Uncontainable hope

Uncontainable Hope Acts 7:54–8:17 (NIV84) 54 When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. 55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, 58 dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep. 1 And Saul was there, giving approval to his death. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2 Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3 But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison. 4 Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. 5 Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there. 6 When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said. 7 With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city. 9 Now for some time a man named Simon had practised sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, 10 and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is the divine power known as the Great Power.” 11 They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his magic. 12 But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptised, both men and women. 13 Simon himself believed and was baptised. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw. 14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. 15 When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they had simply been baptised into the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. Friends, this morning we listened to a well-known portion of Scripture. It contains the response of people to the Gospel of Salvation. At the beginning of Acts, Luke shares with us Jesus’ final earthly words to his disciples: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8) The Christian church started on the day of Pentecost, within a Jewish context. On that day, Peter preached a powerful message to his Jewish audience. The climax of his message was in Acts 2:36: ‘Therefore let all the house of Israel know beyond a doubt that God has made this Jesus whom you crucified both Lord and Christ.’ The focus of the first sermon of the early church was on the person of Jesus Christ. Peter’s audience was Jewish people, who knew the Scriptures. It was therefore natural for him to explain what happened based on Old Testament passages that the Jews accepted as God’s word. However, it had to be clear in the mind of all those who heard him that Jesus Christ was glorified by God. All the arguments in Peter’s message were in support of that fact. The Jewish leaders did not accept that Jesus is the long-expected Messiah message of the early church. They responded first by ordering the apostles not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus (Acts 4:18). Notwithstanding their order, the disciples continued to teach about Jesus. The Jewish leaders, therefore, laid hands on the apostles and put them in a public jail (Acts 5:18). The disciples responded by telling them that they had no intention to stop speaking about the Christ. This called for a third kind of response from the Jewish leaders: They summoned the apostles and had them beaten. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus and released them (Acts 5:40). The fourth and final step went beyond speaking, imprisoning, and beating. The Jewish Council wasn’t happy with Stephen’s witnessing, so they rounded him up and demanded from him to explain his actions. But Stephen’s defence before the Council stung his listeners. As he preached his bold defence, Stephen must have known that he was speaking his own death sentence. The members of the Council would not tolerate having their evil motives exposed. Stephen spoke bluntly about the Jewish leaders’ guilt. Hard-hearted and blinded by sin, they would not tolerate Stephen’s words, so they dragged him out and killed him. What Stephen said didn’t appeal to them. It caused them severe discomfort. They covered their ears at Stephen’s words (Acts 7:57). Yes, it was a blow right to the heart. So, when they heard it, they gnashed their teeth against him. Stephen was stoned to death (Acts 7:54–60). However, the outreach of the church might never have reached beyond Jerusalem if it had not been for Stephen’s death and the intensifying persecution it precipitated. As they were in the process of stoning Stephen, he made two fascinating statements, both reminiscent of Christ’s words on the cross. The first, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit,” is similar to Christ’s final words in Luke 23:46. The second is a word of forgiveness: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” Stephen had obviously learned from his Master some essential lessons about how to live and how to die. So, Luke makes it clear that Stephen was not speaking out of spite. His manner was not one of cold indifference or harsh judgment. While being stoned to death, Stephen lovingly prayed for the forgiveness of his enemies! Facing death, Stephen prayed for his persecutors, asking that God “not hold this sin against them” (Acts 7:60). This is a powerful reminder of the truth that when we confront others with the fact of their sin, we must be motivated solely by a compassionate desire to see them right with God. Believers were glad to suffer as Jesus had suffered because that meant they were counted worthy (Acts 5:41). Stephen was ready to suffer like Jesus, even to the point of asking forgiveness for his murderers. Such a forgiving response comes only from the Holy Spirit. The Spirit can also help us respond as Stephen did—with love for our enemies (Luke 6:27). We must show Christ’s forgiveness, even when we are criticised and maligned for our faith. Nevertheless, this persecution that followed Stephen’s death caused many disciples to flee from Jerusalem. All except the apostles were forced to scatter throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria … those who had been forced to scatter went around proclaiming the good news of the word’ (Acts 8:1, 4). So often we interpret this negatively. From a human perspective, we want so think that Stephen might’ve died prematurely. He was so gifted, he had so much still to offer—yet his life was snuffed out after preaching one short sermon. A waste? Not really. Luke tells us about a young man named Saul, who stood in the crowd. Now, consider this: Saul not only was exposed to the supernatural quality of Stephen’s life, but he was also one of the “targets” of Stephen’s dying prayer for the salvation of his accusers. In short, Stephen may not have had a long ministry, but he had a strategic one. He played a vital part in the conversion of Saul, who became the great apostle who shook the world for Christ. Don’t minimise the kind of impact you can have. We never know how God will use our seemingly small and insignificant actions to bring glory to himself. Friends, Luke wants us to see that Stephen’s death was not in vain. Below are some of the events that were by-products of the persecution that began with Stephen’s martyrdom. 1. Philip’s evangelistic tour (8:4–40) 2. Paul’s (Saul’s) conversion (9:1–30) 3. Peter’s missionary tour (9:32–11:18) 4. The founding of the church in Antioch of Syria (11:19–26) I want to highlight one of these by-products. As part of telling the story of Stephen’s stoning, Luke mentions that “witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.” This minor detail is laden with meaning. It signals the importance of Saul as the leader of the mob. In ancient literature the shedding of garments signified an impending act of violence and, many times, death. Thus, the removal of the cloak sends a message that is clear: “The coats are off; it’s about to get messy!” It seems to me that God answered Stephen’s cry of mercy in an extra-ordinary generous way. As we witness Stephen being forced out of the city and stoned to death with a prayer on his lips, Luke introduces us to another character present in the crowd: “The witnesses laid aside their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul” (Acts 7:54). This detail seems like a distraction, but by introducing Saul (later Paul) to us before his conversion, Luke gives his readers hope in desperate circumstances. It reveals that God is in control. From a human perspective, it seems that Saul was determined to squelch this dangerous new sect coming out of Nazareth, but from God’s perspective, it would soon be this very same Saul who would become its most celebrated advocate. By placing Stephen’s death alongside Saul’s persecution, Luke shows that the church is resilient. Stephen was a source of encouragement and godly leadership for the church. Similarly, and in spite of his beginnings, Paul would expand the influence of the Church far beyond the expectations of its first followers. So, it seems to me that Paul’s presence at Stephen’s stoning is not an irrelevant detail at all. It shows that God already had plans to use Paul’s life to further His kingdom work beyond Jerusalem and into the nations of the world. Paul’s conversion would be one of the greatest testaments of God’s saving work, demonstrating that God works to gather His community in ways we might not see. Even when circumstances seem grim, God is active behind the scenes, ready to use people for His good purpose. Yes, our passage is a good reminder that God is working behind the scenes where least expected. Perhaps the fierce opponent of the gospel in your community will be the next convert. Trust God that opponents to Christianity can be converted. Don’t give up on anyone. Back to the story: Luke reminds us that the hateful opposition to God’s Gospel was brutal – severe persecution. He also tells us that the Christians didn’t just passively wait to be slaughtered. No, they responded by fleeing their persecution. However, note that this fleeing was not an act of cowardice. It is still God at work, bringing about what Jesus instructed his disciples to do. So, even though they were scattered, they didn’t stop to witness. Luke wants us to see this: they went around proclaiming the good news of the word. Persecution forced the believers out of their homes in Jerusalem, but with them went the gospel. Sometimes we have to become uncomfortable before we move. We may not want to experience it, but discomfort may be the best thing for us because God may be working through our pain. When you are tempted to complain about uncomfortable or painful circumstances, stop and ask if God might be preparing you for a particular task. At first glance, it might seem that the enemy of the gospel, Satan, used these leaders to hinder the furtherance of the message of Christ. But, on closer inspection we find that instead of preventing the gospel from spreading, God used their violent actions as vehicle to further proclaim the good news beyond Jerusalem. As I mentioned earlier, Jesus instructed the disciples to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the farthest parts of the earth. But the apostles, however, remained in Jerusalem. Jesus’ intention was for them to go everywhere and preach the good news about Him. The persecution that broke out as a result of the death of Stephen caused the believers to flee from Jerusalem. Following the church through Acts is like following a wounded deer through a forest. Drops of blood mark the trail. The opening verses of chapter 8 portray the persecution of the early church: And Saul was there, giving approval to his [Stephen’s] death. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison. Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. (Acts 8:1–4) Outside the boundaries of Jerusalem, the church encountered a different audience and different problems. In its first encounter, the church met Samaritans and was confronted with the issue of magic (Acts 8). These changes did not take place because the church planned them. Problems with the Hellenistic Jews led to changes within the organisation of the church. The church appointed seven helpers; most of them came from a Greek background. The move to take the gospel to the regions beyond Jerusalem did not come from the church. Persecution led to the spread of the gospel. And, it was a group of people other than the apostles who took the gospel to the regions beyond Jerusalem. In the case of Samaria, it was Philip. It can be argued that those who left Jerusalem due to the persecution were the Hellenistic Jews. Both Stephen and Philip were leaders of the Hellenistic group. It is therefore astonishing that God chose a Hellenistic Jew to take the gospel to the Samaritans. The Palestinian Jews despised both the Hellenistic Jews, because of their Greek culture, and the Samaritans, because of their mixed background. For telling others the good news of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, the members of the early church were persecuted. Sometimes, as in the case of Stephen, they were even put to death. Christ had promised his followers that living for him would lead to trouble (Luke 21:12–19). This is still true. If we boldly live out our faith, the light of our lives will expose the sinfulness of others. Our words of truth will pierce their souls. Some will be convicted and yield to the leading of the Spirit. Others will become angry and hardened in their hatred of the truth. As Jesus said, “The people of the world will hate you because you belong to me” (John 15:21 NLT). We shouldn’t be surprised or abandon our faith when we are persecuted. What do we learn from all this? We learn that the gospel has astonishing effects! God can use a layman like Philip to influence a whole culture for Christ. Through the gospel, healing can come wholesale to needy people, so that there is “great joy” in their land. Men and women can become fountains of divine power right where they are. We learn too, that spiritual power cannot be bought. The pursuit of God, not power, is what counts. Philip’s great power came from the fact that he loved Jesus, pure and simple. A heart right in the sight of God is the indispensable qualification for all possession of spiritual power, or of any blessings which Jesus gives. “Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” (John 17:3) People may not kill us for witnessing about Christ, but they will let us know that they don’t want to hear the truth and will often try to silence us. Keep honouring God in your conduct and words; though many may turn against you and your message, some will follow Christ. Remember, Stephen’s death made a profound impact on Paul, who later became the world’s greatest missionary. Even those who oppose you now may later turn to Christ. Friends, our passage reminds us today that no human ability is as astonishing as the gospel of Jesus Christ. When we are filled with the presence of God, and we allow his power and love first to transform us and then touch others, those around us are dumbfounded. They may not embrace God’s amazing grace, but they cannot deny the supernatural presence that permeates our lives. This is a beautiful example of what changes Jesus can make in life. Don’t discount how God can change your attitudes about people. Let his love transform your mind. Irrepressible