Serving for Delayed Glory

What difference can you make? Do you ever ask yourself that? For me, I often find myself overwhelmed and paralyzed by the amount of need that I see. Just looking at our community, we have children who wake up and go to bed every day without being hugged, without feeling loved, and without believing they matter. We have teenagers and college students who live as though their decisions have no repercussions, and some of them this very day are contemplating whether or not they will take their own lives. We have moms trying to meet everyone else’s standard of what a good mother is and who feel so lonely that they don’t believe anyone would ever notice they’re gone until supper wasn’t served on time. We have dads who struggle with providing and delayed adolescence and a society that seems to resent them altogether. People are hungry, and people are addicted. People are lonely, and people are deceived. And, I look and think, “I’m supposed to do something. I’m supposed to help all of these things. I’m supposed to have answers and energy and organization that makes a difference.” But, too often, I find myself so disoriented by the sheer volume of needs that I’m left paralyzed and unsure of which direction I should go.

Maybe you can identify with me. And, if you’re like me, I think the reason that we often feel as though we are paralyzed by the sheer number of needs and tasks at hand is that we are trained to think in leaps and not steps. We’re trained to think it terms of immediate, noticeable impact. There’s even a part of us that wants to be the one that makes the greatest difference, and so we think of these huge leaps that would be necessary for something like that to take place. But, here’s what I’ve realized: God has joined me together with an unstoppable force — his church. And so, imagine what would happen if each one of us just took one step. Imagine what it would be like if each one of us just stepped up to the plate and took one step toward faithfulness and toward addressing the brokenness and the need everywhere. For some, you’d focus on children and others teenager and others moms and others dads and grandparents and singles and addicts and the depressed. And, if each one of us took one step, we’d all end up taking 300 to 350 steps! So often, we stand around waiting on someone to get it started, waiting on someone to get the ball rolling, but what if it was your one step that God used to catalyze hundreds of other people to do the same. This morning, we’re going to read about a time in which God did just that. We’re going to read about a time in which God took the first deacon in the church and made him the first martyr of the church.

God’s Word

Read ;

The First Deacons

6:3 “Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.” I understand the first part of chapter 6 to show us the prototype for the first deacons. A controversy had broken out among this fledgling new church, even as God was doing incredible and miraculous things among them. There were two primary groups that were represented: the Hellenist Jews and the Hebraic Jews. The Hellenist Jews were those who spoke Greek and were more integrated into the Greek culture, whereas the Hebraic Jews were those who spoke Hebrew and were more conservative in the Judaism. So, there’s a controversy that breaks out among them where those Hellenist Jews saw their widows as being neglected while the Hebraic widows were cared for. Apparently, there was some validity to the claim, and the apostles instruct the church to raise up from among them seven men that can serve and meet the needs of these widows. This allowed the needs to be met and at the same time it kept the apostles free to remain focused on the great work of praying and preaching the word.

A Man Full of God

V. 8 - “And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders among the people.” Though the apostles give the church the freedom to raise up the men as they see fit, they give three initial qualifications of that must be present in the men chosen. 1) They must be men of good repute, 2)full of the Spirit, and 3) full of wisdom. The first man that is listed is a man about whom we have far greater details than we do about the other six. It was a man named Stephen, the deacon that we have the most information about in the New Testament. It’s from Stephen that we can gain great insight into what it means to be a deacon and serve in the capacity of a deacon and in fact to honor Christ as a member of God’s church.

What stands out immediately above all else when we look at Stephen is that Stephen is a man who is full. Four different times, we are told that Stephen is full. In verse 3, we see that Stephen is ‘full of the Spirit and of wisdom.’ In verse 5, it says that he is ‘full of faith and the Holy Spirit.’ Verse 8 says that he is ‘full of grace and power,’ and verse 55 says again that he is ‘full of the Holy Spirit.’ That is, what stood out to the church about Stephen was not his career success or his social standing or his long history in the church. What stood out about Stephen was not that he was financially endowed or a brilliant philosopher. What stood out to his fellow church members about Stephen, what qualified him to serve as a deacon in the church was that Stephen was a man who was ‘full’ of God. Three different times it is stated that Stephen is ‘full of the Spirit.’ That is, Stephen didn’t operate by the force of his personality or by manipulating politics in the background. He didn’t find his power in his position or in the esteem of his friends. Stephen operated by the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling in him. And, because Stephen was ‘full of the Spirit’, the fruit of the Spirit described the ways that Stephen treated others and loved them. Because Stephen was so full of God, he was also full of wisdom and full of faith and full of grace and power. It was apparent to his church that Stephen would joyfully and faithfully care for the widows. It was apparent to his church that Stephen would have the wisdom to handle situations as they arose. It was apparent that Stephen would propel the church forward in the power of God to do all that God had called for them to do.

Jim Elliot was a man who was full of God. He was martyred as a missionary to Ecuador where he was working to share the gospel with a tribe that had never heard it before. After his death, with many calling him a hero and being astounded at his death, his wife Elizabeth wrote this about him: “Jim’s aim was to know God. His course: obedience—the only course that could lead to fulfillment of his aim. His end was what some would call an extraordinary death, although in facing death he had quietly pointed out that many have died because of obedience to God. He and the other men with whom he died were hailed as heroes and martyrs. I do not approve, nor would they have approved. Is the distinction between living for Christ and dying for Him, after all, so great? Is not the second the logical conclusion of the first? Furthermore, to live for God is to die daily, as the apostle Paul put it. It is to lose everything that we may gain Christ. It is in thus laying down our lives that we can find Him.”

The Couch or the Cross?

end was what some would call an extraordinary death, although in facing death he had quietly pointed out that many have died because of obedience to God. He and the other men with whom he died were hailed as heroes and martyrs. I do not approve, nor would they have approved. Is the distinction between living for Christ and dying for Him, after all, so great? Is not the second the logical conclusion of the first? Furthermore, to live for God is to die daily, as the apostle Paul put it. It is to lose everything that we may gain Christ. It is in thus laying down our lives that we can find Him.

Jim’s aim was to know God. His course: obedience—the only course that could lead to fulfillment of his aim. His end was what some would call an extraordinary death, although in facing death he had quietly pointed out that many have died because of obedience to God. He and the other men with whom he died were hailed as heroes and martyrs. I do not approve, nor would they have approved. Is the distinction between living for Christ and dying for Him, after all, so great? Is not the second the logical conclusion of the first? Furthermore, to live for God is to die daily, as the apostle Paul put it. It is to lose everything that we may gain Christ. It is in thus laying down our lives that we can find Him.

APPLICATION: Iron City, what we need are some men full of God! What we need are some women full of God! What we need are some teenagers full of God! There is an option that facing every one of us this morning. We can coast through our lives as ordinary as possible trying to raise our kids to be normal kids and trying to lead our family to be a normal family and trying to have our marriage as a normal marriage. Or, we can reject the version of normalcy that has been created to cushion us from eternity’s realities and to deceive us from real priorities. We can lay ourselves down on the couch of comfort, saying, “Lord, make my life as comfortable as possible.” Or, we can lay ourselves down on Jesus’ cross, and say, “Lord, make my life count at all costs.” That is, we can seek to be full of the world, or we can seek to be full of God because we can’t be both. Brothers and sisters, the Spirit has availed himself to you just as He was to Stephen. God has invited you to know him just as intimately and just as powerfully and just as wonderfully as Stephen did. Will you take him up on it? Chris, Jonathan as those being ordained into the deacon ministry this morning, it is your responsibility before God and his church to set the pace for us. It is your responsibility to take the baton that has passed down to you by your deacon forefather, Stephen, and to run as hard after God as you can go.

APPLICATION: Iron City, what we need are some men full of God! What we need are some women full of God! What we need are some teenagers full of God!

Platt, D. (2006). Spirit-Filled Passion. In David Platt Sermon Archive (p. 119). Birmingham, AL: David Platt.

Opposition Arises

Chris, Jonathan as those being ordained into the deacon ministry this morning, it is your responsibility before God and his church to set the pace for us. It is your responsibility to take the baton that has passed down to you by your deacon forefather, Stephen, and to run as hard after God as you can go.

V. 9 - “Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue…rose up and disputed Stephen” Next, we see that Stephen served in the face of great opposition. Even as a man who was full of God and full of the Spirit and living by faith, Stephen was not going to prosper in his earthly life. In fact, Stephen was serving to the ends of his own demise. We see Stephen serving in the face of great opposition, and, it doesn’t take long to realize that this isn’t going to end well for him. Just think of the advantages that Stephen’s opposition had over him. They outranked him. It starts with the elders of the synagogue and then it spreads to the very Sanhedrin itself. This would be like one of us having congress standing against us. Not only did they outrank him, but they outnumbered him. It was a crowd against Stephen. You have a synagogue of people, then a crowd of people, and ultimately the Sanhedrin of some 71 judges stood against him. What could a single man do? And, perhaps harder to overcome than all of that, was that Stephen’s opposition was ethically unhindered. They didn’t need legitimate charges to level at Stephen. They could make them up. They didn’t need real witnesses to Stephen’s alleged crimes. They could produce plenty of pretenders. They didn’t need a real trial. They could just react any way that they felt like it. These men instigated the crowds and produced false witnesses in a way that was so overwhelming and so comprehensive that it’s quite astounding. They presented themselves as protectors of the Law all while purposely and maliciously violating the Law’s most basic tenants.

The Gates of Hell Will Fight Back

APPLICATION: Opposition will always arise against God’s servants. If you attempt to take down the gates of hell, don’t be surprised when hell attempts to take you down. Jesus said that ‘gates of hell will not prevail against us.’ And, there is two promises in those words, not one. Jesus promises his disciples that the gates of hell will fight back, and Jesus promises that they won’t win. When you become a gospel threat, you become a prime target for the attacks of Satan. The will of God is not a safe place to be in a broken world. You cannot step to the front lines of this spiritual war and not expect to have bullets wizzing past your head and shrapnel hitting you from all sides.

Not Oppression, but Opportunity

“But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking” What’s apparent about Stephen was that he frightened his opponents. Just imagine what this was like for the Jewish establishment. They believed that Jesus was contained. They’ve cut the head off of the snake, and now they only have to manage the news story. This miracle-working madman is finally put to rest. When all of a sudden, people that sound just like him, live just like him, and perform miracles just like him begin to pop up everywhere. The wonders that Stephen was performing was proof that they had a bigger problem than they thought they had. Being better educated and more highly ranked, they rise up to squash this troublemaker Stephen, which obviously can’t be as difficult as their attempts to confuse Jesus were. Except that Stephen has Jesus’ Spirit within him, and Stephen speaks with Jesus’ authority and with Jesus’ wisdom and with Jesus’ courage. Even as they try to raise up false witnesses against him, Stephen so radiates with the Spirit of God that his face becomes like Moses’ on Sinai, and it glows like the face of an angel, which is always a terrifying sight for those around.

It would be easy for us to see Stephen’s persecution is oppression for God’s people. But, Stephen’s persecution and warfare was not oppression, and your persecution and warfare are not oppression; instead, it’s an opportunity. Opposition is an opportunity to demonstrate a strength that is greater than your strength, a courage that is greater than your courage, and a peace that is without understanding. Opposition doesn’t destroy faith; it reveals it. Opposition is the soil in which the Spirit’s power blooms in your life.

Hell Should Be Afraid

APPLICATION: Hell is going to fight back. Hell is going to seek to tear you apart and your family apart. Hell may try to ruin your reputation or raise Judas up in your camp. Hell is going to try to intimidate you away from teaching our children and discipling our moms and leading our men. Hell hopes to crush the dreams you have of serving on the mission field. But, Christian, you shouldn’t be afraid of hell; hell should be afraid of you. The oppression that you experience, the opposition that you face is nothing more than an opportunity to live beyond your strength and beyond your courage and beyond your wisdom. Your opposition is the Spirit’s opportunity to put on full display the power and glory of God through you. Don’t back down, even when it looks like your backed into a corner. Don’t retreat, even when defeat seems imminent. Because your faith isn’t in you! Your hope isn’t in you! Your deliverance isn’t in you! It’s the Spirit in you. Don’t back down. Lean in! Lean into the Holy Spirit so that He might be glorified.

APPLICATION: Chris, Jonathan, if you aim to serve well, if you aim to serve with all of your heart, you will encounter the most severe spiritual warfare of your life. Don’t be surprised when you face a dizzying opposition. Don’t back down. Lean in.

Washing Feet, not Enjoying Thrones

“Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him” When Stephen is asked about the charges against him, he flips the trial so that it’s not about him, but rather about his accusers. They want to show him a blasphemer, but Stephen’s speech shows that they, in denial of the Christ of the Scriptures, are in fact that ones guilty of blasphemy. And, he has a vision. He looks up, and there is Jesus exactly where He said that He would be at the right hand of the Father. Except, unlike anywhere else we see in Scripture, He is not seated upon his mercy seat; He is standing. Jesus is standing as the Judge, as the Son of Man (Daniel 7) who rules over the nations. He’s standing in support of Stephen, and He’s standing in judgement of those who seek to destroy him. Unable to contain himself, Stephen cries out what he sees and enrages his accusers. They put their hands over their ears as to not hear this blasphemy any more, and they begin to throw rocks at him so that he might die. But, brothers and sisters, this opportunity is not lost on Stephen. He knows what’s happening. He’s joining Jesus on the cross. And so, he says what Jesus says, “Receive my spirit,” and he prays what Jesus prays, “Lord forgive them for that don’t know what they do. And, he dies.

For many of us, as heroic as this is, we might be tempted to wonder why God didn’t spare Stephen. This seems to work against so much of what we’ve come to expect from God under the Old Covenant, doesn’t it? Under the Old Covenant, God had told his people that if they will devote themselves to him, if they will him singularly with all of their hearts and with all of their minds and with all of their souls, that it would go well with them. And, we’re accustomed to our heroes, even with their bumps and bruises coming out on top. We’re used to Noah coming out of the flood and David slaying the giant and Joseph getting poetic justice with his brothers. We find that Jonah is spit up by the fish and Daniel sleeps with lions and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego survive the fiery furnace. But, the New Covenant is about something greater than that. It’s about a delayed but perfect prosperity. Because in the New Covenant, all of our heroes die. And, it makes sense because we’re following Jesus. The backdrop of the New Testament is a covenant that is inaugurated by the Son of God giving up his life, giving up immediate and temporary prosperity for the sake of a cross. We’re following Jesus, and Jesus was slain so that the future might be secured. He was slain so that the resurrection might come, and we might be delivered. And so, the pattern of the New Covenant is not the ascending of thrones, but the washing of feet. The pattern of the New Covenant is service and sacrifice. The pattern of the New Covenant is the cross. The pattern of the New Covenant is to be killed with rocks by the very people that you wish to reach, and praying for them as they seek to kill you.

Delayed Glory

APPLICATION: Stephen’s life was a life of delayed glory. And, as he peered through the floor of heaven, there was not a shred of regret as he saw the risen Christ standing at the right side of his Father, exactly where He said that He would be. The risen Christ had stood for him, confirming that his day of glory was certainly approaching. And, you can imagine, as painful as it was, as heart-breaking as it was, Stephen was not lonely. Christ was there. Stephen was not defeated, for Christ was there. It was well with his soul. It was well with him forever. Deacons set the pace for delayed glory. Service now, glory later. Sacrifice now, indulgence later. Cross now, resurrection later.

One Man Initializes Missions

8:2 - “they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria” And, God used Stephen, one man, one deacon as the catalyst for his missions enterprise. Because of what happened to him, comfortable, complacent Christians were scattered all across the known world to reach the world for Christ. Stephen’s death was used by God to bring many into life. Surely, he must’ve wondered, “What can I do?” But, God blessed this one man’s obedience so that thousands might be transformed. Will you take that step today? Will you be obedient today?

Related Media

Related Sermons