Acts 25 & 26

This morning we are going to be hyper-mode.  We are going to cover two chapters, Acts 25 & 26, because it is really all one story.  There is no place to break it up.  So, I am going to summarize parts of these two chapters and move at hyper-speed.  So put on your fast ears. We will be working toward one statement in these two chapters.  It is a statement made by… Jesus.  Here is the statement:

Acts 26:14  “It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”

We are going to first figure out the context of this statement and then attempt to understand what in the world it means.  And then, most importantly, we will ask what this statement means to us.  “It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”  Hmmm… Let’s begin to explore.

In Acts 24 we heard Paul before Felix.  Felix was the governor of Judea from 52 AD to about 59 AD.  Paul witnessed before Felix and touched his heart. He was good and scared when he heard about faith in Jesus, self-control, righteousness and judgment.  Even though he was scared he chose not to repent and believe in Jesus.  So, after leaving Paul in jail for 2 years, he was fired from his post as governor and replaced by a man named Festus.  That is where the story begins this morning.

Acts 25:1-3  Three days after arriving in the province, Festus went up from Caesarea to Jerusalem,  where the chief priests and Jewish leaders appeared before him and presented the charges against Paul. They urgently requested Festus, as a favor to them, to have Paul transferred to Jerusalem, for they were preparing an ambush to kill him along the way.

Even after two years the Jews still didn’t forget their hatred of Paul.  Isn’t that amazing?  Two years, and they still devised fiendish plots against Paul. They planned another ambush!  But Festus didn’t fall for it.  He said when we get back to Caesarea we will figure all this out.  Eight or ten days later Festus got back to the house and convened another trial for Paul. 

Acts 25:7-12  When Paul appeared, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many serious charges against him, which they could not prove.  Then Paul made his defense: "I have done nothing wrong against the law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar."  Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, said to Paul, "Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me there on these charges?"  Paul answered: "I am now standing before Caesar's court, where I ought to be tried. I have not done any wrong to the Jews, as you yourself know very well. If, however, I am guilty of doing anything deserving death, I do not refuse to die. But if the charges brought against me by these Jews are not true, no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar!"  After Festus had conferred with his council, he declared: "You have appealed to Caesar. To Caesar you will go!"

Paul, as a Roman citizen, had the right to appeal to Caesar. So he did.  Paul had no use for Jerusalem, ever again. He was not going to place himself under the jurisdiction of the high priest. So he was off to Rome. Trivia question; who was the Caesar Paul appealed to?  Nero.  Now, in the mean time, Festus had a problem.  He had only been on the job two weeks, so he didn’t have a clue what was going on with Paul. Here was his problem: What are the charges?   He is supposed to send a report to Caesar with something written down and Festus didn’t know what to put in his report. 

So, Festus took advantage of someone who did know what was going on and who happened by at just the right time. King Agrippa and his sister, Bernice, came to welcome the new ruler and they agreed to help out. This Agrippa is King Herod Agrippa II, great-grandson of Herod the Great, who attempted to kill Jesus and son of Agrippa I, the one who did kill James, the apostle.  King Agrippa was the ruler of the area just north of Judea.

Acts 25:24-27   Festus said: "King Agrippa, and all who are present with us, you see this man! The whole Jewish community has petitioned me about him in Jerusalem and here in Caesarea, shouting that he ought not to live any longer.  I found he had done nothing deserving of death, but because he made his appeal to the Emperor I decided to send him to Rome.  But I have nothing definite to write to His Majesty about him. Therefore I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that as a result of this investigation I may have something to write.  For I think it is unreasonable to send on a prisoner without specifying the charges against him."  

Now, Paul is standing, not only before Festus, the governor, but also King Agrippa and Queen Bernice.  More pressure, but Paul is still amazingly cool.  And once again Paul began to witness, this time before, a governor, a king and a queen.  We are getting closer to our Jesus’ statement about kicking goads.

Paul begins to tell his story again.  Remember back in Acts 22 Paul witnessed by telling his story. We made the point about the power of telling your own story.  That is what witnessing is all about. Paul does it again; making mostly the same points he did back at the Temple. 
-Paul was born into a devoted Jewish family.
-Paul was a dedicated Pharisee.
-Paul had even persecuted Christians.
-Paul was on his way to Damascus when his life forever changed. 

Acts 26:12-14  "On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. About noon, O king, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions.  We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'”

Here we have our statement.  What does this metaphor about kicking goads mean?  A goad, as you could guess, is a sharp pointy stick or spear that people use to encourage knuckle-headed animals to go in the direction they want.   We would call it a cattle prod.  So, Jesus told Paul it was hard for him to buck against the cattle prod.  What did that mean for Paul? How did he kick against the goads?  Let’s think back about what we know of Paul’s history. 
-Paul was a disciple of Gamaliel.  What was Gamaliel’s advice?  “If their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God."  Did Paul follow this goad?  No, he kicked and ended up fighting against God!
-Paul had witnessed the death of Stephen.  That had to have been disturbing.  How could Paul watch this obviously devoted man die while looking into heaven and say "Lord, do not hold this sin against them."  That was a goad Paul kicked against. 
-Paul surely spoke to numerous Christians about their faith.  In the course of his investigation he would have learned all about Jesus. 
-He would have seen the faithfulness of those he persecuted.  He had attempted to get Christians to denounce their faith; unsuccessfully.  Why?  Here is a powerful goad.
-Paul knew the Scriptures.  He could have search in Joel, Daniel, Zechariah and especially Isaiah to learn of who the Messiah was.  But he did not. 
-Paul would have heard of Jesus, maybe even witnessed Jesus in person.  He had every opportunity to learn of the Lord.  But he kicked instead. 
-How did Paul explain the resurrection?  It didn’t happen in a vacuum. Everyone knew of it!  Something started this Nazarene Sect.  What was it if not the resurrection? 

There were plenty of “goads” prodding Paul to find out the truth about Jesus.  But instead, he kept on stubbornly defending his position; fighting against the shocks which were pointing him in a different direction.  Until that final prod which knocked him to the ground and demanded his attention and obedience. 

Acts 26:19-23  "So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven.  First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds. That is why the Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me.  But I have had God's help to this very day, and so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. 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."  

Paul was goaded by the Lord himself!  And this last goading took.  Paul then was obedient to the Vision!  What is interesting is in the previous two accounts of Paul’s conversion there is not any mention of this kicking the goads statement.  Both Acts 9 & 22 relate the road to Damascus, the bright light and Jesus saying, “Why do you persecute me?” But neither mentioned kicking goads.  Why then, in this 3rd account, does Luke mention the goad kicking?

It has to do with what happened next.  Watch the reaction from Festus and from Agrippa.  There are at least two others kicking the goads. And that is Paul’s point and my point as well. 

Acts 26:24-29  At this point Festus interrupted Paul's defense. "You are out of your mind, Paul!" he shouted. "Your great learning is driving you insane."  "I am not insane, most excellent Festus," Paul replied. "What I am saying is true and reasonable.  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.  King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do."   Then 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."

Both Festus and Agrippa are examples of goad kickers

-Festus says in essence, “You are an idiot.”  The common sense; show-me, practical Roman could not bring himself to believe in the uncommon resurrection.  Things like that don’t happen.  Even in the presence of overwhelming evidence that it did. Festus was going to kick the goads and say it didn’t. Does that sound familiar?  “I am not going to believe that someone came back from the dead.  Stuff like that doesn’t happen!”  People today react the same way as Festus.  “That miracle stuff is silly.  Surely, you aren’t going to believe people come back from the dead.”  People today, even though the evidence is there, still kick against the goads and refuse to believe in the resurrection of Jesus!

-King Agrippa also was a goad kicker.  “You don’t think I am going to become a Christian. I am the king.  I’m too sophisticated for such things. I am too educated and enlightened and important to become a Christian. Me, become a follower of some nobody who was executed?  No thanks.”  That also sounds familiar.  Today people are too proud to humble themselves and follow Jesus.

That leads us to how the goad kicking principle applies to our lives; you and me, today.  God has an intention for your life.  God has a vocation for your existence; a purpose, a mission.  God intends you to fulfill your destiny.  This destiny begins with your conversion to Christ.  Just like Paul, God is pursuing you.  He probably won’t knock you down on the street and speak to you out of the light.  But he is, none the less, providing you opportunities to believe, to place your faith in Jesus, repent of your sins and be baptized.  God is goading you to be baptized. Those nudges to be baptized are goads from God! Your destiny begins with your conversion. Are you a goad kicker?

Your destiny continues beyond your conversion and becomes a commission. Watch what it was for Paul.  Remember way back in Acts 9 what Jesus told Ananias about Paul?

Acts 9:15-16  But the Lord said to Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel.  I will show him how much he must suffer for my name."

God had a destiny for Paul to be an instrument to Gentiles, the people of Israel and even to kings.  Wow!  Paul was in fact fulfilling his destiny as he stood before King Agrippa.  That is a model for us, as well.  Goads, are one way, God leads us to our commission.  Doors open and doors close.  Unexpected events and disappointments nudge us.  Sometimes there are easy ways and hard ways.  The Christian who is paying attention can see the hand of God in the way life plays out.  This is really the bottom line of our lives.  Goads move us in the direction God wants. 

The trick is to be flexible; to be open, to be responsive to the goads. It is in being responsive to our commission that we find where God wants us to be.  Being in God’s will is the best place to be!  I believe God has a place for each of us to serve.  Finding that place is all about not being a goad kicker, but moving to the nudgings of God.   Isn’t that really where your heart wants to be? 

Let’s get back to Paul and find out where the goads were leading Paul in his destiny.

Acts 26:29-32  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." The king rose, and with him the governor and Bernice and those sitting with them. They left the room, and while talking with one another, they said, "This man is not doing anything that deserves death or imprisonment."  Agrippa said to Festus, "This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar."

Paul was not guilty of anything. Perhaps he could have been released. But that was not where Paul was being lead; he was destined for Rome.  Festus still had a report to write.  I don’t know what he put in it. I guess he made up something.  But Paul’s last line of his last speech in Acts is the clincher: “I pray God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.”  That is still Paul’s prayer for us today; to stop kicking the goads and respond to Jesus, first,  in conversion and then in commission. 

Los Alamos Church of Christ
October 26, 2008