A great defense: History- Pt. II
Book of Acts: Deer Creek • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 5 viewsAim; To continue our discussion on the best defense was history.
Notes
Transcript
Review some previous history:
Review some previous history:
Growing church as a persecuted church (Act4:18-21)
Stop preaching in Jesus name
The persecution included personal persecution (Act6:5-15)
Stephen a man full of faith and spirit was arrested for proclaiming Jesus
Stephen starts to make a defense before council using history as his defense
First, with God and Abram (Act7:1-8)
Left land, people to unknown place, Abram was an adventurous, trusting soul.
By faith he was reckoned as righteousness.
The land promise, the seed promise, the covenant of circumcision all covered
Then there was the sojourning in Egypt (Act7:9-16)
Story of Joseph, his family, and how God used Joseph to save His people
Then Deliverance from Egypt by Moses (Act7:17-36)
The history of the oppressed Hebrew people
A look at the birth and young life of Moses and then how God used him as the deliverer of His people
Israel’s rebellion
Israel’s rebellion
Rebellion is nothing new, Israel has suffered much due to being a rebellious people. Stephen brings in history on this to continue in his defence.
37 “This is the Moses who said to the sons of Israel, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brethren.’ 38 “This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness together with the angel who was speaking to him on Mount Sinai, and who was with our fathers; and he received living oracles to pass on to you.
39 “Our fathers were unwilling to be obedient to him, but repudiated him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt, 40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us; for this Moses who led us out of the land of Egypt—we do not know what happened to him.’
41 “At that time they made a calf and brought a sacrifice to the idol, and were rejoicing in the works of their hands. 42 “But God turned away and delivered them up to serve the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, ‘It was not to Me that you offered victims and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, was it, O house of Israel?
43 ‘You also took along the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of the god Rompha, the images which you made to worship. I also will remove you beyond Babylon.’
Offering up Moses as example (vv.37-39)
God was going to raise up another prophet like him (v.37)
Moses who spoke to angel of the Lord on Sinai
who received the law
This is the man who the men of Israel rebelled against, rejected him and turned back to Egypt. (v.39)
Offering up Israel the nation as example (vv.39-43; Rom1:24)
Israel turned back to Egypt in their heart.
They pressured Aaron to make the golden calf
God gave them over to idol worship for 40 years
Wait, you should check out Rom1:24, 26, 28 too
24 Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them.
God’s true tabernacle
God’s true tabernacle
Stephen turns to point out the true tabernacle of God is not made with hands.
44 “Our fathers had the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as He who spoke to Moses directed him to make it according to the pattern which he had seen. 45 “And having received it in their turn, our fathers brought it in with Joshua upon dispossessing the nations whom God drove out before our fathers, until the time of David.
46 “David found favor in God’s sight, and asked that he might find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. 47 “But it was Solomon who built a house for Him.
48 “However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says: 49 ‘Heaven is My throne, And earth is the footstool of My feet; What kind of house will you build for Me?’ says the Lord, ‘Or what place is there for My repose?
50 ‘Was it not My hand which made all these things?’ 51 “You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did.
52 “Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become; 53 you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it.”
Forefathers had tabernacle of witness, following pattern given from God (v.44)
Tabernacle brought into promised land (v.45)
David planned for the temple which Solomon built (v.46-47)
Drives home the point, God does not live in temple made with hands (v.48-49)
God made all things (v.50)
Consider Isa66:1-2 (below not on a slide just read it)
1 Thus says the Lord, “Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? 2 “For My hand made all these things, Thus all these things came into being,” declares the Lord. “But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.
Consider Jn4:19-24
19 The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. 20 “Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.” 21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. 24 “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
In the John passage this is where Jesus is speaking to the woman at the well and talks about it is not a place to worship but a way to worship in Spirit and truth. For we are the true tabernacle of God
(Transition) - I know this has been a long section and we are drawing closer to the end, but hold on just a bit more for we don’t want to have the same problem that Israel did in resisting the Holy Spirit
Israel resists Holy Spirit
Israel resists Holy Spirit
In the flesh it is easy to resist the working of the spirit and Israel had a history of doing that and that is what Stephen points to now.
51 “You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did. 52 “Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become;
53 you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it.”
Don’t be stiff necked like your fathers were (v.51)
Heb3:12-18 is another good example given by the Hebrew writer.
12 Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end, 15 while it is said, “Today if you hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Me.” 16 For who provoked Him when they had heard? Indeed, did not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses? 17 And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient?
The forefathers killed the prophets and they killed the Righteous One (Jesus) (v.52)
They had the Law but failed to keep it (v.53)
I was going to go on and get to Stephens death but think I need to stop here for the night.
(Encouragement be ready to make a defense) encouragement. (prayer)
