Acts 24:1-27: Prosecution and Procrastination

The Jews' hired lawyer lays out their case against Paul and he responds, not with apologies, defensiveness, or counterattacks, but with a confession about Jesus, the Way, and the resurrection. The trial should have been open and shut, but the governor keeps him around for two years because Felix is hoping for a bribe, and he’s alarmed by Paul’s teaching about judgement day. At the end of his political term, rather than converting to the faith, Felix leaves Paul—a man he knows to be innocent by this point—in custody as a favor to the Jews.  The Rev. Kevin Yoakum, pastor of Christ the King Lutheran Church in Riverview, FL, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study Acts 24:1-27.  To learn more about Christ the King Lutheran, visit ctklcms.org. The book of Acts picks up where the Gospels leave off. Jesus has risen. He has ascended. And now what? Acts answers that question. Luke tells the story of how the Holy Spirit built the Church from a handful of frightened disciples in Jerusalem into a movement that reached Rome itself. Along the way, you get Pentecost, the first sermons, the first martyrs, the conversion of Paul, the first church councils, shipwrecks, riots, and the persistent, stubborn work of God through Word and Sacrament even when His people didn't have a plan. If you've ever wondered how we got from Easter morning to the Church you sit in today, this is the book. Tune in for this new series on Thy Strong Word with Pastor Phil Booe and guest pastors as we open up the Book of Acts.  Thy Strong Word, hosted by Rev. Dr. Phil Booe, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, reveals the light of our salvation in Christ through study of God’s Word, breaking our darkness with His redeeming light. Each weekday, two pastors fix our eyes on Jesus by considering Holy Scripture, verse by verse, in order to be strengthened in the Word and be equipped to faithfully serve in our daily vocations. Submit comments or questions to: [email protected].