I spent hours in a lawyer's office yesterday, working on a leftover issue from my days as a banker. It put me in a receptive mood for what happened to Paul in this chapter. Paul was his own witness at a trial where others didn't care about doing the right thing -- they only wanted to win.
Tertullus, the lawyer for the other side, had to play his part for his clients, the Jewish leadership, before Felix. He began with flattery, hoping Felix would find favor with their side immediately. "He then brought three charges: a personal charge ("he is a pestilent fellow"), a political charge (sedition and leading an lllegal religion), and a doctrinal charge (profaning the temple)."
"The Romans were afraid of anything that might upset their delicate peace ... wherever Paul went, there was either a riot or a revival (Vance Havner) ... But it was his own countrymen, not the Roman authorities, who caused Paul trouble from city to city."
As to the political charge, "no Roman official wanted to be guilty of permitting illegal activities that would upset the Roman Peace. The instigator charge immediately got the attention of the governor ... Tertullus knew that Paul had preached to the Jews that Jesus Christ was their King and Lord ... this sounded like treason against Caesar. Furthermore, it was illegal to establish a new religion in Rome without the approval of the authorities ... At that time, the Christian faith was still identified with the Jews ... later, when more of the congregation separated from the Jewish synagogues, then Rome saw the difference between Jews and Christians and trouble began."
"His third accusation had to be handled with care because it implicated a Roman officer who had saved a man's life ... Tertullus had to present this third charge in a way that made the Jews look good without making the Romans look too bad, and he did a good job ... He softened the charge. The Asian Jews had said that Paul had polluted the temple, but Tertullus said, 'He even tried to profane the temple.' Paul's accusers realized that the original charge could never be substantiated if the facts were investigated. But even more, the witnesses had vanished. Tertullus gave the impression that Paul had actually been guilty of profaning the temple, that the Jews had been within their rights in seizing him, and that the captain had stepped out of line by interfering. It was Claudius, not the Jews, who was guilty of treating a Roman citizen with violence! ... Tertullus argued that if Claudius had not interfered, the Jews would have tried Paul themselves, and this would have saved Felix and Rome a great deal of trouble and expense."
The governor did not ask Paul questions but merely nodded for him to speak. "As far as the temple charge, Paul was in the temple to worship and not to lead a disturbance. In fact, the temple records would show that Paul was registered to pay the cost for four Jews who had taken a Nazirite vow. Paul had not preached in the temple or the synagogues, nor had he preached anywhere in the city ... Nobody could prove that he was guilty of leading any kind of rebellion."
As to the charges of sedition and heresy, Paul told Felix about his religious roots and that he was a Pharisee. He did not worship a different God. He worshiped Him in a new and living way. The Pharisees present were trapped, because "if Paul's faith was that of a heretic, then they were heretics, too. Paul and the early Christians did not see themselves as former Jews, but as fulfilled Jews ... they had found their Messiah."
Paul told them "he had not come to Jerusalem to defile the temple, but to bring needed help to the Jewish people and to present his own offering to the Lord ... How could Paul possibly be worshiping God and profaning God's house at the same time? A Jewish priest was in charge of Paul's temple activities, so, if the holy temple was defiled, the priest was responsible. Paul was only obeying the law."
"He reached the heart of his defense. Roman law required that accusers face the accused at the trial, or else the charges would be dropped." They had brought no witnesses, knowing they couldn't stand up under questioning. Also, instead of the Jewish leaders giving him a fair hearing, "the high priest and the Sanhedrin had abused him and refused to hear him out ... they could not prove their charges ... but there was enough circumstantial evidence to plant doubts in the minds of the Roman officials."
Felix kept Paul in the palace under house arrest and kept him relatively comfortable for two years, not wanting to make a decision on the case. Paul was able to witness to Felix and his wife, telling them three compelling reasons why they should repent and believe on Jesus Christ:
1) They had to do something about yesterday's sin (righteousness). My commentary quoted, "We talk about mistakes, weaknesses, inherited tendencies, faults, and even errors, but we do not face up to the fact of sin... People are no longer sinful. They are only immature or underprivileged or frightened or sick."
2) "We must do something about today's temptations (self-control). Man can control almost everything but himself."
3) "We must do something about tomorrow's judgment ... Jesus Christ is either your Savior or your Judge. How do we know that Jesus Christ is the Judge? 'God had given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead,' the Bible says.
"The governor's mind was enlightened, his emotions were stirred, but his will would not yield ... He procrastinated himself into hell ... It is not enough for a person to know the facts about Christ, or to have an emotional response to a message. He or she must willingly repent of sin and trust the Savior."
Father, thank You for this refreshed course in telling others about Your salvation through Christ!
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
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