Lectio Divina

Lectio Divina - What is the Bible for?

Pray

Acts 7 ESV

And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” And Stephen said: “Brothers and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran, and said to him, ‘Go out from your land and from your kindred and go into the land that I will show you.’ Then he went out from the land of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran. And after his father died, God removed him from there into this land in which you are now living. Yet he gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot’s length, but promised to give it to him as a possession and to his offspring after him, though he had no child. And God spoke to this effect—that his offspring would be sojourners in a land belonging to others, who would enslave them and afflict them four hundred years. ‘But I will judge the nation that they serve,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and worship me in this place.’ And he gave him the covenant of circumcision. And so Abraham became the father of Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs. “And the patriarchs, jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt; but God was with him and rescued him out of all his afflictions and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his household. Now there came a famine throughout all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction, and our fathers could find no food. But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent out our fathers on their first visit. And on the second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family became known to Pharaoh. And Joseph sent and summoned Jacob his father and all his kindred, seventy-five persons in all. And Jacob went down into Egypt, and he died, he and our fathers, and they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of silver from the sons of Hamor in Shechem. “But as the time of the promise drew near, which God had granted to Abraham, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt until there arose over Egypt another king who did not know Joseph. He dealt shrewdly with our race and forced our fathers to expose their infants, so that they would not be kept alive. At this time Moses was born; and he was beautiful in God’s sight. And he was brought up for three months in his father’s house, and when he was exposed, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was mighty in his words and deeds. “When he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brothers, the children of Israel. And seeing one of them being wronged, he defended the oppressed man and avenged him by striking down the Egyptian. He supposed that his brothers would understand that God was giving them salvation by his hand, but they did not understand. And on the following day he appeared to them as they were quarreling and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers. Why do you wrong each other?’ But the man who was wronging his neighbor thrust him aside, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’ At this retort Moses fled and became an exile in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons. “Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and as he drew near to look, there came the voice of the Lord: ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and did not dare to look. Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.’ “This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’ This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. He received living oracles to give to us. Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, and in their hearts they turned to Egypt, saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who led us out from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ And they made a calf in those days, and offered a sacrifice to the idol and were rejoicing in the works of their hands. But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: “ ‘Did you bring to me slain beasts and sacrifices, during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? You took up the tent of Moloch and the star of your god Rephan, the images that you made to worship; and I will send you into exile beyond Babylon.’ “Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness, just as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it, according to the pattern that he had seen. Our fathers in turn brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our fathers. So it was until the days of David, who found favor in the sight of God and asked to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. But it was Solomon who built a house for him. Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands, as the prophet says, “ ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord, or what is the place of my rest? Did not my hand make all these things?’ “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it.” Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

[picofstephen]

[things that come to my mind to chew on...end with what am I doing with my life?]

This man had only a moment in the sun, like us all, and he lived it for Christ. He wasn’t seeing how many likes his last post bragging about his kids, or spouse, or vacation, or “current situation.” He wasn’t checking to see what his favorite celebs were doing or how his portfolio was padding his retirement. He wasn’t complaining about his favorite show, or how there is just nothing to watch on TV anymore, or about politics, or about how much the kids are ruining the world. HE WAS LIVING FOR CHRIST! NOT WASTING THE VERY LIFE THAT GOD HAD GIVEN HIM TO LIVE!

So what are we doing?

Are we living our life? Are we doing the best possible thing with the best possible gift you can have - that is life and salvation. Are our moments ones that God would look at and be proud?

Just think about it. When we occupy our heart space and our lives with status updates and superficiality, what must our God think? When we lie to everyone - including ourselves - what is God’s reaction? Is that the grateful response of someone who has been saved from death, and more importantly, a life lived apart from God?

What are we doing, when our hate for someone overcomes our capacity to love them enough to show them Christ? What are we living for when EVERYTHING we share with the world has to do with our kids, our vacations, or any other mundane and personal thing? I mean, church, we have the ability to reach the ENTIRE WORLD with the message of Christ! With His love! With His mercy! With His Grace! And we use that power and that ability to brag about our lives or our point of view.

What are we thinking?

We are the vehicle intended to be used to reach this world. We are the chosen servants. And everything we say or do shows this world - and here this clearly - EVERYTHING WE SAY AND DO SHOWS GOD WHAT WE THINK OF HIM. And what we think of Him, will determine what this world thinks of Him.

Matthew 12:34 ESV

You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

And if He is truly living in you, you will reflect that into this world.

And if He is truly living in you, you will reflect that into this world.

This past week reminded me of our need to put down the phones, put away social media, and turn off the TVs even more than ever. And I want to close with that thought in the hopes of shedding more light on what I have been getting at.

This past week, on retreat with the youth, I got to see some great moments, and some not so great ones. But the one that I will never forget happened every day we did something. You see, when we took the youth out to do zip lines, or to Grandfather Mountain, or Linville caverns and falls, everywhere we went I saw their faces, not their phones. I saw excitement. I saw wonder. I saw amazement at the God of creation. And more than that, I saw growth. Young people afraid of bridges, or zip lines, or sitting on the side of the mountain were given a chance - not with pressure or words - but with persistent presence and love; they were given a chance to join the others where they were so that they could experience life too. And with time they did. They would inch closer to the edge. They would try a new experience. When they were not only allowed, but encouraged and even more importantly - WHEN THOSE WHO WERE LEADING DIDN’T FIND VALUE IN THE MOMENTS WE WERE GIVEN BY LOOKING AT THEIR PHONES, NEITHER DID THE YOUTH!

No, they found value in what those leading, and those around them found value in. They filled their hearts with that stuff, and out of that stuff came an abundance of other experiences.

Out of the abundance of our hearts, the mouth speaks. Out of what we love and value the most, come forth our actions. And church, FROM OUR ACTIONS COME THE VALUE AND VALUES OF THOSE WHO ARE AROUND US! AND IF WE VALUE OUR PHONES, SOCIAL MEDIA, TV, OR ANYTHING ELSE MORE THAN GOD AND THE LIFE HE INTENDS US TO LIVE, WE ARE TEACHING THEM TO DO THE SAME! AND THAT DOESN’T JUST HAVE FUTURE IMPLICATIONS! WHEN WE LIVE OUR LIVES FOR GOD - WHEN WE DROP THOSE STONES THAT WE WOULD SLING AT THE WORLD JUST AS THE JEWISH PEOPLE SLUNG THEM AT STEPHEN - WHEN WE FIND GOD IN EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE AND SHOW THOSE AROUND US THE WAY TO DO IT, WE CHANGE EVERYTHING! WE THEN LEAVE OUR MARK ON THE WORLD FOR CHRIST! WE DO OUR PART! WE BECOME A PART OF THE SOLUTION, AND NO LONGER REMAIN A PART OF THE PROBLEM!

[will you join in our crusade..]

That is the call of Stephen to us. Will you join in that crusade? Who will be strong and stand with me? You see, beyond the obstacles and the obsessions of our possessions, there is a world that is longing to see this Christ that has changed us. And if you just drop all those other things that are filling your hearts; drop your stones, your fears, your doubts, you will hear the song that they are singing. The song of creation that calls out to us to become what God has always intended for us to be.

Invitation - [surrendering]