Romans 14

DAYS AND DIETS

1Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. 2One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. 3The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. 4Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

5One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. 6Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. 8If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. 9For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.

10You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. 11It is written: “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’”

12So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

13Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. 14I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean. 15If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. 16Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. 17For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.

19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. 20Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. 21It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.

22So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. 23But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.

“The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.” (vv. 3-4)

“Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.” (vv. 19-21)

NOTES

God has established three institutions: the home (Gen. 2:18–25), government (Gen. 9:1–17), and the church (Acts 2).
– WARREN W. WIERSBE, BE RIGHT (ROMANS)

ROMANS 13:1-7

1Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. 4For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.

6This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. 7Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

1. The importance of Historical (v.1)

“Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.”

“Paul is anxious, precisely because he believes that Jesus is the true Lord of the world, that his followers should not pick unnecessary quarrels with the lesser lords.” – NT WRIGHT, ROMANS

2. The challenge of Paul’s (vv. 2-4)

2Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. 4For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.

3. The complexity of Personal (v.5)

5Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.

“Conscience is a powerful reinforcement of the outward directions to submit to the state. But once conscience is brought in, there is a limit: what is against conscience cannot be done … Conscience at one and the same time obliges us to be obedient and sets a limit to that obedience.”
– (The Epistle to the Romans, page 465) TIMOTHY KELLER, Romans 8-16 For You.

4. The duty of Christian (vv. 6-7)

“For 30 years of Jesus’ life on earth he lived in a Roman world, submitted to and respected flawed parents, learned a trade and paid taxes, was part a local community and most importantly…he never got mad at Rome but at hypocritical religious leaders.” – ANDREW MCCOURT

BEYOND INSECURITY
CONFIDENT CHRISTIANITY!

“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” – PHILIPPIANS 1:6

“I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”

JESUS – MATTHEW 16:18

NOT AFRAID TO:

• Take Risks
• Take a Stand
• Give Sacrificially
• Try New Things
• Share Their Faith

“FIRSTS” IN THE BOOK OF ACTS

• The first permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit (Chapter 2)
• The first Christian churches (Chapters 2-4)
• The first organization of church government (Chapter 6)
• The first martyr (Chapter 7)
• The first missionary: Philip (Chapter 8)
• The first time the gospel is delivered to Gentiles (Chapter 10)
• The first use of the name Christians (Chapter 11:26)
• The first organized approach to world evangelism (Chapters 13-28)

3 GREAT SOURCES OF CONFIDENCE!

The of God!
“Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd...” ACTS 2:14
The of God!
“When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.” ACTS 4:13
The of God!
45 “Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.”

46 “Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,”

47“praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” ACTS 2:45-47

FINAL THOUGHTS FOR DISCOURAGED CHRISTIANS

HUMAN RIGHTS

Christians headed the movements to combat human rights abuses such as infanticide, gladiatorial combat in the Roman Empire, slavery, child labor, etc.

The Christian Church led the movement to abolish the slave trade and banish slavery. Northern Christians saved runaway slaves, printed thousands of newsletters to raise awareness of the injustice of slavery and created the pressure that spread across the country to abolish slavery. The civil rights movement of the 1950’s came out of the African American Church.

HOSPITALS AND CHARITY

Christians established the first charitable medical hospitals. Almost every hospital in a downtown area has been launched by the Christian Church. Hospitals were created by Christians to care for the sick. The American Red Cross was created by Christians in 1864 by John Henry Dunant who was co-recipient of the first Nobel Prize for Peace in 1901. (REF: LUIS PALAU, GOD IS RELEVANT, NEW YORK: DOUBLEDAY, PP. 177-178)

RELIEF WORK

Christians created the first emergency shelters for the homeless; the first homes for orphans; the first humanitarian institutions for the insane; the first ministries to victims of crime; the first outreaches to prisoners, hospital patients, and soldiers; and the first societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals. (REF: LUIS PALAU, GOD IS RELEVANT,NEWYORK: DOUBLEDAY,PP.177-178)

Most immigrants to America were processed through Ellis Island, where Christians fed and clothed the destitute, and ministered to the sick. The Salvation Army, formed in 1865 to reach the poor and homeless, is today one of the largest providers of relief in every disaster that occurs in the United States. The Salvation Army got there faster and fed more people in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina than the federal government.

WOMEN ART AND MUSIC

The dignity of women was elevated when Christ Christian faith inspired musical works by Bach,

spoke openly to women, enjoyed women’s friendship, Handel, Mendelssohn, Beethoven, Mozart, and many

took time out to bless and heal them. Paul continued this when he publicly acknowledged the women who were some of the first church leaders and supporters of the faith. Christians discontinued the practice of veiling, patria potestas (father’s right to kill family members), infanticide of female babies, and assembly partitions. (REF: ALVIN SCHMIDT, HOW CHRISTIANITY CHANGED THE WORLD, P. 120)

Still today, American culture holds to the ideal of a husband sacrificially loving his wife, which was nonexistent before the dawn of Christendom.

EDUCATION

Most of the great colleges and universities in the world began as Christian colleges: Harvard, Yale, Princeton and Dartmouth. The Christian Church started the first 115 universities in America. And until 1932, 168 out of the 182 colleges in the United States were founded by Christian denominations.

LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE

Christian missionaries codified and preserved languages in much of the world, particularly for cultures that formerly had no written language. At least 1,210 languages were not written until Christian Bible translators learned the languages and devised writing for them. When Martin Luther translated the Bible into German, it is the same German language we know today.

Christians have led the world in literature. Christian faith motivated and inspired classic works by Augustine, John Bunyan, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Pascal, Solzhenitsyn, Dickens, Milton, Defoe, Tennyson, Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and many more. (REF: BEISNER, ANSWERS FOR ATHEISTS, AGNOSTICS, AND OTHER THOUGHTFUL SKEPTICS, WHEATON: CROSSWAY, P. 137)

ART AND MUSIC

Christian faith inspired musical works by Bach, Handel, Mendelssohn, Beethoven, Mozart, and many others, and great works of art by da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Rembrandt, etc. A Yale professor wrote, “The victory of Jesus Christ over the gods of Greece and Rome in the fourth century … was responsible for a massive and magnificent outpouring of creativity, that is probably, without parallel, in the entire history of art.” (REF: JAROSLAV PELIKAN, JESUS THROUGH THE CENTURIES: HIS PLACE IN THE HISTORY OF CULTURE, P. 83)

SCIENCE

Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Pascal, Descartes, Newton, Kelvin, Mendel, Boyle were all devout Christians. Father Steno, a priest, is the father of modern geology. The Basilica of San Petronio was for many years the most sophisticated solar observatory in the world. Jesuits helped contribute to the development of clocks, barometers, microscopes and telescopes. They theorized about things like human flight, the moon and tides, and blood circulation. For over five centuries, no institution funded and supported the sciences more than the church.

INDIVIDUALS

How would the Church benefit you if you joined today? People who do not attend church are four times more likely to commit suicide than frequent church attenders. (REF: G.W. COMSTOCK AND K.B. PARTRIDGE, “CHURCH ATTENDANCE AND HEALTH”, JOURNAL OF CHRONIC DISEASE PP. 25:665-672)

The “importance of religion” is the single best predictor of not abusing drugs or alcohol. One survey of 14,000 youths found substance abuse varied in direct proportion to strength of religious commitment. (REF: R. B. LOCH AND R. H. HUGHES, “RELIGION AND YOUTH SUBSTANCE ABUSE”, JOURNAL OF RELIGION AND HEALTH, 24, PP. 3: 723-727)

High levels of faith boost psychological health and the ability to deal with stress, and decrease psychological distress, depression, and the negative effects of stress. (REF: LARSON, PP. 76-81)

There is also positive association between religious faith and physical health. (REF: LEVIN AND SCHILLER, “IS THERE A RELIGIOUS FACTOR IN HEALTH?” JOURNAL OF RELIGION AND HEALTH 26, PP. 1:9-35)

Male churchgoers have a 60 percent less risk of arteriosclerosis heart disease. Women churchgoers have only half the risk of dying from heart disease or emphysema. (REF: G.W. COMSTOCK AND K.B. PARTRIDGE, “CHURCH ATTENDANCE AND HEALTH”, JOURNAL OF CHRONIC DISEASE PP. 25:665-672)

Men who consider religion to be “very important” have far lower blood pressure and far reduced risk of cardiovascular disease. (REF: D. B. LARSON, ET. AL, “THE IMPACT OF RELIGION ON MEN’S BLOOD PRESSURE”, JOURNAL OF RELIGION AND HEALTH, 28, PP. 4:265-278)

Women with a strong religious faith recover from surgery far more quickly than nonbelievers. (PRESSMAN, LYONS, JANSON, AND STRAIN,: “RELIGIOUS BELIEF, DEPRESSION, AND AMBULATION STATUS”, AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY, 147, PP. 6:758-760.)

A major study found that church attendance predicted marital satisfaction better than any other variable. (REF: GLENN AND WEAVER, “A MULTIVARIATE, MULTI- SURVEY STUDY OF MARITAL HAPPINESS”, JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND THE FAMILY PP. 40-269-282)

A massive study found that “very religious women” report greater happiness and satisfaction with marital sex than either moderately religious or nonreligious women. (REF: TAVRIS AND SADD, “THE REDBOOK REPORT IN FEMALE SEXUALITY”, NEW YORK: DELACORTE PRESS, 1977)

People committed to religious faith have much higher levels of personal happiness and psychological wellbeing than atheists or agnostics. (REF: DAVID MYERS, “PURSUING HAPPINESS”, PSYCHOLOGY TODAY, JULY-AUGUST, 1993, PP. 32-38)

In a Gallup survey, people who said, “My religious faith is the most important influence in my life,” were twice as likely as others to describe themselves as

“very happy”. (REF: DAVID MYERS, “PURSUING HAPPINESS”, PSYCHOLOGY TODAY, JULY-AUGUST, 1993, PP. 32-38)

LOVE IN ACTION
Romans 12:9-16

“9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.”

“10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.”

“11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.“

“12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.“

“13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.“

“14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.“

“15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.“

“16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.“

Thoughts:

IF I ONLY LET GOD…
USE ME

Without This Message – We End Up…

ROMANS 12:3-8

3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

FIND YOUR S.H.A.P.E.

–
A set of special abilities God has given you to share His love and serve others

“We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us…” (v. 6)

SEE ALSO 1 CORINTHIANS 12:8-10, 28

EPHESIANS 4:11 ❙ 1 PETER 4:9-10
–
The special passions God has given you so that you can glorify Him on earth

“…in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.” (v. 3)
–
The set of talents God gave you when you were born, which He also wants you to use to make an impact for Him

“… these members do not all have the same function…” (v. 4)
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works,

which God prepared in advance for us to do.” EPHESIANS 2:10
–
The special way God wired you to navigate life and fulfill your unique Kingdom purpose

“…according to the grace given to each of us.” (v. 6)
–
Those parts of your past, both positive and painful, which God intends to use in great ways

“Isn’t it funny how day by day nothing changes, but when you look back, everything is different…” – C S LEWIS

ROMANS 11

Understanding God’s Plan
for Israel, the World, and Us!

CONTEXT:
It’s
It’s
It’s

God has a (vv. 1-10)
I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 2God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew. Don’t you know what Scripture says in the passage about Elijah—how he appealed to God against Israel: 3“Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me”? 4 And what was God’s answer to him? “I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”
God keeps his (vv. 11-16)

11 Again I ask: Did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! Rather, because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious. 12 But if their transgression means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their full inclusion bring!

13 I am talking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch as I am the apostle to the Gentiles, I take pride in my ministry 14 in the hope that I may somehow arouse my own people to envy and save some of them.
God gives us a (vv. 17-24)
…they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either. 22 Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. 23 And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again.
God is (vv. 33-36)
33 Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments,
and his paths beyond tracing out!

34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?”

35 “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?

36 For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.

5 Truths That Will Change Your Life!

1. God is us (v. 31)

“What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?“

2. Jesus for us (v. 32)

“He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all-how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?“

3. God has us (v. 33)

“Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.“

4. Jesus for us (v. 34)

“Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died— more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.“

5. God us (v. 35)

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or

persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?

36 As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Week 3 | Tychicus

The Power of a Life Lived Well

“The most extraordinary thing in the world is an ordinary man and an ordinary woman and their ordinary children.” – GK Chesterton

7 Tychicus will tell you all the news about me.

He is a dear brother, a faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord.

8 I am sending him to you for the express purpose that you may know about our circumstances and that he may encourage your hearts.

9 He is coming with Onesimus, our faithful and dear brother, who is one of you. They will tell you everything that is happening here.

COLOSSIANS 4:7-9

His – 3 qualities everyone can grow

‘Dear Brother’ – Live in

‘A faithful minister’ – Focus on

‘Fellow servant’ – Serve with

His – 2 causes everyone can pursue

Commit to a

4 He [Paul] was accompanied by….Timothy also, Tychicus and Trophimus from the province of Asia. Acts 20:4

Carry a

21 Tychicus, the dear brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know how I am and what I am doing. Ephesians 6:21

7Tychicus will tell you all the news about me. Colossians 4:7

His – 1 thing everyone can leave

9 He is coming with Onesimus, our faithful and dear brother, who is one of you. Colossians 4:9

Realize matters

Week 2 | Hannah

OUR HERO is a SNAPSHOT:

Spouse
Delt with Comparison
Infertile
Bullied
Stressed
Pressured
Lonely
Beloved
Pray-er

EVERYDAY HERO’S . . .

EVERYDAY STUFF. . .
KNOW WHERE TO THEIR TROUBLES. . .

Once when they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on his chair by the doorpost of the Lord’s house. In her deep anguish Hannah prayed to the Lord, weeping bitterly. And she made a vow, saying, “Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life…” (I Sam. 1: v 9-11)

As she kept on praying to the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk and said to her, “How long are you going to stay drunk? Put away your wine.” (v 12-14)

Not so, my lord, … I am a woman who is deeply troubled. I have not been drinking wine or beer; I was pouring out my soul to the Lord. Do not take your servant for a wicked woman; I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief.” (v15-16)

Eli answered, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him”. She said, “May your servant find favor in your eyes.” Then she went her way and ate something, and her face was no longer downcast. (v 17-18)

Early the next morning they arose and worshiped before the Lord and then went back to their home at Ramah. Elkanah made love to his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. So in the course of time Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I asked the Lord for him.” (v19-23)

…After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, … and brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh. . . they brought the boy to Eli, and she said to him, “…I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.” And he worshiped the Lord there.

2:21And the Lord was gracious to Hannah; she gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord.

ONE LAST THOUGHT:

The Story of Stephen

Essentials for Living a Heroic Life

Acts 6-7

“Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power,

did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people.”

Acts 6:8

CONTEXT:

The of the church

“So the Word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.” – Acts 6:7

8 Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. 9 Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia—who began to argue with Stephen. 10 But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke. 11 Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, “We have heard Stephen speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God.”

12 So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin. 13 They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. 14 For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.” 15 All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel. Then the high priest asked him, “Are these charges true?” – Acts 6:8-7:1

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.

And Saul approved of their killing him. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2 Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3 But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison. – Acts 7:54-8:3

Three Essentials for Living a Heroic Life

Live with

They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit… – Acts 6:5b

8 Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. 9 Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia—who began to argue with Stephen. 10 But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke. – Acts 6:8-10

In the Bible, to be full of means to be controlled by.

Stephen was full of five things:

– 6:5
– 6:10
– 6:5
– 6:8
– 6:8

Live with

11 Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, “We have heard Stephen speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God.” 12 So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin. 13 They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. 14 For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.”… Then the high priest asked Stephen, “Are these charges true?” 2 To this he replied: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me! – Acts 6:11-14, 7:1-2a

Stephen’s response in chapter 7 is the longest address in the book of Acts, one of the most important, and the greatest Old Testament survey in the New Testament.

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.” – Acts 7:51-53

Before you ask yourself, “Am I willing to for him?”, ask yourself, “Am I willing to for Him?”

Live with

15 All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel. – Acts 6:15

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. – Acts 7:59-60

FINAL THOUGHT:

God wants to live in us. Does He live in you?

IF I ONLY LET GOD… USE ME

FIND YOUR S.H.A.P.E.

ROMANS 11

Understanding God’s Plan for Israel, the World, and Us!

IF I ONLY LET GOD…
USE ME

Understanding God’s Plan
for Israel, the World, and Us!