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Text Reading: Acts 8:1-4 . Title: Havoc in the Church Review & Summary Stephen preached; he gave the high priest and the religious leaders a history lesson that they could not forget! However, their hearts were hardened. They could not hear; they could not receive the truth. So, when conviction set in,…

Text Reading: Acts 8:1-4 . Title: Cultivate Love Review & Summary Saul made havock of the church. Last week, I turned my attention to the brief phrase in vs. 3: Acts 8:3 (KJV 1900) As for Saul, he made havock of the church , entering into every house, and haling men and women committed them to prison.…

This Torah Portion: Gen 47:28 - 50:26 Introduction In a previous Torah portion we discussed how this was a picture/ type of the End Times, with Joseph in power In our last Torah Portion, we talked about what it means to draw near to God - walk in His ways We also talked about: The story of Jacob coming…

Today we are looking at what happened with Stephen, often called the first martyr of the church, in that he was the first to die for proclaiming salvation through Jesus Christ. As we look at the account of what took place with Stephen, there is a lot we can take away from it for our own lives. So today,…

11 “Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say. 12 For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.” 20 But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good,…

We've come to the end of Acts and we summarised it from the perspective that it's a Spirit-empowered, boundary-crossing GROWTH story. It encourages us in our faith journey of growth, and as we boldly share the gospel.

When overwhelmed by circumstances wisdom seeks a bigger purpose.

Stephen: A Man Full of Grace The Scripture tells us that Stephen was a man who was full of faith and power and did great wonders and miracles among the people. And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people. Growth in Church Now, before this we should not an interesting…

Intro: Have you stopped to notice lately that everyone is trying to get our attention? And there are all sorts of ways people are trying to do this. There is a message people want us to hear. We see this through the billboards in our city to the commercials on T.V. to social media, political campaign…

Acts 8:26-36 26 As for Philip, an angel of the Lord said to him, “Go south down the desert road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza.” 27 So he started out, and he met the treasurer of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under the Kandake, the queen of Ethiopia. The eunuch had gone to Jerusalem to worship,…

We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? This salvation, which…

Acts 29 We spent the last 37 weeks traveling through the book of Acts. It has been a joy and a journey for me and I’m sure for you as well. What I want to do this morning is highlight some key insights into the book and then I want to give you all the opportunity to speak up and out about how we can…

The Sanhedrin accused Stephen of disrespecting Abraham and the Temple. Stephen responded to the charge or blasphemy by bearing witness to God. God who intervened on behalf of his people, but, many remained stubborn in their disbelief. He spoke honorably of Abraham, the Prophets, and the Temple. Of Abraham…

Unstoppable Intro Stephen Shows us what living a Christlike life will look like. And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people. Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians,…

Offices: Two Opportunities: Many Key: Servant’s heart Ministry (6:1-7) Apostles Had Difficulty (vv. 1-2; Acts 5:41-42) Answer Was Deacons (vv. 3-7; Mark 1:35-39 ) Ministry (6:1-7) Apostles Had Difficulty (vv. 1-2; Acts 5:41-42) 1 And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there…

In Jesus' final instructions, he set the stage for what we are doing as believers. Hear what we are called to do as we follow God's plan in God's power as we surrender to his schedule.

Regarding soteriology: If God has everything determined, does it matter if I witness? 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.…

Addressed them as Brethren and fathers Brethren - relationship Fathers - respect for leadership Faith Abraham Not from act of circumcision God told Abraham to go where I will show you. by Faith Abraham went 7:2-3 2 And he said, “Hear me, brethren and fathers! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham…

Many Old Testament themes are repeated in the New Testament. Stephen is accused of blaspheming the Temple and the Mosaic Law - Stephen then summarizes OT history in order to expose their hypocrisy and wickedness. Two recurring themes stand out. The first is that God can never be tied down to one land…

Stephen's Martyrdom

Persecution Continues Last week we started looking at the first Christian Martyr, Stephen a Hellenistic believer. Growing church was a persecuted church (Act4:18-21, 5:40) Persecution began with being told to stop preaching! That did not work, so then came more threats and beatings, and well, that did…

Palm Sunday Foretold by the Prophets 9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble, and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. 22 The stone which the builders rejected…

Where do we start? 10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. 10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments; His praise endures forever. What do we tend to fear? The unknown…

In a Year Operation Mobilization stats… (from October 31, 2017 to November 1, 2018) In the top 50 World Watch List countries alone... 245 Million: Christians in the world experience high levels of persecution for their choice to follow Christ. 1 in 9 : Christians worldwide experience high levels of persecution…

Now Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and signs among the people. Opposition arose, however, from some members of the Freedmen’s Synagogue, composed of both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia and Asia, and they began to argue with Stephen. But they were unable…