使徒行传

Meditative Reflection
Is Multi-tasking not to be Preferred?

The reason why the seven deacons were chosen was to “wait on tables”, so that the apostles would not neglect “the ministry of the word of God” (Acts 6:2,4). One would assume that, as a result, while the apostles continued to focus all their efforts on the preaching of the word of God and also on the ministry of prayer, the seven deacons would focus on the “waiting on tables” (or more specifically the distribution of food to thousands of believers which had to be a humongous task).

Having been assigned this humongous task, I am sure Stephen would not take this assignment lightly, nor would he view this task as unimportant or as unspiritual. However, it is obviously he also knew that such an administrative task in no way exempted him from obeying the Great Commission which has been given to all disciples, not just the apostles. As a result, we read in Acts 6 that Stephen understood his role in God’s Kingdom very well. Apart from spending time to be faithful to the charge of his newly assigned duty, he continued to reach out to the Greek-speaking Jews who had come back from the provinces of Cilicia and Asia, and also from Cyrene and Alexandria. He saw this as his mission, because he was a Greek-speaking Jew himself. And, the result of his ministry was very significant: Apart from being used by God to perform miracles, he was so filled with wisdom and the Holy Spirit that no one could stand up against his arguments. It is also quite obvious that the young Saul was engaged in these discourses with Stephen, and what he heard from Stephen enabled him to preach and prove that Jesus is the Christ immediately after his conversion (Acts 9:22).

These days, we like to use the teachings in Romans 12:6-8 to “confine” believers to serve in one particular role only in the church. The intention is often good in that we should serve according to our gifts and that by focusing on one ministry, we may not burn out as easily. However, the examples in the Scripture often point us to follow the manifestation of the work of the Holy Spirit in the life and ministry of our brothers and sisters. If the Holy Spirit so empowers and guides our brothers or sisters in more than one area of ministry, we should not stand in His way.

Meditative Reflection
Inspect Our Attic

The other day, I came back from Sunday Service, and walked past the corner of my house where I spend my daily quiet time with the Lord every morning. To my surprise, I saw quite a few ugly stains on the ceiling, right above where I normally sit. It had to be new stains that appeared only after my devotion that morning. Right away I knew that water must have covered the attic. But when I went into the attic later on, I discovered not only water in the attic, but droppings left by rodents as well. As much as I worried about how to deal with the situation, I immediately learned a very important spiritual lesson.

God used the incident to remind me of my own life. I had just painted the ceiling and it looked so white and clean. Yet, the accumulation of water and other unclean stuff inside the attic, eventually led to the breeding of rodents and it caused my white ceiling to show its true color. The same with the uncleanliness of my inner life: maybe to others, I look clean and white, but if I allow my inner life to accumulate sins and sinful inclinations, one of these days, they will show. It is a matter of time.

In a similar way, Jesus also accuses the Jews of His time as white-washed tombs (Matt. 23:27). But the Jews were blind to their stains which were obvious to all except themselves.

For those of you who have an attic, you’d better inspect it more often. But for all of us, let’s inspect the attic of our heart all the time.

Meditative Reflection
God Has Not Promised…

As Stephen retold the history of their forefathers, an unmistakable refrain is the apparent unfulfilled promises of God and the sufferings that accompanied their fate. Even as God made a covenant with Abraham, with all kinds of blessings, Stephen highlighted that even though Abraham had already set foot on the Promised Land, he did not own “even a foot of ground” (Acts 7:5), and he also highlighted the prophecy of their fate of slavery in the land of Egypt.

As he continued with the story, he highlighted famine, oppression and the intentional genocide they faced in the hands of the Egyptians — the fulfillment of sufferings, not blessings.

Up to this point of their history, the Bible does not attribute their fate to their sins, but simply as a precursor to the greater plan of God — their delivery and the ultimate salvation of the world.

I have found that whenever we face troubles in life, we immediately think of them as punishments from God. Yes, there are times our sins invite troubles in our lives, but more often than not, troubles are simply part of life, and for the children of God, they have come with God’s permission for our good.

May I invite you to reflect on these wonderful lyrics of “God Has not Promised” below:

Refrain
But God has promised strength for the day,
Rest for the labor, light for the way,
Grace for the trials, help from above,
Unfailing kindness, undying love.

1
God has not promised skies always blue
Flower strewn pathways, all our lives through;
God has not promised sun without rain,
Joy without sorrow, peace without pain.

2
God has not promised we shall not know
Toil and temptations, trouble and woe;
He has not told us we shall not bear
Many a burden, many a care.

3
God has not promised smooth roads and wide,
Swift, easy travel, needing no guide;
Never a mountain, rocky and steep,
Never a river turbid and deep

Author Unknown

Meditative Reflection
Rejection of Authority

Through the mouth of the Hebrew man who mistreated his brother, Stephen encapsulated the sin of the people, “Who made you ruler and judge over us?” (Acts 7:27).

On the surface, the people of Israel appeared to be obedient to no one except God. As a result, they rejected and resented any human leadership. Moses was a mere man, so the Hebrew man rejected him as his ruler. But Stephen pointed out that this was a collective sin of the people, as he substituted “he” by “they” in 7:35: “This is the same Moses whom they had rejected with the words, ‘Who made you ruler and judge?’”

The people of God continued to reject those whom God has appointed. In the time of Samuel they turned against him as well, and God said, “it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king.” (1 Sam. 8:7) And as Stephen pointed out, eventually, “And now, you have betrayed and murdered Him (meaning Jesus)…” (Acts 7:52). The reason that they killed Jesus was a continuation of their sin of rejecting any human authority appointed by God. They would only obey and submit to God, not knowing that God has always appointed human leaders through whom we would be led to obey and follow Him. By not being willing to follow human authority appointed by God, they had rejected God. And in the case of Jesus, they did reject God directly!

This sin of the Israelites has manifested itself to the fullest in our generation which is marked by rejection of authority within and without the church. Yes, history is full of authoritative figures who abuse their power and position, even within the church, but we should learn a lesson from the sin of the people of God of old and be very careful not to repeat their folly, because God has not changed His way of leading His people. While the Holy Spirit does guide us into His truth, He still leads us collectively through human leaders appointed by Him. It does not mean that they are without faults. Moses wasn’t perfect either (he was not allowed to enter the Promised Land), but it is still God’s design that we express our submission to Him through submission to human leaders appointed by Him. Of course, when blatant violations of biblical teaching are beyond doubt, we have to obey our highest authority in heaven, but we should be careful not to use it as an excuse to follow our innate desire of insubordination.

Meditative Reflection
“God Gave Them Over”

In re-telling the story of the past history of the people of God, Stephen was hoping that his Jewish “brothers and fathers” (Acts 7:2) would not follow the pattern of their forefathers in rejecting God and would come to understand the severity of their sin in the killing of the latest servant of God, Jesus, who is none other than God Himself.

In pointing out the sins of their forefathers, Stephen pointed out that their stubborn rejection of God had caused Him to turn away and to “give them over…” (Acts 7: 42) This was in such a great contrast to the often repeated reference to God being long-suffering.

Indeed, God is long-suffering. On a personal basis, I am sure, that you and I have experienced that first-hand time after time, “He does not treat us as our sins deserve” (Ps. 103:10). As I reflect on my past, often I bow in amazement that God did not deal with me as severely as He should have over my sins and my mistakes that brought shame and disrepute to His name.

As Stephen recounted the history of the people of God, and as we remember Korah during the Exodus (Num. 16:32), King Saul in 1 Samuel, Jonah among the prophets, Judas in the New Testament and yes, the many evangelists who fell from grace in our time, we are minded that even His long-suffering has a limit. If we are bent on continuing with our rebellion and spurn the almost endless opportunities for our repentance and return to Him, He will give us over to our desires. Being given over by God is, perhaps, the most horrible punishment of all.

Meditative Reflection
Worship in Spirit

I love touring Europe, because I really enjoy visiting the great cathedrals of the world and the oldest and grandest of them are in Europe. I admire not only their architecture — whether Romanesque, Gothic or Neo-gothic- but their grandeur projects an awe and majesty that befits the worship of our Creator God. How I wish so much that I could worship every Sunday in one of these cathedrals.

However, I am also reminded of the history of many of these cathedrals. As grand and awesome as they are, they did not help build a Christianity that truly worships God in spirit and in truth. The demise of these cathedrals and their empty seats bear witness to their failure, or rather our failure, because ultimately, “the Most High does not live in the houses made by men.” (Acts 7:48). As an indirect answer to David’s question of “Lord, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill?" (Ps. 15:1), William Law has this to say:

“The person who dares not say an ill-natured word or do an unreasonable thing because he or she considers God as everywhere present performs a better devotion than the person who dares not miss the church…To be humble in our actions, to avoid every appearance of pride and vanity, to be meek and lowly in our words, actions, dress, behavior, and designs—all in imitation of our blessed Savior—is worshipping God in a higher manner than do they who have only stated times to fall low on their knees in devotion.”

Meditative Reflection
Remembering Stephen

We have no idea how long Stephen lived. He came on the scene of the early church quickly, and quickly he was gone. As short as the space he occupied in the New Testament, far less than Paul and Peter, he occupied a very important position in the history of the Christian Church. He was the first recorded martyr of the church whose footsteps have been followed by millions of martyrs down the centuries. It is not an exaggeration to say that the road of mission has been paved by the blood of martyrs.

Stephen did not only become the first martyr, he also set an example to all martyrs with his boldness, his faith and his grace.

The last sermon he preached was one of the boldest in the Book of Acts. As inspired by the Holy Spirit, he not only accused their forefathers of their sins, but he confronted his hearers as “stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears!” (Acts 7:51). He was certainly no respecter of persons.

He also demonstrated his faith till the very end. As he was stoned, he looked into the sky and with his eyes of faith he saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God (Acts 7:56). And, like the Lord Jesus, he committed his spirit to Him. If his face was like the face of angel as he preached, I can imagine that at this very moment, his face would be even more angelic.

What might a face of angel be like? This reminds me of a young woman whom I had the privilege to pray with.  She confirmed her faith in Christ at 8 o’clock in the morning, only to die at 3 o’clock that same afternoon. I was asked to see and pray with her that day, because I was told that she was in great fear and sorrow. But when I saw her that afternoon, I saw a face like an angel. I have never seen a face with such sweetness and peace in my life. Her face testified to the faith she had in Christ.

But Stephen died with grace too, as he emulated not only Jesus’ prayer in committing His spirit to God, he said a similar prayer as Jesus' before he died, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” (Acts 7:60)

His prayer was indeed answered, as one of those who gave “approval to his death” (Acts 8:1) repented and followed his footsteps, not only in preaching the same gospel boldly, but who also died a martyr’s death. His death was certainly not in vain.