But Felix, having a rather accurate knowledge of the Way, put them off, saying, “When Lysias the tribune comes down, I will decide your case.” 23 Then he gave orders to the centurion that he should be kept in custody but have some liberty, and that none of his friends should be prevented from attending to his needs.
24 After some days Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, and he sent for Paul and heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus. 25 And as he reasoned about righteousness and self-control and the coming judgment, Felix was alarmed and said, “Go away for the present. When I get an opportunity I will summon you.”26 At the same time he hoped that money would be given him by Paul. So he sent for him often and conversed with him. 27 When two years had elapsed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. And desiring to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison.
We were never fans of Minimum Performance Tests in schools. The idea sounded good in theory: Why should we allow kids to graduate from high school without even a 5th grade reading level? The tests were supposed to keep that from happening. I don’t know whether they succeeded in making that happen (I seriously doubt they did). But I do know that many teachers reported frustration about having to “teach to the test” as they called it. They felt forced to spend valuable classroom hours teaching kids how to take the test rather than actually learning important things like math, English, and social studies.
There is an even more grave danger in the realm of faith if you make faith a minimum standard of salvation. Truly: “whoever believes and is baptized will be saved.” That’s a promise of Jesus (Mark 16:16). And I love other similar promises: “Whoever comes to me I will never turn away,” says Jesus (John 6:37). God promises through Isaiah the prophet, “a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law” (Isaiah 42:3-4).
It’s that last part that reminds me of Paul’s message to Felix and to us: Faith in Jesus Christ is not mere intellectual ascent. It’s not just knowing the facts. It’s not even mere Christian orthodoxy. Faith in Jesus is a relationship of knowledge, ascent, and trust – emphasis on relationship.
Believing in Jesus, coming to him, not having our wick snuffed out is all about a relationship with him. That relationship is also with his values (love, mercy, justice for example). That’s how Paul is challenging Felix. Jesus is more than a curiosity. He’s more than an amusement.
Paul speaks of faith in Jesus and Luke tells us that his teaching includes righteousness, self-control and the coming judgment. This calls for humility (we are not righteous – only Jesus is!). We place ourselves under him in our pleas for God’s mercy, and rejoice in Jesus’ alien righteousness given to us by faith.
This calls for self-control. We must not give in to every whim of the flesh. We can’t pop off at every driver who cuts us off in traffic, give in to every desire to buy happiness, or cave to the cravings of a higher high, or steel our hearts against loving someone who takes every last ounce of grace we have to give.
Let’s not kid ourselves about what it means to believe in Jesus. The fullness of faith involves constant repentance and a commitment to love God above all and our neighbor as ourselves. It’s a challenging battle, and sometimes we will fail. But our faith in Jesus will call us back to it daily. Whenever the final judgment comes, we can stand on his promises of life and salvation. That’s where I’m standing. How about you?
David Bahn - Reflections 
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