Day 1017: Knowing the Bible - Acts 7 vs 1 - 8

1 And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2-3 And Stephen said: “Brothers and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran, and said to him, ‘Go out from your land and from your kindred and go into the land that I will show you.’ 4-5 Then he went out from the land of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran. And after his father died, God removed him from there into this land in which you are now living. Yet he gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot's length, but promised to give it to him as a possession and to his offspring after him, though he had no child.

6-8 And God spoke to this effect - that his offspring would be sojourners in a land belonging to others, who would enslave them and afflict them for four hundred years. ‘But I will judge the nation that they serve,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and worship me in this place.’ And he gave him the covenant of circumcision. And so Abraham became the father of Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs. Acts 7:1-8 English Standard Version

False witnesses had accused Stephen, a God fearing follower of Jesus Christ, and said: “This man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law, for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses delivered to us.” (Acts 6:13-14) In his defence, Stephen turns to facts of history which the Jewish leaders would've been familiar with. That can be a lesson for us today. Christianity is under attack and, more and more, the opponents seek to twist what the Bible teaches. Stephen's defence came from a man who knew the character of God, believed the Bible to be true, and knew the Bible well. How did he describe God's character in vs 2-3?

He calls Him 'the God of glory'. He firmly believed that God is glorious in Himself, and in all He does. God gave glimpses of His glory to people like Abraham, Moses, Isaiah and Ezekiel. But the greatest revelation of God's glory was in Jesus. The apostle John said of Him: “The Word (I.e. God's only begotten Son) became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)

And then we see that Stephen believed the Bible to be a true account of events that really happened. He describes the journey of a man named Abraham, whom the God of glory had appeared to, and had called to leave the region he was living in and set off to a land God was going to give to His descendants. Not only was that a true fact of history, but a reminder of how Abraham responded to God's revelation, and how he lived the rest of his life. (vs 4-5)

Abraham lived a life of faith in what God had promised, even though his circumstances seemed to be against those promises being fulfilled! Believing the truth of the Bible may be difficult at times when our personal circumstances, or events in the world around us, may seem to contradict what God has promised. But if we look back at things God promised those people the Bible speaks about, and how He kept all His promises, we can take heart that He will do the same for us.

But Stephen not only believed the Bible, he also knew it well. In vs 6-8 he gives an excellent summary of the events of Genesis, the first book of the Bible. As we go through Acts Chapter 7, we'll see that he knew the rest of the Old Testament well too. In the New Testament book, Ephesians, the apostle Paul described a 'spiritual armour' which God has provided for Christians so that we can come through the sort of situation Stephen was facing. And while most of the armour is for our defence, he urged believers to take “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:17)

Life has, no doubt, always been hectic, even in days of long ago. But in our world of internet and instant communication of pressing appointments, and even of world events, I suspect it’s more hectic and demanding of our time than ever. But may I encourage you to make time to get to know the Bible well. The Old Testament as well as the New. It's a true record of all that the God of glory has done, and will yet do, in our world. And it's our sword for the battle against all the lies and false accusations of Satan.