Finally, You Have To Say Something!

Transcription

1 2 nd Sunday of EASTER April 12, :15 am Rev. Todd Goldschmidt, Pastor Sermon Text: Acts 26:19-29 Finally, You Have To Say Something! Acts 26: New International Version (NIV) 19 So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven. 20 First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and then to the Gentiles, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds. 21 That is why some Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me. 22 But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen 23 that the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles. 24 At this point Festus interrupted Paul s defense. You are out of your mind,paul! he shouted. Your great learning is driving you insane. 25 I am not insane, most excellent Festus, Paul replied. What I am saying is true and reasonable. 26 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. 27 King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do. 28 Then Agrippa said to Paul, Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian? 29 Paul replied, Short time or long I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains. (425) pastortodd@lhlc.org Page 1 of 5

2 The wedding reception was going smoothly thank you very much. Your eclectic mix of relatives, friends and coworkers seemed to enjoy getting acquainted. And then you spied it. Your friend was facing you in a circle of five. She grinned at someone s light-hearted comment, and there it was, a little fleck of broccoli wedged between her front teeth. For a second you thought she d wash it away when she took a sip of her wine. No, it was still there for everyone to see! Finally, you had to say something. You re sitting on a park bench in the sun, trying to ring up three stars on your favorite video game and minding your own business. A young dad is engrossed in his cell phone while his two kids swing nearby. Out of the corner of your eye you see the two-year-old wriggle free from his bucket-seat swing and start wandering in front of the five-year-old, getting closer and closer to what will surely be a painful collision. Finally, you had to say something. God has determined that the good news of how sinners can avoid hell and end up in heaven needs to get out to more and more people so that every room in His heavenly mansion is filled. He s assigned that task to Christians like us. In today s sermon text from Acts chapter twenty-six, we see a wellknown Christian named Paul go for it. He assures King Herod Agrippa II and Governor Festus that the events of Holy Week particularly Jesus bodily resurrection on Easter Were not done in a corner. There are many lessons we can learn from this text, not the least of which is that, Finally, You Have To Say Something! Paul had just finished his 3 rd preaching tour, a 4-year trek into Asia Minor and Greece that ended at Jerusalem. Some religious leaders, who were fervently opposed to his message about Jesus, stirred up a mob and almost tore him to bits. But the Roman police intervened. The commander put him under arrest until a trial could be held. When he got word that Paul s enemies had cooked up an assassination plot, he sent a cadre of 470 soldiers to take Paul under the cover of darkness to the seaport city of Caesarea, sixty miles to the NW, where the Roman governor, Felix, resided. Felix couldn t decide what to do with Paul. He also expected Paul to slip him a few denarii under the table. That didn t happen, of course, so Paul stayed locked up for two years. When a new governor took over, Paul s enemies tried to get him to move the case back to Jerusalem. But Paul new that meant certain death. So, he appealed to what amounted to the Supreme Court of his day: I appeal to Caesar! So Festus replied, To Caesar you will go! (Acts 25:11-12). A few days later, King Herod Agrippa II, the great-grandson of Herod the Great, showed up to welcome Governor Festus to Palestine. Festus didn t want to look stupid by sending an innocent man to the imperial court, so he suggested that Herod might help him determine what specific charges he should pin on Paul. The next day Paul stood before a royal tribunal. Finally, Paul had a chance to speak. No, Paul wasn t mum in jail. That s not how he rolled. He didn t clang his metal coffee mug on the bars of his cell demanding justice. But you have to think that he sang spiritual songs, prayed aloud and talked about Jesus to the other prisoners just like he d done earlier in his career while jailed in the Greek city of Philippi. But finally, the time had come. Finally, he had to say something. (425) pastortodd@lhlc.org Page 2 of 5

3 You can download books about communication on your Kindle or ipad, take college courses in the subject and even earn a communications degree. The skills are extremely practical for those who go into marketing, sales or journalism. The underlying principles can benefit anyone who d like to build closer relationships or even solidify a marriage. But you don t need a communications degree to tell the truth about what God did for sinners through Christ Jesus. All you need is the right time. But when? Like Paul, for us the wait is over. In fact, it was over the second Adam and Eve stood in Eden, post-fall, clothed in flimsy fig leaves and overcome with guilt and shame. They expected the ground to swallow them whole into the fires of hell. Instead, they heard God proclaim His plan to crush Satan and rescue sinners. From then on every sinner can look at any other sinner who doesn t know or doesn t seem to care about God s rescue plan and, with a heart filled with more concern than for a friend with a broccoli fleck in her teeth or for a child in a swing s path finally say something; for, finally, you have something to say. Paul knew where he d been on his own life-path before Jesus turned him around. Envy, resentment and misguided anger bubbled up inside. He was so ashamed of what his ire led him to do that he painted himself as the worst of sinners. I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And that is just what I did (Acts 25:9-10). What bugged him about Jesus? Simply put, Jesus message flew in the face of everything Paul held dear, especially his belief that sinners had to do something to get God to smile on them. To claim they couldn t insulted Paul s inborn instincts and his Pharisaical tenets. It s like being told during a performance review, You re completely incompetent. Your best efforts are grossly inadequate. You re a loser. That irked Paul to the point of hounding those who said it. The Jewish high priest gave him the green light to rustle up Christians like stray cattle. He detained them, voted for their deaths, and even held the coats of those who stoned the first Christian martyr. What he didn t know or didn t want to know until confronted by Jesus Himself was that it is impossible for any sinner to earn a nod from God. He d failed to reckon with how high God had set the bar. He thought he only had to jump ten inches to get over the bar and into God s arms. God has set the bar at ten feet. But on one of Paul s search and destroy missions, Jesus turned his heart and his life around. He changed Paul from the inside out! Once his heart was on the right track everything else followed. When called in front of the authorities, he didn t pull a Moses and beg for a spokesman. He didn t pull an Elijah and whine, I m the only one left standing. He didn t pull a Jeremiah and claim youth and inexperience. No! He avowed, I stand here and testify to small and great alike. Finally, he and not someone else had to say something despite the risks! Let s be honest. Don t we wish at times that God had assigned someone else the task of proclaiming His love? Maybe angels or Sem. grads? We don t want to look foolish, or come across as Biblethumpers, or be rejected. Would that Isaiah had said, Here am I, Lord, but send someone else, instead of, Here am I. Send me! (Isaiah 6:8). But we have our own story to tell. Even if we came from a Christian home, we have our own sin-strewn past and our own gut instincts that push us into hypocritical pride that longs for at least a little credit for our reserved parking spot in heaven s lot. Then, every day we re confronted with the reality that we can t jump over the bar God has set either, and that we d be losers sans Jesus. But with Jesus we re winners! His story has become our story. (425) pastortodd@lhlc.org Page 3 of 5

4 So, we can t expect someone who doesn t know or doesn t care about God to tell it. Finally, you have to say something; I have to say something; we have to say something! None of what Paul said was made up off the top of his head. He relayed the facts I preached that people should come to grips with their faults and failures, trust that God s forgiven them because of Jesus payment, and demonstrate their thanks by their deeds. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen that the Christ would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would proclaim light to his own people and to the Gentiles. From Moses to Malachi all of God s messengers pointed to the coming Messiah. Jesus fulfilled every last detail of those prophecies. Festus slapped his forehead when Paul talk of a dead man God in human flesh coming back to life and shouted, Paul, you re nuts! Paul replied, What I am declaring is true and reasonable. King Herod is familiar with these things none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner. Paul had something to say! Christianity is not a pipe dream. It didn t start with someone sitting on a hill, waiting for God s angels to drop some golden tablets with divine truths into his lap. If you were asked, What makes you so sure that Christianity is right? you wouldn t say, Well, it feels right, or That s what my grandma believed, so it s good enough for me. No! Christianity is based on facts, centuries of predictions that match perfectly with a Savior named Jesus who has fully and freely removed our sins from God s sight. We are not at a loss for words. What we proclaim is not foolish or unreasonable, nor is the message a club to pound people into submission. Its good news the best news that God has rescued you and me and all sinners from the doom of hell and poured out upon us the pleasures of heaven. Finally, we have to say something, and we have something to say. The key rattled in the cell door s lock, a guard entered and in a two-pack-a-day rasp said, You get to speak your case today. Paul didn t reply, I d rather not or Do I have to? No, he was grateful for the opportunity. I don t have to say something. he thought. I get to say something. The shift in Paul s thinking was all due to Easter. If Jesus stayed dead, Paul and every other sinner would have to wonder, Was He yanking our chain when He cried, It is finished? If He s still dead, did He pay for our sins or not? But a living Lord gave Paul absolute certainty and real peace; He starched Paul s spine and softened his heart even to the point of caring about his captors even if they rejected what he d say. Agrippa said to Paul, Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian? Paul replied, Short time or long I pray God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains. He didn t have to say something. Finally, he wanted to say something. The bi-weekly staff meeting began with light banter as usual before folks got down to business. The last item on the agenda was one you cared deeply about but hadn t as yet shared your opinion with anyone. Each agenda item got its checkmark until that last one. Everyone on the team had strong opinions about it, which they shared. Then all eyes turned to you. For what seemed like hours an unnerving hush fell over the room. You could hear the soda bubbles fizzing in the glass across the table. If there d been a spider inching up the wall you d likely have heard it, too. Finally, you had to say something. (425) pastortodd@lhlc.org Page 4 of 5

5 Most people prefer private conversation to public speaking. But even in private chats a time comes when the topic turns to spiritual matters and you have to walk through that door. Does that make you squirm? Easter erases that uncomfortable feeling of being on the spot. It s more like sharing the news of the birth of a baby, or seeing your daughter or son return home from military service safe and sound, or being the third-grader in the second last row who knows the answer to the teacher s question and raises her hand, Oo-oo-oo! You don t have to say something. Finally, you get to say something. Christ has died, Christ is risen and Christ will come again for me, for you, and for all. Amen. (425) pastortodd@lhlc.org Page 5 of 5