The Throne

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

 THE THRONE

Acts 7:44-50

44 "Our forefathers had the tabernacle of the Testimony with them in the desert. It had been made as God directed Moses, according to the pattern he had seen. 45 Having received the tabernacle, our fathers under Joshua brought it with them when they took the land from the nations God drove out before them. It remained in the land until the time of David, 46 who enjoyed God's favor and asked that he might provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.   47 But it was Solomon who built the house for him. 48 "However, the Most High does not live in houses made by men. As the prophet says:

49 "'Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house will you build for me?       says the Lord. Or where will my resting place be? 50 Has not my hand made all these things?'  

NIV

We are still in the response Stephen made as he stood before the Sanhedrin. He is recounting the times when Moses received the detailed instructions from God to build the tabernacle, a place that signified the Lord's presence. It had two chambers: the outer chamber and the Holy of Holies, the inner chamber where the Ark of the Covenant was. This was the place of meeting with the Lord, during the time of David and Solomon, who built the temple in Jerusalem, where the presence of the Lord now rested. However, Stephen is making the point that men cannot build anything capable of containing God's presence. Heaven is his throne. What kind of house will be built for him? How could we build a building for God? Men have built some great edifices, some with great amounts of gold, filled with all sorts of places for the living and the dead. Others have built large auditoriums that have no appearance of a place of worship; one man built a cathedral of crystal glass. There are many smaller places, or what we would call a church, some adorned spectacularly, others as plain as could be. However, the point is that every building is a testament to human ingenuity and skill, and if we are not careful, we can become proud of our building. We might consider the building as a place to meet with the living God, but how could that be if God's throne is in heaven? Although God did instruct Moses to build the tabernacle, and Solomon to build the temple. God can certainly inhabit a building for a moment, as he did when he met with Moses, but it is not a place he dwells. It is possible for God to temporarily fill every church in all the world, for God is omnipresent, and there is nothing impossible for him. We can surely invite the Holy Spirit to fill our sanctuaries, and he will. Jesus has told us we can ask and he will do it. When the Spirit fills the sanctuary, it becomes a holy place, just as the tabernacle and the temple were considered holy. Still, our God sits upon the heavens, the whole earth is his, and everything, including the heavens, was made by his hand. Let us not worship a place, or put too much value in a place, but let us worship the One True God, who sits on his throne. 

The Idol

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE IDOL

Acts 7:39-43

39 "But our fathers refused to obey him. Instead, they rejected him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt. 40 They told Aaron, 'Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who led us out of Egypt — we don't know what has happened to him!'   41 That was the time they made an idol in the form of a calf. They brought sacrifices to it and held a celebration in honor of what their hands had made. 42 But God turned away and gave them over to the worship of the heavenly bodies. This agrees with what is written in the book of the prophets:

"'Did you bring me sacrifices and offerings forty years in the desert, O house of Israel? 43 You have lifted up the shrine of Molech and the star of your god Rephan, the idols you made to worship. Therefore I will send you into exile' beyond Babylon.

NIV

We are still in Stephan's response as he stood before the Sanhedrin. They are furious with him and produced false witnesses against him, accusing him of blasphemy against the Holy place and the law. He is recounting the history of Israel and how, while Moses was on the mountain of God for those forty days and forty nights, the children of Israel had Aaron make a golden calf for them to worship. Why is it so easy to worship what our hands have made rather than God? They said they did not know what happened to this fellow Moses. He was out of sight, and they put him out of their minds. However, what they could make with their own hands was visible and touchable. It could serve their pride, but in reality, it did nothing for them, for it was without eyes to see, ears to hear, and a mouth to speak. It could not perform miracles or any signs and wonders. Everything this golden calf was not and could not do, God was and could do and more. Yet the people refused to obey him, rejected him, and refused his plan for them to go to the land he had promised to Abraham. We cannot imagine the church today refusing to obey God. We cannot fathom that the church would not want to follow God's plan or make anything more important than God. The children of Israel made that golden calf their idol, and it could be said the Pharisees made the law their idol, rather than worshipping the One True God. Israel rejected God, and the Pharisees, the Chief Priests, and the teachers of the law rejected Jesus. We are so happy the church today has not created for itself any idols, but worships the Lord our God in spirit and in truth. We do wonder whether, over the years, the church has become distracted by creating or developing its own set of rules and regulations, or whether it has looked to its "Good works" to the point that they almost become an idol. Certainly, we would never turn away from our Lord or refuse to obey him, but have we added or idolized what we have done? Do we lift ourselves up, thinking how good, or religious, or spiritual we are, rather than humbling ourselves before the Lord, lifting Him up, glorifying Him and His name? Let us be careful not to think of ourselves more highly than we should, for just as the golden calf could not save the people, we cannot do anything or look to anything other than God to save us. Let us always face our God, looking only to him, forfeiting all else, not having idols, but submitting to his plan or purpose for our lives and for the life of the church. 

The Call

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE CALL

Acts 7:35-38

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

NIV

There is a simple truth in this segment of the response of Stephen as he stood in front of the Sanhedrin. When Mose tried to break up the fight between two Hebrews, they rejected his attempts and his authority. They rejected him with the words, "Who made you ruler and Judge?" Stephen made the great point that God did, in fact, make Moses ruler and judge over them. Here is the story that comes right into our lives. Men can declare whoever they want to be their ruler. In our country, that should be done rightly by the vote of the people. However, in the church, a completely different standard is at work. In some denominations, deacons are chosen by the congregation through some selection process, while elders are hand-picked by the pastor. Some denominations send the pastor to a church, while others choose their own pastor. Still, God's calling regarding who should pastor a church may not be the standard some denominations use. God ordained Moses to shepherd the people of Israel; however, many denominations require that their standards be met before ordaining someone. It is like any earthly organization; it has the right to demand certain rules and regulations be met to join. But it is not men who ordain a shepherd; it is God who ordains someone to be the shepherd of his people. Yet we live in a time and culture where the church seems to function more like an organization than a church. God called Moses, and after a few attempts to refuse to go back to Egypt, he complied. We know that even though God has called and ordained, there are still the rules and regulations of the church that must be met for a man to be ordained. Yet, first, and foremost, the truth is that no matter if man ordains, if God has not called and ordained a person, then they are the one to be the shepherd of God's people. The other truth is about being a ruler and judge, as Moses was appointed by God. The pastor or shepherd of God's people is not a ruler nor a judge, but should be a servant to the people of God. Jesus set that standard, and if we are following Jesus, then the truer calling is to be a servant leader. Yet, nothing should happen unless there is "The call." 

Hear His Voice

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

HEAR HIS VOICE

Acts 7:23-34

23 "When Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his fellow Israelites. 24 He saw one of them being mistreated by an Egyptian, so he went to his defense and avenged him by killing the Egyptian. 25 Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not. 26 The next day Moses came upon two Israelites who were fighting. He tried to reconcile them by saying, 'Men, you are brothers; why do you want to hurt each other?' 27 "But the man who was mistreating the other pushed Moses aside and said, 'Who made you ruler and judge over us? 28 Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?'   29 When Moses heard this, he fled to Midian, where he settled as a foreigner and had two sons. 30 "After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to Moses in the flames of a burning bush in the desert near Mount Sinai. 31 When he saw this, he was amazed at the sight. As he went over to look more closely, he heard the Lord's voice: 32'I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.' Moses trembled with fear and did not dare to look. 33 "Then the Lord said to him, 'Take off your sandals; the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have indeed seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their groaning and have come down to set them free. Now come, I will send you back to Egypt.'  

NIV

We are still in Stephen's response as he stood before the Sanhedrin. As he recorded the life of Moses, he included the moment of the burning bush. It is amazing how God drew Moses' attention, and when he took a closer look, he heard the Lord's voice. When the Lord spoke, we are told that Moses trembled and that he dared not look. We know this story well, but the truth we should focus on is hearing the Lord's voice. Moses must have heard the voice of God more times than are recorded for us, as we know he met with God in the tent of meeting many times, and even before that, when he gave all the instructions about the plagues and the exodus. We should learn the fact that God does speak to his people. Perhaps not everyone or all the time, but it is possible God could talk, and we could hear his voice. We believe the reason God spoke to Moses is that he had a special plan for Moses, a calling, a directive to lead the children of Israel out of slavery into a place he had prepared for them, the land he had made a covenant with Abraham that he would give to his descendants. God spoke to Abraham, another opportunity for us to learn that God speaks to his people when he has a plan for them to do something. How else are we going to know what to do unless the Lord tells us? What do people mean when they say they have a call? Did God call them? Did they hear the voice of God? Did he do something to draw their attention, as he did with Moses? We, Christians, say that we are a people who pray, but is most of our prayer time spent talking to God, with little, if any, time listening for the voice of God? How are we supposed to know what God desires for us to do, our vocation, where we are to live, what church we are supposed to engage with, and specifically what we should be doing for the kingdom, or in our vernacular, our calling? Perhaps the Lord may not speak to us in long, drawn-out paragraphs of instructions, as he did with Moses. He may speak only a few words, but they would be direct. Sometimes, he might use something like that burning bush to draw our attention so we would know he wants to tell us something or direct us in a certain way. However, if the Lord decides to inform us of his intended purpose for us, we need to listen and watch so that we are within his plan. Let us always be more attentive to the voice of the Lord than our own. Let us hear his plan rather than devise our own plan. Let us listen, rather than talk. Let us hear his voice.  

Transformed

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

TRANSFORMED

Acts 7:9-22

 

9 "Because the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him 10 and rescued him from all his troubles. He gave Joseph wisdom and enabled him to gain the goodwill of Pharaoh king of Egypt; so he made him ruler over Egypt and all his palace. 11 "Then a famine struck all Egypt and Canaan, bringing great suffering, and our fathers could not find food. 12 When Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers on their first visit. 13 On their second visit, Joseph told his brothers who he was, and Pharaoh learned about Joseph's family. 14 After this, Joseph sent for his father Jacob and his whole family, seventy-five in all. 15 Then Jacob went down to Egypt, where he and our fathers died. 16 Their bodies were brought back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought from the sons of Hamor at Shechem for a certain sum of money. 17 "As the time drew near for God to fulfill his promise to Abraham, the number of our people in Egypt greatly increased. 18 Then another king, who knew nothing about Joseph, became ruler of Egypt. 19 He dealt treacherously with our people and oppressed our forefathers by forcing them to throw out their newborn babies so that they would die. 20 "At that time Moses was born, and he was no ordinary child. For three months he was cared for in his father's house. 21 When he was placed outside, Pharaoh's daughter took him and brought him up as her own son. 22 Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action.

NIV

Stephen is building the case against the men of the Sanhedrin by recounting their history with their first patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and now with his son Joseph, and how Israel became who they are. Stephen will get to Moses, who was a prophet and the leader who led the children of Israel out of Egypt. The point of this history lesson is to condemn them for disobedience, which we will get to as we work through the complete speech of Stephen. But for now, we will focus on what he said about Moses being educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and being powerful in speech and actions. Strangely, Stephen would have said that about Moses because when Mose encountered God at the burning bush, one of the excuses he tried to give God was that he had never been eloquent in the past and that he was slow of speech and tongue. Here we are shown the truth about how God does whatever He wants to do with anyone, regardless of that person's talents, skills, or abilities. He told a man slow of speech and tongue and turned him into a man of powerful speech and action. Perhaps that was Stephen's story as well, for he was full of God's grace and power. I can testify about the power of God, as we were once very slow of speech, in fact, afraid to speak, hiding behind my camera, not wanting to engage with people. Having extremely limited skills in verbal communication and the nuances of English, God took me into a place I would never have imagined. No matter our background, education, skills, talents, or abilities, God can take us beyond and use us for his purpose. In the case of Moses, God made sure he learned all he would need to be the leader God intended him to be. He can and will do the same thing for any of us if we are willing to give him full access to our facilities, our minds, souls, hearts, and strengths. We know that truth that with us it is not possible, but with God, all things are possible. God transformed Moses into what he needed him to be. Let us continue to trust him, submitting to his purpose, and he will transform us into who he needs us to be.

 

Like an Angel's Face

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

LIKE AN ANGEL'S FACE

Acts 6:15

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 7:1-8

7:1 Then the high priest asked him, "Are these charges true?" 2 To this he replied: "Brothers and fathers, listen to me! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran. 3'Leave your country and your people,' God said, 'and go to the land I will show you.'   4 "So he left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. After the death of his father, God sent him to this land where you are now living. 5 He gave him no inheritance here, not even a foot of ground. But God promised him that he and his descendants after him would possess the land, even though at that time Abraham had no child. 6 God spoke to him in this way: 'Your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. 7 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,' God said, 'and afterward they will come out of that country and worship me in this place.'   8 Then he gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision. And Abraham became the father of Isaac and circumcised him eight days after his birth. Later Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs.

NIV

Because Stephen was full of faith and the Holy Spirit, and full of God's grace and power, and did wonders and miraculous signs among the people, those who felt they were in charge became so jealous that they fabricated lies to accuse Stephen of blasphemy against Moses. We will get into Stephen's response, which is full of grace and truth, but first, we wanted to consider his appearance. All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel. We wonder how they knew what an angel's face looked like.  This description of Stephen gives us a clue of what someone full of faith and the Holy Spirit should look like. That is not to say that all apostles and the rest of the believers did not have the Holy Spirit; as we know, Peter was full of the Spirit when he got up and preached the best sermon ever, and thousands responded and accepted Jesus. But Stephen was special, and yet only a man, like us. However, he must have released the power of the Spirit to perform those signs and wonders and to be so full of the Spirit and wisdom. That is another clue to his appearance and to how we could appear if we were to actually release the power of the Spirit within us. If we were as full of the Spirit as Stephen was, our faces would show it, and we would be performing great signs and wonders. There is no reason we should not have the power of God in our lives, unless we are quenching the Spirit and trying to be righteous or religious and spiritual on our own efforts. We are told that Stephen was as he had been before he was selected by the people to be a deacon because he was chosen, having been full of the Spirit and wisdom. We can be full of the Spirit, full of the power of God, full of grace and wisdom, for we have the same Spirit that Stephen did. The question is whether we believe it and if we release the Spirit's power. If we allow the Spirit complete access to our whole being, there would be visible evidence to others; even our continence would reflect the glory of God, and maybe, just maybe, our face would look like the face of an angel. 

Grace and Power

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

 GRACE AND POWER

Acts 6:8-15

8 Now Stephen, a man full of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous 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. These men began to argue with Stephen, 10 but they could not stand up against his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke. 11 Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, "We have heard Stephen speak words of blasphemy 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.

NIV

We are no sooner introduced to Stephen than men oppose him. We wonder whether the opposition stemmed from Stephen being full of God's grace and power, as well as faith and the Holy Spirit. He also did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. How was it possible that Stephen did such things? He wasn't one of the twelve who walked with Jesus. He was known by the people in the early church as a man full of the Spirit and wisdom, but weren't the other six chosen by the people also supposed to be full of the Spirit and wisdom? Why was Stephen different? Why was he singled out and his story told? He was a special man, yet it was God's grace and power that brought about his fame and opposition. The difference between all those members of the Synagogue and Stephen was that they were hemmed in by their adherence to the law, regulations, rules, and traditions, while Stephen was full of wisdom and truth from God. The men of the Synagogue were most likely schooled by some rabbi or teacher of the law. We do not know what schooling Stephen had, but he was full of faith and the Holy Spirit, so we believe he was taught by the Spirit, who leads people into all truth. Ordinary men, without the power of God or the presence of the Holy Spirit, could not stand up against Stephen's wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke. That is the clue we should focus on. It was the Spirit who was speaking through Stephen, or Stephen's words were prompted by the Spirit of whom he was full. That truth is what we need to apply to our lives. First, we ought to be full of the Spirit. Is it possible to have been baptized in the Spirit and not be full of the Spirit? Is it possible that we just say we have been baptized in the Spirit, but we are not? We know that if we have the presence of the Holy Spirit dwelling within, we should be exhibiting gifts and fruit. Can we forge either the gifts or the fruit of the Spirit? It might be possible to pretend, but the truth is that if we are full of the Spirit, the true evidence would show in our lives, such as being full of God's grace and power, even to the point of performing miracles, signs, and wonders among the people. There has to be a major difference between having knowledge of the scriptures and speaking as if we know the truth, and being so full of the Spirit that he speaks through us, or our words are prompted by the Spirit, as Stephen's were. Flow Spirit flow, flow through us with all your grace and power.