Acts 24 might seem like a random chapter in Paul’s journey, but verse 25 holds the key: “Paul talked about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come…” That one verse is the lens for the whole scene. The religious leaders and the Roman lawyer had righteousness all wrong; they lacked self-control, and they passed judgment on an innocent man. Paul boldly declared that righteousness is found in Jesus, that self-control comes through the Spirit, and that true judgment belongs to Christ. Governor Felix, curious about Paul’s faith and the message of “the Way,” invited Paul to speak, but when confronted with the reality of righteousness, self-control, and judgment, Felix became uncomfortable. That’s the tension of this passage, and it’s the tension of our lives.
Righteousness, Self-control, and Judgment Aren’t Simply Theological Talking Points; They Point to a Believer’s Faith in Jesus
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What’s your favorite courtroom movie or TV series? When I was growing up, there were always new ones—Perry Mason, Law & Order, Boston Legal, Suits, or those John Grisham stories like The Firm, Erin Brockovich, and The Rainmaker. The ones that stick with me are the ones where truth and justice prevail. Sometimes it’s that last-minute piece of overlooked evidence. Sometimes it’s a witness whose testimony starts to unravel under scrutiny. Sometimes it’s the specialist who sheds light on the case and changes everything.
And who can forget the famous movie lines? Jack Nicholson’s “You can’t handle the truth!” in A Few Good Men. Joe Pesci’s quick-talking New York accent in My Cousin Vinny. Or the slow-burn tension of 12 Angry Men—a story about one jury member’s determination to fight through bias and convenience to uncover the truth.
Some stories dig deeper into uncomfortable realities—To Kill a Mockingbird, which forces us to see the truth through the lens of racial prejudice. A Time to Kill, which follows one man’s desperate act in the name of justice for his daughter. And then there’s Dark Waters, about how people hid the truth for years, even though it made others sick. One lawyer risked his career, his finances, his family—everything—because he knew what was right and couldn’t walk away. He fought for acknowledgment, for accountability, for justice.
Some of my favorites—Runaway Jury, Primal Fear, The Verdict, Dead Man Walking—stick with me because they don’t just entertain me. They move me. They challenge me. They make me feel. That’s what’s happening in Acts 24.
Paul is in a courtroom, fighting for his life. But it’s not just a legal trial—it’s three competing agendas colliding. The Jewish leaders hated him. They despised his passion and zeal for Jesus. Governor Felix only cared about politics and his position with Rome. And Paul? He was simply trying to faithfully follow the Lord—despite lies, despite collusion, despite misunderstandings. Paul’s faith was on trial.
Now, I’ll admit, the last few chapters of Acts can feel repetitive. I get it, but they’re not filler. Every chapter moves us closer to the outcome. This legal battle had been going on for years, ever since Paul met with the apostles in Jerusalem, the Jewish leaders had been after him. Maybe it’s because Paul had once been one of them, and now he wasn’t just “not one of them”—he was actively preaching a message they hated. Everywhere Paul went, there was tension, arguments, and riots.
We Can’t Control the Verdict, But We Can Live a Life that Speaks to the Truth
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That’s why this chapter matters for us. Problems with people will always exist. Conflict is part of life. There are times when we can’t fix it; we can only decide how to respond. Paul’s example in Acts 24 shows us how to respond when our faith is misrepresented, when our decisions are questioned, and when our integrity is attacked.
In week one of this mini-series, we talked about misunderstandings when our faith is on trial. Last week, we talked about making decisions that reflect our beliefs. Today, we see that there will be times we have to calmly, clearly, and non-confrontationally explain the truth, even when the other side doesn’t care about the truth. I’ve been in those moments where I had to defend my choices and decisions. Sometimes people understood. Sometimes they didn’t. And a few times, it didn’t matter how clear I was—people were locked into their agenda, not the truth. I’ve noticed that it’s been like that for as long as I can remember.
Here’s the reality: our lives are one big courtroom. And whether we realize it or not, we’re the witnesses, we’re the defendant. People are watching and concluding about why we forgave someone who didn’t deserve it, why we offered kindness to someone having a bad day, why we pray in public, why we open our Bible, and why we make time for church or discipleship. They’re watching, and they’re forming their verdict about our faith. And it’s not just strangers, it’s our own family putting us on trial without us even knowing it. This is why Acts 24 isn’t just a story about Paul, it’s a mirror for us.
The Prosecutor
Acts 24:1-9
Self-Control is Staying Steady When Life is Swirling Around Our Ears
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Tertullus, the prosecutor, put the charges into three categories:
Personal – Paul was a “pest,” a plague on society.
Political – He was stirring up riots and division, threatening the peace of Rome.
Religious – He was the ringleader of the “sect of the Nazarenes” and had violated Jewish temple laws.
If following Jesus became a crime, would your life offer enough evidence to convict you?
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The Witness
Acts 24:10-21
The Resurrection Changes How We Live & Our Perspective
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Righteousness is Revealed, Self-Control is Present, and Judgement is Certain Because Jesus Christ is Alive
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Now, here’s where we see the heartbeat of Acts 24:25 in Paul’s defense. He isn’t just defending himself—he’s proclaiming righteousness, self-control, and judgment. The resurrection is the ultimate declaration of righteousness—Jesus’ life and death satisfied God’s justice completely. It calls for self-control—because if Jesus is alive, then how we live now matters eternally. And it guarantees judgment—because the One who conquered death will one day judge the living and the dead.
We can’t miss this: when Paul and the early Jewish believers followed Jesus, they didn’t see themselves as abandoning Judaism; instead, they saw themselves as fulfilled Jews. Everything they had learned, memorized, celebrated—the Law, the feasts, the sacrifices—suddenly had deeper meaning. They didn’t worship less; they worshiped in a new, living way. They saw Jesus in it all—not as another law to keep, but as the fulfillment of the law they could never keep.
The Judge
Acts 24:22-27
We Can Be Close to the Gospel and Still Miss Jesus Entirely
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Procrastinating on Truth is Simply Another Way of Rejecting Truth
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For two years, Paul lived with a Roman guard, enjoying some freedoms as a Roman citizen—receiving visitors, walking within the quarters, sharing meals. But more importantly, for two years, Paul kept preaching. Same message. Same testimony. Same gospel. Over and over, to Felix, to Drusilla, to guards, to anyone who came near.
We are told, in the verse that I believe ties the entire chapter together, that Paul would routinely come and speak with Felix. The topics they would reason together about, the topics they would discuss, were the very topics that Paul had addressed in the courtroom, as well as in Jerusalem, and every other time he had been questioned about his worldview. Righteousness, self-control, and the coming judgment are topics that are even worth discussing today. Yet like many people, we find ourselves working and trying to redefine what those mean, but for a follower of Jesus Christ, it ties into an easy evangelical conversation.
Paul wrote about every one of these topics through his writing to the churches.
To the Roman church, Paul wrote, A quick survey of the letter shows the development of Paul’s idea of righteousness:
The righteous live by faith (Romans 1:17).
The unrighteous are judged (Romans 1:18–2:10)
No one is righteous (Romans 3:9–20)
The faithful are made righteous by being justified (Romans 3:21–26)
Righteousness comes when one dies in Adam and becomes alive in Christ (Romans 5:12–6:14) Obedience leads to righteousness (Romans 6:16)
Righteousness is fulfilled by the Spirit (Romans 8:1–8).
The idea and the concept of righteousness also speaks to the idea of being justified, or just. Here are some other passages in Scripture where Paul speaks about this topic.
9 If the ministry that condemns men is glorious [law of Moses], how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness [the gospel of Christ]! (2 Cor. 3:9, NIV)
21 Is the law therefore opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that was able to give life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. 22 But the scripture imprisoned everything and everyone under sin so that the promise could be given – because of the faithfulness of Jesus Christ – to those who believe. (Gal. 3:21-22)
Regarding self-control, he wrote
Galatians 5:22-23: Self-control is listed as a fruit of the Spirit.
1 Corinthians 9:24-27: Paul uses an athletic analogy for self-discipline.
2 Timothy 1:7: Notes God provides a spirit of power, love, and self-control.
Titus 2:11-12: Links God’s grace to living a disciplined life. The grace of God teaches believers to say no to worldly desires and live self-controlled lives
1 Corinthians 10:13 States that God provides a way to endure temptation.
Judgment of unbelievers
Romans 1:18-32: Paul describes the downward spiral of sin and God’s wrath being revealed against ungodliness and unrighteousness, leading to a state where people exchange the truth of God for a lie and are given over to depraved minds.
Romans 2:1-16: Paul addresses the hypocrisy of judging others while committing the same sins, emphasizing that God’s judgment is based on truth and impartial. He highlights that everyone, both Jew and Gentile, will be judged according to their works and the light they’ve received,
2 Thessalonians 1:6-10: Paul states that God will justly repay trouble to those who trouble believers and give relief to the afflicted when Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire. He will punish those who don’t know God and disobey the gospel, resulting in eternal destruction and exclusion from the Lord’s presence.
Judgment of believers
1 Corinthians 3:11-15: Paul discusses the foundation of believers’ faith being Jesus Christ, upon which they build with various materials (gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw). Each person’s work will be tested by fire, and those whose work endures will receive a reward, while those whose work is burned up will suffer loss, though they themselves will be saved, but only as through fire.
2 Corinthians 5:10: Paul states that believers will all appear before the judgment seat of Christ to receive what is due for what they have done in the body, whether good or evil.
Romans 14:10-12: Paul reminds believers not to judge one another, as each will stand before the judgment seat of God and give an account of themselves
Convenience is the Enemy of Conviction
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This section in the Bible is more than a story, and it isn’t just a random footnote in the book of Acts—it’s a mirror.
We’ve walked through this chapter and seen Paul the witness, calmly telling the truth because he knows the resurrection changes everything. We’ve stood in the courtroom as Paul declared righteousness, self-control, and judgment—not as religious slogans, but as life-shaping realities because Jesus is alive. And we’ve watched Felix, the judge, holding Paul’s life in his hands but refusing to put his own life in Jesus’ hands.
Felix and others heard the gospel for two years. He had the chance to move from curiosity to conviction—but he waited for a “convenient” time that never came. And one day, time ran out.
The resurrection means righteousness is available right now—not by our effort, but by trusting Christ. The Spirit offers self-control right now—not in our strength, but in His. And judgment is coming—not someday far away for “other people,” but for you and me.
So here’s the question or my closing arguments if you will….
What’s keeping you from acting on the truth you already know?
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If you’ve never trusted Jesus, what’s holding you back from doing that today?
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If you’ve been drifting in your faith, what’s keeping you from stepping back into obedience today?
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If you’ve been silent about your faith, what’s stopping you from speaking truth today?
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Convenience is the enemy of conviction. Don’t trade eternal life for temporary comfort. Don’t let “later” become “never.” Right now—before you leave this room—you can respond to the same gospel Paul preached. You can move from “almost” to “forever.” You can say, “Yes, Lord,” and mean it.
Because the resurrection is the reason we live with a different view.
Because we can be close to the gospel and still miss Jesus entirely.
And because when it comes to eternity, now is always the right time.
