ALMOST A CHRISTIAN?

Easter Worship Service

27 March 2005

I. Introduction

-- turn in Bibles to Acts 26

II. Scripture Lesson -- Acts 26:12-28

IIA. Background and Context

-- before we get into the passage this morning, let me give you a little background on what is going on in this passage

-- the Apostle Paul was the greatest evangelist mentioned in the Bible -- in fact, he wrote most of our New Testament -- but, he wasn't always like that -- he used to persecute and kill Christians until he was converted to Christianity on the Damascus Road -- after his conversion, he became an outspoken evangelist -- sharing the good news of Jesus to all he came into contact with -- over the course of about 16 years he travelled about 10,000 miles -- mostly by foot -- telling people about Jesus

-- even though Paul was a Jew who was converted, most Jews still hated Christianity just like he used to and they opposed Paul and his ministry wherever they could

-- towards the end of Paul's ministry, he went to Jerusalem to deliver a donation from the Christian churches in Asia to the poor in the city -- and while he was there, he went to the Jewish temple to take part in a cleansing ceremony

-- but, when the Jews saw Paul there, they got upset because they thought Paul had carried Gentiles into the holy sanctuary -- they started a riot and were about to kill Paul when the Romans stepped in and arrested Paul -- primarily for his own safety

-- when the Romans found out that the Jews planned to murder Paul and that he was a Roman citizen, they smuggled him out of Jerusalem at night to the Governor's palace

-- Paul was brought before Governor Felix to have his case heard -- but Felix didn't make a decision in Paul's case and kept him in prison for two more years -- shortly after that, Festus took over as Governor and in this passage that we are going to look at this morning, we see Paul's trial before the new Governor Festus and King Agrippa

-- so, with that background and context, let's look now at Acts 26:12 -- this passage opens with Paul sharing his testimony with Festus and Agrippa

IIB. Verses 12-18

-- this morning I am going to be reading from the New King James Version, because I like this translation of the trial better than the NIV --

12. "On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests.

-- vs. 12 -- "as I was occupied" -- as he was going about persecuting the Christians

13. About noon, O king, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions.

14. We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, `Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'

15. "Then I asked, `Who are you, Lord?' "`I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,' the Lord replied.

16. `Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen of me and what I will show you.

17. I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them

18. to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.'

-- vs. 17-18 -- God was going to use Paul to open the eyes of those living in darkness -- to help them see the light of Christ -- the truth of the gospel -- and to help them turn from the power of Satan -- from being held in bondage to sin -- to living with God

-- the word "gospel" means "good news" -- and here we see the good news of Christ clearly spelled out -- this is the reason why we are here this morning -- Jesus came and died and rose to life on Easter to offer forgiveness of sins and an inheritance with God -- in other words, Jesus came to free people from the bondage of sin and to make it possible for them to have eternal life with God in heaven

IIC. Verses 19-23

-- verse 19

19. "So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven.

20. First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds.

21. That is why the Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me.

22. But I have had God's help to this very day, and so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen--

23. that the Christ would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would proclaim light to his own people and to the Gentiles."

-- want you to see something right here -- in verse 19 Paul says he was "not disobedient" -- that means that Paul had a choice on that road to Damascus when Jesus appeared to him -- he could either be obedient by accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior and going out to witness to others -- or, he could be disobedient and turn his back on Jesus

-- at that time, Paul was probably the least likely of all those alive to believe and to accept Jesus -- he not only didn't believe Jesus was the Savior, but he was actively killing those who were Christians -- yet, he says that he made his choice there on that road and he accepted Christ

-- every single one of us here is faced with that same situation as Paul was that day -- we all have to make a choice whether we will accept Jesus as Lord and Savior or not -- the choice is up to us

IID. Verses 24-28

24. At this point Festus interrupted Paul's defense. "You are out of your mind, Paul!" he shouted. "Your great learning is driving you insane."

25. "I am not insane, most excellent Festus," Paul replied. "What I am saying is true and reasonable.

26. The king is familiar with these things, and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner.

27. King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do."

28. Then Agrippa said to Paul, "You have almost persuaded me to be a Christian."

-- in this passage, we have been introduced to the four types of people in the world

-- first, there are the Pauls as he was when he set out on the Damascus Road -- these are the ones who hate Jesus and want nothing to do with Him or His followers

-- secondly, there are the Pauls as he was after his experience on the Damascus Road -- these are the ones who have made a choice to be obedient to God and to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior

-- third, there are the Festus' -- these are the people who don't believe in God or anything spiritual -- these are the ones like Jesse Ventura, the former Governor of Minnesota, who made fun of Christians and said they were weak and idiotic because they believed in God -- they think we're out of our mind for believing in a supreme being

-- finally, there are the Agrippas -- the ones who have some sort of spiritual belief -- who say they believe in God or some supreme power -- but who don't accept Jesus as their Savior -- they're not necessarily opposed to Christians -- they just don't believe

-- King Agrippa gave us a good description of what to call these type of people in verse 28 -- these are the "almost" Christians -- Agrippa says here that he was "almost persuaded" -- almost convinced -- by what Paul said -- he almost believed, but he wasn't there yet

-- which group do you belong to? -- you have to belong to one of the four groups -- there are no other choices

III. Almost Persuaded

-- well, since you are here this morning, I would guess that you are either a follower of Christ or someone kind of like Agrippa -- someone who is "almost" a Christian

IIIA. Almost a Christian

1. "Almost"

-- Let's talk for a moment about that word, "Almost" -- what does "Almost" mean?

-- the word "almost" means not quite there -- it means just slightly missing the mark

-- we often use the word "almost" in sports and in games and in school -- we say things like "I almost won" -- "we almost beat them today" -- "I almost passed the third grade"

-- it means close, but not quite there

-- but you know, no matter what we're talking about, "almost" doesn't cut it -- it means you failed, and you're just trying to make yourself sound better -- do you remember what you used to say as a kid when you were playing a game and someone said they "almost" beat you or they got close to beating you? -- "close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades" -- in other words, "almost' doesn't cut it

-- and, if you think about it, the reason why "almost" doesn't cut it is because there's really no such thing as an "almost" anything, even though we say it all the time -- actually, you either you are or you're not -- either you won or you didn't -- you can't be "almost" pregnant -- either you are pregnant or you're not -- you can't be "almost" married -- either you are married or you're not

-- think about it like this -- a cloud is 100% water -- a watermelon is 92% water -- you could say that a watermelon is almost a cloud -- it only missed it by 8% -- but that wouldn't change the fact -- a watermelon is not and never will be a cloud

2. "Almost Christians"

-- so, what does it really mean when Agrippa says here that he was "almost" persuaded -- that he was "almost" a Christian

-- we've got to remember that the context of this passage isn't about grades or sports or games -- it is about the state of a man's soul -- to be almost a Christian is to be totally lost -- to be almost a Christian is to be on your way to Hell -- as Adrian Rogers says, "you're either a saint or an ain't -- there's no other choice"

-- an almost Christian is someone that is not saved -- someone who has never made the choice to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior -- they can look like a Christian -- they can talk like a Christian -- they can come to church every Sunday and know the words to every hymn -- they can be a good old boy or a good old girl -- but if they have not received forgiveness for their sins from Jesus, then they are totally lost

-- John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist denomination, once admitted in a sermon that he had spent the early part of his life as an "almost Christian " -- he said that he had the appearance of Godliness -- he followed all the rules -- he went to church -- he read the Bible -- he prayed -- he took communion -- he ministered to the poor and to chose in prison -- he gave to the church financially

-- but he had never actually received Jesus as his Lord and Savior -- he had never actually asked Jesus to save him and forgive his sins -- he had never trusted in faith in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus on the cross or in the power of the resurrection over sin and death

-- he looked holy on the outside, but he was not truly saved -- he was "almost" a Christian, just like King Agrippa

-- Jesus continually warned about the dangers of being an "almost Christian" -- in Matthew 13 He told the story of the wheat and the tares -- Tares were one of the curses a farmer had to struggle against -- they were a weed called "darnel" -- they were poisonous,and if you ate them it would cause dizziness and sickness -- so you didn't want them in the field with your wheat

-- but the problem was, when they were young, they looked just like wheat -- it was impossible to tell one from the other -- and by the time that you could tell the true wheat from the imposter, their roots had become intertwined and you couldn't pull up the tares without hurting the wheat -- so the owner of the field told the servants not to pull up the weeds but to leave them until the harvest at the end when they could be separated from the true wheat and burned

-- When His disciples asked Jesus to explain the parable, He told them that the wheat was the Christians and the tares represented those who did not accept Him -- the "almost Christians"

IV. Altogether Christians

-- so, what's the alternative to being an "almost Christian?" -- it is to be an "altogether" Christian

-- an "altogether" Christian is someone who has stood on the Damascus Road like Paul -- faced with a choice on whether to believe in Jesus or not -- and who has said "Yes" to Jesus --when this happens, an "almost" Christian is transformed into an "altogether" Christan

-- talking about transformation power reminds me of the story about a family from the country who went to New York City for a vacation -- they had never been in the city before, and everything was new and different to them -- one day, the father and his son were standing in the lobby of the empire state building -- they were trying to figure out what the closed elevator doors meant -- as they watched, an elderly lady with a cane pushed the button on the elevator and when the doors opened, she stepped on, and they closed behind her -- the man and his boy continued to watch and after several minutes, the elevator opened again and a beautiful young woman stepped out -- the father looked at his son and said, "Quick, go get your mother"

-- this father believed in the transforming power of the elevator, but an "altogether" Christian is somone who believes in and has experienced the transforming power of Jesus -- they have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior and just like it says in verse 18, their sins have been forgiven and they will live with Jesus in Heaven forever

-- an "altogether" Christian is characterized by three things: Faith, Hope, Love

-- Faith in Christ -- trusting that they will go to Heaven simply because Jesus died for them

-- Hope in Eternal Life -- hope in the resurrection because of the empty tomb on Easter morning

-- Love -- love for God and Neighbor as they bcome examples of the transforming power of Christ in their lives

-- what does it take to be an "altogether Christian" -- simply saying "Yes" to Jesus' offer of forgiveness and life

-- as it says in Romans 10:9-10 -- If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

V. Closing

-- many years ago, a man named Walter took his friend Arthur to see some land in the middle of no-where -- this was open ranch country where cattle were idly grazing.

-- Walter explained to Arthur that he had a dream for developing this area -- He told his friend that in time the area would be surrounded by restaurants and hotels and convention centers

-- but, He told Arthur, his plan would take all of the money he had, and he needed others to help develop the surrounding area and make his dream come alive -- He wanted his friend to have the first opportunity to buy into this project.

-- Arthur was almost persuaded to give Walter some money -- But he thought to himself, "Who in the world is going to drive twenty-five miles for this crazy project?" -- He said to Walter that he would think about it and make a decision later.

-- "Later on will be too late," Walter cautioned Arthur. -- "You'd better move on it right now."

-- And so Art Linkletter turned down the opportunity to buy up all the land that surrounded what was to become Disneyland. -- His friend Walt Disney tried to talk him into it. -- Art was almost persuaded, but in the end chose not to say "Yes"

-- Life's like that -- King Agrippa had the opportunity to accept Christ and become a Christian -- He was almost persuaded by Paul that day -- but he turned it down

-- Judas had one of the greatest opportunities in all history to become a follower of Jesus -- but instead, he betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver

-- The two thieves who were crucified with Jesus also had the opportunity to receive the gift of eternal life -- one accepted -- but, the other didn't.

-- Life offers all of us many opportunities -- We all have the opportunity to become followers of Jesus and to be a part of what God is doing in the world today -- we all have the opportunity to become an "altogether Christian" -- That choice is ours. Now.

-- what choice will you make? -- are you going to become an "altogether" Christian or are you going to remain "almost persuaded?"

-- let us pray