Food for Thought
Acts chapter twenty-four covers an interesting three-way conversation involving Paul, Jewish accusers from Jerusalem, and Felix the Governor at Caesarea. The Jews who also brought their lawyer were hoping for a quick trial or perhaps even a decision in their favour without a trial. They were concerned about the effect that the apostles and the sharing of the gospel was having on their people.
Paul is given a chance to defend himself which he does quite well. He admits he is a follower of ‘the way’ which was what the Christians were being called at that time. This is where it gets interesting. It would have been very easy for Felix to quickly side with the Jewish accusers even if the charges could not be proven. He had the power to do that, and it was probably the politically astute thing to do. But he defers judgement. Paul is held in custody but allowed considerable freedom. The text says that Felix was quite familiar with ‘the way’. It would be very interesting to know how that familiarity had come to be and what impact it had on Felix.
But a few days later Felix and his Jewish wife show up wanting to chat with Paul. Paul’s words about faith in Christ, righteousness, and the judgement to come result in Felix being terrified. Felix defers again, sending Paul away without making a decision about what he is hearing about Jesus or the future of Paul. But the scriptures say that Felix sent for Paul often and talked with him.
Some food for thought here to be sure. First the gospel is powerful. Hebrews 4:12 (NLT) says:
For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.
It was obviously powerful in the case of Felix. We should keep on sharing our faith believing in the gospel’s power even if the result is not immediately obvious.
Secondly, we are not given to know if Felix and his Jewish wife ever became Christians, but we do know that they heard the gospel message many times because of the faithfulness of Paul to proclaim it even when such proclamation might have been personally dangerous. Be encouraged to continue to proclaim!
Pastor Dave
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