20240616 Acts 26:1-32 - Share the Gospel with Your Testimony

Years ago, at a Bible study, we began by going around to see how everyone was doing. A young woman mentioned that her colleagues were becoming curious about her being a Christian and attending church. I was excited to hear where this story was going, but then she expressed that her colleagues’ interest bothered her. They kept asking her questions about her faith, and she wanted to keep her faith private. Maybe some of us can identify. Talking about our faith can be awkward. We may worry we will say the wrong thing or that people will think less of us. Acts 26 offers us a model to help us share our faith.

In the context of Acts, Acts 21:17-28:31 is the final section. Paul is in custody. According to Acts 21:28, he was accused of speaking against the Jews, the law, and the temple. Paul's focus is Jesus. He can say Jewish leaders had Jesus killed. He teaches that Jesus fulfilled the law. He can also teach that followers of Jesus are the new temple.

Paul defends himself three times from the accusations in Acts 22, 24, and 26. His defense in Acts 26 is the most detailed, before King Agrippa. In the process, he shares his testimony of Christian experience.

Paul’s speech divides into three sections. First, Paul discusses his background before becoming a Christian. Second, he shares what God did to him and his conversion. Third, he talks about his life as a Christian. Acts 26:28 summarizes Paul’s intentions with his speech. When Paul finishes, King Agrippa asks, "In a short time would you persuade me to be a Christian?" So, officially, Paul is defending himself against accusations. Unofficially, Paul is trying to make new disciples. Christians today can share their testimony of Christian experience to invite others to follow Jesus. We can use the same three movements as Paul in Acts 26.

First, We Connect with Our Background (Acts 26:1-11)

Paul is making his defense (Acts 26:2). The accusation is that he is anti-Jewish. Paul defends himself by connecting with his accusers. This common ground allows them to relate. They can think, "Paul used to be like me." They can wonder, "How did he change?"

The first element of defense and background information is that Paul was a devoted Jew (Acts 26:4-5). His youth was “known by all the Jews.” They knew he was educated at the feet of Gamaliel (Acts 22:3). According to Acts 5:34, Gamaliel was “a teacher of the law held in honor by all the people.” Paul was not a nominal Jew. He was a Pharisee. He lived “according to the strictest party of [their religion]” (Acts 26:5).

The second way Paul defends himself is by sharing his belief in the resurrection (Acts 26:6-8). Pharisees believed in the resurrection of the dead. Paul can claim believing in Jesus' resurrection is consistent with being a Jew.

The third way Paul connects is by sharing that he too was a persecutor of Christians. He says in Acts 26:10 that he had Christians locked up. When they were on trial, he voted to have them killed.

At this point, Paul has created great tension. The question everyone is asking themselves is, “What happened to you?” "You studied under Gamaliel, you persecuted Christians. What is going on?” This is the goal of the first part of the testimony. It is to get people to ask, what happened to you!?

Application

Everyone’s story is unique. Your story is God's story. He is sovereign and can use it for His glory. Our job is to be honest. We can talk about our sin, our suffering, our convictions, and our upbringing. If you are a Christian, some of the things I am about to say will apply to you and other things won’t. My goal is to include everyone, so don’t dismiss the whole thing.

When sharing about our background, an issue we can address is our sin. If you share about your sin, people will relate as fellow sinners. If you can convince them that you are a worse sinner than they are, you are teaching that God’s grace is enough for them as well.

Second, we talk about our prior convictions. Paul shared about how entrenched he was in Judaism. If you share about how entrenched you were in a particular worldview, people will relate. They hear that you too were not a Christian at some point and then something changed. You are creating tension.

The president of an atheist association became a Christian and was getting training to become a pastor. Atheists will be intrigued by this story. They cannot try to convince him using arguments against the existence of God because he will be able to say, "Yeah, I know, I used to be you!"

Francis Collins in his book The Language of God shows how the study of science led him to be more convinced about God! This is powerful for people who say, "I can't be a Christian because I'm a scientist." Talking about our deep prior convictions emphasizes our life transformation. Sometimes people think that religion is for people who do not think. It is for those who were not exposed to superior ways of thinking. Showing we believed something before accepting Christianity confronts this misconception.

Third, we can share about our suffering. If you share about the suffering you have endured, people will relate. The number one reason people give for not believing in God is suffering. Sharing about suffering confronts this objection. People will ask questions.

Fourth, we share about our upbringing. If you did not grow up in a Christian home, that can intrigue people. Now, if you grew up in a Christian home, that can be even more intriguing! On the one hand, some may think you were brainwashed from a young age. In a world of religious scandal after religious scandal, they may find it fascinating that anyone raised in church would stay in church. These can also be powerful testimonies to those who experienced toxic religious contexts.

We do not choose our background. Don’t wish for a different background or testimony. It is the background God has given us. Not everything I have just shared will apply to everyone. If you are a Christian, you have a testimony. It is not boring; it is glorious, no matter what God has chosen for you. Different people’s backgrounds will resonate with different people. That is how we begin.

Second, We Stress God’s Work at Our Conversion (Acts 26:12-18)

Beginning in Acts 26:12, Paul speaks of the time he was still persecuting the church. He was on his way to Damascus. He saw a light that was so bright that he fell to the ground, and Jesus spoke to him, saying, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”

In this same encounter with Jesus, Jesus gives him a new direction for life in Acts 26:16-18. He will now bear witness to Jesus to the Gentiles that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive the forgiveness of sins and belong to the church. Paul stresses God's work, shares of his saving grace, and the new direction of his life.

First, to show how he went from anti-Jesus to pro-Jesus, he reveals that God acted. Something dramatic explains his dramatic change.

Second, this is how Paul’s testimony is evangelistic. Paul shares the good news about the forgiveness of sins in Jesus that is for people to receive.

Third, Paul connects his conversion with a call on his life. His mission now is to be a gift to the world. He is to be a light to both Jews and Gentiles. They will persecute him, but it is worth it because their sins can be forgiven. Paul embodies the message he brings. Jesus came to love those who persecuted him, all the way to his death. Now Paul is accepting to be persecuted for the good of his persecutors that they would receive the gospel.

In the second part of his testimony, Paul shares that: God acts, Paul receives the forgiveness of sins, and now he lives to make Christ known.

Application

God has acted in our lives. When anyone becomes a Christian, something supernatural has occurred. The God who created the universe, the God who raised Jesus from the dead, acted in our lives that we would be born again! No one reasons themselves to faith. You have an encounter with the living God. He opens our eyes so that we may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God.

Some of our experiences were closer to Paul’s. Others of us don’t ever remember not believing. In this case, the Bible helps us to share our testimony truthfully. We can say that we grew up in a loving Christian home, and we recognize that we were born dead in our trespasses according to Ephesians 2:1. We were practicing evil deeds, our minds were hostile against the things of God (Colossians 1:21), from our youth, the intentions of our hearts were bent towards evil continually (Genesis 6:5). And then at some moment, God said “let there be light!” and God shone light in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 4:6).

If you became a Christian at a young age, you may have since had periods of doubt, rebellion, and growth in your understanding of the gospel. You can share all of that. I will say, if your testimony is, "I grew up in a Christian home, and I’m still in church," Jesus is missing from your testimony, so you need to think through the impact of the gospel on your life.

Like Paul, all Christians communicate that God acted. As a result, we received the forgiveness of sins. We understand our conversion as a call to ministry. God has saved us. Now, we have a story to tell.

Learning to share this story will encourage us in our faith. When we share these stories, we will encourage each other. When we share what God has done, we speak of the forgiveness of sins, and how our life changed, we also communicate that this could be true for our hearers as well. They can believe and experience eternal life.

Third, We Share About Our Life as Christians (Acts 26:19-32)

Sometimes when we share testimonies, they end at our conversion. That is only the beginning! We need to share what God has done since then. We share what we have learned since becoming a Christian. We share how our faith changes our life. In Acts 26:19-32, Paul talks about his obedience to his heavenly vision. He shared the gospel in Damascus (Acts 26:20). He continued even when his life was threatened (Acts 26:21). His obedience is the reason he was there on trial (Acts 26:22).

Festus, the governor who had brought Paul to Agrippa, interrupts him to tell him he is out of his mind and that his great learning has made him mad! Paul turns to the king and asks if he believes the prophets. The king asks Paul, “In a short time would you persuade me to be a Christian?” In Acts 26:29, we see Paul’s zeal – he says: "Whether short or long, I would to God that not only you but also all who hear me this day might become such as I am.”

Paul changed from persecutor of Christians to persecuted Christian. Years had passed since his conversion and still, his conversion had an impact. He was still on a mission to share the gospel so that more people would hear, be convinced, and believe. He was willing to endure great suffering for the sake of others.

Application

What God is doing now is the most important part of our testimony. It doesn’t matter if you came out of drugs and crime, or grew up in an intentional Christian home. If you are a Christian, what matters now is your current Christian experience. How is your life different today because of the gospel? The gospel can affect your career, where you live, your family dynamics, and your emotional life. It may be that Christ gives you peace and joy when you used to be anxious and angry.

For some of us, there will be a big contrast between our background and our present. For others, it is a slow progression of growth in grace. Often, at this point, we might get discouraged because we wonder if God is changing us. In this case, ask people who know you what they think. They may be more objective. Also, don’t compare yourself to others. Some specifics will be unique to your story.

John Stott writes that every Christian must grow in love, faith, knowledge, and holiness. This happens from being part of a healthy church community with a healthy diet of God’s Word. If there is no Christian experience and nothing to testify, it can also mean that you are not a Christian. Or we have stagnated in Christian infancy. In this case, I would love to talk with you.

The ordinary means that God gives His church to encounter Jesus and to grow in Christ by the power of His Holy Spirit are His word, the sacraments, worship, prayer, and deep, loving, joyful Christian fellowship. When we diligently pursue these means of grace, God acts in our lives. When God acts, we change, and we have stories to share with others that will encourage them. Our transformation also intrigues the watching world.

Recently, I read a moving testimony by a Christian who grew up in the church. Part of their testimony is that they struggled with their testimony. Their struggle was whether or not God had accepted them. Their testimony was one of wrestling with God, and faith, and continually entrusting themselves to the LORD. It was so clear in this person’s wrestling that God was at work in what I thought was a mighty way. Even though this person was wrestling with God’s acceptance, they continued to seek refuge in the Lord. I was very encouraged as I thought of others who wrestle with God’s assurance of salvation.

Like Paul, we need to learn to share how being a Christian affects us today. God will use His work in our lives to encourage other Christians. The stories we share can also convince outsiders of their need for God.

Conclusion

In a way, this message was a bit of a story workshop. We all have stories to share. And we can all improve at sharing our stories of what God has done. The Bible is a story of Creation, Fall, redemption, and restoration.

If we are Christians, we have been invited into this story. We can find the biblical themes in our story. With time we connect Bible verses with our story. The gospel story becomes the lens through which we understand our lives. We can testify that the hope of the gospel has sustained us through suffering. The gospel has given us meaning when we felt lost. God invites us into His story so with Jesus we have a new story to tell.

Hearing other people’s testimonies encourages me. They remind me that I am not alone. I have all of you and your testimonies that I sometimes share to encourage others about how God works.

In Acts 26, Paul shares his testimony to convince a King to become a Christian. The church gathers people and their stories of God’s work! Your story is your gospel presentation; no one can deny your experience. Your testimony/story not only encourages Christians but can also be the means by which people hear the gospel and are saved! These stories are about a real God, who brings about real change in real people to draw others to Himself for His glory.