DAY 25
Acts 25:1-27
Paul Appears before Festus
Three days after Festus arrived in Caesarea to take over his new responsibilities, he left for Jerusalem, 2 where the leading priests and other Jewish leaders met with him and made their accusations against Paul. 3 They asked Festus as a favor to transfer Paul to Jerusalem (planning to ambush and kill him on the way). 4 But Festus replied that Paul was at Caesarea and he himself would be returning there soon. 5 So he said, “Those of you in authority can return with me. If Paul has done anything wrong, you can make your accusations.”
6 About eight or ten days later Festus returned to Caesarea, and on the following day he took his seat in court and ordered that Paul be brought in. 7 When Paul arrived, the Jewish leaders from Jerusalem gathered around and made many serious accusations they couldn’t prove.
8 Paul denied the charges. “I am not guilty of any crime against the Jewish laws or the Temple or the Roman government,” he said.
9 Then Festus, wanting to please the Jews, asked him, “Are you willing to go to Jerusalem and stand trial before me there?”
10 But Paul replied, “No! This is the official Roman court, so I ought to be tried right here. You know very well I am not guilty of harming the Jews. 11 If I have done something worthy of death, I don’t refuse to die. But if I am innocent, no one has a right to turn me over to these men to kill me. I appeal to Caesar!”
12 Festus conferred with his advisers and then replied, “Very well! You have appealed to Caesar, and to Caesar you will go!”
13 A few days later King Agrippa arrived with his sister, Bernice, to pay their respects to Festus. 14 During their stay of several days, Festus discussed Paul’s case with the king. “There is a prisoner here,” he told him, “whose case was left for me by Felix. 15 When I was in Jerusalem, the leading priests and Jewish elders pressed charges against him and asked me to condemn him. 16 I pointed out to them that Roman law does not convict people without a trial. They must be given an opportunity to confront their accusers and defend themselves.
17 “When his accusers came here for the trial, I didn’t delay. I called the case the very next day and ordered Paul brought in. 18 But the accusations made against him weren’t any of the crimes I expected. 19 Instead, it was something about their religion and a dead man named Jesus, who Paul insists is alive. 20 I was at a loss to know how to investigate these things, so I asked him whether he would be willing to stand trial on these charges in Jerusalem. 21 But Paul appealed to have his case decided by the emperor. So I ordered that he be held in custody until I could arrange to send him to Caesar.”
22 “I’d like to hear the man myself,” Agrippa said.
And Festus replied, “You will—tomorrow!”
Paul Speaks to Agrippa
23 So the next day Agrippa and Bernice arrived at the auditorium with great pomp, accompanied by military officers and prominent men of the city. Festus ordered that Paul be brought in. 24 Then Festus said, “King Agrippa and all who are here, this is the man whose death is demanded by all the Jews, both here and in Jerusalem. 25 But in my opinion he has done nothing deserving death. However, since he appealed his case to the emperor, I have decided to send him to Rome.
26 “But what shall I write the emperor? For there is no clear charge against him. So I have brought him before all of you, and especially you, King Agrippa, so that after we examine him, I might have something to write. 27 For it makes no sense to send a prisoner to the emperor without specifying the charges against him!”
1. At this point in the Acts narrative, Paul had spent quite a long time in prison for preaching the gospel. Does it surprise you that Paul was so willing to accept such elaborate consequences of such a minor issue (at least to modern readers)? Do you think that Paul believed that his mission was to continue to spread the gospel to those he encountered while in prison? Reflect on your own life for a moment – do you think that God has given you a mission to spread the gospel to those around you in your own situation?
2. Often, we want immediate justice for ourselves when we feel as though we’ve been wronged. Paul was certainly wronged and was paying a large price for his actions in Rome. As Christians, we must understand that justice doesn’t always come in the moment, or even within our lifetimes. However, as Ecclesiastes 3:17 states, the justice of God is the ultimate end of all things. When you are wronged, do you seek the need for immediate justice? What can we learn from Scripture and from Paul’s time in prison about how we should react to personal injustice?
3. We are tempted to take matters into our own hands when we are faced with injustice, or even when we deem something as being unfair. If we can learn to react properly, acknowledging that justice is God’s and God’s alone, then what can we learn during times that we’ve felt we’ve been dealt a “bad hand?” In more general terms, how can we grow closer with God during the more difficult times in our lives? How can you ready yourself to respond more like Paul during these moments in life?
God, I understand and acknowledge that justice is Yours and Yours alone. Teach me today to respond the way You would desire when I am faced with injustice in my own life. Grant me peace, patience and understanding towards those who seek ill will against me. Teach me to rest within Your presence when my core desire is to seek justice for myself through taking action on my own. Show me how to trust in You and Your timing, and allow me to take solace in the fact that justice is Yours and it will come in Your own timing. I give you control over the situations I am desperate to control myself, and I trust in Your perfect timing for my life. Amen.
LIFE IS NOT MEANT TO BE LIVED ALONE. YOU WERE CREATED TO EXPERIENCE LIFE WITH OTHER PEOPLE.