To Die is Gain
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Message in Print
Scripture: Acts 6:8-7:60
Last week’s Msg was - “Called to Serve” - today we take that “Serving” to a “Whole New Level”
Like so much of Acts - today we see the Historical Example
of a Number of Great N.T. truths
We could choose many - but the one that sticks out to me is
Philippians 1:21 (ESV)
21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
That verse was written by Paul - Formally SAUL of Tarsus
& today - for the FIRST time - we’re going to MEET Saul
& there is a Very Good Chance - That what we see unfold today
Laid the Foundation - Literally in Blood
For Paul’s commitment to say:
“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain”
Today we meet STEPHEN - Who had a “Direction Setting” influence
on both Saul of Tarsus - & on the Spread of Christianity
& I PROMISE, as our text unfolds - that we’ll see
for Stephen - - to LIVE was Christ & to DIE was GAIN
I’m going to primarily use the NLT today
because we have a HUGE section of Scripture to cover - ok?
The name Stephen (Stephanos) means - “A Crown”
It’s the word used for a crown given to a Leader
or to the winner of an Athletic Competition
& Stephen LIVED UP to his name - both as a pivotal leader
AND as the FIRST in the NT Church to finish his race
& receive the Martyr’s crown
In our Msg last week - Stephen was one of the SEVEN
Greek-Speaking Jews (Hellenists) who were chosen
to care for the Physical needs of the church
In Acts 6:3 - these men were to be
full of the Spirit and wisdom
in Acts 6:5 we first meet Stephen - when we read
. . .and they chose Stephen (a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit)
& then - as we open our text today - we read in
in Acts 6:8 (nlt)
8 Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed amazing miracles and signs among the people.
That gives us a little “picture” of WHO Stephen was
FULL of The Holy Spirit
FULL of Wisdom & Faith
FULL of God’s Grace & Power . . .
AND . . . he was performing
amazing miracles & signs among the people
THIS is a man who is: FULL of the Life of Jesus Christ
this is an incredible description of Stephen
& If WE desire to say - “For me to Live is Christ”
then THESE are the descriptive words
That we should be PRAYING other people would see in US
FULL of The Holy Spirit
FULL of Wisdom - - Faith - - God’s Grace - - & God’s Power
& Stephen today - is going to set the PERFECT Example
of the person who has made the commitment . . .
Philippians 1:21 (ESV)
21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
& So - Because of Stephen’s commitment to Christ
He had a Wonderful life
He had no Problems - NO Trials
He always had a New Cadillac in the garage . . .
Oh no, sorry . . . that’s the FALSE teaching !!
The truth is - BECAUSE of Stephen’s commitment to Christ
He was USED BY GOD to Immeasurably IMPACT
the people around him - including a Pharisee named SAUL
& not only did he IMPACT the people around him
But he also made an incredible impact for the Kingdom of God
It all starts - with some good old fashioned - HATERS
If you’ve ever been in the ministry - you’ve MET these people
They’re EASY to SPOT . . . cause . . . they HATE you
& the Enemy wants to use them for EVIL in your life
But God wants to use them - for GOOD
& we’ll definitely see that - as we continue
Acts 6:9 (nlt)
9 But one day some men from the Synagogue of Freed Slaves, as it was called, started to debate with him. They were Jews from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia (Kil-ik-ee-ah), and the province of Asia.
This was the Synagogue Stephen attended
Remember - initially the Christians DID NOT
stop attending the Synagogue’s
Because they knew Jesus
as the FULFILLMENT of the Law & Jewish worship
So this was Stephen’s Synagogue
AND, it was a Hellenistic (Greek-Speaking) Synagogue
Remember it was the “Hellenists”
who stirred up trouble last week
& here they are again - - -
& they’re about to stir up MORE than trouble this time
Just one other thing about this Synagogue
MOST commentators believe - that a man named “SAUL of Tarsus” was a Leading Pharisee in this Synagogue
Saul was a Hellenistic (Greek-Speaking) Jew
& Tarsus was the Capital of Cilicia (Kil-ik-ee-ah)
& so - It’s Very Likely - SAUL was at the HEAD
of these arguments & debates with Stephen regarding Christ
Now this group might have been led by SAUL of Tarsus
but they were NO MATCH for the Spiritual Gifts God gave Stephen
Acts 6:10 (nlt)
10 None of them could stand against the wisdom and the Spirit with which Stephen spoke.
That SOUNDS Great !!
But . . . here’s what I’ve found about HATERS
Talking to them - EVEN Led by The Spirit & Full of God’s Wisdom
very often - DOES NOT change their hearts
Often - what it does - is take their Attacks to the Next Level
which is exactly what we see here
Acts 6:11-12 (nlt)
11 So they (probably SAUL included) persuaded some men to lie about Stephen, saying, “We heard him blaspheme Moses, and even God.”
12 This roused the people, the elders, and the teachers of religious law. So they arrested Stephen and brought him before the high council.
Pls Listen to me - OFTEN, the way the ENEMY takes out Leaders
is to get people in the church to LIE about them
& Very OFTEN these people THINK they’re actually
“Doing God’s Work”
& so they think that “Stretching the Truth” is OK
as long as the Leader they want Brought down - is Brought down
& So - let me re-iterate how you can KNOW
whether someone who is Criticizing a Leader
is being used by GOD for GOOD (cause God does use critics)
or is being used by the DEVIL for EVIL
IF they are being used by GOD - they are talking to the LEADER
IF they are being used by the DEVIL - they are talking to YOU
After more than 20 years of dealing with HATERS in the ministry
that’s as clear as I can make it
So - the HATERS persuade others to LIE about Stephen
in order to STIR UP the Sanhedrin (Jewish Council)
& they have Stephen arrested & brought before
The SAME High Council - Jesus Christ stood before
The SAME High Council - PETER & JOHN & the Apostles
stood before - these are the same guys
stood before - these are the same guys
& again - the Enemy is attempting to Bring EVIL
But God is Orchestrating some Serious GOOD
Acts 6:13-14 (nlt)
13 The lying witnesses said, “This man is always speaking against the holy Temple and against the law of Moses.
14 We have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy the Temple and change the customs Moses handed down to us.”
This is a classic approach of Haters - still used today
They’re taking a PORTION of a statement that was
probably MADE by Stephen - & Contorting it into a LIE
But it doesn’t even matter - because at THIS POINT
the Lying Witnesses notice - NO ONE is looking at them
They’re all looking at Stephen - because . . . he’s GLOWING
Acts 6:15 (nlt)
15 At this point everyone in the high council stared at Stephen, because his face became as bright as an angel’s.
I think God was (yet again) giving the Jewish Council
the chance to Repent - & Be Saved
But (yet again) they PUSH Forward with their own Agenda
Acts 7:1 (nlt)
1 Then the high priest asked Stephen, “Are these accusations true?”
Now - This is ONE of the GREAT LESSONS in this text
The High Priest asks Stephen if the accusations are true
& Stephen DOES NOT Even ADDRESS the Accusations
He DOES NOT Defend his Honor, his Character, his Reputation
He recognizes this event is NOT about HIM Personally
He is part of a Much Larger Work that GOD is doing
& so he doesn’t even ADDRESS the LIES
I believe he said One Thing to himself
“Stephen - - IT’S TIME TO PREACH !!”
So we come to another
of the GREAT SERMONS in the book of Acts
Stephen realizes he’s been called “For Such a Time as This”
This is not about his REPUTATION - or the Lies
or his LIFE for that matter
This is about The GOSPEL of Jesus Christ
& He’s NOT gonna MISS the opportunity to SPEAK OUT
He’s got the entire SANHEDRIN (ruling council of the Jews)
in front of him - & the High Priest has ASKED HIM to speak
& So - Stephen’s going to Address THREE AREAS
of FALSE CONFIDENCE that the Jews TRUSTED in
He’s going to address THREE things
that the Jews put their CONFIDENCE IN - INSTEAD of
LOOKING for the Promised Messiah to come
There’s another neat “Side Note” here
People often get mad at me for addressing things that I know
are going on in the church in my messages
But that is EXACTLY what Stephen is doing here
He KNOWS what’s going on in the hearts of the Jews
& he addresses it straight on
& sometimes - when I do that - I get the feeling
I may end up the same place Stephen did
Here are the Three FALSE CONFIDENCES of the Jews:
The Promised Land
Moses & The Law
The Temple
& Stephen is going to address EACH of them Directly
& show them WHY their CONFIDENCE in them - is FALSE
FIRST - the Jews felt they were “OK with God”
because they were IN The Promised Land
Acts 7:2-36 (nlt)
2 This was Stephen’s reply: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me. Our glorious God appeared to our ancestor Abraham in Mesopotamia before he settled in Haran.
God 1st revealed Himself to Abraham - OUTSIDE the Promised Land
3 God told him, ‘Leave your native land and your relatives, and come into the land that I will show you.’
4 So Abraham left the land of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran until his father died. Then God brought him here to the land where you now live.
5 “But God gave him no inheritance here, not even one square foot of land. God did promise, however, that eventually the whole land would belong to Abraham and his descendants—even though he had no children yet.
POINT - God was WITH Abraham,
even tho Abraham was NOT IN the Promised Land . . . in fact
6 God also told him that his descendants would live in a foreign land, where they would be oppressed as slaves for 400 years.
7 ‘But I will punish the nation that enslaves them,’ God said, ‘and in the end they will come out and worship me here in this place.’
8 “God also gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision at that time. So when Abraham became the father of Isaac, he circumcised him on the eighth day. And the practice was continued when Isaac became the father of Jacob, and when Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs of the Israelite nation.
& the 12 Patriarch’s they ALSO were NOT in the Promised Land
9 “These patriarchs were jealous of their brother Joseph, and they sold him to be a slave in Egypt. But God was with him
10 and rescued him from all his troubles. And God gave him favor before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. God also gave Joseph unusual wisdom, so that Pharaoh appointed him governor over all of Egypt and put him in charge of the palace.
11 “But a famine came upon Egypt and Canaan. There was great misery, and our ancestors ran out of food.
12 Jacob heard that there was still grain in Egypt, so he sent his sons—our ancestors—to buy some.
13 The second time they went, Joseph revealed his identity to his brothers, and they were introduced to Pharaoh.
14 Then Joseph sent for his father, Jacob, and all his relatives to come to Egypt, seventy-five persons in all.
15 So Jacob went to Egypt. He died there, as did our ancestors.
16 Their bodies were taken to Shechem (in the promised land) and buried in the tomb Abraham had bought for a certain price from Hamor’s sons in Shechem.
And then even MOSES & the people of the EXODUS - -
God was With Them - - OUTSIDE the Promised Land
17 “As the time drew near when God would fulfill his promise to Abraham, the number of our people in Egypt greatly increased.
18 But then a new king came to the throne of Egypt who knew nothing about Joseph.
19 This king exploited our people and oppressed them, forcing parents to abandon their newborn babies so they would die.
20 “At that time Moses was born—a beautiful child in God’s eyes. His parents cared for him at home for three months.
21 When they had to abandon him, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and raised him as her own son.
22 Moses was taught all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was powerful in both speech and action.
23 “One day when Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his relatives, the people of Israel.
24 He saw an Egyptian mistreating an Israelite. So Moses came to the man’s defense and avenged him, killing the Egyptian.
25 Moses assumed his fellow Israelites would realize that God had sent him to rescue them, but they didn’t.
26 “The next day he visited them again and saw two men of Israel fighting. He tried to be a peacemaker. ‘Men,’ he said, ‘you are brothers. Why are you fighting each other?’
27 “But the man in the wrong pushed Moses aside. ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us?’ he asked.
28 ‘Are you going to kill me as you killed that Egyptian yesterday?’
29 When Moses heard that, he fled the country and lived as a foreigner in the land of Midian. There his two sons were born.
30 “Forty years later, in the desert near Mount Sinai, an angel appeared to Moses in the flame of a burning bush.
31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight. As he went to take a closer look, the voice of the Lord called out to him,
32 ‘I am the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.’ Moses shook with terror and did not dare to look.
33 “Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground.
34 I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their groans and have come down to rescue them. Now go, for I am sending you back to Egypt.’
(God saving His people - Outside the Promised Land)
35 “So God sent back the same man his people had previously rejected when they demanded, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us?’ Through the angel who appeared to him in the burning bush, God sent Moses to be their ruler and savior.
36 And by means of many wonders and miraculous signs, he led them out of Egypt, through the Red Sea, and through the wilderness for forty years. (OUTSIDE the Promised Land)
Now - THAT is a LOT of verses to deal with just
the issue of the PROMISED LAND
But we have to remember two things;
#1) The Promised Land was a huge deal to the Jews (& still is)
#2) Their CONFIDENCE of being in the Promised Land
Had REPLACED their HOPE in God’s Promised Messiah
Maybe this is like us thinking we’re OK with God because
we grew up in a “Christian Home” or Christian Environment
We’re NOT OK with God because of ANYTHING Exterior
NOT our Christian Environment, Christian Home, or anything else
But ONLY “OK with God” by putting our FULL FAITH
in Jesus Christ as our Messiah
& so Stephen ‘handles’ the FALSE CONFIDENCE
in the Promised Land
NEXT - Stephen is going to Address the Jews FALSE CONFIDENCE
in Moses & the Law
& he STARTS with a Prophecy from Moses - ABOUT Jesus Christ
Acts 7:37-43 (nlt)
37 “Moses himself told the people of Israel, ‘God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from among your own people.’
38 Moses was with our ancestors, the assembly of God’s people in the wilderness, when the angel spoke to him at Mount Sinai. And there Moses received life-giving words to pass on to us.
Now Stephen’s going to REMIND them - They Think their CONFIDENCE is in Moses - But they didn’t even LISTEN to HIM !
39 “But our ancestors refused to listen to Moses. They rejected him and wanted to return to Egypt.
40 They told Aaron, ‘Make us some gods who can lead us, for we don’t know what has become of this Moses, who brought us out of Egypt.’
41 So they made an idol shaped like a calf, and they sacrificed to it and celebrated over this thing they had made.
42 Then God turned away from them and abandoned them to serve the stars of heaven as their gods! In the book of the prophets it is written, ‘Was it to me you were bringing sacrifices and offerings during those forty years in the wilderness, Israel?
43 No, you carried your pagan gods— the shrine of Molech, the star of your god Rephan (Rhai-phan), and the images you made to worship them. So I will send you into exile as far away as Babylon.’
The Jews put their CONFIDENCE in Moses & the LAW
But the Law was never able to save them
& they wouldn’t LISTEN to Moses anyway
PLUS - Moses had told them to LOOK for The Messiah
whom they had STOPPED looking for
The Jews FALSE CONFIDENCE in the LAW & MOSES
Is a little bit like us thinking we’re OK if we have a BIBLE
& thinking we’re really OK if we know some of the words
& especially if our Bible looks real “USED”
But guys - we’re only OK - if we’re actually
APPLYING God’s Word to our Lives
Owning a Bible doesn’t count
Knowing what it says doesn’t count
Only BEING TRANSFORMED by it - COUNTS
Alright - TWO False Confidences - DOWN !
& the last FALSE CONFIDENCE the Jews “Rested In” was
The TEMPLE - & it’s Religious Ceremonies
& so - Stephen’s going to “Address that too” (I like this guy)
Acts 7:44-50 (nlt)
44 “Our ancestors carried the Tabernacle with them through the wilderness. It was constructed according to the plan God had shown to Moses.
45 Years later, when Joshua led our ancestors in battle against the nations that God drove out of this land, the Tabernacle was taken with them into their new territory. And it stayed there until the time of King David.
46 “David found favor with God and asked for the privilege of building a permanent Temple for the God of Jacob.
47 But it was Solomon who actually built it.
48 However, the Most High doesn’t live in temples made by human hands. As the prophet says, (from ISA 66)
49 ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Could you build me a temple as good as that?’ asks the Lord. ‘Could you build me such a resting place?
50 Didn’t my hands make both heaven and earth?’
The Jews had HUGE CONFIDENCE in the Temple
& as long as the Religious Ceremonies were going on
in the TEMPLE - they felt they MUSt be OK with God
Does that sound like ANYTHING we see today ??
How about people thinking they’re OK with God
as long as they’re going to church
As long as they’re going thru the MOTIONS
they think they MUST be OK with God
GUYS - The Ceremonies of the Temple were to “Paint of Picture”
of what it “Looked Like” & what “It Meant”
to come into a Real & Personal Relationship with a Living God
The Ceremonies were never Meant to REPLACE
that Real & Personal Relationship with God
& it’s the same with Church Today
Church was meant to DRAW us INTO
a Real & Personal Relationship with God
It was never meant to REPLACE
a Real & Personal Relationship with God
The Jews had allowed the Temple Ceremonies to REPLACE
their Personal Relationship with God
& if WE allow Church Ceremonies to REPLACE
our Personal Relationship with God
then we have the SAME FALSE CONFIDENCE
& we’re in the SAME Hot Water as the Jews were
& so now - Just in case they’re NOT “Getting It”
Stephen is going to “Make it Really Clear”
They may KILL him for it
But Stephen’s about to - “Speak the Truth”
& now - He’s going to change the PRONOUNS from “THEY”
(meaning their ancestors) - to “YOU” (getting personal)
Acts 7:51-53 (nlt)
51 “You stubborn people! You are heathen at heart and deaf to the truth. Must you forever resist the Holy Spirit? That’s what your ancestors did, and so do you!
52 Name one prophet your ancestors didn’t persecute! They even killed the ones who predicted the coming of the Righteous One—the Messiah whom you betrayed and murdered.
53 You deliberately disobeyed God’s law, even though you received it from the hands of angels.”
OK - THAT pretty much sealed Stephen’s Fate
But God was calling Stephen to a GREATER WORK
1) God needed to Spread of the Gospel to the Gentile world
& 2) God needed to Leave A Permanent Mark
on a Young Pharisee named SAUL of Tarsus
& BOTH of those things - we’re About To Happen
But FIRST - Stephen had to “Finish His Race”
Acts 7:54 (nlt)
54 The Jewish leaders were infuriated by Stephen’s accusation, and they shook their fists at him in rage. (Lit - grinding their teeth)
They were INFURIATED - They were in a RAGE
Which was just what SAUL, & the others, wanted
AND - also - it was just what the DEVIL wanted . . .
But God had a Different Plan
& He had prepared Stephen for it
Acts 7:55-56 (nlt)
55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit (just like he has been since we met him), gazed steadily into heaven and saw the glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand.
56 And he told them, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand!”
Full of the Holy Spirit - Stephen
Gazes into Heaven
Sees the Glory of God - & sees
Jesus STANDING at God’s Right Hand
& so he tells the Sanhedrin about it
& that SealED his fate
But before we move on . . .
People ask “Why is Jesus ‘standing’,
instead of sitting at the Right Hand of God (like normally described)
& I agree with those who believe - that Jesus must be standing
to WELCOME the first Martyr of the NT church
Jesus is Interceding - & Welcoming Stephen home
Maybe with the “Crown of Life” in His hand
& so Stephen has Great Peace with God’s Plan
But the SANHEDRIN has now turned into - a LYNCH MOB
Acts 7:57- (nlt)
57 Then they put their hands over their ears and began shouting. They rushed at him
58 and dragged him out of the city and began to stone him . . . (Let’s save the rest of V.58 for a minute)
This was a totally ILLEGAL Act - According to the Roman Law
they were currently living under
But look at the last two statements Stephen made
& see if they remind you of anybody . . .
Acts 7:59-60 (nlt)
59 As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
60 He fell to his knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” And with that, he died.
With Two Statements that are almost IDENTICAL
to those made by Jesus on the Cross
Stephen PROVES - that for Him -
To LIVE is Christ & to DIE is Gain
& with that - Stephen received his FINAL CROWN
James 1:12 (esv)
12 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.
Have you MADE an “All-In Commitment”
to remain STEADFAST under TRIAL
Because we will FACE - trials, difficulties, & testings in this life
& We will have the opportunity to either:
Be Focused on SELF - & our SELF Preservation
Be Focused on Bringing Glory to God
both by how we live, & if necessary, by how we DIE
But KNOW THIS - Stephen did not make his decision
to STAND for Christ - at THIS MOMENT
That Decision was Fully Made - a Long, Long Time ago
When Stephen decided that for him
“To Live is Christ, & to Die is Gain”
& God used Stephen Right Here
to start TWO Great FIRES - that are STILL BURNING today
1) It was THIS ACT that began the SPREAD of Christianity
into the Gentile World (we’ll see that next week)
2) it was THIS ACT that left A Permanent MARK
on a Pharisee named SAUL of Tarsus
You see - Jesus had an Appointment with SAUL
on the Road to Damascus
& THIS EVENT - Set the Stage - for That Appointment
Look back up at the second half of Acts 7:58
58 . . . His accusers took off their coats and laid them at the feet of a young man named Saul.
We’ll look at the ROLE this event played in SAUL’S Life Next Week
But KNOW For Sure - Stephen had a MAJOR IMPACT
on the Ministry of PAUL the Apostle
Back in Acts 1:8 Jesus told His disciples - they would be
His WITNESSES - when The Holy Spirit came upon them
The GREEK word for WITNESS is MARTYS
from which we get our word - MARTYR
It means LIT - “One who testifies to what they have seen or heard”
Stephen was the first MARTYR of the NT Church
He was willing to Testify to what he had seen and heard
& He HONORED Christ - Both in his life, & in his death
I believe Stephen TAUGHT Paul by Example
what Paul wrote in
Philippians 1:20–21 (ESV)
20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.
21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
Let’s Pray