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Consider this...

Stephen’s Defense

Apostolic Life Cathedral | 8/14/2022

Whenever an anointed man of God hits a nerve in individuals, or groups, when preaching, there is usually a positive or a negative response. We call this “being convicted,” or, simply, “conviction.”

We observe these opposing responses in two passages in the Book of Acts:

1. Those who respond positively – Acts 2:37, “Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?”

2. Those who respond negatively – Acts 5:33, “When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took counsel to slay them.”

One hears and obeys, the other hears and rebels.

One hears the message and desires to hear more from the messenger, the other hears the message and then seeks to destroy the messenger.

Unfortunately, whenever there is a desire to silence the voice of God’s messenger many actions take place that are often dishonorable and that was the way the unbelieving Jews acted towards Stephen.

His defense against the accusations of blasphemy towards God and the Temple shows us that he had an advanced understanding of Judaism and Christ that was on the cutting edge of Divine revelation.

Stephen hit a nerve with the unbelieving Jews of his day and they sought a way to shut him up.

Pastor and author Mark Copeland provides the following outline of Stephen’s Defense before the Sanhedrin:

STEPHEN’S DEFENSE (Acts 7:1-53)

A. GOD’S DEALINGS WITH ABRAHAM (7:1-8)

1. The call to leave Mesopotamia

2. The sojourn in Canaan

3. The promise of possession to his descendants

4. The covenant of circumcision

5. His descendants: Isaac, Jacob, the twelve patriarchs

B. THE PATRIARCHS SOJOURN IN EGYPT (7:9-16)

1. Joseph sold into Egypt, becomes governor

2. Jacob and his sons move to Egypt during the famine

3. The patriarchs buried in Canaan

C. GOD’S DELIVERANCE OF ISRAEL BY MOSES (7:17-36)

1. The children Israel in Egypt become slaves

2. The work of Moses, deliverer of Israel

a. Raised by Pharaoh’s daughter

b. Kills an Egyptian, but despised by his brethren

c. Flees to Midian where he lives for forty years

d. The Lord appears to Moses in a burning bush at Mount Sinai

e. Returns to Egypt, delivers Israel and brings them into the wilderness

D. ISRAEL’S REBELLION AGAINST GOD AND MOSES (7:37-43)

1. Moses is the person:

a. Who said God would raise up another prophet like him

b. Who spoke to the Angel on Mount Sinai

c. Who received living oracles to give to Israel

d. Whom the fathers would not obey but rejected

2. Israel is the nation:

a. Who turned back into Egypt in their hearts

b. Who pressured Aaron to make a golden calf

c .Whom God gave up to worship the host of heaven for 40 yrs in the wilderness:

1) They may have offered sacrifices to the Lord

2) They also worshiped Moloch and Remphan – cf. Amos 5:25-27

E. GOD’S TRUE TABERNACLE (7:44-50)

1. The fathers of Israel had the tabernacle of witness

a. In the wilderness, built according to the pattern shown Moses

b. Brought into the promised land by Joshua

2. They also had the temple

a. Asked for by David, who found favor before God

b. Built by his son Solomon

3. Yet the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands

a. For heaven is His throne and earth is His footstool

b. His hand has made all these things – cf. Isaiah 66:1-2

F. ISRAEL’S RESISTANCE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT (7:51-53)

1. Stephen charges the council of resisting the Holy Spirit, as their fathers did

2. Their fathers persecuted & killed the prophets, and they killed the Just One

3. They received the law, but did not keep it

As Stephen ended his defense, the men present were convicted: “When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth” (Acts‬ ‭7:54‬, ‭KJV‬‬).

This episode ends with the men stoning Stephen as he looks to heaven and sees a vision from heaven’s throne room while a young man named Saul watched over the coats of the men who stoned Stephen.

Many would consider Stephen’s defense and death a sign of failure, but I like to think that this event was a catalyst (a prick) for change in the life of Saul, who would later be called Paul and became the Apostle to the Gentiles.

Saul’s persecution of the early church might just have been his rebellion against the conviction of the message Stephen delivered.

How else could he drown out the voice of that first martyr of the way who lovingly forgave and sought God for the forgiveness of those complicit in his death?

Jesus knew that Saul was convicted, which is why He came to him on the road to Damascus, and, finally, Paul responded positively:

“And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: and he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do” (Acts‬ ‭9:3-6‬, KJV‬‬).

The best response to anointed preaching and conviction is: “Lord, what do you want me to do?”

So, if someone tries to destroy you for the Word of God you are preaching, or because you are simply obeying the Holy Spirit, don’t take it personally, they are not attacking you…they are attacking Jesus.

Because they’re attacking the message and attempting to destroy the messenger it is a sign of hope that they will eventually turn to Jesus and say, “Ok, Lord, it’s too hard and I can’t resist anymore, what must I do to be saved?”

God’s requirement for success is different from ours and on that last day of Stephen’s life God took a moment that appeared to be a failure and turned it into a future victory of eternal significance.

How do you respond when God’s Word preached by God’s messenger convicts you?

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Bible Teaching

Why Is Obed Called Naomi’s Son?

Why is Obed called Naomi’s son, and what did Boaz mean by this statement?

“Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day” (Ruth 4:10).  

He was actually stating here that part of his intention for marrying Ruth is to restore the family lineage of Mahlon who was the deceased son of Naomi.  Thus, when the child is born the people and elders of the city remember that they had made themselves witnesses to the intention of Boaz (Ruth 4:11). Acting as witnesses, the women neighbors name the child Obed, which means “a servant, to thee, to nourish, and comfort, and assist thee; which duty children owe to their progenitors.”[1]

            These same neighborly women also state, “There is a son born to Naomi” (Ruth 4:17). By this we deduce that these women knew of Naomi’s loss.  She had lost two sons and a husband and had nobody who would take their place as caretaker for her in her old age, continue her husband’s name, or receive her son’s inheritance.  Obed served in all three capacities and became a great joy to Naomi and one who would carry on the family name.  Thus, he became her son (grandson) by restoring Naomi’s family and their part in the lineage of King David and the Messiah.

According to the opinion of Mary Sisseck, “Naomi has now been given a child (a child is born) a grandchild from one of her dead sons! The law determined that Obed was Naomi’s child! Genealogy, under the law, determined that Obed was also her grandchild!”[2] The question then serves to teach us that Boaz, acting as the kinsman-redeemer, provided a miracle for Naomi, which is comparable to the miracle of salvation that Jesus Christ, our Kinsman-Redeemer, has given to us. Through Jesus Christ we have been given a new life through the miracle of restoration and He, like Obed was to Naomi, has become our nourishment, comfort, and assistance.

[1] Wesley, John. “Commentary on Ruth 4”. “John Wesley’s Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible.” https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/wesleys-explanatory-notes/ruth/ruth-4.html.

[2] Sisseck, Mary. Ruth: the Hidden Pictures. Accessed: 9-23-2004

. .

NOTE: I wrote this as part of a homework assignment on September 23, 2004, for a Women of the Bible class taught at Parkersburg Bible College by Sis. Nelson.

Categories
Consider this...

Stephen’s Defense (video)

Apostolic Life Cathedral | 8/14/2022, 10:00 AM
Categories
Bible Preaching

Freedom’s Hope

Apostolic Life Cathedral | 7/3/2022, 10:00 AM

Text: John 8:31-38

(31)  Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;

(32)  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

(33)  They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?

(34)  Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.

(35)  And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.

(36)  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

(37)  I know that ye are Abraham’s seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you.

(38)  I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father.

Freedom’s Hope

She is the Statue of Freedom and she is bolted to the top of our nation’s Capitol Dome.

FREEDOM: Achieved[1]

[A]ll persons held to service or labor within the District of Columbia

by reason of African descent are hereby discharged and freed.”

— D.C. Emancipation Act, April 16, 1862

T he Statue of Freedom was cast from Crawford’s plaster model at Clark Mills’ foundry in the District of Columbia. In 1859 an Italian craftsman demanded more money for the job. Mills then turned to one of his enslaved men, Philip Reid, to separate the five sections of the plaster model. Reid then worked on casting the sections in bronze. Once the casting was completed in 1862, workmen erected the statue section by section atop the Capitol Dome. The final section was bolted in place on December 2, 1863 with thirty-five guns firing a salute to Freedom. If Philip Reid was present on that day, he was there as a free man. The D.C. Compensation Emancipation Act had ended slavery in the District of Columbia on April 16, 1862.

FREEDOM: Phillip Reid and the Statue of Freedom[2]

“I have endeavored to represent Freedom triumphant.”

— Thomas Crawford, 1855

The nineteen-foot six-inch bronze statue of Freedom crowns the cast-iron Dome of the Capitol. Sculptor Thomas Crawford’s second design represented Freedom as a female figure clad in classical robes, bearing a sheathed sword and shield, and wearing a liberty cap.

Secretary of War Jefferson Davis, a slaveowner from Mississippi who would later become president of the Confederacy, objected to the liberty cap “as the badge of a freed slave” and suggested that Crawford change the statue’s headgear to a helmet. The sculptor followed Davis’s instructions, and Freedom wears a helmet composed of an eagle’s head and feathers. Neither Davis nor Crawford could know that an enslaved African American would play a critical role in casting the statue.

The statue of Freedom was cast from Crawford’s plaster model at Clark Mills’s foundry in the District of Columbia.  After an Italian craftsman in 1859 demanded more money for the job, Mills turned to one of his slaves, Philip Reid, to separate the five sections of the plaster model.  Reid then worked on casting the sections in bronze.

Once the casting was completed in 1862, workmen erected the statue section by section atop the Capitol Dome. The final section was bolted in place on December 2 with thirty-five guns firing a salute to Freedom. If Philip Reid was present on that day, he was there as a free man. The D.C. Emancipation Act had ended slavery in the District of Columbia on April 16, 1862.

What a juxtaposition, a contrast, an irony…

The sculptor, Thomas Crawford, designed her, and Jefferson Davis had him make changes to her because of the symbolism of freedom her first design represented to the slaves.

The Italian who cast her mold was greedy and demanded more money. So, Clark Mills, the owner of Mill’s Foundry, turned to his slave, and in between 1859 and 1862 this slave worked on Freedom.

Philip Reed, a slave, was responsible for separating the molds and then casting the five sections in bronze.

Those sections were then bolted, one section at a time, to the top of the capitol dome.

On December 2, 1863, the last section was bolted and Freedom stood “triumphant in war and peace.”

By the time the last bolt was tightened Philip Reed, and all the slaves in the District of Columbia were freemen and freewomen.

The U.S. Congress freed them on April 16, 1862.

Could the Hope of Freedom been the force behind Philip Reed’s careful and expert work of the Statue of Freedom.

Perhaps, Freedom as an ideal moved him along his given path.

He was enslaved bodily, but his mind and heart and soul were free.

I’m not free, yet, but one day…

Then that one day came and was free.

What does it mean “to be free?”

Thayer’s Greek Definitions:

  1. freeborn
    1. in a civil sense, one who is not a slave
    1. of one who ceases to be a slave, freed, manumitted
  2. free, exempt, unrestrained, not bound by an obligation
  3. in an ethical sense: free from the yoke of the Mosaic Law

Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries: “unrestrained (to go at pleasure), that is, (as a citizen) not a slave (whether freeborn or manumitted), or (generally) exempt (from obligation or liability): – free (man, woman), at liberty.”

https://www.dictionary.com/browse/free:

  1. enjoying personal rights or liberty, as a person who is not in slavery: a land of free people.
  2. pertaining to or reserved for those who enjoy personal liberty: they were thankful to be living on free soil.

Freedom is Liberty

There is a freedom beyond chains and physical bondage.

It comes only from Jesus Christ.

The Lord has planned our release, and it is foreshadowed in the Old Testament in the way:

“At the end of every seven years thou shalt make a release. And this is the manner of the release: Every creditor that lendeth ought unto his neighbour shall release it; he shall not exact it of his neighbour, or of his brother; because it is called the LORD’S release….And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land of Egypt, and the LORD thy God redeemed thee: therefore I command thee this thing to day” (Deuteronomy 15:1-2, 15).

But, Israel didn’t keep the Law of Release, the Law of Freedom, and they were judged for it:

Jermiah 34:17, “Therefore thus saith the LORD; Ye have not hearkened unto me, in proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother, and every man to his neighbour: behold, I proclaim a liberty for you, saith the LORD, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.”

Isaiah 58:6, “Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?”

True Freedom has happened when:

  1. We are released from all the chains of wickedness, wrong, iniquity
  2. The heavy weights of sin and the burdens of the past are removed
  3. We free the broken, bruised, crushed, discouraged, oppressed, and the struggling.
  4. We break every oppressive bond of enslavement.

Freedom is here for you today: Luke 4:16-21

(16)  And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.

(17)  And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,

(18)  The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

(19)  To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

(20)  And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.

(21)  And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

Today is your Day of Hope, your Day of Freedom – Freedom’s Hope

After his freedom, Philip Reid signified his new found freedom by changing the spelling of his last name to “Reed.”

Today, you can also have a name change as you receive your freedom.

John 8:36, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”

[1] SOURCE: https://uschs.org/explore/from-freedoms-shadow-freedom/. Accessed: 7/3/2022.

[2] Ibid.

Categories
Bible Preaching

Should We Look for Another

Should We Look for Another? (3/1/2022)

Matthew 11:1-6

(1) And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities. (2) Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, (3) And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? (4) Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: (5) The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. (6) And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.

We call him “John the Baptist.” He was the cousin of our Lord Jesus Christ, a man of passion and fervor who preached the message of baptism for repentance.

He even preached of the soon coming Messiah who preparing the people to receive.

Malachi 3:1, “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me:…” – That’s John

This is Jesus – “…and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.”

He was a man on a mission, unafraid of the faces of others who would try to block and diminish the message he preached.

Nobody could buy his silence, distract him from his duty, or sidetrack him from his purpose.

He preached fervently a message that identified Sin and called sinners to Repent:

Matthew 3:4-12, “(4) And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey. (5) Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, (6) And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins. (7) But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? (8) Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: (9) And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. (10) And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. (11) I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: (12) Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

And when he recognized the One who was mightier than he, with upraised hand on banks of the Jordan River, he focused the crowd’s attention on the Lord Jesus Christ walking down to the water saying:

John 1:29-34, “(29)…Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.  (30)  This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.  (31)  And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.  (32)  And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.  (33)  And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Uponwhom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.  (34)  And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.”

John was a man, a prophet of God, stuck between to covenants, wedged (if you will) between two biblical ages.

He was caught in a time of transition.

And finally, his prophetic ministry got him in trouble and now He’s in a prison for doing what he’s called to do. Naming sin(regardless of who it is, or how powerful they might be), and calling sinners to repentance.

Herod was guilty of adultery and incest with Herodias.

Herod, because of the fury of his guilty wife Herodias, had John throne into prison.

Have you ever been in a traffic jam? Felt the frustration of knowing that you can’t go backwards, and there’s a blockage forward, but your irritation is really because you have a vision of where you’re going and you just want to get there.

John, had a moment of frustration and he sent men to ask Jesus, “Art thou he that should come? or look we for another? (Luke 7:20).

Jesus’ response to the frustration of John was simply to tell him the fruit of His ministry: “And in that same hour he cured many of their infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits; and unto many that were blind he gave sight. Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached. And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me” (Luke 7:21-23).

Herodias had a daughter.

She was a damsel.

Certain writers identify her by the name “Salome,” which means “peaceful.”

She was supposed to be a peaceful, calm, moderate, modest individual, but her example was her mother who was none of those things.

Herodias had a flesh problem…her flesh was out of control. 

She allowed her daughter to dance before Herod a sensual seductive dance that so impressed his own flesh to the point that he promised her anything she wanted

Out of control flesh saw the opportunity and said, “I want to silence that prophetic voice in my life. I want to sever that message to such a degree that I’ll never hear it again.”

So, Herod listened to the damsel, who was instructed in her godless way by her mother, and rather than face the confrontation that would be difficult, but right, he gave in.

A friend told me that “when you disobey the messenger, don’t be surprised when God goes silent.”

No more words came from the lips of the last prophet of the Old Testament. 

No more anointed heaven sent messages would be heard from the mouth of one who Jesus said, “Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist:…” (Matthew 11:11). 

Jesus did go on to say, “…Notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”

It is imperative that we recognize that we are the Children of God.

As great as John the Baptist was he was not able to be in the kingdom of heaven.

As great as his message of repentance was it is inadequate when compared to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

We are all, every born again saint and minister of gospel in here, greater in understanding of the New Birth.

So, we all have a responsibility to not only obey the gospel and share the gospel, but to take on the characteristics of this gospel message that placed us into this Kingdom of Heaven, which is the Church and is identified by Paul as Wisdom from the Spirit: “(6) Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: (7) But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: (8) Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. (9) But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. (10) But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. (11) For what man knoweththe things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. (12) Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. (13) Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth;comparing spiritual things with spiritual. (14) But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. (15) But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. (16) For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.”

James identified this mind of Christ as “wisdom that is from above.”

(17) But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. (18) And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.

James also identified the wisdom of this sinful world:

But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.  (15)  This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.  (16)  For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.

So, we go to our text, “Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?”

It is plain to see that we are engaged in a spiritual battle between to different governing spiritual systems:

1. Wisdom from Above = Kingdom of Heaven

2. Wisdom of this earth = Kingdom of this world