And when they were gone aside, they talked between themselves, saying, This man doeth nothing worthy of death or of bonds.
Consider the group who’ve come to this conclusion.
Acts 26:30 (KJV)
And when he had thus spoken, the king rose up, and the governor, and Bernice, and they that sat with them:
- The king, Paul said, was an expert in the customs of the Jews
- Festus was a Roman leader, who thought Paul’s doctrine was craziness
- Bernice and the others would have been a mixture between the two.
Bernice may or may not have been more expert than her husband in the laws and customs of the Jews. The others, presumably Roman authorities of various levels, could have ranged from being persuaded to become Christians to believing, as Festus did, that Paul was beside himself. But together they agreed that Paul had done nothing worthy of bonds, let alone death.
I’d like to suggest that we make far too much of ourselves and our convictions. This is not to say we ought not have them. The Bible says, Romans 14:5b (KJV) … Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. Further, if we have these convictions, we ought to speak them. The Bible says, 2 Timothy 4:2 (KJV) Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. But then the Bible also says, Romans 14:5 (KJV) One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
Here’s the thing. Every man MUST be given the liberty to search the Scriptures on their own and be persuaded in their own mind. It’s the BAPTIST doctrine of individual soul liberty.
- Be persuaded of your faith.
- Be passionate about your faith. but
- Be gracious with those who don’t agree with your faith.
They have done nothing worthy of bonds, death or your anger.
#FaithAndConviction #IndividualSoulLiberty #RespectfulDebate #LibertyInChrist #PersuadedByFaith
Conviction with Grace: Individual Soul Liberty
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