LifeLink Devotions for Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Fifteen years ago my wife and I were headed for Swaziland, Africa, on a missions trip. It was incredibly meaningful, and I want to spend a few days sharing with you some of the enduring lessons of faith the Lord taught me on that trip. I am going to start with what God taught me the day after we returned.

I went to my office to seek the Lord for what He wanted me to preach on the following day in church. The Holy Spirit reminded me of the story of Stephen in the book of Acts. It hit me very hard, and I have taken it as my personal challenge for spiritual growth in my life. It encompasses much of what God showed me on the trip to Swaziland. Stephen’s life may have been short, but it was certainly full and fruitful. Let me tell you why.

There are four things that the Scriptures say were true of Stephen. I desire the same four things to be consistently true of me. Here’s the first one for today:

1. He was a man full of faith.  This is how he is described in two passage in the book of Acts. “Stephen (a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit)…Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power…” He completely trusted his life into the hands of his Savior. He needed nothing else but his faith in Christ. Faith brings fullness of life. He didn’t need possessions to bring fullness to his life. He didn’t need prestige. He didn’t need pride and power. He simply trusted the trustworthy One. He sought the Kingdom of God first and God provided all else that he needed to accomplish the work of the Kingdom.

So many times we get distracted by the things of the world. They may even be good things, like family, friends, and career. But if our top priority isn’t the desire to serve as an ambassador of the King in His kingdom work, then we need to carefully evaluate where we have placed our faith. As you read the story of Stephen in Acts chapters six and seven, you will find that his faith was fully in Christ alone.

• He upheld the truth over traditions. He did not compromise for the sake of keeping people happy.
• He stood up to criticism. He boldly proclaimed his faith in Jesus and the message of the Gospel.
• He was a sincere student of God’s word.
• He accepted responsibility and served in the local church.
• He kept his focus on the eternal and not the things of this life. As the tempers flared and the tension increased, and Stephen began to feel physically threatened, he never turned his focus from his faith in Christ. He never tried to defend himself or protect himself. He simply focused on the glory of God as it says in Acts 7. “But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily into heaven and saw the glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand. And he told them, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand!” 
• He served his Savior no matter what the cost, and the cost for him was being stoned to death.

I encourage you to read the story of Stephen and review the characteristics of a life of faith in Christ alone. Are they evident in your life?

Pastor John