Acts 7:19-50 – God is in Charge of His Own Worship
The charge against Stephen was that he had insisted that there was to be Divinely authorised change – “that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses delivered us” (6:14). Stephen’s defence, far from being an incoherent ramble as some liberals claim, is a superb summary and application of Old Testament church history – we say “church history” for such it was, as we can see later on when Israel is called “the church in the wilderness” (v.38).
We consider two things that Stephen brings out. First of all, he shows that God had never irrevocably tied Himself to one place. God had appeared to Abraham in Mesopotamia. He promised that Abraham’s seed would inherit the land of Canaan, but only after 400 years in a strange land and yet God was with Joseph in that land of Egypt and brought the house of Jacob there. Moses lived in Egypt and Midian before the great work of the Exodus. Israel was forty years in the wilderness and later was captive in Babylon. Even their place in the promised land was not automatic. “They could not enter in because of unbelief” (Hebrews 3:19).
Secondly, Stephen shows that as God unfolded His revelation, there were changes in the form of worship that He authorised. Only when God gave His law at Sinai was the tabernacle set up only to be replaced by the temple in Solomon’s time, but this, too, could only be symbolic and temporary (vs. 48-50).
In this case, the unwillingness to change was due to rejection of Christ and the final phase and climax of God’s revelation in His coming into the world. All along, their “worship”, even in those things that were outwardly Scriptural, was being performed merely because of tradition and as part of their imaginary self-righteousness. When they were confronted with the Saviour, of whom the Law and the Prophets spoke, they despised Him.
Questions
1. Are we bound to God’s ordinances of worship because they are His, not just because we are used to them?
2. Are we willing to change, but only if shown from the Sciptures?
Prayer Points
1. Pray for the preaching and hearing of God’s Word tomorrow.
2. Use prayer points from your congregation.
3. Pray for family matters.