Good Morning Friends,
“Several days later Felix came with his wife
Drusilla, who was a Jewess. He sent for Paul and listened to him as he spoke
about faith in Christ Jesus. As Paul discoursed on 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.’ At the same time he
was hoping that Paul would offer him a bribe, so he sent for him frequently and
talked with him.” (Acts 24:24-26)
Felix was the governor of the region of
Israel. He was a successful politician and a powerful man. When Paul was
brought before him by the Jews, he listened to the charges against him but did
not condemn him. Instead, he kept Paul in prison, just to keep the Jews happy,
but gave him freedom and comfort while he was there. In Paul’s defense before
him an interest was sparked in Felix and he wanted to hear more. But though
there was an interest in Felix, he never came to Christ, at least not to our
knowledge.
He was being drawn to Christ, you can see
that from his interest in hearing more and from his response to Paul’s message.
When Paul preached, Felix was afraid. Paul talked about judgment and Felix
recognized he was not ready to be judged by God. Paul talked about
righteousness and self-control and Felix was honest enough to recognize that he
did not have these traits. Judgment was a frightening prospect for the
governor, but not frightening enough for him to respond to Paul’s message of
faith in Christ.
Fear drew him to God, but convenience kept
him away. If a man waits until a convenient time to come to Christ, he’ll be
waiting all his life. It’s never convenient to come to Christ. There are always
issues to deal with. There are always other things that distract us. The
life-change that Christ brings isn’t convenient. So, Felix said no to Christ.
It was a choice that God allowed him to make -- and the worst decision he ever
made in his whole life!
His, by Grace,
Steve
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