Godbey's Commentary - Acts - Romans - Enter His Rest

ACTS OF THE APOSTLES
CHAPTER XXVI.
Agrippa having joyfully acquiesced in the importunity of Festus to help him out of his dilemma,
proposes to become the umpire in person. As now it is no longer pertinent that they try him for his
life, that prerogative having gone out of their hands by virtue of his appeal to Cæsar, and Agrippa
knows well, being an expert in all the problems and institutions of the Jewish religion, that it is
nonsensical to send the emperor any of these allegations in reference to the Jews’ religion, as he will
only throw them aside and discount Festus for sending them, there is nothing left for him to do but
turn Paul loose to speak ad libitum. Of course, Paul just turns loose, preaching Jesus and the
resurrection with all his might, and, of course, amid all telling his experience of his miraculous
conversion, and commission by the risen and glorified Savior to go and preach the gospel to the
Gentile world.
16. “. . . For unto this I have appeared unto thee, to make thee a minister and a martyr of the
things which you see, and of which I shall appear unto thee”; i.e., Jesus continued to reveal His
wonderful truth to Paul, inspiring him to write more of the same than any other man.
17. “Delivering thee from the people and from the Gentiles, to whom now I send thee,
18. “To open their eyes.” The devil knocked the eyes out of humanity in the Fall. Hence all alike,
good and bad, walk in the devil’s rayless midnight till the resurrection power gives sight to the blind
to open their eyes. “To turn them from darkness into light.” We are not only in blackest darkness,
but we ourselves are darkness throughout so long as we remain in the black regions of Satan’s
rayless kingdom. Regeneration takes us out of darkness into the light of God’s kingdom. Then
sanctification takes all the darkness out of us, so filling us with light as to make us light itself
throughout, having no darkness. “From the dominion of Satan to God.” Regardless of all our moral
goodness and church loyalty, we are in the devil’s merciless grip till the Omnipotent Jesus delivers
us. “That they may receive remission of sins.” This is our first great deliverance. When the light
comes, conviction interpenetrates, and we cry importunately to God for deliverance; in utter
desperation fully recognizing our meetness only for hell fire, we cast ourselves on the mercy of God
in Christ. Then for Christ’s sake alone He cancels all our sins from heaven’s chancery, removing our
guilt, counting us righteous in Christ’s stead. “And inheritance among them who have been
sanctified by faith, which is in me, and have it yet better than ever.” We have here the perfect tense
of hagiadzoo, “sanctify,” which in Greek has more than double the force of the English, i.e., meaning
that we have been sanctified in past time and have it yet better than ever. Oh, the riches of redeeming
grace and sanctifying power! And how do we get it? “Not by works” (Ephesians 2:8); not by growth,
death, nor purgatory, but as we see here so clearly and unmistakably revealed in Paul’s commission,
it is by faith, and nothing but faith, having reached believing ground by radical and complete
consecration. Here Paul becomes wonderfully impetuous, preaching to two kings and queens, as well
as a great audience.
22. “Therefore having received help from God, I stand unto this day, testifying both to small and
great, saying nothing else than those things which the prophets and Moses said would come to pass,