Daily Archives: August 26, 2013

The Simple Truth

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THE SIMPLE TRUTH

“‘Believe me, I do my level best to keep a clear conscience before God and my neighbours in everything I do. I’ve been out of the country for a number of years and now I’m back. I took up a collection for the poor and brought that with me, along with offerings for the Temple. It was while making those offerings that they found me quietly at my prayers in the Temple. There was no crowd; there was no disturbance. It was some Jews from around Ephesus who started all this trouble. And you’ll notice they’re not here today. They’re cowards, too cowardly to accuse me in front of you.

“‘So ask these others what crime they’ve caught me in. Don’t let them hide behind this smooth-talking Tertullius. The only thing they have on me is that one sentence I shouted out in the council: “‘It’s because I believe in the resurrection that I’ve been hauled into this court!'” Does that sound to you like grounds for a criminal case?'” Acts 24:16-21 (The Message).

Paul was accused of being a rabble-rouser by teaching Jews to disregard Moses and the Law of God, by stirring up riots against Jews all over the world and by defiling the Temple. Tertullius made these accusations with no explanation, evidence or witnesses. He expected the governor to take his word for it without producing a single person to corroborate his story.

Paul knew exactly why he was on trial. The real reason was disguised by an accusation designed to get the attention of the Roman authorities. Rome had no interest in religious squabbles between rival factions. That was not their problem unless it sparked trouble and disturbed the peace. The Jews were well-known for being volatile over their religion. Any sign of trouble had to be nipped in the bud.

Tertullius and his clients had no interest in the real cause of the rioting, as long as it was about their arch-enemy, Paul. This was a golden opportunity to get rid of him once and for all. Get the governor on their side and his doom was sealed.

It was now up to Paul to show the governor how ridiculous and untrue their case against him was. His defence was clear and unembellished. He simply told the truth. This is what happened and this is how it happened. He was fully aware of the underlying cause of their hatred and antagonism — his belief in the resurrection which connected him to the Man who prophesied His own death and resurrection and fulfilled His prophecy to the letter!

Slowly but surely Paul built up his defence with far greater skill than the Jews’ lawyer had used to lay his case before the court. He had to because it was up to him to show Felix the real reason for these accusations against him. The Jews were hiding behind a smoke-screen of lies because their issue with Paul would never hold up in a court of law.

Paul began by defending his character; he could say with absolute honesty that his conscience was clear regarding their accusations because he lived by a good conscience, always. He explained the reason for his return to Jerusalem and his presence in the Temple, all verifiable facts if anyone cared to check them out.

Then, in one sentence he ripped open their hidden agenda — and he had the reaction of the high priest to prove it. Firstly, when he was on trial before the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem, he was slapped in the face for bearing witness to a good conscience. Secondly, it was his declaration concerning the resurrection that sparked the furore between Pharisees and Sadducees and the outburst from some of the religious boffins: ‘He is not guilty!’ So really, this trial was a farce and the quicker Felix recognised that, the better.

It was now up to the governor to decide whether he was going to follow his conscience or what was to his advantage. That’s always the choice, isn’t it?

Lies Unravelled

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LIES UNRAVELLED

“The governor motioned to Paul that it was now his turn. Paul said, ‘I count myself fortunate to be defending myself before you, Governor, knowing how fair-minded you’ve been in judging us all these years. I’ve been back in the country only twelve days — you can check out these dates easily enough. I came with the express purpose of worshipping in Jerusalem on Pentecost, and I’ve been minding my own business the whole time. Nobody can say they saw me arguing in the Temple or working up a crowd in the streets. Not one of their charges can be backed up with evidences or witnesses.'” Acts 24:10-13 (The Message).

Now, Paul, it’s your turn to pit your brilliant legal mind against Tertullius and his clients.

It was Paul’s turn to speak, to make his defence against the pathetic accusations brought by Tertullius on behalf of the Jews who were trying to use emotional hype to make their case stick. The problem was that, for Felix, it was a toss-up between administering justice for Paul or currying favour with the Jews. That depended on the governor’s character and integrity. Was this about justice or about winning a popularity contest with the influential and volatile Jewish leaders?

Paul appealed to the governor’s past performance of good governance, whether it was true or not, in the hopes that Felix would want to uphold his good name. His defence was not based on emotion but on fact and truth.

Paul dismissed the charges of being a rabble-rouser with the contempt it deserved. He wasted no time defending himself on that point, appealing to Felix to call the witnesses and check the evidence.

“‘But I do freely admit this: In regard to the Way which they malign as a dead-end street, I serve and worship the very same God served and worshipped by all our ancestors and embrace everything written in all our Scriptures.  And I admit to living in hopeful anticipation that God will raise the dead, both the good and the bad. If that’s my crime, my accusers are just as guilty as I am.'” Acts 24:14-15 (The Message).

Paul knew what the real issue was, just as Jesus did decades before. It was about the Messiah the Jewish leaders had rejected. This was not about his criminal activity. This was about their position of power over the people, and the wealth they garnered from their offerings. If Jesus was truly the Messiah, whom the people of the Way believed and followed, then the Jewish hierarchy would have to admit that they were wrong and that they had crucified their Messiah. They would have to eat humble pie, give up their position and follow Him.

Paul skilfully put them in a really bad light. The Pharisees believed in the resurrection, theoretically, but they rejected the resurrection of Jesus. If they were to be true to what they believed, they would have to acknowledge that Jesus was their Messiah. Paul had them cornered because he placed himself squarely on their side. If he were guilty of believing in the resurrection, so were they. He had gone all the way and embraced the resurrection as fact and proof of Jesus’ Messiah ship. They had not.

Paul had dug in the knife. In the next few sentences he would slash open the hearts of these hypocrites and their slimy, useless lawyer who did no more than mouth the feeble accusations of his clients. This had nothing to do with Paul’s behaviour and everything to do with their unbelieving and greedy hearts.

This is a clear lesson for all who claim to be followers of the Messiah Jesus. There is no room in His body for people who follow Him for what they can get out of it for themselves. Jesus is about truth. He is Messiah and Lord, appointed by the Father to be the king over all things. Those who would follow Him may only do so if they abandon themselves to Him as Lord.

The Case For The Prosecution

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THE CASE FOR THE PROSECUTION

“Within five days, the Chief Priest Ananias arrived with a contingent of leaders, along with Tertullius, a trial lawyer. They presented the governor with their case against Paul. When Paul was called before the court, Tertullius spoke for the prosecution: ‘Most Honourable Felix, we are most grateful in all times and places for your wise and gentle rule. We are much aware that it is because of you and you alone that we enjoy this peace and gain daily profit from your reforms. I’m not going to tire you out with a long speech. I beg your kind indulgence in listening to me. I’ll be quite brief.

“‘We’ve found this man time and again disturbing the peace, stirring up riots against Jews all over the world, the ringleader of a seditious sect called Nazarenes. He’s a real bad apple, I must say. We caught him trying to defile our holy Temple and arrested him. You’ll be able to verify all these accusations when you examine him yourself.’

“The Jews joined in: ‘Hear! Hear! That’s right!'” Acts 24:1-9 (The Message).

It wasn’t long before the big guns arrived in Caesarea along with their lawyer, Tertullius, a Roman by his name. This scenario and the circumstances surrounding Paul’s arrest and trial seem to be following a pattern, reminiscent of what happened to his Master.

We wait with baited breath to hear the charge, lies skilfully woven by a clever and unscrupulous lawyer and wrapped in words of syrupy flattery designed to butter up the governor and give him a warm fuzzy feeling towards these troublesome Jews. One wonders how Paul felt about Tertullius’ preamble, knowing full well that he was not responsible for the rioting that dogged him from city to city. which seems to be the basis for his arrest.

Tertullius should have known that, as a lawyer it was not his prerogative to influence the court on the prisoner’s innocence or guilt. His job was to present the case for the prosecution and allow the court to decide. His so-called “evidence” was nothing but prejudice and hearsay with no witnesses to bolster up his accusations.

I am no lawyer but it does not take a trained legal mind to shoot holes in this man’s evidence. His presentation was nothing but pronouncements and opinions with no examination of the facts. He accused Paul of stirring up riots, of being the ringleader of a seditious sect, of being a “bad apple” but where were the witnesses and where was the evidence? On what was he basing these statements?

Tertullius was representing men who, like their predecessors, were putting a man on trial for his life on trumped-up charges to satisfy their own prejudice, not because any of their accusations were true. It would take a wise judge to see through their plot and give an impartial verdict based on the evidence presented. One wonders how much Tertullius was paid off to use his training to sway the governor.

It was a case of how much heat and how much light was operating in this court case. Terullius was using all his skills to turn up the heat. If he could whip up enough emotion against Paul, he would win the case and place Paul at the mercy of a governor sympathetic to their cause. It would be up to Paul to enlighten Felix on the facts if he wanted to shake off the lies that were tying him up.

For Felix it was a matter of how clearly he saw through the religious scruples which had set the whole conflagration off. There were times in Paul’s experience when authorities recognised the issue to be nothing but Jewish religious squabbles and would have nothing to do with them. Would Felix recognise that what lay behind this auspicious group of religious hierarchy was nothing but petty nit-picking?

Strange as it may seem, it was the accusers who were on trial, not the accused. Every false accusation they made exposed their own wicked hearts and laid them open to the verdict of guilty, which they so desperately wanted Felix to pass on their enemy, Paul.