Welcome and thank you for taking a bible break to test your knowledge of God's word.
This week's question:

The Lord tells us, "You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the scripture speaks to no purpose: 'He jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us'?" (James 4:4-5).

He also asks the people that walked with Him upon this earth, "But what do you think?" (Matthew 21:28). So Jesus wants and expects us to think about His words, to reason them out with our own minds as we study or listen to them so we can come to a righteous conclusion, "Be diligent to present yourselves approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth." (2 Timothy 2:15). Jesus tells the Jewish leaders, "And you do not have the word abiding in you, for you do not believe Him whom He sent. You search the scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is these that bear witness of Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me, that you may have life. I do not receive glory from men; but I know you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves." (John 5:38-42) "For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote of Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?" (John 5:46-47).

"So faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17). Let us hear the word of God and think upon it to with the same desire as those in Berea, "Now these were more noble minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the scriptures daily, to see whether these things were so." (Acts 17:11).

That brings us to our question, "Who said, 'Paul, you are out of your mind!'?" Paul says to those at Corinth, "Again I say, let no one think me foolish; but if you do, receive me even as foolish, that I also may boast a little" (2 Corinthians 11:16), so just as those at Corinth cut Paul short by the way that he spoke (1 Corinthians 2:1-3) as well as by what he said, and so can we too learn yet today by the things that he speaks. When Paul speaks, quite often he receives by those who listen an extreme reaction as he made his defense before the Jews, "And I said, 'Lord, they themselves understand that in one synagogue after another I used to imprison and beat those who believed in Thee. And when the blood of Thy witness Stephen was being shed, I also was standing by approving, and watching out for the cloaks of those who were slaying him. And He said to me, 'Go! For I will send you as far away to the Gentiles.' And they listened to him up to this statement, and then they raised their voices and said, 'Away with such a fellow from the earth, for he should not be allowed to live!' And as they were crying out and throwing off their cloaks and tossed dust in the air, the commander ordered him to be brought into the barracks, stating that he should be examined by scourging so that he might find out the reason why they were shouting against him that way." (Acts 22:19-24).

And so, for the answer to our question, we turn to see king Agrippa and his wife, Bernice, the governor, commanders, along with many of the leading people of the city to hear Paul give his defense and hear him speak. Paul recounted his former manner of life as a dedicated Pharisee who thought it right to do things hostile to the followers of Jesus of Nazareth, and while on the road to Damascus to bring back some of the way, he saw a light and heard Jesus and then turned to serve Him by opening men's eyes from darkness to the light so as to receive the forgiveness of sins and faith so as to receive the inheritance of life eternal (Acts 26:1-20). Then he said, "And so, having obtained help from God, I to this day testifying both to small and great, stating nothing but what the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place; that the Christ was to suffer, and that by reason of the resurrection from the dead He should be first to proclaim light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles. And while Paul was saying this to his defense, Festus said in a loud voice, 'Paul, you are out of your mind! Your great learning is driving you mad.' But Paul said, 'I am not out of my mind, most excellent Festus, but I utter words of sober truth.'" (Acts 26:22-25). So there we have the answer to our question, as it is the governor, Porcius Festus, who said that Paul was out of his mind!

Let us think about the words that our Lord spoke to us, those words of 'sober truth' that lead to life eternal by obedience to Him for life. Three days after Paul saw Jesus on the road to Damascus by Ananias, "And now why do you delay? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name." (Acts 22:16).