265 - ACTS 7:1-14 - STEPHEN TESTIFIES - BRIAN SUMNER

Well, if you have your Bibles, run

on over to Acts 7.

Are you guys getting fed out of this book or what? Isn't it just powerful? We don't plan this like, hey, we're a year out and I'm going to make sure we chime this in and this in and here's the agenda.

We just let the word of God speak.

And as someone who came to faith in 2004, there's so many great messages or great seasons of preaching.

But I can tell you a lot of those messages, I don't know how many I would go back to because how many of them were the word of God? I can hear something that is topical or about that season and is pushing an agenda, but will I listen to that in 20 years? Will I hear that in 50 years? When you hear a sermon from Pastor Chuck or Pastor Ron or a J.

Vernon McGee or someone, it's about the text, it's about the word, and you can play it in a thousand years even though you won't be here.

Amen? I say that because when I get in the pulpit, what I'm saying is, Lord, you've given us the sermon.

You've given us the message.

Yes, you lean into things.

We mention things about culture, but the last two weeks, what has been being spoken to us? Who are you? The seat you're sitting in, how has God gifted you? How does God want to use you? As God breathes on and moves on and the Spirit walks these aisles and wants to minister in Westminster, who are you and how are you called? Because as we pick up today, what we're going to see is a very deep passage of Scripture.

We're going to see a lot of theology, a lot of word, and what has happened so far, the Spirit has breathed on the early church.

There's been preaching, there's been persecution, there's been healing, and what's taken place as of late is seven men have been raised up.

They've been raised up to tend to the widows, and one of those men, what's his name? Stephen, you're with me, amen? Stephen has been raised up and he's humbly serving.

They've background checked.

We've picked this guy.

The apostles have prayed.

They've laid on hands.

And why this is powerful for us is because you need to realize as much as it was important for the apostles to be in prayer and the ministry of the word, that's what I'm doing.

It is just as important for everyone else that might be tending to a table or something else.

Amen? From the first person who showed up today and unlocked the gate, who picked up bottles that get thrown over that wall, pray against those folks.

Let's go witness to them.

Amen? To all the people in the kids' room or whatever it may be, every area of ministry in God's eyes is just as important.

And what the apostles were saying is, guys, We need to be devoted to this and others will be devoted to that.

Stephen had this call and why this is amazing, and I love this story, is all he is doing is tending tables, but what do we read suddenly comes out of him? He begins to perform what? Signs and miracles and wonders that the Spirit of God breathes.