King Agrippa has expressed an interest in hearing the Apostle Paul's defense, so Festus has arranged for this. The passage is lengthy and we will need to break it up into two parts.
"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.'" (Acts 26:1-3) Paul is not saying that all of his countrymen are against him. When he speaks of "the accusations of the Jews" he means the specific Jewish men who have brought unfounded charges against him before both Governor Felix and Governor Festus.
In presenting his case to King Agrippa, Paul is presenting his case to a Jewish man, albeit a non-observant one. The king, unlike the roman governor, knows the Jewish culture. Also unlike Festus who has so recently come from Rome, Agrippa has spent his life in Judea and he knows all about the growing Christian movement and the growing opposition to it. Paul is going to explain to the king that he himself was once a persecutor of the church. He used to feel the same hatred for Christians that his enemies currently feel for him. But one day on a dusty road he met the living Christ and everything changed. Paul is not only going to tell Agrippa about Jesus, but he's going to offer proof of Jesus' identity with his testimony about how Jesus made him into a new man. This is the proof all of us have who have been saved by the risen Christ: our changed lives.
"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." (Acts 26:4-5) Paul says, "I'm not some stranger who just rode into town and stirred up trouble. I've lived among these people all my life. They know my character. They know the love I have for the Lord and for His laws. I stand accused of inciting riots in Judea, yet my accusers know I am a peaceful man. They said I have defiled the temple, yet my accusers know how devoutly I honor the God of my ancestors and His chosen place of worship. I've been trained in the strictest religious sect of my culture, and they know I lived by the rules of that sect as well as humanly possible, and yet they make the claim that I despise these rules and that I have spoken against the laws I hold dear and that I have blasphemed the name of my God. These are all lies! If they would be willing to tell the truth under questioning, they would be compelled to admit that I have lived a peaceful and law-abiding and godly life among them."
It is Paul's religious training that has led to his belief in the resurrection of the dead. "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." (Acts 26:6-7a) Agrippa knows that most of his countrymen believe that the dead "will rise again in the resurrection at the last day". (John 11:24) He knows that a Messiah was promised to the Jewish people. He knows that the Christians believe Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah and that He rose from the dead. He knows that men like Paul are preaching that the raising of Christ from the dead is the fulfillment of all that was foretold by the prophets, and that this is the proof that God keeps all His promises, and that those who place their faith in Christ will also rise from the dead someday to forever be with Him. Paul is saying, "Yes, I was a Pharisee. Yes, I was a strict observer of all the laws and customs of my people. Yes, I studied the law and the prophets day and night. And it is these very Scriptures that led me to believe in Jesus Christ and in the resurrection of the dead."
"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?" (Acts 26:7b-8) The apostle declares, "If these men would study the Scriptures with an open mind and heart they would come to the same conclusion that I have come to regarding Christ. They say they believe God's word, and God's word speaks of the resurrection of the dead. If they truly do believe, then why do they doubt God? Can the God who created life not bring back to life that which is dead?"
The apostle is hated and accused because he believes the very things his religion teaches. He is preaching the resurrection of the dead, which his ancestors and the prophets also believed in, and which most of his countrymen still believe in. Yet he finds himself persecuted for upholding the very Scriptures he is falsely accused of violating. Paul wants the king to see the incredible irony of this.
Paul sets a clear example for us. If we say we believe the word of God, we must accept the entire word of God. We can't pick and choose which parts to believe and which parts to ignore. We can't accept that God created man from the dust of the earth and then reject His promise to raise back to life those who have crumbled into dust. If He can do one, surely He can do the other! We can't be like the religious leaders of Paul's day who claimed to accept the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead and who at the same time denied that such a thing had happened to a man named Jesus, a man who performed stunning miracles on a scale never before seen, a man who preached the laws of God better than even the greatest of rabbis, a man who claimed to be the Promised One and---to back up His claim---walked out of the tomb under His own power.
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