Acts 7

ACTS 7 A. Vigorous Christians

1. The Word of God in his heart

2. A full heart of compassion to reach others.

3. On a mission of mercy for which he is equipped.

4. Under the control of the Holy Spirit.

5. Too often, this is not the case.

6. How does a Christian improve his spiritual health?

a. A burning desire to be a man or woman of God. This is the Holy Spirit working. b. A resolve to obey. c. Be positive. Let the Lord give you victory. d. Apply yourself to all means of grace God has provided. Prayer; the Word;

1) Prayer in confession, praise, intercession, etc.

2) Get into the Word by taking notes, memorizing

7. Lesson from Moses. Acts 7:20-25

a. Get the facts before you act.

1) He took his brethren's reactions for granted.

2) He acted in anger, rashly, and hastily.

b. Occasionally, we have to make decisions without complete evidence. c. Normally:

1) Sound out the situation.

2) Gather the facts.

3) Talk to people.

4) Pray over the facts, seeking God's wisdom; then make your

decision relying on God's guidance.

8. A God for all People

a. The Jews thought God was their exclusive possession. b. Stephen taught them throughout the scriptures that God was using the Jews to bring the Good News to the whole world. c. Most of the great events in Jewish history took place outside Israel.

1) Abraham - Mesopotamia - v. 2

2) Moses - Midian - v. 29

3) Law - Mt. Sinai - v. 38

4) Temple - cannot contain God - v. 48-50

for all people - 1 Kings 8:41-43

B. Express God's Concern.

1. His love and redemption were made known to the whole world.

2. God wanted to re-establish universal fellowship with man, but man wanted a world without God, which led to the Tower of Babel.

3. God started over with one man - Abraham. Gen. 12:1-3

4. God would then make a kingdom of priests (Israel) Ex. 19:5-6.

Ps. 67:1-2; Ps. 148:11-13, David Prophets. Isa. 45:22; Hab. 2:14; Mal. 1:11 We wonder at Israel's blindness--but how about us?

5. God's purpose hasn't changed.

a. We are a kingdom of priests. b. We are not carrying out God's purpose as He intended. c. We are satisfied with our worship and a few dollars now and then. d. We must get our eyes on what God's heart is set on -"the world." Jn.3:16 (world vision) e. We must see needs here and move to declare the answer to those needs (Christ).

6. "The Just One" is God's final revelation.

a. The Son of man - the Savior of the whole world. b. They had always persecuted those with clear vision. c. Now they murder the Messiah.

7. Apparent setbacks often result in advances.

a. Saul of Tarsus.