(7/29) Today, we are starting a new series called "A Bigger Story" based on the testimony of a man named Stephen, a man who served the early church, and through his witness we are going to discover that we are part of a bigger story. I believe the Holy Spirit speaking through Stephen is going to help each one of us see the big picture and understand the larger story of the gospel because it is a story that unites us together to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. In fact, as I lay the foundation for this series listen to these words of the apostle Paul in Ephesians chapter one.

"God made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment — to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ" (Ephesians 1:9-10).

In other words, in the story of our lives, we have a beginning and an end, there is a plot, there are characters, and we need to understand that there is an author who is moving the characters toward a logical conclusion. The climax of our story is found in Christ, but too many people don’t know the author or the plot and they write their own script. But the Bible tells those of us who believe, those of us who know the author,

"In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory" (Ephesians 1:11-12).

Now, I think that is exciting, because we are part of a bigger story. In other words, we have purpose, we have meaning, and so we don’t want to be trapped in the moment, because according to Scripture there was a past that was planned for us and a future that awaits us.

My goal in this series is to help you see the big picture and understand the larger story that we all find ourselves in. In other words, this is why we worship God like we do, because we know that God has taken care of our sin problem, and by putting our trust in Jesus sacrifice we are forgiven and God’s grace is poured out on us. And so, now, God calls us to be part of his bigger story and we have been commissioned…

"To bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ" (Ephesians 1:10).

And so, today, you and I have a role to play in this cosmic drama, a task to fulfill as God brings all things together under the Lord Jesus Christ.

What I want to illustrate for you this morning from the Scriptures is one of the most important privileges that we have as followers of Jesus. Because if you have been born into the family of God, and empowered by the Spirit of God, you have been called to share Jesus with those who do not know him. Now, I know the topic of evangelism often brings up negative emotions because we know that we should be more purposeful about telling people about Jesus but we don’t and so we feel guilty. And then, on the other hand, we are fearful of sharing the good news about Jesus because we worry that we might say the wrong thing, we think we might mess it up, or maybe just be too offensive.

And so, many of us are afraid to share our faith, and yet that is exactly what we have been called by God to do as believers. In fact, the first thing Jesus said to those he met after he rose from the dead was:

"Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me" (Matthew 28:10).

And so, the gospel of Matthew tells us that the remaining eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go (Matthew 28:16).

Some Bible teachers suggest that this mountain meeting in Galilee was what the apostle Paul was referring to in first Corinthians, chapter fifteen when he said,

"Jesus appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time" (1 Corinthians 15:6).

Others suggest that it was just one hundred and twenty, because after Jesus returned to heaven the Bible says,

"In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty)" (Acts 1:15).

And so, whichever appearance of Jesus it was, Matthew tells us,

"When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted" (Matthew 28:17).

The very fact that some of those present doubted his resurrection makes it clear that more than the eleven apostles were present there on the mountain that day; because Jesus had already met with ten of his disciples on the day of his resurrection, he walked with two other disciples on the road to Emmaus, and then he met with all eleven disciples, including Thomas the next week. And so, all of the doubting had been resolved among the eleven disciples, but when Jesus appeared to all of the believers on the mountain, some of them doubted.

However, whatever was causing their doubts was quickly dispelled when Jesus began talking to them; because he was speaking with such authority, instructing them on the basis of the authority that he had been given by his Father. In other words, they recognized him, and they understood this because he had always taught as one with authority. For three years they had seen him taking authority over sickness, over disease, over the works of Satan, and even delegating that authority to his disciples. In fact, many of them had been given authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness (Matthew 10:1).

In fact, in Luke’s gospel, he tells us about Jesus appointing 72 others to go out two by two. And so, now on the mountain, he commissions all of the believers saying,

"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:18-20).

This commission to be witnesses, to make disciples, teaching the truth concerning his life, death, and resurrection is often called the great commission. And this directive to go and make disciples is applicable to every believer throughout the generations until he comes, because of his Spirit dwelling within each believer.

And so, the very nature of God, the presence of God within us, motivates us to go, because God is love and he is not willing that any should perish, but everyone come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).

In the Scriptures, we find that the early church ministered on the basis of the authority they had been given by Jesus. In other words, they taught the people in the name of Jesus, they healed the people in the name of Jesus, they cast out demons in the name of Jesus, they forgave sins in the name of Jesus, and they could because he has given us that authority.

In fact, as he was teaching his disciples before he was arrested, he said to them,

"I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father" (John 14:12).

And so, he has given those who believe authority in his name, he has given us his power through the baptism in the Holy Spirit, and he has given us the promise of his presence saying,

"Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Matthew 28:20).

However, in many churches today we find that the body of Christ has lost much of its power because we don’t really believe, or we just haven’t been taught to believe that we have this authority. In fact, in most churches, the ministry of Jesus is delegated solely to the pastor. And so, the pastor is given the responsibility to shepherd the people, to preach and teach, to heal the sick, to cast out demons, to evangelize the lost, and to build up those who believe.

Meanwhile, all the other believers, the church members, function either as spectators or cheerleaders, but that is a nonbiblical, handicapped, body of believers, because Peter told us that Jesus said,

"Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved… And those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes… deadly poison will not hurt them… they will place their hands on sick people and they will get well" (Mark 16:15-18).

And so, you may wonder then, what is the responsibility of the pastor? Well, all through the Bible it says very clearly that the pastor is supposed to be the shepherd of the flock of God, the overseer, the cheerleader, encouraging the church, and preparing God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up … attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ (Ephesians 4:12-13).

And we see this played out historically as we come to the book of Acts, because this is the testimony, the witness of the early years of the church. They had been empowered to be witnesses, receiving the baptism in the Holy Spirit, and they ministered in the authority of Jesus name. And so, immediately they began to fulfill the great commission because Jesus said,

"You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8).

And so, the apostle Peter, now filled with the Holy Spirit, stood up before a great crowd and said boldly in a loud voice,

"Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say" (Acts 2:14).

And he spoke with authority, preaching about Jesus and the coming of the Holy Spirit, and he told them,

"Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off…" (Acts 2:38-39).

The baptism of the Holy Spirit was a pivotal point for the body of believers, the church had now been empowered and they began to evangelize Jerusalem. They were filled with the Holy Spirit and they spoke the word with boldness, preaching Jesus crucified, risen, and coming again. And they never got sidetracked, all the believers were of one heart and mind, and the Bible says,

"Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved" (Acts 2:46-47).

Now, like every assembly of believers, they had their issues, they had to deal with sin in the church, they had to discipline those who got off track, but the church that deals with sin is an effective church, it is a pure church, and that is the kind of church that God can use.

And so, jumping ahead to Acts chapter six we see that,

"The word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith" (Acts 6:7).

Now, wherever there is growth, there are growing pains, and it was time for the church to move out of Jerusalem. And so, we find a man named Stephen stepping into the spotlight, he would be used by God mightily, and he would be instrumental in transitioning the church from Jerusalem, to Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

Stephen now becomes the main character for the remainder of this chapter and the entire seventh chapter. Luke tells us in verse eight,

"Now Stephen, a man full of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people" (Acts 6:8).

In other words, he was a deacon, a servant of the church, ministering to the people, and those he served experienced miracles, signs, and wonders through his ministry. And so, Stephen was willing to serve, he made himself available, and by the power of the Holy Spirit he reflected the character of Jesus.

But wherever Jesus went he shook things up, and so soon "opposition arose" from the Greek speaking Jews who like Stephen had returned to live in Jerusalem. These were members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)-Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia. These men began to argue with Stephen…" (Acts 6:9).

In other words, they kept trying to debate with him, but Stephen wasn’t depending on his own wisdom, he was speaking under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, and so the Bible says,

"They could not stand up against his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke" (Acts 6:10).

And it is no wonder that their arguments could not stand against the wisdom with which he spoke, because it was as if they were arguing with God himself. But nonetheless, they refused to believe, they were determined to stop him, and they secretly persuaded some men to say,

"We have heard Stephen speak words of blasphemy against Moses and against God" (Acts 6:11).

In other words, this was a serious charge, because the law in Leviticus chapter 24 tells us that to blaspheme the name of the Lord was a sin that called for death by stoning. Of course, they were lying, twisting his words, but verse 12 says,

"They stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin" (Acts 6:12).

Then they came up with false witnesses who testified against him saying,

"This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us" (Acts 6:13-14).

In other words, Stephen was repeating Jesus’ words, and just like they twisted Jesus’ words, now they are twisting Stephen’s words. And so, they are making these accusations, accusing Stephen of blasphemy, because they didn’t understand that Jesus had been speaking of the temple of his body and of his death and resurrection. But then verse fifteen tells us, as they are making all of these accusations,

"All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel" (Acts 6:15).

In the words, Stephen is sitting there calmly and peacefully when his countenance is supernaturally transformed, his face became like that of an angel, literally manifesting the glory of God. And so, in the same way, as Moses came down the mountain carrying the two tablets containing the Ten Commandments, he didn’t know that the skin of his face shone with the glory of God but when,

"Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him" (Exodus 34:29-30, ESV).

And so, Stephen preached the Gospel of Jesus to the Jews, proclaiming the New Covenant in Christ, and his unveiled face reflected the Lord’s glory. In other words, in the same way as God had approved Moses and the giving of the Law, now he gives his stamp of approval on Stephen as he proclaims the fulfillment of the Law in his Son Jesus Christ.

"Then the high priest asked Stephen, "Are these charges true" (Acts 7:1)?

And he didn’t know that Stephen was about to launch into the longest message recorded in the book of Acts and that he was going to give him a history lesson on the how and why of our redemption.

And so, there is so much more to the story, this wasn’t the whole story, this was just the opening scene in a bigger story. And we are going to continue this for several weeks, because there are some of you who are in the middle of a scene right now, but there is more to your story. In fact, there is a whole lot more to the story, because God is not finished writing your story, and so we can stand in agreement with the apostle Paul declaring,

"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us" (Romans 8:18).

In other words, there is still a glory to be revealed, the author and perfecter of our faith is still writing our story. We have a church to build, a job to do, and each one of us has a story to tell. And so, I want to make sure that you own the story that you have been told and that it becomes meaningful and personal.

You see, your life is part of a bigger story, and this is our story, Jesus lived, he died, he rose, and he is coming again. When you believe it, when you own it, when you receive it for yourself, and when you tell someone else, you too will become part of A Bigger Story.

And so, as we close, I want you to think about someone who doesn’t know Jesus. Maybe a family member, a spouse, an old college roommate, a person you work with, a person you see at school, or maybe a neighbor. And I want you to write their name down, and commit to pray for them, asking God to use you to introduce them to Jesus.

And then, there are others of you, I want you to think about where you are spiritually. Because there may be some of you here, some of you listening online, and you haven’t received the story of Jesus for yourself, you may look righteous on the outside, but there is no real transformation on the inside, because you haven’t been born again. And that thought concerns me because if there is no spiritual fruit in your life, then there has not been a spiritual conversion. In other words, when you meet Jesus and are saved, his Spirit moves into you, and so you are filled with the Holy Spirit of God and you are changed.

Today if you are not any different than anybody else on your street, in your school, or on the job, then maybe you have never had a personal encounter with Jesus. And so, I plead with you as Peter did, save yourself from this corrupt generation. Repent for your sins, call upon the name of Jesus, and follow him. Pursue him with all of your heart, give your life to him, because this may be your only chance, there are no second chances.

And so, if you are here today and you feel like you are far from God, or maybe you are recognizing that it is your sin that is separating you from God, and the desire of your heart is to draw near to him, to know his love, and to know his forgiveness. I want to help you understand how to get there and to let you know that it is impossible to work yourself there or to be good enough, because the Bible says the only way that you can be saved is by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ alone. And so, I want to make sure that you understand that, you can’t be saved by your good works, it is impossible, because your sin separates you from a holy God who can’t even look upon sin.

That’s why it was so important for Jesus to be born of a virgin. He is the son of God and so he did not inherit the sin nature passed on through an earthly father. His Father is our God in heaven who had no sin. And so, Jesus Christ, the son of God, lived a perfect life, without any sin, so that he could be our sacrifice, our innocent Lamb of God. He became sin for us, dying in our place on the cross, dying with our sin, and he rose again on the third day.

Jesus is alive and the Bible promises that anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. And so, if you feel like you are far from God, draw near to him and he will draw near to you.

Others of you like me, you grew up around the church, you thought you were okay, but you woke up one day and you realized that you were not, that you didn’t know him, that there was no spiritual fruit in your life, you heard the story but you never connected the knowledge in your head with the faith in your heart.

The good news is that today, the moment that you call on the name of Jesus, repenting of your sin, the Holy Spirit will fill you and you will be born again. You will become a temple of the Holy Spirit, you will be able to talk to him, and you will be able to hear from him. Everything will become brand-new, you will be different, and you will be changed because of the presence of Jesus. Would you seek the Lord with me today?

Read Part 2

Read past sermons by Pastor John Talcott