Podcasts about in stephen

Scripture tells and shows us time and time again that God's compassion for humanity is central to God's heart. But how does God's compassion look? How does it stand apart from kindness and other fruits of the Spirit? In Stephen's sermon we explore this topic through the story of Jeremiah.

Church Leadership Session 8: What can we learn from Stephen – a member of the first team of deacons? Last time we looked at Timothy as an example of an effective church leader – today I want us to consider Stephen – one of the first cohort of deacons appointed in the early church. Please do read Acts 6 – and 7. We see from Acts 6 that there was a complaint (no surprises there, then – after all this was church!). Thankfully, this one led to a positive outcome – would it were so in every case? Stephen is one of seven chosen as “deacons” – or servants – but they too had to be full of the Holy Spirit. We don’t hear much more about the others (except Philip) – but they probably quietly got on with the job they were assigned to do. And there is a lesson for all of us in that – quietly serving God and His Church without becoming grumpy. As we read about Stephen – remember his role is as a deacon (a “waiter on tables”) - one word seems to keep coming up – he was a man who was full! 1. Full of the Holy Spirit – Acts 6:3; 6:5; 7:54 This was his lifestyle – and he clearly stood out from among the other disciples – many thousands by this time. He was also noted among the seven as being full of the Holy Spirit. The impact of what was about to happen to him gave him a special anointing (7:54) as is often the case in extreme circumstances. 2. Full of wisdom – Acts 6:3 He knew the promise of God recorded for us in James 1:5 – and sought the Lord for the wisdom he needed to do what he was doing. As we see from Acts 7, he understood his roots and how that was important for the God’s people and was able to set his message in context. We need to have the wisdom required to make the message of the gospel relevant today – and that means understanding our origins and the truths of the Old Testament as well as the New. We live in an era of instant accessibility to information. We also live in an era of complexity. Whilst it may be tempting to rely on education, the internet, intelligence or experience, we need God’s wisdom. Different from information, different from knowledge, wisdom is God’s and accessed through humble prayer and openness to his ways. 3. Full of faith – Acts 6:5 Without faith we cannot please God - Jesus is the Author and Finisher (or perfecter) of faith (Hebrews 12:1ff.). It is one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. It is about turning belief into action – faith is a “doing” word. He was full of faith! 4. Full of God’s grace – Acts 6:8 Grace is a Divine attribute – often linked with compassion (e.g. Exodus 34:6 and Numbers 6:25). Jesus was described as being “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). Paul began most of his letters with the salutation “Grace and peace from God the Father”. In Stephen’s case it was probably describing a compassionate kind, thoughtful man – one who was showing evidence of the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). He would have also understood the impact of God’s grace in his own life – he knew forgiveness and cleansing and the freedom in Christ which is ours through grace. 5. Full of God’s power – Acts 6:8 “Power corrupts – absolute power corrupts absolutely” But not in the case of one who recognises that the source of his power is God and who uses that power under His authority.. Through this power Stephen did great wonders and miraculous sings among the people (6:8) – and he was only a deacon – a “waiter on tables”! 6. Full of courage – 7:51 ff. He was not afraid to tell the spiritual leaders of the nation “where it was at”. The nations need such a prophetic voice today! His immense courage was evidence of his faith (Hebrews 11: 32 – 40) – and he received the highest reward possible – being welcomed into the presence of God. We may not need to face what Stephen did, but let us be courageous in sharing our faith wherever we find ourselves. As I thought about Stephen’s “fullness”, my mind went to Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians as recorded in his letter to them (Ephesians 1:15 22): “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in His holy people, and His incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength He exerted when He raised Christ from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under His feet and appointed Him to be head over everything for the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him Who fills everything in every way.” As we come to end of this session, it is worth recapping on what we’ve looked at so far. We saw that Jesus is the Head of the Church – so He is in charge. We have looked at some of the expressions used in the New Testament for leaders in churches. We have considered four leaders from the Old Testament – Moses, Daniel, Joseph and Nehemiah – and two from the New Testament – Timothy and Stephen. We have considered the ‘code of conduct’ for both elders and deacons as set out in Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus. In our final four sessions I want to seek to answer the following questions: "How do I know I am called to leadership?” or: “Why would I want to be a leader?” “What are the marks of a good leader?” or: “Is (s)he a leader worth following? What happens when it all goes wrong? What can God do with a leadership team that is totally committed to Him? A prayer: “Thank you, Jesus, for the example of Stephen. Fill me again with Your Spirit so that I can be what You want me to be. Amen” Click or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file

In Stephen's own words:Having spent a career as a guest conductor with over 100 orchestras and served as a Music Director with two orchestras, I have collected a wide variety of experiences. These experiences have included teaching conducting to Senator Joe Biden, conducting the seventh inning stretch for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1973 for the national league Pennant and being interviewed on QVC and HSN. The memoirs are filled with musical as well as social stories about the travels that I have experienced. As the first American artist behind what was "the Iron Curtain" to travel around Pablo Escobars rancho, the memoirs are filled with annecdotes and stories about artists as well as locations. It has been a pleasure to commit to paper the stories with Ray Charles, Van Cliburn, me Ben E. King, Andre Watts, Itzhak Perlman and Martina MacBride.Learn more and/or buy the book (also available at amazon) at: https://www.stephengunzenhauser.com/Endless Mountain Music Festival Please leave a review or send us a Voice note letting us know what you enjoyed at:Back2Basics reconnecting to the essence of YOU (podpage.com)Follow us on IG and FB @Back2BasicsPodcast

Istrouma Baptist Church (BR) Apr 14, 2024 ========== April 14 | Acts Welcome! We're glad you've joined us today for our Sunday morning worship service! For more information about Istrouma, go to istrouma.org or contact us at info@istrouma.org. We glorify God by making disciples of all nations. ========== Connection Card https://istrouma.org/myinfo April 14, 2024 Tim Keith Question: Who have you given up on? Who have you given up on? God hasn't. ‭‭Acts‬ ‭9‬:‭1‬-‭2‬‬ Now Saul was still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord. He went to the high priest and requested letters from him to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any men or women who belonged to the Way, he might bring them as prisoners to Jerusalem. ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭3‬:‭13‬-‭14‬‬ Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, because it is written, Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree. The purpose was that the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles by Christ Jesus, so that we could receive the promised Spirit through faith. ‭‭Acts‬ ‭9‬:‭3‬-‭9‬‬ As he traveled and was nearing Damascus, a light from heaven suddenly flashed around him. Falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” “Who are you, Lord?” Saul said. “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting,” he replied. “But get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the sound but seeing no one. Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing. So they took him by the hand and led him into Damascus. He was unable to see for three days and did not eat or drink. In Stephen, Saul would hear incredible facts. (6:10) Saul would see an unforgettable face. (6:15) Saul would watch an unshakable faith. (7:60) ‭‭Acts‬ ‭22‬:‭19‬-‭20‬‬ “But I said, ‘Lord, they know that in synagogue after synagogue I had those who believed in you imprisoned and beaten. And when the blood of your witness Stephen was being shed, I stood there giving approval and guarding the clothes of those who killed him.' ‭‭Acts‬ ‭9‬:‭10‬-‭31‬‬ There was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias, and the Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” “Here I am, Lord,” he replied. “Get up and go to the street called Straight,” the Lord said to him, “to the house of Judas, and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, since he is praying there. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and placing his hands on him so that he may regain his sight.” “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard from many people about this man, how much harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. And he has authority here from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for this man is my chosen instrument to take my name to Gentiles, kings, and Israelites. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” Ananias went and entered the house. He placed his hands on him and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road you were traveling, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” At once something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he got up and was baptized. And after taking some food, he regained his strength. Saul was with the disciples in Damascus for some time. Immediately he began proclaiming Jesus in the synagogues: “He is the Son of God.” All who heard him were astounded and said, “Isn't this the man in Jerusalem who was causing havoc for those who called on this name and came here for the purpose of taking them as prisoners to the chief priests?” But Saul grew stronger and kept confounding the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah. After many days had passed, the Jews conspired to kill him, but Saul learned of their plot. So they were watching the gates day and night intending to kill him, but his disciples took him by night and lowered him in a large basket through an opening in the wall. When he arrived in Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, since they did not believe he was a disciple. Barnabas, however, took him and brought him to the apostles and explained to them how Saul had seen the Lord on the road and that the Lord had talked to him, and how in Damascus he had spoken boldly in the name of Jesus. Saul was coming and going with them in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. He conversed and debated with the Hellenistic Jews, but they tried to kill him. When the brothers found out, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus. So the church throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers. Who have you given up on? (Pray for them now.) Who can you go to? (Ask God now.) Want to receive weekly announcements in your inbox each week? https://istrouma.org/email Give Online Text ISTROUMA IBC to 73256 or go to: https://istrouma.org/give Our Website https://istrouma.org

In this final sermon of our Wise Guys sermon series, Pastor Aaron preaches about Stephen who the Bible records as the very first Christian martyr. In Stephen's short ministry, the Bible describes Stephen as being "filled with Holy Spirit and wisdom" (Acts 6:3-6). When he argues on behalf of Christianity, it also says that "they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking" (Acts 6:10). Finally, as Stephen is being killed for his Christian faith, he speaks like Jesus, offering forgiveness for those who are killing him. In this sermon, Pastor Aaron reminds us that Godly wisdom does not come easily, but it is gained through the difficulty and hardship in life. But - as Jesus says, it is during these hardships, and even times of persecution, that we have the best opportunities to bear witness to the good news of Jesus Christ.

Scripture Reading: Acts 6:8-7:53 Now Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. 9 But some men from the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, as well as some from Cilicia and the province of Asia, stood up and argued with Stephen. 10 Yet they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke. 11 Then they secretly instigated some men to say, “We have heard this man speaking blasphemous words against Moses and God.” 12 They incited the people, the elders, and the experts in the law; then they approached Stephen, seized him, and brought him before the council. 13 They brought forward false witnesses who said, “This man does not stop saying things against this holy place and the law. 14 For we have heard him saying that Jesus the Nazarene will destroy this place and change the customs that Moses handed down to us.” 15 All who were sitting in the council looked intently at Stephen and saw his face was like the face of an angel.1 Then the high priest said, “Are these things true?” 2 So he replied, “Brothers and fathers, listen to me. The God of glory appeared to our forefather Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he settled in Haran, 3 and said to him, ‘Go out from your country and from your relatives, and come to the land I will show you.' 4 Then he went out from the country of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. After his father died, God made him move to this country where you now live. 5 He did not give any of it to him for an inheritance, not even a foot of ground, yet God promised to give it to him as his possession, and to his descendants after him, even though Abraham as yet had no child. 6 But God spoke as follows: ‘Your descendants will be foreigners in a foreign country, whose citizens will enslave them and mistreat them for 400 years. 7 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,' said God, ‘and after these things they will come out of there and worship me in this place.' 8 Then God gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision, and so he became the father of Isaac and circumcised him when he was eight days old, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the 12 patriarchs. 9 The patriarchs, because they were jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt. But God was with him, 10 and rescued him from all his troubles, and granted him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his household. 11 Then a famine occurred throughout Egypt and Canaan, causing great suffering, and our ancestors could not find food. 12 So when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our ancestors there the first time. 13 On their second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers again, and Joseph's family became known to Pharaoh. 14 So Joseph sent a message and invited his father Jacob and all his relatives to come, seventy-five people in all. 15 So Jacob went down to Egypt and died there, along with our ancestors, 16 and their bones were later moved to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a certain sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.17 “But as the time drew near for God to fulfill the promise he had declared to Abraham, the people increased greatly in number in Egypt, 18 until another king who did not know about Joseph ruled over Egypt. 19 This was the one who exploited our people and was cruel to our ancestors, forcing them to abandon their infants so they would die. 20 At that time Moses was born, and he was beautiful to God. For three months he was brought up in his father's house, 21 and when he had been abandoned, Pharaoh's daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. 22 So Moses was trained in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in his words and deeds. 23 But when he was about forty years old, it entered his mind to visit his fellow countrymen the Israelites. 24 When he saw one of them being hurt unfairly, Moses came to his defense and avenged the person who was mistreated by striking down the Egyptian. 25 He thought his own people would understand that God was delivering them through him, but they did not understand. 26 The next day Moses saw two men fighting and tried to make peace between them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers; why are you hurting one another?' 27 But the man who was unfairly hurting his neighbor pushed Moses aside, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us? 28 You don't want to kill me the way you killed the Egyptian yesterday, do you?' 29 When the man said this, Moses fled and became a foreigner in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons.30 “After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the desert of Mount Sinai, in the flame of a burning bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and when he approached to investigate, there came the voice of the Lord, 32 ‘I am the God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.' Moses began to tremble and did not dare to look more closely. 33 But the Lord said to him, ‘Take the sandals off your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have certainly seen the suffering of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to rescue them. Now come, I will send you to Egypt.' 35 This same Moses they had rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge?' God sent as both ruler and deliverer through the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 This man led them out, performing wonders and miraculous signs in the land of Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in the wilderness for forty years. 37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers.' 38 This is the man who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors, and he received living oracles to give to you. 39 Our ancestors were unwilling to obey him, but pushed him aside and turned back to Egypt in their hearts, 40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go in front of us, for this Moses, who led us out of the land of Egypt —we do not know what has happened to him!' 41 At that time they made an idol in the form of a calf, brought a sacrifice to the idol, and began rejoicing in the works of their hands. 42 But God turned away from them and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: ‘It was not to me that you offered slain animals and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, was it, house of Israel? 43 But you took along the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of the god Rephan, the images you made to worship, but I will deport you beyond Babylon.' 44 Our ancestors had the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as God who spoke to Moses ordered him to make it according to the design he had seen. 45 Our ancestors received possession of it and brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our ancestors, until the time of David. 46 He found favor with God and asked that he could find a dwelling place for the house of Jacob. 47 But Solomon built a house for him. 48 Yet the Most High does not live in houses made by human hands, as the prophet says,49 ‘Heaven is my throne,and earth is the footstool for my feet.What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord,or what is my resting place?50 Did my hand not make all these things?'51 “You stubborn people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, like your ancestors did! 52 Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? They killed those who foretold long ago the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become! 53 You received the law by decrees given by angels, but you did not obey it.”Main ThemesStephenThe second half of chapter 6 focuses on one of the new leaders: Stephen. “Stephen” was a very common Greek name, but it was rare in Israel. (We have no evidence of any non-Hellenist Jews with that name.) Therefore, we have good reason to suspect Stephen belongs to the immigrant Hellenists.We are told that Stephen “full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and miraculous signs among the people” (Acts 6:8). For how long? That is unclear. The summary statements in the book of Acts (which were required to keep the length of the book short enough to fit in one scroll) can give a modern reader the impression that the action moves quicker than it really did.We have discussed the terms grace (meaning favor, empowerment, or both); power (empowerment through divine gift; in relation to proclamation, boldness); and the phrase “signs and wonders” (it evokes the miracles God performed in the exodus through Moses). So, I will not discuss those again. However, we should note that Stephen performing miraculous signs demonstrates that signs were not limited to the Twelve. Also, the language describing Stephen as performing signs among “the people,” conveys the idea of performing signs before Israel as a whole. The phrase “the people” was an expression referring to historic Israel. This is reminiscent of Old Testament prophets.Some Argued with StephenStephen faces resistance. From whom? His own people! Recall last week's discussion of Hebrews and Hellenists. The Hellenist widows complained that they were overlooked in the church's charity ministry—implying favoritism. In response, the church appointed seven leaders, including Stephen—all of them Hellenists. In this week's text, the resistance against Stephen comes from the Synagogue of the Freedmen, a synagogue of Hellenists. Perhaps the Hellenists felt responsible for disciplining members of their own community in Jerusalem. Perhaps the Hellenists felt threatened because many of their own were being converted.Quite possibly, Hellenists were a distinct community within Jerusalem, overseeing some of their own affairs. They may have lived in their own area of the city, seeking intervention from the general authorities only when escalating a matter.Synagogues and FreedmenSynagogues probably started outside Israel. We have records of synagogues in Egypt as early as the third century B.C. Synagogues were similar to, but in a sense much more than, modern churches. The term synagogue refers to local gatherings, formal or informal, that usually met in the same place. In the Diaspora the places of gathering were called “places of prayer.” Many synagogues were small and simple. Like a small country church, it was the activity that defined the synagogue and not the structure.Why do I say synagogues were more than churches? I do not mean this in a moral or spiritual sense but in a practical sense. Certainly they functioned religiously, but they also functioned as community courts, gathering sites for charity, collection points for funds for the temple, hostels, and banquet halls.The synagogue mentioned in Acts 6 is the Synagogue of the Freedmen. Freedmen were former slaves that had been manumitted (freed) and had become Roman citizens. The synagogue probably contained the children of freedmen as well. In Roman society, freedmen remained a distinct social group. They received lower seating in banquets, could not marry higher-class women, and could not serve in Roman legions. Many Jews brought to Rome as slaves under Pompey were soon freed, possibly through the financial help of other Jews.Stephen Punches BackThe members of the synagogue start the argument; Stephen ends it. We are told that “they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit with which [Stephen] spoke” (Acts 6:10).Presumably, that language means that Stephen was able to maintain the upper hand due to the miraculous signs that validated his message and due to his intellectually superior arguments as a result of his divinely given wisdom. (As I have discussed before, Judaism recognized God as the source of wisdom.)This scene is a fulfillment of Jesus' words.But when they bring you before the synagogues, the rulers, and the authorities, do not worry about how you should make your defense or what you should say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you must say. Luke 12:11-12But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you, handing you over to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and governors because of my name. This will be a time for you to serve as witnesses. Therefore be resolved not to rehearse ahead of time how to make your defense. For I will give you the words along with the wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends, and they will have some of you put to death. You will be hated by everyone because of my name. Yet not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives. Luke 21:12-19False Witnesses and False ChargesWhen the church needed leaders (earlier in chapter 6), they sought men of good reputation. The enemies of the church sought (“instigated,” in fact) the exact opposite, “false witnesses.” The witnesses attempt not only to have Stephen convicted but also to turn the people against him and, by extension, the Jesus movement. Notice the accusations:“We have heard this man speaking blasphemous words against Moses and God.” Acts 6:11b“This man does not stop saying things against this holy place and the law. 14 For we have heard him saying that Jesus the Nazarene will destroy this place and change the customs that Moses handed down to us.” Acts 6:13b-14We will discuss the accusations at more length later, be we should note that they involve the temple. Stephen and the Jesus followers wished the temple destroyed—or so they were accused of. If true, this is a religiously shocking statement, but sometimes we forget more practical reasons why the masses may have been infuriated by such heresy. As Craig Keener writes:Much of Jerusalem's economy depended on the temple, in ways that sometimes would have applied to immigrant as well as native citizens. The temple establishment “required bakers, weavers, goldsmiths, washers, merchants of ointments and money changers.” Because it was still under construction, it required also stonemasons and carpenters; its completion (in 62– 64 C.E.) would create an estimated eighteen thousand unemployed workers (Jos. Ant. 20.219).To oppose the temple in first century Jerusalem was to preach against slavery in early 19th century Virginia; to preach against tobacco in 20th century North Carolina; or to preach against oil and gas in modern day Alaska. Nothing incites rage quite like advocating for a total economic collapse. Add the religious dimension to the mix and this is a lynching in the making. We should be aware that, sadly, the tale of Stephen and his accusers has similar precedent in the Old Testament. In the book of Kings we read of Jezebel and how she uses false witnesses against the pious man Ahab. The story is quoted below. I point this out to show that Stephen's accusers knew their behavior was wicked.She wrote out orders, signed Ahab's name to them, and sealed them with his seal. She then sent the orders to the leaders and to the nobles who lived in Naboth's city. This is what she wrote: “Observe a time of fasting and seat Naboth in front of the people. Also seat two villains opposite him and have them testify, ‘You cursed God and the king.' Then take him out and stone him to death.”The men of the city, the leaders, and the nobles who lived there followed the written orders Jezebel had sent them. They observed a time of fasting and put Naboth in front of the people. The two villains arrived and sat opposite him. Then the villains testified against Naboth right before the people, saying, “Naboth cursed God and the king.” So they dragged him outside the city and stoned him to death. Then they reported to Jezebel, “Naboth has been stoned to death.” 1 Kings 21:8-14The ChargesLet's focus on the charges brought against Stephen. Albeit with slightly different wording each time, Stephen is thrice charged with opposing Moses (phrased as either Moses, the law, or the customs, all referring to one idea). He is twice charged with opposing the temple. He is once charged with opposing God. Perhaps the charge of opposing God was a broader way of restating the first two charges (opposing God's law and His temple).Both the temple and the law were central to first-century Judaism. The law contained what was most fundamental to Jewish heritage and practice and hence to the Jews' identity as a people. A challenge to the law was thus a challenge to their very understanding of their existence as a people, as well as a challenge to God the lawgiver and to what God required. Violation of the law's main tenets was grounds for conviction and terrible punishment.Profaning or even denouncing the temple might be viewed as worthy of death, especially to the Sadducees who controlled the temple. For example, a generation later, one Jesus ben Ananias prophesied the temple's demise, and this led to his arrest by the authorities and being handed over to the governor for a brutal flogging. Moreover, like I mentioned above, the temple was central to the city's identity and livelihood. Destroying the temple could have left nearly 20,000 people without jobs—in a city with a population somewhere between 60,000 and 100,000. It would have been devastating.The final version of the temple charge specifies Jesus as the temple's destroyer. Did Jesus say he would destroy the temple? No! This was a false claim in Jesus' trial as well.Many gave false testimony against him, but their testimony did not agree. Some stood up and gave this false testimony against him: “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with hands and in three days build another not made with hands.'” Yet even on this point their testimony did not agree. Mark 14:56-59Jesus said something similar yet entirely different.Jesus replied, “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up again.” Then the Jewish leaders said to him, “This temple has been under construction for 46 years, and are you going to raise it up in three days?” But Jesus was speaking about the temple of his body. So after he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the scripture and the saying that Jesus had spoken. John 2:19-22As we will see in Stephen's response, Stephen does argue for a certain antilocalization of God—that is, God's presence is more far reaching than the temple. Yet, Stephen is never anti-temple per se, so he probably did not preach against the temple either. Similarly, Jesus was not anti-law, so there is no reason to think Stephen was. Face Like and AngelChapter 6 ends on a powerful note. As Stephen's adversaries close in, his face looks like that of an angel. This statement hardly makes sense without a bit of Old and New Testament context. Let's begin with Moses seeing and then reflecting the glory of God.The LORD descended in the cloud and stood with him there and proclaimed the LORD by name. The LORD passed by before him and proclaimed: “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, and abounding in loyal love and faithfulness, keeping loyal love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin. But he by no means leaves the guilty unpunished, responding to the transgression of fathers by dealing with children and children's children, to the third and fourth generation.” Exodus 34:5-7Now when Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand—when he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to approach him. But Moses called to them, so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and Moses spoke to them. After this all the Israelites approached, and he commanded them all that the LORD had spoken to him on Mount Sinai. When Moses finished speaking with them, he would put a veil on his face. But when Moses went in before the LORD to speak with him, he would remove the veil until he came out. Then he would come out and tell the Israelites what he had been commanded. When the Israelites would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses' face shone, Moses would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with the Lord. Exodus 34:29-35We must also recall the transfiguration of Jesus in the gospels.Now about eight days after these sayings, Jesus took with him Peter, John, and James, and went up the mountain to pray. As he was praying, the appearance of his face was transformed, and his clothes became very bright, a brilliant white. Then two men, Moses and Elijah, began talking with him. They appeared in glorious splendor and spoke about his departure that he was about to carry out at Jerusalem. Now Peter and those with him were quite sleepy, but as they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. Then as the men were starting to leave, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three shelters, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he was saying. As he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. Then a voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One. Listen to him!” After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. So they kept silent and told no one at that time anything of what they had seen. Luke 9:28-36We should notice a few things. First, Moses' face really did shine. Exodus clearly means that description literally. In the case of Jesus' transfiguration, although the scene is more ethereal such that its description may be less literal, the witnessing apostles can still clearly see what is happening. The phenomenon described is real. So, in the case of Stephen's transfiguration (as is sometimes referred to by scholars), I think we should also take the event literally if perhaps ambiguously. I mention ambiguity because the text itself makes use of a figure of speech (face like an angel). This is entirely sensible; some events are hard to describe technically or precisely. Also notice the timing of Stephen's transfiguration. He becomes like Moses, reflecting the glory of God, as he is accused of opposing Moses. This seems like divine verification that Stephen is on God's side, and therefore on Moses' side as well.The TrialIntroductionThe narrative of the trial does not repeat the charges brought against Stephen. Nevertheless, as we read Stephen's response, we must keep the charges in mind. They are the proper framing of Stephen's long speech. In short, the two charges are that Stephen opposes the temple and the law.Stephen's death is a turning point in the narrative. The church passes from a phase of popularity in Jerusalem to one of persecution and scattering. Other Jewish sects kept their distance from the authorities, creating their own somewhat isolated communities. Jesus' followers, on the other hand, challenged the temple authorities claiming that Jesus was the true priest and his followers preached the true words of God. Conflict was inevitable.This is an important observation—that Christ's followers saw themselves as the truly pious Jews and not as a separate religion. Otherwise, we might be tempted to understand Stephen's speech anachronistically: as a Christian anti-Jewish message. Stephen does not oppose the temple; he argues that there is more to God's plan. Stephen does not even oppose the law. Much the opposite, he argues from the law! Jesus is the fulfillment of all the stories of old—the finale. Not a new and different story.In the ancient world, orators would often used quotations as proofs. In Stephen's case, his quotations are granted by all present as God's word. They carry significant weight in the argument. Almost the entire speech consists of retellings of sacred stories about the heroes of the faith.The Old Testament also used historical retrospectives to powerfully move God's people to repentance, sacrifice, and faithfulness. Consider, for example:When your children ask you later on, “What are the stipulations, statutes, and ordinances that the Lord our God commanded you?” you must say to them, “We were Pharaoh's slaves in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt in a powerful way. And he brought signs and great, devastating wonders on Egypt, on Pharaoh, and on his whole family before our very eyes. He delivered us from there so that he could give us the land he had promised our ancestors. The Lord commanded us to obey all these statutes and to revere him so that it may always go well for us and he may preserve us, as he has to this day. We will be innocent if we carefully keep all these commandments before the Lord our God, just as he demands.” Exodus 6:20-25There are two axioms that are essential to understanding Stephen's speech. First, if one believes that these biblical stories are true, then one believes that the present times are a continuation of those stories. So, one may apply the patterns and lessons from those stories to the present day. Second, if one reads Scripture as Scripture, one will seek to emulate the good examples in it. Scripture becomes a model for life and even an interpretive grid—one understands life in light of biblical lessons.So, we should consider both of those axioms in relation to the charges brought against Stephen. After each tale told by Stephen, let's ask question like:(1) What is the pattern of God's actions particularly in relation to the land of Israel, the temple, the Torah, and the law?(2) Must the hero suffer? How is the hero regarded by others? Is he rewarded for his piety?(3) Does God act in predictable ways? Are God's promises fulfilled how people expect them to be fulfilled? Are God's promises fulfilled when people expect them to be fulfilled? AbrahamThe God of glory appeared to our forefather Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he settled in Haran, and said to him, ‘Go out from your country and from your relatives, and come to the land I will show you.' Then he went out from the country of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. After his father died, God made him move to this country where you now live. He did not give any of it to him for an inheritance, not even a foot of ground, yet God promised to give it to him as his possession, and to his descendants after him, even though Abraham as yet had no child. But God spoke as follows: ‘Your descendants will be foreigners in a foreign country, whose citizens will enslave them and mistreat them for 400 years. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,' said God, ‘and after these things they will come out of there and worship me in this place.' Then God gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision, and so he became the father of Isaac and circumcised him when he was eight days old, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the 12 patriarchs. Acts 7:2b-8(1) What is the pattern of God's actions particularly in relation to the land of Israel, the temple, the Torah, and the law?Where did God appear to Abraham? In Mesopotamia, before he settled in Haran. God did not act because Abraham was on or possessed the Holy Land. God can act anywhere. He is not restricted to the land. When did God appear to Abraham? Before the law was ever given. Neither possessing the Torah nor keeping it is what set Abraham apart.(2) Must the hero suffer? How is the hero regarded by others? Is he rewarded for his piety?At least in Stephen's summary of Abraham's life, Abraham is not persecuted by others. Of course, if we read his entire story in Genesis, Abraham did confront strong opposition and serious threats. However, Stephen makes clear that Abraham's story begins with him leaving his country. Leaving both kin and his land to follow God's plan. Following God may lead one to do such things.(3) Does God act in predictable ways? Are God's promises fulfilled how people expect them to be fulfilled? Are God's promises fulfilled when people expect them to be fulfilled?God promised Abraham the land as his possession and to his descendants after him. One would expect Abraham to own all the promised land by the end of his life. Is this what happens? “[God] did not give any of it to him for an inheritance, not even a foot of ground.” And if that is not surprising enough, God does not give Abraham a child until long after Abraham and his wife could hope for one. But wait, there's more! Abraham's descendants will not inherit the land until after they have moved to a foreign nation and been slaves for 400 years! Only after all that will they worship God “in this place”—that is, the land of Israel and the holy temple. However, God's promise did not fail, and to remind Abraham of God's faithfulness—of the “deal” they made—God gave Abraham a covenant sign: circumcision.JosephThe patriarchs, because they were jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt. But God was with him, and rescued him from all his troubles, and granted him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his household. Then a famine occurred throughout Egypt and Canaan, causing great suffering, and our ancestors could not find food. So when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our ancestors there the first time. On their second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers again, and Joseph's family became known to Pharaoh. So Joseph sent a message and invited his father Jacob and all his relatives to come, seventy-five people in all. So Jacob went down to Egypt and died there, along with our ancestors, and their bones were later moved to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a certain sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem. Acts 7:9-16(1) What is the pattern of God's actions particularly in relation to the land of Israel, the temple, the Torah, and the law?Joseph is taken to a foreign land, and God meant it for good!As for you, you meant to harm me, but God intended it for a good purpose, so he could preserve the lives of many people, as you can see this day. So now, don't be afraid. I will provide for you and your little children.” Then he consoled them and spoke kindly to them. Genesis 50:20-21Not only does God take Joseph toa foreign land, then all of “their” ancestors (the ancestors of the Jewish people) must go to a foreign land seeking food. They would up remaining there for centuries. Joseph died there. Jacob died there. In fact all their ancestors (presumably referring to the 75 mentioned in the passage) died there. God's story is not restricted to the land of Israel.Nevertheless, the bones of the ancestors were taken to Shechem—to the land. Recall Joseph's words as he neared death.Then Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die. But God will surely come to you and lead you up from this land to the land he swore on oath to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” Joseph made the sons of Israel swear an oath. He said, “God will surely come to you. Then you must carry my bones up from this place.” So Joseph died at the age of 110. After they embalmed him, his body was placed in a coffin in Egypt. Genesis 50:24-26Those are the last verses of the book of Genesis. Why would the bones of the Israelite ancestors be taken to the land? That's a key point of recounting Joseph's story. God is a god of promise. The fact that neither Joseph nor the other ancestors possessed the land does not mean that God's promises failed. Joseph certainly did not believe that. It meant that God's plan is larger in scope and history than a single generation can conceive.(2) Must the hero suffer? How is the hero regarded by others? Is he rewarded for his piety?In Stephen's retelling of Joseph's story, the action begins with Joseph leaving his kin and his land. Unlike Abraham who did so willingly, Joseph does so by force. He is sold into slavery and taken to Egypt. By whom? The patriarchs! Some of the most venerated figures in Jewish history cause the hero to be exiled. And, how is this hero regarded by the patriarchs? They are jealous of him and wish him harm. Again, exile from country and kin is a means used by God to accomplish his plans.(3) Does God act in predictable ways? Are God's promises fulfilled how people expect them to be fulfilled? Are God's promises fulfilled when people expect them to be fulfilled?In the land of Canaan—that is, the promised land—the patriarchs could not find food. How did God preserve them in the land, the very land God promised to them? Did God reverse the famine? No, God had already put a plan into to motion,, and it involved foreign lands. The patriarchs would find food and shelter in Egypt, which would take them out of the land for hundreds of years. This is neither how nor when (in the sense of timing) one would expect God to deliver on his promise.MosesStephen's section is lengthy, and we may not have time to reread it. That is why I bolded certain statement to “hit the high points.”“But as the time drew near for God to fulfill the promise he had declared to Abraham, the people increased greatly in number in Egypt, until another king who did not know about Joseph ruled over Egypt. This was the one who exploited our people and was cruel to our ancestors, forcing them to abandon their infants so they would die. At that time Moses was born, and he was beautiful to God. For three months he was brought up in his father's house, and when he had been abandoned, Pharaoh's daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. So Moses was trained in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in his words and deeds. But when he was about forty years old, it entered his mind to visit his fellow countrymen the Israelites. When he saw one of them being hurt unfairly, Moses came to his defense and avenged the person who was mistreated by striking down the Egyptian. He thought his own people would understand that God was delivering them through him, but they did not understand. The next day Moses saw two men fighting and tried to make peace between them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers; why are you hurting one another?' But the man who was unfairly hurting his neighbor pushed Moses aside, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us? You don't want to kill me the way you killed the Egyptian yesterday, do you?' When the man said this, Moses fled and became a foreigner in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons.“After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the desert of Mount Sinai, in the flame of a burning bush. When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and when he approached to investigate, there came the voice of the Lord, ‘I am the God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.' Moses began to tremble and did not dare to look more closely. But the Lord said to him, ‘Take the sandals off your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. I have certainly seen the suffering of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to rescue them. Now come, I will send you to Egypt.' This same Moses they had rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge?' God sent as both ruler and deliverer through the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. This man led them out, performing wonders and miraculous signs in the land of Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in the wilderness for forty years. This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers.' This is the man who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors, and he received living oracles to give to you. Our ancestors were unwilling to obey him, but pushed him aside and turned back to Egypt in their hearts, saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go in front of us, for this Moses, who led us out of the land of Egypt —we do not know what has happened to him!' At that time they made an idol in the form of a calf, brought a sacrifice to the idol, and began rejoicing in the works of their hands. But God turned away from them and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: ‘It was not to me that you offered slain animals and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, was it, house of Israel? But you took along the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of the god Rephan, the images you made to worship, but I will deport you beyond Babylon.' Acts 7:27-43(1) What is the pattern of God's actions particularly in relation to the land of Israel, the temple, the Torah, and the law?God chooses a man in a foreign land (Egypt), raised by foreigners (Pharaoh's daughter)! This is the man that was “beautiful to God.” Not only that, but Moses is doubly exiled. From Egypt he goes to Midian. Moses is selected and considered “beautiful” by God before God has given him the Torah or the law.(2) Must the hero suffer? How is the hero regarded by others? Is he rewarded for his piety?How is Moses treated by others? The Egyptians forced his mother to abandon him. The Israelites did not treat him much better. Moses defends the Israelites from the Egyptians. Do the Israelites see this as any kind of deliverance? Not at all. They “did not understand.” Moses tries to “make peace between” fellow Israelites, but they will not accept that either. Instead, they ask, “Who made you a ruler and judge over us?” In the story, Moses is their proper ruler and deliverer, but the people reject him.The story only gets worse. At the first opportunity, the Israelites abandon Moses and God. They claim they do not know what has happened to him and demand a calf to worship. Most shockingly, Stephen applies a prophecy from the book of Amos to imply that Israel continued in their idolatry permanently. Even in the wilderness, as they obeyed God, their hearts were directed at another.(3) Does God act in predictable ways? Are God's promises fulfilled how people expect them to be fulfilled? Are God's promises fulfilled when people expect them to be fulfilled?God chooses an unlikely hero. As I said above, a man in a foreign land, raised by a foreign people, and rejected by the Israelites. Yet, he is favored by God before he enters the land, before he receives the law, and before he obeys the law.Perhaps more surprising than God delivering his people through Moses is the response of God's people. If one were simply guessing at the story of God and the deliverance of his people, one would think that when salvation finally arrives the people would be joyful, grateful, and ultimately obedient. Yet one would be mistaken. The people turn from both their human deliverer and their divine deliverer at every turn. After God's great miracles in Egypt, the people are ready to worship a calf. Even after the law is given, the people obey hypocritically and wish for other gods.And more surprising still, the great deliverance of God's people from Egypt is not the final fulfillment of God's promise to “Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” No, this man “who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai” speaks of someone else. Another prophet like him will come. The surprises are not over.Preliminary ConclusionsWe will discuss the end of the chapter next week. I wish we had more time because everything we discussed today builds up to the mention of David—their greatest king—and the temple—the House of the Lord.But perhaps there is something good about pausing for a minute. We need to ask: what are the points that Stephen is trying to make by retelling the stories of Abraham, Joseph, and Moses?Truly, the main point goes beyond any particular parallel between Jesus and either Abraham, Joseph, or Moses (although those are important). The core of Stephen's argument is about God and his redemptive plan.Is God restricted to the land of Israel? No! God often acts outside of Israel. In His plans, God has disposed of any land as he saw fit.Is God restricted to the Torah and the law? No! God does not need to show exclusive favor to or act exclusively through those who have the Torah or follow his law. God has been acting in history and choosing people well before the Torah or the law had been delivered.Is God's plan of redemption narrow and mechanical? Is it about the Jews and the land of Israel? Is that where God resides in a special and exclusive way? As we will see in the last few verses of chapter 7: no! God was just as present in Egypt and Midian as he was in Israel. If it fits God's plan, God himself will take his people out of the promised land for centuries at a time.Put differently, Stephen's main point is that the Jews of his day place the wrong interpretive grid on the Old Testament. If perhaps simplistically, one could summarize the Jews' perspective as being that God's plan was to establish the Jews in Israel, given the the Torah, teach them to obey the law within it, and reside in the temple. Stephen, representative of Jesus' followers, is trying to show that the correct interpretive grid is quite different. God is a god of promise. He has been acting in history for thousands of years (if we start counting merely from the time of Abraham) towards a redemptive goal. Whenever his promises seemed to fail, they didn't. They were part of a grander plan. Whenever his promises seemed to be fulfilled, they weren't. The people of God still rejected him. But this too was part of a grander plan. Moses himself, this man who spoke with God, spoke of it. Another prophet would come. If the people of God misunderstood every other prophet, should we expect them to recognize that final prophet? No.Stephen's argument is neither against the law nor the temple. It is about whether those things are the fulfillment of God's promise or a step towards a greater fulfillment. It is in this sense that Christians today and Stephen in ancient Israel say that all the Old Testament is about Jesus.

It's easy to turn what God intends to be a relationship into a religion. In Stephen's stirring sermon from Acts 7:1-53, he challenges the religious leaders to turn from their works-based religion to faith in Jesus. His challenge still stands for us today. Join us as we grow in our faith together. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/cole-phillips2/support

It's easy to turn what God intends to be a relationship into a religion. In Stephen's stirring sermon from Acts 7:1-53, he challenges the religious leaders to turn from their works-based religion to faith in Jesus. His challenge still stands for us today. Join us as we grow in our faith together.

In Stephen's final episode, he bids the audience goodbye with a discussion about The Book of the New Sun.  ~Support Haus of Decline on Patreon!Visit hausofdecline.comNostalgia is fleeting,  but @hausofdecline is forever Please email complaints, suggestions, or requests to hausofdecline@gmail.com  Thank you for listening.Explicit Content Warning. You WERE warned.  That's what the little E signifies.         ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

During this episode I've invited Mr. Stephen Dijoseph from Pennsylvania who is a musician and filmmaker and he has lived with Tourette's Syndrome for most of his life. Stephen who was born in the 1950s is definitely the oldest guest who has spoken at my show. He spoke vividly and shared his unique Tourette's Syndrome experience coming from a time myself and most of my other guests haven't been born yet. Stephen has been harnessing the Tourette's energy to fuel his passion for music and art. He has several music videos including an award wining short film called "A SynapTic Adventure: Tourettes and Beyond" which I will share the link below. Although this podcast is only 35 minutes due to time constraints, we've covered so much and I'm happy to present this conversation to my audience. Please find the list of links to support the artist Stephen Dijoseph. In Stephen's own words, Tourettes is like a river that is constantly flowing and the water gets into places. Watch - A SynapTic Adventure: Tourette and Beyond https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iKNb0LVW0Q https://www.stephendijoseph.com/ https://www.facebook.com/DiJosephMusicandFilm/ https://www.instagram.com/stephendijoseph --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/fabulously-tourette/support

We have a major treat for you today, in the form of a great conversation with the dean of American design, celebrated interior designer Stephen Sills. You've seen Stephen's work in your favorite design magazines including Architectural Digest, Town and Country, Elle Decor, and many more. Stephen walks us through his new book, a Vision for Design, and a few of the recent projects featured in the book, including stunning homes in Florida, New York City, and his own Connecticut home. What You'll Hear on This Episode: Considerations when choosing a wallpaper. How dining rooms are becoming less formal and more usable. How to use boards to see the whole of the house, and work with layout and scale. What should you consider when choosing a shape and size for a sofa? What has changed in Stephen's Connecticut home over the 30 years he has lived there. In Stephen's work, how does he approach both beauty and functionality of the space? What's next for Stephen now that the book is out? How Stephen curated certain moods and atmospheres in the different homes featured in a Vision for Design. How you can bring some of Stephen's expert eye into your design decisions. Mentioned in This Episode: Stephen Sills A Vision for Design Hello, and thank you for writing! First, when hanging art, it's all about your choice and intuition. We think you should make a choice between a height that works for you, and a height that the guests can enjoy. Stephen agrees that it's always nice to look up at art instead of just looking straight at it. The bigger the painting, the higher you can hang it. The smaller the painting, the lower it could be. Hope this helps!

In Stephen's persecution, the Holy Spirit fills him to confront the powerful religious leaders with their hypocrisy in rejecting Jesus and vindicates Stephen as he gives his life for the Lord.

Today in botanical history, we celebrate a wealthy gardener and Apothecary whose garden became his legacy, a ​​pioneering Landscape architect who left his mark on the world in his all-too-short life, and the fine fine fun that can be had dying flowers - a hobby that's been around for quite a longe time. We'll hear an excerpt from a book by a Quaker woman who spent a year tending sheep. We Grow That Garden Library™ with a book about flowers in all their glory, and it takes us inside the Secret World of Plants... And then we'll wrap things up with a little poem written by an American writer, and it's a little poignant - so kleenex should be on standby. “If you're the first of November, you're Scorpio. A large reporter of his owne Acts. Prudent of behaviour in owne affairs. A lover of Quarrels and theevery, a promoter of frayes and commotions. As wavery as the wind; neither fearing God or caring for Man.' ‘Better,' said Lymond coldly, ‘to be stung by a nettle than pricked by a rose.” ― Dorothy Dunnett, Checkmate Maggie Dietz poem 1995  Rosemary Verey's Making of a Garden 1995 The Unsung Season: Gardens and Gardeners in Winter: Sydney Eddison, Karen Bussolini 2001 A Garden from Hundred Packets of Seed by James Fenton What plants would you choose to grow, given a blank slate of a garden, and given the stipulation that everything you grow in this garden must be raised by you from seed? 2009 Jane Colden: America's First Woman Botanist Paperback – November 1, 2009 Curated News Interview with Lee Smith, Southern Writer | Southern Environmental Law Center 1944 Here's a short clip with writer Lee Smith about the importance of the natural world for writers and inspiration. In the video Lee says that the South does have a very strong literary tradition that is grounded in place and specifically a rural place. Lee says the land is so important to southern writing. Land not only shows up in southern stories but also in southern music and southern culture. Lee tells how her father used to fight her when she tried to get him to leave the mountains and move to her home in North Carolina and so he would always say I could never leave the mountains he said I need me a mountain to rest my eyes against and That resinates with lee who went on to say that there's something in the contemplation of mountains of nature  of natural places that leads us to think of things that are really important that leads us to think of the real questions and issues and things that people need to be working on. And so Lee, like many of us, gets her inspiration from the natural world To borrow her phrase, I need me a garden to rest my eyes against... Important Events November 1, 1666Birth of James Sherard, English apothecary, botanist, amateur musician, and composer. His older brother, William, was also a botanist. James served as an apprentice to an apothecary named Charles Watts at Chelsea Physic Garden. He later followed his entrepreneurial instincts and started his own business, which made him quite wealthy.  In August of 1716, he wrote that, “the love of Botany has so far prevailed as to divert my mind from things I formerly thought more material.” After retiring, he purchased three residences - two manor homes and a place in London. At his London residence, he established a garden and began collecting and cultivating rare plants. Around the time his garden was becoming one of England's top gardens, James's brother William invited the German botanist Johann Jacob Dillenius to visit England. Dillenius created an illustrated catalog that described the plants cultivated in James's collection in London. The English botanical writer Blanche Henrey called Dillenius's book, “the most important book published in England during the eighteenth century on the plants growing in a private garden." Today, the walls of the Herbarium Room at the Oxford Botanic Garden and Arboretum are graced with the illustrations from Dillenius's book - so the plants in James Sherard's beautiful garden live on in that marvelous place. November 1, 1859Birth of Charles Eliot, American landscape architect. In his brief career, Charles established principles for regional planning and natural systems for landscape architecture. He also helped set up the world's first land trust and the Boston Metropolitan Park System. He was a prolific writer and observer of nature and Landscapes. His work set the stage for conservancies across the world. Charles was born into a prominent Boston family. In 1869, the year his mother died, his father, Charles William Eliot, became the president of Harvard University. In 1882 Charles went to Harvard to study botany. A year later, he began apprenticing with the landscape firm of Frederick Law Olmsted. As a young landscape architect, Charles enjoyed visiting different natural areas, and he conducted regular walking tours of different nature areas around Boston. In his diary, Charles made a charming list titled, "A Partial List of Saturday Walks before 1878". Early in his career, Charles spent 13 months touring England and Europe between 1885 and 1886. The trip was actually Olmsted's idea, and it was a great training ground for Charles's understanding of various landscape concepts. During this trip, Charles kept a journal where he wrote down his thoughts and sketches of the places he was visiting. During his time in Europe, Charles's benchmark was always Boston. Throughout his writings, he continually compared new landscapes to the beauty of his native landscape in New England. Charles's story ended too soon. He died at 37 from spinal meningitis. Before his death, Charles had worked with Charles Sprague Sargent to plan The Arnold Arboretum. When Charles died, Sargent wrote a tribute to him and featured it in his weekly journal called Garden and Forest. Charles's death had a significant impact on his father, Charles Eliot Senior. At times, the two men had struggled to connect. Charles hadn't liked it when his dad remarried and, their personalities were very different. Charles, the architect, could be a little melancholy. After Charles died, his dad, Charles Sr., started culling through his son's work. In April 1897, Charles Sr. confided to a friend, "I am examining his letters and papers, and I am filled with wonder at what he accomplished in the ten years of professional life. I should've died without ever having appreciated his influence. His death has shown it to me." Despite his heavy workload as the president of Harvard, Charles Sr. immediately set about compiling all of his son's work. He used it to write a book called Charles Eliot Landscape Architect. The book came out in 1902, and today it is considered a classic work in the field of landscape architecture. November 1, 1883On this day, the Brown County World (Hiawatha, Kansas) published a little blurb that said, A distinguished botanist has found that by simply soaking the stems of cut flowers in a weak dye solution, their colors can be altered at will without the perfume and the freshness being destroyed. Unearthed Words On the first day of November last year, sacred to many religious calendars but especially the Celtic, I went for a walk among bare oaks and birch. Nothing much was going on. Scarlet sumac had passed, and the bees were dead. The pond had slicked overnight into that shiny and deceptive glaze of delusion, first ice. It made me remember skates and conjure a vision of myself skimming backward on one foot, the other extended; the arms become wings. Minnesota girls know that this is not a difficult maneuver if one's limber and practices even a little after school before the boys claim the rink for hockey. I think I can still do it - one thinks many foolish things when November's bright sun skips over the entrancing first freeze. A flock of sparrows reels through the air looking more like a flying net than seventy conscious birds, a black veil thrown on the wind. When one sparrow dodges, the whole net swerves, dips: one mind. Am I part of anything like that? Maybe not. [...] It's an ugly woods, I was saying to myself, padding along a trail where other walkers had broken ground before me. And then I found an extraordinary bouquet. Someone had bound an offering of dry seed pods, yew, lyme grass, red berries, and brown fern and laid it on the path: "nothing special," as Buddhists say, meaning "everything." Gathered to formality, each dry stalk proclaimed a slant, an attitude, infinite shades of neutral. All contemplative acts, silences, poems, honor the world this way. Brought together by the eye of love, a milkweed pod, a twig, allow us to see how things have been all along. A feast of being. ― Mary Rose O'Reilley, The Barn at the End of the World: The Apprenticeship of a Quaker, Buddhist Shepherd   Grow That Garden Library Flora by DK Flora was also contributed to by Kew,the Royal Botanic Gardens. This book was published back in 2018, and the subtitle is Inside the Secret World of Plants. Well, let me tell you that when I got my copy of this book, I was so pleasantly surprised. This is a big book - it's a coffee table book. The cover is predominantly white, and then it just has a single flower featured on the cover - and it is stunning. I like to think about this fantastic book as a floral scrapbook. So imagine if you were to put together a book of flowers, and on each page, you feature: a different blossom, details about the plant, the history and some outstanding characteristics of the flower, and other various aspects of the plant. This book also reviews a little bit of the science behind why plants do what they do and how they do what they do. Flora is beautifully illustrated with modern photography and also some incredible botanical art from the ages. And it is just a joy to leaf through. So whether you are a gardener or even a non-gardener, I think you would enjoy this book. You can get a copy of Flora by DK and support the show using the Amazon Link in today's Show Notes for around $12. Today's Botanic Spark Reviving the little botanic spark in your heart November 1, 1871 Birth of Stephen Crane, American poet, novelist, and short-story writer. Stephen started writing at the tender age of four.  As a young adult, he dropped out of college at Syracuse and started working as a reporter and writer. By 1895 his Civil War novel The Red Badge of Courage won acclaim despite Stephen never having any personal experience as a soldier.   The following year he was asked to go to Cuba as a war correspondent. During the voyage, his ship, the SS Commodore, sank off the coast of Florida. Stephen survived after spending thirty hours adrift at sea in a small dinghy along with other survivors.  The experience became the basis for his book called, The Open Boat. Despite surviving the shipwreck, Stephen Crane died young of tuberculosis at the age of 28. Today, The Red Badge of Courage is considered an American classic. But Stephen also wrote short stories and poetry. One of his biggest fans was Ernest Hemingway, who credited Stephen as a source of his inspiration. In Stephen's poem, The Black Riders and Other Lines (1895), Stephen wrote, There was set before me a mighty hill, And long days I climbed Through regions of snow. When I had before me the summit-view, It seemed that my labour Had been to see gardens Lying at impossible distances. Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener. And remember: "For a happy, healthy life, garden every day."

As we return to the book of Acts, we catch up with Stephen.  Up to this point, Luke's focus in Acts has been on the church in Jerusalem, the preaching, the growth, and the persecution has largely been in Jerusalem. In Stephen, we come to a turning point in the book of Acts, from a focus from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria.  We will see that the death of Stephen is the climax of the Jewish persecution in Jerusalem.  His death provided the impetus for the spread of the church into Judea and Samaria.  Finally, in Stephen, we are introduces to Saul of Tarsus, later known as Paul. In today's lesson, we are introduced to the character of Stephen and the beginnings of the trial that will eventually lead to his execution. Thank you for listening to today's lesson.  May you be blessed through the teaching of God's Word.

Air Date 6/1/2021 Today we take a look at the world of surveillance capitalism and the current age of techno-optimism that is just the newest iteration of the age-old effort to consolidate power and wealth by undermining individual freedom and democratic self governance. Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com  Transcript BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Get AD FREE Shows & Bonus Content) BestOfTheLeft.com/Refer Sign up, share widely, get rewards. It's that easy! OUR AFFILIATE LINKS: BestOfTheLeft.com/Descript CHECK OUT OUR FANCY PRODUCTION SOFTWARE! BestOfTheLeft.com/Blinkist GET KEY INSIGHTS FROM THOUSANDS OF BOOKS! BestOfTheLeft.com/Bookshop BotL BOOKSTORE BestOfTheLeft.com/Store BotL MERCHANDISE! BestOfTheLeft.com/Advertise Sponsor the show! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Surveillance Capitalism: Shoshana Zuboff Part 1 - Future Hindsight - Air Date 7-16-20 Shoshana Zuboff discusses a world in which technology users are neither customers, employees, nor products. Instead, the raw material for new procedures of manufacturing and sales that define an entirely new economic order: a surveillance economy. Ch. 2: Sharon Weinberger: Inside the massive (and unregulated) world of surveillance tech - TEDTalks - Air Date 12-1-20 From microscopic "smart dust" tracking devices to DNA-tracing tech and advanced facial recognition software, journalist Sharon Weinberger leads a hair-raising tour through the global, unregulated bazaar of privatized mass surveillance. Ch. 3: Surveillance Capitalism: Shoshana Zuboff Part 2 - Future Hindsight - Air Date 7-16-20 Shoshana Zuboff discusses a world in which technology users are neither customers, employees, nor products. Instead, the raw material for new procedures of manufacturing and sales that define an entirely new economic order: a surveillance economy. Ch. 4: Alexa, What's Amazon Doing Inside My Home? - Land of the Giants - Air Date 7-30-19 What’s the downside to letting Alexa run your entire home? And why is Amazon making a microwave oven powered by Alexa? Ch. 5: Surveillance Capitalism: Shoshana Zuboff Part 3 - Future Hindsight - Air Date 7-16-20 Shoshana Zuboff discusses a world in which technology users are neither customers, employees, nor products. Instead, the raw material for new procedures of manufacturing and sales that define an entirely new economic order: a surveillance economy. Ch. 6: That Time Disney Built a Creepy Government - Wisecrack - Air Date 1-15-21 Disney World is beloved all over the globe for the pure escapism it offers. But the story behind this fantasy world is a lot weirder, and a whole lot less magical than it might seem. Ch. 7: Uh-Oh, Nevada Wants To Let Corporations Form Their Own Governments - The Late Show with Stephen Colbert - Air Date 3-4-21 In Stephen's unfortunate new segment "Uh-Oh," he takes a look at the dangers posed by a Nevada bill that would allow big tech companies to build and govern their own cities without state oversight. What could go wrong? Ch. 8: What data and digitalisation could mean for your democratic future with Shoshana Zuboff - OECD - Air Date 12-19-20 What does the digital acceleration in this pandemic mean for our future? Shoshana Zuboff spoke with Anthony Gooch. MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S) Ch. 9: Steve Durbin — Identity Is Weaponized - ISF Podcast - Air Date 3-29-21 ISF CEO Steve Durbin and producer Tavia Gilbert discuss the ISF’s latest report, Threat Horizon 2023: Security at a Tipping Point. Today, we dig deeper into the report’s second threat: Identity is weaponised. Ch. 10: Rana Foroohar: The Surveillance Economy - New Economic Thinking - Air Date 8-22-20 Financial Times columnist Rana Foroohar talks to Rob Johnson about how the pandemic opens the door to more surveillance technology from Silicon Valley, but also to a growing consensus on reigning in Wall Street excess. BONUS:  Ch. 11: Curation Lesson #2: Alternative option explained VOICEMAILS Ch. 12: Mere aggregation - Diana Ch. 13: Use It or Lose It copyrights - Jonathan from Florida FINAL COMMENTS Ch. 12: Final comments to say thanks MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions): Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr  Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world) Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent SHOW IMAGE: Description: Close-up of a single human eye with the faded pattern impression of a microchip around the edges.  Credit: Spying eye | Pixabay   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com ​ ​ ​

In this episode, Stephen goes through an easy home inspection checklist for people who may be wanting to learn more about their own home, one they want to buy or live in and what they should be focussing in on. In Stephen's easy to understand manner, you can walk around your own home with him and make it healthier and safer for you and your family. 

In Stephen's last moments, "He saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God." (Acts 7:55b) Pastor shares with us some of the amazing ways that Christians kept their gaze on Christ in the midst of pain and suffering.

In Stephen's historical narrative regarding Moses, he came to his Divine Commission at the Burning Bush.  Learn how the thorny bush is a picture of Israel! Stephen's message about Moses was powerfully applied to the Lord Jesus and Israel's rejection of Him when he got to verses 35 to 37.  Dr. John Phillips wrote that Stephen "skillfully dropped his brush and pallet and picked up his sword" as he brought home to the Council all he had been saying about Moses in light of Jesus!  With Moses, God honored the one Israel had rejected.  He sent them the very one they had rejected to be their ruler and deliverer.  His implication was that the Jews had done to Jesus what their forefathers did to Moses. It is often said, by Jewish people today and others, as well, that if Jesus was their Messiah, the leaders of Israel would have known and recognized Him.  However, that would not be consistent with her spiritual leaders throughout her history.  This was the point Stephen was making in Acts 7.  It was their typical response NOT to accept the men God sent to deliver them, as exemplified with Joseph and Moses - and how God's prophets were treated.  What they did to Jesus was exceedingly more serious, for in having rejected Him, they rejected the Great I AM of the Burning Bush - they only One Who provides spiritual deliverance!

In Stephen's career of 27 years he's been an expert in four things, the latest one is Intelligent Content Marketing. As he begins to document all the elements of his business model and how it can be generally applicable to anyone who has a particular expertise and are prepared to adopt a publisher mindset. Part of showcasing your expertise via an Intelligent Content Marketing proposition is to adopt elements of the science of persuasion; one such element is social proof. Proof that something is great will blow the dust off of doubt in your customer's mind. For more information check out our encyclopedia at http://intelligentcontent.marketing

Some view the Law as God's condemnation of us, others as proof of something we are liberated from, still others view it as something irrelevant to us. In Stephen's day there was equal confusion over the political and theological implications of the Law. In this message, Pastor Franchetti gives insights into what these issues were in Stephen's day and how they relate to us.

The Bible can show us the best in humanity and reveal humanity at its cruelest and most violent. In Stephen's ending, we see Saul (Paul) entry into the story. Who are prophets today whose message can get lost because we don't like how it's delivered? This is the sermon podcast for the Traditional Worship service on October 6, 2019. The sermon title is "The Cost of Discipleship" and it's part 5 of a 7-part worship series called, "The Neighborhood." The preacher is Rev. Hope Hutchison and the scripture is Acts of the Apostles 7:51-8:1.

Austin, George and Noah sit down with Stephen Courson, financial adviser and up and coming millionaire. The group talk about practical finance knowledge, investing, and saving. In Stephen’s words: “My goals are simple. I want to make money FUN! I want to help people BUILD WEALTH. I want to give people a PRACTICAL EDUCATION (since we aren’t given any in our schools). Lastly, but not leastly, I want to PROMOTE GENEROSITY!”. Stephen Courson: www.everything.money @everythingmoneyblog @austin_lipka @thetalkyourwalkpod www.thetalkyourwalk.com

On the 15 November 2018, UKOG made a market announcement on the EWT (Extended Well Test) Portland & Kimmeridge Oil Discovery, Horse Hill-1, Weald Basin, UK. Share Talk spoke with Stephen Sanderson today and he explains in more depth the figures, technical released. In Stephen own words "the Kimmeridge zone is alive and kicking"  K3 limestone zone has been tested and is commercially viable with the rates we have produced. We are now testing the upper layer in K4 Kimmeridge Limestone Zone. Looking at an average rate of production of 342 barrels per day, with various choke setting used we achieved a maximum rate of 902 barrels a day. The results clearly show this is the best producing well onshore in the UK outside of Wytch Farm well. UKOG is moving away from an exploration company, to production with rates that generate gross £20 million per year and looking to drill more multiple wells that will add further value to UKOG. [Full RNS 15th Nov 2018](https://www.investegate.co.uk/uk-oil---38--gas-plc--ukog-/rns/ewt-update--portland---kimmeridge-oil-discovery/201811150700034007H/)

In Stephen, we see the dignity of all kinds of work. We are reminded, too, of the ways we often impose limits that God, in God's dynamic power, seeks to break down. Patrick Hunnicutt preaches today on Acts 6:8-15.

I LOVE meeting new friends. As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, we have the privilege of meeting yet-another. A standout individual. A stellar human being. Though given his humility, I am sure that he would not be comfortable with my characterization. His name is Stephanos. Significantly, a Greek name. (As we learned last week, a not-so-trivial factoid.) A man affectionately known to us as Stephen. A name that means “crown.” In Stephen’s case, a well-deserved crown that he is no doubt wearing in Heaven as we speak. A man who stood as—and at—pivot-point of history. There haven’t been many of those throughout human history. But the event about which you will hear certainly rises to that level of an event after which our world, let alone our lives, would never be the same again. Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play. God bless you richly as you listen.

In Stephen we see a great example of the boldness and courage to keep telling the story of Jesus. Are we will to stand through adversity to keep telling the story?       The post Standing appeared first on Eugene Church of Christ.

Acts 7: In Stephen's epic speech in Acts 7, he shows how the Gospel is surprisingly good news: it's more serious than we had realised and more wonderful that we had dreamed.

What will you be remembered for? In Stephen's martyrdom we see three things that can inspire us to face adversity with courage. Taught by Jose Zayas

In Stephen's mind (still on Sandymount Strand), his uncle offers him food and drink, of a sorts. Second-hand opera, and a note of warning.

In Stephen's mind, his father continues to mock his mother's family, and Stephen visits his uncle's cottage.

In Stephen's classroom, Joyce brings in Milton. Reflections on drowning.

In Stephen's musings on history, real and potential, Frank finds a recurring Joycean theme.

In Stephen's classroom, four girls' names hint at religion, class, and sex.

In Stephen's classroom, Frank muses on the names of cookies and of boys.