Acts 24:14-15 MSG
“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 worshiped 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”.
The charge-in-chief against Paul was heresy. The Jews brought him for trial before the Roman Governor, and to ensure he got convicted, they hired a well known orator called Tertullus to lay out charges against Paul.
Hear Tertullus :
“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 (Jews dare not call them Christian).
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!”
You’ll think that Paul will recant in the face of danger, but as we saw in our text, his plea was “guilty”, or “guilty-with-reason” as a friend always says.
He then went on to give his reasons (testimony ) for preaching Christ.
For Paul and for every believer who dare to declare the true gospel, the Bible has a verdict:
“*persecution awaits you*” period!. (2 Timothy 3:12).
Apostle Peter admonishes us therefore to be prepared to face our accusers with conviction.
1 Peter 3:15
“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear”:
In a world that has settled for sin and carnality, preaching Righteousness is sedition.
And I’m guilty as charged.
Among the Church of Jesus Christ g has slipped back into Law of Moses and Religion, preaching Christ and his gift of eternal salvation is heresy and sedition.
And I’m guilty as charged.
THIS IS OUR CREED FOR WHICH WE ARE PREPARED TO DIE:
*Romans 4:6-9 MSG*
“David confirms this way of looking at it, saying that the one who trusts God to do the putting-everything-right without insisting on having a say in it is one fortunate man:
Fortunate are those whose crimes are carted off, whose sins are wiped clean from the slate.
Fortunate is the person against whom the Lord does not keep score.
Do you think for a minute that this blessing is only pronounced over those of us who keep our religious ways and are circumcised? Or do you think it possible that the blessing could be given to those who never even heard of our ways, who were never brought up in the disciplines of God?
We all agree, don’t we, that it was by embracing what God did for him that Abraham was declared fit before God?
-Dr Nich Mbaezue-Daniel