DECEMBER 17, 2012
Worth
The Risk
Read: Acts 7:51–8:2
For by grace you have been saved through faith,
and that not of yourselves; it
is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone
should boast. —Ephesians 2:8-9
What
would one give in exchange for a new iPad? One 17-year-old boy
gave a kidney!
Apparently, he couldn’t afford an iPad and wanted one so
badly that he was
willing to risk surgery.
Stephen,
in Acts 7, took a serious risk, but it was for proclaiming the
good news about
Jesus. While performing miracles, he was seized, falsely
accused of blasphemy
against God and the Mosaic law, and brought before
the high priest (6:8-14). In
response to a question from the high
priest (7:1), Stephen took a risk and
preached a sermon he knew his
hearers would not like. He said that throughout
Israel’s history, the
nation had repeatedly rejected God’s messengers. And now,
they had
rejected the Messiah.
Stephen’s
sermon provoked a strong reaction. “They cried out with a loud
voice, stopped
their ears, and ran at him with one accord; and they cast
him out of the city
and stoned him” (vv.57-58). Why would Stephen risk
his life to preach about
Jesus? He desperately wanted his hearers to know
that because of Jesus’ death
and resurrection, they no longer needed to
live under the law but could live
under grace and forgiveness
(6:13-15; Eph. 2:8-9). Jesus died so that we may
have eternal life.
Lord, You have done so much for us. You give us
our very breath and blessing upon blessing.
We give ourselves back to You to use
to spread the glorious gospel of Christ. Amen.
A Christian’s life is a window
through which others can see Jesus.
Source: Our Daily Bread 2012
