We dig deeper into a few specific aspects of Stephen's execution.

Acts 7:57

When Stephen completed his speech the leaders and people covered their ears and rushed at him dragging him out of the city to stone him.

Why stone him? Because they thought he was guilty of blasphemy (but he was not) and the Torah in Numbers 15:35 we read that the guilty were to be stoned outside the city. Keep in mind, though, that Stephen was not guilty of blasphemy.

Acts 7:58

We read that the witnesses involved in the stoning, laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul.

What do we know about the witnesses? We read in Acts 6:13 that they were FALSE witnesses. We know that they also stripped off their coats. But according to Jewish tradition, the guilty were stripped so that the punishment would be more brutal. However, here we read the witnesses took off clothing. (Unbeknownst to them admitting guilt)

Saul, who we know today as the Apostle Paul, had not yet experienced his conversion, he had not yet met Jesus on the road to Damascus. At this point he is young, probably late teens to early 20's.

Acts 7:60

Tells us that Stephen fell on his knees and cried out to the Lord not to hold this sin against them. Then he died.

Again Jewish tradition sheds light on this. The tradition was that the guilty were to confess their own sins. But instead, here we see Stephen (the innocent one) confessing the sins of the guilty. He was confessing the sins of the ones who were his persecutors.

The enemy attacks the innocent and applauds the guilty but Stephen walked faithfully with Jesus and even in death showed the mercy of Christ in his final words.

Pastor wonders how impactful that prayer of Stephen was as he was being stoned…. Was that prayer part of the reason that the young man named Saul would ultimately become the Apostle Paul?

God moves in mysterious ways!

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When Jesus says to His disciples, "Receive the Holy Spirit," it is not a "one-and-done" activity. He desires us all to live continually in the Spirit!

The visions from chapters 10-12 in the book of Daniel may seem confusing and even frightening. But in them, God begins with words of peace and reassurance, reminding us that He is listening to us and that we should not fear!

Does God exist? The Bible has described this as a reality for thousands of years. Genesis 1:1 "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."
⁃ There was a beginning
⁃ There is a God
⁃ God created everything

This is looked at as a religious belief, but it is increasingly a scientific fact as the scientific world sees that the creation had a beginning.
⁃ Natural knowledge of God
⁃ Nature - Romans 1:20 "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse."
⁃ Teleological argument - "Design requires a designer." It is obvious there is incredible design which requires a designer.
⁃ DNA - "DNA is like a computer program but far, far more advanced than any software ever created." Bill Gates. "The coding regions of DNA have exactly the same relevant properties as a computer code or language. We know books and computer codes are designed by intelligence, and the presence of this type of information in DNA also implies an intelligent source." Stephen C Meyer, PhD. "What I think the DNA material has done is that it has shown, by the almost unbelievable complexity of the arrangements which are needed to produce life, that intelligence must have been involved in getting these extraordinarily diverse elements to work together." Professor Anthony Flew. There is a creator because DNA is so complex it requires a creator.
⁃ History - "I'm a lapsed atheist… I go to church every Sunday, precisely because having been brought up as an atheist I came to realize my career as a historian that not only is atheism a disastrous basis for a society… but also because I don't think it can be a basis for individual ethical decision making" Professor Sir Niall Ferguson.
⁃ Conscience - Romans 2:15 "They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them." The conscience bears witness to a Creator, to a God who is:
⁃ Transcendent
⁃ Immaterial
⁃ Timeless
⁃ Powerful
⁃ Personal
⁃ Brilliant
⁃ Caring

To simply know that God exists is good, but to know God - that is what is necessary. And that requires that God reveals Himself to us - the revealed knowledge of God - showing Himself and drawing us to Himself.

⁃ Revealed Knowledge of God
⁃ Bible - profound unity of what it tells us. Read and listen to His Word and allow it to speak into our lives.
⁃ Jesus Christ - The Living Word - Savior, Redeemer, our only Hope. God is love and gave Himself for us all. Forgiveness and new life. John 1:18 "No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known." The Old and New Testaments testify to Jesus. He died, He rose and He is returning.
⁃ Holy Spirit - John 14:26 "But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you."

It is one thing to know that God exists but it is most important know God and to know to the Love of the Father through Jesus His Son and to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit who brings us to faith and who nourishes and guides us as we live a life of faith.

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The message starts with Matthew 1:18 "This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit."

Pastor explores today's question: "What about the Virgin Birth?" by tackling these 5 questions:

⁃ Is the "Virgin Birth" really that important?
⁃ Why do only Matthew and Luke mention it?
⁃ Couldn't this have been a later development?
⁃ This seems impossible to the modern mind!
⁃ Isn't it based on pagan mythology?

Importance of the Virgin Birth
⁃ It is taught by clear Scripture throughout the Bible. Note: Matthew 1:18 (above) and Matthew 1:22-23 "…an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."
⁃ It is foreshadowed in Genesis 3:15 - a Messiah from the seed of a woman.
⁃ It is announced by angelic authority
⁃ It explains the sinlessness of Christ
⁃ It confirms Christ's two natures - that Jesus is both fully human - but also fully divine. He is God incarnate, became flesh. His nature shows the Good News, because God loved this world so much He offered up His only Son for each one of us. This is the Good News.

Only in Matthew and Luke?
⁃ Only 2 Gospels (Matthew and Luke) mention the Nativity
⁃ John (from the Gospel of John) goes back to the beginning, "In the beginning was the Word and the word was made flesh and dwelt among us…"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning…"
⁃ Mark repeatedly asserts Jesus' deity
⁃ See Philippians 2:5 & Colossians 1:15-16 - these verse tell us Jesus was in the very form and nature of God and took on human flesh, died and rose. Makes it clear that God has come down to earth in the flesh and that the universe was created by the pre-incarnate Christ.

A later development?
⁃ Early dating of the New Testament - always been a part of the testimony from eye-witnesses
⁃ Clearly taught by early authors (examples: writings by Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr, and the great scholar Irenaeus,)
⁃ Testimony of the early Christian Creeds - the virgin birth was from the early teaching of followers.

Impossible for modern people to accept this?
⁃ The ancients weren't gullible! Even Joseph didn't accept it until the angelic visit.
⁃ The real issue is the miraculous. "If I haven't seen a miracle, then they don't happen!"
⁃ God is supernatural! He does supernatural things. Pastor shares some miraculous stories.

When we, in our own wisdom, seek to remove and erase the miraculous, we are not proving our brilliance, we are showing, for all the world to see, our folly.

Pagan mythology?
⁃ Note the differences! Example the "birth" of Athena from Zeus' head

Pastor closes with a graphic showing: incarnation, virgin birth and deity of Christ stating that if these are true then that changes everything. And it changes each one of us because God loves us and wants us back. He calls us to accept Him for who He really is: The Almighty Creator of the Universe who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for each on of us that we might live forever with Him! And THAT is the Good News!

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