Encountering the Gospel
In Acts 24:25, Luke records that Paul preached to Felix, the governor of Judea. When he had the opportunity to preach before him and his wife Druscilla, he addressed three subjects. And these weren’t random subjects; they were the very topics that Felix and his wife needed to hear.
- Self-control. This is a “holding oneself in.” Self-control is a fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:23), and each of us should develop it to the fullest extent in order to fight sin and the devil (2 Peter 1:5-7).
- Righteousness. This describes the mechanism by which we are acceptable to God. The Holy Spirit would convict of righteousness (John 16:10), and everyone who is born of God is righteous, instead of wicked (1 John 3:10).
- Judgment. This is our final end (Revelation 20:11-15). Everyone will stand before God, just like Felix and Druscilla (Romans 14:10-12; 2 Corinthians 5:10), and await the final resurrection (John 5:28-29).
When Felix heard these words, he was afraid (the KJV says he “trembled”), He knew it was the truth, but he sent Paul away. I guess it was a positive that Felix had enough conscience left to feel some alarm at the gospel, but he very quickly had as much of it as he could take, and he dismissed Paul. A reasonable assumption is that he had no intention of repenting.
There is a twofold lesson here. First, preachers need to direct sermons to their audience. Circumstances determine how the message is delivered, but people are only convicted when the gospel is applied to their situation. Second, the lessons of Scripture have a message for us. Regarding Paul’s message, what will you do? Will you wait for a “more convenient time” or will you obey the gospel call?
Kyle Campbell