Acts 26

As we continue our look at the Book of Acts, today we find the apostle Paul who has been imprisoned for two years in Caesarea, appearing before Festus the Roman governor of Judea - and Agrippa the Jewish king of Judea.

And today’s reading is quite interesting as we see that as Paul defends himself against the accusations of the Jews, he addresses himself mainly to King Agrippa. In fact he addresses Agrippa personally seven times.

Why is this interesting?

Well Agrippa is actually King Herod Agrippa 2^nd. His great grandfather was Herod the Great who tried to kill Jesus when he was a baby, by killing all the children aged two and under around Bethlehem.

His great uncle was Herod Antipas who beheaded John the Baptist.

And his father was Herod Agrippa 1^st who imprisoned the apostle Peter, and executed the apostle James, son of Zebedee.

So, Paul is preaching the gospel to someone who by any standards didn’t come from a particularly pro Christian family line. In fact it would be hard to find a more anti Christian family.

Furthermore, according to bible commentators – on top of his dodgy family history - King Agrippa was also having an incestuous relationship with his sister Bernice, who is mentioned here and also comes to listen to Paul.

What I find interesting about this is passage is that Jesus, through his spirit who lives in Paul - is reaching out in love to someone whose family not only tried to kill him – but killed his cousin, imprisoned one of his best friends and killed one of his apostles.

He is reaching out in love to someone whose life and family background is far from perfect.

So the first thing we can draw from this passage, is that God really does mean it when He says in Paul’s first letter to Timothy, that He wants all men and women to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.

Jesus really does love and want to be reconciled to all people – regardless of their family background – and even if their lives are far from perfect.

Perhaps you’re not a Christian yet – and you are under the illusion that church is only for people who are really good or holy and you are conscious that your life is far from holy.

Well if that’s you – you couldn’t be more wrong. Church is for people who know that they are unholy, who know that they sin – but who believe in a God who not only loves sinners – but who died to save them.

Sometimes even when we’re Christians we can be tempted to hide away from God because we feel unworthy of his love or unclean. But those who feel unworthy and unclean are precisely those who God wants to help.

Rather than hiding from God we need to kneel before him and confess our shortcomings and then accept his love and forgiveness as we seek with His help to do better next time.

In verse 18 Paul tells Agrippa about the commission he received from Jesus to reach out to Gentiles.

Paul records that Jesus said to him; “I am sending you to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.”

And of course this is what Jesus wants to do for all those who do not yet know him – for all those who are still blinded by spiritual darkness.

Darkness blinds people. They cannot see where they are, or where they are going. They cannot see what is around them.

But when the light comes, immediately things start to become clearer. We can see where we are and where we are going and we become aware of all sorts of things that are around us.

And so it is with the spiritual realm. Jesus is the light of the world and when we invite him in to our lives – he helps us to see clearly.

He comes to break the power of spiritual darkness in our lives. Satan blinds people’s minds to God and only the power of Jesus – the power of the gospel can break through this darkness and restore people’s sight.

Those who live in darkness cannot understand the gospel or indeed the bible. Its meaning is clouded. They hear but they do not understand.

But as people acknowledge their blindness and their need for sight and light – as they cry out to God – as they open their hearts and their lives to Jesus and invite him in – he brings light and restores their sight.

This is why Jesus said at the start of his ministry; “The Spirit of the Lord is on me. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free.”

Imagine being in an old house where all the shutters are closed and its dark. And then see as the shutters are thrown open and sunlight comes flooding in.

Will you welcome Jesus – the light of the world - into your life and allow him to restore your spiritual sight or will you continue to live in darkness?

Agrippa is obviously affected by Paul’s preaching. He says in verse 28 – “are you so quickly persuading me to become a Christian?”

I prefer the King James translation though, which says - Then Agrippa said to Paul; “You almost persuade me to become a Christian.”

As Paul has been speaking, Jesus has been knocking on the door of Agrippa’s heart and saying believe in me, allow me into your life to be your Lord and your God and I will forgive all your sin and wrong doing.

And this of course it what happens when the gospel is preached. The Holy Spirit urges us to believe in Jesus and to open the door of our hearts to him and say yes to him.

However frequently, as seems to be the case here with Agrippa, people resist the Holy Spirit’s conviction and push God away.

Why is this? Well perhaps there are some clues in this story about Agrippa.

Initially Luke tells us in the previous chapter that as Agrippa arrives with his sister Bernice to listen to Paul - they come with great pomp and ceremony.

Agrippa obviously enjoys his status as king. He seems to enjoy the trappings of wealth and like being looked up to.

Perhaps he resists the Holy Spirit because he feels his status may be threatened if he becomes a Christian and he’s worried what people might think.

And this can perhaps be a problem for some people – a reason why they keep God at arm’s length.

I mean what will people think if I become a Christian? What will people at work think? What will my friends and family think?

Or perhaps, how will it affect my social standing and will I still be looked up to? Or will I still be cool?

Personally I’d ask why does it matter what people think? Let them think what they want. And your need to be reconciled to God is far more important than what others may or may not think of you.

Another reason Agrippa resists the Holy Spirit may be his incestuous relationship with his sister Bernice. Perhaps he resists God because he is unwilling to give it up.

Again this can be another reason why people resist inviting Jesus into their lives. They may be indulging in some relationship or behaviour which they don’t want to give up or perhaps feel powerless to give up.

But I think that in some ways to resist inviting God into our lives for this reason is to misunderstand how God works in people’s lives.

If you picture our lives like gardens, all of us have weeds and thistles growing – some with deep roots.

None of us have perfect lives and when someone becomes a Christian God wants to help that person - turn his or her garden into something beautiful and fruitful.

But God appreciates that changing our lives is a long term project. He doesn’t expect us to become perfect overnight. And He knows that we will need His help to change - often over a period of time.

People are hugely complex and sometimes sinful behaviour may be the result of being hurt or abused by someone.

God understands this and rather than pushing Him away we need to invite Him into our lives so that he can heal us with a revelation of his love and free us from things which plague and hurt us.

Many of you will have heard me mention Ffald y Brenin the Christian retreat in Pembrokeshire in Wales.

There is a cross on the hillside just outside the main buildings and sometimes walkers come across it and find themselves encountering God.

A lady came across it and she immediately hated it. She’d been married to a man who’d claimed to be a Christian who’d treated her cruelly and abused her.

She looked around and broke a branch from a tree and she started hitting the cross with this branch.

“I hate you God,” she cried. “I really hate you.” But then she heard a voice saying “put your arms around the cross.”

She was startled because she thought someone had been watching her but there was no one else around.

And then she heard the voice again – “put your arms around the cross.”

She didn’t really want to but then she heard the voice a third time and so she put down her branch and did as she’d been asked.

As she put her arms round the cross she felt God put his arms round her and she experienced His overwhelming love for her.

And God told her the treatment she’d received from her husband had grieved Him and He healed her completely from what she’d experienced with a revelation of His great love for her.

I appreciate this is a dramatic story but it illustrates that God loves us and understands why sometimes we can’t just let go or cure ourselves of wrong behaviour or attitudes.

As Christians we can sometimes be quick to judge and we can leave people with the impression that God is more concerned with judging people than He is with loving them.

But this is to mis-represent God. Of course some sin is purely wilful and the result of our own deliberate fault.

But some sin has its roots in how we’ve been treated and what others have done to us – and God understands perfectly when this is the case.

And in these cases God understands that what we need to change our behaviour is actually a revelation of His love rather than condemnation.

So don’t resist God because you feel unworthy or because you feel trapped by behaviour or desires that you feel unable to give up.

God understands and loves you perfectly so welcome Him into your life so that he can help you deal with these over time.

So to conclude. Has Jesus – as he did with Agrippa in this passage - been knocking on the door of your heart? Have you sensed Jesus urging you to just say yes to him – to invite him into your life to be your Lord and Saviour.

Perhaps like Agrippa your life and family background is far from perfect – but that is no bar to God.

Jesus – the light of the world – wants to rescue you from spiritual darkness.

He wants to help you re-build your life and to heal you over time with a revelation of His great love for you.

Will you allow him to do this I wonder or like Agrippa will you resist the pull of his love?

Let’s end with a time of prayer. I’ll say the prayer and then leave a time of quiet when you can express whatever is on your heart to God.

Lord Jesus thank you that you are among us now and that you know us intimately and you love us. You see where there is darkness in our lives and you long to bring light.

You see where there is pain and hurt and you long to bring healing. You see where there is fear and unbelief and you long to bring peace and faith.

Lord we invite you into our lives. Please come by your spirit. Bring light and healing and love. Bring to each of us that which we need most.

QUIET

Amen.

Acts 22 verses 12 to 12

Acts 22 verses 12 to 12

So just to recap we’re continuing with our journey through Acts and Paul has returned to Jerusalem even though he has been warned by the Holy Spirit that he will face a tough time there.

And sure enough before he’s been there a week, he is spotted by some Jews from Asia who stir up the whole city against him.

The angry crowd seize Paul, drag him out of the temple and then set about trying to kill him. Fortunately he is rescued by some Roman soldiers and he asks to be allowed to speak to the crowd.

Paul then shares his testimony with the Jewish crowd, and in this morning’s reading we get the second part of his story about how he became a Christian.

The first thing that strikes me about this passage is that even though these people have just tried to kill him, Paul still cares about them and wants to share the gospel with them.

Although the Jews were Paul’s main opponents throughout Acts and frequently stirred up crowds against him – his heart still beats with compassion for them.

He says in his letter to the Romans: “I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race, the people of Israel.”

And we should try and follow Paul’s example and still try and reach out with God’s love to those who oppose us or antagonise us.

Of course this isn’t easy to do, but Jesus says; “Love your enemies, bless those that curse you and do good to those that hate you.”

Perhaps there are some people causing you grief in your life at the moment. If that’s the case, try and act lovingly towards them and pray for them.

They may be surprised at your reaction and who knows, perhaps like Paul - you may have an opportunity to share your faith with them.

So, Paul decides to share his testimony with these Jews – the story of how he became a Christian. Why does he do this? I believe, its because he can empathise with them. He understands exactly where they are coming from.

And he wants them to know that he used to be just like them. So he addresses them in Hebrew and tells them in the first part of Acts chapter 22 that at one time, he too hated Christians and did his best to imprison and attack those he saw as enemies of God and of the Jewish law.

As we have seen before, Paul seeks to establish common ground with his audience. I know where you’re coming from he says. I used to think in exactly the same way as you - but I encountered Jesus and now I know differently.

And this is an important principle for us to take on board. If we are going to share our faith effectively, we need to establish some common ground with those we are trying to talk to – so that we relate to them and they can relate to us.

Perhaps some of you sitting here this morning are really unsure about this whole Christianity thing.

Well let me tell you – I was too. I haven’t always been a Christian. Far from it – I was brought up in a family who only used to go to church at Christmas and Easter and I knew very little about Christianity.

And when I was at University I argued with some of the Christians there - and I told them they’d got it all wrong.

I believed in a God but personally I quite liked the Bahai faith – which maintained that all world religions had elements of truth and that it was up to each individual to select whatever appealed to them from whatever religion they fancied – a bit like selecting your own spiritual buffet.

This seemed eminently sensible to me – but that was before I encountered Jesus, and like Paul, after this encounter, my life and views changed completely.

I now know that my views about the Bahai faith were very naive and that the Christians I argued against, were absolutely right. Jesus is, exactly as he claims to be - the way the truth and the life, and no one can come to the Father except through him.

So, Paul establishes common ground and shares his testimony. And of course every Christian has a testimony. Every Christian has a story to tell about how they came to know God and about what God has done in their lives.

And like Paul we need to look for opportunities to share our testimonies. It doesn’t matter if they‘re dramatic or not. These stories are all important as they are stories of people coming to know God today.

It’s important to read through Acts and to see what God did in the lives of the early Church - but people also need to hear what God is doing in people’s lives in this generation.

Advertising agencies understand the importance of people’s testimonies. You can tell people that a product is wonderful – but people are more convinced if someone tells them they’ve tried it and it really works.

Our friends and neighbours and work colleagues need to hear our testimonies. They need to hear how we came to faith and what God means to us, and what He is doing in our lives.

They need to hear that Jesus is alive and real and that just as he did with Paul, he is still opening people’s eyes to know Him today.

Jesus opened my eyes to know him overnight in 1986 when I was aged 24. Since my teens I’d had a real hunger to know God. I remember playing tennis and thinking very clearly - unless there is a God, life is ultimately completely pointless.

And I believed there must be a God because I could see order and design in creation.

And I really wanted to know this God and I particularly wanted to know why he had created me.

So I used to pray before I went to bed. I used to say - God I don’t know if you’re listening but if you are, please reveal yourself to me. I want to know you. And sometimes I used to throw in the Lord’s Prayer for good measure.

And one morning I woke up and I knew something had happened to me because I was full of love – a love that hadn’t been there before.

My step mother’s family came to lunch that day and while we were eating I felt a really powerful love for everyone at the table.

Later that afternoon I picked up my old school bible and started reading some of Matthew’s gospel and Jesus words just came alive to me.

They were like living words. It was as if Jesus was speaking to me. I remember being a bit confused as something had evidently happened to me but I didn’t know what.

No doubt Paul was confused after his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus – but fortunately he has Ananias who comes and helps him to make sense of everything that’s just happened to him.

And every Christian has people like Ananias – people who have helped them on their journey towards becoming a Christian, and who have helped them to come to know God.

I wonder who your Ananias’s have been? Who were those individuals who helped you on your journey towards Christ?

I had two Ananias’s. The first was my great Aunt Hazel or Tay as she was known.

She was my Grandmother’s sister and she was a nun. Her fiance – a young army officer - had been killed in the first world war and she’d devoted her life ever since, to God.

She spent most of it in Africa - as a missionary in Tanzania - but in later life she returned to England. And when I was a teenager and she visited, she used to home in on me and tell me about God.

And she used to write me letters explaining the gospel to me. At the time I used to wish she’d divert her attention to my sisters and I wondered why she’d picked on me.

I became a Christian after she died, but I’m sure now that her prayers played a big part in me becoming a Christian. And reading some of her letters – it is evident that she seemed to know that one day I would become a Christian.

My other Ananias was an amazing young lady called Karen that I met at a Young Farmers Barn Dance.

Karen’s ambition was to be a missionary nurse in Bangladesh and she was quite simply a lovely human being – full of the love and gentleness and humility of Jesus.

In the weeks before I became Christian I went out with Karen a few times and she told me about her life and faith.

On the night before my conversion I’d been out with Karen. I can’t remember if I prayed that night, but I’m sure she must have prayed for me.

And it was Karen that I turned to on the afternoon of the day of my conversion.

I rang her and explained my symptoms to her and she told me that I’d been born again and that I’d become a Christian.

She told me that the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus had come to live in my heart and life and that the love I was feeling was His love.

And the reason the bible had come alive was because the Holy Spirit was helping me to understand it.

She gave me some bible reading notes – Every Day with Jesus – and urged me to find a Church – and that’s how my Christian life started.

And of course just as there have been Ananias’s in our lives – people who have helped us come to know Christ - so we are to be like Ananias to other people.

We are to come alongside people and pray for them and help them to come to know Jesus.

Who can you be an Ananias to I wonder? Perhaps your grandchildren, or a nephew or niece; perhaps a work colleague or a friend; perhaps a neighbour.

Finally, following his conversion experience, Jesus sends Paul out. He says “Go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles.”

And this is Jesus’s command to us also – Go! Our conversion isn’t an ending to our stories – it’s the beginning.

We don’t search for God and when we’ve eventually found Him - say thank goodness for that now I can sit down and have a rest.

On the contrary – His command is that we go out into the world and work to extend his kingdom.  This is the new priority in our life.

Like Paul we are to seek to love those around us even if they oppose us. We must try to establish common ground with those we are reaching out to, so that they can relate to us.

We must be prepared to share our testimonies as we have the opportunity. And we must seek to be like Ananias to other people – to come alongside then and help them to see God clearly.

In the name of the living God. Amen.

Cafe Church - Study Passage and Questions – 6th July 2014 Colossians Ch2 verses 1 – 12

These verses are amongst the most profound in the whole bible when it comes to aiding our understanding of who God is, of how to discover his love and his truth, and how to live in that love and truth with each other.                                

It starts with understanding that everything we can and need to know about God has been revealed in Jesus, his teaching, his life, his person. He is the ‘mystery’ of God in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge’.v 2 – 3. It is as we get to know Jesus better – and put into practice what we learn about him, his truth, and his love, that not only do we gain  answers to life’s most profound questions, we also begin to understand how to love our neighbour as ourself. Also, through such truth and loving we get a deeper understanding of what it means to be the Church (Church family).    

Paul is encouraging Christians to dig deeper in understanding and in practising Christian love. (If you discovered a seam of gold in a mountain, you would not stand and admire the surface of it, you would not scrape the surface; you would dig deeper!) We can encourage one another with our own experiences of God in our lives. And here is a great truth: the main purpose of meeting together as the Church is to encourage one-another in our discipleship of Jesus. 

Why? 

Because our encouraging one another demonstrates. Indeed, our worship of God is empty and vain unless it includes this element of encouragement of others: by doing so we grow in love and wisdom!                 

So much of what Jesus taught about selfless love and love of neighbour goes against much of what the world says is ‘important’ in life. Paul tells us here not to be deceived by such ‘hollow and deceptive philosophy’ v 8. It is as we encourage one another in the truth and the love of Jesus, appreciating ever more deeply the meaning and purpose of his death, resurrection, and gift of the Holy Spirit, that we will mature in our understanding of what it means to be not only a more faithful Christian but a better human being.

1. What is the connection for Christians between knowledge, truth, and love?

2. What is God’s revealed answer to the world’s most profound questions?

3. What does it mean in day to day terms for us to ‘receive Christ as Lord’?

4. What would you consider to be ‘hollow and deceptive philosophy’ v8?