How to Defend the Faith Part 1

Pastor Mike will be speaking on How to Defend the Faith Part 1. He will be reading out of Acts 7:1-13.

The ultimate purpose of God’s redeeming people is that He might be glorified. All that He is doing, all that He has done, and all that He will do is about the glory of God. For He is the God of glory.

What is the essence of our life? It is that we might glorify God. Hello, this is Pastor Mike Sanders from The Open Door Church and I am glad to be with you today to share God’s Word with you. Hope Worth Having is a ministry where we continue to proclaim the Word of God.

We look at the Bible chapter by chapter, verse by verse, which we believe is the most effective way to understand the Scriptures and to experience its full, rich, and powerful truths that make an impact upon our life.

So today we’re going to be in Acts chapter 7 and we’re learning how to defend the faith. I want you to join me in Acts chapter 7. Acts chapter 7 is where we’re at today and we have been studying through the book of Acts and last week we were in Acts chapter 6 and you remember that we were introduced to a man whose name was Stephen.

And I want to give you a little bit of context to chapter 7 so when you get to chapter 7 let’s just back up a little bit to verse 10 of chapter 6 so we understand what is going on when it comes to chapter 7.

I know that sometimes we say well you just mentioned this last week but I don’t know about you but I ask people and I say well what did I teach on last week and they say Jesus? Well that’s always a good answer amen.

But if you’re like me sometimes you forget but don’t let that discourage you. You know I don’t remember what I had for dinner a few days ago but I do know it was good and I know it nourished me and I’m still living off of it and so the Lord provides for us spiritually and He feeds us spiritually.

We come to Chapter 6 and verse 10, the Bible says that they were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spoke, referencing Stephen. That they secretly induced men to say, we have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.

And they stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes and they came upon him, seized him, brought him to the council. They also set up false witnesses who said, this man does not cease to speak blasphemous words against this holy place and the law.

For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place, referring to the temple, and change the customs which Moses delivered to us. And all who sat in the council, looking steadfastly at him, saw his faith as the faith.

an angel in the midst of all that criticism in the midst of all those words that they accused him of being blasphemous those words in which they falsely testified about Stephen a man of great character a man of great power a man who was filled with the Spirit of God and the wisdom of God his life was brief but yet in the book of Acts Luke takes time to bring our attention to the ministry of Stephen and in his brief life in his brief ministry he makes a huge and profound impact upon the life of the early church reminding each of us that it is not the quantity of our life but the quality of our life that brings most value to our family and most value to the community of faith and even the community in which we live in and God is calling each of our hearts to be a powerful people a people who are reflecting the very glory of God when people behold our face that they see joy hope and peace not a face that has accountenance of discouragement and defeat accountenance of not wanting to serve the Lord Stephen kept such a prominent positive attitude that even all before him who were watching him how’s this man gonna handle all this in the midst of being confronted with these false charges the Bible says that they saw his face as the face of an angel so much we can contemplate there but let’s think about this Stephen in chapter 7 he does not respond specifically to the charges that were falsely proclaimed about him but he focuses his heart on giving a defense for the faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

He gives a detailed defense of the Christian faith, and he uses the Old Testament as his platform to proclaim that message. And this morning I want us to learn how that even in the midst of hostility, even in the midst of criticism, and in the midst of those who are trying to undercut our faith, and even our testimony and character before God, that you and I can be a joyful warrior for the Lord Jesus Christ,

that we can give a comprehensive defense of the faith. Some of you may be concerned. You say, how could I ever defend the faith? How could I ever stand up for the Lord? How could I ever speak up for Christ in these unique times that we live in?

How could I ever be bold and courageous? I have not gotten any kind of a special degree, or I am not really that strong in my faith, Pastor Mike, but I assure you, it doesn’t matter. who you are and what your education is or how well you think you’re tracking for the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Spirit of God lives in his people. He lives in all who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and that includes you, my friend. The Spirit of God can bless you with the wisdom of God and the mind of Christ and give you the courage and the boldness to speak even when you feel very fearful, insecure about what you might say for the Lord Jesus Christ.

You can take all the training classes and they’re all good, not against any of them and I think it’s wonderful to be equipped. The Bible tells us in 1 Peter that we are to be prepared to give a defense of the hope that lives within us and I think that is so true today that if ever there was a time that it was needed for the people of God, the children of God, to give a defense for the faith, to give an explanation for the hope that lives in our hearts,

it is now. We need to be the light shining in the darkness. We need to be the people who are standing up and speaking up but you may feel inferior or ill -equipped to be able to do that and I rest assured that as long as you have God’s word and you have the Spirit of God living within you, you have the capacity to defend the faith but I want you to see a few things that Stephen brings to our attention.

Now as we go through chapter seven, I want you to know it’s impossible for us to dissect every verse in this chapter. It is a very long chapter. I don’t want you to be discouraged. I want you to go home and read it on your own and you’ll get more as the Spirit teaches you and the Spirit of God is the best teacher that you have to teach you the word of God but we’re gonna bring out highlights.

That is, unless you want to stay with me for four hours. Would you guys like to stay with me four hours today? A few of you. But we don’t want to do that, we understand. But we want to bring out some things that I think will help you to see the big picture of what Stephen is doing as he is defending the faith, which I believe is so applicable to our own hearts and helping us to defend the faith, not only to our family,

but to our friends. And this is important because this is a huge week for us as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. And if ever there was a time for us to speak up, it’s now. Say something for Christ.

The first thing I want you to see in the passage is Stephen established God’s purpose in redemption. Remember that in chapter six, Stephen had been accused that he was defaming Moses, the law and the customs.

that somehow he was attacking the temple and that he was trying to undercut the message of Judaism. But what Stephen does is he said, let’s take a step back and let’s see the big picture of God’s redeeming purpose in the patriarchs, in the prophets, in the people of God as he is bringing about their salvation.

I just wanna say this to you, that as you are out there trying to articulate this message of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, that good news that brings transformation, forgiveness and hope into every heart and brings eternal life to all those who believe that it is essential that you and I take time to help those who are trying to not only understand the faith or maybe they have questions about the faith to take a step back and see that big picture of God’s redeeming work within.

You cannot go into conversation spiritually and assuming that people understand where you are coming from or that somehow that they have the same base of biblical knowledge that you have but rather that you must take them back and let them see God’s overarching purpose and the redeeming thread and theme that threads through the scriptures and helps us to see God’s purpose in saving souls.

Stephen takes us through the story of redemption. He narrates for us how God has been at work in the earliest periods and times of his people bringing them back to salvation. We pick up in verse one and the Bible says, then the high priest said, are these things so?

What is your testimony, Stephen? Does Stephen retreat from the moment? Does he back down and say, well, I don’t really have a good answer? You know what he does? He uses it as a platform. to share the redemptive purposes of God.

You might find yourself in circumstances that are uncomfortable, and situations that you don’t necessarily like. But remember that when God puts you in those positions, they are opportunities to share his great purpose in the lives of others, and how that he is drawing us to him to bring about salvation.

And this is exactly what Stephen does. So let me help you. If you’re taking notes, I want you to write these four words down because they’ll help you understand the details of this whole chapter. First, he starts with Abraham in verses one through eight.

He tells us how God called Abraham out of the land of Ur, a land that Joshua would say is a land of idolatry. And then he takes us through the life of Joseph in verses nine through 16, and we’ll break all this down for you, so don’t lose heart, but he begins to see how God was working in the time period of Abraham, now to Joseph, and then in verse 17 through 41, he takes us through the life of Moses,

and he finally gets us to Jesus Christ. He gets us to Jesus Christ. Let’s back up a little bit. Let’s look at those four different sections real quickly as we understand the purpose of God in the redemption of people throughout history.

You’ll note in verse two of chapter seven that Stephen steps up and says, brethren and fathers, listen. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia before he dwelt in Huron and said to him, get out of your country and from your relatives and come to a land that I will show you.

What I want you to see first is he reminds the people, the God of glory, that the ultimate purpose of God’s redeeming people and bringing them to true salvation is that he might be glorified. He is the God of glory, all that he is doing, all that he has done, and all that he will do is about the glory of God, for he is the God of glory.

What is the essence of our life? It is that we might enjoy God and that we might glorify God. You say, what is my life about Mike? What is the purpose of my life? It is that you would glorify God and there is nothing that brings more glory to the father and nothing that brings more glory to the Godhead.

And remember, the father, the son and the spirit are all working and syncing together and bringing about your salvation, your forgiveness, your redemption, they are working cohesively together that you might no cry.

and that you might grow in Christ, what brings glory to the Godhead? It is that you would believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. You say, what is the ultimate purpose of my parenting? What is the ultimate purpose of my marriage?

What is the ultimate purpose at my job? It is that you might glorify God. And I understand that there are many things on the side relating to needs and practicalities that you see as essential to what you do, but that overarching theme in your life, that overarching purpose in your life is all about the glory of God.

And Stephen does not hold back in helping them to understand that this God of glory appeared to our father, Abraham. This is not a story that they were ignorant of. This is not a person that they were not cognizant of, but this is a person that they were well.

accustomed to knowing the details of his life as spelled out in the Pentateuch, as spelled out in the book of Genesis, as spelled out as God has revealed his truth to the Jewish people. And so when he said the God of glory called Abraham out, God stepped into the life of Abraham.

God stepped into a land of idolatry. He did not leave Abraham in the midst of his sinfulness, but he did what our loving and saving God always does. The Bible says that God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting, thank you church, everlasting life.

Now listen, God stepped in, Abram at the time’s life, and called him to eternal life, called him to follow him. Stephen enlightens us that the God of glory appeared to Abraham and told him to leave her and that he would take him on a journey to a place that he would show him later.

Are you with me? Are you tracking with me this morning? Because I’m just gonna be honest, if God stepped into my life and said, Mike, I want you to leave everything and I want you to go to a place and I’ll tell you the details later.

Wow, I’d want a budget, amen? I gotta have a budget. I want to know details. I want to know why God? What God? How? I got a lot of questions, God, and I got to know these questions, but do you know what the Bible teaches us?

Abram stepped up to the plate and he obeyed God. How does God work in your life? Some of you are trying to understand the will of God. You’re trying to understand what does God want me to do? Here it is.

You obey what you know and God reveals later what you don’t know. You obey God with what you know. You sense and know his calling in your life. You sense his direction in your life. You follow what you know and God will love you.

like that curtain at the theater, he lifts it up slowly. The more that you obey him, the more that you show faith, the more that you trust him, the curtain gets lifted up more and more. Now think about it, when I was a 16 -year -old boy, the Lord sent us an evangelist from Kansas all the way down into Stillwater, Oklahoma, and the evangelist preached, and he preached one night, and he said, if you have a sense of calling on your life,

then I want you to come and surrender. And I went forward that night at 16 years old, and I just said, Lord, I’m fully surrendered to ministry, whatever you want me to do. Now, had God said, now Mike, I’m gonna send you to Chambersburg, PA, I might have ran like Jonah.

We love it here, don’t you be discouraged, don’t you be defeated. I mean, I do wish the sun shined a little bit more, and there was a little bit warmer weather, how about that? Would you guys like that a little bit more?

I’m okay with global warming, I’m just gonna be honest with you. I mean, I’m like, bring it on, okay? But… I understand, people are frightened by it. But here’s the thing that I want you to know is that this is how God works.

And then when I got up, I told my pastor, hey, I wanna be in ministry, I believe God’s calling me. And he said, Mike, a call to ministry is a call to preparation. And he sent me off to Bible college and little by little, God has revealed through the years to my wife and I, what is his will?

And that’s how he works in your life. It’s not that he’s going to split the heavens and he’s not gonna write it on a wall, but he is going to slowly but surely as we obey him and follow him and trust him, reveal his perfect will for us moment by moment.

And that’s exactly what happened to Abraham. The course of God’s saving work in history to the Jewish people began in the life of Abraham. And Stephen brings this to their attention in verse one through seven.

He reminds them of an Abrahamic covenant that was given in Genesis chapter 12 that was ratified in Genesis chapter 15 and was reaffirmed to Abraham in chapter 17, was renewed to Isaac and Jacob in chapter 26 through 28.

It is an everlasting covenant that has been consummated in the death and resurrection of our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ. What are the elements of this covenant that God has made to Abraham that Stephen wanted them to understand?

God had promised an inheritance to Abraham. Remember that Jesus taught us in the gospel of John that salvation is of the Jews. And that it first begins there, Paul taught us that we are first to go to the Jewish people, then to Samaria and to the uttermost parts of the world.

Galatians 3 .16 reminds us that there is a promise in a covenant that God has made with Abraham. And the Bible says now to Abraham and his seed. were the promises made, he saith not, and to the seeds, as of many, but as of one, and to thy seed, which is Christ.

The first element of the promise and covenant to Abraham was a seed, was the promise of a Messiah, that out of his lineage, out of his family history, would come the one, the Messiah, who would bring true salvation to all who believe in him.

The second element of this covenant was a land, chapter 15 of Genesis, and chapter 17, give more details of that, but God promised to give Abraham descendants, and he promised to give them a land that they might possess.

The family of God is not limited to borders, and it is not limited to a nation, and it’s not limited to a land, but unto Abraham. was promised a land and that is why we’re so adamantly at the open door church pro -israel and we stand with them and we want to see the blessings of god emanate from them because we know what god has promised us that if we would we would bless the people of god out of the nation of israel that he would bless us the third element of this as we’ve mentioned is that there is a nation that god would provide in genesis 12 verse 2 god would provide abraham with a nation and the fourth element is a divine blessing and protection that would come upon him the covenant the covenant that god made with abraham was a covenant that had conditional terms on it and it was responsible that they must obey god follow god and that they must continually live for god and that is the story that is unfolding in genesis that is the story that we find in first and second kings and first and second chronicles it is the story that we see unfolding time and time again that the people of god are blessed by god when they love god and they make him supreme in their life but when they reject god and they put him on the back burner and they follow other gods and they follow other dreams and ambitions that god would bring judgment upon them as a nation i want you to understand that for steven to articulate god’s redemptive work and glory in history through the life of abraham was so compelling to those who were listening in that room that day of the sanhedrin court that they did not even interrupt him they did not even cut him off but as he was sharing that beautiful story of how it all began in abraham and how god was calling a people to him and raising up a nation in which the entire world would be blessed,

they listen with great anticipation. In verses nine through 16, he takes them to Joseph. I want you to look at verse nine and notice he says, “‘And the patriarchs becoming envious “‘sold Joseph into Egypt.'” But here’s the key, God was with him.

Abraham has a story. It is a redemptive story of God’s glory. Joseph has a story, betrayed, lied to, sold into slavery, forgotten while in prison, lifted up out of the mess, seems to be prospering well.

He’s lied about, his character is attacked, he’s thrown back into prison, he’s falsely accused. Joseph has a redeeming story. He, he’s forgotten and then finally God elevates him. to be second in charge in Egypt of all places.

A superpower of the day. But yet God would use all of Joseph’s sufferings and all of his struggles to prepare a man who would save the nation of Israel from famine. And God would use this man, Joseph, to carry on the redemptive story of what God was doing in the people of God.

Stephen is explaining to us how Israel not only came to Egypt, but that even though Joseph enduring jealousy, that God was with him enduring suffering, he had favor and wisdom, and God prepared him to preserve the people.

All that you and I face. All that we deal with. It’s so easy to get caught up in the weeds. It’s so easy to get lost in the forest and forget what God is doing. What is God doing in your suffering? I don’t have all the answers of why.

If I could explain every hurt and pain in your heart, I would be a millionaire, and trust me, I’m not. Let me tell you this, overarching in what God is doing in this world, and even specifically in your life, is that he is drawing people to him.

He is working effectively somehow in your loss, somehow in your suffering, somehow in your struggle to bring people into a true knowledge of Christ. That’s why it’s so essential how we respond to suffering, that we do not suffer as the world.

It’s not that we can’t weep. It’s not that tears cannot flow from our hearts and our eyes, but it’s that we suffer with hope. We grieve with hope because we have the hope of Christ that continues to stimulate us and motivate us.

and that as we walk through the valley, as we walk through the struggles of life, we have the confidence that in the midst of all that we’re dealing with, there is a savior who has not forgotten us, and we are part of this grand, redemptive story.

And you say, how do I defend my faith? You live a life that even as you suffer, there is hope in your heart. Because that’s the most powerful message that you can send forth, because the world is watching how you handle suffering, the world is watching how believers deal with struggles, and anybody, anybody can love God when they have a job, and anybody can love God when everything’s going wonderful in their life,

but how many of us can love God when everything is falling apart and the rug is pulled out from underneath our feet? How many of us can love the Lord Jesus Christ and say, As Job said, the Lord gives and the Lord takes away.

Blessed be the name of the Lord. And I’m not saying that you feel it, because I hear you. But what I am saying is you believe it. And you’re called and I’m called to live by faith, not by explanations.

If you spend your life trying to answer all of what your questions are, and all of your struggles in life are, then I tell you, you’ll be like the dog chasing the tail, and you’ll never be able to be that joyful warrior for Christ.

You’ll never be able to move forward in your life. You must come as Joseph did. How did he, how did he turn? All that was evil, and all that was hurtful, and all that was painful in his life, how did he flip it into something that became so profound and such a powerful message in his day to a message of hope and joy, it all is summed up when Joseph’s brothers stepped into the room as they were seeking help in the midst of the famine in Genesis chapter 50,

and Joseph realizes it’s them, it’s my brothers. He’s so overcome with emotion that he steps out of the room and he weeps, he lets loose of every hurt and pain in his heart. The church faced a lot of persecution and opposition.

And as we see in Acts chapter seven, this faith, this gospel, this Christianity that was emerging throughout Israel and beyond was something that had to be defended and had it to be explained and God used it.

used his great apostles and deacons and other great leaders in the church to faithfully defend the faith. These principles will help us today that even though we live in troubling times, we can still defend the faith and stand strong for the gospel, knowing that God will honor whatever is said and proclaimed on his behalf because his word never returns void.

We want to encourage you to make sure you check us out on YouTube and we have a special channel and it’s hope worth having and you can see that streamed live every Sunday on YouTube. In addition, you can catch up maybe if you missed a sermon or you’d like to study a particular passage in the scripture, you can follow along and get some notes there that’ll help you.

So we encourage you to do that. Also I’d like to encourage you to go to our website and signed up for our daily devotions. HopeWorthHaving .com and just hit the button, Daily Devotions, and you can sign up and every day we’ll send a devotion right to your email box and you can be encouraged in your faith as you are trying to do your best to live faithful.

This is Pastor Mike Sanders reminding you, in Christ there is hope worth having.