Then after Festus conferred with his council, he replied, “You have appealed to Caesar;

to Caesar you will go.” (Acts 25:12)

This week we’ve been looking at the challenge of holding onto our Faith in Jesus when

the circumstances of life leave us feeling helpless. We began by looking at the idea of

“authority” and recognized that one of the primary ways Paul maintained his Faith was

by resting in the “authority” of Christ. Next, we looked at the courage that flows from a

clean conscience. A clean conscious that flows from obedience breeds courage, while

hidden sin and moral compromise breeds insecurity and fear.

Yesterday, we overheard Paul proclaiming 7 words that all believers need to be able to

say: “I am not trying to escape death.” Here, we were reminded that the worse thing that

can happen to us in this life is physical death, but on the other side of death is

something that Paul describes as “far better” than life here in this fallen world. Do you

remember what Paul said from Philippians 1:21 & 23?

“For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. I long to depart and be with Christ—which is

far better— but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for your sake.”

In summary, our Faith remains strong in seasons of helplessness when we cling to the

authority of Christ, when we keep our conscience clean through simple obedience and

when we focus on “eternal life” which is far better than “long life.” But there is one more

lesson to learn before we leave this section of Acts. Look back at what Festus says in

verse 12: “You have appealed to Caesar; to Caesar you will go.” Did you catch that? For

us, it’s only been 5 days together in Acts 25. But for Paul, these 12 short verses cover

two years of this man’s life. TWO YEARS!!

This leaves us with two important lessons as we close our time in Acts 25. First, God’s

timing is NOT our timing. You may seem stuck in a helpless situation that is taking way

too long to resolve. I’m sure Paul felt the same way. But secondly, (as Pastor Ron often

says) if we are still breathing, God is not done with us! When it was all said and done,

Paul got exactly what he desired, which was an opportunity to share the Gospel in

Rome… “to Caesar you will go.” When we trust in the authority of Christ and live in

simple obedience while remaining focused on our eternal destination, God grants us the

desires of our heart. But He does so in “His timing.” He does this for our good and for

His glory!



Read Isaiah 55:8-9 for more encouragement!

By Jimmy Carter