The Gospel on Trial
Some people can just spout out movie lines like they wrote the script. I’m not that way, but I do remember famous movie lines. If I tell you a few scenarios, I’m sure you can tell me the famous movie line that came from it.
Arnold Schwarzenegger as the Terminator – “I’ll be back.”
I mentioned this one a few weeks ago…from “A League of Their Own” with Tom Hanks – “There’s no crying in baseball!”
Here’s another baseball one. What’s the famous line from “Field of Dreams”? – “If you build it, he will come.”
Ok, now this one’s a Navy courtroom drama with Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson when Tom Cruise says, “I want the truth!”, what is it Jack Nicholson responds with? – “You can’t handle the truth!”
That’s somewhat the scene that’s been unfolding before us with Paul. Paul is on trial before Felix, the Roman governor, and he’s been accused by Jewish leaders. What we will see, though, is there was much more on trial than Paul. What was really on trial was the gospel itself.
The gospel, rightly believed, must be spread. (5)
In verses 1-2, Ananias, the high priest, and the elders come to Caesarea with a lawyer, Tertullus, to present their case against Paul. In verses 3-5, Tertullus accuses Paul of being a troublemaker, stirring up riots among the Jews, and leading the sect of the Nazarenes. These are the same things they were saying about him when he came to Jerusalem. They’re bringing it full circle here.
Remember the reason he partook in the Nazirite vow? It was to show them that he wasn’t against Judaism and those who were zealous for the law. But for that very thing they’ve twisted it so much now that they say he is “a ringleader of the sect of Nazarenes” and stirring “up riots among all the Jews throughout the world.”
Why would they say these things about Paul? Why was there such hatred and disdain? It’s because he was sharing the gospel, and the gospel was spreading. Look at verse 5. It says, “we have found this man a plague.” A plague isn’t just something bad. What’s unique about a plague? It spreads. Paul was facing such hostility precisely because he was spreading the gospel.
For our faithfulness, we’re not promised an easy road. We’re actually promised hostility. Just this week I talked with someone who was fired from their job for seeking to share the gospel. If you don’t have any pushback or hostility in your life due to your Christian walk, it’s either because you aren’t walking with Christ or you aren’t walking where He’s told you to go.
“How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”[1]
After they brought the charges, they allowed Paul to speak. Paul defends himself against the claims, but you better believe he also gets to the heart of the gospel, especially if that’s what’s really on trial.. The gospel is the whole reason he is there. He has been changed from a Pharisee, zealous for the law of God but in actuality separated from God. Now he has experienced the grace of God for himself, and he’s willing to go anywhere and face anything for the sake of the gospel.
The gospel of the New Testament fulfills the Old Testament. (14)
In verses 10-14, Paul defends himself, asserting he did nothing against the Jewish law, the temple, or Caesar. In verse 14, he declares his worship aligns with "the Way," and he worships “the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets.”
Paul connects the gospel (The Way) to the fulfillment of the Old Testament, showing that all of it is God’s plan.
Remember what Jesus said about this: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”[2] Jesus is the Jewish Messiah. He is the fulfillment of all that has been promised. Every act of redemption in the Old Testament points to the act of redemption Jesus brought forth on the cross.
Jesus is the second Adam, fulfilling righteousness for us that was lost at Adam’s fall.[3]
As righteous Abel died at the hands of his brother, the sprinkled blood of Jesus speaks a better word than the blood of Abel, bringing us righteousness by his grace.[4]
Jesus is the ark that Noah built, delivering us safely from the judgment of God that we so justly deserve.[5]
Jesus is the Passover Lamb, the blood sacrifice to cover over our sins and spare us from the just judgment of God.[6]
Jesus is the spotless, unblemished sacrifice and the scapegoat for us, removing our sins far away, once and for all.[7]
Jesus is the serpent lifted high on a pole, that all who look to Him do not die but live eternally.[8]
Jesus is the eternal king of the lineage of David, ruling and reigning over the cosmos with equity and justice.[9]
Jesus is the faithful Jonah who rather than spending three days in a great fish for his disobedience spent three days dead in a tomb for our disobedience.[10]
Jesus is the fulfillment of every promise that God has ever made.[11]
All of history points to Jesus, and all of history flows from Jesus. And it’s all because though Jesus died, yet He lives.
The reality of the resurrection is the central component of our faith. (21)
The reason Paul really is on trial is because of the resurrection. Remember in 23:6, Paul says, “Brothers, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees. It is with respect to the hope and the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial.” Pharisees believed in resurrection, but the Sadducees didn’t. Once Paul mentioned resurrection, they became enraged. The high priest, Ananias was himself a Sadducee. Earlier he had Paul punched in the mouth (23:2), now he has travelled about 70 miles to put Paul on trial. And after Paul defends himself against their false accusations, he takes it to the heart of the issue. In verse 21, he says, “It is with respect to the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial before you this day.”
So, really the resurrection is on trial. Can the resurrection stand up to scrutiny? Absolutely. The resurrection of Jesus can be proven beyond all reasonable doubt, once all the facts are assessed, especially when aligned with any contrary theory. The evidence for the resurrection of Jesus is overwhelming!
Most recently, the leading Christian scholar on the resurrection, Gary Habermas, just released a 1,000-page book on the evidence of the resurrection. And that’s just book 1 of 2! The proofs of the reality of the resurrection are so numerous, it more than holds up to scrutiny.
Why would the resurrection bring such hostility? It’s not just the resurrection of Jesus that brings hostility, but it’s our resurrection. Both the just and the unjust are resurrected. Some are resurrected to eternal life, and others are resurrected to eternal punishment.
Knowledge of Jesus won’t save you; only faith in Him will. (22-24)
Felix postpones the trial, curious about "the Way" but not committing to any decision. But you know what his lack of decision is? It is a decision to not believe. Even agnostics and seekers are unbelievers.
There are a lot of people who know a lot about Jesus but don’t follow Him. The Bible says, “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!”[12] With Jesus, “two demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way. And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?”[13] They knew who Jesus was and what He came to do, yet they didn’t follow Him.
Intellectual assent without faith is insufficient for salvation. Faith in Jesus requires a personal response, not mere curiosity or even accurate knowledge. One day you will stand before Jesus, and you will either say, “My Lord and my God,”[14] or you will say, “I knew about you, but I didn’t want to follow you.” And you will hear only one of two replies: “Depart from me, for I never knew you.”[15] or “Well done my good and faithful servant.”[16]
Which do you want to hear? You want to hear “Well done.” You can by placing your faith in Jesus today. Don’t be like Felix who continues to listen but not believe.
People would rather pursue comfort than face the truth. (25-27)
Felix leaves Paul imprisoned for two years, and he keeps going back to him hoping to get something out of him, not the salvation that Paul is speaking of that comes through Jesus, but he’s hoping to get money out of him. It’s like the movie. “I want the truth! You can’t handle the truth!”
Felix’s reaction hits on a common human tendency: many avoid uncomfortable truths in favor of personal gain or comfort. The gospel challenges us to confront our sin and see our need for a Savior. It requires we give up our disbelief, our disbelief we have lived in our entire life. The new and the uncertain is scary. Faith is scary. Trusting someone other than ourselves is scary and uncomfortable.
But here’s what it’s like. It’s like someone avoiding a medical diagnosis because they fear the treatment, preferring temporary comfort over long-term health. They may think they are safe in their agnosticism, but they are, in reality, doomed in their disbelief.
Let that not be you today. Right now is the time for you to place your faith in Jesus.
[3] Romans 5:14, 17; 1 Corinthians 15:21-22, 45
[7] John 1:29; Hebrews 10:1-18
[9] 2 Samuel 7:12-16; Matthew 1:1; Mark 12:35-37; Romans 1:3; Revelation 22:16
