Acts 25

It's somewhat reassuring to know that legal systems have always been slow. Two years after Paul was sent to Felix, he's still in prison and now he's got a new judge, Festus. The only problem is that this judge can't find a reason to keep Paul in prison, but he's got to make political allies of the Jews, so he can't just let him go either.

In another example of recognizing the authority that God has given our governments over us, Paul appeals to Roman law for help. He knows that he's done nothing wrong, and he knows that the Romans won't turn over a man to his accusers if he's not been proven guilty of a crime. Using that leverage he requests an audience with Caesar. Here's the bind that he's put Festus in now, though. Festus is obligated to send Paul to Caesar, but after hearing everything the Jews have to say, there are no charges to send with Paul. He can't extrapolate a single thing out of any of the accusations that the Jews have brought.

That tells us two things about Paul that should be true in our own lives as well. First, Paul was a man of the highest integrity. When the Jews made accusations against him, there was nothing that could be proven and nothing that could even be twisted into an actual charge against him. Second, Paul was a man who was aware of the world's rules and was willing to play inside those rules to further the gospel. Paul was going to get an audience with Caesar. He was going to have a chance to speak the Gospel to the highest ranking official in the entire world, and he didn't have to sneak in; he's going to be sent by Governor Festus himself.