Greetings in the Name of our Lord and Savior,
Acts 7:55-56 “But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”
I heard a sermon ministered to a congregation a long time ago called “ The Standing Ovation”. It was one of the best sermons that I had ever heard and a very relevant word at that time in my life. The minister was dynamic and spoke very pointedly. His ideals and thoughts were conveyed perfectly through his delivery. He spoke as Yahweh had declared. This was the case for Stephen as well.
Stephen began at one point and preached all the way through to Christ crucified. The men listening to him were cut to the heart and did not like what they heard. Instead, they came upon Stephen and began to gnash at him with their teeth and ended up stoning him to death for the truth that he spoke. Does this sound familiar?
Today, all over the world there are those who put their lives on the line so to speak for the sake of the Gospel. Some are beheaded, some are stoned, some are publicly flogged and shamed in front of a host of people consenting to the anarchy. In short, many around the world today live a very real life when it comes to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
In this passage Stephen saw something that was absolutely amazing. Yeshuah was now standing at the right hand of Yahweh. STANDING!!! what a beautiful sight this must have been. While he was being pelted with rocks, he saw the King of Glory giving him a standing ovation for the testimony that he carried. It was so amazing that I believe that he didn’t even feel the rocks. He simply went to sleep and was present with the Lord.
Have we done anything lately to deserve the same status as Stephen? Some have. And Some have not. What will it take for us as the body of Christ to arise to a standard of excellence that is unrivaled by any point and time in history?
I challenge us today. We are the generation that must proclaim the Gospel and take it forward. If we do not it will die with us. That would be a travesty and the blood of many would be on our hands.
My Prayer and Declaration;
“Father, we look at the life of Stephen and realize that he gave all. We will give all as well. With Your guidance and protection, we will proclaim the Gospel to those around us without fear of reproach from man. You are the Holy One of Israel and we love you!!!
In the mighty Name of Christ the Redeemer……AMEN!!!
Blessings be yours today,
Dr. C. D. Randolph
