June 11, 2010 When We Cover Our Ears

From the glory and rejoicing of the dedication of Solomon's temple to the hard-hearted stoning of Stephen:  what a jolting and disturbing contrast!

I don't have a lot to say about this.  Except: this could be us!  At any time, it could be me.  This is a stark picture of what happens to us when we habitually stop our ears from the Word of God, reject true prophetic expressions from the Lord, or refuse to receive a godly rebuke given in love.  Taking the truth can be painful, but when we refuse it, we can kill.  (Don't just limit killing to picking up a stone-- you know we can kill with words, with looks, with rejection.)

I pray that the Spirit of Wisdom and Discernment will show us the heart of the matter.  One thing I see is that, if we get stuck where we're at and make a religion out of what's supposed to be a relationship, we are at risk of completely misunderstanding, and even outright rejecting,  the next thing that God might do.  His purposes have been flowing along, right from the beginning, and He's never turned back from where He's been going.  The people of Stephen's day were right in the middle of God's river, the same river they were in during Solomon's reign, and yet they misinterpreted what was happening.  He even told them in advance what He was going to do. 

KEY:
God always goes higher and deeper!  Instead of the commandments in the ark and the glory cloud in the holy place of the temple, the living Word was in Stephen and the glory of God had filled him, a temple "not made with hands." [Not just Stephen, but any Christian who allows Him to do so.]

I've seen and heard of God doing some pretty strange things.  Sometimes I've misjudged these things, and later had to repent.  I think God's going to be doing some very radical things in these days.  I've heard some things, even just today, that fit that description, and I'm not going to disregard them.  We need discernment, and we definitely need to stay close to Jesus and listen to His Spirit, Who is glad to interpret to us what He is saying and doing in these last days.  Let's not cover our ears!

"But they cried out with a loud voice, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one impulse." Acts 7:57 NASB

Bonus:  Discern the difference between following the crowd and the unity of the Spirit.

June 8, 2010 The Glory of Wisdom and Counsel

Today, the glory of God shines forth in two awesome examples of the how the Holy Spirit manifests Himself as wisdom, understanding and counsel (see Isaiah 11:2)-- King Solomon and Stephen.  I never would have thought to connect them, but there it was.  I hesitated to even mention it for fear of it being too obvious.  But then, the glory of God is obvious each and every day when then sun rises and we think our first thought-- but plenty of people manage to miss it.  It's always in good taste to magnify the Lord!

I'm not going to write a big essay on these two, because I think you're intelligent enough to see what I'm talking about.  I'll simply refer you to a few verses to get you started on your own study.  God honored Solomon's request for "understanding to discern justice, behold, I have done according to your words; see, I have given you a wise and understanding heart." 1 Kings 3:12.  "And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had rendered; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to administer justice." 1 Kings 3:28

The Apostles told the people to chose deacons from "men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom." Acts 6:3.  "And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people." Acts 6:8  (Notice that Stephen was not one of the Twelve, yet he did signs and wonders).  When he was taken before the council for his "blasphemy", they saw his face shining with the glory!  What was the glory?  The Spirit of God!

In the next few days, when you read about Stephen, look to see how the same Spirit of discernment was working in him as in Solomon when the king judged a case.  Why did he get a different reaction from the same people than did Solomon? How does Solomon's heart for the nation compare to Stephen's?  What does this tell us about the prerequisites for making righteous judgments?

There is great glory in wisdom and discernment!  I want those-- don't you? We can't be sure what kind of outcome we'll have when we function in the Spirit of wisdom and counsel, but I believe it is a great need, not only in our daily lives, but for the nations we represent.  Whatever the turn of events, we can be assured that God's glory will rest on the one who serves Him with faith, love, and humility enough to give His timely counsel with razor sharp clarity of discernment and wisdom.  We could even end up glowing like Stephen did!