Acts 24: 22 Then Felix, who was well acquainted with the Way, adjourned
the proceedings. “When Lysias the commander comes,” he said, “I will decide
your case.” 23 He ordered the centurion to keep
Paul under guard but to give him some freedom and permit his friends
to take care of his needs.
24 Several days
later Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish. He sent for Paul and
listened to him as he spoke about faith in Christ Jesus. 25 As
Paul talked about righteousness, self-control and the judgment to
come, Felix was afraid and said, “That’s enough for now! You may leave.
When I find it convenient, I will send for you.” 26 At
the same time he was hoping that Paul would offer him a bribe, so he sent for
him frequently and talked with him.
27 When two years
had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus, but because Felix
wanted to grant a favor to the Jews, he left Paul in prison.
============
After surviving the slander, those who spoke
negatively about me wanted to keep me around to get information from me. They
would speak cordially in the meetings I attended, but reported something made
up to people behind my back. They wanted to look like heroes, taking credit for
my work. This felt like prison.
- There were many times when I wanted to expose the liars.
- There were many times when I wanted to tell people about those who were acting sneaky.
- There were many times when I wanted people to know the truth about what was going on.
Felix knew about “the Way.” In other words,
he had heard about the followers of JESUS. He gave Paul a lighter sentence, but
Paul still had to remain in jail. Felix came with his Jewish wife to listen to
Paul. Instead of letting Paul go, he kept him imprisoned and listened to the
faith in CHRIST.
- GOD wants me to not get weary in the place that feels like prison.
- GOD wants me to remain vigilant in preaching HIS word, even to those who do wrong to me.
- GOD wants me to speak about love and demonstrate it to those who could care less about me.
Rage is usually want I want to show when sneaky
people are doing wrong. I mean, I get tired of people, who try to cover themselves,
spinning their words to make me look bad and themselves look good. BUT GOD
wants me to remain calm and let HIM handle the situation. GOD wants me to
choose peace.
When I am peaceful, the opportunity to speak
about JESUS is more likely to happen than when I am acting out in rage. I place,
looking forward to speaking about JESUS while in prison, over being free and
not talking about HIM. I am grateful JESUS is there with me every step.
- Are you, or do you feel like you are, in prison?
- Do you feel like someone is acting sneaky and making themselves look good at your expense?
- Will you ask GOD to help you not grow weary and keep speaking about JESUS anyway?
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