June 6
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STEPHEN ARRESTED AND STONED
A poem by ILMA
Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed amazing miracles
It became a concern for some men in the synagogue of Freed Slaves
They all started to debate with Stephen, none of them couldn’t win
Stephen had a supernatural wisdom from the Spirit that they couldn’t beat.
These Jews were from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia and the province of Asia
They couldn’t accept that Stephen could beat them in wisdom
They persuaded some men to lie about Stephen and accused him of blasphemy
They lied that they heard Stephen blaspheme Moses and even God himself.
They claimed he said Jesus will destroy the Temple and change Moses’ customs
It was at this time that Stephen’s face became as bright as an angel’s
The high priests brought Stephen to council asked him if the accusations were true
Stephen gave them a long discourse on God’s faithful love to their ancestors.
Stephen replied by giving a history of God’s deliverance and Israel’s stubbornness
He accused the leaders as stubborn people who are heathens and deaf to truth
The Jewish leaders were enraged by Stephen’s accusation and shook their fists
Stephen gazed into heaven steadily as they dragged him and stoned him to death.
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MEMORY VERSE
As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. He fell to his knees shouting, “Lord, don’t’ charge them with this sin!” And with that, he died.
– Acts 7:59-60
Read: Acts 6-7
What courage Stephen had to confront these hypocrites! The Holy Spirit never left his side. He was able to have the boldness to accused these Jewish leaders and expose their sins of idolatry, stubbornness and rebellion which led to her being stoned to death.
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REFLECTION
• Would you do everything to expose the lies of those who pretend they are godly?
• Why is hypocrisy a grave sin in the eyes of God? What other sins stem from it?