"Almost Persuaded" | Pastor Steve Gaines

please take your Bibles and turn with me to Acts chapter 25 and in just a moment I'll start reading in verse 13 acts 25 13 have you ever eaten something that was almost prepared right it made you almost want to pay for it didn't it have you ever talked to somebody that was in school and they were almost through with their degree they just lacked their dissertation abd all but dissertation that means they all but their doctorate unless they write that dissertation are going there almost there but they're not quite there have you ever seen a football team that almost could win have you ever talked to somebody that almost could finish a job have you ever talked to somebody that almost did this and almost did that and you know what almost is like not doing it at all there are people all over Memphis there are people all over America that almost have come to faith in Jesus Christ but they're not there and you know what happens when you're almost with Jesus you're not with Jesus as I saying I'm almost married now pastor you know we understand that it's wrong to cohabitate we're almost married so we're just kind of living together and then that's okay God's a God of grace God's God of love we're almost married you know what if you're not married you're not supposed to be living together almost doesn't cut it almost is not there almost is not all the way almost is not finished and when it comes to Jesus you don't need to stand before God when you die and say I was almost there Lord if you just give me a little bit more time you know I had a plan I I planned on one of these days coming around getting around to it and giving my heart to Jesus I I was almost there I was I was this close Lord you can be this close and die and go to hell Judas kissed Jesus the door to heaven and went to hell you can kiss the door to heaven and almost get in and die and go to hell I believe that the church today ought to look like the church in the book of Acts I believe that we ought to pray like they pray give like they give serve like they serve preach like they preached worship like they worship evangelize like they evangelize start churches like they started churches I think we ought to look at that book all the time and say Lord until this until Bellevue looks like the book of Acts we are not going to stop trying to make sure that we do everything you want us to do the Lord we don't want to bend the model to us we want to bend ourselves to your model in the book of Acts we want to look like Acts and God we thank you for the Apostle Paul we thank you Lord for this great man of God he wasn't perfect but he was definitely one of if not the greatest Christian ever to live and now he's been arrested he's been arrested and he's telling everybody about Jesus he's telling can you imagine can you even fathom what it's like to be the guy that gets the job of being chained to Paul whether you think you're gonna hear the gospel a little bit you think just maybe you're gonna hear about Jesus a little bit I mean he was saying man what time is my break this guy's wearing me out Paul told soldiers he told other people in jail but he also was brilliant and he had this glorious testimony of what God had done in his life and he would tell the richest people and the most famous people and the leading rulers he didn't care it didn't matter if he was talking to a king or a pauper he didn't matter if he was talking to a judge or somebody in the jail paul was all he did with his life was talk to the Lord and talk about the Lord you know why because he loved Jesus his life was Jesus I don't ask you do you know anybody like that and are you like that am I like that that's what we're supposed to be we're supposed to be talking with Jesus and about Jesus all the time there are a lot of dignitaries that Paul talked to he even got to talk to the Emperor later on right at the end of Acts right after that he he went before the Emperor Nero and shared the gospel with him history tells us that the Paul is here in Caesarea he's going to get on a ship that will go eventually it's going to go through a lot of storms and everything else we'll see that in chapter 27 we're in book of Acts but he's gonna go through a lot of difficulties you can go in on an island of Malta and everybody there is gonna get saved and healed and it's gonna be a glorious revival but he's gonna make it to Rome he's going to share the gospel with the Emperor like God said but on the way he's got a few governors that he's going to talk to namely he's already talked to Felix back in the previous few chapters and Felix never found time for Jesus do you know anybody like that never taught fine time to read their Bible never find time to give to the church never time find time to be in worship never find time to really serve the Lord never find time I just don't know I not right now I'm just don't have enough time when I find the time Jesus I'll give that to you that's what Felix said listening to Paul preached to him at least once a week for two years and he still didn't receive Jesus you know what I'll guarantee you he's in Hell right now don't you know that he would gladly find the time for Jesus today we got somebody just like him now in the text today the guy that replaced Felix was Festus not you know I'm not making this up all right Festus Felix and you got Festus coming in now as the governor port poor Caius Festus and he was enamored with Paul and he listened to Paul and these Jews wanted to kill Paul and so he was keeping him safe he realized that Paul had done nothing wrong and when he said why don't you go to Jerusalem and we'll have your trial up there and Festus was trying to do a favor to the Jews who wanted to kill Paul on the way and Paul said no I'm a Roman I'm where I ought to be you know that I'm not guilty I appealed to Caesar who is the highest court obviously in all of the Roman Empire and so since Paul was a Roman system citizen Festus said you have appealed to the Emperor and to the Emperor you will go and so now he's holding him and he's waiting to send him to the Emperor but he really doesn't know what the charges are he really doesn't know what to say to Caesar and so all of a sudden this fat-cat a grip of the second his dad a grip of the first was the one who had James the Apostle killed cut off his head with a sword and he's the one that back in Chapter 12 imprisoned Peter his dad was and you remember when the angel came and got Peter out and then this guy later on the Bible says God struck him and he was eaten by worms and he died it doesn't say he died and he was eaten by worms he said he was eaten by worms and then he died you know what if you're eating my worms you're gonna die and a horrible death it would be that's his dad but now this guy comes along and he's just some rich guys some fat cat and he's got a sister named Bernice there's what do they do they just go around traveling let's go around traveling and they just paid their respects to Festus they go over there you know can you even fathom just going around travelling all the time dad knows we're sure we're where are you well we're in another time we're just out here didn't having a great time that's a waste of life that's a waste of life God didn't call you to go traveling all the time God told you to tell people about Jesus Christ God told you to get busy in the kingdom I'm not saying we never take a vacation but if that's all you ever do you're wasting your life wasting your life and here these people are and they come in and they have all these fancy meals and fenceless just brings up Paul's hey I got this guy here and he talks about a dead man like he's alive and everybody wants to kill him because of it I don't know what to do and he's appeal to the to the the Emperor and I don't know what to say to the Emperor and Agrippa said I'd like to hear him too now I just set up the whole thing it's the longest Texas scripture we got I've got 24 minutes to preach it and I'm going to do it but you hear me this one's most sobering sermons I've ever preached in my life and I want you to listen because a lot of it is I'm gonna have to make quick comments as I go but please if you don't know Jesus listen to every word of this because some of you are almost there but you know what if you die today almost doesn't cut it doesn't cut it number one look at the preparation for the gospel chapter 25 verse 13 now when several days had elapsed King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at seseri and paid their respects to Festus that means we don't have a real job we're just hanging out King Agrippa comes in there spoiled brat son of a grip of the first and he's just hanging out with his sister and verse 14 says while they were spending many days there Festus laid Paul's case before the king saying there's a man who was left as a prisoner by Felix when I was at Jerusalem the chief priests and the elders of the Jews brought charges against him asking for a sentence of condemnation against him I answered them that it is not a custom of the Romans to hand over any man before the accused meets his accusers face to face and has an opportunity to make his defense against the charges so after they had assembled here I did not delay but on the next day took my seat on the tribunal I ordered the man to be brought before me when the accusers stood up they began bringing charges against him not of such crimes as I was expecting but they simply had some points of disagreement with him about their own religion that's the Jewish religion and about a dead man and listen how he described Jesus a dead man Jesus whom Paul asserted to be alive being at a loss how to investigate such matters I asked whether he was willing to go up to Jerusalem and there stand trial on these matters but when Paul appealed to be held in custody for the Emperor's decision I ordered him to be kept in custody until I send him to Caesar then Agrippa said to Festus I also would like to hear the man my self God has put in everybody's heart a desire to hear the gospel I also would like to hear the man myself tomorrow he said you shall hear him so on the next day when Agrippa came together with Bernice amid great pomp and it entered the auditorium accompany and that's what the picture is by the way there's a depiction of it on the front of your bulletin these fat cats up there listening to Paul preach Bernie's amid great pomp and entered the auditorium accompanied by the commanders and the prominent men of the city at the command of Festus Paul was brought in notice how great Luke says did this big pageantry all these bigwigs come in here comes Festus the governor of Judea here comes Bernice the sister of the king here comes a grip of the second here come all their entourage and they sit down among all their pomp and glory and all it says about Paul is Paul came in Paul came in look at me the only reason you and I even know anything about Felix and Festus and Agrippa and Bernice is because of Paul they thought they were the big deal and history would not have said one word about them were it not for this little guy over here in the prison named Paul this jailbird named Paul and he became the mightiest power in the Roman Empire even more mighty than Caesar himself I want to say this to you the world may not think much of you now but it doesn't matter what the world thinks about you it matters what God thinks about you you might be a bigwig now in the world but if you don't know Jesus if you're almost to Jesus you're not much in eternity idea of greatness God's idea of greatness is loving Jesus with all your heart and when you do that when you fall in love with the Lord you know what people may be talking about you centuries later and not talk about anybody that's prominent right now in the world I'd rather I'd rather have Jesus than silver and gold I'd rather have him than riches untold I'd rather have Jesus than houses or land I'd rather be led by his nail star at hand than to be a king of a vast domain and to be held in sins dread sway I'd rather have Jesus than anything this world can afford today oh listen today you might be just like these folks right here God has prepared your heart God has prepared your heart you've come to a place today and you're gonna hear the gospel and you need to receive Jesus you need to repent of your sins this may be the best time it may be the last time you are ever afforded an opportunity to come to Jesus and to really be saved don't say almost persuaded don't say it don't say it look at verse 24 Festus said King Agrippa all you gentlemen here present with us you see this man about whom all the people that use appeal to me both at Jerusalem and here loudly declaring that he ought not to live any longer but I found that he had committed nothing worthy of death and since he himself appealed to the Emperor I decided to send him yet I have nothing definite about him to write to my Lord talking about the Emperor therefore I brought him before you all and especially before you King Agrippa so that after the investigation has taken place I may have something to write for it seems absurd to me in sending a prisoner not to indicate also the charges against him in chapter 26 verse 1 he said brother Steve can you really cross a chapter in the same sermon yep here we go Agrippa said to Paul you're permitted to speak for yourself o God has set the table you know God God prepares people to be saved the Bible says Jesus said in John 16 he said this the night before he died he said it's actually best for you that I go away because if I don't the counselor won't come talking about the Holy Spirit if I do go away he will come because I'll send him to you and when he comes he'll convince the world of sin and of God's righteousness and of the coming judgement the world sin is unbelief in me righteousness is available because I go to the Father and you'll see me no more judgment will come because the Prince of this world has already been cast out God is preparing people all the time to hear the gospel if we'll share the gospel somebody is out there I will tell you something God has a way of bringing people that are under conviction with people that will tell them about Jesus God will connect you and if you'll just be open if you'll just be walking in the spirit God will help you encourage people to come to Christ people are very close and they just need somebody to lovingly tell them about Jesus and they'll be persuaded to receive Christ that's the preparation for the gospel notice now the proclamation of the gospel and I want to tell you that every person in this room is supposed to be sharing the gospel at any time and all the time there's a lot of talk nowadays about gospel conversations let's say that phrase gospel conversation well you hear that everywhere I go and what I what I hear sometimes bothers me a little bit because they say well if you just talk a little about Jesus you're having a gospel conversation I want to say this to you you're not having a biblical gospel conversation unless there is included in that gospel conversation a gospel presentation and a gospel invitation hear what I just said just go around say hey hey I love Jesus oh I had a great gospel conversation and wrong did you tell them that God loves them did you tell them that they are a sinner they have broken the laws of God did you tell them that Jesus died for their sins and rose from the dead did you tell them that they have to repent of their sins and believe savingly in Jesus that he died and rose for them did you tell them that they have to receive Jesus at a point in time to be born again if you didn't do that I love you but you did not have a gospel conversation you just talked a little bit about religion which saves nobody well this this guy's about about to be he's engaging if he thinks he's got some fluff with Paul he is dreaming when we think about proclaiming the gospel we need to be prepared to defend the gospel of Jesus chapter 26 verse 1 goes on to say then Paul stretched out his hand you see that all the time with Paul he's always doing this when he gets up most of the time that meant for the crowd hey guys I'm about to talk they didn't have mics where we could just blow you away okay they had to calm down the crowd and he would he did this a lot you'll see this throughout the book of Acts he just raised his hand but here he's doing it out of respect to the king he respected the office just like he wrote in Romans 13 that we are to respect people in office and I want to say this gentleman just pause and just put that put that right there and let me just say something I don't care if Barack Obama is the president or AB Donald Trump is the president you need to respect the office the office and I want to say this to you the Bible says don't talk evil of your leaders and you don't need to get caught up in all this mania in our media out there that's talking they either want to trash President Obama for something he did or they want to trash President Trump if something he's doing look at me even if you didn't vote them for them you need to respect biblical authority and God will honor you for doing it don't be part of the problem be part of the solution alright amen can you can you handle that that okay so no more obama jokes no more Trump jokes cut it out you got to answer to God for every idle word you speak so cut it out now back in the sermon all right verse two in regard to all the things of which I am accused by the Jews I consider myself fortunate King Agrippa that I am about to make my defence before you today especially because you are an expert in all customs and questions among the Jews therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently he said I'm gonna make my defence before you what's that word apology oh my it's where we get the word apologetics I'm gonna make a a defense from Scripture about what I believe like Ravi Zacharias and some of those great guys josh mcdowell you and i are commanded to do the same thing in 1st Peter 3:15 and 16 sanctify yourself as Laura sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you yet with gentleness and reverence so you need to you need to defend the gospel you need to be an Apollo apologist if you will you need to be prepared to do that and then as we look at Paul you need to share about your life before you met Jesus people say hi how do I witness roast Eve well you got to be prepared to defend the gospel but then you got to tell them what it was like before you met Jesus now if you know you got saved when you were 6 you say man I was the worst guy in the nursery you know you got to do something all right unfortunately some of us developed our testimonies way too good amen and you know I can remember I've known some guys and they were going through rough times and I said well they're just developing their testimony it'll come out all right it'll be okay look at verse 4 so then all Jews know my manner of life from my youth up he's going back he's telling his testimony which from the beginning was spent among my own nation and at Jerusalem since they have known about me for a long time if they're willing to testify that I lived as a Pharisee according to strictest sect of our religion now I'm standing trial for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers the promise to which our twelve tribes hope to attain as they earnestly serve God night and day and for this hope o King I'm being accused by Jews why is it considered incredible among you people if God does raise the dead so then I thought to myself that I had to do many things hostile to the name of Jesus Christ now listen to what Paul did to Christians before he got saved and this is just what I did in Jerusalem not only did I lock up many of the Saints in prisons having received authority from the chief priests but also when they were being put to death I cast my vote against him and I punished them often in all the synagogues they would literally take them in the middle of the synagogue and beat them until they were bloody I tried to force them to blaspheme they would beat them and torture them until they would deny that Christ was the son of God and being furiously enraged at them I kept pursuing them even to foreign cities I want to tell you he had a testimony did he not then share what's your life that's that's about what you did before the Lord but then share about meeting the Lord when you talk to when you talk to lost people don't just tell him about what life was like before it and don't spend a lot of time there don't brag on what the devil did in your life but talk to him about how you came to meet the Lord Paul does that in verse 12 and following while so engaged as I was journeying to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests at midday o King I saw on the way a light from heaven oh it was a heavenly light brighter than the Sun oh it was a bright light shining all around the oil was an all-encompassing light it was Jesus shining all around me of those who were journeying with me and when we had all fallen to the ground I heard a voice oh it was a speaking light it was a communicating God saying to me in the Hebrew dialect Saul Saul why are you persecuting me and then he says something here they doesn't say anywhere else it is hard for you to kick against the goads what is that a goad was a little poker now you have a cattle prod with a little electricity comes in with a battery but you you get the cattle to go where you want them to go or the goats in this case and you poke them a little bit he said it's hard you're like a sheath that's kicking against the goads they would have a sharp stick and they would poke the animals and said go that way and if you don't I'm going to poke you again and so God is His Holy Spirit is constantly touching the heart of Paul and Paul was resisting he said it's hard isn't it Paul I've been after you boy it's hard in it you're killing my people you're beating my people but I'm after you boy it's hard to kick against my goat isn't it that's what he's saying praise God for God loving us enough to have a goat after us a minute it's hard any Paul really hard and I said who are you Lord and the Lord said I'm Jesus you're persecuting I want to tell you when you persecute the people of Jesus you touch the heart of Jesus Christ you don't just touch us you touch Jesus when you hurt Jesus that's a bad deal but get up stand on your feet for this purpose I've appeared to you I appoint you as a minister and a witness not only the things which you've seen but also to the things in which I will appear to you rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles to whom I'm sending you to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light from Dominion the Dominion of Satan to God that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in me Wow share what Jesus did in your life and then share about life after receiving the Lord Jesus that's how you share testimony this is what I was like before I met the Lord this is how I met the Lord and this is what's happened since I met the Lord you know what everybody in this room that saved can do that you can do that and if you do that more often more people would get saved they want to hear your testimony they want to hear what you have to say about Jesus look at verse 20 so King Agrippa I love it I love love love this phrase I did not prove disobedient to the heavenly vision hallelujah but kept declaring both to those in Damascus first and also at Jerusalem and then throughout all the region of Judea and even to the Gentiles that they should repent and turn to God performing deeds appropriate to repentance underline that highlight that that is by far the best theological definition of repentance in the whole Bible right there that they should repent and turn to God that means they should turn repent turn from their sin turn to God and then perform deeds appropriate to repentance that proves that you really did repent for this reason some Jews seized me in the temple tried to put me to death so having obtained help from God I stand to this day testifying both to the small and to the great stadia and in that right he'd shared with the the prisoners he'd shared with the guards and now he's sharing with the fat cats over here I'm talking to everybody says the small and great stating nothing but what the prophets and Moses said was going to take place and here he shares the gospel that the Christ was to suffer there's the crucifixion there's Jesus death for our sins and that by reason of his resurrection oh he rose from the dead King Agrippa from the dead he would be the first to proclaim light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles oh thank God for a preacher thank God for a Christian that will tell people of their testimony and share the gospel as a result thank God for that well you've seen the preparation for the gospel in the proclamation of the gospel now very quickly let's just look at the end here the persuasion of the gospel Oh some people who we're not supposed to persuade them that's God's business well don't tell Paul that because all throughout the book of Acts he's persuading this one persuading that one that's what the word means that's what the translations say look at this look at verse 24 while Paul was saying this in his defence Festus said with a loud voice Paul you are out of your mind like that woman that bear woman talked about the vice-president he's out of his mind he says that God's talking to him he's out of his mind I Got News for you if that's crazy I hope we all go crazy amen aren't you glad that God can still talk to us amen praise the Living God I pray that he'll talk to her as well while Paul was saying this in his defense Festus said in a loud voice Paul you're out of your mind you're great learning is driving you mad but Paul said you anyway said your your your many letters all of your studying you've lost your mind Paul said I'm not out of my mind most excellent test us but I utter words of sober truth for the King knows about these things I speak to him also with confidence since I'm persuaded I'm persuaded catch that I am persuade Paul was already persuaded I am persuaded that none of these things escape business I love this phrase for this talking about Christianity has not been done in a corner Jesus taught in public Jesus died in public Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to hundreds of people this is not something that just happened over in a little corner this is something that happened and the whole world is going to know about it we're not ashamed of the gospel it didn't happen in the corner and we're not gonna keep it there King Agrippa here and here's this please he's zero in on this guy now king agrippa do you believe king agrippa do you believe do you believe in the prophets i know that you do Agrippa replied in a short time you will persuade me to become a Christian almost persuaded and Paul said I would wish to God that whether in a short time not only you but also all who hear me this day might become such as I am except for these chains the king stood up the governor and Bernice those who were sitting with them and when they had gone aside they began talking not to God but to one another saying this man is doing nothing wrong nothing worthy of death nothing worthy of imprisonment and Agrippa said to Festus this man might have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar I got something to say to you Agrippa you might have been set free too if you had received Jesus and that's it that's pretty much it almost you persuade me almost Paul I'm kind of like Felix I'm just not quite ready I'm just not ready you know you know I'm a real important person Paul and I'm not like you over in prison all you got to do is think about this theological stuff I've got a country to run hi I'm a very significant person I've got a lot of money like a lot of people that report to me you don't understand preacher you don't understand if I give my life to Jesus Christ that means I'm giving up my rights and I'm gonna have to change and my whole life is gonna change I'm not ready for that I'm almost persuaded don't ask you a question that he's in hell right now he has been in hell for 2,000 years Agrippa Bernice Festus Felix all of them they've been in hell for 2,000 years do you think he'd like to have that moment back Oh grandpa do you believe do you believe in the prophets do you believe in what I'm saying will you trust Christ is what he was saying do you believe do you believe almost almost but not right now almost we'll send you to hell oh dear precious soul your body is wearing away whether you know it or not the grass withers the flower fades away you know what that means most of us are just grass a few of you are good-looking flowers but all of us are going down amen you can paint it all you want to push it up poke it down cut it off whatever you want to but look at me it's like the Titanic you're just rearranging the deckchairs amen you going down amen you're going down now if that didn't bless you I don't know how to bless you right there all right yeah I don't care what anybody said you ain't what you used to be all right Amen I can tell you I'm a little football player the older I get the better I was all right in my mind in my mind you don't you don't have much more time to say yes to Jesus you don't you don't know when you're going to die and I'm begging I'm not up here acting I'm not up here to get a laugh it's been a pretty tense sermon so I think the Lord just let us have a little bit let's get serious for a minute do you want to stand before God and say almost I almost trusted Jesus to die for my sins I almost trusted that he rose from the dead to give me eternal life I almost repented I almost said yes but I had a lot going on I was an important person Lord give me another chance there's no chance after death almost we'll send you to an eternal hell just ask Agrippa just ask him I'm not trying to scare you but you know what sometimes you might need to get a little afraid because some of you are so complacent in your little good life that you don't see your need for the Lord I'm calling you out today and I'm telling you you need to say yes to Jesus Christ let's bow our heads Father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray that anybody out there saying almost would say today's the day I don't care what I miss I don't care what appointment I miss I don't care what meeting I miss today is the day God let him say now is the time not almost let him say right now in Jesus name and all God's people said

Channel: Bellevue Baptist Church

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Id: K79_YNu7pHY

Length: 39min 49sec (2389 seconds)

Published: Tue Mar 20 2018