Acts 24:16

Acts 24:16. And herein do I exercise myself to have always a conscience void of offence toward God and toward men. ‘ Herein;' that is, ‘for this reason,' because of his belief in the future resurrection; or, in other words, because he held the doctrine of the resurrection of the just and unjust, not as a mere speculative doctrine, but as a grave and awful reality. The rule of his life was to struggle to keep himself from sin. Plumptre strikingly notices here ‘that these words of Paul must have been almost as bitter to Felix as to Ananias, but he has at all events the decency to listen in silence.'

Paul's belief this is above all things most noteworthy was anything but a merely speculative, it was a real and living faith. He lived, or rather tried to live, as though he believed, and taught others to do the same. The Greek word rendered ‘do I exercise myself' (α ̓ σκω ͂), tells us of the restless, ceaseless warfare within waged by this true gallant soldier of Christ to keep his conscience, not only in the sight of men, but before the unseen majesty of God, white and pure.