The model of Paul is before us. His Gospel was powerful enough to save an old sinner like Paul and Paul presented Christ to the Jews and Gentiles, to the rich and to the poor, to the servants and to kings and rulers, to unbelievers for salvation, and to believers for hope and holiness of life.

Our response can be no less. This leads me to consider, very briefly ...

III. The Unbeliever's Challenge

Festus and Aggripa remind us of the challenges that you face if you have not received Jesus as Lord and Savior, but I have time for only one thought that I present to you:

Almost won't cut it. I say again that if Christ is true then you are faced to make a stand. "Almost persuaded" reminds us that Aggripa did not believe, but either out of pressure to conform, embarrassment over Jesus or a love of his own intellect and a love of his own supposed control over his life, his "almost" is a no.

My friend, almost Christians can go to Church. Almost Christians can look like real Christians. Almost Christians can sing hymns and quote Scripture. Almost Christians can do a lot, but Almost Christians cannot inherit the kingdom of God. Almost Christians are lost and dead in their sins without Jesus Christ.

To quote Paul, "I would to God" that you repent and abandon your "Almost" for "Altogether" and confess your sins, confess Jesus as the resurrected and reigning Savior and follow Him in every area of your life.

IV. Man's Therefore and God's Nevertheless

When worldviews were in collision, Paul preached a simple message, His hearers were skeptical, but Paul didn't give up, and he presented Christ once again. So don't you give up.

I want to end with a simple but profound thought. Recently, in reading a 20th century German theologian, I came across the idea of Christianity, the distinctive worldview of our faith, in the words, "the therefore" and "the nevertheless."2

The theologian said that the natural man's worldview must end with "therefore." For instance, this man's father was a drunk and no good, "therefore" his son will also become a drunk. "Therefore" -- man's logic continues -- one may rightly believe that he, too, will produce derelicts and no-goods. The idea is that there is a logical syllogism at work in the world which limits the outcome of our lives. Christianity rejects the "therefore" and breaks the natural syllogism with the "nevertheless." Yes, the man's father was an unrepentant sinner, but as the son turns to Christ, "nevertheless" he shall be saved. The testimony of Paul, a blasphemer and persecutor of the saints, was a splendid display of the "nevertheless" of God. The Testimony of John Newton, a slave trader and prodigious sinner "nevertheless" was saved and lived his life for Christ and influenced millions of others through his "Amazing Grace."

This morning, I present to you the smoking gun of Paul's defense, the core value of Christianity: it is the "nevertheless" of God in Christ, the "yes of God" in Jesus Christ and the offer of joy and new life and eternal life, if we will repent and believe and follow Him.

1Simon Kistemaker, Acts (Baker), 906-907.

2See The Epistle to the Romans by Karl Barth (London: Oxford, 1933) (see his commentary on 3:21-6), excerpts of which may be found in a fine brief summary of Barth's writings, Karl Barth: Theologian of Freedom, edited by Clifford Green, from the series "The Making of Modern Theology," John W. de Gruchy, General Editor (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1991), 132-3.