TUESDAY January 30, 2024

A Righteous Appeal

But Festus, wanting to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and there be judged before me concerning these things?” So Paul said, “I stand at Caesar’s judgment seat, where I ought to be judged. To the Jews I have done no wrong, as you very well know. For if I am an offender, or have committed anything deserving of death, I do not object to dying; but if there is nothing in these things of which these men accuse me, no one can deliver me to them. I appeal to Caesar.”
Acts 25:9-11

Imagine the expression and anxiety of the Jews because they did not know what Festus would decide. There were no witnesses against Paul! In the end, wanting to do the Jews a favor, he asked if Paul was willing to go to Jerusalem. Paul knew he would not get a fair trial there so he took a risk and made a righteous appeal, as a Christian and as a Roman citizen, to Caesar. He trusted God and was not afraid of death. He did not object to dying, because he knew God’s sovereignty, grace and mercy were working for him. This entire time, God had His hand on his life. Paul knew his future and felt secure in Christ.

Knowing God’s sovereignty and the security I have in Christ gives me great comfort and peace in my own life. You see, when I drive the freeway or take a trip on an airplane, I do not fear death, because I know God has my life in His hands. He has my times in His hands (Psalm 31:15). When my time comes to die, I will not worry about it.

Think of how it would be if you were on board a 747, and suddenly it had engine failure, and it was going down. You are the only Christian on board the flight. If possible, unbuckle yourself, stand up, and begin to preach the Gospel. As a child of God, what do you have to lose? God can use you right at this critical time to call people to make a split decision for Christ, because in about a minute, everyone is going to die. What a way to go to heaven––preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ! In a moment’s time, you are going to be in the presence of the Lord.

When any believer dies, they are prepared because they have a surety––the hope of heaven. Do you have this hope?

Heaven is a prepared place for a prepared people.
~D. L. Moody~

For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!