WEBVTT 00:00:06.989 --> 00:00:11.589 for the rest of us. Verse 54. If you've never 00:00:11.589 --> 00:00:14.730 read Acts chapter 7, that's good homework for 00:00:14.730 --> 00:00:19.149 you today. I say we don't have time. I got time. 00:00:19.469 --> 00:00:21.329 I would be glad to go through the whole chapter 00:00:21.329 --> 00:00:23.309 and we could just sit up camp and stay till tonight. 00:00:23.570 --> 00:00:25.690 But I suspect y 'all probably don't want to do 00:00:25.690 --> 00:00:28.890 that. And so we won't. We'll just cover the end 00:00:28.890 --> 00:00:32.289 of it. But if you want a good summation, a real 00:00:32.289 --> 00:00:36.840 brief summation of the Old Testament, From Abraham, 00:00:37.100 --> 00:00:40.159 kind of up until the time of Jesus and things 00:00:40.159 --> 00:00:44.539 that transpired and the importance of them. There's 00:00:44.539 --> 00:00:47.100 a guy by the name of Stephen that's preaching 00:00:47.100 --> 00:00:51.039 here in Acts chapter 7. And he preaches a beautiful, 00:00:51.359 --> 00:00:55.399 beautiful sermon, kind of really getting on to 00:00:55.399 --> 00:00:58.600 some of these Jewish people. They should have 00:00:58.600 --> 00:01:00.619 been looking for the Messiah. They should have 00:01:00.619 --> 00:01:03.780 understood the Old Testament prophecies. They 00:01:03.780 --> 00:01:06.879 should have known that Jesus had fulfilled those 00:01:06.879 --> 00:01:10.060 things that the Old Testament said. But they 00:01:10.060 --> 00:01:12.439 had missed it. And they were really focused on 00:01:12.439 --> 00:01:15.099 the ways of the Old Testament and in particularly 00:01:15.099 --> 00:01:18.859 the ways of Moses and the law. And Stephen, he 00:01:18.859 --> 00:01:21.280 just kind of cuts to it. And he starts from the 00:01:21.280 --> 00:01:22.879 very beginning. He says, hey, here's where it 00:01:22.879 --> 00:01:25.359 started. And here's how God worked through these 00:01:25.359 --> 00:01:27.980 people. And here's how things happened. And he 00:01:27.980 --> 00:01:30.879 preached this great sermon. We saw earlier in 00:01:30.879 --> 00:01:32.859 the text that it had said he was a man who was 00:01:32.859 --> 00:01:36.500 full of grace and he was preaching, but the people 00:01:36.500 --> 00:01:38.920 did not want to hear what he was preaching. He 00:01:38.920 --> 00:01:40.659 was preaching the truth. He was preaching the 00:01:40.659 --> 00:01:43.200 gospel of Jesus Christ. And it says in the scriptures 00:01:43.200 --> 00:01:47.439 that they really couldn't debate with him. They 00:01:47.439 --> 00:01:49.799 couldn't make an argument against what he was 00:01:49.799 --> 00:01:52.629 saying. There was no argument against it. He 00:01:52.629 --> 00:01:54.450 was speaking the truth of the gospel. There was 00:01:54.450 --> 00:01:58.049 no good response. There was no good rebuttal 00:01:58.049 --> 00:02:01.390 to the truth that he was speaking. And he spoke 00:02:01.390 --> 00:02:03.730 that truth and he preached that truth in all 00:02:03.730 --> 00:02:07.129 boldness. And what we're going to look at today 00:02:07.129 --> 00:02:10.270 is the response of the people that he preached 00:02:10.270 --> 00:02:16.830 to. So in Acts chapter 7, verse 54, Acts chapter 00:02:16.830 --> 00:02:20.969 7, verse 54, we'll read through the end of the 00:02:20.969 --> 00:02:23.979 chapter. And then we'll pray and we'll talk for 00:02:23.979 --> 00:02:29.819 a minute. Acts chapter 7, verse 54. This is after 00:02:29.819 --> 00:02:34.979 Stephen finishes up his sermon. When they heard 00:02:34.979 --> 00:02:38.520 these things, they were enraged in their hearts 00:02:38.520 --> 00:02:42.599 and gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen, 00:02:42.740 --> 00:02:45.259 filled by the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven. 00:02:45.960 --> 00:02:49.699 He saw God's glory with Jesus standing at the 00:02:49.699 --> 00:02:53.620 right hand of God and he said, Look, I see the 00:02:53.620 --> 00:02:56.979 heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at 00:02:56.979 --> 00:03:00.759 the right hand of God. Then they screamed at 00:03:00.759 --> 00:03:03.939 the top of their voices, covered their ears, 00:03:04.039 --> 00:03:07.719 and together rushed him. They threw him out of 00:03:07.719 --> 00:03:10.900 the city and began to stone him. And the witnesses 00:03:10.900 --> 00:03:13.939 laid their robes at the feet of a young man named 00:03:13.939 --> 00:03:18.120 Saul. They were stoning Stephen as he called 00:03:18.120 --> 00:03:23.740 out, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. Then he knelt 00:03:23.740 --> 00:03:27.199 down and cried out with a loud voice, Lord, do 00:03:27.199 --> 00:03:31.300 not charge them with this sin. And saying this, 00:03:31.379 --> 00:03:36.180 he fell asleep. Let's pray. God, we come to you 00:03:36.180 --> 00:03:39.020 today. We thank you for these good words. And 00:03:39.020 --> 00:03:40.960 I pray that your Holy Spirit would help us to 00:03:40.960 --> 00:03:43.379 be focused today, that you'd free us of the worries 00:03:43.379 --> 00:03:45.580 and distractions and the thoughts of this world. 00:03:46.199 --> 00:03:49.990 I pray, God, that you would reveal to us in your 00:03:49.990 --> 00:03:52.050 word, through your word, the things that you 00:03:52.050 --> 00:03:55.050 want us to hear today. That as we look at the 00:03:55.050 --> 00:03:57.629 life that Stephen lived and the opposition that 00:03:57.629 --> 00:04:00.389 he faced, dear Lord, that there may be something 00:04:00.389 --> 00:04:03.110 in this word, God, that would be what we need 00:04:03.110 --> 00:04:05.629 to hear. God, maybe there are some here today 00:04:05.629 --> 00:04:09.349 or some online, God, and they're the crowd that's 00:04:09.349 --> 00:04:11.550 not wanting to hear the truth. I pray, God, that 00:04:11.550 --> 00:04:13.389 you would open their ears, that perhaps they 00:04:13.389 --> 00:04:15.800 have closed, that they would... Hear the truth 00:04:15.800 --> 00:04:18.199 of the gospel of Jesus Christ today. God, maybe 00:04:18.199 --> 00:04:19.920 there are some of us here that are like Stephen, 00:04:20.000 --> 00:04:22.759 trying to do the work and face opposition. God, 00:04:22.860 --> 00:04:26.019 whatever it may be that's in your word, I pray 00:04:26.019 --> 00:04:29.120 that your Holy Spirit would speak to us this 00:04:29.120 --> 00:04:31.040 morning. I pray that you'd hide me behind the 00:04:31.040 --> 00:04:32.939 cross, that I'd be able to preach and teach in 00:04:32.939 --> 00:04:34.839 a way that brings glory and honor to you. Take 00:04:34.839 --> 00:04:38.319 away any fear or any pride that's in me, dear 00:04:38.319 --> 00:04:40.879 Lord, and recall to my mind the words that you 00:04:40.879 --> 00:04:46.769 would desire for me to say today. Now, we're 00:04:46.769 --> 00:04:49.750 going to get into this text in a little more 00:04:49.750 --> 00:04:54.670 detail here in just a second, but I wanted to 00:04:54.670 --> 00:04:58.509 talk about something else for a second, and that 00:04:58.509 --> 00:05:04.730 is when we go out into a crowd, when we go to 00:05:04.730 --> 00:05:07.430 a hospital, when we go just about anywhere these 00:05:07.430 --> 00:05:11.810 days, we wash our hands pretty frequently. Everybody 00:05:11.810 --> 00:05:14.750 does that, especially after COVID. Man, we got 00:05:14.750 --> 00:05:18.170 all kind of disinfectant and antibacterial and 00:05:18.170 --> 00:05:20.910 stuff all over the place these days. And we're 00:05:20.910 --> 00:05:23.629 always washing our hands and scrubbing our hands 00:05:23.629 --> 00:05:26.800 and cleaning our hands. It only takes about 20 00:05:26.800 --> 00:05:29.019 seconds to wash your hands. That's what the CDC 00:05:29.019 --> 00:05:31.000 recommends, at least. The Center for Disease 00:05:31.000 --> 00:05:33.980 Control says, hey, take about 20 seconds, scrub 00:05:33.980 --> 00:05:36.139 your hands real good, work up a good lather, 00:05:36.220 --> 00:05:38.680 rub them off real good, wash them off, and that's 00:05:38.680 --> 00:05:44.560 enough to kill the germs. But it wasn't always 00:05:44.560 --> 00:05:48.220 that way. Now, you may have heard of people like... 00:05:48.410 --> 00:05:51.069 Florence Nightingale, perhaps you've heard of 00:05:51.069 --> 00:05:53.670 her, have some knowledge of history. She was 00:05:53.670 --> 00:05:57.069 a nurse that became quite famous during the Crimea 00:05:57.069 --> 00:06:01.170 War. Perhaps you've heard the name Louis Pasteur, 00:06:01.189 --> 00:06:04.810 or maybe you've heard the name Joseph Lister. 00:06:05.290 --> 00:06:08.269 Maybe you don't know those people, but I suspect 00:06:08.269 --> 00:06:10.829 you know of the things that they did, whether 00:06:10.829 --> 00:06:13.509 you know their names or not. Perhaps you've heard 00:06:13.509 --> 00:06:17.600 of the process of pasteurization. That was invented 00:06:17.600 --> 00:06:21.180 by Louis Pasteur. He discovered that if you warm 00:06:21.180 --> 00:06:23.899 up certain things to a certain temperature, it'll 00:06:23.899 --> 00:06:27.399 kill the germs and make it last longer. You see 00:06:27.399 --> 00:06:30.680 that a lot with milk, pasteurized milk. Almost 00:06:30.680 --> 00:06:32.540 all the milk that you're going to get these days 00:06:32.540 --> 00:06:36.240 is going to be pasteurized. Perhaps you've never 00:06:36.240 --> 00:06:38.879 heard of Joseph Lister, but maybe you've heard 00:06:38.879 --> 00:06:42.829 of Listerine before. an antiseptic. And while 00:06:42.829 --> 00:06:46.310 Joseph Lister didn't invent the product that 00:06:46.310 --> 00:06:50.029 we call Listerine, he did a lot of work and he 00:06:50.029 --> 00:06:53.290 did make an antiseptic because he realized the 00:06:53.290 --> 00:06:55.610 importance of killing germs along with Louis 00:06:55.610 --> 00:06:59.209 Pasteur, along with Florence Nightingale. These 00:06:59.209 --> 00:07:03.589 were all people that were crucial in the process 00:07:03.589 --> 00:07:07.310 of killing germs and protecting people and saving 00:07:07.310 --> 00:07:11.310 lives. But there was one man to really think 00:07:11.310 --> 00:07:14.709 for the whole process of washing hands. Now, 00:07:14.750 --> 00:07:19.170 you would think that humanity for many years 00:07:19.170 --> 00:07:21.250 would have realized the importance of washing 00:07:21.250 --> 00:07:26.029 hands, but that simply was not the case. There 00:07:26.029 --> 00:07:31.170 was a man by the name of Ignaz Semmelweis. He 00:07:31.170 --> 00:07:34.069 was a foreigner, and he was a doctor, and he 00:07:34.069 --> 00:07:35.850 discovered something that was quite interesting 00:07:35.850 --> 00:07:39.949 one day when he was in his hospital. He realized 00:07:39.949 --> 00:07:45.370 that the mortality rate of mothers who were giving 00:07:45.370 --> 00:07:50.629 birth was really outrageous. Over 18 % of the 00:07:50.629 --> 00:07:53.670 mothers who were giving birth would die after 00:07:53.670 --> 00:07:56.250 their childbirth from some sort of infection. 00:07:56.689 --> 00:07:59.790 Now, this was all taking place in the 1800s. 00:07:59.790 --> 00:08:03.769 Around 1847 is when all this took place. But 00:08:03.769 --> 00:08:06.389 Dr. Samuel Wise began to investigate, and he 00:08:06.389 --> 00:08:09.990 discovered something interesting. In the hospital 00:08:09.990 --> 00:08:12.310 in which he worked, there was a couple of different 00:08:12.310 --> 00:08:15.490 groups of people. There was one group of people 00:08:15.490 --> 00:08:18.250 that delivered babies, and that group was doctors. 00:08:18.910 --> 00:08:21.129 And there was another group that delivered babies, 00:08:21.209 --> 00:08:23.730 and that group were midwives in different parts 00:08:23.730 --> 00:08:26.709 of the hospital. And what he realized was is 00:08:26.709 --> 00:08:30.810 that the women who were giving birth by the midwives 00:08:31.480 --> 00:08:34.919 didn't have this death rate. Less than 2 % of 00:08:34.919 --> 00:08:37.080 them were dying. There are very few of these 00:08:37.080 --> 00:08:39.639 mothers who would die as a result of their childbirth. 00:08:40.000 --> 00:08:43.279 And so he decided to investigate and figure out 00:08:43.279 --> 00:08:46.440 what is the difference between the doctors who 00:08:46.440 --> 00:08:48.440 were delivering these babies and the midwives. 00:08:48.580 --> 00:08:53.720 What's going on here? And so he quickly discovered 00:08:53.720 --> 00:08:57.179 the problem. He realized that the doctors who 00:08:57.179 --> 00:09:00.620 were so often delivering these children were 00:09:00.620 --> 00:09:03.259 coming from the morgue. They were doing work 00:09:03.259 --> 00:09:05.139 on dead bodies and they were doing all these 00:09:05.139 --> 00:09:06.820 different things and they would leave straight 00:09:06.820 --> 00:09:09.559 from working on these corpses and go straight 00:09:09.559 --> 00:09:12.139 in and deliver a baby with no steps in between. 00:09:13.039 --> 00:09:15.879 And he began to ponder and he began to think 00:09:15.879 --> 00:09:18.580 if there was something that was being spread, 00:09:18.740 --> 00:09:22.580 germs, from the corpses of these dead bodies 00:09:22.580 --> 00:09:25.519 that was being spread to these women who were 00:09:25.519 --> 00:09:29.240 getting pregnant. Now this was a remarkable discovery. 00:09:29.899 --> 00:09:33.139 Because up until this point, everybody just thought 00:09:33.139 --> 00:09:35.360 that germs were spread through the air, which 00:09:35.360 --> 00:09:39.539 they certainly are sometimes. But generally speaking, 00:09:39.820 --> 00:09:42.240 the medical field believed that bad air was the 00:09:42.240 --> 00:09:44.460 result of sickness and germs that were being 00:09:44.460 --> 00:09:48.460 spread. And Dr. Semmelweis realized that there 00:09:48.460 --> 00:09:51.519 were germs that could be spread from one person 00:09:51.519 --> 00:09:56.159 to another by touch. And so he began to institute 00:09:56.159 --> 00:09:59.889 a new policy in the hospital. that everyone in 00:09:59.889 --> 00:10:03.370 the hospital, before delivering a child, washed 00:10:03.370 --> 00:10:08.470 their hands. And guess what happened? The death 00:10:08.470 --> 00:10:12.750 rate among mothers giving birth dropped drastically. 00:10:13.070 --> 00:10:16.230 In the whole hospital, less than 2 % of mothers 00:10:16.230 --> 00:10:20.529 that gave birth died. This was a remarkable discovery. 00:10:20.909 --> 00:10:25.409 It took until 1847 to discover this. And so Dr. 00:10:25.570 --> 00:10:29.580 Semmelweis excited... about what he had discovered, 00:10:29.840 --> 00:10:33.179 he began to tell all the other doctors around, 00:10:33.379 --> 00:10:36.019 all the other doctors in the area, he began to 00:10:36.019 --> 00:10:37.919 tell them that he had come up with this great 00:10:37.919 --> 00:10:41.200 discovery that, hey, we can spread germs from 00:10:41.200 --> 00:10:44.139 one person to another. So before we go from one 00:10:44.139 --> 00:10:46.279 patient to the next, we need to wash our hands. 00:10:46.340 --> 00:10:49.700 And I have proof. I have the evidence that this 00:10:49.700 --> 00:10:53.899 is true. This is a life -saving thing right here. 00:10:53.940 --> 00:10:56.779 We can save lives. And do you know what the other 00:10:56.779 --> 00:11:01.659 doctors that he told this to did? They all laughed 00:11:01.659 --> 00:11:06.559 at him. They said that he was crazy. They wrote 00:11:06.559 --> 00:11:10.019 him off. They didn't pay any attention to what 00:11:10.019 --> 00:11:12.659 he said. They continued to practice medicine 00:11:12.659 --> 00:11:15.159 without washing their hands. And guess what happened? 00:11:16.379 --> 00:11:19.419 Germs continued to be spread. People began to 00:11:19.419 --> 00:11:22.779 die needlessly from simple things that they didn't 00:11:22.779 --> 00:11:26.720 have to die from. And so he began to write papers, 00:11:26.779 --> 00:11:29.299 and he began to try to get the word out everywhere 00:11:29.299 --> 00:11:31.940 we could. Look, this is true. I'm not crazy. 00:11:32.320 --> 00:11:35.039 I'm telling you the truth here. Look at what 00:11:35.039 --> 00:11:37.759 I have discovered. This is life -changing. This 00:11:37.759 --> 00:11:40.360 will save your life if you'll just do this thing. 00:11:41.820 --> 00:11:45.580 And for years and years and years, Dr. Semmelweis 00:11:45.580 --> 00:11:49.460 tried to convince people of that simple truth. 00:11:50.320 --> 00:11:53.679 That if they would just be washed, if their hands 00:11:53.679 --> 00:11:56.779 would just be washed, it would save their lives. 00:11:56.840 --> 00:12:01.059 It would save the lives of others. And by the 00:12:01.059 --> 00:12:06.460 mid -1860s, very few people had listened to him. 00:12:07.500 --> 00:12:12.299 He was so aggravated. He was so passionate about 00:12:12.299 --> 00:12:15.799 it. He was so angry that people wouldn't do this 00:12:15.799 --> 00:12:19.000 simple thing. And he tried and he tried and he 00:12:19.000 --> 00:12:22.860 just, oh, it just got off with him so bad that 00:12:22.860 --> 00:12:29.000 by the 1860s, he had literally gone insane because 00:12:29.000 --> 00:12:33.870 nobody would listen to what he had to say. His 00:12:33.870 --> 00:12:36.110 doctor friends made fun of him, they wrote him 00:12:36.110 --> 00:12:38.509 off, they said he was a lunatic, and eventually 00:12:38.509 --> 00:12:40.809 he was tricked into going to an insane asylum 00:12:40.809 --> 00:12:45.409 to visit someone else. Little did he know that 00:12:45.409 --> 00:12:49.190 he himself would be locked up there. And ironically, 00:12:49.289 --> 00:12:52.049 only a couple of weeks after being placed in 00:12:52.049 --> 00:12:56.789 the insane asylum, he died due to an infection 00:12:56.789 --> 00:13:01.309 that probably would have been avoided if those 00:13:01.309 --> 00:13:04.679 treating him... would have washed their hands. 00:13:06.100 --> 00:13:08.580 Now you would think that at the end of that part 00:13:08.580 --> 00:13:10.639 of the story, that within the next few years, 00:13:10.740 --> 00:13:13.580 that it would have been mandatory and it would 00:13:13.580 --> 00:13:15.740 have been a standard that everyone in the medical 00:13:15.740 --> 00:13:20.600 field would wash their hands. But do you know 00:13:20.600 --> 00:13:25.000 when it became a medical standard from the CDC 00:13:25.000 --> 00:13:27.759 that you wash your hands in a medical facility? 00:13:27.899 --> 00:13:38.379 Anybody want to take a guess? 1985. 1985. Before 00:13:38.379 --> 00:13:42.919 the CDC published a standard that required people 00:13:42.919 --> 00:13:47.500 in the medical field to wash their hands. And 00:13:47.500 --> 00:13:50.639 here this man knew the truth all along. And he 00:13:50.639 --> 00:13:53.919 was ridiculed and he died trying to get the truth 00:13:53.919 --> 00:13:58.720 across to people. Well, now it's second nature. 00:14:00.080 --> 00:14:04.440 We all know that we should wash our hands. Hopefully 00:14:04.440 --> 00:14:09.259 we all do wash our hands. But I share that story 00:14:09.259 --> 00:14:12.919 because I think that maybe in some way that's 00:14:12.919 --> 00:14:15.379 not so unlike what it is for us to be a Christian. 00:14:16.779 --> 00:14:20.740 Stephen knew a wonderful truth. He had discovered 00:14:20.740 --> 00:14:24.860 the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It changed 00:14:24.860 --> 00:14:27.720 his life and he realized the importance of that 00:14:27.720 --> 00:14:31.360 truth. He said, Jesus Christ can save lives. 00:14:32.419 --> 00:14:37.360 Jesus Christ can save your soul. And so he discovered 00:14:37.360 --> 00:14:40.799 this great truth. He had experienced this great 00:14:40.799 --> 00:14:43.840 truth. He had the evidence for it. And so he 00:14:43.840 --> 00:14:47.039 goes out into the world and he begins to preach 00:14:47.039 --> 00:14:49.620 and to teach and to show people, look at what 00:14:49.620 --> 00:14:52.919 I've discovered. It's Jesus. He is the Messiah. 00:14:53.759 --> 00:14:56.460 He can save your soul. He can save your life. 00:14:56.559 --> 00:14:58.860 You're doomed without him, but he can cleanse 00:14:58.860 --> 00:15:03.820 you and make you as white as snow. And he went 00:15:03.820 --> 00:15:07.679 and he preached that gospel, and his result was 00:15:07.679 --> 00:15:11.500 not so unlike that of Dr. Semmelweis. Because 00:15:11.500 --> 00:15:14.480 as we see from this scripture, the crowd that 00:15:14.480 --> 00:15:18.279 heard the truth of the word that he spoke told 00:15:18.279 --> 00:15:21.679 him he was crazy, essentially. They wrote him 00:15:21.679 --> 00:15:24.509 off. They said, we don't want to hear what you 00:15:24.509 --> 00:15:28.029 got to say. And he preached all the more with 00:15:28.029 --> 00:15:30.590 all the boldness. And when he had finished preaching 00:15:30.590 --> 00:15:33.049 and presenting the word of God to them in the 00:15:33.049 --> 00:15:35.529 most beautiful and precise way, and he says, 00:15:35.570 --> 00:15:38.350 look, y 'all need to pay attention. You're still 00:15:38.350 --> 00:15:40.769 missing it. You're still hard -hearted. You're 00:15:40.769 --> 00:15:44.110 still stiff -necked. And after presenting to 00:15:44.110 --> 00:15:46.330 them the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, 00:15:46.850 --> 00:15:51.370 what did it say they did? It's said that they 00:15:51.370 --> 00:15:54.190 begin to holler at the top of their lungs and 00:15:54.190 --> 00:15:57.629 they close their ears. The more he began to speak 00:15:57.629 --> 00:16:02.389 the truth, I don't want to hear it. I don't want 00:16:02.389 --> 00:16:07.190 to hear it. And as a result of him speaking the 00:16:07.190 --> 00:16:16.409 truth, they killed him. They took his life. Maybe 00:16:16.409 --> 00:16:21.539 our experiences are similar in some way. Because 00:16:21.539 --> 00:16:23.399 I want to tell you something, the world has not 00:16:23.399 --> 00:16:27.299 changed. The people of Stephen's day are not 00:16:27.299 --> 00:16:31.399 so unlike the people of our day. There are a 00:16:31.399 --> 00:16:35.039 lot of people that don't want to hear the truth 00:16:35.039 --> 00:16:39.340 of the gospel of Jesus Christ. There are a lot 00:16:39.340 --> 00:16:41.460 of people that if you try to share with them 00:16:41.460 --> 00:16:44.399 scripture, if you try to share with them the 00:16:44.399 --> 00:16:46.919 love of Jesus, they will tell you that you are 00:16:46.919 --> 00:16:50.809 insane. They'll tell you that... They don't want 00:16:50.809 --> 00:16:55.450 to hear any of that. But when you've lived the 00:16:55.450 --> 00:16:59.389 truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ and experienced 00:16:59.389 --> 00:17:01.830 the grace of Jesus Christ and know that your 00:17:01.830 --> 00:17:05.170 sins have been forgiven, when you've discovered 00:17:05.170 --> 00:17:11.869 such a truth, you have to speak it. You have 00:17:11.869 --> 00:17:15.609 to share it. There are many Christians in this 00:17:15.609 --> 00:17:19.400 world. They do that regularly. Hopefully we are 00:17:19.400 --> 00:17:22.480 some of them. And there are still some Christians 00:17:22.480 --> 00:17:25.779 in this world that are no different than Stephen. 00:17:26.980 --> 00:17:29.480 That they discovered the truth and no matter 00:17:29.480 --> 00:17:31.839 where they are and who they encounter, no matter 00:17:31.839 --> 00:17:34.099 how crazy they may tell them they may be, they 00:17:34.099 --> 00:17:36.660 say, but this is the truth. This is the life 00:17:36.660 --> 00:17:41.119 changing truth. Would you just listen to what 00:17:41.119 --> 00:17:45.089 I have to say? And they continue to promote the 00:17:45.089 --> 00:17:48.910 truth even though it costs them their lives. 00:17:50.849 --> 00:17:55.049 What about you and I? Are we ready to promote 00:17:55.049 --> 00:17:58.170 the truth in that way? Yeah, we may face opposition 00:17:58.170 --> 00:18:01.809 sometimes. Maybe we're quick to turn when opposition 00:18:01.809 --> 00:18:04.250 comes. Maybe we speak the truth to someone and 00:18:04.250 --> 00:18:06.750 they come back at us a little bit or they attack 00:18:06.750 --> 00:18:09.150 us in some way and maybe we back off and go on 00:18:09.150 --> 00:18:14.799 our way. Maybe we need boldness to be more like 00:18:14.799 --> 00:18:17.740 Stephen, to say, I've discovered the truth in 00:18:17.740 --> 00:18:21.259 Jesus Christ, and I want to make sure that you 00:18:21.259 --> 00:18:26.220 know that truth. And even when we speak the truth 00:18:26.220 --> 00:18:29.380 to those who don't want to hear it, you never 00:18:29.380 --> 00:18:33.359 know. You never know how it may change their 00:18:33.359 --> 00:18:37.160 life. Isn't it interesting that in this story, 00:18:38.440 --> 00:18:40.799 That in the middle of the crowd of those who 00:18:40.799 --> 00:18:44.339 were stoning Stephen were introduced to a character 00:18:44.339 --> 00:18:47.500 just in one brief little line here. That there 00:18:47.500 --> 00:18:50.740 was a man there before them who held their coats 00:18:50.740 --> 00:18:53.559 as they stoned Stephen and his name was Saul. 00:18:55.059 --> 00:18:58.400 Later to be called on by God who would be at 00:18:58.400 --> 00:19:00.720 the forefront of the church and spreading this 00:19:00.720 --> 00:19:05.160 same news. God would rename him Paul and he would 00:19:05.160 --> 00:19:09.380 use him in a mighty way. So sometimes the very 00:19:09.380 --> 00:19:12.680 people that we're ministering to, sometimes the 00:19:12.680 --> 00:19:14.799 very people that don't want to hear the message 00:19:14.799 --> 00:19:18.619 are the very people that God is going to let 00:19:18.619 --> 00:19:21.700 that message begin to eat away at them, let that 00:19:21.700 --> 00:19:25.039 message begin to speak to them. And sometimes 00:19:25.039 --> 00:19:28.740 it may be the very ones who attack us, the very 00:19:28.740 --> 00:19:34.559 ones who kill us, that God uses in a mighty way. 00:19:36.329 --> 00:19:39.970 We wash our hands today all the time. We don't 00:19:39.970 --> 00:19:42.769 think anything of it. It seems like common sense. 00:19:43.829 --> 00:19:49.170 But sometimes common sense isn't so common. Sometimes 00:19:49.170 --> 00:19:52.309 the things that are obvious to us as true and 00:19:52.309 --> 00:19:56.190 good may not be as obvious to others as being 00:19:56.190 --> 00:20:00.609 as true and as good. But as Christians, God calls 00:20:00.609 --> 00:20:04.190 us, those who have trusted in Jesus Christ, to 00:20:04.190 --> 00:20:07.539 take the good news. To take what we know is true 00:20:07.539 --> 00:20:11.359 and to share it with a lost and dying world. 00:20:13.799 --> 00:20:16.519 We understand the importance of washing our hands 00:20:16.519 --> 00:20:21.000 and killing those germs. But how much more so 00:20:21.000 --> 00:20:25.220 do we need to have our souls cleansed? How much 00:20:25.220 --> 00:20:27.819 more so do we need to get all the gook and the 00:20:27.819 --> 00:20:30.319 gunk and the nastiness that the Bible would call 00:20:30.319 --> 00:20:34.799 sin? All that sinfulness that was in our heart. 00:20:35.500 --> 00:20:38.299 Boy, that anger we have, that bitterness we have, 00:20:38.380 --> 00:20:41.559 that lust that we have, that greed that we have, 00:20:41.720 --> 00:20:45.819 the things that we say that we shouldn't say 00:20:45.819 --> 00:20:47.880 and the things that we do that we shouldn't do, 00:20:48.000 --> 00:20:51.539 the way that we open our mouth that we should 00:20:51.539 --> 00:20:54.920 shut our mouth, all of these things that lead 00:20:54.920 --> 00:20:58.240 to sin in our life, the list goes on and on and 00:20:58.240 --> 00:21:01.619 on. These things make us as dirty as can be. 00:21:02.619 --> 00:21:05.519 Even our righteous acts are like, Filthy rags 00:21:05.519 --> 00:21:07.960 before the Lord, the scripture says. Nastiness. 00:21:09.380 --> 00:21:14.180 Nastiness. Praise the Lord, the scripture says 00:21:14.180 --> 00:21:17.180 that if Jesus washes us, we are as white as snow. 00:21:18.420 --> 00:21:21.759 Jesus tells his disciples as he washes their 00:21:21.759 --> 00:21:24.920 feet, soon afterwards he says, once I have washed 00:21:24.920 --> 00:21:29.519 you, you are clean. Have you been made clean 00:21:29.519 --> 00:21:33.359 today? Maybe you've heard the truth of the gospel 00:21:33.359 --> 00:21:36.559 and you've been covering your ears and resisting 00:21:36.559 --> 00:21:41.099 it for many years. Maybe today the Lord wants 00:21:41.099 --> 00:21:43.279 to speak to you. Maybe today the Lord's already 00:21:43.279 --> 00:21:45.819 convicting you. Maybe today the Lord wants you 00:21:45.819 --> 00:21:50.920 to take your fingers out of your ears and listen 00:21:50.920 --> 00:21:58.079 to his word and seek his son, Jesus Christ. It 00:21:58.079 --> 00:22:01.619 doesn't take long. The truth of the gospel is 00:22:01.619 --> 00:22:05.559 this, is that we are sinners in need of a Savior. 00:22:06.539 --> 00:22:09.099 Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is that Savior. 00:22:10.420 --> 00:22:12.720 That He was crucified, that He was buried, that 00:22:12.720 --> 00:22:16.160 He was resurrected. That He gave His life, that 00:22:16.160 --> 00:22:18.599 He shed His blood to cover our sins so that we 00:22:18.599 --> 00:22:22.460 could be forgiven. Have you put your trust in 00:22:22.460 --> 00:22:26.660 Jesus today? Do you have faith in Jesus Christ 00:22:26.660 --> 00:22:29.160 today? Have you repented of your sins today? 00:22:31.549 --> 00:22:37.950 Does it take long? Maybe about 20 seconds. Maybe 00:22:37.950 --> 00:22:41.789 it'll only take you about 20 seconds today to 00:22:41.789 --> 00:22:46.210 say, Lord Jesus, I know I need you. Lord Jesus, 00:22:46.390 --> 00:22:49.650 I know I'm a sinner in need of a Savior. I have 00:22:49.650 --> 00:22:53.170 sinned in so many ways. And God, I know I can't 00:22:53.170 --> 00:22:55.009 earn your favor, but I know you died on the cross 00:22:55.009 --> 00:22:57.210 for me so that I could be forgiven. Jesus, would 00:22:57.210 --> 00:23:02.289 you forgive my sins today and be my Savior? It 00:23:02.289 --> 00:23:05.910 only takes about 20 seconds to seek God, to call 00:23:05.910 --> 00:23:09.529 out to him, to know the truth, to live in the 00:23:09.529 --> 00:23:13.289 truth, and to be washed as white as snow. Let's 00:23:13.289 --> 00:23:16.349 pray. God, we come to you today. We thank you 00:23:16.349 --> 00:23:18.490 for these good words, and I pray, dear Lord, 00:23:18.650 --> 00:23:21.089 that you would help us to have a boldness like 00:23:21.089 --> 00:23:25.170 Stephen. God, I pray that you would help any 00:23:25.170 --> 00:23:28.109 that are here today and any that are online that 00:23:28.109 --> 00:23:32.630 are not. followers of Jesus Christ, that today 00:23:32.630 --> 00:23:34.670 that they would be followers of Jesus Christ, 00:23:34.890 --> 00:23:36.650 that they would put their faith and their trust 00:23:36.650 --> 00:23:38.890 in Jesus Christ and that they would follow him. 00:23:41.230 --> 00:23:43.190 God, maybe there are some here today and they 00:23:43.190 --> 00:23:46.029 are already yours. They are already your followers, 00:23:46.150 --> 00:23:51.130 dear Lord. Pray that you'd give us all the boldness 00:23:51.130 --> 00:23:55.230 to share the truth of the gospel. Pray that we 00:23:55.230 --> 00:23:57.589 all have experienced the truth of Jesus Christ. 00:23:57.690 --> 00:24:00.819 And I pray, God, That we would be at the forefront 00:24:00.819 --> 00:24:04.119 of sharing this truth with others. But God we 00:24:04.119 --> 00:24:06.059 have to know. We have to be ready through your 00:24:06.059 --> 00:24:09.640 strength. To know that. God when we share the 00:24:09.640 --> 00:24:12.599 truth. It's not always celebrated. It's not always 00:24:12.599 --> 00:24:17.519 accepted. And so God even in our lives. As we 00:24:17.519 --> 00:24:20.160 share the truth of the gospel. We may be ridiculed. 00:24:20.680 --> 00:24:25.160 We may be mocked. And God. As is the case. Still 00:24:25.160 --> 00:24:28.160 in our world today. There are Christians. Whose 00:24:28.160 --> 00:24:32.559 lives are taken for sharing the truth. But God 00:24:32.559 --> 00:24:35.640 let us never give up. Give us the strength and 00:24:35.640 --> 00:24:37.680 the ability to stand strong. And to be able to 00:24:37.680 --> 00:24:40.619 speak truth. Give us wisdom dear Lord. To share 00:24:40.619 --> 00:24:46.200 your word and to not back down. God I pray that 00:24:46.200 --> 00:24:48.339 there are any today that do not know the truth 00:24:48.339 --> 00:24:51.000 of Jesus Christ. Have not accepted that truth 00:24:51.000 --> 00:24:54.799 that they would do so this morning. God it only 00:24:54.799 --> 00:25:00.430 takes a few seconds. To come before you. To repent 00:25:00.430 --> 00:25:02.789 of our sins. To ask you to forgive us dear Lord. 00:25:04.230 --> 00:25:07.049 And we will be clean. But that only comes through 00:25:07.049 --> 00:25:09.089 Jesus Christ. So I pray God that if there are 00:25:09.089 --> 00:25:11.170 any that do not know him. That they would know 00:25:11.170 --> 00:25:14.329 him today. God whatever uncleanliness is in our 00:25:14.329 --> 00:25:16.690 heart. Even those who are yours. I pray God that. 00:25:17.490 --> 00:25:19.730 Maybe we would just take a few moments dear Lord. 00:25:19.849 --> 00:25:25.450 To have a spiritual cleansing this morning. That 00:25:25.450 --> 00:25:28.569 we wouldn't allow these sinful things. that wear 00:25:28.569 --> 00:25:31.130 us down to continue to spread in our body, but 00:25:31.130 --> 00:25:34.309 God, that we just would seek you today to kill 00:25:34.309 --> 00:25:38.710 those spiritual germs. And I ask these things 00:25:38.710 --> 00:25:40.569 in Jesus' name. Amen.