Jeff for breaking it down. That's great. You know it's a bad joke. If you got explained like that, I know. Yeah. All right, Well we're transitioning with and that was it. People are like, thank goodness. I had one guy told me he said, I really like your Bible guys stuff. But he said I always skipped the first five minutes really, and I'm like, really, that's the only reason I tune in. Oh that's sad. I can't believe he doesn't care about that. But you know what, it's really nuts because he doesn't like the bad jokes. He likes the good ones, just not the bad ones. Oh there they're all bad. Yeah that was you, shiit? I think so? Am I boring? You, Chris, Yes, wow, let's get on with it. But let's get on with it. Man. So we're in Romans No. X twenty four. I'm sorry and acts I think yep, I'm on the wrong agenda here. I'm sorry. I'm just reading what's in front of me. Yeah. X twenty four. We're gonna read the whole chapter. And this is Paul appearing before Felix. So if if. Our listeners remember he was just escorted uh to Felix ro with Roman guards on horses and chariots and everything else. Yeah, and now he's really really awaiting a trial. Right right, So we are reading chapter twenty What are the verses Christmas Old chapter versus one through twenty seven? Very good, thank you. I got confused because I was reading off of a different list earlier. Okay, So he says this. Five days later, Ann and I, as the High Priest, arrived with some of the Jewish elders and the lawyer Totulus to present their case against Paul to the Governor. When Paul was called in, Tortullis presented the charges against Paul. In the following address of the Governor, you have provided a long period of peace for us Jews, and with foresight, have enacted reforms for us. For all of this, your excellency, we are very grateful to you, but I don't want to bore you, so please give me your attention for only a moment. We have found this man to be a troublemaker who is constantly stirring up riots among the Jews all over the world. He's a ringleader of the cult known as the Nazarenes. Furthermore, he was trying to desecrate the temple when we arrested him. You can find out the truth of our accusations by examining him yourself, and then the other Jews chimed in, declaring that everything Cartulas said was true. The governor then motioned to Paul to speak. Paul said, I know, sir, that you have been a judge of Jewish affairs for many years, so I gladly present my defense before you. You can quickly discover that I wrived in Jerusalem no more than twelve days ago to worship at the Temple. My accusers never found me arguing with anyone in the temple or stirring up a riot in any synagogue or in the streets of the city. These men cannot prove the things they accused me of doing, but I admit that I do follow the way which they call a cult. I worshiped the God of our ancestors, and I firmly believe the Jewish law and everything written in the prophets. I have the same hope in God that these men have, but He will raise both the righteous and the unrighteous. Because of this, I always try to maintain a clear conscience before God and all people. After several years away, I returned to Jerusalem with money to aid my people and to offer sacrifices to God. My accusers saw me in the temple as I was completing a purification ceremony. There was no crowd on me and no rioting, but some Jews from the province of Asia were there, and they ought to be here to bring charges. If they have anything against me, Ask these men here what crime the Jewish High Council found me guilty of, except for the one time I shouted out, I'm on trial before you today because I believe in the resurrection of the dead. At that point, Felix, who was quite familiar with the way, adjourned the hearing and said wait until Lysius, the garrison commander arrives, and then I'll decide the case. He ordered an officer to keep Paul in custody, but to give him some freedom and allow his friends to visit him and take care of his needs. A few days later, Felix came back with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, sending for Paul. They listened as he told them about faith in Christ Jesus. As he reasoned with them about righteousness and self control and the coming day of judgment, Felix became frightened. Go away for now, he replied, when it's more convenient, I'll call for you again. He also hoped that Paul would bribe him, so he sent for him quite often and talked with him. Is that where we end? One more verse? After two years went by In this way, Felix was succeeded by portious Festus, and because Felix wanted to gain favor of the Jewish people, he left Paul in prison. The heck of reverse to almost leave out big. One almost left it. Yeah, yeah, two years he was in two years. This child just drug on and drugging gravy. So Paul is in prison for two years for something that he did not do. He laid out his clase case very clearly. And uh, and he even says that number One, nobody can prove it. Number two, the two people that were from Asia that were there that originally accused. Me aren't even here here. And and uh and yet uh, these people here can testify everything I'm saying is completely true. Yeah. So, and yet Felix leaves him in there, and he says he often brought him back out because he wanted to Paul. To bribe them. Have you ever gone to a foreign country and you know, they they withhold your luggage or your supplies. Yes, and and they're just wanting a. Bribe, waiting for reb Yeah, I've had it many times. Yeah. And when that happens, first of all, it's it's not very common for people to experience that. So US, you know, you and I talking about it, people are like, oh, yeah, I've experienced that. Most people haven't, right, But but it's pretty amazing, isn't how bribes are such a big part of and a normal part of traveling. Yeah? And so yeah, I had a police officer one time, not in the US, but say, you know, I think we could just resolve this if I could figure out how to pay for lunch for my and buy some tea from my uncle's well. And I was like, oh, I don't know how that has anything to do with solving this, And I started to turn away. The guy I was with was saying he's asking for a bribe. I was like, what, I'm not paying a bribe. And so I don't know how it all got resolved. That is left. I wasn't going to do it. Yeah, but that's what he was saying, was, Hey, if it could all be resolved, if I just had enough money for lunch today, That's what he was saying. Right, right, isn't that crazy? Yeah? Yeah, I couldn't believe it. Yeah. So I've been on many trips with. A friend of mine named down who was it but identify They wanted to bribe And in fact, did you know this, The old church I used to work for bought an actual oil, no no water, a rig to drill for wells. Right. Yeah, I'm not saying it correctly, you know what I mean? Just a massive piece of machinery. A well drill, Yeah, hundreds. Of thousands of dollars, right, choes rig and it actually stayed. I believe they impounded it and it stayed there for like two years. Import Yeah, yeah, they wouldn't release it. Yeah, they wouldn't release it because they wanted to bribe. So the only thing stopping that well from or that that rig from getting there and drilling wells was the fact that they wanted to bribe, but our church refused to pay it, and then eventually they finally released it. I was on a bus one time and we were going across the border and the again it was another country. The border guards got on the bus, took his hat off and said, we always love to receive a love offering before we entered the before we let you enter the country. So he just walked down the aisle with his hat and accepted people to put money in his hat. And he's like, okay, go ahead, and he didn't do any inspecting anything, just send us across. So I asked the guys with I said, what just happened? He said, everybody dropped money there. That was a bribe to let him. Just have him let us go. What it just it's so foreign, you know, because you just don't expect that. But that's what was happening, is Felix was kept bringing Paul back over and over and over again, hoping that Paul would give him a bribe, and Paul didn't do it. So, yeah, that's what's happening there. I love how it's still called the Way. It's not called Christianity. Yeah, it's still. Called the Way with capitol w And every time that Paul has mentioned, you know, the movement and the following of Christ up to this point, it's always been referred to as the Way. Right, and it's actually mentioned quite a bit, Yeah, as the Way. Yeah. So this guy Tortullus comes in, So the Felix decides, all right, we're going to have a genuine trial. So you know, Anonius, you need to bring your people. And so Anonius hires this attorney that is a Jewish law expert, and he comes in. He's a speechmaker, Tortullis, and he was well known, and he makes three accusations that Paul was a troublemaker, sturn up riots among the Jews, he was a ring leader of an unrecognized religious cult, and he had he had tried to desecrate the temple. And what they were hoping was sometimes you know, life was so cheap to Romans, especially with non Roman citizen's life was so cheap that what they were hoping was that they could get Felix just to execute Paul, just to avoid having political trouble with the rest of the Jewish leaders, right, that's what they were hoping for. But then Paul is like, what are you talking about right now? Well, it was it was offensive maybe to Paul to call him a troublemaker. That's not a substantive legal charge. You know, there's nothing right, so that's kind of a goofy one. And Paul refuted their accusations point by point by point, and he was also able to present his good present, the good news Paul, This whole process is not about freedom. For Paul, the whole process is to be able to get the Gospel to powerful people. And so he pauses again and explains, you know that he put faith in Jesus Christ. And then he sits there on many days with not only Felix, but Felix's wife who is Jewish and unpacks the idea of salvation, of the coming judgment, and these kinds of things disturbed Felix. Yeah, So one of the notes here in the Life Application study. Bible says Felix had been the governor for six years and would have known about the Christians known as the Way, a topic of conversation among the Roman leaders. The Christians peaceful way of life had already proven the Romans that the Christians didn't go around starting. Riots, right, and it said he was very familiar with the Way. Yes, yeah, yeah. Yeah, that's amazing. Yeah, so Felix, by the way, here's a little side. Felix was the governor of Judea for about what seven years or something like that. That's the same job Conscious Pilot had, So he was Conscious Pilot's successor. So Ponscious Pilot's the one who executed Jesus. Felix comes in after or maybe not the successor, but the guy who came in after a Pilot had left. So that so everybody takes that office is pretty wishy washing. Yeah apparently, yeah, yeah, yeah. It took him two years to decide what he's going to do with Paul on a trumped up charge. I mean, this is pretty silly. He's a troublemaker, he leads a cult, and he tried to get somebody to come into the temple. None of those things mattered to the Romans because he, you know, Felix knew that the Christians didn't cause riots, the idea of leading a cult. He was familiar with the way, and it didn't bother him. And then who cares if he tried to bring somebody into the temple? Right, that's to a Roman. And yet he keeps him in prison for two years. I think partly because he was intrigued by the message he kept bringing him, and partly because he was hoping for that bribe. You know that last verse that we almost admitted, where it says Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. It says the Jews were in the majority and the Roman political leaders often deferred to them to help keep peace. Paul seemed to incite problems among the Jews wherever he went by keeping him in prison. Felix left good office, or excuse me, left office on good terms with the Jews. Felix lost his job as governor and was called back to Rome. Porcus Festus took over as governor in late fifty nine or early sixty a d. And he immediately ordered Paul's trial to resume. Is that and then we're going to see that in the next chapter. But interesting, so. Here Paul is not trying to escape, he's not fighting, he's not arguing, He's just taking every opportunity to share the gospel with the people that he's you know, being held by held captive. I think this is a good a good thing for us. Maybe we find ourselves in a circumstance it's not our favorite circumstance. Maybe we feel like we're just biting time. Maybe we feel like we're you know, just treading water, and that what we're doing is not ultimately the thing we're supposed to spend our whole life on. Paul shows a tremendous amount of patience here, which, by the way, is a virtue, right. Patience is a godly virtue. It's one of the fruits of the spirit. And Paul is just like, Okay, hey, if this is a circumstance God has me in, I'm not gonna fight it. I'm just gonna stay in it. And every time I wind up going in front of Felix, I'm just gonna share the gospel, Share the gospel, share the gospel. And hey, by the way, Felix, judgment is coming. It's not so much. What you're kind of your judgment is we're all going to stand before God. And it became very personal for Felix, to the point that he was frightened by it by this idea. Not always so, I think it's a good idea to use fear as a way to share the gospel, but that is an effective elements. It's a thing to be aware of that there is a day we all have an appointment. We're going to stand before the judge. And I think that it's important for people who are just living footloose and fancy free doing whatever they want to do go live in, you know, their own life and no care about God at all. It is I think an effective witnessing tool to remind people judgment days coming. We're all going to stand before the judge. And especially when he's speaking to a person of power, he's doing it in a respectful way, but he's speaking to a man of power who gives judgment, saying there's a day we're all going to stand in front of the judge. And I think that there's there's some value in learning that side of what it means to stand in front of the judge and how to be prepared right that either you're going to have to stand and give account for your own sins, or you're going to have to have Jesus be your advocates, step in front of you and say it's all paid in full. Yeah, that's great. Hey. Another thing that stands out in this passage that we can learn from, as you mentioned earlier, Paul's patience. And I was thinking about, you know, there's a there's a tremendous amount of peace that comes when you you just recognize that it's God's timing, not. Hours, you know. So Paul is just saying like, hey, man, I know that it was God who were for me to be in Rome. I know that, you know, you know it's Incesarea was supposed to be in Jerusalem. He's supposed to be Jerusalem. Yeah, yeah, he's going to Rome. Jesus told him that eventually, right, But sorry I got confused. But anyway, so yeah, he goes from and by the way, Cesarea is just sort of south of the Galilee region and it's on the coast right, so it's north here. It had built at like a like a harbor there was there wasn't a significant natural harbor there, and he built this giant harbor that could host like three hundred ships in it. It was phenomenal, phenomenal complex, and he hoped that it could be built as a like, you know, this center for all time, and it was very effective for generations. But the problem was he built it on sand, and so it just began to sink over time and became not very useful. It wasn't built on the firm foundation. So Jesus talks about that too. Absolutely he could have been referencing that city. So anyway, what I was going to say is there's a tremendous amount of peace when you know that God's in control. And then you know as long as you know, like listen, I'm in God's will. I was supposed to be where I supposed to be. I've not done anything wrong, and for some reason I'm found here in prison. The things that aren't written here in this story, in this narrative is that number one Paul doesn't We don't see any evidence of him trying to hijack the timeline. So had he gone ahead and given into. The bribe, he might have tried to say, you know what, it's about time I to control this because this is too long. A year and a half's too long. Let's go with the bribe. Right. So here's another thing. There's no evidence that Paul complains. So think about that. I mean, it's at least it's not recorded. I would guess that if there was some sort of a you know, something happening within. Paul, it would be somehow recorded. Paul began to feel X, Y and Z, because certainly that's a thing that's been recorded before. Paul felt this, or he was encouraged, he was discouraged, he was down in his countenance. And I think that the fact that he didn't complain, he didn't try to hijack the timeline, has just a really strong sense that God just that Paul just said, you know what, God has me here for a reason. Yeah. So my wife just got a job a couple of days ago, and she really wanted it. Man, she was she was like, this is the perfect hours, you know, it's it's really the Uh it's the place I want to be. And uh. We just look at each other and we both said the same thing. We're like, so God's not this isn't too hard for God, right, If it's meant to be, then that means that you're gonna get hired right. If it's not, then God wants you somewhere else. There's no reason to complain, there's no reason to fret, there's a reason to be sad. Just trust that you know you're going to do your best and let God do the rest. And this is what God wants. And it's hard to do this or doesn't want. It's hard to do those things. But when you finally get to the place to where you arrive and say this, this is God's timing, this is God's will, then it's pretty free. So I think in the next little while, we're going to discover one of the reasons why God went ahead and waited so long, because he needed to get Felix out of the way so he can get Festus in. It turns out Festus is a much more just guy, and we're going to see that. But then Paul's message didn't have much effect other than spooking Felix, but has a significant effect on Festus, and we're going to see that soon. Oh, that sounds like a great place to end, So we will pick up next time on the Bible. Guys,