Acts 9:1-19 It’s funny sometimes how it’s possible for people to have entirely different impressions of the same person. This morning we celebrate the life of St. Paul, especially to celebrate his dramatic conversion to Jesus Christ. St. Paul has been called many things by many people. Some say that he was a homophobe – one who hates and fears homosexuals; others today say that he himself was a homosexual. Some modern scholars say that he was a misogynist –... Read more
Acts 8:26-40 “’Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.’ This is desert. So he arose and went.” “’Go near and overtake this chariot.’ So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’” Do you see what I see? There’s a pattern here, a pattern that reaches back to the beginning of man and right out through your computer monitor... Read more
Acts 8:5-25 Was the stoning of St. Stephen a good or a bad thing? Let me re-phrase that: was the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ a good or a bad thing? The two events are one and the same, united as they are by the Holy Spirit and the unity that Christ promised between Himself and His Body. But to answer the question, we might go back even further, to the Old Testament. Do you remember the story of Joseph and... Read more
Acts 7:54-8:4 The Church, as the Body of Christ, is to continue to say and do the things Jesus Christ came to earth to say and do. St. Stephen was a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ, an example for all Christians, for he followed his Master in all things. I can’t think of anyone better who incarnates the idea that we are to follow our Master and in so doing establish His kingdom. Just... Read more
Acts 7:35-53 In Acts 7:35-53, St. Stephen hones in on his closing arguments. While he begins by acting as a defense attorney, by the end of his sermon he is acting as a prosecutor. It is this shocking reversal that must have caught his audience by surprise and provoked a response. I’m sure Stephen was hoping for a response of repentance, but what he got was exactly what he had just finished warning them about: a rejection of God and... Read more
Moses had a mid-life crisis. Actually, he had two of them, 40 years apart. I like the symmetry of Moses’ life, and even though I doubt I’ll live to 120, there are some hidden lessons in Moses’ life. In Moses’ first mid-life crisis, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel. Although Moses was a grown man by now, he acted in an impetuous and even childish way, blindly retaliating... Read more
Acts 7:1-16 When Stephen was accused by the Jews of blasphemous words against the Temple and the Law, how did Stephen defend himself? I’ll tell you what he didn’t do. He didn’t try to offer scientific proof that Jesus rose from the dead. He could have done something like that. He could have begun by mentioning all of the eyewitnesses of the resurrection or making neatly argued syllogisms about the resurrection from the Old Testament. Or He could have marshaled... Read more
2 Corinthians 13:5-14 In St. Paul’s final words of the two letters we have of his to the Corinthian church, Paul speaks of power and weakness in the Kingdom of God, especially as it relates to Christian ministry. For those who are familiar with St. Paul’s writings, it will come as no surprise (even if it remains somewhat strange and mysterious) that St. Paul so often speaks of his weakness and yet even 2000 years later manifests himself in his... Read more
Acts 6 Congratulations! You’ve just been promoted. You’ve just been promoted from layman to deacon. Hoorah! Of course, it doesn’t entail a pay raise, and I should tell you that it does mean extra hours and little gratitude. You do get to add an extra title to your name: “Deacon,” or in churches that follow the ordination of deacons found in the early church, you even get the title “The Reverend.” Of course, “deacon” just means “servant,” and this is... Read more
Acts 5:12-42 There are 2 voices in your head. There are 2 guys perched on your shoulder, telling you what to do. We’ve all seen them in the movies and the cartoons – but face it: you’ve got those 2 guys on your shoulders as well. But don’t feel bad, so did the apostles of Jesus Christ. For them, the voices were real and audible, and they gave the apostles a fairly clear choice in life. In verse 20, an... Read more
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