Acts  Sermon Series

Wheelersburg Baptist Church 11/2/03 Brad Brandt

Acts 26 "The Power of a Personal Testimony"**

If the answer to the following questions is yes, please raise your hand. Are you a Christian? Are you glad you are a Christian? Would you say that becoming a Christian is the best thing that’s ever happened in your life? Do you think it would be good for other people come to know Christ as you do? Since becoming a Christian yourself, have you ever talked with a non-Christian about his need for Christ? Have you talked about Christ with a non-Christian in the past month?

My hunch is that we won’t see as many hands raised for the last question as for the first ones. Why is that? In his book Wake Up Calls Ron Hutchcraft suggests four reasons why people don't witness:

1. 90% have failed in witnessing attempts in the past

2. They are biblically illiterate

3. They leave it to the professionals

4. We shouldn't impose our faith on others

Few of us would deny that this is good news, indeed, it’s the best news. God is reconciling sinners to Himself and offering the gift of eternal life freely to those who will accept His Son, Jesus Christ, as Savior and Lord. We know the good news. It’s changed our lives.

But if it’s really good news, we’ll do something with it. We’ll share it with others.

When he was the pastor of the Methodist church in Scarborough, William Sangster had an eccentric member who tried to be a zealous Christian. Unfortunately, the man was mentally deficient and usually did the wrong thing. While working as a barber the man lathered up a customer for a shave, came at him with the poised razor, and asked, "Are you prepared to meet your God?"  The frightened man fled with the lather on his face! 

This morning I want to help you succeed in the area of witnessing. I want to put a tool in your ministry tool box that you can use to reach lost people. In fact, if you are a Christian you already have this tool. But most Christians don’t know how to use it well. It’s called your personal testimony.

Your personal testimony is the story of what God graciously did in your life to bring you to Himself. There’s incredible power in a simple testimony. This is illustrated vividly for us in Acts 26.

Several weeks ago, in our study of Acts 22, we watched Paul share his testimony with a crowd while standing on the steps of the Jewish temple. Today we’ll see a different setting. Paul is actually on trial before Governor Festus and King Agrippa, with a host of other Roman dignitaries present. Paul made the most of the occasion. How? He shared his testimony.

The great thing about your testimony is that it’s irrefutable. Your hearers can’t deny it. You’re sharing what happened, what happened to you. And by sharing what happened to you, you are helping them see what can and needs to happen in their lives.

As we learned when we examined Paul’s testimony in Acts 22, a good testimony is conversational, not preachy. It establishes common ground. It points people to Christ and leaves the door open for more.

Plus, it’s brief. It takes 2 minutes and 25 seconds to read aloud Paul’s testimony in Acts 22. It takes just over 3 minutes to read the testimony he shared with Agrippa in Acts 26. You should be able to share your story in 2 to 3 minutes as well.

We’ll learn how today. Obviously, every person’s testimony will be different, for every person is different. But there are some basic, common elements. In sharing a personal testimony, we must put the spotlight on three subjects, as Paul did in Acts 26.

I don’t mean glory in yourself. I’m talking about telling the story of your life in a way that brings glory to God. Begin at the beginning. Tell what your life was like before the Lord saved you. Let’s watch how Paul did just that.

Luke gives the setting for Paul’s testimony in verse 1, "Then Agrippa said to Paul, ‘You have permission to speak for yourself.’" This is actually the fourth time Paul spoke for himself. Two years prior he was arrested and falsely accused in the temple, following which he gave a defense before the Jewish Sanhedrin. Then he was transported to Caesarea where he appeared before the Roman governor, Felix. Felix played political games with Paul and kept him in prison without grounds for two years. When Rome replaced Felix, Paul then stood before Governor Festus. Festus, too, chose the road of expedience rather than justice with Paul, so that Paul appealed to Caesar. Since Festus didn’t know what to write in the report he would send along with Paul to Caesar, he asked Agrippa to interview Paul. That interview became the occasion for the testimony we’re about to consider.

Verses 2-3—"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.’"

Notice Paul’s courtesy and respect. Granted, he was a man of great courage and boldness, afraid of no man. But he was also gracious, warm, and personal. The reason he was glad to appear before Agrippa wasn’t because the king was a good guy—for he was morally corrupt, as we learned last time. But in contrast to Festus, a Roman, Agrippa, a Jew, was knowledgeable of Jewish customs. Those customs were, in fact, the reason Paul was on trial.

When you share your testimony you must know your audience. Use terms they’ll understand. Use features from your life that will grab their attention. Start by putting the spotlight on yourself. What does that involve? Two things, as modeled by Paul.

A. Share about your past (4-5). "The Jews 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 according to the strictest sect of our religion, I lived as a Pharisee."

Obviously, you can’t share everything about your past in a three minute testimony. You must be selective. Pick an aspect of your past that will both create interest and provide a launching pad.

Paul shared about his upbringing. That was important for this audience. He was accused by the Jews of being an anti-Jewish, Gentile-loving menace to society. Paul simply pointed out the facts: I was born into a Jewish home in Tarsus, but later moved to Jerusalem for rabbinic training. After that, I lived a zealous life as a Pharisee.

That term said tons to Agrippa. A Pharisee was a separatist. He didn’t play religion. He was militant who took his devotion to Yahweh very seriously. He wasn’t just a Jew. He was a fundamentalist Jew.

By now Agrippa was hooked. He must have wondered, "If that’s true, Paul, if you were raised a Pharisee, then why do the Jews hate you?" Anticipating that question, Paul said the following in verses 6-8: "And now it is because of my hope in what God has promised our fathers 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. O king, it is because of this hope that the Jews are accusing me. Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?"

Notice how Paul launched from the past to the present. I lived as a Pharisee, but now I am on trial because of my hope. In putting the spotlight on yourself, first share about your past, but don’t stay in the past. Share about…

B. Share about your present condition (6-8). You are no longer what you once were. What’s different now? According to Paul, the difference involves two things.

1. I have hope. Paul uses a variant of the term "hope" three times with Agrippa. "It is because of my hope in what God has promised our fathers 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. O king, it is because of this hope that the Jews are accusing me."

Paul’s critics presented him as a radical, negative man. They portrayed him as being against them. Paul turns it around. He shows that he isn’t anti-Jewish. He has something and is for something. What’s that? Hope. He is for what the twelve tribes have been awaiting for centuries. Thus, rather than being a renegade, he is a complete Jew. I have hope.

Where did Paul get his hope? He told Agrippa…

2. My hope is based on the promise of God. "It is because of my hope in what God has promised our fathers that I am on trial today." If we merely give people our opinions, they’ll chuck them. Hope, if it’s real, must have a firm foundation. We don’t manufacture hope. We must receive it. "My hope is based on the promise God made to our fathers," Paul emphasized. "What God promised the Jews He has now fulfilled."

Now, just what is that hope? Paul hints at it at the end of verse 8 and will develop it more fully in another minute. "Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?" There’s my hope. It’s been the hope of the Jews since Abraham. It’s the fact of the resurrection.

Brothers and sisters, take careful note. Too often we’re known for what we’re against, rather than what we’re for and have. And for good reason. Too often we talk about what we’re against rather than what we’re for and have. What is it that we are for and have? It’s the hope that God promised! We have what the world lacks and desperately needs. We have hope! That’s what we need to share with people.

The purpose of the first part of a testimony is to create interest. Put the spotlight on yourself so your listener will identify with you and begin to wonder what you have that they lack. Then tell them how you got it. How? Shine the spotlight on a second subject.

You don’t have to be preachy to do it, either. In fact, a good testimony doesn’t use the second person pronoun, not at this point (that will come). It uses the first person pronoun. I’m sharing what the Lord did in my life.

To put the spotlight on Jesus, we need to share two things in our testimony.

A. Share what the Lord did to convince you (9-18). Don’t give the impression that you changed your life, for the Lord is the One who did it. Tell how He did it, how He convinced you of your need to change. In Paul’s case, he talked about two subjects.

1. Paul told what he used to think of Jesus (9-11). "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 saints 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. In my obsession against them, I even went to foreign cities to persecute them."

Paul looks back 25 years into his past. There were certainly people living in Caesarea, perhaps some right in this room, who could substantiate what he is saying: I used to despise the name of Jesus—yes, they’d heard him. I used to do all I could to eliminate that name from society—yes, they’d seen him in action. I used to hunt down Christians as if they were dangerous, wild animals and dispose of them—once again, yes, these were the undeniable facts of the past.

My friend, I don’t know what your pre-Christian memories are like. I do know that a lot of people struggle with the past. Let this sink in. Paul had to live with the memory that he had once persecuted and killed Christians. Yet as bad as that was, something worse haunted him. You say, "What could be worse for a Christian than to have the memory that you once murdered Christians?" It’s this, as LaSor puts it, "To remember that there were some whom you caused to curse the name of Jesus—those whose faith was not strong enough and you made them deny their Savior!"

"I did that," Paul confessed. "I compelled the saints to blaspheme (KJV)."

Some people try to deal with the pain of past sin by ignoring it. They refuse to acknowledge it and certainly avoid talking about it. Perhaps that’s what you’ve done. I encourage you to do what Paul did. Paul didn’t sugar-coat his past. Nor did he glamorize it. Both extremes are wrong. Deal with your past sin God’s way, and then you can use the story as a spotlight that will help others see Jesus.

"How do you deal with sin God’s way?" you ask. That’s the subject Paul addresses next in his testimony.

2. Paul told about the day of his conversion (12-18). Listen to verses 12-14, "On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. About noon, O king, 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.’"

Do you remember what happened when God saved you? What a glorious day in my life! Paul gives some important details about his conversion. He answers the question where—I was on a road outside of Damascus. And the question when—It was noon. And how—the Lord broke into my life; I wasn’t even looking for Him, but He sought me, dropped me to my knees, called me by name ("Saul"), repeated my name ("Saul, Saul"), confronted my sin with a question ("Why do you persecute me?"), and then gave me a word picture that summed up the futility of my life ("It is hard for you to kick against the goads").

Barclay explains the significance, "When a young ox was first yoked it tried to kick its way out. If it was yoked to a one handed plough, the ploughman held in his hand a long staff with a sharpened end which he held close to the ox’s heels so that every time it kicked it was jagged with the spike. If it was yoked to a wagon, the front of the wagon had a bar studded with wooden spikes which jagged the ox if it kicked. The young ox had to learn submission the hard way and so had Paul."

Verse 15—"Then I asked, ‘Who are you, Lord?’" To which Paul got the shock of his life. "‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,’ the Lord replied."

I don’t know what went through Paul’s mind at that point—he doesn’t say—but I can just imagine. "Uh, oh. If the voice I’m hearing is the voice of Jesus, then Jesus isn’t dead but alive. And if Jesus is alive, then I’ve been all wrong about Him. And after what I’ve been doing to His people, I’m in big trouble. He’s going to kill me. It’s all over."

At which point Paul received the second shock of his life.

Verse 16—"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 of me and what I will show you." I’m not going to kill you, Saul, far from it. I’m giving you a new purpose from now on. You’re going to work for Me!

You say, "How could the Lord use Paul, after what he had done?" For the same reason He can use you and me. It’s called grace. About five years after his conversion (A.D. 64) Paul wrote a letter to a close friend and reflected on the difference grace made in his life (1 Timothy 1:12-14):

"I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus."

Yes, God can save anyone, no matter what they’ve done in life! And when He saves that person, He takes over the controls of his or her life. Here’s what He told Paul (verses 17-18):

"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."

That last statement teaches us something vital about God’s forgiveness. We learn that forgiveness is necessary because of sin, available because of Jesus, and experienced simply and only through faith in Him.

In giving your testimony, do as Paul did. Share what the Lord did to convince you. Then go a step further.

B. Share how the Lord changed you (19-23). Paul made it clear that when the Lord entered his life, three practical changes took place. Since the same goes for us, I’ll use the first person pronoun.

1. Change #1: I have a new Master (19). "So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven." The Lord doesn’t come into our lives merely to go along for the ride. He gives the directions!

2. Change #2: I have a new mission (20-21). "First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds. That is why the Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me."

Note that Paul didn’t waste any time in obeying the Lord’s command. He started where? Right where he was saved, in Damascus. And from that point on he lived to fulfill this new, God-given mission, to call people far and wide to do three things: Repent, turn to God, and prove your repentance by your deeds.

By the way, G. H. Lang is right when he observes, "None more firmly than Paul rejected works, before or after conversion, as a ground of salvation; none more firmly demanded good works as a consequence of salvation."

3. Change #3: I have a new message (22-23). "But I have had God’s help to this very day, and 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 Christ would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would proclaim light to his own people and to the Gentiles."

As a Pharisee Paul believed a very different message. It wasn’t salvation by grace, but salvation by works. He clung to the message that most people believe today. If I just do the right things I’ll make it to heaven, for God accepts good people.

My friend, it doesn’t matter how sincere a person is. The message matters.

Let me illustrate. In a story taken from Readers Digest, Kathleen Flood shares: "While visiting in West Berlin I stopped at Kennedy Platz, the site of President John F. Kennedy's famous speech. The tour guide was recalling the climax of that impassioned address -- the part when the President paused and then cried, "Ich bin ein Berliner!" The crowd that day in 1963 was swept up in the emotion of his words and ignored their meaning until later.

Kennedy had wanted to say, "Ich bin Berliner!" or "I am a Berliner!" But what he actually said was, "Ich bin ein Berliner!" or "I am a jelly doughnut!" 

The message does matter, and when we present the gospel, we need to make sure we get it straight. What is our message? It’s this—listen again to Paul: Christ suffered and died in the place of sinners, rose from the dead, and is the light of the world.

There’s one final subject on which we must shine the spotlight. When you share your testimony, put the spotlight on yourself, then on Christ, and finally…

How do we do that? By fulfilling three assignments.

A. Respond to objections (24-26). If we share God’s Word effectively, there will probably be objections, especially if it’s new to the hearer.

Verse 24—"At this point Festus interrupted Paul’s defense. ‘You are out of your mind, Paul!’ he shouted. ‘Your great learning is driving you insane.’"

It’s ironic that Festus didn’t think Paul was insane when he shared about persecuting the church, but this talk about someone rising from the dead didn’t fit into his Roman, polytheistic world-view. "You’re crazy, Paul!"

Wiersbe remarks, "Nobody called D. L. Moody crazy when he was energetically selling shoes and making money, but when he started winning souls, people gave him the nickname, ‘Crazy Moody.’"

It’s funny what lost people consider crazy. Sexually transmitted diseases are killing this country, but talk about abstinence and people will say, "You’re crazy!" Alcohol is a primary contributor to traffic fatalities, domestic violence, and family breakup, yet if you suggest, "Why not get rid of alcohol?" you’re considered a fanatic.

Verse 25—"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.’"

I’m challenged by Paul. He’s not intimidated one iota. He knew that Christianity is historical, factual, and reasonable. His goal wasn’t to impress his hearers. In fact, it wasn’t even to gain his freedom. It was to be a faithful witness.

Marty Springstead, supervisor of American League umpires, said he will never forget his first assignment behind the plate. It was in a 1966 game at Washington. Frank Howard was playing for the Senators, and on the first pitch to the mountainous slugger,

Springstead called a knee-high fast ball a strike. Howard turned around and yelled, "Get something straight, buster! I don't know where you came from or how you got to the major leagues, but they don't call that pitch on me a strike. Understand?" The next pitch was in the same spot, and Springstead yelled, "Two!" "Two what?" Howard roared. "Too low," Springstead said, "Much too low."

Now we’ve come to what is perhaps the hardest thing to do when sharing your testimony. So often we tell the truth about Christ and what he’s done for us, but then we freeze up. We hem-haw and stutter. We break eye contact and feel self-conscious. What should we do? This…

B. Ask the question (27-28). "King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do." Those are hard words to say but they must be said. We must turn the spotlight on the other person and ask, "Do you believe?" Do you believe what I’ve just shared with you? It’s what a person must do to be saved.

Knowing the facts isn’t enough. Agreeing that it makes sense isn’t enough. A person must respond. He must do what Paul told the Philippian jailor to do, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved."

Do you believe the prophets? Agrippa knew that if he answered ‘yes,’ if he said he did believe the prophets, he must then face the question, "Is Jesus the one the prophets predicted?" To Agrippa the room was getting warm.

So here’s what he did. Verse 28—"Then Agrippa said to Paul, ‘Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?’" The KJV says, "Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian." Some think Agrippa was mocking, others that he was raising an honest objection, but of this we can be sure. He knew the spotlight was on him!

And Paul kept it there in verse 29, for there’s one final assignment involved in shining the spotlight on the other person.

C. Call for a response (29-32). "Paul replied, ‘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.’" Note how Paul expanded the invitation. "It’s not only you, Agrippa, but all who are listening to me today that need to be saved. And I’m praying to God you will be!"

Know this. When it comes time to respond people will do the following.

1. Some will change the subject. Luke says (30), "The king rose, and with him the governor and Bernice and those sitting with them." End of conversation.

2. Some will focus on the messenger rather than the message. Verses 31-32—"They left the room, and while talking with one another, they said, ‘This man is not doing anything that deserves death or imprisonment.’ Agrippa said to Festus, ‘This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.’"

They wanted to talk about the messenger instead of the message. I’ve had that happen. "Oh, you’re such a nice man. Thanks for sharing that with me, Pastor. The world needs more people like you." But what about the message? What about you?

Know this. When you present the gospel to people…

3. All will respond. When a person says, "I’m not ready. I need more time," he’s responding. He’s saying no to Christ. When a person says, "I need to clean up my life first," he’s responding. He’s saying no to Christ. When a person says, "I need a sign from God," he too is responding with a deficient response. Everybody responds, including you right now.

Think about this. When Paul went back to his cell that day in chains, he was the only person to leave the room free. Agrippa, Bernice, Festus, and all the rest went home that day still enslaved to their sins. In fact, it was Paul who was the judge that day. They were the prisoners on trial. But now the trial is over. They heard the truth and rejected it. That was their response.

1. Do you have a story? In other words, do you know Christ?

2. Can people see the story? Some people have a wonderful conversion story, but if they shared it few would believe them. Why not? Because their ungodly living speaks louder than their words. Can people see the story in you?

3. Are you sharing the story? I encourage you to write out your testimony, ask God to give you opportunities, and then look out!

Acts  Sermon Series