Acts 26:12-32 Paul's Account of His Conversion and Commission = July 24

Paul's Account of His Conversion and Commission
Acts 26:12-32

When have you had to publicly appear before an important or powerful person and put your fate in his/her hands? 

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

Acts 26:12-32 (ESV)

Paul Tells of His Conversion

12“In this connection I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. 13At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. 14And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language,^a ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ 15And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, 17delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you 18to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

19“Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, 20but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance. 21For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. 22To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: 23that the Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles.”

24And as he was saying these things in his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, you are out of your mind; your great learning is driving you out of your mind.” 25But Paul said, “I am not out of my mind, most excellent Festus, but I am speaking true and rational words. 26For the king knows about these things, and to him I speak boldly. For I am persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this has not been done in a corner. 27King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe.” 28And Agrippa said to Paul, “In a short time would you persuade me to be a Christian?”^b 29And Paul said, “Whether short or long, I would to God that not only you but also all who hear me this day might become such as I am—except for these chains.”

30Then the king rose, and the governor and Bernice and those who were sitting with them. 31And when they had withdrawn, they said to one another, “This man is doing nothing to deserve death or imprisonment.” 32And Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”

 

Hashtags
#Paul (aka-Saul) (along with those who were with him on the journey)
#Jews ‑ the whole Jewish people
#Festus
#chief priests
#Agrippa the king
#Bernice
#Gentiles
#the prophets and Moses
#the saints
#Caesar

Places
#Jerusalem
#Damascus
#region of Judea

Topics
# Servant – vs. 16
#Mission and calling for Paul
#Salvation (Repentance)
#defense vs. 24
#believe
#persuade

• God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
• We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
• Compare 26:20 with 20:21. How could you tell someone what it means to be a Christian from these two verses? 
• How does faith in Jesus relate to a repentant change in lifestyle? Would you describe Paul's speech as a legal defense or a personal testimony? How are the two related? Do you think Paul's primary goal in this speech is to convince Agrippa of his innocence, or of the truth of Christianity's claims? Why? 
• From 25:19 and 26:24, how convinced is Festus regarding the resurrection of Jesus? How might Paul's response In verses 25-27 surprise Festus? 
• If you were in this hall, what impressions would you have of Paul as he concluded his speech? 
• Up to this point, the Romans considered Christians and Jews as basically one and the same. From this speech, can the Romans begin to see some differences?
• I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How can I apply it to my life this week?
• How does verse 18 fit as a description of your spiritual journey? Which other images describe what coming to faith was like for you? 
• In verse 14, Paul adds a comment not found in his conversion story in chapters 9 or 22. When has God pointed out to you that your struggle has been against him all along? How has he redirected you since then? 
• Paul considered himself a servant and a witness. In what way is God's call to you similar to or different from his call to Paul? 
• Paul's obedience to Jesus resulted in a trial very similar to Jesus' trial. How has your obedience to Jesus resulted in similarities to Jesus' experience?
• How has Christ brought light into your life? How can you pass on that light to someone else this week?
• 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.

https://www.youtube.com/c/edmondchurchofchrist

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Chris Stinnett

April 3, 2020 at 9:05 AM · True And Reasonable

About the year 621 BC Josiah, the young king of Judah, began a comprehensive renewal of religious practice under the Law of Moses. He ordered the purification and refurbishment of the Temple, including removal and destruction of all kinds of idolatrous gifts that earlier people had installed. This included statues of horses located near the room “of an official named Nathan-Melech” (2 Kings 23:11). Less than a generation later, the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and burned the Temple and official buildings.

For years archaeologists have been digging in the City of David, on the east side of Jerusalem. Last October, they uncovered a small “signature stamp” from about 600 BC that reads, “of Nathan-Melech Servant of the King.” This little blue stone seal was found within the remains of a two-story administrative building that was destroyed by an intense fire. The writing, the pottery fragments nearby, and the level of destruction all point to the same time period recorded in 2 Kings. It seems reasonable to conclude that the seal served as the official “signature” of the same Nathan-Melech mentioned in the Bible. As the discoveries continue, it seems that the events of the Bible—astonishing though they may be—are true and founded solidly in demonstrated fact.

“I am not insane, most excellent Festus,” Paul replied. “What I am saying is true and reasonable. The king is familiar with these things, and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner” (Acts 26:25-26 NIV).

As Paul explained himself to the Roman governor and to King Agrippa, he naturally mentioned Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. This was such an “impossible” idea that Festus accused him of madness. Paul’s response pointed toward the facts that were widely known and reported. Since all the supporting information was available, it seemed clear that everything Paul said was true and reasonable—even if it were startling and contrary to all expectation. 

The Bible is a book that is rooted in genuine history. Real places, real people, real times and real events are recorded as God interacted with His people. Everywhere we can test the Bible, it is revealed to be true and accurate. That gives us immense confidence in the reliability of the Scriptures, just as we would trust any witness who was proven to be truthful and credible. People who slander the Bible as a collection of fanciful tales of wishful thinking have clearly never examined the facts. There has never been a book so thoroughly scrutinized by skeptics trying to find fault as the Bible has been. And no book, ancient or modern, has been so completely vindicated again and again by demonstrated fact. Even the resurrection of Jesus is found to be true and reasonable—and that undeniable fact demands our attention. If He is raised from the dead, He is the Son of God and actually has all authority in heaven and on earth. That’s not ignorant delusion; that’s true and reasonable, a fact we all must deal with.

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“SIGHT TO THE BLIND”

Lewis G. Hale

 

When Jesus visited his hometown synagogue in Nazareth, he stood up and read from the prophet Isaiah. He said the Spirit of the Lord had anointed him to preach to the poor, heal the broken-hearted, “and recovering of sight to the blind.” Luke 4:18-19.

                Have you ever imagined what it would be like to be blind? What a great blessing for a blind person to receive the gift of sight!

                When the blind man of Jericho heard that Jesus was passing by, he cried, “Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.” When Jesus asked, “What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee?”, the blind man said, “Lord, that I may receive my sight.” Jesus immediately healed him. He must have experienced unspeakable joy. Can you image a blind man who would refuse to accept the gift of sight? I seems to me that no person in his right mind would say, “I prefer to remain blind.”

                Yet, there is another kind of blindness that is even more serious - spiritual blindness. Our sin and ignorance of God is called blindness. When Christ called Saul to be an apostle, he said he would send him to the Gentiles “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light (from blindness to sight), and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me,” Acts 26:17-18. This the true sight which Christ came to give.

                In spite of the fact that Christ came to give us sight, many deliberately choose to remain blind. When the disciples of Jesus asked why he spoke in parables, he said it was because some did not want to hear nor see, so parables concealed the truth from them. He then quoted from Isaiah, “By hearing ye shall hear and shall not understand, and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: for this people’s heart is waxed gross and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time the should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them,” Matt. 13:14-15.

                This means they would have no forgiveness of sins and would have no inheritance. How sad. How unnecessary.

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ACTS 26:28

 

evn      ovli,gw me        pei,qeij                 Cristiano.n         poih/sai

In       little       me      you persuade     Christian          to make

 

 

KJV:	Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.
RSV:	In a short time you think to make me a Christian.
NASB:	In a short time you will persuade me to become a Christian.
NIV:	Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?
ASV:	With but little persuasion thou wouldest fain make me a Christian.
LAMSA:	With little effort you almost persuade me to become a Christian.
LO:	You almost persuade me to be a Christian.
Spanish:	Por poco me persuades a ser criastiano.
HEB:	עוֹד מְַעַט וּפתּיתַנִִי לְְהְיוֹת נְצְִרִי
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                                                               Acts 26:28

                                                            By Mark Moore

 

NIV:                Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?

Literal:             In a little you are persuading me to make a Christian

 

This is a difficult passage to interpret because of three questions which we may never be able to answer. First, does the word little refer to time, the number of words Paul spoke or some other factor? Second, what was Agrippa‘s tone? Was he serious or sarcastic. Third, is this a statement of fact or a question? The following paraphrases suggest a few possibilities.

 

Sarcasm:

Ø  What is this? Do you think that you can convert me in just 30 minutes?

Ø  What is this? Do you think that I‘m going to become a Christian on the basis of such meager evidence?

Ø  Come on Paul! You've hardly expended any effort on me. You‘ll have to do better than this if you want me to convert.

 

Serious:

Ø  Paul, you almost had me. With just a little more evidence I could accept what you are saying.

Ø  Paul, I‘m pretty close to becoming a Christian. If I let you keep talking a little longer I would probably convert.

Ø  Wow! You've drawn me in quickly. Is it possible that I would change my mind so soon?

Ø  You are an amazing man! With such little effort on your part, I've come so close to accepting your position.