Falsely Accused

Acts 24:1 Now after five days Ananias the high priest came down with the elders and a certain orator named Tertullus. These gave evidence to the governor against Paul. 2 And when he was called upon, Tertullus began his accusation, saying: "Seeing that through you we enjoy great peace, and prosperity is being brought to this nation by your foresight, 3 we accept it always and in all places, most noble Felix, with all thankfulness. 4 Nevertheless, not to be tedious to you any further, I beg you to hear, by your courtesy, a few words from us. 5 For we have found this man a plague, a creator of dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. 6 He even tried to profane the temple, and we seized him, and wanted to judge him according to our law. 7 But the commander Lysias came by and with great violence took him out of our hands, 8 commanding his accusers to come to you. By examining him yourself you may ascertain all these things of which we accuse him." 9 And the Jews also assented, maintaining that these things were so.

One of the things we might as well get used to as Christians is being falsely accused. I can think of any number of reasons Satan engages in this practice. And – oh, by the way – it IS Satan, as the Bible declares, Rev 12:10 Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, "Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down.

It has been well-said, “A lying accusation can travel around the world three times before truth can even get up and put its pants on.”

Is it any wonder Satan would employ lying accusation in order to bring about the downfall of fruitful Christians, AND, to tempt Christians into the sin of LISTENING TO – or worse – CONSIDERING the falsehoods Satan spews?

Paul himself had left instruction to the young pastor Timothy to not even listen to an accusation made against an elder of the church unless it was lodged by two or three witnesses. (1 Tim 5:19) The same instruction is valuable toward anyone in the body of Christ, but is especially important for leaders. Why? Because Paul rightly anticipates false accusations will be made against church leaders as it is the simplest way to destroy any ministry work. Jesus called Satan “a liar and the father of it.” (John 8:44)

Anytime anyone tells a lie, or shares in a falsehood, (which can be any variation or shading of the truth,) they are in league with Satan. This does not mean the person is possessed by Satan or anything of the sort. It simply means they are helping - in that instance - the enemy to achieve his goals. Need it be said Satan’s goals are in complete opposition to Jesus’ goals?

In our text we have a prime example of this, and it is easy to see this for what it is. The lies Tertullus speaks against Paul are useful to help us see something else, however. (More than the simple fact Satan is a liar.) Tertullus was just a spokesman. He was only repeating the lies he had heard about Paul. How important it is for us to be certain of the truth before we speak.

- Pastor Bill