Atos 24
J. Vernon McGee · Citado em PreceptAustin
Atos 24
Vernon McGee asks "Have you noticed that the Resurrection is the very center of Christianity? It has been from the very beginning, friend. “What think ye of Christ?” is always the test. Did He die for your sins? Was He raised from the dead? Paul immediately comes to the core: the Resurrection." Having a hope in God, which these men cherish themselves - Which men? Jews in general but he would not have been pointing to the Sadducees in the courtroom for they were anti-supernaturalists and did not believe in the resurrection from the dead. (Read notes on Acts 23:6-8). This indicates that most likely some of the Jews present in the courtroom were Pharisees who believed in the hope of resurrection. Robertson on which these men cherish - Probably with a gesture towards his accusers. He does not treat them all as Sadducees. Hope (1680)(elpis) most often in Scripture is not the world's definition of "I hope so", with a few rare exceptions (e.g., Acts 27:20, also "hoping" in Acts 24:26) Hope is defined as a desire for some future good with the expectation of obtaining it. Hope is always an expectation of something good as well as descriptive of something for which we must wait. Hope is the opposite of despair. Elpis in Acts - Acts 2:26; Acts 16:19; Acts 23:6; Acts 24:15; Acts 26:6; Acts 26:7; Acts 27:20; Acts 28:20; Cherish (4327)(prosdechomai from pros = implies motion toward + dechomai = deliberate, ready reception) means to accept favorably, to receive one into intercourse/companionship, to give access to oneself or receive to oneself. In a striking contrast in Acts 23:21 prosdechomai is used to describe the expectancy of the 40 assassins who "ready and waiting for the promise from" Claudius Lysias, so that they might kill hope.. Paul uses this same verb in his letter to Titus writing that we are continually (present tense), expectantly, eagerly "looking for (prosdechomai) the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus." (Titus 2:13+) THOUGHT - Are you looking for the Blessed Hope? If you are it should be affecting how you are living - for the temporal or the eternal! Prosdechomai in NT - Mk. 15:43; Lk. 2:25; Lk. 2:38; Lk. 12:36; Lk. 15:2; Lk. 23:51; Acts 10:24; Acts 23:21; Acts 24:15; Rom. 16:2; Phil. 2:29; Titus 2:13; Heb. 10:34; Heb. 11:35; Jude 1:21 Paul is clearly saying that the Hope of the Resurrection is taught in the Old Testament. Here are some of the passages... 1 Samuel 2:6 “The LORD kills and makes alive; He brings down to Sheol and raises up. Job 19:25-27 “As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, And at the last He will take His stand on the earth. 26 “Even after my skin is destroyed, Yet from my flesh I shall see God; 27 Whom I myself shall behold, And whom my eyes will see and not another. My heart faints within me! Psalm 16:9; 10 Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will dwell securely. For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay. Psalm 17:15 As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Your likeness when I awake. Isaiah 26:19 Your dead will live; Their corpses will rise. You who lie in the dust, awake and shout for joy, For your dew is as the dew of the dawn, And the earth will give birth to the departed spirits. Daniel 12:2+ “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life (All those who put their faith in Jesus Christ - Bema Seat), but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt (All those who do not put their faith in Jesus Christ - Great White Throne). That there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked - It is interesting that the Talmud teaches the resurrection of Israelites only.
Atos 24
McGee - He tells Felix again that the real issue is the Resurrection. The Resurrection is the very heart of the gospel message. Christ died for our sins, was buried, and was raised again on the third day. In fact, I think of Christianity as an arch supported by two pillars. One pillar is the death of Christ and the other pillar is the resurrection of Christ. Without one or the other the arch would fall.
Atos 24
Vernon McGee - Paul reasoned with him of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come. This makes a very good sermon, by the way. Righteousness here is, I think, the righteousness of the Law, which man cannot attain. In other words, the Law reveals that man is a sinner, and he cannot even present a legal righteousness that would be acceptable to God. A sinner must have a standing of legal righteousness before God and he cannot provide it for himself. So God provides it for him in Christ Jesus. That is the “robe” of righteousness which comes down like a garment over those who put their trust in Christ. That is the righteousness “Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference” (Rom. 3:22). Paul reasoned with this man about the righteousness of the Law which he could not meet and the righteousness which Christ provides the sinner who puts his trust in Him. Then Paul talked of temperance, which is self-control. Felix was a man mastered by passion and cruelty. These two, Felix and Drusilla, great sinners, living in sin, did not know what real freedom was. Then Paul spoke about the judgment to come, which is the final judgment at the Great White Throne of Revelation 20:11–15. Friend, today your sins are either on you or they are on Christ. If your sins are on Christ, if you have put your trust in Him, then He paid the penalty for your sins over nineteen hundred years ago. They do not lie ahead of you for judgment in the future. But if your sins today are still on you, then there is yet a judgment to come. People don’t like to hear about judgment to come. Felix and Drusilla did not like to hear about it either. But if your sins are not on Christ, that is, if you have not trusted Him as your Savior, then you are going to come up for judgment. You can close this book right now, but that doesn’t alter a thing. You cannot escape the fact that you are coming up for judgment. Very few preachers touch on this subject. Those who still teach the Bible are the only ones who mention it at all, and most preachers soft-pedal it. I received a letter from a college professor in Virginia who wrote, “I listened to you and I was about ready to tune you out when I found out you were a hell-fire and damnation preacher. But I noticed that you didn’t handle it in a crude way, and then I noticed that you did offer salvation; so I continued to listen to you.” Hell-fire and damnation is a pretty good subject if it is used to lead one to Christ, friend. But it should never be used alone without the message of salvation which we have in Christ Jesus. TERRIFIED BY THE TRUTH! Felix became frightened and said, "Go away for the present, and when I find time I will summon you." - Why did Felix become frightened? Because the Holy Spirit took Paul's words and convicted him of "sin and righteousness and judgment" (John 16:8-11)! And as a result Felix became terrified, which indeed he should have been! But he did act on his fear but procrastinated. This is one of the saddest passages in the Bible. "When I find time!" Felix the prototype of all procrastinators through the ages. He did not have ears to hear the truth. He did not realize that the danger he was in. Only a couple of years before this meeting with Felix Paul wrote these words that Felix desperately needed to hear (and heed! - cf James 1:22-24+). for He says, “AT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU, AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU.” Behold, now is “THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,” behold, now is “THE DAY OF SALVATION”– (2 Cor 6:2) See "THOUGHT" about Felix putting off until tomorrow what he should have done today! THOUGHT - Frightened but not repentant, not begging for God's hand of mercy. Terrified but not trusting. How different the reaction of Felix was when compared to the frightened reaction of the hearers of another powerful sermon given by Jonathan Edwards entitled "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." One participant recorded that "The crying and weeping became so loud that Edwards was forced to discontinue the sermon." As Josh Moody writes "On this day in history, Jonathan Edwards started a sermon that he did not finish. (ED: ONE MIGHT SAY FELIX HAD A SIMILAR REACTION BRINGING PAUL'S SERMON TO AN ABRUPT END!) Such was the impact of his preaching that the people listening shrieked and cried out, and the crying and weeping became so loud that Edwards was forced to discontinue the sermon. Instead, the pastors went down among the people and prayed with them in groups. Many came to a saving knowledge of Christ that day." (Read Josh Moody's complete description) Proverbs 27:1 - Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth. Luke makes no mention of Drusilla's reaction. Toussaint comments on Felix's frightened state - Well he should, for his marriage to Drusilla was his third and he had to break up another marriage to secure her. His regime was marked by injustices that contrasted with the righteousness of God. And he was a man grossly lacking in self-control. (Ibid) Frightened (terrified) (1719)(emphobos from en = in + phobos = fear) literally means "in fear" and then alarmed, startled, terrified, thrown into fear, very afraid. All five uses are associated in some way with supernatural manifestations. Used in 5 verses - Of the women at Jesus' tomb "were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground" when they saw two men suddenly stand near them in dazzling apparel. (Lk 24:4,5) Of the 11 disciples who were frightened when Jesus suddenly stood in the room as the 2 on the road to Emmaus were relating what had occurred (Lk 24:33-36). Of Cornelius reaction to the angel. Of the reaction of Felix fearful reaction as Paul "was discussing righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come." (Acts 24:25) Felix's reaction was not misplaced and one wanders if this man ever bowed the knee to Jesus and was saved? Finally In the Revelation (probably at the middle of the seven years of Daniel's seventieth week) there was a great earthquake in Jerusalem killing 7000 and leaving the "rest terrified." (Rev 11:13+).There are no uses in the Septuagint. THOUGHT - Have you ever shared the Gospel? I hope you have - it's a once in a lifetime opportunity, one you won't have in Heaven! But I assume most of you reading have shared the Good News. I often begin by asking "Where would you go if you died today?" (I do this primarily when I know I will only have a short time and may never see the person again in this life). When they say "I suppose I would go to Heaven" (as most do), I ask why? And the answer varies, so I tell them about Christ, that H is Name is not a "curse word" but is the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life through Whom one will ever be allowed to enter Heaven (Jn 14:6, Mt 7:13,14+, Acts 4:12+). For most of the hearers this is the "flash point" and you can watch their eyes expressing either anger or in some cases fear, but sadly often looking down at their watch and saying like Felix "I've got to be somewhere soon." Yeah, right! Why not be honest and say I don't want to hear about your narrow minded Christianity and the Man called Jesus Who is God and off they go. But as Paul did with Felix and Drusilla, you like a faithful farmer, have planted some good Gospel seed, so if it germinates or does not germinate, it is not about the quality of your presentation but about the character of their heart. And when I find time - KJV = "When I have a convenient season." The word for time is kairos which is also translated "opportune time," or "opportunity." From the following verse, it is clear that Felix was given other "seasons" or "opportunities" but this Greek god (Kairos was name of god in mythology) is fickle and one never knows when "he" has paid his last visit. And so a good policy when one is presented with a "Gospel opportunity" is to remember the old saying that "Opportunity only knocks once!" or "Opportunity is fleeting!" McGee astutely observes that "A sinner will never have “a convenient season” to hear the gospel. This man Felix already knew something about the gospel, or “the Way,” which is synonymous with what we today call Christianity or the Christian faith. I personally would like to see the name “the Way” restored because Christianity, as it is used today, is a most abused word and has lost its real meaning. I heard a man, actually a good preacher, say the other day that we live in a Christian nation. My friend, we don’t live in a Christian nation! This country is not Christian by any stretch of the imagination. We have a lot of church members, but the number of real Christians composes a small minority today....Some Bible teachers caption this section “Paul’s Defense Before Felix.” I disagree with that. Paul was not defending himself here. What he was doing in this second appearance before Felix was witnessing to him, trying to win this man for Christ....It has been proven out in the history of the human family for nineteen hundred years that folk can keep postponing making a decision for Christ until they come to the place where they cannot make a decision for Him at all. That is the reason that most decisions for Christ are made by young people—we ought to try to reach young people for Christ. Also this is the reason a person need not think that because he is getting older he is becoming smarter. Older people just become more hardened to the gospel. Steven Cole on when I find time - When your body is in pain, it’s a warning that something is wrong. If you dull the pain with drugs without fixing the root problem, you may be in for more serious trouble later. It’s like the warning lights on the dashboard of your car. When they go off, you need to find out what the problem is and fix it. Continuing to ignore the warnings can destroy your engine. It is the same way spiritually. God may use His Word, the preaching of the Word, or someone’s godly words or behavior to prick your conscience. You can pay attention to the warnings and take appropriate action, or you can ignore the warnings by making up excuses and pretending that the problems don’t exist. Felix should have allowed his fear to drive him to ask, “What must I do to be saved?” Instead, he blocked out the warning and missed his opportunity for salvation. Every week, we all face opportunities for spiritual advance. There is the opportunity to set your alarm a few minutes early to get up and spend time with the Lord. Or, you can sack in and miss that opportunity. There is the opportunity to read some spiritually enriching Christian books that will change your life. Or, you can sit mesmerized in front of TV shows that pollute your mind with filthy humor, which the Bible plainly commands us to avoid (Eph. 5:3). There is the opportunity to get your finances in order as a good steward of what the Lord has entrusted to you, and to give generously to His cause. Or, you can squander those resources on American junk. There is the opportunity to meet with other believers to grow in your faith. Or, you can forsake assembling together with the saints. There is the opportunity to talk to a lost person about the Savior. Or, you can busy yourself with less important things. With Paul, will you seize present opportunities for spiritual advance or, with Felix, will you make up excuses and miss those opportunities? (Sermon)