The Encounter that is Life-Shaping

“Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and as he drew near to look, there came the voice of the Lord: ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and did not dare to look. Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt’” (Acts 7:30-34).

Stephen described Moses’ life-changing encounter with God. Moses had run in fear and frustration from his high position in Egypt. He had been humbled by 40 years of nomadic life in the Midian wilderness. But God was not done with him yet. God’s plan had not changed. In fact, God was preparing him for greatness. Through God’s grace, Moses would become an effective servant leader and deliverer of His children. This final and most productive part of Moses’ life and ministry began as the 80-year-old shepherd was confronted by much more than a burning bush. Moses experienced the encounter that is life-shaping.

Moses encountered the surety of God. God introduced Himself to Moses with the familiar, covenant affirming words… “I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob”. He reminded Moses that despite the outward appearance of Israel’s slavery and his own exile, He was going to fulfill His promises of a homeland and a Messiah for His children. The Messiah promise has been fulfilled in Christ… “And he said to them, ‘O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?’ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself” (Luke 24:25-27). The permanent homeland promise will be fulfilled soon… “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Philippians 3:20). As we journey toward heaven, our faith is matured by a daily life-shaping encounter with the surety of God.

Moses encountered the sacredness of God. He is completely set apart from that which is ordinary or common. There is no place in His character for unrighteousness or sin. He will not even look at unholiness… “You who are of purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong” (Habakkuk 1:13). Our sin separates us from God, yet He longs to enjoy fellowship with the people He has created… “Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear” (Isaiah 59:1-2). Stephen recalled the detail of God commanding Moses to… “Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground”. He reminded his audience, the Jewish Council along with us, that it’s possible to draw near to God only if our sin is atoned for. Stephen knew Christ alone had authority to forgive sin… “But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” (Matthew 9:6). Maturing disciples enjoy increasing intimacy with God because Christ has forgiven us and restored us to fellowship with our wonderful Father… “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:13). Let’s enjoy a daily life-shaping encounter with God by trusting Christ, confessing sin, removing distractions, and creating and maintaining a precious place to enjoy the sacredness of God.

Moses encountered the sensitivity of God. God was aware of and responsive to the suffering of His children… “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them”. Jesus demonstrated the sensitivity and compassion of God when He responded to the needs of those around Him… “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:36). When we have a daily life-shaping encounter with Christ, His compassion compels us to meet the needs of others and show them the sensitivity of God.

As we grow up into Christ, we are compelled to share Him with others because we have experienced…

The Encounter that is Life-Shaping.

The Heart that is Misunderstood

“When he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brothers, the children of Israel. And seeing one of them being wronged, he defended the oppressed man and avenged him by striking down the Egyptian. He supposed that his brothers would understand that God was giving them salvation by his hand, but they did not understand. And on the following day he appeared to them as they were quarreling and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers. Why do you wrong each other?’ But the man who was wronging his neighbor thrust him aside, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’ At this retort Moses fled and became an exile in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons” (Acts 7:23-29).

As Moses grew up in Pharaoh’s palace, his mind was filled up with the wisdom of Egypt but his heart was consumed with a love for His Hebrew brothers and sisters. The Lord was at work, establishing Moses as a leader… “And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was mighty in his words and deeds” (Acts 7:22), but not everyone acknowledged his leadership... “Who made you a ruler and a judge over us?” (Acts 7:27). God was indeed preparing Moses for an important mission that would require him to become an effective servant leader. It was going to take time, about 40 years of wilderness preparation, but today we see Moses learning his first leadership lesson. The heart of a servant leader is often the heart that is misunderstood.

The servant leader’s heart is cultivated by grace. Despite the comfort and opulence of palace life, Moses never forgot the way God protected and provided for him at the very beginning of his life. He probably often wondered why me? He could not deny that God’s hand of blessing rested upon him and was constantly working in him, setting him apart from Egyptians and Hebrews alike, and preparing him for something special. He was living in the lap of Egyptian luxury but he was not comfortable with it. That’s what God’s grace does in all disciples of Jesus Christ… “For the grace of God has appeared… training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age” (Titus 2:11-12). God’s grace is cultivating our hearts to live in a fallen world without becoming part of it, keeping our hearts focused on Jesus Christ and the glory to come… “waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). Others do not understand, but growing disciples know that God uses the trials of today to prepare us for eternity as our hearts are cultivated by His grace.

The servant leader’s heart is compelled by mercy. When Moses became a man, “it came into his heart” to come to the defense of an oppressed Hebrew brother. Despite the insulation of palace life and luxury, Moses’ heart was still sensitive and responsive to the leading of God, who had great compassion for His children… “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings” (Exodus 3:7). God’s compassion compelled Him to forgive the sins of His children and deliver them from their oppression, even though they did not deserve such mercy, and in Moses God found a mercy-filled and compassion-driven heart like His own… “Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt” (Exodus 3:10). Like Moses, we can be a reflection of God’s forgiveness to others if our heart is compelled by mercy.

The servant leader’s heart is contrite and humble. When Moses was misunderstood and rejected by his Hebrew brother, his heart was broken and he ran. We can be encouraged here by the truth that God does not require a perfect heart to serve Him. In fact, God is very present and active in the most humble and contrite heart… “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite” (Isaiah 57:15). God followed Moses into the wilderness of Midian and kept working on his heart, and He will do the same for future servant leaders like us if we too, keep our heart contrite and humble.

As we grow up into Christ, His grace prepares us for servant leadership by forming in us…

The Heart that is Misunderstood.

The Faith that is Commendable

“But as the time of the promise drew near, which God had granted to Abraham, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt until there arose over Egypt another king who did not know Joseph. He dealt shrewdly with our race and forced our fathers to expose their infants, so that they would not be kept alive. At this time Moses was born; and he was beautiful in God’s sight. And he was brought up for three months in his father’s house, and when he was exposed, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was mighty in his words and deeds” (Acts 7:17-22).

The Holy Spirit inspired Stephen to remind the council about Moses. He recalled that there were many changes during the 430 years of Israel’s sojourn in Egypt. The Israelites increased in number and became a strong, contributing workforce in the growth of Egypt. There were political changes that led to the abuse and persecution of the Hebrews. A new king who did not know or respect the God of Joseph ordered a terrible kind of birth control in order to slow the amazing growth of the Jewish population. It was difficult for the Jews to see through the mounting persecution and to remember God’s promise to Abram… “Then the LORD said to Abram, ‘Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions’” (Genesis 15:13-14). Like the children of Israel in Egypt, we live like exiles in this temporal world as we journey toward our promised land, heaven. We are encouraged today by Stephen’s testimony, to overcome the difficulties of this life by exercising the faith that is commendable.

Commendable faith remembers the promise is pending. Despite the physical evidence, God’s promise to Abram was approaching. Despite what we see in our daily lives, God’s promises to us are always drawing nearer too… “For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory” (2 Corinthians 1:20). That’s because the promises of God do not depend on what’s happening around us or on what others might do to us. The promises of God depend on His character and His faithfulness… “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful” (Hebrews 10:23). Let your trials direct your heart toward God where your faith will be refreshed and encouraged by His amazing faithfulness and you’ll be reminded that despite the physical evidence, God’s promises are pending.

Commendable faith knows the people will be persecuted. The new Egyptian king was disturbed by the prosperity of the Jews. We can be sure that others will be jealous of our peace and confidence in the midst of tough times. Often, they attack or provoke us to see if our faith is real… “If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you” (John 15:19). Let persecution remind you that your faith is being noticed by others as you wait for God’s promises to arrive and rejoice as one of His people who are persecuted.

Commendable faith believes the servant will be saved. Into the middle of this trying time, God’s servant leader Moses was born. God wonderfully preserved Moses’ life and intentionally placed him right in the house and family of the king. No one saw clearly or understood what God’s purpose for this special child was, but his faithful parents and the pagan first family were used in God’s perfect plan to fulfill His promise to His children. We can trust that even when we cannot see His hand moving, God is at work fulfilling His promises to us… “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11). In fact, God is always at work in every situation, fulfilling His good promises for those who love and serve Him… “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). Let your trials move you to serve the God who is sovereign over all that happens to you, and you will be His servant that is saved.

As we grow up into Christ, we rise above the trials of this temporary life as we grow in…

The Faith that is Commendable.

The Life that Points to Christ

“And the patriarchs, jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt; but God was with him and rescued him out of all his afflictions and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his household. Now there came a famine throughout all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction, and our fathers could find no food. But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent out our fathers on their first visit. And on the second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family became known to Pharaoh. And Joseph sent and summoned Jacob his father and all his kindred, seventy-five persons in all. And Jacob went down into Egypt, and he died, he and our fathers, and they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of silver from the sons of Hamor in Shechem” (Acts 7:9-16).

The Holy Spirit inspired Stephen to remind the council about Joseph. As a young man he was sold into slavery in the foreign land of Egypt… “but God was with him… and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh”. Later, as a ruler in Egypt, Joseph would summon his father and his family to come from the land of famine and death into a land of abundance and life. God’s grace was at work in all the ups and downs of Joseph’s life. The same grace is at work in us today, creating in us the same kind of new, Christ-like life we see here in Joseph… “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers” (Romans 8:28-29). In the details of Stephen’s reflection on Joseph, we are encouraged by the grace that is at work in every area of our lives, forming in us the life that points to Christ.

Jesus entered into our fallen world. I am amazed that Christ left heaven and entered into the brokenness of my fallen world to save me… “though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:6-8). As we mature in the faith and in our fellowship with Him, we are challenged by the Spirit of Christ that lives in us to enter into the messy, broken lives of the lost and hurting that surround us. It’s where He wants to be, and He wants us to be there with Him too.

Jesus rules over our fallen world. When we follow Christ into the tough lives of others, our awareness of His presence increases… “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20). In the brokenness and hurt of the lives of sinners He reveals Himself as Savior and Lord by exercising His authority through us… “Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you” (Luke 10:19). As we know Him better, our faith in His power increases and we see Christ’s rule manifest over the enemy as we exercise His authority in serving others.

Jesus summons us from our fallen world. Stephen’s testimony reminded the council that after revealing himself to his brothers, Joseph summoned his whole family to come from the land of famine and death into the land of abundance and life. What a beautiful reminder that the primary reason Christ left heaven and entered our fallen world is to seek and to save the lost… “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). Christ in us compels us to summon the lost in our world to come to Him to receive new, abundant life… “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). As we grow in Christ, we reflect the peace and joy of our new abundant life to the lost and searching around us.

As we grow up into Christ, His grace works in us to make us more like Him so we can show the world…

The Life that Points to Christ.

The Promises that are Fulfilled in Christ

And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 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.’ 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. 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 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).

The high priest gave Stephen a chance to respond to the false witnesses that accused him of preaching that Jesus would destroy the temple and change the law of Moses. Stephen was a simple deacon, a servant to the widows among the new Christian community of Jerusalem, but the Lord filled him with faith and the Holy Spirit and as he boldly shared the gospel, the Lord confirmed his preaching with… “great wonders and signs among the people” (Acts 6:8). While many believed the gospel, the Jewish council felt Stephen’s message threatened the established religious order. When he was arrested and brought before the council, Stephen experienced the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise that the Holy Spirit will give us the words to share when we are judged for sharing His gospel… “And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say” (Luke 12:11-12). The Spirit did teach Stephen what to say to the council, and as we listen in, the Spirit explains how Jesus did not destroy the temple and law, but they are among the promises that are fulfilled in Christ.

Christ fulfilled the promise of the temple. Stephen reminded the council of the promise of a homeland to Abraham and his offspring… “Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, ‘To your offspring I will give this land.’” (Genesis 12:7). Central to their homeland was the temple, their place of worship. The temple would indeed be destroyed soon and the Jews would be dispersed around the world. Christ followers among them would carry the gospel to the four corners of the world, but when Jesus talked of the destruction and three-day resurrection of a temple, He was speaking of His own death and resurrection… “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up… But he was speaking about the temple of his body. When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken” (John 2:19-22). Christ living in us has made us the temple of His Holy Spirit… “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16). Christ fulfills the promise of the temple as the place of true spiritual worship for every true believer.

Christ fulfilled the promise of offspring. Beyond promising Abraham offspring, God promised that his descendants would be a blessing to the whole world… “and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice” (Genesis 22:18). The Bible identifies Christ as the fulfillment of this promise… “Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring… who is Christ” (Galatians 3:16). Christ fulfills the promise of the offspring blessing by purchasing salvation.

Christ fulfilled the promise of protection. God promised to protect Israel through the time of their Egyptian enslavement. In Christ, the believer is protected through this temporal life and promised eternal life in heaven… “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:28). Christ fulfills the promise of protection and deliverance for His children.

As we grow up into Christ, we experience the blessing of all of…

The Promises that are Fulfilled in Christ.