Acts 25:13-27

When the accusers stood up, they brought no charge in his case of such evils as I supposed. Rather they had certain points of dispute with him about their own religion and about aa certain Jesus, who was dead, but whom Paul asserted to be alive.

Sermon Transcript:

Morning everybody. Invite you to take your Bibles to the book of Acts as we return to our series, The Spirit at Work to the Ends of the Earth, in Acts chapter 25 this morning. We’re going to be picking up a passage, Pastor Mike, um, began for us, uh, the first half of the chapter, but Acts chapter 25, and I’m going to read the first phrase of it, um, And then I’m going to talk a little bit about it, and then I’m going to read the rest of it by way of introduction this morning.

Okay, Acts chapter 25. I’m going to verse 13. And we’re going to end up reading verse 26 all the way through. But verse 13 now. Here’s what it reads in Acts 25 verse 13. Now when some days had passed. All right, we’re going to stop right there. Because I want to talk about those days. And I want to, I want to set the table of where we are.

First we’re going to pray, and then we’re going to dive into this passage. I’m going to acknowledge at the beginning, there’s some history here. So you guys that hate history, hang with us. There’s a reason we’re talking history. Those of you that like history, this is a good one. A lot in here. Okay. Let’s pray.

Lord, we praise you for a beautiful morning. We’re reminded as we drove over today in our cars, we look around us and it’s easy to say, this is the day the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it. God, thank you for the privilege of corporate praise, worship, and now Father, the joy of coming under the scriptures and being instructed from your word.

God, lead us to the things that you have for us to learn today. In Jesus name, Amen. When we come to this passage, it’s been an active two years for Paul ever since he hit the shores of Judea. Remember he had been on the missionary journey, it’s been a number of years away from the, what we call the Holy Land.

He is now returning for the first time, and for the first time he’s coming to Jerusalem in over eight years. As he comes, there are a variety of things that have happened. One is, beginning in chapter 21, the middle of it, bringing us up to where we are in chapter 25. Paul was arrested. It was a giant riot.

They were literally trying to tear him apart. The Roman soldiers rescued him. They then put him in prison in Jerusalem. And then they found out that there were 40 assassins that had promised they would never eat again until they had killed Paul. So a troop of hundreds of Roman soldiers escorted him to 75 miles north, still a prisoner, to Caesarea, which was the center of Roman influence and authority.

The governor’s place was up in Caesarea. And that’s where they took him. As they did so, they put him in Caesarean prison. And while there, the Jewish council, the leadership of Israel, Sanhedrin, the 70 leaders, came the 75 miles to bring railing accusations against Paul. They wanted him dead. They wanted the Romans to execute him.

The first governor that talks to him is a guy named Governor Felix. And he can’t find anything to condemn him with. And so he keeps him in jail. He sends the Sanhedrin, this Jewish council, back to Jerusalem. And Paul is there for two years in prison. We don’t know anything else except he’s there for two years.

At the end of the two years, Felix is replaced as a governor. And a new governor is put in. This guy is Governor Festus. And he also, as soon as the Sanhedrin hear there’s a new governor, they get his ear, they come up 75 miles again, they present their case. And they ask, can you send him to Jerusalem? And we’ll, we’ll form the council.

You can still preside over it. But we’ll be your, your, your jury that will join with you. And so he brings Paul out. They confront him again. And Festus can’t find anything with him. And so he says to Paul in the chapter of chapter 25, the beginning of our, our text this morning. He basically says, uh, Paul, would you like to go back?

to Jerusalem with these guys. And Paul knows what that means. Paul knows there’s no justice for him in Jerusalem. He knows it will be a death sentence. So he appeals to the higher court. And he said, I appeal to Caesar. Well, this totally throws Festus. He wasn’t expecting this. Here’s the spot he’s in.

Number one, he has no accusations. He, he has to accede to this Roman citizen’s request to go to Rome because he is saying, I, I don’t think I’m going to get just treatment here. So this is a tough spot for Festus. Number one, because if he sends Paul to Rome without charges, The governor looks like a dope.

Well, why’d you send him to the court of Caesar? On the other hand, if he says the real reason he’s doing this because the Rome, the Jewish leaders are, are determined to see sentence executed on this guy, so I gotta do something with him. The second dilemma he’s got. Is now the, the, the messaging to Rome is yeah, these Jewish leaders, I can’t, I can’t control them.

Well, that’s the very reason historically we’re told that his predecessor was removed from office. So the result is he does nothing. He sends the, the Sanhedrin back to Jerusalem. We come to our passage this morning, and when we get here, we find a fascinating discussion that takes place. Paul’s not involved.

It’s a conversation between two Roman governors, leaders. One is called Agrippa, who shows up, and it’s a great moment for Governor Festus because Agrippa actually is Jewish. He’s also been raised in the household of Caesar in Rome. So he gets roman law. He also gets these jews, which festus does not. He doesn’t understand their law.

He doesn’t understand. He doesn’t even know who the christos is Uh the messiah and so he shows up and we have in this passage this conversation between two roman authorities About paul. We don’t hear him speaking We hear him being talked about and what I want to do this morning is to give you the backstory Of these Roman governors and particularly the unique political cultural moment that’s going on right now as we read this passage and then show in the midst of all that was transpiring how Paul handled it, how he responded to it because it is in the moment of confusion for all the players involved here.

In the first century Judea, the Romans and their leaders, the Jews and their leaders, the people of the way, the Christians who have embraced the way, for all of them, their world is in chaos. And Paul sits in a Roman jail in the middle of it all. He’s a bastion of con confidence and certainty. He is anchored to the right things.

Paul serves as a mentor to us in 2023. We are in a season of confusion. Culturally, our day has been called the most divisive time in America over the last 100 years. Political tension, cultural divide, mistrust of authority structures, riots in major cities, innumerable public shootings, the most extreme edges of both political parties speaking with loud and disruptive voices, increasing the divide and ratcheting up the hostility.

Paul can teach us where to anchor ourselves in such unsettling seasons of life. But we need to understand the sea of confusion he lived in and how relevant and how powerful his anchoring is for our own experience today. We learned some of that as we get to know these guys in Acts chapter 25. And I’d like to now read a little more of the passage that I started.

Acts 25 verse 13 and again now Festus has just heard Paul say I appeal to Rome and he says well to Rome you’ll go and here’s what happens now when some days had passed Agrippa the king and Bernice that’s his sister arrived at Caesarea and greeted Festus and as they stayed there many days Festus laid Paul’s case before the king saying there is a man left prisoner by Felix and when I was at Jerusalem the chief priests and the elders of the Jews laid out their case against it Asking for a sentence of condemnation against him, I answered that it was not the custom of the Romans to give up anyone before the accused met with the accusers face to face, and had opportunity to make his defense concerning the charge laid against him.

So when they came together here, I made no delay, but on the next day took my seat on the tribunal and ordered the man to be brought. When the accusers stood up, they brought no charge in his case of such evils as I supposed. Rather they had certain points of dispute with him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus who was dead But whom Paul asserted to be alive.

Being at a loss how to investigate these questions I asked whether he wanted to go to Jerusalem and be tried their concern regarding them But when Paul had appealed to be kept in custody for the decision of the emperor, I ordered him to be held until I could send him to Caesar. Then Agrippa said to Festus, I’d like to hear this man myself.

Tomorrow, said he, you will hear him. So on the next day, Agrippa and Bernas came with great pomp, and they entered the audience hall with the military tribunes and the prominent men of the city. Then at the command of Festus, Paul was brought in. And Festus said, King Agrippa, and all who are present with us, You see this man about whom the whole Jewish people petitioned me, both in Jerusalem and here, shouting that he ought not to live any longer.

But I found that he had done nothing deserving death, and as he himself appealed to the Emperor, I decided to go ahead and send him. But I have nothing definite to write to my Lord about him. Therefore, I have brought him before you all, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that after we have examined him, I may have something to write.

For it seems to me unreasonable in sending a prisoner not to indicate the charges against him. Okay, let’s pray.

Lord, I’m grateful for this passage and this whole context in Acts. To me, it’s exciting to hear the connection between the broader world and what’s taking place among the people of God. And to be struck, God, how we who also live in a bigger world with bigger stuff going on, which affects our daily lives too, that Lord, we can learn from Paul just where our anchors need to be in our lives as people who ultimately live as citizens of your kingdom.

So teach us to that end, Lord, please, in Jesus name. Amen. Okay, I want to talk about the season of confusion and then at the end, briefly, a couple of some thoughts, takeaways, regarding Paul’s anchors. First of all, it is a season of confusion here in the first century Judea. Paul’s mission seems to be in confusion.

Acts 1 8 was the statement that was made where the spirit was promised to come on the church and Acts 1 8 says but you will receive power after the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth. We see the picture of this taking place in Acts chapter 1 through 21.

And here’s the sequence that has taken place. In AD 29 to 35, they have taken the gospel, as recorded in Acts 1 through 7, to Jerusalem. And then over the next 9, 10 years, to Judea and Samaria, recorded in Acts 8 through 12. And then in AD 50, Paul has taken it with his associates to the ends of the earth.

Three missionary journeys have taken place in Acts 13 through 21, first half. So it makes sense, right? This is the way it should play. This is, this is what God said. The gospel’s gonna go forth to the ends of the earth. And Paul is the human agent that is the primary focus, but Peter’s doing it. Uh, others are joining with him.

And then we come to Acts chapter 21, the middle of the chapter. And it’s a bewildering change. In A. D. 58 and 59, when Paul arrives in Jerusalem, he’s arrested. He’s put in prison. Then he’s put in a Caesarean prison for over, for two years. As he is then, um, sent to Rome as a prisoner. He’s in jail for Rome, to Rome for two to three years.

He is a prisoner of Rome for the last seven and a half chapters of the book of Acts. And we say, what? What’s going on? I mean, what about the power of the Spirit? Coming upon you. What about the gospel going to the ends of the earth and this strategic, you know, plan that Paul had, you know, how he was going to take the gospel and start churches in Rome and then he said, I want to go on to Spain.

Remember all this? I, I, he had a strategy. The fourth missionary journey was going to be the biggest and the best. It never happens. And we are looking at a scene that it gives us some degree of confusion. What’s going on in the plan and purposes of God? And the mission of fall and the mission of the church the second area we find confusion is the culture of the day Rome is now in judea a little bit of background.

It’s 59 ad. Okay a little over a hundred years before Rome had entered this part of the world and extended their empire far enough to the farthest eastern border of the Mediterranean Sea. There, guys like Juliet Caesar was fighting there, uh, others, but they had, they had encroached. Pompey had actually come a general and, and beat down Jerusalem, burned the temple.

And, as they have come in, the Romans have replaced the Greeks, the Babylonians, others that have been over the, The Jews for centuries, but the Romans are different. They’re much more controlling. They allow them to have their religion. They allow them to have a pseudo leadership in the Sanhedrin, but they also appoint their own guys.

But for the most part, the Jews are able to handle it primarily because a Jewish governor named Herod is appointed by the Romans. He sides with the right Roman general. And this guy, Herod the Great, serves for 45 years over the entire area of Judea. Way up above the Sea of Galilee and all the way down, way below Jerusalem.

The whole area is under his, his governorship. He dies just after Jesus is born. Alright, so now we’re into the A. D. ‘s. And this guy now has started the Herodian line.

We used to have a baptismal tank in days gone by and it would sit right here when there was baptism and One time I went back and I felt straight back to the back Mercifully and to the great disappointment of every teenager in the room There was plywood on the top so I didn’t go all the way in and my feet sticking up out of the water But so this that’s child’s play.

Okay, so so so the Herodian line starts Okay with Herod and now he has sons and he divides up his kingdom and it’s divided into three different areas And and they’ve continued now we come down and it’s 44 AD And in 40, excuse me, yeah, 44 AD, the father of this guy Agrippa that shows up and is going to question Paul dies.

He was an interesting guy. He was the guy that put to death James, the brother of John, and arrested Peter in Jerusalem to put him to death. But God took his life soon after that. This Agrippa, who was the only male… Uh, descendant of the line was only 17 years old, so they didn’t make him the governor of the whole area.

It just gave him a little parcel up above the of the Sea of Galilee. So, for the first time, the Romans don’t have a Jewish member of the household of Herod to put over the governorship of Judea. And so from 44 A. D. to now, 15 years later, they’ve been sending these guys from Rome who don’t know anything about Judaism.

I mean, their religions, uh, Roman religion, you have hundreds of gods. You have dozens of temples all over the world. I mean, every time you want to worship one of your gods, you can find a temple somewhere. But these Jews are different. They have one god. They have one temple, they don’t get them, they don’t get their laws, they don’t get their practices, they don’t get how they’re structured.

They have this scripture. The Romans didn’t have a Bible. They don’t understand this, that the Jews say is inspired of God and it’s relevant, even though it was written hundreds of years before. It was an entirely different way of doing life. As a matter of fact, religion was so foundational to the Jews, that the civil leaders, political leaders, are all looked at as religious authorities to some degree.

So it’s a very bewildering situation. And unfortunately, they don’t send their best to Judea. And one after another, these Roman guys come in and utterly offend the Jews. This guy, Felix, who served from 52 to 59. Is one example. I, I, hold on, I’m gonna wait on that. I, I’ll come back to that. Okay. So what they’re doing, and one Jewish scholar, one of the, one of the preeminent histories of the Jews is put together by a man named Emil Schur.

And I put his quote up. He said, it might be thought from the record of the Roman pure Procurators that he’s appointed governors, that they all as if by secret arrangement, systematically and deliberately set out to drive the people.

Now they didn’t, but it seemed that way. It was just, they did everything wrong. Again, now, it’s 59 AD, right? That’s where, when Paul is in Caesarea, which is the center of Roman influence. in the entire region. It’s where the governor resides. It’s where more of the soldiers and legionaries are. Paul’s in prison there and he’s meeting with these Roman governors.

Six years later, the Roman leaders have made one too many mistakes. And the Zealots, a guerrilla organization of Jews utterly opposed to Rome, begin burning Roman homes. Begin, uh, slaying, killing. assassinating Roman soldiers and Roman leaders. Everything has ratcheted up. The zealots in 66 AD actually become strong enough, six and a half years later, that they take over the city of Jerusalem and they drive out the entire Antonia fortress.

of legionnaires. They flee to Caesarea. They have now declared themselves in absolute revolt against Rome. Nero, the emperor of Rome, begins to load his ships, legionnaires. They make their way from 66 A. D. and on they begin to Come to the countryside of Judea arriving in Caesarea and then coming south conquering cities villages and eventually come after crushing all opposition until they arrive for a terrible siege of The city of Jerusalem and I just have a couple of paintings here This particular one is just depicting the Romans.

They’re beginning their siege on the city of Jerusalem It resulted in starvation in the city and eventually the breaching of the walls. In this next painting, there is the visual, and if you can see in the left hand corner, there’s uh, the menorah, the golden lamp stand is being taken out. The Romans breached the city, they went in, they took all the articles, the Ark of the Covenant, the menorah, the table of showbreadth, took all of the holy vessels and actually transported it back to Rome as far as we know.

Even though Raiders of the Lost Ark is sure where it went, um, not sure about it.

There was a terrible slaughter of thousands of inhabitants. It has been deemed by many historians The greatest massacre of a city in the entire history of the ancient world was a city that was, there are stories that come out by writers of, of parents actually eating babies. It was, they would, they would die.

It was desperate circumstances. This horrific moment and the result of it was the city, including the temple, was utterly destroyed by fire. Everyone was left homeless, refugees. The nation of Israel is destroyed at this moment. And it all took place 6. 5 years from Paul’s interview with these Roman governors.

I want to put this in context. If the USA was about to enter a civil war that resulted in the complete destruction of our country, Six and a half years would mean that if you were watching the Super Bowl victory in 2017 of the Eagles, this morning, the USA would be in a nation destroying civil war. This is how close Paul’s account in Acts 25 is to the utter destruction of the nation.

And all of the seeds of that are felt by everybody. Felix, let me just show you the other Roman governors. I’m going to try to bring all this together. Why am I saying all this? In A. D. 59, the world of Judea was in chaos. Felix, this governor I mentioned, was appointed in 52 to 59. He was a terrible leader.

He was always overplaying his hand with harshness. One of the things he did in A. D. 57 was there was an Egyptian Jew that came, said he had a dream that, and he, and he got a, he got a following of hundreds of soldiers or, or people that joined his band, marauding rebels. And they were planning on attacking the Antonio Fortress, the Jerusalem Fortress of Legionnaires.

Um, word got out about it. And Felix responded so violently, uh, in, in torturing and killing all these people. Some people he pulled in that were just suspected. They were wiped out. And it was so vitriolic in his response, that it was one of two major events that he did that actually caused the Roman emperor to say, you’ve got to get you out of there.

You’re just stoking the fire so hard. It’s interesting, if you remember when Paul went into the temple area and the Roman, uh, tribune there arrested Paul. And he said, who are you? And he said, and Paul told him who he was. He says, that’s not who I thought you. I thought you were the Egyptian guy. He actually identifies in a beautiful merging of history and Bible history.

He said, I thought you were that guy because that guy escaped. It was so much on people’s minds. This is a hotbed of turmoil. Festus then comes in in AD 59 when Felix is taken out. But he only, and he’s the procreators historically, and we have a lot of record of this in Jewish and Roman writings. He’s sent to Ancestry again.

He’s a better ruler, but he dies in office in his second year. He knew nothing of Judaism or Christianity as we see from this account. Who is Agrippa? This is the other thing to mention. He’s the Roman governor of a smaller province. He’s a favorite of the emperor. At this point, he’s only 32 years old. He comes with his sister, and, um, he’s been raised in Caesar’s household.

And not only has he been given the province in the north that eventually included most of Galilee, the northern part, But he also because he’s jewish they gave him the responsibility. He was actually given the roman responsibility To appoint the jewish high priest every year, which was offensive to the jews And secondly, he was also in charge of all their vestments He kept the clothes that they wore on the day of atonement Their infiltration is everywhere.

He actually was a pretty good man. Probably the best of the of the But you have Roman leaders that don’t know anything about Judaism. Nationalism in Israel is at an absolute fevered pitch. National terrorist movement is increasing in influence among the zealots. There’s chaos, confusion that everyone can sense.

And it’s only getting more rancorous and volatile by the volatile by the moment. The church felt. Confusion. They felt it with the Jews and their Gentile issue. We’ve seen that already. And again, I’m just trying to summarize these chapters. The Jews, you remember when Paul arrived in Judea after his missionary journeys?

You remember what they did? James, the head of the church, who is Jesus half physical brother, he came with all the elders from the church and they met Paul right at the port city. Before he even, it’s like he got off the boat and, Ha! Paul, we’ve been waiting for you. They met with him, and they said, Paul, you got to keep a low profile.

And you know you’re not good at this, but you need to keep a lid on it. Things are so volatile for us.

Because you’re out there taking the gospel to the Gentiles, to the goyim, to the heathen. The very people that our nation is feeling are, are, are disdaining us and dishonoring us. In these Roman leaders and these Roman soldiers in our cities. The zealots are active. The religious leaders are hostile. And you’re the one now that is champing what we believe in.

Embracing gentiles into, into, into our faith. Into allowing them to enjoy Jesus as their messiah too. Man, you gotta, you gotta keep it cool. And Paul to his credit did. It still didn’t help. They still rioted. And they still tried to kill him. The Jew and gentile thing is big for the church. Their own struggle with the godless government as Christians was big.

The Romans did not understand the difference between Jews and Jews of the way. Those that embrace Jesus as their Messiah. They were all lunged together and undoubtedly Christian Jews were politically charged as well. They hated the Romans. They hated, they wanted their homeland back. So Paul wrote to the churches in his two letters, his two major big general letters, the book of Ephesians and the book of Romans that were designed to be passed along to other churches And in those letters, in both of them, he talks about the political issue.

In Ephesus, he says, I want to remind you guys, your citizenship is not of this world, you’re members of Jesus kingdom. The other thing he does, in Romans, is said, this is how you respond to, to governing leaders. Basically, the church is in the center of the storm. Paul is in the very eye of the storm. They’re in Caesarea.

Where the main Roman troops were where the governor of Judah had his headquarters and in the midst of the storm of national cultural confusion and chaos Where did Paul? Anchor his thinking and living and I want to highlight. I’m just gonna hit two of them two quick things Number one where Paul placed his anchor was in the power of God it’s striking if you look at our our passage this morning that we read in Acts chapter 25 as festus He says, and we don’t hear his interview of Paul, all that he said, but he summarizes it.

And this was his takeaway. Basically, um, the Jews had certain points of dispute. This is Acts 25, 19 with Paul about their own religion. And about a certain Jesus, who is dead, but whom Paul asserted to be alive. This was his takeaway. He said, I don’t know much about this guy at all. I, I certainly, I don’t even know who this Jesus is.

But Paul’s whole thing is about this man Jesus, who everybody testifies, nobody disagrees. He was dead, dead, dead, dead, dead. He’s dead and Paul he just he said he’s alive. So that’s the whole thing I mean, how do I write the Caesar about this? I got this guy that thinks a guy came back from the dead So I’m sending him to you because I couldn’t resolve the issue.

So he said what do I do with this thing? What we see again is the the centrality to Paul about the resurrection of Christ to Paul two things Were true about the resurrection of Jesus Number one, the resurrection was the center of everything he believed. The second thing is, the resurrection is always the evidence of God’s power in the believer’s life.

He writes this all the time, but in Acts 24, 21, when he’s talking to Felix, the first governor, here’s what he said. Basically, I was purified when I went into the temple. I didn’t take Gentiles in. I didn’t speak against the laws of the practices. There were none of those things. Basically, what, what, what is the issue here is, and he says the one thing was that I said that Jesus Christ is rise, risen from the dead.

He said that is my message. That is what I believe. That’s what I have built my entire life on. In Acts 26 verse 23, he’s going to be speaking to Festus and to Agrippa. And he’s going to make this statement, Jesus Christ being the first to rise from the dead. And Festus interrupts him and he says, Paul, you’re insane.

He says, much learning has made you insane. And he just keeps going on. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. In Ephesians 19, Paul says this, I’m praying that you Christians will know this. Excuse me, Ephesians 1. 19. He has two prayers. It’s the first one. I want you. I’m praying that you will know this. What is the immeasurable greatness of his power towards us who believe according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead.

Paul says, I want you to have a big God. I want you to have a vision of the God that raised Christ in the dead. Now we 20 century centuries later, we’ll say, well, You know? Yeah, I, I get it. I mean, of course I believe Jesus rose in the dead. That’s why, I mean, I believe I’m serving a living Christ, but these guys are actually living among a generation of people that saw and knew of the death of Christ.

And he says there is nothing more astounding than the fact that. Jesus Christ rose from the dead victorious over death and the same power that was expressed in him rising from the dead is now lived out in our lives. He said, I’m leaning into this God. I’m leaning into a God that is big. Whose power was exemplified in such a way is what fills my heart is what fills my mind The biggest things christians need today in a day of confusion and and media Terror and bad news bad news.

You need a bigger god You need a god that’s big enough to trust a god. That’s sovereign a god. That’s mighty a god. That’s omnipotent It has all power. Paul had that God. And in the midst of utter confusion and chaos on every side, he stood in the midst of, here’s the, here’s the Jews on one side, and in six years they are going to be leading, they are going to be part of a rebellion that is going to stand against Rome, that is going to actually destroy their nation.

And on the other side, he’s standing with people. that represent that very power of Rome at the highest levels in this part of the world. And he said, You know what? I don’t see how any of this is gonna work out. I don’t see how we’re gonna work this through. I don’t see how this, it just seems totally chaotic, totally terrifying.

But he said, I got, I got a big God. I got a God I can lean into, I can trust in. It’s a season for Him, for us, to embrace the bigness of God. The second thing, Paul put his trust in God’s promises. In Acts 23 verse 11, while Paul was in the Jerusalem jail, and is just about to find out from his nephew, that there are 40 assassins out there that are are vowed they’ll never eat again until this guy has been killed.

In Acts 23 11, God comes to Paul and says this. The following night, the Lord stood by Paul and said, Take courage for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome. Paul said, I don’t I don’t know how it’s gonna work out. Little did he know it would come to a place where he realized I don’t I don’t have any.

There’s no safety. among, in Jerusalem for me. I can’t trust the authorities. I can’t trust the leadership. I can’t trust judicious decisions. So I’m appealing to Rome. Little did he know that his own desperation would be the very means that God would be of fulfilling his promise to him to send him to Rome.

He didn’t expect he’d be going as a prisoner. He thought he’d be going as a, as a church planning champion. But he had the promise that God had plans for him and purposes for him. The promises of God are given to us to be our hope in the beautiful story. Pilgrim’s progress. Pilgrim and hopeful are in prison.

His name is Christa. Actually, he was the pilgrim. They were in doubting Castle. This giant despair has brought him in. He beats him. He’s continually beat him, and he’s made it clear that the next morning he’s gonna kill them and they’re lying. They’re bloody bruised. And, uh, they’re pretty down. It’s called Doubting Castle, and he’s called Giant Despair for a reason, in the allegory of Pilgrim’s Progress.

And as he’s there, all of a sudden, Christian remembers that in his pocket, he has this key that had been given to him, and it’s called the key of promise. And he said, I forgot. I have the promise. I have the key that opens the doors. And so he began, he says, I’ll bet this will open the door. So one door after another, a prison of the castle is open until they get to the creaky main gate.

And again, they’re able to get out. And the picture that Bunyan is drawing is, It is always the promises of God that is our way out of despondency and despair. It is leaning into what God has promised to be true. Filling our minds with scripture. Filling our minds with the promises that He has given to us.

And is willing to give to you today, if you take the time to listen. Paul leaned into those promises. He trusted in that power. And he was a center, in the center of the storm. He was anchored. We can be too. It is not any more volatile in your life than it was for Paul’s. Right now, at this moment in history.

Volatile season. But Christians stand tall and strong to the power of God and the promises of God. Lord, thank you for being that and doing that in our lives. Thank you even for the glimpse of history, to just put ourselves in a situation that, no matter what’s going on in our lives, there are historic visuals in scripture, that you have been the God who regularly, consistently, beautiful, delivers your people to your own glory.

Lord, let us lean into that reality today, I pray, in Jesus name.