Acts 25:1-12 Paul Appears Before Festus

Paul Appears Before Festus
Acts 25:1-12

Name three laws or rules you have never broken.

#God                   #People            #Time #Place               #Obedient faith            #Sin     #Key Idea

Acts 25:1-12

Paul Appeals to Caesar

1Now three days after Festus had arrived in the province, he went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea. 2And the chief priests and the principal men of the Jews laid out their case against Paul, and they urged him, 3asking as a favor against Paul^a that he summon him to Jerusalem—because they were planning an ambush to kill him on the way. 4Festus replied that Paul was being kept at Caesarea and that he himself intended to go there shortly. 5“So,” said he, “let the men of authority among you go down with me, and if there is anything wrong about the man, let them bring charges against him.”

6After he stayed among them not more than eight or ten days, he went down to Caesarea. And the next day he took his seat on the tribunal and ordered Paul to be brought. 7When he had arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many and serious charges against him that they could not prove. 8Paul argued in his defense, “Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar have I committed any offense.” 9But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, said to Paul, “Do you wish to go up to Jerusalem and there be tried on these charges before me?” 10But Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s tribunal, where I ought to be tried. To the Jews I have done no wrong, as you yourself know very well. 11If then I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything for which I deserve to die, I do not seek to escape death. But if there is nothing to their charges against me, no one can give me up to them. I appeal to Caesar.” 12Then Festus, when he had conferred with his council, answered, “To Caesar you have appealed; to Caesar you shall go.”

• God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
• We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
• Two years have passed since the trial before Felix (24:27). Why hasn't the opposition to Paul by the Jewish leaders dissipated during this time? 
• Paul has come a long way since the events of 9:1-2. What irony do you see in that? How could 9:1-2 also account in part for their animosity? 
• How is Paul like a pawn to these Roman officials (v. 9; see 24:27)? How might this account for his decision to appeal to Caesar?
• I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How can I apply it to my life this week?
• What laws conflict with your efforts to emulate Jesus Christ? 
• What was one circumstance that threatened to ambush you in your spiritual life? How did you deal with it? 
• If someone wanted to prove you were a Christian, what evidence from this past week could they use?
• You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.

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Blameless Character and Appeal to Caesar

Acts 25

                                                Mark E. Moore & Mark Scott

 

Paul‘s Blameless Character:

No one is perfect. That includes the Apostle Paul. Yet he lived his life with such integrity that he could not be successfully attacked in a court of law. In other words, he lived his life without handles. This never mattered less than when he was maligned by unbelievers with legal clout. It may sound presumptuous when Paul claims to be above reproach (vv. 8, 10–11). But Luke echoes the same sentiment (v. 7). Well, one might say, that‘s because he was Paul‘s friend. But Festus, certainly no friend of Paul, said so much himself (vv. 5, 18–19, 25). Our integrity may not matter much of the time. But when it matters, it makes all the moments of personal sacrifice worth it, particularly when it is the reputation of our Lord on the line along with ours.

Paul‘s Appeal to Caesar:

This is obviously a big deal. It is mentioned no less than 6 times in the text (vv. 11–12, 21, 25–27). It was risky business, though, to appeal to Caesar, particularly this one. Nero could be whimsical. If he didn‘t like you, for any particular reason, he could just execute you. He was a despot. So why Paul would take the chance and appeal to him? There are several possibilities:

 

1.                  He was inspired by God or prompted by the Holy Spirit to make this move.

2.                  He got impatient. Perhaps he was tired of waiting in prison and decided to take matters into his own hands.

3.                  He wanted to take advantage of a golden opportunity. It is not entirely clear just when a Roman citizen had the right of appeal. But apparently Paul was in such a situation and thus made the appeal. It is also quite like Paul to imagine himself converting Nero and Christianizing the empire!

4.                  He was tired of trials and knew that no good would come of them so he simply pulled the plug on the process through his legal recourse of appeal.

5.                  He knew Festus to be just but unsympathetic to his situation. This he forced his hand.

6.                  He knew that a Jerusalem trip would be too dangerous. He decided to gamble on Nero rather than the Sanhedrin.          

Acts 24:1-27 Paul Appears Before Felix

Paul Appears Before Felix
Acts 24:1-27

If someone were to bribe you to do a favor for them, what's the most effective incentive they could use: A return favor? Your favorite meal? Free babysitting? Money? Flattery? Other?

#God                   #People            #Time #Place               #Obedient faith            #Sin     #Key Idea

Acts 24:1-27

 

Paul Before Felix at Caesarea

1And after five days the high priest Ananias came down with some elders and a spokesman, one Tertullus. They laid before the governor their case against Paul. 2And when he had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying:

“Since through you we enjoy much peace, and since by your foresight, most excellent Felix, reforms are being made for this nation, 3in every way and everywhere we accept this with all gratitude. 4But, to detain^a you no further, I beg you in your kindness to hear us briefly. 5For we have found this man a plague, one who stirs up riots among all the Jews throughout the world and is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. 6He even tried to profane the temple, but we seized him.^b 8By examining him yourself you will be able to find out from him about everything of which we accuse him.”

9The Jews also joined in the charge, affirming that all these things were so.

10And when the governor had nodded to him to speak, Paul replied:

“Knowing that for many years you have been a judge over this nation, I cheerfully make my defense. 11You can verify that it is not more than twelve days since I went up to worship in Jerusalem, 12and they did not find me disputing with anyone or stirring up a crowd, either in the temple or in the synagogues or in the city. 13Neither can they prove to you what they now bring up against me. 14But this I confess to you, that according to the Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets, 15having a hope in God, which these men themselves accept, that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust. 16So I always take pains to have a clear conscience toward both God and man. 17Now after several years I came to bring alms to my nation and to present offerings. 18While I was doing this, they found me purified in the temple, without any crowd or tumult. But some Jews from Asia— 19they ought to be here before you and to make an accusation, should they have anything against me. 20Or else let these men themselves say what wrongdoing they found when I stood before the council, 21other than this one thing that I cried out while standing among them: ‘It is with respect to the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial before you this day.’”

Paul Kept in Custody

22But Felix, having a rather accurate knowledge of the Way, put them off, saying, “When Lysias the tribune comes down, I will decide your case.” 23Then he gave orders to the centurion that he should be kept in custody but have some liberty, and that none of his friends should be prevented from attending to his needs.

24After some days Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, and he sent for Paul and heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus. 25And as he reasoned about righteousness and self-control and the coming judgment, Felix was alarmed and said, “Go away for the present. When I get an opportunity I will summon you.” 26At the same time he hoped that money would be given him by Paul. So he sent for him often and conversed with him. 27When two years had elapsed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. And desiring to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison.

 

Hashtags
#Paul
#Jews
#Ananias – high priest
#some elders
#Tertullus – a spokesman
#The governor
#Felix (wife Drusilla)
#Nazarenes
#Prophets
#the council
#Lysias
# Porcius Festus

Places
#temple or in the synagogues

Topics
#resurrection
#the Way
#trial
#reasoned

• God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
• We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
• Felix had a reputation of violently suppressing rebellions against Rome. How might Tertullus hope that would compensate for the lack of evidence he can offer? 
• What difference can you see in the style Tertullus uses in verses 2-4, to present his case to Felix compared to Paul's style? 
• How would all the charges in verses 5-6 seem true to Ananias and Tertullus? What does their reference to Christians as the "Nazarene sect show about their view of Christianity? 
• How then does Paul defend himself in verses 11-19?
• Put yourself in the place of Felix. In light of the riot in Jerusalem over Paul (if you only had Lysias letter (23:26-30), the accusations of the Jews, and Paul's word to go on). what would you do? 
• What do you learn about Felix from verses 22-26? Why does he merely put Paul under house arrest? 
• In light of Acts 23:11, what must Paul be feeling as time wears on and no progress at all Is made?
• I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How can I apply it to my life this week?
• How has your desire to serve Christ been misunderstood by others? How did you feel then? 
• What's the difference between being well acquainted with the Way" (v. 22) and being a true believer? How long were you well acquainted" before you became a believer? 
• Have you ever felt there was a period in your life that was “dead time” -- when nothing seemed to be happening at all (as seems to be the case with Paul)? Why do you think God allows such times in our lives? 
• Consider verse 25. When have discussions on righteousness, self-control and judgment troubled you? Why?
• You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.

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NO MORE THAN TWELVE DAYS AGO, ACTS 24:11

                                                            By Mark Moore

 

 Days         1           2           3         4               Events:

1				1	Arrival in Jerusalem, 21:17
2				2	Went to meet James, 21:18
3			1	3	Went up to the Temple to Pay for Purification vows, 21:26
4–9	1–7		2–3	4–9	Almost Seven Days, 21:27
10		1	4	10	Paul Arrested, 21:27
11		2	5	11	Trial before the Sanhedrin, 22:30
12		3	6	12	Assassination plot and Paul's escape, 23:12
13		4	7		Paul's arrival in Caesarea, 23:33
14–17	8–11	5–8	8–11		Paul waits for Tertullus
18	12	9	12		Paul's Trial before Felix, 24:1

 

Solutions:

1.            Count only the days that Paul spent waiting.  There were seven days waiting for the purification to be complete and five days waiting for Tertullus to arrive.  That makes for good math but poor exegesis.  It does not account for all the other important days in this scenario.

2.            Begin counting the twelve days at Paul's arrest.  This solution leaves three extra days but still fits Paul's words, "No more than 12 days ago . . ."  However, it does not accurately describe when Paul went up to Jerusalem.

3.            Begin counting the twelve days when Paul first went up to worship in the temple (i.e. when he paid for the purification vows, 21:26).  This is a better description of Paul's words "went up to Jerusalem to worship" (24:11).  However, it leaves only 2–3 days for what Paul calls "nearly seven days" (21:27).

4.            Count only the days that Paul was in Jerusalem.  Granted, these would be the only days germane to the charges—that he stirred up trouble and defiled the temple in Jerusalem (24:5–8).  But that is somewhat of a loose interpretation of 24:11 since it overlooks the last five days.