Pastor Simon
“A few days later Felix came back with his wife, Drusilla, who was Jewish. Sending for Paul, they listened as he told them about faith in Christ Jesus. As he reasoned with them about righteousness and self-control and the coming day of judgment, Felix became frightened. “Go away for now,” he replied. “When it is more convenient, I’ll call for you again.” He also hoped that Paul would bribe him, so he sent for him quite often and talked with him.”
Acts of the Apostles 24:24-26 NLT
1. Prepare to be confronted by God (v. 24-25a)
Felix was afraid by what God is going to reveal to him about his life. God knows everything about us. Felix knew that God would be able to him things that he did not want to hear.
All of us are, to a certain extent, are afraid of confrontation.
At the same time, all of us have areas in our life that we are still struggling with. One of the most common is in the area of self-control.
When God confronts us, it is not condemnation. It is because He wants to set us free. He wants us to escape the trap of what is holding back in our life. He wants to transform us.
Only God can offer us freedom and transformation (James 1:23-24)
2. Prioritise in order to encounter God (v. 25b)
God does not appear at our convenience. He is not at our disposal. He shows up because of His grace, because of His love.
Put obedience over inconvenience. It will be challenging, there will be sacrifices involved, but the power of God will manifest when we open up our lives in this way.
There are so many things that get our attention. Life is hectic, and rightly so. It can be busy, but it doesn’t have to be messy. We just have to put God first. We must make room, give space, for Him to move in our life.
Only God can open our spiritual eyes (Luke 24:31)
Fresh experiences will renew faith in God. We cannot rely on past victories, just as we shouldn’t stare at our past mistakes. We need to have a fresh encounter with God every time.
3. Purify our motives in seeking God (v. 26)
Felix had a bad attitude and bad motive in meeting with Paul. He wanted Paul to offer him a bribe. As a result of that, he received nothing.
This is an example of being physically present, but being spiritually absent. Outwardly, we show willing, but inside where it counts, we are empty, or worse, resistant.
Only God deserves our purest and deepest worship (Psalm 24:3-4).
Pastor Simon is eminently quotable, and God is indeed glorified by his preaching. The clarity of his teaching, the brevity of his words,
The strong and simple structure of his outline reflects the power of the Word.
He makes it clear how Jesus wants to speak into our lives.
