Stephen's Witness

Stephen was an important deacon in the early church. He was one of the seven deacons chosen to take care of the daily distribution of food among the widows. He was chosen because of his character and godliness. He is described as a man full of the Holy Spirit, wisdom, faith, grace, and power. (see Acts 6:3,5,8) Here was a man who was so bold and courageous in his witness for Jesus Christ that he got himself into trouble. I'm sure people told him to calm down, perhaps to lay low for a while when things got heated with the religious leaders. But Stephen would not back down. In witnessing for Jesus Christ he made enemies and while this may not look good in the eyes of the world, I'm sure that God was very pleased.

I am reminded from Stephen's powerful testimony that we must not just wait for an opportunity to witness for Christ, but that we need to actively create opportunities to witness for Jesus Christ. We need to be bold and courageous in the face of indifference and even opposition to the gospel message. What is lacking in today's Christian witness is that Christians are playing it "too safe" and falling prey to the "sensitivity" game of our tolerant culture -- we are told to be sensitive to the feelings of others. Well, what about God's feelings; what about obedience to God's command! We are timid and not bold, safe and not audacious in our witness for Christ. Some of us may even be embarrassed.

Let us all repent of our failings in this area. I feel this is the great weakness of the Christian church today including our own. We have a message that is true and rational, a message that can stand up to the scrutiny of any rational and fair minded human being. Truth in on our side to anyone who wants to know the truth, but we need to get it out. When I look at our church, this is the area we all need to work on, not by waiting for an opportunity, but by first praying and then putting our head together and creating opportunities for witness. Too many of people are concerned mainly with their "jobs" or "career" and/or "education" opportunities when in fact, God is calling every believer in Christ, to put him first. How are we putting God first in our lives, even before our career or our studies? Let's all examine ourselves and by the grace of God make the necessary correction.

Posted by Pastor James