Ambushed – Acts 25-26
February 15, 2015Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Speaker: Jerry Cisar
Instead of the title Ambushed, I was tempted to title my message: The Only Honest Man, because Paul is the only honest man in the story. In Acts 25–26, Paul remains a faithful witness against a barrage of false witnesses and the Lord will once again deliver him. But for what purpose? Paul is continually delivered that he might rescue the very ones before him from the authority of Satan and to God.
Paul defends himself against this barrage of lies with the quiet confidence of a man who knows that truth is the only that that will ultimately survive. He must have ultimately believed in a truth Martin Luther King, Jr. succinctly stated: “A lie cannot live.” Or as he a little less succinctly stated: “I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.”
While we can all amen these truths, the fact is, while in the middle of these experiences Paul faced fears, doubts, and anxieties concerning whether or not the lies would triumph. You and I will face fear and doubt if we find ourselves in the same situation. Part of why this account is here is so that we too can be faithful witnesses when we are on trial just like Paul, James (Acts 12), Stephen (Acts 7), and Jesus were.
Paul not only proclaims the truth which his enemies so hated in this text, he proclaims the truth that we all must deal with. The truth that what the prophets promised in history was fulfilled in the open by One, Jesus of Nazareth. Let’s come eager to worship the One who fulfills all that the prophets promised.