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Acts 7:54-8:1a: Eyes only for Him.

54 When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. 55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”  57 At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, 58 dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul.  59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.       8 And Saul approved of their killing him. 

In this final section of the Stephen story we see:

▪ Focused eyes (55, 56): Stephen was surrounded by a pack of wolves, baring their teeth and out for his blood. ‘’But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, hardly noticed – he only had eyes for God, whom he saw in all his glory with Jesus standing at his side. He said, ‘’Oh! I see heaven wide open and the Son of man standing at God’s side!’’ ‘’ The Message. F.B. Meyer writes about how Spirit-filled people are given an overwhelming consciousness of Christ: ‘It is the special work of the Holy Spirit to direct the gaze to Jesus. Those who are full of the Spirit may hardly be aware of his gracious presence, but they are keenly alive to their Lord’s.’ Great verses through the Bible, p.405.
▪ Deaf ears (57): ‘’At this they covered their ears…’’ Have you ever seen a child do this when they just don’t like the message you’re transmitting and they don’t want to obey? There are none so deaf as those who will not hear. I heard Francis Chan say that he has made a decision that whenever he finds himself in disagreement with the Bible, it is right and he is wrong!
▪ Praying heart (59, 60). Can there be, I wonder, a better way to die, than to be praying at the time of your departure from earth? Then the conversation can just continue in a richer, fuller way. I remember reading about a missionary who set himself to pray through the night, and on the morning he was found on his knees by his bed. Yet he was not there. He had gone. Even as he prayed he was taken to heaven.
▪ Forgiving spirit (60): Stephen died, like his Master, Jesus, releasing his enemies; not holding on to even a particle of bitterness. ‘’Then he knelt down, praying loud enough for everyone to hear, ‘’Master, don’t blame them for this sin’’ – his last words. Then he died.’’ The Message.
▪ Preparatory statement (8:1a): ‘’Saul was right there, congratulating the killers.’’ The Message.

To be continued!

Acts 7:51-53: The unvarnished truth.

51 “You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit! 52 Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him— 53 you who have received the law that was given through angels but have not obeyed it.”NIV

As I read about Stephen, I get the impression of a wise, godly, intelligent, gracious and radiant Christian. But he was all that he was by the Holy Spirit (6:5, 10) and the Holy Spirit makes the most gracious person brave when such bravery is required. He turns him or her into a roaring lion (Amos 3:8). Note:

• It takes bravery to live the Christian life;
• It takes bravery to speak the unpopular truth, and at times a faithful witness to Christ will have to say what people don’t want to hear. It’s been pointed out that no-one is going to persecute for serving the poor, digging wells and feeding the hungry. But if you state that Jesus is the only way to God, and that all who reject Him will find themselves rejected by God and face His judgment, then it will be another story entirely. On this day, Stephen gave his listeners the unvarnished truth: ‘’Your ancestors killed anyone who dared talk about the coming of the Just One. And you’ve kept up the family tradition – traitors and murderers all of you. You had God’s Law handed to you by angels – gift-wrapped!- and you squandered it!’’ The Message. That kind of talk could get a pastor kicked out of his pulpit with great speed. It cost Stephen his life. ‘My fellow Jews,’ he said in effect, ‘you stand in the inglorious line of those who rejected God’s prophets and Word.You have now rejected the Messiah Himself – the One long prophesied!’ ‘’You always resist the Holy Spirit!’ (31b). To resist God’s Word is to resist His Spirit. Stephen used direct speech, and paid dearly.
• It takes bravery to love your persecutors; to forgive them and pray for them. How like the Lord He loved was Stephen!
• It takes bravery to die well. A believer who was dying wrote to his friends and said, ‘Come and see how a Christian dies!’ The presence and power of the Holy Spirit makes a difference to all life, including its ending.

Prayer: Lord make me brave! If there are things I need to say, help me to say them. And if the words don’t need to be spoken, give me the wisdom to know it. I need both the courage to open my mouth and the wisdom to close it. Help me to know when it’s time to speak and when it’s the time for silence.

Acts 7:48-50: Where does God live?

“48 “However, the Most High does not live in houses made by human 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 where will my resting place be?
50 Has not my hand made all these things?’”NIV

Perhaps verse 48 should be inscribed over the doorway of every church building: ‘’However, the Most High does not live in houses made by human hands.’’

‘’Yet that doesn’t mean that Most High God lives in a building made by carpenters and masons.’’ The Message.

It’s important to understand that the building where we meet for Christian worship is not ‘the church’. Rather, the church is ‘’God’s building’’ (1 Corinthians 3;9), composed of people who are ‘’like living stones’’ (1 Peter 2:5). God’s presence cannot be contained in any one building. He fills the universe, and yet at the same time He transcends it. Solomon’s prayer at the dedication of the temple reflects this understanding (1 Kings 8:27).

God does not live in buildings made of brick, but He does live among His people (Corinthians 3:16, 17)), and in their bodies individually (1 Corinthians 6:19, 20), by His Spirit.

For hundreds of years there were no formal church buildings. This should help to free up our thinking to see that local churches can meet in homes, halls, community centres etc. There are so many possibilities, and we should not let the lack of a church building stifle our desire to plant churches. It didn’t seem to be a hindrance to the early church!

Acts 7:44-47: Unanswered answered prayer.

“44 “Our ancestors had the tabernacle of the covenant law with them in the wilderness. It had been made as God directed Moses, according to the pattern he had seen. 45 After receiving the tabernacle, our ancestors under Joshua brought it with them when they took the land from the nations God drove out before them. It remained in the land until the time of David, 46 who enjoyed God’s favor and asked that he might provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.[a] 47 But it was Solomon who built a house for him. “NIV

Here’s a question: was David’s prayer answered or unanswered? Both, paradoxically.

David desired to build God’s house, but it was not for him to do so – even though it was a good longing to have in his heart. So his prayer went unanswered. At least, that part of it did.  However, God’s house was built in the next generation by his son, Solomon. So his prayer was answered.

This is the paradox of unanswered answered prayer. It’s one of the mysteries of prayer that we can ask for God for some things that we may not receive in their exact specifics, yet the prayer gets answered all the same – and we know it is. God sees the sincerity of the heart that asks, but sometimes, it seems, He has to slightly remodel the prayer, and, as someone said, gives us what we would have asked if we knew everything as perfectly as He does. It is always best to await God’s way and time.

Ronald Dunn wrote that ‘God sometimes answers later in order to answer better.’

Don’t even think about it, Acts 7:39-43

“39 “But our ancestors refused to obey him. Instead, they rejected him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt. 40 They told Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who led us out of Egypt—we don’t know what has happened to him!’  41 That was the time they made an idol in the form of a calf. They brought sacrifices to it and reveled in what their own hands had made. 42 But God turned away from them and gave them over to the worship of the sun, moon and stars. This agrees with what is written in the book of the prophets:  “‘Did you bring me sacrifices and offerings
forty years in the wilderness, people of Israel?
43 You have taken up the tabernacle of Molek
and the star of your god Rephan,
the idols you made to worship.
Therefore I will send you into exile’ beyond Babylon.” NIV

Keith Green made a gospel album entitled ‘So you wanna go back to Egypt?’

There is a telling phrase in verse 39: ‘’…in their hearts…’’ they ‘’turned back to Egypt.’’ Probably many of us will relate to this, even if we’ve only fondly looked back for a moment. Sooner or later we will discover that we were wrong. Remember what happened to Lot’s wife when she turned her gaze back towards Sodom. And consider the words of Jesus that anyone who puts his hand to the plough, and looks back, is not fit for the Kingdom.

Although it was obvious that God was with Moses; when he was up the mountain receiving the law, the people asked Aaron to make them an idol, and they worshiped it! There is a warning in these words to anyone who even momentarily fondles the idea of backsliding – of returning to ‘Egypt’. Here it is: if you give God up for idols, He will give you up to the fruits of your choice (see also Romans 1:18ff) When you turn away from God to other gods there is always a ‘’Therefore…’’ (43b).

So if you find yourself similarly tempted, don’t even think about it!

Prayer: Help me Lord to keep my eyes looking forward, fixed on you. You have brought me out of the land of slavery. Enable me to firmly set my eyes on the prize. ‘I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back.’

The prophet like Moses, Acts 7:37

“37 “This is the Moses who told the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your own people.” NIV

Centuries before Christ, Moses delivered a remarkable prophecy about the Lord Jesus (Deuteronomy 18:15). How do we know Moses was speaking about our Lord? Because Peter has already made this specific connection in (3:22). In fact, in his sermon, Peter added other words from Deuteronomy 18:15 and 19, which are not quoted by Stephen, but maybe they are inferred. The prophet like Moses is to be listened to. It is a very serious matter indeed to disregard His words.

Stephen’s sermon shows how again and again, in the history of Israel, God’s messengers were rejected – right through to Christ Himself (51-53).

Today, we face the same challenge. What is our attitude towards Jesus? Will we listen to Him?

PRAYER: Lord, I can be so self-willed; far too quick to speak, and way too slow to listen. Help me, please, to give you my full attention.

Acts 7:35- 38: Things can change!

“35 “This is the same Moses they had rejected with the words, ‘Who made you ruler and judge?’ He was sent to be their ruler and deliverer by God himself, through the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 He led them out of Egypt and performed wonders and signs in Egypt, at the Red Sea and for forty years in the wilderness.  37 “This is the Moses who told the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your own people.’ 38 He was in the assembly in the wilderness, with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors; and he received living words to pass on to us. “NIV

Things can change!

Given time and space, things can change (35). Just wait for God. He can turn things around in remarkable ways. This ‘’same Moses’’ who had been rejected as a leadership candidate forty years earlier, suddenly found himself leader anyway. It was always God’s purpose; but now it was also God’s way and time. Earlier, Moses had attempted to lead in his own way and time, and it had proved disastrous, as when Abraham attempted to produce the child of promise by his own efforts. But the hour struck. Moses returned to Egypt with a definitive answer to their question: ‘’Who made you ruler and judge? He was sent…by God himself…’’ (35)

The reading goes on to say: ‘’He led them out of Egypt…’’(36). At one time his leadership was in question. But now, authorised and empowered by God, he did it. If God calls you, he will equip you, and although people may question your ability, or whether they actually want you, you will ‘deliver the goods’ because the Lord will cause it to happen.

Don’t lose heart. Things can change! Give God time.

 A potted gospel, Acts 7:34:

“34 I have indeed seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their groaning and have come down to set them free. Now come, I will send you back to Egypt.”NIV 

The rescue (redemption from Egypt) prefigured the deliverance Jesus was to achieve at the cross. It was an anticipation and foreshadowing of it. Here are four statements that encapsulate the gospel – the good news about Jesus:

‘’I have…seen…I have heard…I have come down…I will send…’’

God saw the desperate need of the human race in its estrangement from Him through sin. He heard the audible and silent cries of broken hearts (even though we broke ourselves by breaking his laws). He quite literally came down in Jesus, in the incarnation, to liberate us He went to all that trouble, out of sheer love.. Now He sends His church; His people; His ambassadors, to the world with the message of this rescue operation so that many may enter into its benefits.

When we think of all that God has done to rescue lost mankind, let’s not fail in our part to go and tell.

‘’If not us, who? If not now, when?’’

Getting a closer look, Acts 7:30-33:  

30 ‘After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to Moses in the flames of a burning bush in the desert near Mount Sinai. 31 When he saw this, he was amazed at the sight. As he went over to get a closer look, he heard the Lord say: 32 “I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” Moses trembled with fear and did not dare to look.  33 ‘Then the Lord said to him, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.

‘’As he he went over to get a closer look, he heard the Lord say…’’ (31). Sometimes you become acutely aware that God is wanting to get your attention. Initially, you may not know what it’s about, but you sense that there is something you need to understand, even though you can’t quite get a handle on it at the moment. It may literally be a sight in nature that grabs your attention. Every common bush is ablaze with the glory of God, if we can but see it. All creation points to Him (Psalm 19/Romans 1:19, 20). It is, in one sense, all ‘’holy ground’’. I remember a pastor saying that he’d recently put up a bird feeder in the garden opposite where he sat and had his ‘quiet time’. He told how he’d learned so much watching those little birds. As in the title of a John Stott book, the birds had been his teachers.  Then, there can be seasons where you feel that, while it is important to read the whole Bible, you just have to ‘camp out’ for a time in one particular passage. The Lord seems to say so much to you through it every time you turn to it. It could even be a single verse that grabs you forcibly and refuses to let go. For a long time, as I prayed for our church on a Saturday evening, I felt I had to stay in Isaiah 60. The themes in it became the content of my requests. It somehow seemed ‘prophetic’ for us at the time, and in after years I could see at least some of these prayers being answered.

When you come to that place where you sense God has something to say to you, it is important that, like Moses, you position yourself to get a closer look. As Lent approaches, maybe you might consider showing your hunger for God in a material, tangible way: ‘Lord, what are you saying to me?’ ‘What is this change I feel in the air?’ ‘Please speak to me; make your way clear. I am ready to do your will.’ Lent can be just a religious tradition for many, I know. But how powerful might these next few weeks be in the lives of those who genuinely pant after God?  Seek Him with all your heart and you’ll find Him. Draw near to Him and He’ll draw near to you. But never take an encounter with God lightly. He’s truly is ‘awesome’ – a word which is too frequently and lightly used today.

Take a closer look… and remember, this is holy ground.

PRAYER: Lord, make my life like that bush – so ordinary in one way, and yet supernaturally burning, and burning on. May people turn aside to see this miraculous fire you have lit, and meet with you. Please use me for your glory.