Then Agrippa said to Paul, “You have permission to speak for yourself.”
So Paul motioned with his hand and began his defense: “King Agrippa, I consider myself fortunate to stand before you today as I make my defense against all the accusations of the Jews, and especially so because you are well acquainted with all the Jewish customs and controversies. Therefore, I beg you to listen to me patiently.
“The Jewish people all know the way I have lived ever since I was a child, from the beginning of my life in my own country, and also in Jerusalem. They have known me for a long time and can testify, if they are willing, that I conformed to the strictest sect of our religion, living as a Pharisee. And now it is because of my hope in what God has promised our ancestors that I am on trial today. This is the promise our twelve tribes are hoping to see fulfilled as they earnestly serve God day and night. King Agrippa, it is because of this hope that these Jews are accusing me. Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?
“I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the Lord’s people in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. I was so obsessed with persecuting them that I even hunted them down in foreign cities.
“On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. About noon, King Agrippa, 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.’
“Then I asked, ‘Who are you, Lord?’
“ ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,’ the Lord replied. ‘Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen and will see of me. I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
“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 then to the Gentiles, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds. That is why some Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me. But God has helped me to this very day; 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 Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles.”
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 to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.” (Acts 26:1-29 NIV)
Easter is over. At least, it sures seems that way. Like usual, we immediately move on. No big breakfast this morning. It would seem so out-of-place to have an Easter egg hunt. That’s so last week! Easter is over. Time to think about Halloween! Except, that’s not how it’s supposed to be. The message of Easter is supposed to linger in our hearts: Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Not just for a day. Forever! God wants the Easter message of Jesus’ resurrection to change your life. Because of hope, everything is different. Today we hear three stories of hope through Jesus.
First, a man named John was born in England in 1725. His mother died when he was only 7 years old, and his life went downhill from there. He became a sailor when he was just 11, and he eventually found work on slave ships, transporting slaves to America from Africa. John gained a reputation as a profane man, even inventing new swear words, although I’m not sure how you do that. But then one day, during an awful storm on the sea, he heard about Jesus. And John the slave trader became John the Christian. John the Christian became John the pastor.
When it was all said and done, John decided to write down his story. It goes like this: “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I’m found; was blind, but now I see.” The man’s name was John Newton. When he wrote “Amazing Grace,” he was just telling his life story. He had been a wretch. Lost. But then Jesus found him. Amazing grace! That was the story of John Newton’s life. That’s what grace is—undeserved love. Grace is God loving unlovable wretches like John Newton. Because of hope in Jesus and his grace, John Newton could say, “I once was lost, but now I’m found; was blind, but now I see.”
Like Paul. That’s who our lesson is about today. The apostle Paul was the great missionary of the Christian Church. He wrote more books of the Bible than anyone else. As we find Paul, he’s in jail and on trial before two powerful people. Festus was the Roman governor—the job that Pontius Pilate had held. King Agrippa was the King of the Jews—the job that King Herod had held. And there was Paul in the middle, on trial for believing and sharing the message of Jesus.
But notice how Paul makes his defense. He doesn’t plead. He tells his story—his story of amazing grace. Just like John Newton, Paul had started out on the wrong side too. He had been a Pharisee, and he had rejected Jesus as his Savior. In fact, he goes so far as to say, “I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. I put many of the saints in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them.” The first time we hear about Paul, he was there giving his approval when a Christian man named Stephen was stoned to death. Paul hadn’t just traded Christians as slaves. He had killed them.
Until one day, everything changed. For Paul, it wasn’t a storm at sea. He saw the light—literally. Paul was on his way to put more Christians to death. When suddenly, he saw a light brighter than the sun, and he heard Jesus saying, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” Can you imagine the terror in Paul’s heart? Can you imagine Paul’s thoughts as he heard Jesus—his enemy—say, “I’m sending you to…”My death? Hell? No. “… to turn people from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins.” You can’t make this stuff up! Jesus decided to make his worst enemy—Paul the persecutor—into his greatest missionary.
Why would Jesus do that? Because that’s grace! Paul himself later explained. “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life” (1 Timothy 1:15-16). Paul’s life was visible proof to everyone that God’s grace covers over all sins. It was as if an ISIS commander suddenly became a Lutheran pastor. Grace changed Paul’s life. He had been lost, but now he was found. He had been blind, but now he could see. He had a story to tell!
So now Paul was on trial for believing in Jesus. And you can see in this man what hope in Jesus does for you. It’s really an amazing scene, because Paul doesn’t try to get out of jail. He was too eager to tell everyone what Jesus Christ had done for him. In fact, this man in chains on death row is happy and excited, while two men with crowns on their heads are disturbed and unsettled. He looked at those two rulers—the most powerful men in his country—and he said, “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.” Who says that to their judge? Something had happened to this man!
What? One phrase in Paul’s speech stands out to me: “Because of hope.” He says that twice. “It is because of my hope in what God has promised our ancestors that I am on trial today…. It is because of this hope that these Jews are accusing me. Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?” What changed Paul’s life? Hope. What hope? The hope of Jesus’ resurrection. Remember how we said that Jesus’ resurrection changes everything? Seeing Jesus alive changed Paul from Paul the persecutor to Paul the bold Christian missionary.
For Paul, Easter wasn’t just one day. It was the foundation of everything. Because Jesus rose, Paul didn’t have to be afraid. Ever! Because Jesus rose, Paul knew his home was in heaven. Because Jesus rose, Paul was confident that every promise of God’s Word is true. “I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen—that the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles.” What a powerful testimony! How? Because of hope. All because of hope in Jesus!
Real-life stories are powerful. A pastor once said: “The skeptic may deny your doctrine or attack your church, but he cannot honestly ignore the fact that your life has been changed.” No one who knew Paul could ignore the fact that Jesus changed his life. No one who knew John Newton could ignore the fact that Jesus changed his life. They learned about the undeserved love of Jesus, who died to forgive even the worst of sinners—just like them. And once God convinced them of that fact, no one could shut them up. They had a contagious story to tell. It was simple. “I am a sinner. Jesus saved me.” Slave trader. Murderer. Forgiven! All because of hope in Jesus.
So what’s your story? I said there were three stories of hope today. John Newton… Paul… Do you know whose the third is? Yours! What’s your story? “Ah, pastor, I don’t have a story to share.” Sure you do! You have a story of hope too. Maybe your story doesn’t involve a dramatic conversion on a slave ship. Maybe it doesn’t involve Jesus appearing to you in a light brighter than the sun. But God has turned you from darkness to light. He has rescued you from the power of Satan to God. God’s grace is active in your life too! Maybe we don’t stop to think about it.
For some of us, the problem is that we can’t ever remember being lost. How many of you were baptized before you can remember? That’s a wonderful blessing, but the devil uses that to make us forget that we were ever in need of God’s grace. It’s good we weren’t tasked with writing “Amazing Grace.” I’m afraid this is how it would come out: “So so grace, how okay the sound, that saved a pretty good person like me. I once was really just fine and now I’m still pretty good, was okay to begin with and now I’m maybe just a little better.” Blah! You know, this is exactly what it means to be lost and blind—to be ignorant of how much we need Jesus to save us!
For some of us, the problem is that it doesn’t seem like we’ve been rescued. You still feel lost. You still feel trapped. You hear about hope and grace, but that sure doesn’t seem to be talking about you. You can’t seem to escape your sin. You can’t seem to escape your past. “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me…” That’s somebody else’s song!
So what should God do with us? Paul knew what he deserved. He never forgot the faces of the Christians he had executed. John Newton knew what he deserved. He never forgot the smells and sounds of his own slave ship. You know what you deserve. Sin is always crouching at your door. But there is hope. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! What God should have done, he didn’t do. Instead, he sent Jesus. John Newton once wrote, “Mercy came to us not only undeserved but undesired…our hearts endeavored to shut him out till he overcame us by the power of his grace.”
So what’s your story? You have a story. Say it with me: “I once was lost, but now am found; was blind but now I see.” Maybe you didn’t see it and maybe you don’t feel it, but this is your story: Jesus your Savior, who died and rose for you, has opened your eyes, given you light, forgiven your sins, and called you to share his grace. The Bible’s story is your story! Because Jesus rose, you don’t have to be afraid. Because Jesus rose, your home is in heaven. Because Jesus rose, you are forgiven. If there’s a part of you thinking, “But I’m not perfect.” You’ve got it! That’s what grace is. Grace is God loving the unlovable. That changes your life. Because of hope.
Just like Paul’s. So while he was on trial, Paul shared his story of Jesus’ undeserved love to him to the Roman governor Festus, and Festus was so moved that he interrupted Paul’s defense and shouted, “You are out of your mind, Paul! Your great learning is driving you insane.” That’s not what you expected to happen. Paul beautifully shared his story of Jesus’ love, and what did he hear? “You are out of your mind! You are insane!” Sound familiar? It might, if you’ve been sharing your story. Because if someone’s not familiar with Jesus, Jesus’ grace sounds crazy. What he did for us—dying and rising—sounds insane. Why was Paul on trial? Because of hope in the resurrection. But notice something? Why was Paul fearless? Why was Paul content in his chains? Why was Paul strong? Because of hope. Because of hope in the resurrection of Jesus.
In the little town of Olney in England, next to a little church, there is an old tombstone marking the grave of John Newton. He himself wrote the words he wanted to be remembered by: “John Newton, once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa, now by the rich mercy of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to destroy.” God used a slave trader to write the most well-known Christian song. God used a murderer to share God’s word with the world. What’s God using you to do? Because of hope… If there’s one thing people in our world most need right now, what is it? Hope. Where does that come from? Christ is risen! He is risen indeed. Because of hope…
(To listen to this sermon on my Upside-Down Savior podcast, please click HERE. To watch this sermon on my Upside-Down Savior YouTube channel, please click on the link below.)
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