Tag Archives: Williams
The Stoning of Stephen
Stephen’s Trial
When the number of disciples where growing, the Hellenistic Jews complained that the Hebraic Jews where overlooking the Hellenistic Jew’s widows in the daily distribution of food. So, the Twelve disciples got together and they chose 7 people to share the Word of God, and the rest would help distribute the food. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas. So the Word of God spread. Stephen performed many wonders and miracles among the people. Some people from Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia, argued with Stephen, but could not find anything wrong. They secretly told some men to false witness him, saying he spoke against Moses and God. This stirred up the people, and they tested him in the Sanhedrin. Then the high priest asked Stephen, “Are these charges true?” And Stephen replied by telling everyone how God’s glory and power has been with them throughout many generations. Stephen finished by telling the people that they resisted the Holy Spirit and do not listen to God. The people were furious. Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the Glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God. “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” They all covered their ears, yelling at the top of their lungs, they rushed at him, dragged him outside the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses of this laid their coats down before a man named Saul. While he was being stoned, Stephen asked Jesus to receive his Spirit. He cried for Jesus not to hold the sin against them. After he said these things, he fell asleep. As you can see, Stephen had to be full of the Holy Spirit, to testify against these people.
Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is very different from God and Jesus, but in some ways the same. The Holy Spirit is the third member of the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. He lives in our hearts once we believe, accept, and follow God’s commands. We don’t really know what form he is in, as we also don’t know the form of God and Jesus. He is equal to God and Jesus, and has the same divine attributes as them. He loves and cares for us.
He works in our lives in many ways. When we ask the Holy Spirit to lead us, guide us, and help us do the things God wants us to do, he will help us stop sinning, and do the things that please God. If we pray and are unsure of what to say, the Holy Spirit will intercede and pray for us. The bible says that He will help us recall the things we’ve learned about God, so that means he will help us when we tell others about God. After having Him in your heart, we will learn to be consumed and controlled by Him. He reveals God’s Truth and Will to us through our hearts. When it comes to non-christians, the Holy Spirit gives them a feeling of guilt in their heart because of their sins. He teaches us in our hearts and minds, asking us to repent and to choose to let God forgive you so you can have a new life. He helps produce God’s character in the heart of a believer. There are many ways that the Holy Spirit works in our lives.
Jesus’ Crucifixion
When Jesus was crucified he said 7 statements. Here is the main them of each of them: Empathize with humanity, trust the Sovereign God, exercise obedience to the will of the father, have compassion on people; care for the needs of this life, persevere to the completion of the goal set before us, offer hope to the hopeless, and desire that forgiveness be granted. We put ways we could show these in real life on the posters around the room. It was interesting to learn more about Jesus’ last words and what they meant.