Acts 26: 28 Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?” 29 Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.”
These verses end differently than you would expect them to. They start off with what sounds like a conversation between Agrippa and Paul talking about Christ. Agrippa is being stubborn and Paul ends by hoping that Agrippa will one day be like him. Then you read that last little section. I hope you are like me, “except for the chains”.
It is easy to get lost in our own circumstances. It is even easier when our own circumstances are not very good. Then what usually suffers is our spiritual life and maybe even our connection with the church. When our finances are tight we usually cut back on what we give to the church. When time is tight we usually cut back on how often we are in the church. Let’s face it, when life gets tough God usually gets the short end of the stick.
Paul is in prison, in chains, and yet he still testifies about Jesus and tries to win souls. I wonder how many of us would have been begging Agrippa to set us free instead of trying to persuade Agrippa to let Jesus set him free from sin?
Agrippa choose to not be set free. Have you chosen to be set free?
Robert
