Bill Acton :: Acts 21:18 - Acts 28:37 - Paul’s Witness as a Prisoner

Sermon Outline for Acts 21:18 – 23:37

Paul’s Witness as a Prisoner

1. Paul’s Witness in Jerusalem – Act 21:18 – 23:10
   1. Before the mob – Act 21:18 – 22:23
   2. Before the Sanhedrin – Act 22:30-23
2. Paul’s Witness in Caesarea – Act 23:12-26
   1. Before Governor Felix – Act 24:1-27
      1. The false accusers – Act 25:1-8
         1. Ananias, the High Priest - filled with hatred
         2. The Elders
         3. Tentullus, the lawyer, a clever orator
      2. The accusations – Act 25:2-9
         1. Praise to Felix
         2. Paul, a trouble-maker, a serious charge
         3. Leader of a revolution, such as Barabas
         4. Profaner of the Temple
      3. The Defense – Act 25:10-21
         1. The refutation of the accusations – Act 25:10-13
            1. Denied the charges
            2. Demanded proof
         2. The statement of the real reason for their opposition – Act 25:14-21
      4. The effect – Act 25:22-23
         1. Felix is not impressed with the accusers
         2. He postponed the case
   2. The second witness before Felix – Act 25:24-26
      1. The occasion: He wanted his wife, a Jew, to hear Paul
      2. The content
         1. Righteousness – Condemning the hypocrisy of the ruler
         2. Temperance or self-control – Condemning the illegal marriage
         3. Judgment
      3. The result
         1. Felix was terrified – Act 24:25
         2. He kept Paul in custody
         3. He tried to extort money
         4. He committed spiritual suicide
         5. Felix was a cruel ruler – Act 24:27
            1. He was living in adultery
            2. He was corrupt
            3. He was a man of perpetual compromise
            4. He was a man of procrastination
            5. He was a man of vacillation
            6. Vacillation becomes hardness