Three Things That Should Govern Our Lives
Acts 24:2-25
In the passage for this sermon, we will be looking at Paul presenting his case before Felix. Typically, this passage is used for salvation and it is a good passage for doing so. But we are going to apply it here to a saved person. Felix is a great example of people who are governed by others, money, and time. When Paul preached to Felix, he reasoned with him of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come. We will show that we can use these three things to help us not be governed by the wrong things in our own lives.
What was governing Felix in this issue of Paul?
1) Others (verses 24-27)
- First, we see that he wants to wait on someone else before hearing the whole matter concerning Paul.
- Then when he does here the matter, he brings his wife who is a Jew. The question that I have is whose side was she on, Paul or the Pharisees?
2) Money (verse 26)
- Eventually we get to one of the main reasons that Felix was holding out on letting Paul go free. He was hoping that someone would pay him some money for the release of Paul.
- We may not be taking bribes or money under the table, but if we are willing to admit it, money governs many aspects of our lives as well.
3) Time (verse 25)
- Felix tells Paul that when he has a convenient time he will call for him. In this we see that Felix is using time as an excuse to Paul for refusing Jesus.
- Time is a hard thing because in one sense it does govern many aspects of life. Everything we do is based on time. But we must be careful or we will find ourselves making decisions based more on time than God.
What should be governing our lives?
1) Righteousness (1 John 3:7)
- This verse tells us that he that does righteousness is righteousness. One of the main things that should govern our lives is the simple question of is it right.
- This is why we need the word of God. It is amazing how many different sources people will use when trying to make a decision but never consider whether God word says that it is right or not.
2) Temperance (1 Corinthians 9:24-27)
- A good definition for temperance is self-control. In this passage Paul shows us that we must be temperate in all things. If we could learn self-control and let temperance govern our lives we would less governed by the things that governed Felix
3) Judgment to come (2 Corinthians 5:9-10)
- In this passage we see that our goal in labor is to be accepted of God. If we would think more about the Judgment Seat of Christ than tomorrow or retirement we would be better off.
- The thought of the standing before God should be a great governing agent for our lives, but we must consider it on a daily bases.