Kicking Against the Goads

August 11^th, 2019    “Kicking Against the Goads”      Rev. Heather Jepsen

Summer Sermon Series: The Amazing Adventures of Paul

Acts 24-2

         It is a joy to be back in worship with you and I am eager to return to our summer sermon series, “The Amazing Adventures of Paul.”  All summer long we have been chronicling Paul’s journey through the book of Acts.  From his early days as fanatical Pharisee turned rabble rouser, to his later years as church planter and preacher, Paul’s journey has been most extraordinary and inspiring. 

         When we last left our hero, Paul was waiting for his trial, kept under guard in the headquarters of Herod.  Those who were here might remember that Paul had sensed an end coming to his missionary journeys.  He had said goodbye to his churches and encouraged the believers to keep sharing the good news in his absence.  He went to Jerusalem and caused a great uproar by claiming that through the work of the Messiah Jesus Christ, God sent him to welcome the Gentiles into the promise of salvation.  This message challenged Jewish ideas of nationalism and favor, and an angry mob tried to kill Paul.  He was taken under guard and arrested by the Roman authorities.  Paul appears to have committed no crime under the Roman law, and yet the Jews claim he has committed crimes worthy of death.  Unable to keep him safe, the tribune in Jerusalem sends Paul on to Caesarea to the governor there.

         Today our story picks up with Paul’s trial in Caesarea under governor Felix.  We have a lot of ground to cover today, three chapters, so most of chapter 24 I am just going to summarize rather than read.  As usual, the angry Jews have followed Paul and once again they bring their charges.  When Paul is invited to give his defense, he again claims that he has done nothing wrong under Roman law but is simply preaching resurrection. 

         The governor Felix cannot make a firm decision about Paul’s case.  He sees that Paul is innocent of a crime against Roman law, and yet he does not want to lose favor with the ruling Jews.  So, he decides to simply hold Paul indefinitely in prison.  While he allows Paul’s friends to come and go bringing comfort and aid, Paul must wait in chains for two years, until Felix’s term expires.  The final verse of the chapter reads, “After two years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus; and since he wanted to grant the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison.”  Two years is a long time to wait for justice.

         (Read Acts 25:1-12)

         Here we have Paul being tried once again before the authorities in Caesarea.  Festus picks up where Felix left off, and he is not eager to keep Paul imprisoned for no good reason.  The Jews ask the trial be moved back to Jerusalem, but they only want another opportunity to ambush and kill Paul.  They again make their case that Paul is stirring up trouble, which is the only legal argument they have.  If Paul is found to be causing an uprising or riot, then he would be committing a crime worthy of death under the Roman law.  Paul again claims the disagreement is a religious one and not a civil one and at this point he asks for his trial to be moved to the Emperor’s court.  As a Roman citizen, Paul has a right to a trial in Rome.

         (Read Acts 25:13-27)

         King Agrippa and his sister Bernice come now to visit Festus in Caesarea.  Agrippa is a Jew of the Herodian family, those who have wedded themselves to the Roman Empire for power.  Festus tells Agrippa all about Paul and his trial and as he is intrigued, Agrippa asks that he himself be granted an audience with Paul.

         (Read Acts 26:1-23)

         Here Paul makes his most impassioned defense yet.  Once again he retells his story, from his days as a Pharisee pursing the law of God to his chance encounter with the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus.  Paul tells of his mission to spread the gospel far and wide and claims that he has done nothing to deserve imprisonment let alone punishment under Roman or even Jewish law.

         (Read Acts 26:24-32)

         In one of the better lines of scripture, Festus declares that Paul has gone crazy, “Too much learning is driving you insane!”  It’s a great slogan, especially for a college town.  But Paul declares that no, he is not insane, and not only that but he thinks he may have convinced King Agrippa of the truth that he preaches.  The King casts such thoughts aside, declaring he will not be converted in a day. 

         Though he has not converted to following Paul, King Agrippa does appear to agree that Paul is innocent of the charges brought against him.  It is too bad Paul has asked for a trial in Rome, because at this point Agrippa would encourage Festus to simply let Paul go.  As it is, their hands are tied; Paul’s next stop is the capital of the Empire.

         This is not the first time we have heard Paul tell the story of his conversion experience and the call that Jesus placed upon his life, but it is the first time that Paul has added this quote, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?  It hurts you to kick against the goads.”  While this may be a famous line of scripture, a bit of it is lost in the translation.  The word translated goad is kenton which is a stick with a sharpened point.  Similar to what we would refer to as a “cattle prod” today, the kenton was used to prod, or goad, a herd or specific animal into moving in a certain direction.  An animal that would kick against the goads is an animal that is fighting against the shepherd.  Less well known is that the phrase was common in the Roman literature of the time to refer to the futility of pushing against a greater power, namely the Roman Empire. 

         I was really drawn to this turn of phrase this week, as I see two “greater” powers acting in Paul’s life.  One, of course, is the power of God that is moving Paul towards Rome in the continuing quest to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ.  The other power that pushes against Paul is the power of the Roman Empire itself.  And Paul continues to suffer as he kicks against the prodding of the Empire.

         In his own life, Paul has had to decide which force he will follow, which power he will worship and serve.  The Lord of all has prodded Paul into a certain path, the path of prophet and preacher.  Paul was reluctant to follow this calling from God, but in his conversion, he turned his heart toward Jesus and ever since he has been faithfully following the path that God has lain before him.

         Prior to his conversion, I imagine Paul followed the goading of the Roman Empire.  As we have seen throughout the book of Acts, the Jewish ruling elite are buddy/buddy with the powers of Empire.  (Again a warning against anti-Semitism: these “Jews” are enemy characters in the book of Acts and do not in any way represent our Jewish brothers and sisters throughout history.) 

Prior to his conversion, Paul was part of this system of power, hunting down Christians to keep the Roman Empire and the Jewish religion calm and controlled.  Now that Paul is kicking against the goads of empire, the system of power has come crashing down on him.  Paul cannot serve both God and empire, and in his call to serve God, Paul has brought down the wrath of the Jewish elite and the Roman Empire upon himself.

         As I was studying the text this week I was struck once again by the similarity between Paul’s story and our own stories.  We too, are pressed upon by powers outside of ourselves.  We too, are prodded into action (or non-action) by both the power of empire and the power of God.  We too, must choose which path we will follow.  Do we follow the prodding of the American empire and just go along to get along.  Or do we follow the prodding of God, who calls us to stand up for justice, to speak truth to power, and to live in such a way that we show the love of God by loving all of our neighbors?

         This past week, as the discussions of gun violence and the questions about gun control continue to circle in our country, I cannot help but wonder whose path we are following.  Like the leaders in Acts, who know that Paul is innocent but refuse to release him because they want to curry the favor of the powerful, our leaders today continue in a pattern of indifference and inaction.  In a desire to serve the empire, to not rock the boat, and to keep the donation dollars flowing in, our leaders drag their feet on the gun issue.  Even though over 90% of Americans support more background checks, they refuse to vote or even have conversation on the measure.  The power of empire ties their hands as they continue down a path that embraces the weaponry of violence.

         In contrast, God calls us to follow a path of non-violence.  God calls us to peacefulness, to love, to compassion, and to care.  Every person shot in this country, be it in a mass shooting, in street violence, or in an accidental discharge of a firearm is someone’s mother or father, brother or sister, child or grandchild.  Every single person that dies is of value to someone, is loved by someone, and is most importantly, loved and valued by our God.  We have no excuse for this continuing epidemic.  It is time that we stop kicking against the goads and make a stand for common sense gun legislation. 

         Today we gather around the communion table and we remember the core of the story that Paul was telling.  This is the table of Jesus Christ, who came as a Messiah not to bring about the glory of the nation of Israel, but to bring about the glory of salvation.  This is the God we worship, who when confronted with violence did not raise arms in response but instead raised his arms upon the cross crying, “Forgive them father, for they know not what they do.”  We worship the suffering servant, not the conquering god of empire.  And as long as we gather here to eat this bread of Christ’s body and drink the cup of Christ’s blood we can never forget that. 

         And so today as I invite you to this table, I also want to invite you to consider the powers that push upon your life.  What path is God prodding you to follow today?  And what path is the empire encouraging you to follow?  Paul made his choice clear.  And while he stopped kicking against the goads of the Lord, he would suffer the wrath of empire in chains.  We can serve only one master.

         Next week we will continue our adventure, as Paul begins his journey toward Rome.  Come back then and we will continue the “Amazing Adventures of Paul”.  Amen.