The Persecuted Church: Suffering and the Sovereignty of God Acts 8:1-4

The Persecuted Church: Suffering and the Sovereignty of God

Acts 8:1b-4

Introduction: One of the great mysteries that face philosophers and theologians is the question of the origin of evil. We have the testimony of Scripture concerning the fall and its consequences: “By one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all have sinned” (Rom 5:12). So at one level we know that death and sin and suffering entered this world through the rebellion of our first parents. What remains a mystery, is how and why sinless humans, placed in a perfect setting, could choose willfully to rebel against a good God.  The “why” seems unanswerable but the “what now” is evident all around us. We see it in the suffering, sickness and tragedies that invade our world daily.  We also sense it in the constant temptation and the struggle against sin that is ongoing in our own hearts.  Perhaps most astounding of all is that our God is so awesome, so majestic and powerful, so omniscient and so absolutely sovereign, that He can overrule the sinful actions of humans to accomplish His good purpose. The killing of the five missionaries by the Auca Indians in Ecuador in 1956 was a tragedy that God used to spur a generation of interest in missions. It was a horrendous and tragic act of violence. Elizabeth Eliot, who’s husband was one of the five men killed wrote,

To the world at large this was a sad waste of five young lives. But God has His plan and purpose in all things. There were those whose lives were changed by what happened on Palm Beach. In Brazil, a group of Indians at a mission station deep in the Mato Grosso, upon hearing the news, dropped to their knees and cried out to God for forgiveness for their own lack of concern for fellow Indians who did not know of Jesus Christ. From Rome, an American official wrote to one of the widows, “I knew your husband. He was to me the ideal of what a Christian should be.” An Air Force Major stationed in England, with many hours of jet flying, immediately began making plans to join the Missionary Aviation Fellowship. A missionary in Africa wrote: “Our work will never be the same. We knew two of the men. Their lives have left their mark on ours.”    Off the coast of Italy, an American naval officer was involved in an accident at sea. As he floated alone on a raft, he recalled Jim Elliot’s words (which he had read in a news report): “When it comes time to die, make sure that all you have to do is die.” He prayed that he might be saved, knowing that he had more to do than die. He was not ready. God answered his prayer, and he was rescued. In Des Moines, Iowa, an eighteen-year-old boy prayed for a week in his room, then announced to his parents: “I’m turning my life over completely to the Lord. I want to try to take the place of one of those five.” (Elisabeth Eliot, Through Gates of Splendor, p. 253)

A human tragedy, but story after story is told of how the death of those men inspired many others to move out and take their place. Eventually the very tribe that killed those missionaries had a great turning to the Lord. 

The Big Idea: God’s sovereignty is such that He will overrule even the sinful acts of humans to accomplish His good purpose.

I. Persecution of the Faithful: Faithfulness does not guarantee “success” from a human perspective (8:1). “And Saul approved of his execution. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.” From a “this worldly perspective” there is nothing “safe” about choosing to follow Jesus!

            “…And Saul approved of his execution…” The first part of v.1 refers back to chapter 7 and reminds us that Saul was there¸ and in some sense participated in the execution of Stephen. “Approved,” has the sense of “decide together with someone else that something is good.” Saul was with those who put Stephen to death, he agreed with what they were doing. In modern language we might say he was an “accomplice after the fact.”  That underscores the doctrine of grace. Whatever we have done, whatever the sins of our past, if we repent and come to God on His terms, we will be forgiven.

            “…And there arose that day a great persecution…” The execution of Stephen was a “trigger” which seemed to precipitate a wider spread, intense, persecution of the believers in Jerusalem. There had been a definite escalation of the opposition against the Christ-followers. Up until now the persecution was more specifically targeting the apostles. First they were threatened (4), then they were beaten (5), one of them was put to death, and now a wide spread “great persecution” had begun.  This was the first wide spread, generalized, persecution of the church.  Since the death penalty had been used, without apparent reprisals from Rome, the lives of the Christ followers were in jeopardy.

            We don’t see “persecution” in this sense against believers in our country. It may be that the rising tide of negativity against those who believe the Bible and affirm the idea that God’s Word is absolutely true is a harbinger of things to come. In the media it does seem at times that evangelical Christians are the one group, the one minority, that it is politically acceptable to ridicule. The early centuries of the church saw far worse, and the believers in the Islamic countries of Asia and the mid-east have it much worse today. Notice what happens however in Acts 8…

            “…and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria…” The mention of Judea and Samaria together like this might recall the prediction of Jesus in Acts 1:8. He had said, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be witnesses to me, in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the earth.” The concentrated ministry of the Gospel of Jesus in Jerusalem was bound to expand to all of Judea and Samaria, and eventually outward from there. Could it be that persecution would be the means that God would use to get that plan into motion? 

            “…except the apostles…” One of the things we noted in the story of Stephen is that he was not one of the twelve. Jesus commissioned his apostles in Acts 1:8 and there may have been initially some question in the mind of the reader of Acts as to who the great commission really applied. Was this for the apostles only? Was the church a result of the mission or a part of the mission? But the story of Stephen makes it clear that God filled him with the Holy Spirit, he worked through him, God empowered Stephen’s witness.  And we’ll see as the story unfolds that the entire church is to have a part in reaching the world for Christ. It couldn’t be clearer here, they were all scattered, like seeds, except the apostles, and those who were scattered preached the message of Jesus. How is that for church mobilization?

Persecution is not a “good thing” by any stretch of the imagination. But as a consequence the believers were “scattered,” like seed sown in the field of the world, and so we see that God’s sovereignty is such that He will over-rule even the sinful acts of humans to accomplish His good purpose.

II. Perspective of Faith: Despite the risk, some will have a willingness to fear God, not men (8:2).  ² Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him...” 

            Burial of someone who had been stoned like this was permitted, it might be viewed as an act of compassion, or even the decent thing to do.  It is somewhat reminiscent of the death of Jesus, when Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus went and asked for the body of Jesus and gave him a proper burial. Even this kind of act would carry the possibility of being identified with the Christ followers – guilt by association. They are described as “devout men,” which would seem to imply that they were believers, if not yet converted, they were at least pious Jews who were sympathetic to the message of the Messiah.

            They went further however, and “made great lamentation over him.” This was in violation of Jewish tradition. If someone was stoned, they were considered to be guilty of capital offense, and it was not permitted to mourn publically their death. “Great lamentation” implies the loud and persistent public weeping which characterized funerals in the ANE. It wasn’t hidden, there was no chance that it would go unnoticed.  It seems to indicate genuine affection for Stephen and perhaps agreement, or at least sympathy, with his message and ministry.  Why would they take such risk? It seems they had gained perspective that went beyond this present eil age. It seems they understood that the suffering of this present age is not worthy to be compared to the glory that shall be revealed in us. It seems that they had learned to fear God, not men, because God's sovereignty is such that He will overrule even the sinful acts of humans to accomplish His good purpose.

III. Persistence of the Resistance:  Resistance to the Truth will continue and at times will be intense (8:3). “But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.”

            “But Saul was ravaging the church…” The verbal tense describes an ongoing, repeated action in the past. It didn’t happen just once, it was something that was constant and continual. This is the only time this particular word appears in the New Testament. In secular literature it was used to describe violent mauling by a wild animal.  In the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, it appears to describe exactly what will not happen in the millennial Kingdom: “The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent's food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain," says the LORD (Isa 65:25).  Like a wolf ravaging the sheep, Saul was seeking out the Christ followers, seeking to stamp out the church.

“….and entering house after house…” Notice that it was no longer just an attack on the public ministry of the Gospel, but a pursuit of believers that went private, into homes.

            “…he dragged off men and women….” This meant families would be broken up, children left as orphans. Parents separated from children, husbands from wives.  The church has passed through periods like this in its history. It seems long ago and far away to us Americans. But for Christians in Iraq or Syria or Iran, or parts of Africa, it is reality, it is what they live with. Recently the remaining Christians are being told to leave Syria, if they can find a country who will take them, with only the shirts on their backs.

This looked like a desperate and dangerous situation, and it was. But God is bigger than any circumstance that we will face. God’s sovereignty is such that He will over-rule even the sinful acts of humans to accomplish His good purpose.

IV. Promise of His Plan: God will work even through the hard times to accomplish His good purpose (8:4). ⁴ Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.”

            Persecution and scattering might have initially looked like a defeat. However Jesus is building His church. They were scattered, like seed, and they carried on with the mission. Jesus is Lord, and the Lamb, He defeated death in the resurrection, He ascended to heaven before the eyes of witnesses, He is at the Father’s right hand and sent the Spirit as our comforter. That is too much good news to keep to ourselves!

            Notice who is preaching, those scattered did not include the apostles. The church was mobilized by necessity, and the mission went on and the message went out. We noted last week that the ministry of Stephen left no doubt that the call to witness in the power of the Spirit was not restricted to the apostles.

            The entire church was mobilized, and it was not out of a sense of spontaneous obedience, but rather an evaluation of the circumstances and a response of faith.  I want to make the point that God used a tragic situation and a painful circumstance to accomplish His good purpose. In case we miss the connection, a little later in Acts, 11:19-23, some of those who were scattered made their way to Antioch and planted a church.

¹⁹ Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews.  ²⁰ But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists also, preaching the Lord Jesus.  ²¹ And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.  ²² The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch.  ²³ When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose…

Notice that as Luke is telling the story of the early church he makes an unambiguous allusion back to our context (Acts 8:1-4). He wants us to understand that the ripples are still going outward, and in fact Barnabas will go and recruit that young rabbi who was at the heart of the persecution in Acts 7,8, Saul, to have a part in the leadership of the church in Antioch.  This would become a time of transition as the preaching of the Gospel goes from the Jews only, to including the gentiles.  And a church is founded in Antioch.  In Acts 13ff. that becomes the missionary sending church for Paul and Barnabas and later Silas, sending the Word out to Asia and Europe.

What is God saying to me in this passage? God’s sovereignty is such that He will over-rule even the sinful acts of humans to accomplish His good purpose.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? Suffering and the sovereignty of God is one of those subjects we would rather avoid (I know I would!). If things are going well we don’t want to consider that our world could be devastated at any moment. If we are in the midst of a trial, many times it is hard to imagine that God could possibly turn this around and use it for something good. If God is good, and He is also powerful, why is there so much suffering in the world?  If God could take the situation in the Jerusalem church after the death of Stephen and turn it around for good, do you think He may be able to work through the crisis you are going through?  The Lord’s Table is a reminder of the most profound example of what God can do. The torture, humiliation, and murder of the sinless Son of God, the greatest evil imaginable, was used to accomplish the salvation of a people for himself. That is how great our God is! And this is how He showed His love among us, He sent His one and only Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Paul said it this way: “God commends His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8).   Think about that as we prepare our hearts to share the Lord’s table.     AMEN.

The Persecuted Church: The Voice of the Martyrs Acts 7:54-8:1a

[My apologies of this posting being late, I am having computer problems and can't access the internet from home at the moment, SN].

The Persecuted Church: The Voice of the Martyrs

(or, “The Faithful Witness and the Work of the Spirit”)

Acts 7:54-8:1a

Introduction: This week as we come to the story of the death of Stephen in Acts, we’ve been reminded in our extended church family that the death of the saints, believers in Jesus, is precious to the Lord. Some in the world try to avoid the subject of death with humor…

I don't mind dying as long as I am not there when it happens.                      Woody Allen 

 I want to die peacefully in my sleep like my grandfather. Not screaming in terror like his passengers.                                                                                                                  Jim Harkins 

“Famous last words…” Some are funny, some are fearful, some are full of faith. Here are a few I found online…

Oh Lord, forgive the misprints!                       Andrew Bradford, American book-publisher 

Go away... I'm alright.                                                                      Last words of H. G. Wells 

 The rest is silence.                                                                Hamlet, Hamlet by Shakespeare 

 Call the office and tell them I won't be in on Monday.

Betty Allen, who worked until her death at 93

WC Fields reportedly said, “You mean to tell me I have enough money to buy a bicycle for every child in New York?” “Yes” came the reply. His reply, edited, “Fuhgedaboutit!” 

 “Now comes the mystery…”                                                                     Henry Ward Beecher

“Children, when I am gone, sing a song of praise to God…”                      Susanna Wesley

“I shall be with Christ, and that is enough…”                                           Michael Faraday

Whether in history or in literature, last words can be impactful, since they reveal something about what is on the heart and mind of the person who is leaving this life.  The witness of Stephen is empowered by the Spirit, his words reveal a heart that has experienced God’s grace and has peace. The response of his accusers exposes their guilt, they are “convicted” by the light shone on their unbelief. 

The Big Idea: The Spirit will empower God’s people to graciously speak the truth, even when they are attacked. Some who hear will believe, others will have their unbelief exposed.

I. Obstacles: The Darkness of the Flesh and Enmity with God (54). “When they heard these things, they became furious and ground their teeth at him.”   

            “When they heard these things…” What was it that they had heard? Stephen had reviewed some major characters and events from Israel’s history showing God’s gracious action on their behalf, and the nation’s repeated rejection of the deliverers God had sent to them. They could not deny what was written in their own Scriptures but the application became too personal too quickly: “You are just like your fathers!” They rejected the prophets God sent, and you rejected the promised One of whom the prophets spoke!

            “…they became furious…” i.e., “…they were cut to the quick…”  This is a very different reaction than we saw back in Acts 2 and 3 when Peter preached Christ and he called his countrymen to account for rejecting him. Then we saw thousands repent and be converted to the faith. Here, Stephen’s speech brings violent anger and results in his death. Something to think about: How do we measure success in our service for the Lord? Was Peter a success, and Stephen a failure? The words of Charles Colson come to mind, “God doesn’t demand our success, He demands our obedience…” Stephen was a faithful witness, and they were “cut to the quick.”

This phrase occurs only twice in the NT, here and in Acts 5:33 when the apostles response to the Sanhedrin also infuriated them.  It seems to me this is another example of the Spirit working through the preaching of the Word to convict the hearers. The promised Comforter, the Holy Spirit, would “convict the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment…”  What is conviction?  The root meaning of the word is to expose, to bring to light.  We have examples of “positive conviction,” for example in Acts 2 and 3, where the hearers have their guilt exposed by the preaching of Peter, and they repent and turn in faith to Jesus. These hearers on the other hand, have their guilt exposed, in their own hearts, and also by their actions in refusing to recognize and turn from their sin. Their unbelief is exposed, it is laid bare, and rather than repenting they turn against the Light that shined through Stephen’s testimony.  So “they ground their teeth at them…” The language pictures a mob seething in anger, ready to explode at any moment.

            C. As Luke is writing Acts he has shown the overwhelming, explosive, growth of the church. But it hasn’t been without challenges and trials. The opposition to the church has been intensifying but nothing will impede what God is determined to do. The blindness of the religious leaders reminds us as to why our mission is so important. The World is in rebellion against God. Unbelievers are dead in sin, slaves to Satan, blind and deaf to the truth.  That is a bit of an obstacle to our witness! We can’t intellectually persuade anyone to believe, that is, we can’t do it without the supernatural intervention of the King of the Universe, breathing life into those who need to know Him. My point here is not to discourage you, but rather to encourage you that God is still working through the foolishness of the gospel to save those who believe. That means that some will hear and respond. So be encouraged, and “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.”

*** The Spirit will empower God’s people to graciously speak the truth, even when they are attacked. Some will believe, others will have their unbelief exposed.

II. Outlook: God’s Word will accomplish the purpose for which it is sent (55-58).

A. In the Light of the Spirit: Seeing the Truth (55,56). ^“But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked intently toward heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.  ⁵⁶ "Look!" he said. "I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!"

Notice first of all that Stephen was full of the Holy Spirit. This is not a state that is only attainable by the few, by the “super-spiritual.” This is what we are made for, this is normal, healthy, Christianity. The Apostle Paul would later write, “Do not be drunk with wine, where in is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit…” (Eph 5:18). The contrast is between living our life controlled by a substance that might deaden our pain in the moment but which won’t solve anything, or living our life controlled by the supernatural presence of the Creator of the universe, our omniscient and omnipotent King and Savior.  This is the backbone of the theology of Acts: this present age is the age of the Spirit. He is God, present in every believer. We need to recognize and yield to his presence.

Stephen got a preview of heaven, a glimpse into the presence of God. God granted him that revelation, and notice that he shared exactly what he had seen.  Remember that in Stephen’s speech he spoke of Joseph, who was given a vision by God which he shared with his brothers. He only told the truth, and his brothers were jealous, and hated him, and sold him into slavery.  That didn’t go so well!  Stephen knew what was happening, he saw this story unfolding, yet he continued his faithful witness, sharing exactly what God allowed him to see. Notice there is one small change in what Luke says Stephen saw, and what he said.  Instead of saying he saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God, he says he saw the Son of Man  standing at the right hand of God.  “Son of Man” was a title Jesus used for himself. It was the one messianic title appeared in the Old Testament Scriptures, but was open to interpretation – a little ambiguous. Then finally, when he is under examination by the Council He says, “You will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of Heaven!”  Then there was no doubt, He was referring to Daniel 7:13,14 and claiming to be Messiah!  This is the only place in the New Testament, here in Acts 7, where someone other than Jesus uses that title to refer to Him.  And since He is at the right hand of the Father there is no doubt that Stephen is calling Him the Messiah – the Son of Man is the Son of God!  He only told the truth, and like Joseph in the Old Testament, he incurs the wrath of his brethren.

B. The depth of Depravity: Rejection of the Truth (57-58).

Very dramatically, Luke shows us that Stephen’s accusers would not hear (57).  “But they covered their ears, shouting out with a loud voice, and rushed at him with one intent.” They did not want to listen, they did not want to hear another word.  Paul described the natural man’s response to the things of the Spirit in I Cor 2:14, “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” They would not listen, they could not understand, dramatically they cover their ears and they rushed him with one intent. No mystery here, they wanted to do away with this annoying voice! This scene reminds me of the Auca tribesmen who attacked the five missionaries in the jungle is Equador, including Jim Elliot and Nate Saint, and began shooting them with arrows – darkness trying to extinguish light. One of the attackers who was later converted described the frenzy when the missionaries pulled out the first few arrows, and did not fire a weapon in return on their attackers.

 

• They sought to blot out the light (58; 8:1a). ^“When they had driven him out of the city, they began to stone him, and the witnesses laid their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul…  ^8:1aAnd Saul approved of his execution.” The Jews apparently were not allowed to execute anyone under Roman law, but in their fury they didn’t let that stop them, they began to stone him. This was not simply punishment, it was intended to kill. Ironically the stoners of Stephen are called “witnesses.” Jesus had told the disciples in Acts 1:8, that the Spirit would empower them to be his witnesses, starting in Jerusalem and all of Judea. In case we weren’t clear about it, that wasn’t a mission given only to the twelve, Stephen is filled with the Spirit, and powerfully gives testimony that Jesus Christ is Lord. The word “witness,” martus,  is the word from which the English word “martyr” is derived. The path that it took for the meaning to change from probably is connected to the witnesses of Christ in history who gave their lives rather than denying their Lord.
   
• Fox’s Book of Martyrs traces examples of people through the centuries who stood firm in their profession rather than recant their faith in Christ and paid the ultimate price. Missionaries in the modern era, like Jim Eliot and Nate Saint, risked their lives and ultimately gave their lives in seeking to bring the gospel to those who were in darkness. Today Christians in many of the Islamic republics in North Africa and Asia are at risk if they openly profess faith, and even more so if they seek to share their faith, and any who would convert to Christianity could be putting their lives in danger. After being threatened with hanging, only this week Miriam Yahia Ibrahim was allowed to leave Sudan for Italy with her new born child.  Pastor Saeed Abedini continues to be held in an Iranian prison – he’s only been allowed two visits from his family in the last two years.
   
• And notice that Saul is standing by, approving. Knowing the bigger story, that gives us hope. We can be encouraged that even this determined opponent who sought to destroy Christianity, encountered the resurrected, living Christ and had his life changed completely. No one is too difficult, too hardened, too determined in their unbelief.

*** The Spirit will empower God’s people to graciously speak the truth, even when they are attacked. Some will believe, others will have their unbelief exposed. There will be OBSTACLES, but the OUTLOOK is positive since God’s Word will not return void. His presence gives us OPPORTUNITY to be a faithful witness.

III. Opportunity: The Blessings of an Eternal Perspective (59-60). An eternal perspective will show us how to live, in this case it also shows Stephen how to die. Stephen lived and died by faith, because he knew God’s grace and had peace with God and the peace of God.

Stephen could face this moment in Faith, he knew God and had his trust in Him.  ⁵⁹ “They continued to stone Stephen while he prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!" Even as they were stoning him and he faced death, he reflected his faith in his savior, even echoing some of the things Jesus said from the cross. “Receive my Spirit!”  It is interesting that here he prays to Jesus, and he prays like Jesus.  Our prayers go to God and Stephen recognized the deity of Christ. He also understood that to be absent from the body was to me present with the Lord. Even as he was facing death, he did so in faith, believing God, and trusting in Jesus. As Jesus prayed, in faith, for the Father to received His spirit, Stephen prays, trusting in the Lord, for Him to receive His Spirit.

-Next we see an attitude of Grace. ⁶⁰“Then he fell to his knees and cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" He doesn’t call for lightening from heaven, he doesn’t ask for an angel with a flaming sword to strike down his attackers. He knew God’s grace, and like Jesus did, he prays for grace and mercy toward his attackers.  Like Jesus had prayed for those who crucified Him, Stephen intercedes for his attackers. Could you? Would you? I remember at our Thanksgiving service, when the Simons came and Jude prayed for the salvation of those who had tortured and killed his father – that kind of gracious response can only come to those who have an eternal perspective and understand what is at stake. Because we know God’s grace, because we are recipients of grace, we should be gracious people toward those around us, even those who would do us harm.

-Finally, we see Stephen had Peace. Luke doesn’t just say he “died,” but rather, in a tender expression reserved for the death of believers, “…and when he had said this, he fell asleep.”  Baxter as he lay dying said, “I have pain, but I have peace…” It is a peace that passes understanding. A peace that comes from knowing God’s forgiveness and being assured of His presence. There is no despair, no overwhelming fear, for the child of God in death. We have peace, a calm assurance that death is by no means the end, that God is with us and to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. Rather than terror or fear or horror, we have calmness because God’s Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are His, and so there is nothing left to fear.

What is God saying to me in this passage? The Spirit will empower God’s people to graciously speak the truth, even when they are attacked. The response will be mixed. Some will believe, others will have their unbelief exposed. The results are up to God. He doesn’t demand our “success,” He demands our obedience.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? Do you feel your witness for the Lord is a failure because you don’t see people coming to faith in Christ? You can’t save anyone. God doesn’t demand our success in terms of numbers, he does demand our obedience in terms of faithfully speaking the truth, giving a reason for the hope that is in us. Our mission is not an optional part of the Christian life. It is not something for the professionals, it is the mission that Jesus has given the church, it is what we were left in the world to do. The obstacles we face may discourage us, but they needn’t defeat us. The outlook is bright because God’s Word is true and it will accomplish his purpose. We have an opportunity, to walk in the Spirit, to live by faith, to be gracious because we have experienced grace, and to experience peace even in chaotic times. Why did God leave us in the world? He doesn’t desire that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Our calling is to be witnesses to the light in the place that he has put us.   Is there someone in your sphere of influence who needs to know Jesus?  You are God’s missionary where He was placed you. Think about that.    AMEN.

The Persecuted Church: Living by Faith in a Faithless World - Acts 7:1-53

The Persecuted Church: Living by Faith in a Faithless World

Acts 7:1-53

Introduction:  I remember being at a Christian Ed meeting some time ago. We met in the nursery since it allowed some young mothers on the committee to be at the meeting while their kids played. I remember when Mary Ann sat in the rocking chair, one of the little toddlers went over to a box, pulled out a little piece of carpet, laid it on the floor right in front of Mary Ann and sat down. It took a moment to figure out what was happening, but that is where Mary Ann sits when she is going to tell the kids a Bible story, so he just assumed it was Bible time!  Everyone loves a good story! One of the books I have in my library is entitled, “He Gave Us Stories,” by a scholar named Richard Pratt. That book was translated into Portuguese, and in Portuguese the title presents an interesting ambiguity, since “History” and “Story” are translated today by the same word, “histÓria.” Most of the Bible, Old and New Testament, is narrative, it’s history, and it focuses on God’s unfolding plan.

The Story of God is written in human history, and it includes God’s people, the great cloud of witnesses who lived by faith, who took God at His word.  Put that into the context of the New Testament, the Book of Acts, and the speech of Stephen in Acts 7, it’s clear that the message is a call to believe God, specifically, to believe that Jesus is the fulfillment of the promises of God and the very presence of God among His people. It is true that Stephen is on trial, and on one level he is giving an answer to the charges that were brought against him. On another level however, his accusers are on trial as well. Their response to God’s story will reveal the truth about their hearts and show beyond question the path they are on in terms of their eternal destiny. 

I do want to be sensitive to the context here, and so I am saying it is the path they are on that is revealed, not necessarily their destiny. We have a powerful reminder in this context that as long as we have life, it may be that our eyes will be opened, our heart will be changed, and we’ll turn in faith to God. Saul of Tarsus is a part of this story. That is the same Saul who is later known as the Apostle Paul. Here he stands with Stephen’s accusers approving what was happening. A couple chapters over in Acts, he is brought into a dramatic confrontation with the resurrected Christ and his life is changed. Do you have someone you have been sharing Christ with that seems determined in their unbelief? Do they seem like an “impossible case”? God may have a plan for them that is yet to unfold, so stay faithful, keep praying, and see what God may yet do!

Stephen was on trial for his life. He was charged with blasphemy (6:11). The issue was that he was preaching Jesus. Stephen responds by retelling some highlights of the story of redemption, beginning with Abraham.  It is a powerful message since they really couldn’t dispute what he was saying, the actions of their forefathers revealed the depravity of humans despite God’s repeated efforts to reveal himself to them.  You can almost see the leaders reluctantly nodding and agreeing with Stephen, “Yes, our fathers were a stiff necked people!” And then, he makes the application: “You are just like your fathers!”

Stephen mentions at the beginning and end of his speech the glory of God, first God’s glory was revealed to Abraham (v.2) and finally to Stephen even as he is being put to death (7:55,56).  Paul, in his letter to the Romans, reminds us of Israel that “…they are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises.  ⁵ To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ who is God over all…” (Rom 9:4,5).  The glory of God led them through the sea and through the wilderness. God’s glory descended on the Tabernacle, was revealed on Mt. Sinai, and filled the Holy place of the Temple.  Because of unbelief the glory of the Lord departed for a season, until in the fullness of time God sent forth His Son… Of him John said, “We have seen His glory, glory as the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth…” (John 1:14). Stephen is standing strong in the faith, speaking only the truth, testifying to God’s grace revealed in history, and so giving God the glory. That faithful witness brings glory to the Lord.

The Big Idea: God is glorified when his people live by faith and worship Him in Spirit and in truth.

I. Take God at His Word: Abraham (7:1-8). God told Abraham to go, and he went. He believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.

            Notice first of all that Stephen addresses his accusers with empathy and humility: “Brothers and fathers…” Rather than emphasizing their theological differences at the start, he begins by calling them “brothers.” He is putting himself in the same boat with them, affirming their common heritage and history. They were Jews, like him, they had the same blood, and they acknowledged the history of God’s dealing with the Jewish people.  By calling them “fathers” he seems to be acknowledging with respect the Sanhedrin and their role as religious leaders of the nation. “Listen…” i.e., “hear me out.” He will appeal to their common faith and also the history of their people of rejecting the deliverers God had given them. The facts were the facts, it was their history, and Stephen will use that history to explain the current situation.

 Stephen begins by saying the God of glory appeared to Abraham and spoke to him. That passage, starting in Genesis 12, is so familiar that we maybe take for granted how significant that was. God’s revelation was more generalized before that, but now He was focusing His promise on a man and his descendants. We see God in his sovereignty revealing himself to that human, not only in theophany as he appeared to him, but by speaking to him. The God who is, the great I AM, the creator and sustainer of the universe, has chosen to use human language to reveal himself to us, and to show us what he wants from us. We have a fuller revelation than Abraham had. We can read in the Bible of God’s work in the past, His instructions on how to live, His plan for the future. We have the Light of His full revelation in Jesus and the reality of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Abraham had a much more limited revelation, but he heard the Word of God, and he stepped out in faith, leaving what he knew for what he did not yet know, because God said to go. 

            It is certainly true that Abraham did have to learn to trust God, and his faith had some ups and downs along the way. But God was teaching him, building his faith, enabling him to believe, to trust. He went out in faith, but then was afraid when a famine caused him to go down to Egypt and he lied about Sarah his wife for fear of the men in the land (and does the same thing a second time in chapter 20!). He showed faith when he trusted God and took what was left when Lot walked by sight and pitched his tent toward Sodom. He believed God when he was promised a multitude of descendants, then he doubted, and agreed to take Hagar as his concubine. Finally, when God tells him to sacrifice his promised Son, Isaac, on Mount Moriah he is ready to do the unthinkable, to the point of lifting the knife over his son, until God intervenes…   The lesson is to believe, God is trustworthy, we can take Him at His word. Because God is glorified when his people live by faith and worship Him in Spirit and in truth.

II. Trust God when we don’t understand: Joseph (7:9-16). The son’s of Jacob, the patriarchs of the twelve tribes, were not all, at all times, great examples of living by faith.  Joseph’s brothers betrayed him, but God was with him. The story of Joseph emphasizes God’s sovereignty and His grace.

            Stephen reminds his own accusers that the patriarchs became envious and sold Joseph their brother into Egypt (7:9). These were the men to whom every Jew could trace their family tree – they betrayed their own brother out of jealousy and lied to their father, saying he was dead. Stephen is making it clear that their ancestry is not a cause for being prideful, quite the contrary their fathers were far from righteous. In fact they had acted cruelly and deceitfully to the one God had chosen. Yet we see grace in the story of Joseph and his brothers. What set them apart was God’s sovereign choice and his providential hand working to accomplish His good purpose.

             Stephen is saying that the partriarchs, the sons of Jacob (ex-Joseph), rejected the one that God had chosen to deliver them. Even so, God in His grace worked to accomplish that deliverance through the one who He had chosen. Does that sound familiar? These people did same with another chosen Son, Jesus, by rejecting Him and delivering Him up to be killed. Even so, through His death God saved a remnant, chosen by grace, who would repent and believe.

            Joseph trusted God, even when it seemed that His world was falling apart around him.  Jesus had trusted the Father, in the Garden and to the Cross and the grave. And now Stephen, even as he spoke to his accusers, was trusting God.  God is glorified when his people live by faith and worship Him in Spirit and in truth.

III. Obey God’s Commands: Moses (7:17-43).  God revealed himself to Moses and Moses obeyed God, even as the people committed idolatry.

            One of the specific charges that were brought against Stephen was that he spoke against Moses, so it is not too surprising that he spent the biggest part of his message talking about Moses. Moses was probably the most respected and revered of the human leaders God had given to Israel. He spoke to God face to face, he met God on the mountain and saw his glory pass by, he was used by God to lead the nation out of Egyptian bondage, and he received the Law by direct revelation from God. Moses authored the first five books of the Bible, the Torah. He was the paradigm prophet, the one to who all subsequent prophets of God would be compared and ultimately, a promised “Prophet like Moses,” the Messiah, would come at the right time to deliver the faithful remnant of Israel.

            With all of that, no wonder the nation held Moses in such high esteem!  Yet, like Joseph, Moses did not always have such an easy time with the sons of Israel. After God brought them out of Egypt, they had times of doubting and they began to grumble against God and against Moses and Aaron. Whether it was about water or food or the enemies in the land, the doubts and complaints had consequences.

            God revealed the stipulations of the covenant to Moses and the people committed themselves to obey, yet the history of Israel from Joshua, through the judges and kings of Israel, the faithfulness of God and the cycles of unbelief by the people and their leaders, and the consequences of that unbelief, explains the history of Israel.

            Remember the Word of Jesus, “If you believed Moses you would believe Me, because he spoke of me” (John 5:46). Trust and obey. John put it this way: “He who believes in the Son has life. He who does not obey the Son shall not see life, for the wrath of God abides on Him” (John 3:36). True faith will show itself by obedience, not to the letter of the Law, but to the Spirit of the Law. God is glorified when his people live by faith and worship Him in Spirit and in truth.

IV. Worship the God who is Present: the Temple (7:44-53). Another charge brought against Stephen was that He preached that Jesus would destroy the Temple. Stephen answered that they seemed more concerned about their traditions and the physical building than about knowing and worshipping the One true God, the Great I AM, the God who spoke the universe into existence.

God is the creator of all things and omnipresent (44-50). Yes, Moses and Aaron mediated between God and the people in the wilderness, and the priests continued in that role later. The tabernacle housed the ark of the covenant in the center of the camp and it was the place where the Shekinah glory descended and was present, above the mercy seat and between the cherubim. Later the Temple was built in Jerusalem and took the role of the Meeting Place, the House of God. But Stephen quotes the oracle of the Lord to Isaiah which made it clear that the Creator of the Universe is not contained or limited by a physical building, He is omnipresent.

“Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands, as the prophet says,  ⁴⁹ 'Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord, or what is the place of my rest?  ⁵⁰ Did not my hand make all these things?'” (Acts 7:48-50; see Isa 66:1,2a).

Remember the Latin phrase used by the Reformers, Coram Deo, living before the face of God. That is living by faith. Trusting that God is transcendent, He is infinite and omnipresent, not limited to a particular place or building.  See He is also imminent, right here with us, always present, always watching.

And our Hearts are revealed by our response to Him (51-53). Stephen turns the tables on His accusers and charges them with unbelief, a lack of faith in the God the Scriptures which is revealed by their response to Jesus.

“You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.  ⁵² Which of the prophets did not your fathers persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered…” (Acts 7:51-52).

 Stephen told the story of the fathers and he only spoke the truth. You can almost read between the lines and by their silence imagine the leaders nodding their heads in reluctant agreement as he tells the story of God’s revelation and Israel’s struggle to believe and trust Him. “Yes, the fathers were a stiff necked bunch weren’t they?” But then Stephen makes the point: they had rejected the prophets God sent, and the prophets spoke of the coming of Messiah, Jesus. Now you handed Him over to be killed! You are just like your fathers!  Ok, if you are taking notes on how to be an effective witness for the Lord, this may not be the best approach for everyone! But at this moment, in this situation, it is clear the Stephen said exactly what God wanted him to say.

      “…you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it” (Acts 7:53).  Stephen says on the one hand you claim to venerate the Word, yet on the other hand you don’t obey what it says. Faith means trusting God, taking Him at His Word. If we really believe that God is who he claimed to be and that He has spoken, we will want to obey what He says.

What is God saying to me in this passage? God is glorified when his people live by faith and worship Him in Spirit and in truth.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? The glory of God was revealed to humans. Moses met God on the mountain, and when he descended his face glowed with the glory of God’s presence. The prophet Isaiah also got a glimpse of the throne room of heaven, the seraphim circling the presence of the King of Kings. Some of the disciples saw Jesus transformed on the Mount of transfiguration. Stephen, his face like that of an angel, sees heaven opened, and Jesus standing at the Father’s right hand. When John wrote his prolog to the Gospel he said, “We have seen His glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” Have you come here today to meet with Him and to Worship Him? He is the same, yesterday, today, and forever, and He is worthy to be praised. Do you recognize His presence, now, and as you go about your life through the week, choosing to live Coram Deo, before the face of God? He is glorified as we bring the message of his grace to the world. Stephen spoke the truth, knowing what the consequences might be. Most of us will not be on trial for our life, but lives are at stake. The lives of those around you who desperately need to know Him. Are you ready to give a reason for the hope that is in you? Will you?              AMEN.

The Persecuted Church: The Cost of Discipleship

The Persecuted Church: The Cost of Discipleship

Acts 6:8-15

Introduction:  This week we heard the story of a lifeguard who saw a swimmer in distress and went to try to rescue him. The rescue swimmer lost his life in the process. In this case he was willing to save, but he gave his life in the process. Jesus gave His life, and in the process He accomplished the rescue, the salvation, of all who will come to Him in faith. And He sends us to be His witnesses. The Greek word for "witness" is the word from which we get the English word "martyr." We come today to the story of Stephen, a witness, and the first martyr of the early church. 

Context: The context in Acts 6 reminds us that even the church will have moments when internal conflicts can threaten to bring division and so disrupt the mission God has entrusted to us.  In this case, the matter was related to physical, financial needs, the Greek speaking widows being overlooked in the distribution of food.  The radical generosity of the believers in the early part of Acts is a feature of church life that stands out.  Initially there were no unmet needs among the Christ followers because the radical, cheerful generosity of those that had means was extending the love of Christ to those who would have been in genuine need. There is no indication that the apostles didn’t think this situation, which was brought to their attention, was important. Quite the contrary, they addressed it immediately and effectively. It could have brought disunity and division to the church and that that would have disrupted the church’s mission. They empowered the people affected, to choose spiritually qualified people they knew and trusted, to address the situation. We see a couple of principles, 1) we should make every effort to strive for the unity of the body, and 2) we should be sensitive to the needs of people around us.  We should have compassion when we see genuine needs within or outside of the church. What would Jesus do if He walked through our streets and saw people needy or hungry or hurting?  Giving a drink of water in the name of Jesus is something we want to do, but that isn’t, or should be, the last word. Meeting needs in the community is important, but the essential heart of our mission must be sharing the truth that will meet their deepest need, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Most importantly, God is glorified as His story is shared with the world, and the message of His grace is proclaimed. God created a world that was good, human rebellion brought suffering and death and separation from God. God chose a people to whom and through whom He revealed His covenantal love, his holiness, and his righteousness. He made a way for sinful humans to be reconciled to God by sending His Son in human form, without sin, to die as our substitute and then to raise again the third day. He is the Way, the only way, the truth, and the life. The message that we need saving is not what people want to hear. The truth that God’s way is the only way is offensive and so is easily rejected, its not the affirming and inclusive message that the world wants.

The Big Idea: Though preaching Christ may bring offense it must be at the heart of an effective ministry.      

I. God works in and through His people (8). “And Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and signs among the people.”

  Remember the context, Stephen had been chosen to serve by the people (cf. 6:5). He was recognized by his peers as someone who was full of the Spirit and of wisdom. So he was selected to have a part in the ministry of distributing food and other material needs to the Greek speaking widows. This was an important issue, it was a need that had to be met and a situation that potentially could have divided the church.  The church responded quickly and effectively to this need. But ministering to the physical needs of people is not the “be all and end all” of ministry.  Why are we in the world? God has a mission that He is accomplishing through the church, and the heart of the mission is proclaiming Christ, crucified and resurrected, as the one and only means for reconciliation with God.

 Stephen was selected as one of the seven, an important work that would meet needs and maintain the unity of the church. But God had other work for him to do as well (6:8). The context makes it clear that the ministry of Stephen here was carrying out the mission Jesus had spoken of in Acts 1:8, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be witnesses to me, starting in Jerusalem…” Jesus had said that “…you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you…” The presence of the Spirit was the source of the power to minister in the name of Jesus. The people chose seven men to take responsibility in one area of ministry so that the apostles could continue their primary ministry of prayer and preaching the Word.  Jesus said He has chosen us to bear fruit, and through that God will be glorified.

        One of the most encouraging things about our church family is that virtually every member is involved in some way in the working together of the body. We seem to have learned well that Christianity is not a spectator sport, it is something that requires our participation. When it comes to soccer, I might better stay in my chair and watch so I don’t hurt myself, when it comes to the Christian life there are no “couch potato Christians”! But beyond serving on committees and volunteering to fill needs in the church, it is also true that every one of us needs to embrace our calling to be his witnesses.  Whatever we are doing in the church is important and necessary, but we are also called to have a part, in the place where God has placed us, to testify to His amazing grace.   Though preaching Christ may bring offense it must be at the heart of an effective ministry.

II.  God’s work in and through His people may provoke hostility from those who are close to us (9-11). So Stephen was ministering in the power of the Spirit, and we read,

⁹ But some men from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen, including both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and argued with Stephen.  ¹⁰ But they were unable to cope with the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking.  ¹¹ Then they secretly induced men to say, "We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God."

            “BUT…” begins verse 9. Stephen was serving faithfully, in the power of the Spirit carrying out the ministry God had given, but the preaching of the truth will often offend someone, and so it does here.  There were synagogues in and around Jerusalem where diaspora Jews from various linguistic and cultural backgrounds who had returned to the area could come together for community as well as for reading and study Scripture.  Stephen had been chosen along with others to minister to the needs of some Greek speaking widows in the community and this may have gotten the attention of Greek speaking Jews. People they knew, who had come to believe in this Jesus, they must have been learning their doctrine from this guy!  So they “rose up and argued…” with Stephen. The word argued has the sense of “debated” with him.    

            Notice that they encountered Stephen and were “…unable to cope with the wisdom and Spirit with which he was speaking…” Have you ever had an opportunity to speak to someone about the Lord, you sensed an open door, maybe even a receptive heart, but you were afraid that you would not know what to say, or that you would say the wrong thing?  If our heart is right with God, we can’t go wrong by telling what God means to us or what he has done for us. Just accept that you don’t have to know everything and you don’t need to be able to answer every objection. Just admit that you don’t know everything but that your life has been changed by the One you do know, Jesus. We are not being asked to be “expert witnesses,” only witnesses called to tell the truth about the One we know.

            There was false testimony that Stephen was speaking against Moses and against God. Moses anticipated the coming of Christ, Jesus is God, God the Son, God incarnate. Jesus himself said He had not come to destroy the Law and the Prophets, but rather to fulfill.

            To charge blasphemy was to set up a situation that could result in capital punishment.  Blasphemy merited death. So inducing men to falsely charge blasphemy reveals the hardness of these hearts. This was no investigation or objective seeking of truth.  One of the great delusions people have, and one that we sometimes have about unbelievers, is that they can be objective, neutral, honest judges of the evidence.  As surely as the leaders had hated Jesus, as certainly as the disciples were mistreated for speaking the truth about Him, other faithful followers, like Stephen, will be opposed by unbelief.  Even so, though preaching Christ may bring offense, it must be at the heart of an effective ministry.

III. God’s work and His Word may be misunderstood and misrepresented by those who don’t know Him (12-15, 7:1). We see next the lengths to which the opposition goes. 

¹² And they stirred up the people, the elders and the scribes, and they came up to him and dragged him away and brought him before the Council.  ¹³ They put forward false witnesses who said, "This man incessantly speaks against this holy place and the Law;  ¹⁴ for we have heard him say that this Nazarene, Jesus, will destroy this place and alter the customs which Moses handed down to us."  ¹⁵ And fixing their gaze on him, all who were sitting in the Council saw his face like the face of an angel. ^7:1The high priest said, "Are these things so?"

            This charge may sound familiar. It is something that false witnesses had also said about Jesus (Mt 26:61, 27:40; cf. Mk 14:58, 15:29). False witnesses spoke against Jesus as He was examined saying,

"This man said, 'I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days’" (Matthew 26:61).

Even as he hung on the cross some mocked,

"You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross" (Matthew 27:40).

In both cases, the witnesses are described as “false,” i.e., they did not accurately portray what Jesus had said about the Temple.  A couple of obervations:

·        Jesus did speak against human traditions and rules that were added to the Law, but He also said that not one jot or tittle of the Law would be done away with. It’s clear He valued the teachings of Moses. He said “If you believed Moses you would believe me, for he wrote of me” (John 5:46).

·        The Temple had an important role in the history of God’s people: it was the meeting place between God and men, it was the place where sacrifices were offered. The disciples still went to the temple, but they went to preach Jesus, the One who reveals the Fathers.

            Jesus did say a couple of things about the “Temple” that were misunderstood. In the Olivet discourse (Mt 24; Mk 13) He predicted that Jerusalem would be sacked and the Temple destroyed. Historically we know that happened in AD 70 when the Romans razed the city.  So He didn’t say HE would destroy the Temple, but simply predicted that it would happen. Perhaps more importantly we read near the beginning of John’s Gospel, in John 2:19, something Jesus said about a Temple being destroyed.  There He said,

"Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

Notice there, Jesus makes no statement about destroying the temple himself, but says when some of his hearers would do that, He would raise it back up in three days.  But the context clarifies that Jesus was not talking about the physical temple, but rather was predicting His own death and resurrection. The saying of Jesus was misunderstood then and even his own disciples didn’t get it until after the resurrection.

The Temple was the place God had chosen to manifest His presence in the midst of the people. It replaced the Tabernacle which was the holy place in the midst of God’s people in the desert. The “house of God” motif goes even further back, to the vision Jacob had in Genesis 28 of a ladder going up to heaven on which the angels of God ascended and descended. Jesus is the revelation of the Father, the one mediator between God men, the only way into the presence of God (see John 1:49-51). He said, “Tear down this Temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” They could kill him and lay his body in a tomb, but three days later He arose. His death and resurrection rendered the temple obsolete, since sacrifices were no longer necessary, and since the way into the holy of holies was opened through faith. Seated at the Father’s right hand He sent the Spirit to indwell the New Testament church.

            Notice that there is no sense of honestly, openly, investigating what Stephen was preaching, and seeking the truth together. The simple fact is that fallen humans are not “neutral” about spiritual things. They are not “open-minded.” They have been blinded by the enemy, they are spiritually dead, they are unable to understand the things of the Spirit, they are at enmity with God. Because that is true, they will not be won merely by our careful and logical presentation of the facts. We need a miracle. We need God to open their heart, we need the Spirit to lead them to repentance and faith. There is mystery here since God has chosen to work through us, through the foolishness of the message preached, to save those who believe. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

            The question in 7:1 was not a search for truth, it was a search of an opportunity to condemn.  As they had already done with Jesus.

What is God saying to me in this passage? Though preaching Christ may bring offense it must be at the heart of an effective ministry. 

What would God have me to do in response to this passage?

            1. Whatever we do in the name of Christ, whether it is feeding the hungry, visiting the sick, comforting the hurting, the most loving thing we can do is to seek to share the truth about Jesus. Stephen had an important ministry to see to the needs of the Greek speaking widows, but then he also sought to preach Jesus.

2. As we think about the church, and about following Jesus, this section of Acts is not something that really resonates with most American believers. We are thankful for Voice of the Martyrs and other such ministries to let us know what is going on in other parts of the world, but it seems like it’s a long way away. Biblically, if one part of the body suffers, we all suffer.

3. When it comes to our calling to be His witnesses, do you ever feel like you just can’t do it, you’ll say the wrong thing, no one will listen? The same God that went with Stephen, the same Spirit that empowered him to speak, is with you and in you. You already care about the people in your sphere of influence, not allow God to use you to share Christ with them.

Not every rescue swimmer comes back safe, unscathed. They are not required to come back, they are called to go out. Because our great Rescuer has paid the price and defeated death in the resurrection, we are called to urge those we go to, those around us, to look to Him for their deliverance. He will never fail.