Dave's Diary

Daily Readings: Acts 24 and Psalm 92

In Luke 21:12 Jesus warned His disciples: “They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name.” Acts 24 presented Paul with his first opportunity to witness to a Roman governor, namely Felix – the successor of Pontius Pilate.

His accusers, represented by the high priest Ananias, some of the Jewish elders, and their Roman legal representative, Tertullus, presented the case against him. Their speech comprised of flattery and false accusations. Both of these are forms of lying and deceit. In fact, Felix was not a governor with great foresight who had brought about peace. In reality, the historian Tacitus described him as ‘a master of cruelty and lust’, and John Stott writes that he had “put down several insurrections with such barbarous brutality that he earned for himself the horror, not the thanks, of the Jewish population.” Their flattery was a crude attempt at manipulation and a pack of bald-faced lies. Likewise, their accusations against Paul were also totally untrue.

By contrast, Paul rested his defence on straightforward truth and easily verifiable facts. And he then took the opportunity to keep talking and to explain that he was a follower of “The Way” because of his faith in all the words of the Law and Prophets. He was subtly planting a seed of truth for the Jews present to consider. If they really did their research, they would discover how clearly their Scriptures pointed to the Messiah, Jesus. Paul relied on truth as his weapon.

We see the same again when, after being kept under house arrest pending a final decision, Paul took every opportunity to speak the truth of the Gospel to Felix and his wife Drusilla. Presenting Jesus as the Saviour, Paul also made it very clear that unless Felix chose to repent of his sins and pursue righteousness through faith in Jesus, and a lifestyle of self-control thereafter, he would be subject to the judgment to come. Sadly Felix did not choose to live by the truth. Unwilling to repent, he ignored the truth of Paul’s warnings and kept him under arrest merely for his own convenience and the hope of a bribe.

Life application: Paul trusted the truth. He relied on it to defend his innocence and to present the Gospel. He did not beat around the bush or flatter anyone. He spoke the plain truth and he spoke it very directly. Will you follow his example today and be a person of truth in every circumstance?