The Joy of The Resurrection

He is Risen! The most joys words that we can speak. There are three days in the year that I always look forward to and it has everything to do with the celebration of the meaning behind those days. Of course Christmas is one of those days, it is be far one of the brights and joys days in the middle of the dark cold months. Then there is the darkest day of the year, which we just observed on Friday night. It is the darkest day because it is the day Son of God had to die for the sins of the World and as we saw on Friday night, for three hours Jesus hung on the cross in darkness, the sins of the world being poured down on His body. The joy in this darkness is the fact that Jesus took it all, all of our sins. The joy in this is also knowing that this morning He has risen. We can rejoice immensely in the fact that Jesus has risen and sadly some only think of Easter as a day to rejoice in the Resurrection when the truth is if we have trust in Christ as Lord and Savior we can celebrate the Joys of His Resurrection every day and in fact we do so every Sunday.

I know what your thinking, 'how can I rejoice in His resurrection everyday, you don't know what I am dealing with. You don't know what is going on in my life.' It's easy for you to say rejoice in the resurrection but if you only knew what how people treated me or how I feel each morning. You can' possibly understand how hard it is for me to rejoice in the Resurrection.' Well you're right if you think I can't possibly know how you feel and what can keep you from rejoicing in the resurrection. So I am not going to venture to go there myself, instead we are going to look at the Joys of the Resurrection through the eyes of an amazing Godly man in Scripture. We are not going to a gospel this morning to find out about having joy in the resurrection we are instead going to continue our study of the book of Acts and we are going to look at the very first martyr of Christendom, Stephen. And we are going to see that no matter what you are going through in this life it pales in comparison to what Stephen endured but boy did he have JOY. Turn with me please to Acts 7:54-60,

Acts 7:54-60

As we look at this text we will see the Joys of the Resurrection.

The Joys of the Resurrection

Let me set the scene for you. In Acts the gospel message has been spreading like wildfire. Since Jesus' crucifixion, resurrection and ascension, the Holy Spirit has been moving through the apostles and God has been adding to the church believers in mass quantities. The gospel message has spread throughout all of Jerusalem, Israel's capital and center of worship and it has stirred up the religious leaders. They are at a boiling point and this morning we will see them explode. This scene we are entering right now is a trial. This is a trial, the charge is blasphemy, the defendant is a man named Stephen. Those who preside over the case are 71 men, made up of religious leaders, scribes, (lawyers) and well respected elders of the community. Stephen is asked in verse 1 if the charges are so and instead of providing a yes or no answer Stephen defends himself through the looking at Israel's history. His defence is not about himself but about God and who God is and what God has done. Stephen as we saw last week not only clearly defended God, but also pointed out that the man who sit and judge him are the true blasphemers of the law of God and God's temple. He has placed the blame on them as the One who have rejected God and God Messiah, Jesus Christ, and even more then that they murdered Jesus Christ the Righteous One. He points out the truth of who Jesus is and their sin and as we see in verse 54 these men are fools. Verse 54 reads, 'Now when they heard this they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him.' They were cut to the quick, another way to say it is, they 'were sawn in two.' To say they were enraged is an understatement. Their hearts were not just pierced by the truth it was cut open and laid bare. Their sin and their hypocrisy was being called out and they didn't like it. Proverbs says that if a person doesn't like discipline he is a fool and here we find the leaders of the Jewish religious system being fools and despising God instruction to them.

So here we find Stephen standing before these been who are seething and who have steam pumping out of their ears like a coal burning factory and all because of the truth that Stephen spoke. Stephen is in a very difficult situation, you want to measure hardship here is his hardship, you think you have it rough, he has it very rough and guess what he does. He doesn't compromise he doesn't back petal, he sees the steam, he notices the anger but still Stephen's focus isn't on the situation or even their anger. Let's look at the next verse shall we. Verse 55, 'But being full of the Holy Spirit,' 'But being full of the Holy Spirit. Here we have it the first cause for our joy doesn't lie in our circumstances but in the Holy Spirit.

We need to have Joy in the Spirit.

Joy in the Spirit

Notice how the text says that Stephen is full of the Holy Spirit. What this means is the One who was controlling Stephen was the Holy Spirit. To have true deep joy in the resurrection which carries over into all of life no matter what your hardship is, is to let go of control. You are not in control of anything. You are not in control of your situation and you never will be. You are not in control of what other people say, what other people think or how people will react. Since you have no control and if you know Christ as your Savior let the Holy Spirit be the One who is in control.

Stephen is a stark contrast to the religious leaders who sit in judgment over him. They are lost in the control of their own foolishness, they are being controlled by their emotions. This is exactly what happens when you try to control things yourself, this is what happens when you hear the truth of God and just because you don't agree you decide not to listen. You want to loose control of a situation then put yourself in the drivers seat and you will loose control every time. Now when you look at your situation and you allow the Holy Spirit who resides within you to be in control then even it all looks bleak you will have joy.

we see this contrast spelled out quite well.

Galatians 5:19–23 NASB95

19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21 envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Paul provides two lists here the first one is in verses 19-21, look at this list with me. 19"Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, drunkeness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. People who fall under this list are people who are controlled by their sin. They are not under the control of the Spirit of God. Let me tell you something you are either under the control of the Holy Spirit or you are under the control of Satan. Everything that is in this list here is all the things that Satan dangles in front of our face so that we turn away from God, so we turn away from the Spirit. Each one of these things on this list leads to despair and it is all the mark of those who are destined to be separated from God for all eternity.

When we think we are in control we really are not, and when we are being controlled by the Spirit, when we are filled with the Spirit, this is what we look like. Verses 22-23, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, 'see that, see what is second on the list' joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law." The true fruit of the Spirit is not just external performances the come from the inside out. Genuine conversion lends itself to a love for God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit and a genuine love for God means we have a genuine love for His Word. You can't fake that, you can't fake what is in your heart. Some people think they can and then they are placed in a situation where what they really believe comes out. Paul continues here and I love how these three verses here, 24 "Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. 26 Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another." If the Spirit is in control of your life then have joy, rejoice because the joy that is expressed is a joy that isn't coming from you, it comes from the Spirit of God.

Jesus was crucified and if you belong to Him then your flesh, and all of the control your flesh wants has been nailed to the cross. It is dead, stop falling to the control of the flesh and submit to the control of the Spirit. Jesus told His disciples if you are going to follow after Jesus you must deny yourself take up your cross, daily and follow Him. Having joy in the Spirit is all about humility and self-denial.

James the half brother of our Lord says this about joy in difficult circumstances,

James 1:2–3 NASB95

2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.

See your difficult situation if you are being controlled by the Spirit should leave you in despair but the situation is their to strengthen your faith, and for producing endurance. I love to work out, it is enjoyable for me anyway. And it is at times very difficult putting up those last few reps because the weight begins to feel heavy and there are times that I just give up, then there are those times that I take a deep breath pause for just a second and give it one last push. When the weight hits the rack you feel the strain on your muscles and you are trying to catch your breath but when it is all said and done when your moving to the next exercise there is a sense of joy, not just because you accomplished what you set out to do but because you endured and you know the next time because of that endurance you will be able to put up more weight and do one more set. If people who work out and people who train for sports push for endurance and can rejoice in that then how much more can we rejoice when we are in the midst of trials and when we come out in the end our walk is stronger and our faith is deeper. This only happens when we have joy in the Spirit, and this only happens when we submit to His control over our lives.

Stephen had this. Stephen stood before this court, before these angry men with steam pouring out of their ears and the veins on their heads about to pop and he is completely at peace and filled with the Holy Spirit and there is joy on his heart.

The Holy Spirit controlling Stephen turned Stephen's eyes upward. There was a joy in the Spirit and as Stephen looks upward we see there is also a joy in God's Glory

Joy in God's Glory

As we continue in verse 55 we read, "he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God." Stephen stood before his accusers and as he stands there being condemned by them in their hearts Stephen looks into the sky, heaven as Luke rights here. And what does he see but the glory of God. He is staring at the face of God, the shining radiance that makes up who God is. Luke in his gospel by the same name writes this,

Luke 2:9 NASB95

9 And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.

This is the visit of the angel to announce the birth of Jesus Christ and what shines around the angel and the shepherds, the glory of God. In Acts 9 we find that Saul who is better known as Paul is riding on a horse to the town of damascus with a letter in his hand that gives him the power to arrest, beat and drag Christians back to Jerusalem, he is through off his horse and blinded. Do you know what blinds him, it is the glory of God. Here we have Stephen standing and staring straight at the glory of God. He is staring with Joy. You know how I know he is staring with Joy.

Look with me at verse 56, "And he said, 'Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.'' Stephen couldn't contain himself, he didn't hold back what He saw was incredible and he told those who were sitting in judgement against him exactly what he saw. When you have a joy that is focused on the glory of God instead of the dread of man you can't contain what God is doing and who God is. Stephen was at that moment in his human body the closest any man could be to God. He was staring at God without being blinded. This is something the religious leaders of his day couldn't see, because the darkness was overtaking them but Stephen, he was so consumed by the glory of God as he walked the earth that as we saw in Acts 6:15,

Acts 6:15 NASB95

15 And fixing their gaze on him, all who were sitting in the Council saw his face like the face of an angel.

"And fixing their gaze on him, all who were sitting in the Council saw his face like the face of an angel." The word there for gaze is the exact same word that is used in verse 55, it is the idea you can't take your eyes off it. The religious leaders couldn't take their eyes off Stephen because their was something different about Stephen and Stephen can't takes his eyes off God because the radiance of God is so amazing and so incredible that it filled him with Joy. This is what we long for to be in God's presence and to be in His presence is to be in the presence of His glory for all eternity. John the apostle when he was on the Island of Patmos in exile saw this glorious vision, it was a revelation of Jesus Christ to John of the things to come and when God whips the sin from this earth when He recreates it and we are in the new heavens and the new earth. We find there will be one source of light.

Revelation 21:23 NASB95

23 And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb.

This is a reason to rejoice because the death burial and resurrection made it possible for us to be able to see the glory of God and know God. It is through Jesus Christ that we can now come to His glory and it is through Jesus Christ that we can even understand God's glory. Without knowing Jesus God's glory is not a joy but will bring deep fear, because knowing Jesus as Lord and Savior and trusting that He is the Son of God who died on the cross to take away your sins and who was raised from the dead on the third day and who is seated at the right hand of God in victory is the only way we can see God's glory with joy. Without knowing Jesus who paid the penalty for our sins seeing God's glory will only strike fear in your heart. Knowing Jesus makes all the difference in the world and knowing Jesus changes your perspective on life and on death.

This brings me to the third joy of the Resurrection, and the third joy is in the Judge.

Joy in the Judge

The rest of verse 55 says, "and Jesus standing at the right hand of God;" Jesus was standing at the right hand of God. Normally the Scripture teaches that Jesus is sitting on the throne so why here is He standing. The standing here is a sign of authority. He stands for two reasons. One is for Stephen, Stephen is being welcomed into the presence of God Himself and it is by Jesus' authority that Stephen can enter into God's presence. The second reason for Jesus standing in authority is as the judge of those who are condemning Stephen. Stephen by the power of the Holy Spirit has just provided a defence not so much of himself but has defended God and what God has done through out history. He has demonstrated through the Scripture that the religious leaders exalt but don't practice. Stephen has pointed out that they are all heartless murders who have rejected God and have rejected the Righteous One, the One God sent to be their Deliverer and the truth has cut them to the heart, sawn them in two. Jesus stands in judgment against them because they refuse to repent, the refuse to listen to truth and as fools follow after the folly of the world and in so doing follow after Satan who is the Prince of the power of the air, meaning he has limited rule on earth.

Jesus stands in judgment against those who are presiding over this case against Stephen. Yet Stephen stands there with Joy because Jesus is not condemning Stephen but defending Stephen against these horrible accusations. Listen Jesus stands as Judge and King. Now the judge has the power to pass sentence. If you were to stand before a judge today in a court of law here in America the judge listens to all the evidence takes in the crime you have been accused of and pass a judgment that fits the crime. Now lets say you are standing before the judge on trial for murder. The judge can sentence you to either life in prison or he can sentence you to death. What if you said to the judge, I know what I did was wrong, I am sorry I committed murder. I took a life, and then turn to the family and told the family you are sorry and asked them to forgive you, even though you don't deserve it. What would the judge do? He would still through you in jail. Now, let's say you showed true remorse and turned to the judge and asked and pleaded for forgiveness. Let's say the judge looked at you and said to you I see your heart and I believe you, the problem is a crime has been committed and someone must pay for that crime. And the judge steps down from his bench hands over his robe to the bailiff and walks up to you and says I will take your place. You are free to go. What would you do? That is exactly what Jesus has done for us. He has taken our sentence on the cross and now He stands as our Judge. No human judge would ever do that, you know why because no human judge is perfect, righteous and holy but Jesus is. And He is now standing as Stephen stares up to heaven as judge, and defendant. HE is the Judge who is saying to Stephen, I have taken your place now come be with me. And He is the Judge who turns to Stephens accusers and says you have no part in Me.

Stephen see the Judge and Stephen rejoices in Him. He can't contain the joy and he is the only one in the book of Acts who says that he sees the Son of Man standing at God's right hand. This, it is this that cause the religious leaders and the witnesses to explode. In the same way Stephen can't contain his joy those religious leaders can't contain their disdain for Stephen and for Jesus and for God's Glory. I love what how verse 57 puts this, verse 57 reads, "But they cried with a loud voice, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one impulse.'" I can just picture it covering their ears and crying out this is because they didn't want to hear the blasphemy of what Stephen had to say. But I can picture it in my mind, it is like little children who don't want to hear what someone has to say. They put their fingers in their ears and start I can't hear you la-la-la-la-la-la-la. Sadly this is an outward expression of what is going on Spiritually within their hearts. They can't hear the truth. How sad. And those who sat in judgment over Stephen all rose to pass sentence on Stephen, they all rushed him with one impulse, the only thing they had on their mind was death for him. The became a mob.

And as we see in verse 58, "When they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and the witnesses laid their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul." They stoned Stephen to death. Their anger consumed them to the point that they didn't even go through their own legal proceeding, because in order to put someone to death that had to have at least one more trial and they had to get permission from the Roman government to kill someone. They couldn't do it they drove Stephen out of the city and killed him.

Still Stephen had joy, he didn't blame those who were stoning them and say, 'oh why are you doing this to me.' He didn't think 'oh what if I had said something different.' He didn't focus on the hardship he was going through at that very moment in the same way we do. No there were two things on his mind which were driven by this inexplicable joy, this joy we have such a hard time comprehending. It is a joy that is rooted in who He trusts, and a joy that he knows is about to culminate with being in the presence of the Glory of God because of the Love of Christ on the Cross and the resurrection and ascension of Jesus, the King and Judge who is at this very moment standing ready to welcome Stephen home. Stephen calls out in the same fashion as Jesus did on the cross as he is dieing "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!" He is going home. Paul says absent from the body present with the Lord and that is were Stephen sees himself. And here is what the joy of the resurrection also does for us. It cause us to have a forgiving heart. Look at verse 60, "Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" He is being stoned to death with joy in his heart and he is asking in his dieing breath for the Lord who is the Judge of the World the Judge of those who are killing him right then and there, forgive them. This is a man who is being controlled by the Holy Spirit, this is a man who is focused on the glory of God, this is a man who understand and trust in Jesus as the Son of God, who is Judge and King. This is a man who's joy is in the resurrection. The end of verse 60 says, 'Having said this , he fell asleep.' This is how the New Testament speaks of those who die knowing Jesus as Lord and Savior. Their bodies go to sleep, because their spirit goes to be with the Lord. They also know that on the day when Jesus comes back to judge the final judgment when He judges the living and the dead, Stephen knows just as Peter, James, John, and all the apostles and disciples of this first century church knew, their bodies would one day be resurrected.

Stephen when through the most difficult hardship there is, he died for speaking the truth. Still he died with joy and he faced this difficulty with joy. He had joy because he denied himself and allowed the Spirit to be in control, he had joy because he was focused on the glory of God, and He had joy because he trusted in the Judge who took his place in his death sentence. So yeah I might not understand what your going through and how difficult your situation is but as we just saw in this text if you don't have joy in the situation then it is not because the situation is difficult it is because your focus is on the situation not on the Holy Spirit, or God the Father or Jesus Christ. If Stephen could have joy in the midst of having stones heaved on him and if he could have a heart of forgiveness that is rooted in this joy then why do you think your situation is any worse and why do you think you deserve to wallow in self pity. If Jesus is your joy rejoice in Him, if He is not your joy why not. If you want Him as your Joy, then turn away from the things of this world, turn away from the empty desires and turn to Him and confess your sin to Him and submit to the control of His Spirit.

This expression is regularly used in the New Testament with reference to the dying of believers. By the use of this very word for death the resurrection is implied. But only the body falls asleep; the soul does not sleep but is with the Lord, awaiting the awakening of the body.

R. C. H. Lenski, The Interpretation of the Acts of the Apostles (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Publishing House, 1961), 310.