PT-1 Intro to Acts 8:1b-8

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/30/2017 7:57 AM

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  Intro to Acts 8:1b-8

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 8:1b-8

            Message of the verses:  “And on that day a great persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. 2 Some devout men buried Stephen, and made loud lamentation over him. 3 But Saul began ravaging the church, entering house after house, and dragging off men and women, he would put them in prison.  4 Therefore, those who had been scattered went about preaching the word. 5 Philip went down to the city of Samaria and began proclaiming Christ to them. 6 The crowds with one accord were giving attention to what was said by Philip, as they heard and saw the signs which he was performing. 7 For in the case of many who had unclean spirits, they were coming out of them shouting with a loud voice; and many who had been paralyzed and lame were healed. 8 So there was much rejoicing in that city.”

            John MacArthur entitles this 18^th chapter of his first half commentary on the book of Acts “The Persecuted Church Reaches Out,” and in his introduction he begins with telling a short version of the men who were killed on January 8, 1956 in the Ecuadorian jungle by the Auca Indians.  The story shocked the world as they look at this is a different way than the mature people who were a part of this tragedy, people like the wives and children who were left behind.  At this point I would like to quote a verse that I have been using to pray for the church in the Central African Republic who are and have been going through great persecution.  “But to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation (1 Peter 4:13).”  Just as in the case of the people who thought this was a senseless tragedy in Ecuador so many people who read this verse from 1 Peter 4:13 cannot understand how believers can continue to rejoice at persecutions.  Joy is not an emotional feeling like being happy for we read in the book of Hebrews and chapter 12 and verse 2b “who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”  As you read the accounts from the gospel of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ you will find joy, but certainly not happiness.

            In this first part of our introduction to these verses I want to quote from John MacArthur’s commentary as he quotes from two of those who were greatly affected by what happened in Ecuador on that January morning of 1956.  We first will look at what Nate Saint wrote, who was the son of one of the martyrs. 

“As we weigh the future and seek the will of God, does it seem right that we should hazard our lives for just a few savages?  As we ask ourselves this question, we realize that it is not the call of the needy thousands, rather it is the simple intimation of the prophetic Word that there shall be some from every tribe in His presence in the last day and in our hearts we feel that is pleasing to Him that we should interest ourselves in making an opening into the Auca a prison for Christ.”  This quote came from Elisabeth Elliot’s book “Through Gates of Splendor.” 

            Next we look at another quote from this book and this time from the author, Elisabeth Elliot’s perspective.

“To the world at large this was a sad waste of five you lives.  But God has His plan and purpose in all things.  There were those whos 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 ther 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 tow of the men.  Their lives have left their mark on ours.’

“Off the coast of Italy, and American naval officer was involved in an accident at sea.  As he floated along on a raft, he recalled Jim Elliot’s words (which he had read in a new 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.’”

            In our next SD we want to look at the affects of what happened to lives after Stephen was slain for the cause of Christ, as there were many in Jerusalem who were affected by his death, both in good ways and also in bad ways.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Lord I desire to lift up to you this day those who are being persecuted in the Central African Republic that as they continue to be under severe persecution that You would be with them all in a special way to give them the courage they need in order to bring glory to our Lord Jesus Christ, knowing that in life of death God’s will, will be accomplished in their lives.  For those who are doing the persecution my prayer is that their eyes will be opened like you opened the eyes of Saul of Tarsus as we read about in the ninth chapter of the book of Acts, so they will realize that they are persecuting the Lord Jesus Christ and will repent of their wrongdoing. 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  I pray that the Lord will give me wisdom on what I am to bring up in our Sunday school class this coming Sunday as there are at this time many things that are rattling around in my head.

Memory verse:  Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Pharaoh” Exodus 5:2).

Today’s Bible question:  “Where did Jacob send his sons to buy corn?”

Answer in our next SD.

11/30/2017 8:40 AM

Hate and Love (Acts 7:60; 8:1b)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/29/2017 10:10 AM

My Worship Time                                                                                         Focus:  Hate and Love

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 7:60-8:1a

            Message of the verses:  “60 Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" Having said this, he fell asleep.  1 Saul was in hearty agreement with putting him to death.”

            This is a wonderful title for this section as we can see the hateful act that those in the Sanhedrin were doing to Stephen, and yet amid the flying deadly stones that were being thrown at him Stephen’s heart is filled with love for them as he asks the Lord not to hold this sin against them.  In our study of the book of John we saw that Jesus prayed a similar prayer as He was dying, a prayer that came from our Lord because one of His attributes is love and even though He was being killed because of what they did to Him, He didn’t stop loving them.  This is the only prayer found in the gospels where we see Jesus praying for unbelievers. 

            Now perhaps upon seeing what Stephen saw in heaven his hear was so filled with the love of God that he too prayed a similar prayer that Christ prayed, of perhaps because he had heard what Christ prayed that he desired to be like Christ and pray a similar prayer for those who were killing him. Stephen was praying for the salvation of those who were doing harm to him.

            John MacArthur writes “The death of the prophet Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada, provides an instructive comparison.  Second Chronicles 24:20-22 describes his murder:

‘20  Then the Spirit of God came on Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest; and he stood above the people and said to them, "Thus God has said, ’Why do you transgress the commandments of the LORD and do not prosper? Because you have forsaken the LORD, He has also forsaken you.’" 21 So they conspired against him and at the command of the king they stoned him to death in the court of the house of the LORD. 22 Thus Joash the king did not remember the kindness which his father Jehoiada had shown him, but he murdered his son. And as he died he said, "May the LORD see and avenge!’

“Like Stephen, Zechariah was unjustly put to death.  Unlike Stephen, however his dying prayer was for justice and vengeance, not forgiveness.

            “Only Christians can love as Stephen did, ‘because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us’ (Rom. 5:5).”

            We see the term he “fell asleep” at the end of verse 60 and sleep is a term that is used for the death of Christians in different sections of the NT.  Sleep is a wonderful way to describe the death of a believer.  Sleep is painless and it is also temporary, and it takes one from the experience of weariness, work, and consciousness that occur as problems in this life, and it takes us into the freshness of a new day.

“This He said, and after that He said to them, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I go, so that I may awaken him out of sleep.’ The disciples then said to Him, "Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover."  (John 11:12).”

“For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep (1 Cor. 11:30).”

“20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.  51 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed (1 Cor. 15:20, 51).”

“14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. 10 who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we will live together with Him (1 Thess. 4:14; 5:10).”

            We have mentioned many times that the chapter divisions in the Word of God are not inspired, and so perhaps we see another example of this as in the first part of the first verse in the eighth chapter of the book of Acts we read “Saul was in hearty agreement with putting him to death.”  Luke brings up Paul again as Luke is beginning to bring in to his writings of the book of Acts the main character of chapters 13-28. 

            John MacArthur concludes his writings on Stephen:  “Both in life and in death, Stephen was some much like his Lord.  Jesus was filled with the Spirit; so was Stephen.  Jesus was full of grace; so was Stephen.  Jesus boldly confronted the religious establishment of His day; so did Stephen.  Jesus had a mock trial; so did Stephen.  Jesus was executed though innocent of any crime; so was Stephen.  Both were accused of blasphemy.  Both died outside the city and were buried by sympathizers.  And as already noted, both prayed for the salvation of their executioners.  Was there ever a man more like Jesus?”

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I have read through the account of Stephen in the book of Acts many times, and have even studied it before, but this study of Stephen was very meaningful to me.  As I was studying the book of Acts about Stephen I was also studying about the church at Smyrna found in the second chapter of Revelation, and as Stephen was killed for the cause of Christ so were many in that wonderful church of Smyrna.  Our Pastor was preaching about the reformation beginning in 1517 and in his last message on it he spoke of those who lost their lives because, like Stephen, they refused to go against their faith.  At the same time I have been praying for the church in the Central African Republic, a church that is under extreme persecution.  They we had the murders of believers in Texas on the fifth of this month. 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Trust the Lord to give me some answers to questions that I have as I prepare my Sunday school class for this upcoming Sunday.

Memory verse:  Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “He wept” (Luke 11:35).

Today’s Bible question:  “Who said ‘Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice and let Israel go’?”

Answer in our next SD.

11/29/2017 10:50 AM

 

 

 

Death and Life (Acts 7:58-59)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/28/2017 8:46 AM

My Worship Time                                                                                        Focus:  Death and Life

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 7:58-59

            Message of the verses:  “58 When they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and the witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!"”

            I suppose that all who have read this account of the death of Stephen and have compared it to the death of Jesus realize that when Christ was crucified that it was stated by the Jews who were behind this that they did not have the authority to execute anyone, and yet when we read this account of Stephen’s death we see that he was killed by stoning, which was how the Law stated that one who blasphemes is to be executed.  This leads me to believe that this was mob violence and not a legal execution even though done according to the law.  It seems that they did try and do this with some semblance of being legal as “they had driven him out of the city.”  Leviticus 24:14, 16 state “14  "Bring the one who has cursed outside the camp, and let all who heard him lay their hands on his head; then let all the congregation stone him.  16 ’Moreover, the one who blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall certainly stone him. The alien as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.”  I can’t help but think of what Polycarp said when he was being burned because he would not worship the emperor as I think about those who were stoning Stephen.  Polycarp stated that the fire that was being used to kill him would eventually go out, but the fire that those who were killing him would never go out.  The same is true of the Sanhedrin as only one of them who took part in this will become a believer as far as Scripture tells us. 

            We read that before they “began stoning” Stephen, “the witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul.”  Deuteronomy 17:7 states “"The hand of the witnesses shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.”  John MacArthur writes that “Perhaps the false witnesses did.”

            John MacArthur writes “Despite their anger, the Sanhedrin apparently tried to give Stephen’s death the appearance of formal justice.  It is true that the Romans reserved the right of capital punishment for themselves.  Pilate, however, was still governor, and the Sanhedrin knew that they had nothing to fear from him.  He had proved his vacillating weakness in permitting the execution of Jesus, whom he knew was innocent.  But he had Him killed anyway, because he feared the Jews would cause him to lose his position as governor (cf. John 19:1-18).  In spite of his efforts, he was in serious trouble with Rome, which would shortly recall him as governor.  Also, he normally lived in Caesarea, not Jerusalem, and hence was probably nowhere near this scene.

            “It is doubtful, however, that the full procedure for execution by stoning prescribed in the Mishna was carried out in Stephen’s case.  That procedure called for the victim to be pushed off a ten-foot-high parapet.  If that did not kill him, the first witness dropped a large stone on his heart.  In the unlikely event that he survived that, the second witness then dropped another on him.  It is highly unlikely that Stephen would have been in any condition to speak if that had been done in his case (cf. vv. 59-60).  More likely is the scene of uncontrollable angry people pushing, shoving, and throwing rocks at random at Stephen.  It should be noted from Acts 8:2 that they did not follow the legally prescribed manner of burial given in the Talmud, adding more evidence that the whole affair was illegal.

            “The mention of ‘a young man named Saul’ marks a major turning point in salvation history.”  We wrote earlier that eventually Saul who would be later name Paul would pick up the mantle of Stephen, but if we did not know the rest of the story we probably would not figure it out from this scene.  Paul would be the dominant figure from Acts chapter 13 until the end of the book, and as mentioned he probably thought about this scene many times later on in his life.

            “59 They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!"”  We see what Stephen said was similar to who Jesus said when He said from the cross “Father, into Thy hands I commit My spirit” (Luke 23:46).”  Just as Jesus knew that He would soon enter the presence of His Father, so Stephen knew that he too would soon be entering the presence of His Lord, and this gives comfort to all true believers when they face death.  We know from the teaching of Scripture that Stephen’s prayer was answered immediately as we read that Paul writes “absence from the body is presence with the Lord.”

            We have one more section to look at in this section from the life and death of Stephen and we will do that tomorrow, Lord willing.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I am thankful for the truth that Paul wrote “absence from the body is presence with the Lord.” “2Co 5:8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.”

My Steps of Faith for Today:  My study for this week’s Sunday school class is on the “worldly church” and my prayer is that God will give me wisdom to say what He wants me to say.

Memory verse:  Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “He was blind” (Luke 18:35).

Today’s Bible question:  “The shortest verse in the Bible records that Jesus did what?”

Answer in our next SD.    11/28/2017 9:30 AM

Spiritual Blindness and Spiritual Sight PT-2 (Acts 7:55b-57)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/27/2017 8:03 AM

My Worship Time                                               Focus:  “Spiritual Blindness and Spiritual Sight”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 7:55b-57

            Message of the verses:  “he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; 56 and he said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." 57 But they cried out with a loud voice, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one impulse.”

            We have been talking about Stephen’s vision, stating that he was the first one to see the glorified Christ in heaven after His return to heaven, and perhaps we should put our self in his shoes for a moment.  We are sitting there talking to the Sanhedrin and all of a sudden we look up and see into heaven, seeing the glorified Lord Jesus Christ standing next to the Father.  Question:  “What would we do?”  Answer:  Probably do just what Stephen did when he stated:  “Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”  What would the members of the Sanhedrin do?  They probably thought he was “touched in the head” and so this just caused them to get angrier at Stephen.  It runs in my mind that we learned that all on the Sanhedrin were Sadducees which meant they did not believe in visions or angels. 

            John MacArthur writes “Stephen’s use of the phrase ‘Son of Man” may have been the sharpest dagger, because it took them back to the trial of another prisoner.  Like Stephen, Jesus was accused of blasphemy by false witnesses, yet He kept silent.  Finally, in frustration, the high priest demanded that He speak:  ‘I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.’  Jesus said to him, ‘You have said it yourself; Nevertheless I tell you, hearafter you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven’ (Matt. 26:63-64).  For that so-called blasphemy of claiming to be the Son of God and Son of Man who would sit on God’s right hand, they had executed Jesus.  Stephen’s vision and words describing who he saw throws that claim Jesus made right back in their faces.  Jesus claimed He would be at the right hand of God; Stephen now asserts that He is there!  They must either execute Stephen too or admit they were wrong when they had Jesus murdered.”

            The Sanhedrin did not want anyone hearing what Stephen saw, for as mentioned it would show that their choice to kill their Messiah was wrong and so “they cried out with a loud voice, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one impulse.”  Jesus had stated of these Jewish spiritual leaders that they were “blind guides of the blind” (Matt. 15:14) and they certainly just proved it once again. 

            Luke used the word “rushed” “1) to set in rapid motion, stir up, incite, urge on 2) to start forward impetuously, to rush.”  This word describes what the demon filled swine did as they rushed down the hill into the sea and drowned.  If we were going to describe what happened to the Sanhedrin at this point we could say “They lost it.”  They turned into a howling murderous mob.

            Spiritual Meaning for My life today:  Paul writes “be angry and do not sin, don’t let the sun go down on your anger.”  Good advice to follow, not to do what the Sanhedrin did here.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Trust the Lord to continue to give me wisdom as I study His Word each day.

Memory verse:  Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “They brought fruit back from the land” (Numbers 13:23-24).

Today’s Bible question:  “What physical difficulty did the beggar near Jericho have?”

Answer in our next SD.

11/27/2017 9:01 AM

 

PT-1 "Spiritual Blindness and Spiritual Sight" (Acts 7:55b-57)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/26/2017 10:33 PM

My Worship Time                                      Focus:  PT-1 “Spiritual Blindness and Spiritual Sight”

Bible Reading & Mediation                                                  Reference:  Acts 7:55b-57

            Message of the verses:  “he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; 56 and he said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." 57 But they cried out with a loud voice, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one impulse.”

            As we look at the beginning of verse 55b we see that Stephen was “gazing intently into heaven,” and as we look at Colossians 3:1 we see what Paul wrote “Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.”  Stephen in the midst of his circumstances was doing what Paul tells us to do, looking for Jesus who is seated at the right hand of God.  Now I realize that we probably not see what Stephen saw, but as we keep looking above we will then live a life that is pleasing to the Lord as we seek the things above.  Now Stephen actually did see “the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.”  Others have had the opportunity to gaze into heaven.  Isaiah did, and so did Ezekiel, Paul did too as seen I 2 Corinthians 12:2-4.  John did in Revelation 4:1 and following.  It was God who opened Stephen’s eyes to see the blazing Shekineh glory and this revealed the actual presence of God the Father, along with Jesus standing at His right hand.  Stephen was honored to be the first one to see the glorified state of Jesus Christ in heaven after his ascension.

            John MacArthur writes “Elsewhere in the New Testament, Jesus is described as being seated at the right hand of God (Matt. 22:44; 24:64; Luke 22:69; Acts 2:34; Eph. 1:20; Col. 3:1; Heb. 1:3; 8:1; 10:11-12; 12:2).  He is seated in terms of His redemptive work, which is forever completed (Heb. 10:12).  Stephen sees Jesus standing to show His concern for him.  He also stands to welcome Stephen into heaven.”  I am thankful for reading this section as I have had questions about the standing and seating of Christ in heaven and this helps to clear it up.

            Now since it is Sunday evening and has been a long day I will stop here and pick up the rest of this section in our next SD.

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Mahershalalhashbaz” (Isaiah 8:1).

Today’s Bible question:  “What evidence did the spies bring back to show that Canaan was a good land?”

Answer in our next SD.

11/26/2017 10:53 PM

PT-2 "Filled with anger versus Filled with the Spirit" (Acts 7:54-55a)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/25/2017 9:28 AM

My Worship Time                                Focus:  “Filled With Anger Versus Filled With the Spirit”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 7:54-55a

            Message of the verses:  “54 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him. 55 But being full of the Holy Spirit,”

            I have been reading or really listening to the book of Ezekiel as a part of my devotions and Ezekiel lived in Babylon as a part of the people of Judah who were taken there by the Babylonians.  Ezekiel was a prophet whom the Lord spoke to while he was in Babylon and in chapter 20 the people of Judah who had also been taken captive asked Ezekiel to find out what the Lord had to say to them.  God told Ezekiel to tell them He had nothing to say to them and then He began to tell Ezekiel why He had nothing to say to them as He went over a brief history of the sinfulness and unfaithfulness that the children of Israel towards their God.  As we continue to look at the Sanhedrin and what they had seen as they had seen the miracles of Jesus for the three years He was on the earth, and yet they killed Him because of their jealously they had towards Him, and now they were seeing miracles and hearing preaching from the apostles as well as the preaching of Stephen to them, and yet like their forefathers they would not listen.  Stephen’s preaching to them was not an invitation, but it really was an indictment like God gave to Ezekiel to give to their forefathers.  This indictment against them by Stephen did not bring about repentance, but it brought about rage as they began gnashing their teeth at him.  John MacArthur writes “In Matthew 13:41-42 He (Jesus) warned that ‘the Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’  He warned the unbelieving Jews that ‘many shall come from the east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven; but the sons of the kingdom shall be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth’ (Matt. 8:11-12; cf. Matt. 13:50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30; Luke 13:28).  The suffering of hell will include the endless anger and frustration of those people who will forever feel both intense conviction for their damning sin and anger toward God.  People who reject God’s grace and love will not feel remorse under His judgment.  In fact, that will only make them angrier.”

            As we look at the first part of verse 55 we see that there is a sharp contrast “But being full of the Holy Spirit.”  Stephen was the one who was filled with the Holy Spirit of God as this happened amid the storm of fury that howled around him, and this caused Stephen to remain very calm, totally yielded to the Spirit’s control.  John MacArthur writes “Huparcho (‘being’) ‘properly [expresses] continuance of an antecedent state or condition’ (G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament [Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1977], 457), a meaning reinforced by its use here in the present tense.  Being filled with the Spirit was a way of life for Stephen (cf. 6:3, 5; Eph 5:18).  Consequently, he didn’t have to make any adjustments n his life when his time came to face death.”

            When we look at Ephesians 5:18 “Don’t get your stimulus from wine (for there is always the danger of excessive drinking), but let the Spirit stimulate your souls (Philips).”  I understand that this section from the Greek means to continually be filled with the Holy Spirit.  One of the many meanings found in my Greek/English dictionary from my Online Bible program states “to fill to the top: so that nothing shall be wanting to full measure, fill to the brim.”  So we are to be completely filled, and we are to be continually filled with the Spirit of God.  Now we know that this was a crisis situation for Stephen and Jesus had promised that He would give special grace and strength in times of crisis.  “11  "When they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not worry about how or what you are to speak in your defense, or what you are to say; 12  for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say’ (Luke 12:11-12).” 

            John MacArthur concludes this section by writing “Christians, then, must not shy away from difficult situations, Like Paul, they can say, ‘I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong’ (2 Cor. 12:10).  They must boldly communicate Christ in all circumstances, knowing that the Holy Spirit will grant them the grace to face the consequences triumphantly and with joy and peace.”

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I remember shortly after becoming a believer that my wife and I went to visit her cousin and it was our desire to witnesses to him.  He had a Jewish friend with him and so we spoke to both of them about the Lord.  After leaving my wife noticed that some of the things that I said to them were perhaps “unnatural” for me, and I could only say that I had to be filled with the Holy Spirit.  A few years back I saw her cousin at a birthday party and asked him if he remembered that conversation we had many years before, and he told me that he still remembers it.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  That God would give me the right words to say in our Sunday school class tomorrow.

Memory verse:  Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Jehoshaphat” (1 Kings 22:29).

Today’s Bible question:  “What is the longest word in the Bible?”  (Hint:  It is in the book of Isaiah.)

Answer in our next SD.  11/25/2017 10:13 AM   

PT-1 "Filled with Anger versus Filled with the Spirit" (Acts 7:54-55a)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/24/2017 9:03 AM

My Worship Time                           Focus:  PT-1 “Filed with Anger versus Filled with the Spirit”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                      Reference:  Acts 7:54-55a           

            Message of the verses:  “54 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him. 55 But being full of the Holy Spirit,”

            The Sanhedrin were listening intently at Stephen as he gave the history of Israel, and this was not a problem for them as they believed all of it and even probably told others of the history of Israel when it benefited them.  However when they began to understand what his real point was, that is that they had rejected and killed their Messiah we read that “they were cut to the quick.”  John MacArthur writes “Diaprio (cut to the quick) literally means ‘to saw in half.’  Stephen’s words ripped apart the veneer of their false spirituality and exposed them for the blasphemous hypocrites they were.”

            The result of this was “they began gnashing their teeth at him.”  Let us look at a couple of verses that will help explain what “gnashing their teeth” means:  Psalm 35:16 “Like godless jesters at a feast, They gnashed at me with their teeth.”  Psalm 37:12 “The wicked plots against the righteous And gnashes at him with his teeth.”  This reminds us of a generation of obstinate sinners to come.  This generation is spoken of in Revelation 16:8-11, 17-21 which we will quote in a minute.  The background of these verses is when the angels pour out the bowls of God’s wrath and judgment during the Tribulation and we will see that these sinners will also stubbornly refuse to repent. 

“8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given to it to scorch men with fire. 9 Men were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory. 10 Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became darkened; and they gnawed their tongues because of pain, 11 and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds.  17 Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, "It is done." 18  And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty. 19 The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath. 20 And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 21 And huge hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, came down from heaven upon men; and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because its plague was extremely severe.”

            John MacArthur writes “Even the severest judgments ever to hit the earth will not cause obstinate sinners to repent.  Three times in the above passage they show their anger toward God by blaspheming Him.”

            There is a difference between what we could call “religion” and what true “Christianity” is and this difference has been fought about for centuries beginning with when our Lord came to earth to purchase sinners as He died on the cross.  I believe that we could say that when we are speaking of “religion” it is true that one has to do something to earn their salvation.  That is what the people in the Sanhedrin believed.  They had this set of rules, some from the OT Scriptures and some they made up after reading the OT Scriptures and in their mind (false as it was) they believed by following these rules one could please God and arrive safely in heaven.  Christianity on the other hand is looking at Jesus Christ who has paid for all of our sins, past, present, and future, and realizing that “Jesus Paid it All” true believers understand that the only thing they can do is trust in the Lord Jesus Christ completely for salvation “8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast (Eph. 2:8-9).”  If anyone could ever get into heaven by what he or she has done then there would have been no need for Christ to come and to die for them.  It is Christ alone with no help from us and this had been heard by the Sanhedrin at least three times now as the apostles told them twice and now Stephen tells them and just as in the future tribulation period when people will refuse to listen and blaspheme God the same is now true with these men.

            Paul later wrote of Israel in Romans 11:7-10 “7 What then? What Israel is seeking, it has not obtained, but those who were chosen obtained it, and the rest were hardened; 8 just as it is written, "GOD GAVE THEM A SPIRIT OF STUPOR, EYES TO SEE NOT AND EARS TO HEAR NOT, DOWN TO THIS VERY DAY." 9 And David says, "LET THEIR TABLE BECOME A SNARE AND A TRAP, AND A STUMBLING BLOCK AND A RETRIBUTION TO THEM. 10 “LET THEIR EYES BE DARKENED TO SEE NOT, AND BEND THEIR BACKS FOREVER."     “  MacArthur adds “Similarly, after Pharaoh repeatedly hardened his own heart, God hardened it (cf. Ex. 8:15, 19, 32; 9:7, 34 with Ex. 10:1; 11:10).  Well does the writer of Hebrews warn,

“Therefore, just as the Holy Spirit says, "TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, 8  DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME, AS IN THE DAY OF TRIAL IN THE WILDERNESS, 9  WHERE YOUR FATHERS TRIED Me BY TESTING Me, AND SAW MY WORKS FOR FORTY YEARS. 10 “THEREFORE I WAS ANGRY WITH THIS GENERATION, AND SAID, ’THEY ALWAYS GO ASTRAY IN THEIR HEART, AND THEY DID NOT KNOW MY WAYS’; 11 AS I SWORE IN MY WRATH, ’THEY SHALL NOT ENTER MY REST.’" 12 Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God (Hebrews 3:7-12).”

            We will try and conclude this section in our next SD.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I am thankful that almost 41 years ago that the Lord called me to accept what the Lord Jesus Christ did for me as He suffered and died on the cross, then was buried and three days later was resurrected from the dead to prove that His sacrifice for me and all who will accept it pleased God, therefore provided salvation for me and all those who will accept this free gift of salvation.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Trust that the Lord will use me to tell others of this truth so they too can be saved.

Memory verse:  Philippians 4:8 “Finally brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Beersheba” (Genesis 22:32).

Today’s Bible question:  “What king went with Ahab to fight at Ramoth-Gilead?”

Answer in our next SD.

11/24/2017 9:50 AM

                                   

Intro to Acts 7:54-8:1a

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/23/2017 10:17 AM

My Worship Time                                                                            Focus:  Intro to Acts 7:54-8:1a

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 7:54-8:1a

            Message of the verses:  “54 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him. 55 But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; 56 and he said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." 57 But they cried out with a loud voice, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one impulse. 58 When they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and the witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!" 60 Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" Having said this, he fell asleep.  1 Saul was in hearty agreement with putting him to death.”

            My introductions to various chapters from John MacArthur’s commentaries are frequently filled with his quotes as it is good to see where he is taking us as we move through the different chapters.  In this chapter which is entitled “The First Christian Martyr” MacArthur tells the story of Martian Luther when he was summoned before what is called “The Imperial Diet of the Holy Roman Empire” where Luther was to appear before Emperor Charles V to talk about his beliefs as far as what the Scripture had to say opposed as to what the Roman church had to say.  It was in the spring of 1517 a little over 500 years ago when Luther spoke there.  We know that it was in October of 1517 that the Protestant Reformation would begin.  In my study of the book of Revelation for our Sunday school class we are now looking at the seven churches and some believe that these churches are in prophetic order as to what the dominant church of the age is and I don’t believe that it is a coincidence that in Hal Lindsey’s book “There is a New World Coming,” which is a commentary on the book of Revelation that church of Thyatira ends and the church of Sardis begins.  Thyatira began in 590 and ended in 1517 a very long reign as far as a dominant church in the world.  Some people do not believe in the prophetic arrangement of these seven churches, and some do, I for one do as the entire book of Revelation is about prophecy and so I ask myself “why not the churches?”  Ok back to MacArthur’s commentary where he quotes Lewis W. Spitz, “The Rise of Modern Europe:  The Protestant Reformation,” as we will quote a short version of Luther’s speech and then quote the remainder of MacArthur’s comments that will led us to the first main point of this section of Scripture.

“Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason (for I do not trust either in the pope or in councils alone, since it is well known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God.  I cannot and I will not retract anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience.  I cannot do otherwise, here I stand, may God help me, Amen.”

            MacArthur writes “Fifteen hundred years earlier, a miracle-working servant of Christ stood trial for his life.  Like Luther, Stephen stood solidly on the rock of divine revelation.  And like Luther, his bold stand was to change the course of history.  His speech in his own defense was a masterful recounting of Israel’s history.  In it he ably defended himself, and by extension all Christians, against the false charges that he had blasphemed God, Moses, the law, and the temple.  Faithful evangelist Stephen then went on the offensive, closing his speech with a blistering denunciation of the Sanhedrin’s hypocrisy.  By so doing, he turned the tables on his accusers.  It was they, not him, who stood convicted of blasphemy.

            “The concluding verses of chapter 7 record the last moments of Stephen’s life.  For unlike Luther, who was spirited away to safety by Elector Frederick the Wise of Saxony, Stephen was to pay for his boldness with his life.  It is a dramatic, moving passage.  Although he was killed, Stephen was not the victim, he was the victor.  Death merely ushered Stephen into the presence of his Lord.  Most of the murdering mob (with the notable exception of young Saul of Tarsus), though they lived on, would perish eternally.

            “A stark contrast between Stephen and his murderers weaves its way through this brief passage.  So extreme is the contrast that it can be said to symbolize the contrast between heaven and hell.  That contrast may be viewed from four angles:  It is the contrast between being filled with anger and being filled with the Spirit, between spiritual blindness and spiritual sight, between death and life, and between hate and love.”

            We will begin looking at the first contrast “Filled with Anger Versus Filled with the Spirit” in our next SD.  As mentioned in our last SD for those who read this SD in the United States of America, I want to wish you a very happy Thanksgiving Day.

            Spiritual meaning of my life today:  I have to greatly admire men like Stephen, Polycarp, and Martian Luther, and many others who have stood their ground against those who were telling and teaching lies.  Stephen has come to mean much in my life as I have studied his brief life that is described in the book of Acts.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  I trust that the Lord will led me each and every day of my life and will give me the courage to stand up for the Truth.

Memory verse:  “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things (Philippians 4:8).”

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Jesus” (John 1:47).

Today’s Bible question:  “At what place did Abraham and Abimelech make a covenant?”

Answer in our next SD.

11/23/2017 11:07 AM

PT-3 "The Temple" (Acts 7:44-53)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/22/2017 12:28 PM

My Worship Time                                                                                Focus:  PT-3 “The Temple”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 7:44-53

            Message of the verses:  “52 “Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become; 53 you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it."”

            John MacArthur writes:  “Stephen then draws the parallel to its bloody conclusion.  As their fathers had ‘killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One,’ the Messiah, so had they become His ‘betrayers and murderers.’  While priding themselves on having ‘received the law as ordained by angels,’ they ‘did not keep it.’  They were without excuse, since the law pointed to Christ (John 5:39).  Stephen once again echoes the words of his Lord, who said to these same leaders, ‘If you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote of Me’ (John 5:46).  They had no real respect for Moses or the law or they never would have murdered the One Moses promised (Gen. 18:14) or the One of whom the law spoke.”

            Matthew 23:29-32:   “29  "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30 and say, ’If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 “So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 “Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers

            All I have to say is that Stephen was a very gracious man even though it may seem that what he is saying is pretty harsh, yet when we look at the life of Jesus while on earth He said many of the same things, he like we will see of Stephen was murdered although Jesus’ death was planned by the Father in order to pay for our sins, and Stephen’s death was surely also planned by the Father, yet for a different reason.  Stephen would become the very first Christian martyr as we will see in our next SD which will cover Acts 7:54-8:1a.

            Tomorrow in the United States we celebrate Thanksgiving and for that I am very thankful to live in a country that has a special holiday to give thanks to the Lord for all He has done for us.

11/22/2017 12:44 PM  11/22/2017 2:54 PM

Memory verse:  “Philippians 4:8”  “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “About 30 years” (Luke 3:23).

Today’s Bible question:  “Who said ‘Behold and Israelite indeed, in whom is no gile’?”

Answer in our next SD.

11/22/2017 2:58 PM

PT-2 "The Temple" (Acts 7:44-53)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/21/2017 12:08 PM

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  PT-2 “The Temple”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 7:44-53

            Message of the verses:  We will begin by looking at verse 48b-50 “as the prophet says: 49 ’HEAVEN IS MY THRONE, AND EARTH IS THE FOOTSTOOL OF MY FEET; WHAT KIND OF HOUSE WILL YOU BUILD FOR ME?’ says the Lord, ’OR WHAT PLACE IS THERE FOR MY REPOSE? 50 ’WAS IT NOT MY HAND WHICH MADE ALL THESE THINGS?’”  This is a quotation from Isaiah 66:1.  Stephen is reinforcing his point by quoting this section of Isaiah.  We know that he was not guilty of blaspheming the temple.  What exactly was the temple anyway?  John MacArthur writes that “The temple was the symbol of God’s presence, not the prison of His essence.”  This is exactly what Stephen is saying when he quotes from the prophet Isaiah.  As usual in the case of the “religious Jews” they got it wrong. 

            When you read the early chapters of the book of Romans you see something similar from what Stephen as he is building his case to show that the Jewish leaders do not understand that Jesus Christ is the Messiah and why it was necessary for Him to come to planet earth.  He continues to build his case and so we can probably be sure that the tension was building in the room where he was speaking. 

            “51 "You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears” is what Stephen says in the first part of verse 51, and the wondering is over for those in the room as far as what point Stephen was going to make.  Stephen gives a devastating indictment:  They were just like their fathers in the days of Joseph, Moses, and David.  He calls them “stiff-necked” or it could be obstinate as he echoes God’s evaluation of the forefathers (Exodus 32:9; 33:5).  John MacArthur writes that “The term pictures a person who defiantly refuses to bow before the Lord.  Because they prided themselves on their physical circumcision and ritual behavior, Stephen’s description of them as ‘uncircumcised in heart and ears’ was especially pointed.  Their sin had never been forgiven.  They were as unclean before God as uncircumcised Gentiles.  That was the ultimate condemnation.”

            “are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did. 52 “Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? (49b-52a)” Because they resisted the Holy Spirit made the guilty of doing exactly what their fathers did.  Their fathers rejected Joseph, Moses, and the tabernacle presence, and so they rejected the Messiah. When Stephen says “which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute” he is actually echoing words that the Lord Jesus Christ spoke:

“47 “Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and it was your fathers who killed them. 48 “So you are witnesses and approve the deeds of your fathers; because it was they who killed them, and you build their tombs. 49 "For this reason also the wisdom of God said, ’I will send to them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and some they will persecute, 50  so that the blood of all the prophets, shed since the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation, 51 from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the house of God; yes, I tell you, it shall be charged against this generation’ (Luke 11:47-51).”

            “They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become; 53 you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it."”  We will look at these verses as we conclude this section of Acts chapter seven in our next SD.

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “The Word of God.” (Hebrews 11:3).

Today’s Bible question:  “How old was Jesus when He began His public ministry?”

Answer in our next SD.

11/21/2017 12:36 PM