The God Of Glory-Part I

MAY 22, 2022 STUDY NOTES ACTS 7:1-16 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES “THE GOD OF GLORY”—PART 1 INTRODUCTION We have already been introduced to the man by the name of Stephen, (Acts 6:5-7) Stephen was seized and brought to stand before the Sanhedrin Court (Acts 6:8-15) Acts 7 begins with Stephen being questioned by the high priest concerning his actions Stephen’s response to the question of the high priest does not appear to answer the question But it does, Stephen gives a historical account of the teaching of the Apostles concerning Jesus Stephen goes to the history of the nation of Israel and brings it forth to the coming of Jesus The conclusion of his trials defense is that the Jewish leaders are guilty of rejecting the Messiah The teaching of Stephen and the Apostles is because they have accepted Jesus as the Messiah This sermon of Stephen is the longest recorded message in Acts Remember that it is in the Bible because it is considered as inspired, “God breathed,” 2Ti 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: There is much more than a study of history in Stephen’s sermon according to 2 Timothy 3:16 He was instructing the Sanhedrin, telling them, they were wrong in their thinking of Jesus He was showing them how they could correct their wrong and set things right with God Stephen’s message begins with the beginning of the nation of Israel, God’s call to Abraham Stephen presents the blessings of God upon Israel even when they were not in their land or temple Stephen reveals the opposition of Israel to God’s plan for them and all people Because of his message, Stephen becomes the first martyr we read of for the cause of Christ He is the first of many throughout the church age that have faced martyrdom for Christ The persecution of Satan upon the Christian will continue until the return of Christ The point of Stephen’s message is, “to God be the Glory, because He is “The God of Glory” Act 7:1 Then said the high priest, Are these things so? The “high priest” was the chief judge in Israel, probably Caiaphas (John 18:13-14, 24) In today’s court room his question would be, “How do you plead?” Do you plead guilty or not guilty? Referring to the accusations against Stephen, he was accused of blasphemy (Acts 6:11, 13-14) THE GOD OF GLORY IS THE GOD OF ABRAHAM (Acts 7:2-8) Act 7:2 And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran, Stephen’s introduction to his message got their attention, he said “hearken,” listen to me He called their attention to “the God of Glory,” and His appearance to “our father Abraham” Israel took pride in their history, they were all ears to the subject of Stephen, it was a favorite for them Stephen shows them that Abraham’s relationship with God was by the grace of God Abraham responded by faith and was saved, Rom 4:3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Page 1 of 3 The truth found throughout the NT, Paul spoke of Abraham and revealed the same truth as Stephen did Rom 4:13 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. Rom 4:16 Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all, Stephen uses Abraham to lead them to the truth of his message, that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior The “Glory of God” is the self-revelation of God, revealing His Person, presence, and power God’s Glory reveals that God is present and that what God is doing has a plan and a purpose The “God of Glory” appeared to Abraham and revealed His plan and purpose to Abraham, Act 7:3 And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall shew thee. The call of Abraham is presented as one of the most important events in history The calling of Abraham was to fulfill many purposes in the plan of God Abraham’s calling is the beginning of God’s chosen nation, Israel His call was to leave his country and his people and go to an unseen land What land God? Whatever land I will lead you too, follow me and I will show you, Heb 11:8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. God promised to make Abraham the founder of a great nation and give them a new land The Abrahamic Covenant consisted of a sevenfold promise There are four promises found in, Gen 12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: There are three promises found in, Gen 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. Remember that when God made these promises to Abraham his wife Sarah was childless That doesn’t sound like grounds for becoming a great nation It was an act of faith for Abraham to even tell people his name Someone would ask, “Sir, what is your name?” My name is Abraham, the “father of a multitude” That is great, “how many children do you have?” My wife and I don’t have any children Sir, how old are you? I am 99 and my wife is advanced in age Then the people would laugh but Abraham would remember the promises of God Abraham knew that it was the “God of Glory” who had called him We sing, “Wherever He Leads I’ll Go,” is that really the truth of our testimony? Stephen was showing the Sanhedrin the fulfillment of God’s promises through the history of Israel And that what he was preaching was the fulfillment of the promises to Abraham, fulfilled in Jesus From Abraham we learn God is not limited to one land, one place, one people, one person, or one church God is always faithful to His people wherever He leads His people to go and whatever He tells them to do God’s covenant with Abraham was that He would be the God of Abraham and his descendants Even though his descendants were residents in the foreign land of Egypt they were not citizens of Egypt They were still God’s people destined for the promised land, Act 7:7 And the nation to whom they shall be in bondage will I judge, said God: and after that shall they come forth, and serve me in this place. God said, “I will judge that nation,” read the 10 plagues upon Egypt in Exodus God used Moses to deliver His people out of Egypt, Stephen is leading up to another point Page 2 of 3 God used His Son Jesus to deliver lost man out of the bondage of sin, 1Pe 3:18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: Which is why Stephen preached, the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus THE GOD OF GLORY IS THE GOD OF JOSEPH (Acts 7:9-19) Act 7:9 And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt: but God was with him, Joseph is one of the great types of Jesus Christ that we find in the OT The history of Joseph points to the Person of Jesus, Joseph was rejected by his brethren, so was Jesus Joseph was God’s appointed messenger, so was Jesus, the message of both was rejected by many Joseph faced afflictions from the hands of man, but God gave him “favor and wisdom” God revealed through Joseph that He was in control and that His plan and purpose would be fulfilled God delivered Joseph from his affliction and made him a blessing to his people Joseph was made known to his people, Act 7:13 And at the second time Joseph was made known to his brethren; and Joseph's kindred was made known unto Pharaoh. Is it not interesting that at the first coming of Jesus all did not recognize Him? But when He appears the second time every eye will see him, Rev 1:7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. All will know why He came to earth the first time and why He is coming to earth the second time CONCLUSION The “God of Glory” is the God of Abraham The “God of Glory” is the God of Joseph The “God of Glory” is our God, “Praise Him” Listen to the song and “Praise Him” The “God of Glory” HE IS OUR GOD Page 3 of 3