"“At this point, Festus interrupted Paul’s defense. ‘You are out of your mind, Paul!’ he shouted. ‘Your great learning is driving you insane.’" Acts 26:24
The point Paul had just made was that Christ rose from the dead and proclaimed light to the Jews and the Gentiles. Festus has invited a lot of people to hear Paul, including King Agrippa and his wife Bernice. Agrippa was of Jewish descent and a direct descendant of Herod the Great. It is very complicated, but Bernice is his sister and also his wife. Part of the downfall of the Herodian Empire was their incestuous relationships. All that aside, this group of influential people is listening to Paul’s testimony and Festus says Paul is crazy. The “crazy-making” in the room is pretty thick, with a lot of intelligent people in desperate need of grace, and a Savior. The tension must have been measurable, so Festus makes his insanity claim to change the conversation.
This scene is repeated often throughout history. I have been part of intelligent conversations that changed course when someone felt so uncomfortable with the claims of Christ. You can talk about church, or history, or almost anything, but mention Jesus resurrected or on the cross, and people get edgy. It is an uncomfortable subject. Because we all have to answer the question, “What about what Jesus did?” It’s particularly uncomfortable is you are prideful, sinful, or lost. If Jesus was crucified, then why? If He resurrected, then how? It changes not only a conversation, it changes everything. As soon as the claims of Christ are made, we all must respond. What say you today? Jesus indeed was crucified for our sins, rose again, and that demands a response. Call me crazy too, but it remains the most important question. What have you done about what Jesus did?
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