Stephen
Stephen
was stoned to death for his testimony of Jesus. Saul was one of his
murderers. Yet Stephen prayed, "Lay not this sin to their charge!" We
have Stephen to thank for the Apostle Paul, because Stephen's
witness, martyrdom and prayers were precursors to Paul's miraculous
conversion. As is often the case, men and women who are relatively
unknown or seemingly insignificant play a major part in the conversion
of other great men or women whose ministries will eclipse their own.
Acts
7:60 - "...and when he had said this, he fell asleep."
The Anointing
The
holy anointing oil symbolized God's touch. It meant "to rub." It was
poured on Aaron, the priests, their robes, the tabernacle and
everything in it. From Samuel's time, kings were anointed. When Samuel
anointed David, "the spirit of the Lord came upon him." God instructed
the people not to harm anointed ones. "Touch not mine anointed." Shimei
was put to death for cursing God's anointed. All Spirit-filled
believers are anointed. Jesus has the ultimate anointing.
Acts 10:38 - "...God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power."
Words
Augustine
called words, "those precious cups of meaning." The Greek term for word
is "logos," meaning "thought, or arrangement." Words order the
universe. By God's word, the entire creation was spawned. His
omnipotent word formed boundless matter from boundless void -
everything from nothing! No other force in the universe has the dynamic
potential of words. Ultimately, the word of God will compel all things
everywhere to fulfill His perfect will. Some people think the Bible is
dead, but not so. It is the living word.
Acts 12:24 - "...the word of God grew and multiplied."
Trouble With Prayer
Prayer
will get you into trouble, but prayer will get you out of trouble
again. I have often prayed for a thing only to create the exact
opposite effect. Jesus rebuked the devil in a deaf and dumb child, but
the devil "cried, and rent him sore." The people said, "He is dead!"
But Jesus took his hand and raised him up. Don't be immobilized if Satan
fights back. Pray on!
Acts 16:16 - "...it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us"
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Ken Raggio
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