Our brother Chris Carmichael has written an excellent article based on some of the themes we have seen over the years at Heritage and the desire that we have been burdened with especially of late. Please read Are We Still the Body of Christ Without the Full Armor of God? at the Sacred Sandwich website.
May the reading of his article compel us all to seek for the Kingdom of Heaven!
This Sunday, we looked at the snippet of information contained in this passage that Saul witnessed Stephen’s martyrdom. As the Jews removed their garments so that they might better throw stones at Stephen, they laid them down near the feet of Saul, who was in hearty agreement with putting him to death. The text goes on to state that Saul was ravaging the church, entering house after house and dragging believers off to prison.
In this text, we see two completely different forms of warfare. There are the weapons of this world, used for the advancement of the kingdoms of this world, and there is the heavenly weapons, used for the heavenly kingdom. The weapons of this world include threatening, imprisonment and physical harm or death. As believers in the Gospel, these weapons may be used against us as they were used against the early church in Acts, and against Stephen in this passage.
What are the weapons that we have to stand for the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus? They surely are not typical, nor physical. We are not to conquer the world for Christ using military might and physical harm. Instead, the Scriptures tell us of a warfare not used against flesh and blood. In Ephesians 6, we see the amor of God. As we have discussed previously in our studies of Ephesians, there are some incredible things about this armor. It is not simply a metaphor to keep rough-housing boys interested in Sunday School by dressing them in a cardboard shield of faith and giving them a plastic sword of the Spirit. It is actually something quite humbling and startling. All of these instruments of Christian warfare are discussed in the Old Testament prophecies. We are told that one day the Messiah would come and on His body would be these things…the breastplate of righteousness, the helmet of salvation, etc. And now in Ephesians, which discusses THE BODY OF CHRIST in great detail, the Church (the Body) is to clothe herself with these things that were prophesied to be on the body of the coming Messiah.
Isn’t it incredible that the Body of Christ is so intimately connected with the Messiah himself? (I pray that the Church will arise and realize this great and marvelous truth.)
This spiritual armor includes truth, righteousness, the Gospel itself, faith, and salvation (New Covenant Lordship), the Spirit, the Word of God, and prayer. Our weapon against the darkness is the Church…the Body of Christ, which Jesus promised would not be overcome by the gates of Hades.
Stephen is fully armed. He does not react in hatred or anger, but in truth and righteousness. He utters the heartfelt cry “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!”
Oh how Christian warfare is found in the weapons of grace, humility and love! This does not mean that we forsake the harsh truth of God’s judgment against those who reject Jesus. After all, Stephen is being stoned because he proclaimed God’s judgment. But he did not do so out of pride and hatred. His hope was that the Gospel will rescue them from that judgment. He loved them so that he was not concerned that they were murdering him…he was concerned for their souls!
The fact that Saul was here is no coincidence. Read Acts 9.10-16. The fact that this persecution drove these believers out of Jerusalem and into Judea and Samaria is not a fluke! Read Acts 1.6 and 8.4 ,12 , 25, 35, and 40. This was the sovereign and risen Lord directing all of history so that His salvation would extend to the ends of the earth! Nothing occurs outside his will. Read the second Psalm and you will see this day ordained by the will of God. We may struggle with God’s sovereignty because it means God may stand in the way of what we want. But there is the sweetest relief when we realize it also means we will always have what we need – the ability to glorify, honor, and serve the King of Kings!
May Jesus grant us the strength, confidence, and boldness to proclaim the glory of the Gospel!
Meeting every Sunday
in the Ambassador Room
of John Knox Village
in Lee's Summit, MO
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