Passage: Acts 6:8-7:60 Speaker: Pastor Lukus Counterman Series: The Book of Acts: Neighbors & Nations
Speaker: Lukus Counterman - The Old Testament recounts how Israel moved from being led by prophets and judges, to the coronation of kings. Do you remember the name of the first king of Israel? Yes, Saul – a man who looked great externally. He stood head and shoulders above the rest. His outward appearance was commendable, but his heart was cold and corrupt. He disobeyed the Lord, and the kingdom was eventually taken from him. The Spirit of God left him, and he spent the last days of his reign in jealous grasping and bitter envy. The hand of the Lord was not on him. But instead of bending to God’s will and bowing to God’s next chosen leader, he resisted and rebelled to his last breath. Saul’s day was past, and God’s favor and blessing were now resting on David, “a man after God’s own heart.” This ancient rivalry reemerges between the first century Jewish establishment and the Son of David named Jesus. The temple looked great externally. It stood tall and appeared commendable. But at the heart of it there was an eerie chill of corruption. The favor and blessing of God rested on Christ and his church. But instead of bending to God’s will and bowing to his Messiah, the religious elite resisted and rebelled. Jesus and those who followed him became the objects of jealous grasping and bitter envy. In Acts 6-7 we learn that God’s blessings are found in Jesus, the One the law and the temple pointed to all along. May God help us see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.