Postponing Salvation
Published by Stanley Pouw in 2024 · 10 March 2024
This evening we complete our look at Felix, the tragedy of a man who had a great opportunity, but postponed it and forfeited it. Second Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable,” and so since all is profitable, we expect the Spirit of God to really teach our hearts. This passage deals with Felix and Paul who was on trial before him.
Paul had been accused of crimes which were all false. They had been given by some antagonistic Jewish leaders who wanted to see Paul dead because he was a threat to their theological security. And we not only see Paul, and the history and the example of his blameless life, we also see God at work. But we see Felix, a tragic man, who had a life-and-death issue, but squandered it.
Felix must judge in the case of Paul. The problem has now been pushed to a higher court, the court of Felix, in Caesarea, the Roman headquarters. And Felix must make a legal decision regarding Paul, but beyond that, he must make a personal decision regarding Jesus Christ. And that really is the ultimate. And the record is of a man who forfeited a tremendous opportunity.
There are three parts to the trial: the prosecution, the defense, and the verdict. And we saw last time the prosecution. In verses 1 to 9, the Jews come to Caesarea, and they accuse Paul of three things: sedition, which means he stirs up Jews against Rome. Sectarianism is that he was a religious heretic against Jews as being a Nazarene, and being sacrilege toward God.
All those charges against Paul are false. He is accused of those things, and guilty of none of them. This is something that Paul anticipated and expected. Christians who live holy lives in Satan’s world will always have to contend with false accusations. Jesus says in Matthew 10:16, “I’m sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as serpents and as innocent as doves.”
Jesus says that there's going to be hostility when you get out there. He says then, “You should be as wise as serpents”, you should be careful and clever. And you should be as innocent or as guiltless “as doves.” Paul has shown us again and again his cleverness, in the way he was able to construct the situation to benefit the Gospel, even in the midst of a very hostile audience.
Matthew 10:17-20, “Beware of them, because they will hand you over to local courts and flog you in their synagogues. 18 You will even be brought before governors and kings because of me, to bear witness to them and to the Gentiles. 19 But when they hand you over, don’t worry about what you are to speak. For you will be given what to say at that hour, 20 because it is the Holy Spirit speaking through you.”
Paul had already experienced that. “They will flog you in their synagogues.” He was on the verge of being scourged, not in the synagogue, but in Fort Antonia. But the Jews did do the floggings in their local synagogues. “And you will be brought before governors and kings.” Paul has been brought before the governor, Felix, and he’ll be brought before the king, Agrippa in Acts 26.
Jesus says, “But when they hand you over, don’t worry about what you are to speak. For you will be given what to say at that hour, 20 because it is the Holy Spirit speaking through you.” That is a direct promise to the apostles. But in an indirect sense that can be passed down to us in the fact that the Spirit leads us and guides us. And in Paul’s trials, whenever he spoke, he spoke revelation.
God gave him the words, and they’re recorded in Scripture. And He says in Matthew 10:21-22, “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. 22 You will be hated by everyone because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Now, the reason for this hostility is because of Jesus Christ.
Matthew 10:26 says, “Therefore, don’t be afraid of them, since there is nothing covered that won’t be uncovered and nothing hidden that won’t be made known.” In other words, don’t be afraid, because there will come a time when judgment will be done, and proper rewards will be given, and we’ll unmask the truth of who was real and who wasn’t and who deserves a reward and who doesn’t.
Verse 28, “Don’t fear those who kill the body but are not able to kill the soul; rather, fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” God has instant information. Anything that exists, He knows. Now, Jesus goes on to talk about the fact that we should expect this, and that God’s going to care for us. You need to step out and pay a price, which is being against the world system.
In Matthew 10:37-39 Jesus says, “The one who loves a father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; the one who loves a son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 And whoever doesn’t take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Anyone who finds his life will lose it, and anyone who loses his life because of Me will find it.” Jesus says expect trouble when you are a Christian.
Let’s look at the defense in Acts 24. Paul, having heard their false charges - sedition, sectarianism, and sacrilege - against him, he decides that he will answer them when he is asked to by Felix in verse 10. First to sedition he replies in verses 11 to 13 which say, “You can verify for yourself that it is no more than twelve days since I went up to worship in Jerusalem.”
12 They didn’t find me arguing with anyone or causing a disturbance among the crowd, either in the temple or in the synagogues or anywhere in the city. 13 Neither can they prove the charges they are now making against me.” I have not done any of these things. I haven’t been here long enough to start a revolution. The time that I was here, I was in the temple, and I wasn’t arguing with anybody.
It’s an illustration of the stupidity of the Jewish accusations. You can go back to Malachi. One of the seven deadly sins that destroyed Israel, Malachi said, was they kept lifting up evil men. Verse 14, “But I admit this to you: I worship the God of my ancestors according to the Way, which they call a sect, believing everything that is in accordance with the law and written in the prophets.”
The Jews are not worshiping the true God; they don’t believe all things in the law and Prophets, and they don’t believe in the resurrection.” And they were Sadducees. Paul says, “I am the true Jew; they’re the heretics.” The third accusation was sacrilege, that he had attempted to profane the sacred temple, and was accused of blaspheming God, and he replies to that in verse 17 and following.
Verse 17-20, “After many years, I came to bring charitable gifts and offerings to my people.” 18 While I was doing this, some Jews from Asia found me ritually purified in the temple, without a crowd and without any uproar. 19 It is they who ought to be here before you to bring charges. 20 Or let these men here state what wrongdoing they found in me when I stood before the Sanhedrin.”
Remember, he had collected that money from all the Gentile Christians, and he was bringing it to give to the Jewish Christians as a sign of love. The only true Jew in existence is the Christian Jew, the one who is a Jew not outwardly, but inwardly. These Jews from Asia Minor came and they found me there, and they saw that I was doing nothing there. I had not desecrated the temple.
Where are your witnesses? There weren’t any. You know why? Because he hadn’t done it. Why don’t you let them tell you if they found any evil doing in me, while I stood before the council? And the council had met, remember? And they were going to say, “We’re going to find out what this guy did,” and the council ended in a riot, and they never did find out anything.
Verse 21, “Other than this one statement I shouted while standing among them, ‘Today I am on trial before you concerning the resurrection of the dead.’” Paul knows that that’s no criminal issue at all. That’s a theological discussion, no issue for a court. And Felix knew this. He knew it even before Paul’s testimony, because he got a letter from the Claudius Lysias, which explained it.
A Roman judge cannot make a determination in a case or regarding Jewish theology. There is no crime, there’s nothing. Felix knew that, he knew the real issue. Paul just gave him the responsibility. He says, “The only thing they’ve got that hassles them is that I made a statement concerning the resurrection of the dead, and that’s the issue, and that’s the only thing that they could bring up.”
So what is the verdict? The only possible verdict that could be rendered was that Paul was innocent. Felix knows that the Jews have perjured themselves from the beginning of the trial to the end. And Felix knew from the letter from Claudius what went on. They lied about the accusations, because they had no witnesses. So Felix has got a problem. He knew the Jews lied, but he was afraid.
He had a lot of Jews on his hands who were very angry, and angry Jews can cause a revolution. Remember Pilate? The ultimate reason that Pilate finally allowed Jesus to be crucified was just because he wanted to pacify the Jews, because he was afraid he’d lose his job if he couldn’t rule well. And Felix is trapped the same way. His relationship to Roman law and to Rome is at stake.
Verse 22, “Since Felix was well informed about the Way, he adjourned the hearing, saying, “When Lysias the commander comes down, I will decide your case.” Luke is telling us that Felix knew what the right answer was; that Felix, having a more perfect knowledge of the Way, knew what he should have done. But he was a coward. There is no record that Claudius Lysias ever was called and came.
He just permanently postponed the thing. And there were a lot of other Christians, and he was in Judea for nine years. Look what verse 23 says, “He ordered that the centurion keep Paul under guard, though he could have some freedom, and that he should not prevent any of his friends from meeting his needs.” A centurion is a soldier in charge of 100 other soldiers.
Here is a stupid compromise. Felix is going to give Paul a modified freedom, and pacify his conscience. Paul had liberty, and his friends and acquaintances could come to him at will, but this is really the act of a coward. He postpones everything. It’s the record of a man before a pagan judge, being accused by Jewish accusers, who comes off innocent. It’s just like the case of Christ.
So, as we look at the trial from Paul’s perspective, it gives to us a picture of a man who is a holy man, who can stand before a group of people who are searching every corner they can find to get something against him, and they can’t find anything; so should it be in your life. Now, what about God’s perspective? Is it in the sovereign will of God?” Of course it always is.
The whole two years Paul is there, we don’t know of any sermon that he preached, or of anything that he ever wrote. God just let him rest. Whatever the thing is, God knew that Paul needed two years there. And whatever God accomplished, He accomplished within His purpose. Lastly, we need to look at Felix. His past is bad, his present is compromised, and indecision in his future is tragic.
Verse 24-26, “Several days later, when Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, he sent for Paul and listened to him on the subject of faith in Christ Jesus. 25 Now as he spoke about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix became afraid and replied, “Leave for now, but when I have an opportunity I’ll call for you.” 26 At the same time he hoped that Paul would offer him money.
What the faith in Christ means is the faith: the totality of Christian content. Paul gave him all the gospel. He told him Jesus was God. He told him Jesus was born of a virgin. He told him Jesus lived a miraculous life. He told him Jesus died on the cross for the deliverance of sin. He told him Jesus rose the third day from the dead. He told him all the facts of the gospel.
So, Paul told Felix, “Here’s God’s standard, and God demands that you conform to it.” And if you don’t, that’s the third word: judgment to come. That’s the gospel. God’s absolute ideal; you must conform to it or be judged. This could get very personal to Felix. After Paul presented the ideal of righteousness, and then Paul started shooting down Felix, because Felix had no self-control at all.
And he started to talk to him about his sin, and the fact that he had not lived up to God’s standard. That God demanded absolute righteousness, and here’s Felix, living way below that level. And then Paul says, “But because you can’t live up to it, Jesus Christ took your penalty, paid your judgment, and offers you His righteousness by faith.” That’s the gospel. But Felix just wanted money.
Verse 27, “After two years had passed, Porcius Festus succeeded Felix, and because Felix wanted to do the Jews a favor, he left Paul in prison.” The reason Felix got changed was there was a big riot in Caesarea, and Felix put it down with such violence that the Jews were outraged, and the outraged Jews managed to get his recall from Rome, and so he lost his office. Let us pray.