Paul Before Festus
Acts 25:1-22
June 30, 2013
As you know we are currently studying the portion in the book of Acts
That chronicles Paul’s arrest and subsequent trip to Rome.
• Paul went to Jerusalem knowing trouble would come
• Paul was arrested there, and yet has remained faithful
• Jesus has been providentially working to both protect Paul and take him to Rome
And those are really some of the things we have been focusing on.
Not only is Luke revealing to us the details of how Paul ended up in Rome,
But also seems to be showing us the truth about various other realities.
1) CHRISTIAN FAITHFULNESS
We have seen Paul not only travel to Jerusalem despite the danger,
But also faithfully share testimony even in the midst of that danger.
He has faithfully sought “first the kingdom of God”
And Paul’s faithfulness paid off.
Acts 23:11 “But on the night immediately following, the Lord stood at his side and said, “Take courage; for as you have solemnly witnessed to My cause at Jerusalem, so you must witness at Rome also.”
And that reveals the second thing we have also seen during this narrative.
2) THE PROVIDENCE OF CHRIST
Paul has been faithful to Jesus, and Jesus has been faithful to Paul.
We first saw it with the foiled assassination attempt.
It was a good plan the Jews orchestrated to have Paul killed,
But Jesus merely used that plan to move Paul one step closer to Rome.
And we were reminded of that tremendous truth:
Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”
And again, that does not imply that
God will never let anything bad happen to His children.
(Let’s not forget Paul has been beaten, and has spent the last two years in jail)
What it does promise is that God will accomplish His perfect will.
The enemy cannot thwart God’s redemptive plan.
In fact God is so sovereign that He can even take the devil’s plans
And use them for His own glory.
And then last week we introduced a new concept we are also seeing in this trial narrative with Paul, and that is:
3) THE OFFENSE OF THE GOSPEL
Last week we watched as Paul stood before Felix.
• Felix was not a noble man, nor a moral one.
• He was a former slave promoted to a position he did not deserve,
• He had immorally stolen the wife of another man because of her beauty.
Paul stood before Felix and he pulled a definite Pilate on Paul.
• He knew Paul was innocent…
• Everyone knew Paul was innocent…
• And yet, because Felix feared the repercussions of the Jews, he left Paul in prison for two years, until he was eventually dismissed from office.
And what we began to see firsthand is that gospel is offensive.
It confronts you at your deepest level
And requires complete and total allegiance.
• It cost the disciples their homes…
• It cost Matthew his tax booth…
• It cost Paul his prestige in Jewish society…
• It would have cost the rich young ruler all of his possessions…
• It would have cost Pilate his position…
And Felix felt the full cost and offense of the gospel
As he sat in trial of Paul.
He had to make a decision, and it was one he was unwilling to make.
Felix was a blasphemer.
• He knew the truth.
• Scripture even said he had “a more excellent knowledge about the Way”
• Paul even preached to him on numerous occasions.
And yet Felix, knowing the truth, determined to disregard it.
Scripture says it is impossible for that person to be saved
Because they again crucify Jesus to themselves.
Felix rejected the gospel due to its high cost.
Well tonight we move in to the second example
Of the gospel offending someone.
That man is Festus.
While Felix was a blasphemer, Festus was a scoffer
He couldn’t believe the gospel
Because he was unwilling to become a fool.
And people who aren’t willing to look foolish to the world
Cannot follow a dead man, who claims to have come back to life.
So tonight let me show you who Festus is, and how the gospel confronted his life.
5 points
#1 FESTUS WAS PROMPT
Acts 25:1
The main things that I want you to notice about Festus
As we work our way through this text
Is that Festus was a very professional person.
He was one who did his job well.
And because of that, by the world’s standards,
Festus would have been a “good man”.
In fact, history remembers Festus
As better than the last two rulers who succeeded him.
And we begin to see that just by the way he takes office here in verse 1.
“Festus then, having arrived in the province, three days later went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea.”
So Felix was removed and ultimately replaced by Festus.
And Festus moves into office and yet wastes no time getting to work.
No sooner does he move into the office, then does he take the 65 mile trip To Jerusalem to meet the people he is now in charge of.
• Keeping the peace in Jerusalem would have been one of the main objectives of his reign as governor, and he wastes no time getting to it.
Felix had left a bad taste in the mouths of the Jews,
Festus quickly goes to straighten it all out.
• He wasn’t a procrastinator…
• He wasn’t one of those guys who irritates you because he just never does what he says he’ll do.
Festus was prompt, he quickly got to work.
That bodes well for his career.
Festus was Prompt
#2 FESTUS WAS PATRIOTIC
Acts 25:2-8
So Festus makes a trip to Jerusalem to meet with the people he will be ruling,
And the first item of business on the minds of the Jews
Was that Festus do something about Paul.
It really shows you the rage and anger that the Jews had toward the gospel
Since, over the last two years they had yet to calm down.
They still want Paul’s head, they still haven’t forgotten,
And when the new ruler arrives, this is their first item of business.
(2-3) “And the chief priests and the leading men of the Jews brought charges against Paul, and they were urging him, requesting a concession against Paul, that he might have him brought to Jerusalem (at the same time, setting an ambush to kill him on the way).”
They were also prompt.
They wanted Paul brought to Jerusalem.
(not for trial, they never planned to let it get that far)
And Festus picked up on their rage.
Even later, when Festus speaks to Agrippa
Acts 25:15 “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.”
• The Jews didn’t want a fair trial.
• In fact, they didn’t want a trial at all.
• They just wanted Festus to condemn Paul and get it over with.
He understood their desires.
But Festus wouldn’t give in to their plans.
(4-5) “Festus then answered that Paul was being kept in custody at Caesarea and that he himself was about to leave shortly. “Therefore,” he said, “let the influential men among you go there with me, and if there is anything wrong about the man, let them prosecute him.”
Festus will not consent to bring Paul back for a trial and condemnation.
WHY?
Again, Festus reveals much when he talks later to Agrippa:
Acts 25:16 “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.”
The answer is that Festus was a patriot.
• He cared about Roman law.
• He cared about the Roman way.
• He cared about Roman citizens.
He didn’t know Paul
He didn’t know about Judaism or Christianity
But he did know about Rome and that is how he operated.
He was a patriotic kind of fellow.
And so he suggested that the Jews come with him
And that they hold this trial in the proper way.
And incidentally, that is what happens.
(6-8) “After he had spent not more than eight or ten days among them, he went down to Caesarea, and on the next day he took his seat on the tribunal and ordered Paul to be brought. After Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many and serious charges against him which they could not prove, while Paul said in his own defense, “I have committed no offense either against the Law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar.”
We don’t have to re-hash this whole trial, for the charges are the same.
In two years the Jews still don’t have any more evidence
Than they did the first time.
All they have are those same old tired accusations.
• Paul conspires against Rome…
• Paul breaks Jewish Law…
• Paul desecrated the temple…
And through all these charges we again note that
They “could not prove” any of them.
And then, just like before, Paul adequately defends himself.
“I have committed no offense either against the Law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar.”
Two years and nothing has changed.
And just as we saw before Felix, we now see that again
Paul should be released due to lack of evidence.
This trial should be thrown out.
However, Festus wasn’t just Prompt, and Festus wasn’t just Patriotic
#3 FESTUS WAS POLITICAL
Acts 25:9-12
Now, this description may not do much for you,
But it does seem to be a very important attribute to the world.
The media is always throwing around words like
bi-partisan, tolerance, and compromise.
• Society does not praise conviction…
• Society does not praise steadfastness…
• Society does not praise moral endurance…
Society loves a guy who will bend in order to make everyone happy,
And so society would have loved Festus.
He was a bender.
It was obvious Paul was innocent, however:
(9) “But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me on these charges?”
Festus could see that the Jews had no case, but he also knew that
Acquitting Paul would lead to a riot and unrest in the region.
So his solution is to
• Take Paul back to Jerusalem like the Jews wanted…
• And to let Paul stand trial before him, assuring a fair trial…
He was trying to compromise.
He was trying to find an easy solution.
He was trying to appease everyone.
The only problem is that Paul knew what Festus did not,
And that was that he would never make it alive to trial.
Paul already left Jerusalem due to a death threat once, he knew better than to return.
Which is the reason for Paul’s appeal:
(10-12) “But Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s tribunal, where I ought to be tried. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you also very well know. “If, then, I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything worthy of death, I do not refuse to die; but if none of those things is true of which these men accuse me, no one can hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar.” Then when Festus had conferred with his council, he answered, “You have appealed to Caesar, to Caesar you shall go.”
Paul was sure of a few things.
1) Going to Jerusalem was a death sentence.
2) He was innocent and Festus knew it.
3) His only shot was to appeal to Caesar.
And that is what Paul did.
But namely you get a look at Festus here.
A Prompt man A Patriotic man A Political man
#4 FESTUS WAS PERPLEXED
Acts 25:13-22
So at this point, Festus has agreed to send Paul to Caesar.
The only problem with that is that Festus had to include
The charges against Paul, of which he is appealing.
And Festus doesn’t know what they are.
• There was no proof…
• There was no relevance…
And Festus is stumped.
In fact, verse 13 indicates that he was stumped for “several days”
For it was only then that Agrippa arrived.
“Now when several days had elapsed King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea and paid their respects to Festus.”
Agrippa was an interesting fellow.
(Herod Agrippa II)
• His Great-Grandpa (Herod the Great) tried to kill baby Jesus, and ended up killing all the Hebrew babies in Bethlehem.
• His Great-Uncle (Herod Antipas) was the man who beheaded John the Baptist due to the incestuous affair with his sister’s wife. He was also the man who tried Jesus.
• His father (Agrippa I) was the man who killed James and met an untimely death after glorifying himself and worms ate him.
And now Herod Agrippa II was ruler.
He was also a special type of fellow.
• His consort “Bernice” was also his sister.
• Their sister was also “Drusilla” who you will remember was Felix’s wife.
They were a messed up family.
And yet, they had a reputation for being experts in Judaism.
Which is what Paul asserts later when he stands before him.
Acts 26:2-3 “In regard to all the things of which I am accused by the Jews, I consider myself fortunate, King Agrippa, that I am about to make my defense before you today; because you are an expert in all customs and questions among the Jews; therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.”
And that also explains why Festus was so eager to talk to Agrippa.
Festus was a perplexed man.
He knew Paul was innocent of Roman crimes,
But had no clue why the Jews hated him so much.
And that is really what Festus begins to relate to Agrippa.
There were four things about Paul that really perplexed Festus.
1) WHY IS HE HERE? (14)
(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;”
Ordinarily a new ruler would assume that if a previous ruler left a man in custody for two years without ever producing a trial or a verdict that something was fishy.
And indeed it was.
Felix of course was corrupt and kept trying to get bribes from Paul.
But for a straight-laced ruler like Festus,
Paul’s presence just didn’t make any sense.
Is he guilty or innocent, but why is he here?
2) WHY IS HATED? (15)
(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.”
Again, you would think that after two years the animosity toward this man would have died down, but that wasn’t the case at all.
Their first order of business was to ask for me to condemn this man.
He is hated.
The Jews want him dead, and I don’t know why.
3) HE APPEARS TO BE HARMLESS (16-19)
And this is really the puzzling fact to Festus.
He had the trial, and heard all the information, and that was strange.
(18-19) “When the accusers stood up, they began bringing charges against him not of such crimes as I was expecting, 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.”
Festus can’t seem to figure out
Why they are dragging him into the middle of all of this.
It just didn’t make any sense.
• This man wasn’t a Roman criminal…
• This man didn’t incite riots…
• This man just had some crazy beliefs about a dead man that he thought was alive.
But nothing seemed to be deserving of death.
4) WHERE HE IS HEADED (20-21)
And then this really didn’t make sense.
Obviously Festus didn’t realize that trying to take Paul back to Jerusalem
Would result in an ambush and murder,
So he couldn’t understand why Paul was unwilling to go back there.
Instead, Paul appealed to Caesar, and this was also peculiar to Festus.
In his mind, there had to be more going on here
Than what he had been told.
It just didn’t make sense that this man would be kept in custody,
So badly hated, and headed now to stand before Caesar
When he hasn’t done anything wrong.
And coupled with that,
Festus has no clue what charges he will write against him.
Festus is perplexed and so he is tossing the trial to Agrippa.
(22) “Then Agrippa said to Festus, “I also would like to hear the man myself.” “Tomorrow,” he said, “you shall hear him.”
And so you see that Festus is a man who doesn’t understand,
And he is not the type of man who likes it when he doesn’t understand.
• He is a professional kind of guy.
• He does his work promptly.
• He does his work according to Roman code.
• He does a fine political job of trying to solve problems.
And so when a peculiar case like this springs up, it perplexes him.
And I hope by now you see what type of fellow Festus is.
• He’s a smart guy.
• He’s an intellectual guy.
• He is a guy that follows his logic and earthly wisdom.
But he is about to be presented with something
That will challenge his earthly wisdom to the core.
Let me show you one more thing about Festus.
#5 FESTUS WAS PROUD
Acts 26:24-25
Now this is during the hearing before Agrippa.
• Paul is speaking to Agrippa and Festus is merely listening in.
• Paul is sharing his testimony.
And here is the most recent thing that Paul has said:
Acts 26:22-23 “So, having obtained help from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, stating nothing but what the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place; that the Christ was to suffer, and that by reason of His resurrection from the dead He would be the first to proclaim light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.”
And when Paul says this, it is more than the logic of Festus can take:
Acts 26:24-25 “While Paul was saying this in his defense, Festus said in a loud voice, “Paul, you are out of your mind! Your great learning is driving you mad.” But Paul said, “I am not out of my mind, most excellent Festus, but I utter words of sober truth.”
Festus just ran across a truth he could not accept.
It was foolishness to him to assume that a dead man could rise
And be the source of salvation to both Jews and Gentiles.
In fact, Festus even accuses Paul of being “mad”.
He accuses Paul of being crazy.
And right there we see again another offense of the gospel.
• For Felix the gospel was too costly.
• For Festus it is too foolish.
And there are people throughout our world
Who reject the gospel for this very reason.
• The gospel forces a man to reject his own logic and his own assertions.
• The gospel forces a man to reject his own intellect and submit to the wisdom of God.
And some people are far too proud to do such a thing.
1 Corinthians 1:18-25 “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I WILL DESTROY THE WISDOM OF THE WISE, AND THE CLEVERNESS OF THE CLEVER I WILL SET ASIDE.” Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”
According to Paul men don’t find the wisdom of God
Through their own intellectual endeavors.
The worldly wise, and the worldly debater are rarely found in the church.
Human intellect doesn’t lead to the cross.
It is foolishness to them.
That is why we don’t argue people into heaven…
That is why we can’t debate people into the kingdom…
Men aren’t won to Christ through logical reason.
Men are won to Christ when the Spirit of God
Reveals truth within their heart and draws them to Jesus.
John 6:44 “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.”
That is also why Paul was always careful
Not to present the gospel based upon reason or ability or intellect.
1 Corinthians 2:1-5 “And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.”
Paul knew that human intellect was powerless
As a weapon for leading men to Christ.
Only God’s Spirit could successfully do that.
Man in his wisdom does not come to know Christ.
The gospel is too backward for them.
• The gospel offers freedom through an arrested man…
• The gospel offers forgiveness through a condemned man…
• The gospel offers life through a dead man…
• The gospel offers hope through a crucified man…
• The gospel offers joy through a sorrowful man…
This doesn’t make any sense.
• How can one man’s death pay the penalty for every man’s sin?
• How can one man satisfy God’s righteous requirement?
• How can others share the righteousness of one man?
None of that makes sense.
It is foolishness and the world rejects it.
1 Corinthians 2:14 “But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.”
And there we have Festus.
He was just too smart to believe something like what Paul was preaching.
And we face those people in our world today.
Especially a young person leaves home and goes off to college –
Our universities are filled with those types of people.
• People who are too smart to believe a message like the gospel…
• People who are unwilling to face the ridicule of being considered a fool…
And because of that, they stumble over the offense of the gospel.
1 Corinthians 3:18-20 “Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, “He is THE ONE WHO CATCHES THE WISE IN THEIR CRAFTINESS”; and again, “THE LORD KNOWS THE REASONINGS of the wise, THAT THEY ARE USELESS.”
The reality is, for you or I to believe in Christ,
We must become fools in the eyes of the world.
Hollywood mocks us…
Universities mock us…
The Media mocks us…
Paul said:
1 Corinthians 4:9-13 “For, I think, God has exhibited us apostles last of all, as men condemned to death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are prudent in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are distinguished, but we are without honor. To this present hour we are both hungry and thirsty, and are poorly clothed, and are roughly treated, and are homeless; and we toil, working with our own hands; when we are reviled, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure; when we are slandered, we try to conciliate; we have become as the scum of the world, the dregs of all things, even until now.”
The world sees Christianity as the bottom of the barrel.
And friend if you want to confess Christ,
Then you might as well give up trying to prove yourself an intellectual.
And yet this is a problem we face as well.
It is hard for some Christian people to be considered a fool.
I always laugh inwardly any time I see someone study theology
To the point of earning a doctorate or really any degree.
I know how smart these people are, and so do you.
But to the world that must be a pointless endeavor.
You cannot seek to be considered wise in the world
And faithfully follow Christ.
Any more than you can seek to gain this world and follow Christ.
If you want to be faithful, you must follow Paul’s pattern
And preach a simple gospel apart from human wisdom and persuasion.
• Determine to know nothing except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
• Determine to preach the simple message that causes the world to think you are out of your mind.
For when you do, the Spirit of God goes to work
And leads other men to become fools as well.
That is one place Festus wasn’t willing to go.
He wasn’t willing to look like a fool.
• He had worked too hard…
• He had achieved too much…
• He had too great a reputation to just throw it all away to believe a fairy tale…
It is the offense of the gospel and we see it here again.
• So Paul is faithful
• And Jesus is working (Paul is now headed to Rome)
• And the gospel is still offensive
Paul was just the opposite of Felix – (a man who loved the world)
Paul is just the opposite of Festus – (a man who wanted to be considered wise)
But Paul was pleasing to Christ, whereas those men were not.
It becomes very clear where we must stand.
