Acts 24:5 (NLT)
... He is a ringleader of the cult known as the Nazarenes.

- Interesting to find another name used to identify early followers of Jesus.

Acts 24:14 (NLT)
"But I admit that I follow the Way, which they call a cult. I worship the God of our ancestors, and I firmly believe the Jewish law and everything written in the prophets.

- Paul is not a bad lawyer himself. He knows the charge against him involves the way he is teaching the laws and customs of Judaism and the impact Christ has had on these. So he undermines their case by reaffirming his beliefs. How one chooses to put ones beliefs into practice... Now that's a different matter.

Acts 24:27 (NLT)
After two years went by in this way, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. And because Felix wanted to gain favor with the Jewish people, he left Paul in prison.

- The wheels of justice grind slowly... I'm always impressed by the patience of the Bible's central characters. Do we wait so patiently today on God? Seems to me if we did we'd have fewer church splits and offended believers, and ex-believers.