7:1 Then said the high priest, Are these things so?

2 And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran,

3 And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall shew thee.

4 Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans, and dwelt in Charran: and from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell.

5 And he gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: yet he promised that he would give it to him for a possession, and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child.

6 And God spake on this wise, That his seed should sojourn in a strange land; and that they should bring them into bondage, and entreat them evil four hundred years.

7 And the nation to whom they shall be in bondage will I judge, said God: and after that shall they come forth, and serve me in this place.

8 And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat the twelve patriarchs.

9 And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt: but God was with him,

10 And delivered him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favour and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house.

11 Now there came a dearth over all the land of Egypt and Chanaan, and great affliction: and our fathers found no sustenance.

12 But when Jacob heard that there was corn in Egypt, he sent out our fathers first.

13 And at the second time Joseph was made known to his brethren; and Joseph’s kindred was made known unto Pharaoh.

14 Then sent Joseph, and called his father Jacob to him, and all his kindred, threescore and fifteen souls.

15 So Jacob went down into Egypt, and died, he, and our fathers,

16 And were carried over into Sychem, and laid in the sepulchre that Abraham bought for a sum of money of the sons of Emmor the father of Sychem.

7:1: “Then said the high priest, Are these things so?” Here he starts.

Now this is one of the great turning points in the Book of Acts, Acts 7. A long chapter; it runs 60 verses. And, boy, when Acts 7 is over, the Lord draws the line in Jerusalem, and nobody gets healed in Jerusalem again in the rest of the Book of Acts. If you want to give a healer a fit, ask him if Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. And when he says, “Yes,” you say, “Then, how come nobody got healed in Jerusalem after Acts 7?”

If Christ was still healing them like He used to, nobody got healed in Acts 7. And when Paul got down there, he couldn’t get out of jail. When Paul got in jail in Acts 16, he just prayed his way through the bars. He didn’t when he got down there in Jerusalem in Acts 21 and 22. He stayed in the clink.

So Acts chapter 7 is a major division in the Book of Acts. And after Acts chapter 7 God is through giving the Jews in Jerusalem the chance for the Messiah to come back and reign. It passes on.

And here’s ol’ Stephen, reciting the Old Testament.

“And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia.” Do you know where Mesopotamia is? All right.

“Before he dwelt in Charran.” Do you know where Charran is? OK.

“And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall shew thee. Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans.” Do you know where the Chaldaeans were at? Ur of the Chaldeees. “And dwelt in Charran.” Spelled here with a rough “H”. “CH.” “Charran.” The German “H”. Like in “Buch,” “Bach.” And “Schtalbach.” And in “Nebuchadnezzar.” CH. The hard sound. Charran.

“And from thence, when his father was dead.” We covered that in Problem Texts. “He removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell. And he gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on.” Genesis 13, 14, 15, 16. “Yet he promised that he would give it to him for a possession.” Genesis 13. “And to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child. And God spake on this wise, That his seed should sojourn in a strange land.” Genesis 15. “And that they should bring them into bondage, and entreat them evil four hundred years. And the nation to whom they shall be in bondage { Egypt} will I judge, said God.” Exodus 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7. “And after that shall they come forth.” Where you’re studying in Exodus now, Exodus 12, 13, 14, and 15. “And serve me in this place.”

“And he gave him the covenant of circumcision.” Genesis 17. “And so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat the twelve patriarchs.” Now, boy, don’t you know after there, they’re all “amening” and “hollering,” boy! “Praise God! That’s us! We’re a great country! Go to it, Stephen! Preach on, white man! Amen! Glory!” you know.

That made Stephen really something. I mean, he’s just bragging about what a great nation they are.

And then watch him put the damper, watch him put the wet towel on.

Verse 9: “And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt.” The bottom dropped out then! When he said, “The patriarchs, moved with envy,” pointing out their sins.

“But God was with him.” Now they sit there and glare at him a little while, you know, and he starts over.

“But God was with him, And delivered him out of all his afflictions,...” which we’ll study in Genesis later. “And gave him favour and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house. Which we’ll study later in Genesis.

“Now there came a dearth...” the word for death with the “r” out — famine. “There came a dearth over all the land of Egypt and Chanaan, and great affliction: and our fathers found no sustenance. But when Jacob heard that there was corn in Egypt, he sent out our fathers first.” We’ll study that now in about two weeks in Genesis. “And at the second time Joseph was made known to his brethren; and Joseph’s kindred was made known unto Pharaoh.” About two weeks? I should have said in about two months.

“So Jacob went down into Egypt, and died, he, and our fathers.” Uh, verse 14, “Then sent Joseph, and called his father Jacob to him, and all his kindred, threescore and fifteen souls.” Got it? You remember them threescore and fifteen souls. Now you’re beginning to learn the Bible. A lot in it, isn’t there?

Verse 16: “And were carried over into Sychem, and laid in the sepulchre that Abraham bought for a sum of money of the sons of Emmor the father of Sychem.” That’s a bad one. You get that in “Problem Texts” in about two weeks.

7:17 But when the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt,

18 Till another king arose, which knew not Joseph.

19 The same dealt subtilly with our kindred, and evil entreated our fathers, so that they cast out their young children, to the end they might not live.

20 In which time Moses was born, and was exceeding fair, and nourished up in his father’s house three months:

21 And when he was cast out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him up, and nourished him for her own son.

22 And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds.

23 And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel.

24 And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian:

25 For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not.

26 And the next day he shewed himself unto them as they strove, and would have set them at one again, saying, Sirs, ye are brethren; why do ye wrong one to another?

27 But he that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us?

28 Wilt thou kill me, as thou diddest the Egyptian yesterday?

29 Then fled Moses at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of Madian, where he begat two sons.

“But when the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt, Till another king arose, which knew not Joseph.” Exodus 1.

“The same dealt subtilly with our kindred, and evil entreated our fathers.” You had it in Exodus 2, 3, and 4. “So that they cast out their young children, to the end they might not live. In which time Moses was born.” You had it, verse for verse.

“And was exceeding fair, and nourished up in his father’s house three months: And when he was cast out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him up, and nourished him for her own son.” You studied it.

“And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians.” He’s down in Alexandria. “And was mighty in words and in deeds. And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel.” Now they’re going, “Amen! Preach on, Stephen! Put it on! Amen! Glory hallelujah! That’s how it’s portrayed! We got Abraham! We got Moses! Amen! Bless God!”

“And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian: For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not.”

TRAMM!

Stephen’s a great preacher. He has a way of picking you up, and then just dropping you off the cliff. Now, he’s pointing out the sins of all of them, all of them — all of the descendants of the twelve tribes. He just pointed out the sins of the patriarchs in selling Joseph; now he’s pointing out the sins of the great, great grandchildren.

“And the next day he shewed himself unto them as they strove.” Do you know one way you can know the Bible is the word of God? Because who would write a Book like this about their own race? I ask you. Where do you find a book written by a German that treats the German race like the Jews treat themselves in the Bible? The Jews in the Bible are presented by their own writers are the most impudent, stubborn, stiff-necked, rebellious people on the face of this earth. Now, you never heard an American write about Americans in that way.

All right, verse 26: “And the next day he shewed himself unto them as they strove, and would have set them at one again, saying, Sirs, ye are brethren; why do ye wrong one to another? But he that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us? Wilt thou kill me, as thou diddest the Egyptian yesterday? Then fled Moses at this saying.” You’ve had it. “And was a stranger in the land of Madian, where he begat two sons.” You’ve had that.

7:30 And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush.

31 When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the Lord came unto him,

32 Saying, I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Then Moses trembled, and durst not behold.

33 Then said the Lord to him, Put off thy shoes from thy feet: for the place where thou standest is holy ground.

34 I have seen, I have seen the affliction of my people which is in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and am come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send thee into Egypt.

35 This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel which appeared to him in the bush.

36 He brought them out, after that he had shewed wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years.

37 This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear.

38 This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:

39 To whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt,

40 Saying unto Aaron, Make us gods to go before us: for as for this Moses, which brought us out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.

41 And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.

“And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush.” You’ve had that.

Notice, “There appeared to him ... in mount Sina an angel.” You can’t make the distinction between the Angel and an angel. Sometimes the angel of the Lord is just referred to as an angel without the article.

“When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the Lord came unto him, Saying, I am...” that’s the angel “...I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Then Moses trembled, and durst not behold.” You have that.

“Then said the Lord to him, Put off thy shoes from thy feet: for the place where thou standest is holy ground.” You’ve had that.

“I have seen, I have seen the affliction of my people which is in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and am come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send thee into Egypt.” Now they’re saying, “Amen! Glory hallelujah! Now you’re back on it. You got off there a minute, but now you’re with it, Stephen! Amen! Praise the Lord!”

“This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer.” That puts it on them.

Now, you know what ol’ Stephen is doing? He’s going back in that Old Testament, and he’s picked out here to talk about, the two main ones he’s talking about are Joseph and Moses. Joseph is the greatest type of Christ in the entire Bible. Joseph is a type of Christ in 152 particulars. And he said his brethren envied him. He landed right on them. And then he fixed Moses, and he’s saying, “Now God sanctified Moses to deliver you. You remember what the Bible said in Deuteronomy 18, verses 17 and 18, ‘The Lord God shall raise them up a Prophet like unto Me, and to him you shall hearken, and it shall come to pass, whoever will not hearken to his words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.’”

So Stephen has been led by the Holy Spirit here to pick the two Old Testament cases that are going to condemn his listeners of murder and kidnapping — gonna lay it right on them.

He says, verse 35, “Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel which appeared to him in the bush. He brought them out, after that he had shewed wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years...” which we’ll talk about later.

“This is that Moses.” Now they’re real quiet. They’re not going to “amen” him again.

“This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear.” Deuteronomy 18.

“This is he, that was in the church.” Underline the word “church.” That shows you the church is well-known in the Old Testament as a local congregation. There’s no mystery about a church being a local congregation. And our Baptist Bride friends who think that the New Testament church is just a local congregation are going to have them a problem, because Paul said the church was a mystery revealed to him — and there’s no mystery about a local assembly. The local assembly is back there in the Book of Exodus.

“This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles.” Our word is living. That oracles that are alive. “Lively oracles to give unto us.” An oracle is something that comes out of the mouth of God; hence the word for “mouth” is “oral.”

“Mouth” Roberts!

“Who received the lively oracles to give unto us: To whom our fathers would not obey.” Now he’s going to land on them again. “To whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt.”

Land on them again.

“Saying unto Aaron, Make us gods.” Now he accuses them of idolatry. Envy, rebellion, lack of discernment, and now idolatry. That’s the way to preach, gentleman. Just get up and land on sin, right and left.

“For as for this Moses, which brought us out of the land of Egypt, we wot not.” Old English for “we know not.” From the German “dis”. “Dis-en-cha.” “Thise.” “Dis.” “Wot.”

“We wot not what is become of him. And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.”

7:42 Then God turned, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, O ye house of Israel, have ye offered to me slain beasts and sacrifices by the space of forty years in the wilderness?

43 Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.

44 Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as he had appointed, speaking unto Moses, that he should make it according to the fashion that he had seen.

45 Which also our fathers that came after brought in with Jesus into the possession of the Gentiles, whom God drave out before the face of our fathers, unto the days of David;

46 Who found favour before God, and desired to find a tabernacle for the God of Jacob.

47 But Solomon built him an house.

48 Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet,

49 Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest?

50 Hath not my hand made all these things?

“Then God turned, and gave them up.” Apostasy. Now he’s going to accuse them of idolatry and apostasy.

“Then God turned, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven.” Way back there in Exodus 32 the Lord gave them up.

“As it is written in the book of the prophets, O ye house of Israel, have ye offered to me slain beasts and sacrifices by the space of forty years in the wilderness?” Well, they didn’t for Him. But here’s what they really did. “Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch.” Their hearts were after false gods. “And the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them.” That Star of David is a star of a devil; it’s a demon who is manmade. God never told the children of Israel to make a six-pointed star. Who ever heard of such a thing, the “Star of David”? You never read in your Bible about a “Star of David” anywhere. That’s “the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worhsip them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.”

“Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as he had appointed, speaking unto Moses, that he should make it according to the fashion that he had seen.” A house for God.

“Which also our fathers that came after brought in with Jesus.” Who would that be? That would be Joshua. The spelling, however, in the New Testament is “Jesus.” If you want to mess up some of these Greek scholars, ask them why they didn’t translate that word right! These smartalecks will tell you “daemonion” should appear as “demon” instead of “devil.” Ask them why they didn’t translate “Iesus” as “Jesus.” The word is “Iesus.”

QUESTION: What is it in the A.S.V.?

ANSWER: In the A.S.V.? Joshua. In all the new bibles it’s Joshua. Say, “What are you fellows trying to do telling them here that ‘daemonion’ should have been ‘demon,’ and ‘Iesus’ shouldn’t be ‘Jesus’? Be a little more consistent, please!

QUESTION: Is that verse 45?

ANSWER: That’s verse 45, yes.

QUESTION: And it’s supposed to read “Jesus”?

ANSWER: Yes.

QUESTION: Hmm. Well, I’ve got a King James Bible that reads “Joshua.”

ANSWER: I’ll bet you don’t. I’ll bet you’ve got you a New Scofield Bible.

QUESTION: No sir.

ANSWER: You don’t? I’ll bet you’ve got you a New Scofield Bible that says it’s the King James, and it’s not. Let me see the back of your bible. Well, what does that say right there? Read it for me. Right there in the middle.

QUESTION: An Encyclopedic Reference Edition.

ANSWER: It says what?

QUESTION: An Encyclopedic Reference Edition.

ANSWER: Let me see that thing! Ahhh, boy! Always something new, man! Ain’t that something! They stuck it right in there! “Containing the Old and New Testament Authorized King James Version.” That bunch of — I’m telling you, man! There’s no end, man, there’s no end to it! Now, don’t you know that that is the word of God! Why would anybody mess with a Book like that unless it was the word of God! Boy, that’s wild, man! That’s wild!

QUESTION: Brother Taylor’s got a whole bunch New Testaments, and they were King James Bibles, and he ran across that verse, and they all said “Joshua.”

ANSWER: How many of you have a Greek New Testament on you right now? Would you raise your hand? Would you turn to that place? That isn’t Joshua, it’s Jesus. Turn to Acts 7:45. Look a little above the middle of the verse. “Iesus.” It’s “Jesus”; it isn’t “Joshua.” Man, I’ll tell you, man, that’s something! Can’t keep their dirty hands off of it!

Acts 7, verse 45: “Which also our fathers that came in with Jesus into the possession of the Gentiles, whom God drave out.” You know why it’s written that way, don’t you? It’s to show you that Joshua is a type of Christ. And it’s to show you that in the Book of Joshua you’re studying the Second Advent. In Joshua, the sun and moon stand still, like they will in the Tribulation. In the Book of Joshua there’s a cursed city, Jericho; there’s a cursed city, Babylon, at the Second Advent of Christ. That stuff is to show you the Second Advent of Christ. That’s why it’s “Jesus.”

QUESTION: In the Cambridge they have a cross-reference to Hebrews 4:8, and in the margin they say that is Joshua.

ANSWER: Well, that’s all right. As long as they put it in the margin. I’ll allow that. But not in the text! They have no business messing with the text and then calling it a King James text when it’s not!

QUESTION: They’ve got a bunch of new bibles coming out that say they’re the King James text, except they just change about maybe 20 words in them.

ANSWER: Yes. Just a little leaven to leaven the whole lump.

All right, 7:46: “Who found favour before God, and desired to find a tabernacle for the God of Jacob. But Solomon built him an house.” Now Stephen comes down to the invitation. “Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands.” Remember what Christ said? “You destroy this Temple, and I’ll build it in three days.” And they thought He was talking about the Temple down there; He was talking about His body. A woman, “We ought to worship in this mountain.” He said, “The time will come when ye neither in Jerusalem or in that mountain worship God.” Boy, you start attacking the building program, boy, you’ll see all hell break loose! The Bible said in Hosea Israel forgets God and buildeth temples.

“Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet.” That’s why you never heard me refer to a church building as the “house of God.” A lot of pastors do; I never do. The reason why I don’t because it’s not. Now, maybe it’s the house of God in the sense that it may be a special place where God is honored. That’s all right. But God will be honored in your house where you live, as far as that goes. I call a church building a church building. If you are going to call a work “the house of God,” the word “house of God” means “bethel.” “Beth”-”El” — the “house of God.”

Come back to Amos, and let me show you what happened to the house of God. Amos chapter 5. Or Amos chapter 4 first. Amos chapter 4, Amos chapter 4, verse 4. Amos chapter 4, verse 4. Amos chapter 4, verse 4: “Come to Beth-el” — house of God — “and transgress; at Gilgal multiply...” sacrifices. Amos chapter 5, verse 4: “For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live: But seek not Beth-el.” Don’t seek the house of God. Six: “Seek the LORD, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Beth-el.” Bethel came to nought; it was wiped out; it became a ruins.

Now, why was it? Because when a church building ceases to have the word of God preached in the power of the Holy Spirit, it is no longer “Beth-El.” Turn to Amos 7. Now, once you get calling a church building a house of God, you’re in terrible trouble. I’ll tell you why. If you ever get to doing that, do you realize any preacher in this town has the right to call his building the house of God? You say, “All of them don’t mean it.” Well, then, shut up and don’t say it if you don’t mean that. Is a Seventh-day Adventist building a house of God? Is the Roman Catholic church the house of God. You say, “Not them, just us Baptists.” You’re cuckoo! I mean, if a building’s built for God’s honor, and theirs were, and somebody’s up there preaching the Scripture, and they are, is it a house of God? Any of them’s a house of God. They got as much right to say it as you do!

I don’t believe the First Methodist Church downtown is the house of God. I think you can find God near the flashlight.

All right, Amos chapter 7, verse 10. Now, here’s why the Lord got rid of the house of God. Amos 7:10: “Then Amaziah the priest of Beth-el sent to Jeroboam king of Israel,...” so forth and so on. And he goes up and tells Amos in verse 12, “O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there: But prophesy not again any more at Beth-el: for it is the king’s chapel, and it is the king’s court.” It’s no longer the house of God if God isn’t in it. And when the king takes it over and it becomes a political place, it’s no longer the house of God. So you have to be careful about saying that.

Now, I believe a church building ought to be dedicated to God. And I believe God’s people ought to meet there, and it ought to be big enough for them to meet there, and I believe it ought to have some kind of care and respect shown to it as a building dedicated to God. I believe all that, see. But I’d be leer about calling it “the house of God.” Your body’s the Temple of God.

QUESTION: Where then do they get to calling it “Bethel Baptist Church”?

ANSWER: Well, it’s the “House of God Baptist Church.” That’s why a lot of them like “Temple.” The “Temple of the Lord.” There’s a lot of “Temple Baptist Churches” around. We call ours a “Bible Baptist Church.” We believe the emphasis ought to be on the Bible, not the Temple.

QUESTION: What about “Sanctuary”?

ANSWER: “Sanctuary’s” a little better, although it still has kind of a, you know, it’s kind of like “the holy place,” and “the holy of holies.”

John R. Rice did something I thought was real good one time. He had a meeting at Brent about twenty years ago, and back in those days a lot of Southern Baptists were still around there throwing cigarette butts out right in front of the church. And before the meeting he went around and picked up all the cigarette butts and put them in a collection plate and brought them in and dumped them on the communion table. And some of those deacons liked to have had a fit, man! About the time they blew, Brother Rice told them, he said, “What are you having a fit for? The Bible says your body is the Temple of the Holy Ghost.” You put that stuff in this “temple,” what are you yelling about being in a church building for?

Amen, see?

Now, if you’re going to call the building “the house of God,” see, well then, you ought to be able to smoke in it, if you smoke in your own body. Same thing.

All right, Acts chapter 7, verse 49: “Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord.” There’s a good question. Men always want to box God in. They want to keep Him there Sunday morning, and let Him out at noon. Church bell rings at twelve, and the church gives up her dead! Men always want to box God out and put Him in a little ol’ place now. Some places are getting so bad now they want to box Him in in Sunday school.

I was talking to a fellow recently, and they gave me something real strong to think about. I forget where it was. Let’s see. I can’t remember where everything was. If I can remember where I was two weeks ago, I’d know where it was. Where was I two weeks ago? Jacksonville! That’s where it was! Jacksonville! And over in Jacksonville this preacher over there told me, he said, “Well, there’s something I can’t figure out.”

And I said, “What’s that?”

He said, “How come all these buses go out here Sunday morning and get these kids 11 o’clock for Sunday school, and like they’re burdened for them and burdened for their families, yet nobody picks them up for prayer meeting Wednesday night?”

That’s profound, man, you know that? That’s really profound.

And what’s the idea, if it isn’t just for numbers at 11 o’clock Sunday morning, why don’t you go back and get them again Sunday night? I mean, if you’re really worried about their soul, why not pick them up Thursday night? Visitation? Wednesday night prayer meeting? That would be a good night to pick them up.

Acts chapter 7, verse 49: “Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest?” You can’t box God in. “Hath not my hand made all these things?”

7:51 Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.

52 Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers:

53 Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.

“Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears.” Man, oh, man! You talk about personal application! These preachers in the Bible, they don’t preach like these FM radio preachers! They don’t preach in that “epistilary third person first person plural ‘we,’” and, “If we do this,” and “We do that,” and “We do this.”

They say, “YOU STIFFNECKED AND UNCIRCUMCISED IN HEART AND EARS!” Put their finger right down his throat!

QUESTION: In verse 49, the Lord says what house will ye build me? What’s the Holy of Holies right now over in Jerusalem? It’s just like any old place?

ANSWER: Anyplace in the world. They ought to bomb it. Yeah, bomb it. He don’t care nothing about it. In the Tribulation, the Antichrist will come in the Holy of Holies and sit down on the mercy seat.

QUESTION: It’ll be rebuilt?

ANSWER: Yeah, it will be rebuilt in the Millennium. Then it’ll be worth something, but then the Lord will be there. When the Lord’s there, it’s the house of God. When He’s not there, it’s just a piece of junk. Now, you remember that with the church building. As long as you’re prayed up, and filled with the Spirit, and preaching the word of God and truth, and got a congregation that loves God and is working for God, it is the house of God in that sense. But, boy, you get an ol’ reprobate in their compromising the word of God, and the high-class aristocratic cultured cool bunch of Bible critics in there, don’t call that place the house of God. That’s just another dump heap. Just more kindling for the New Heaven and the New Earth.

Acts 7, verse 51: “Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost.” Now, there’s your “election”! “You always resist the Holy Ghost.” That grace isn’t “irresistible”; it’s resisted, brother! The Holy Spirit strove with those people, and they resisted.

“Ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye. Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted?” What does that remind you of in the New Testament? Do remember reading anything like that in the New Testtament. You read up in here, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Yeah, it’s in Matthew 23, Jesus: “Ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?” “Wherefore, you’ve slain the Just One.” “From the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.” “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, fools and blind,” blam, blam, blam! That’s where Stephen’s going, right now!

“And they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers.” Look at thing, boy! That’s the final charge, man! He starts that thing out, you know where that murder came from? It came from way back there in Acts chapter 7, verse 9 — envy. Wrath is cruel and anger outrageous, but who can stand before envy? Envy leads to murder! Leads to murder.

“Of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murders.” Now he puts it right on them. He says, “You’re jealous. You are kidnappers. You are idolators. You’re stubborn. You are rebels. You’re betrayers. And you’re killers.”

Now, how’s that for a Sunday morning service? How’d you like me to say, “You’re not the betrayers and murderers! Every head bowed, every eye shut, play the organ! If some of you would like to say, ‘I’d like to rededicate my life,’ raise your hand, you know.”

Fifty-three: “Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.” That’s the final one. The final one is, it is not that I am speaking against Moses, it’s that you don’t keep Moses’ law. And it isn’t that I’m blasting Moses, it’s that you’re blasting Moses by not keeping the Law.

7:54 When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth.

55 But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,

56 And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.

57 Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord,

58 And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul.

59 And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.

60 And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

“When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart.” Don’t you know they were? He drew blood! Bible says, “Cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from drawing blood. Cursed be he that doeth the work of the Lord deceitfully.” And Stephen doesn’t do it deceitfully; he draws blood.

“And they gnashed on him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God.” So the Lord’s going to take care of him.

Now, make a line by verse 55. That’s an important dispensational change that none of them notice. Not even Stam and Bullinger picked it up. But He’s standing. Right there. And everyplace else in the Bible, He’s represented as sitting.

In 56, “And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.”

QUESTION: I heard it preached one time that this meant that everytime a saint dies, Jesus stands up in Heaven to receive him.

ANSWER: Yeah. That’s a spiritual application which is really kind of insane when you think about it. Because there is probably one dying every five minutes. He would just be bouncing up and down like a jumping jack. I mean, speaking reverently, it would be stupid. He’d just be, you know, like this { jumping up and down} , picking ‘em up, you know.

They seem to forget that all the babies who die are saved. There is probably one saved soul dying about every, oh, every fifty or sixty seconds somewhere. The Lord isn’t going to be bouncing up and down. The Bible speaks of Him as praying and making intercession at the right hand. He’s resting.

QUESTION: In verse 54, I had some guy come up to me and tell me about ‘They gnashed on him with their teeth,’ he said they couldn’t have grabbed him by the arms? They were just animals?

ANSWER: Ohhh, yeah, that’s, I know it, that’s something, ain’t it? There’s no hope for a fool, you know. You can’t explain, you know, what it means. Like, “He cast eyes on her.” Well, what did he do, pull them out of his head and throw them, you know? You know, “He gave him a withering look.” You can’t do anything with that kind of thing. You know, and, “He was over there crying his heart out.” OOOAAAGGGGGHHHHH! You know. Can’t do anything with that.

And 56, “And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.” Now, we can’t make that stand for the individual Christian; He doesn’t stand up when Paul dies. He doesn’t stand up when James dies. He stands up when Stephen dies. Now, He must be standing up then for something more than just to receive Stephen. And all you can get from what follows in this Bible is, He’s standing up to come back.

Now, let’s compare that. Let’s go back to Matthew 27. And when Jesus was preaching to the same bunch, before they crucified Him, now look what it said back here, make it 26, Matthew 26, verse 64. Matthew 26:64, “Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man...” Stephen’s seeing him “...sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.” And that’s when the Lord Jesus Christ got it, right there; they rent their clothes, and then had Him killed.

So when Stephen says that, he’s reminding every Pharisee there of Jesus Christ, and reminding them that Jesus Christ told the truth. It has to be a picture of the Second Advent. And what we know about the Old Testament, it has to be a picture of Christ standing to receive the saints at a Rapture.

Turn to Psalm 50. Psalm 50. Everything’s in line up here for the Second Advent of Christ. And in Psalm 50, in the Old Testament, and Job chapter 37, we have references to the Rapture of the Jewish saints. Job 37, Psalm 50. And right here there’s about to be a Rapture if the nation decides for Christ. If they decide against Him, the Lord’s going to sit down and then another age is going to roll on through.

Job 37:1. Job 37:1: “At this also my heart trembleth, and is moved out of his place. Hear attentively the noise of his voice, and the sound that goeth out of his mouth. He directeth it under the whole heaven, and his lightning unto the ends of the earth. After it a voice roareth: he thundereth with the voice of his excellency; and he will not stay them when his voice is heard.” There’s the voice, and somebody leaving: “He will not stay them when his voice is heard.”

Psalm 50. Psalm 50, verse 4. Well, I’ll begin at verse 1. Psalm 50:1: “The mighty God, even the LORD, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.” Stephen’s face shined like an angel. “Our God shall come,...” Second Advent “...and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him.” Rapture. “He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people. Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.” A Rapture.

All right, so in Acts chapter 7, you have a great turning point, which I’ve talked to you about many times before. I know it’s kind of difficult to get, so I’ll review it many times in three years. But you’ll have to accept it sooner or later, or a lot of the Bible is not going to make sense to you. And the people who do not accept it get their Bibles screwed up so bad they don’t know where they’re at.

The right interpretation to accept, brethren and sistern, is the interpretation that keeps the Bible right without contradicting itself. And if the system can’t do that, you have to reject the system.

All right, you got Christ dying and coming up from the dead. And once He comes up from the dead, all the prophecies are fulfilled as far as anybody can tell. They have nothing but the Old Testament. When He comes up from the dead, the rest of the Old Testament says nothing about the Church Age, nothing about the Body of Christ that anybody knows. It was there hidden. It isn’t revealed to anybody. And this thing starts in 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 — and at 7 Stephen appears officially, filled with the Holy Ghost, representing the Angel of the Lord — face shines like an angel — and brings the final message to the leaders of Israel, the Sanhedrin and the Senate, and is officially rejected, and they murder the witness. And when they do that, God draws His line on Jerusalem. And from that time on, nobody’s ever healed in Jerusalem again. There isn’t one healing that ever took place in that town after Acts 7.

QUESTION: You just mean specifically in Jerusalem?

ANSWER: In Jerusalem.

QUESTION: How can Paul preach and heal?

ANSWER: No, it goes on after that, but then you follow Paul on through, and pretty soon the Lord draws the line on the Jews in Asia Minor. A little bit later, He draws the line on the Jews in Europe. But He draws the line on the Jews in Jerusalem right there.

Now, if — if — see, Christ said, “No man knoweth the day nor the hour of the Son of man, not even the Son of man, but my Father which is in Heaven.” It’s flexible. If — they had received that message and officially trusted Stephen and believed him, you what would have happened? They would have gotten Deuteronomy 21, and gone down the valley, and washed their hands over the heifer, and said, “Don’t lay innocent to thy people of Israel’s charge,” and the trumpet would have blown, and up would have gone the Old Testament and New Testament saints, and up would have gone the Body of Christ, made of Jew and Gentile, which nobody even knew about. Wouldn’t even had to be revealed. You had Gentile deacons in Acts 6 — Grecians — you had Gentile proselytes to Judaism in Acts chapter 2. And the Body of Christ would have gone up right there in Acts chapter 7. When that thing took place. Ol’ Judas Iscariot would have come up right out of the pit and taken over Rome for three-and-a-half years, and confirmed the covenant with the Jew, and in the middle of the week he would have broken the covenant and moved to Jerusalem, and Jesus Christ would have come back right there — and the Church Age would have been that long. Seven chapters long.

QUESTION: Why wasn’t it revealed to Peter? Because they still had a chance to accept the—

ANSWER: Yes. Yes.

QUESTION: Well, what do you say then? Why would he have — Peter couldn’t be preaching under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost right here, right?

ANSWER: Stephen?

QUESTION: I mean, Peter. In Acts 3:19 —

ANSWER: Yeah, he is. Sure he is.

QUESTION: He’s not telling the truth, unless he doesn’t know it—

ANSWER: He’s telling all the truth he knows.

QUESTION: Yeah, I know. But it’s not accurate.

ANSWER: You mean, it’s not accurate to what you know now, after reading the rest of the New Testament.

QUESTION: Yeah.

ANSWER: Yeah, but if that had taken place, the rest of the New Testament would never have been written.

QUESTION: Yeah, but you still would have the Body, right?

ANSWER: Sure, you had the Body. But who had to know about that? In plainer words, I’ve got so many coins in my pocket; how many have I got in? You don’t know how many I’ve got in. Suppose I don’t tell you. Does that mean they’re not there? See? The idea is, God has to reveal everything? He doesn’t have to reveal everything.

QUESTION: Had the sacrifice been received like that, then who in all of Israel would have been saved, if the Rapture would have happened?

ANSWER: If what?

QUESTION: Had the Christian, when he received the message, not been sacrificed, who would have been Raptured away then?

ANSWER: All the saved people.

QUESTION: What about the nation of Israel?

ANSWER: The nation of Israel that wasn’t would go into the Tribulation and have their sacrifice at the Temple for three-and-a-half years. In the middle the Antichrist would come down and set up His own.

QUESTION: The saved Jews would have offered the sacrifice then —

ANSWER: Well, the ones that had been left that hadn’t gotten saved yet.

QUESTION: I mean the ones in Deuteronomy; you said they would have offered the sacrifice.

ANSWER: Yeah. Yeah, I take for them, that precedes the Rapture. Of course, I might be wrong. That might come after the Rapture.

You see, what you keep forgetting is, is that up until here there’s no New Testament there. Paul isn’t saved. Nobody knows “By grace ye are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast.” Nobody knows, “Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances against us, contrary to us, took away, made nigh to the cross.” Nobody knows, “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us.” Nobody knows, “By him all that believe are justified from all things, that ye would not be justified by the law of Moses.” Nobody knows that.

QUESTION: So all these people would have been saved then, if they accepted him. But they didn’t know it? They didn’t know that that was the way that they would have eternal life then?

ANSWER: Hadn’t been revealed yet.

It would have been kind of a “Methodist” salvation. That’s why all Methodists and Holiness get their verses from the parts of the Bible that deal with the Jews.

All right, Acts chapter 7 verse 56.

QUESTION: I was noticing this about that 56, at that point they had a choice of either accepting Him, and He would have come back, or going on. There could have been a completion of a new age in 56.

ANSWER: Yeah, but the trouble with that, is you’ve got that system in 2 Peter 3, which hadn’t been written. And you also got it in Revelation 21, which hadn’t been written.

You see, it’s almost impossible, once you’ve read through the New Testament, to keep from reading stuff back in. What you’ve got to remember, when this thing shows up here, that 1,000-year system has not been revealed to anybody. It hasn’t even been mentioned. Nobody knows anything about it. Therefore, it doesn’t have to be.

Always something, man. The Lord’s got that thing worked out so it can go this way, or go this way. And once you’re out here and look back, you couldn’t see how it could have been any other way. But if it had been this way and looked back, you couldn’t see how it could have been any other way. But the Lord could run either ways or both ways or neither way — without contradicting His word.

Yes, quickly now, we’ve got to wind her up.

QUESTION: Why do you say all of this, that He was coming back but then didn’t, is that because He’s standing here?

ANSWER: Yes. He’s not standing anyplace else; He’s sitting. He’s sitting in Acts chapter 2, He’s sitting in Matthew 26, and He’s sitting in Hebrews 3, and He’s sitting in Hebrews 12. So He obviously got up and sat back down — and didn’t do what He was going to do.

All right, 7:56: “And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, And cast him out of the city,...” like Christ “...and stoned him:...” unlike Christ; they broke His bones. “And the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul.”

Now, you see the dispensational shift? It’s going to shift now. There’s the man who’s going to complete the rest of the Book of Acts, and there he is right there at the death.

“And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God.” The King James put in the word “God” in italics and the rest of them took it out and put in “Lord”.

“...and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge.” Like Christ.

“And when he had said this, he fell asleep.” Now notice one difference in his death and Christ’s death. Christ prays for His enemies first. Christ says, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And then He says, “Father, into thy hands I commend my Spirit.” But Stephen’s a sinner like all of us, so he can’t help but think of himself first. So he says, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” P.S.: “Lay not this sin to their charge.” On the bottom of it.

All right, a couple of quick questions, then we’ve got to be dismissed.

QUESTION: OK, if they would have accepted his witness in Acts 7, then what Christ said in Matthew, you know, to go and preach the gospel to the whole world — would the disciples have —

ANSWER: It would have been carried out in the Tribulation.

QUESTION: OK, so they would have done the same thing the 144,000 would have done.

ANSWER: Yes sir, right.

QUESTION: And they would have preached the same thing the 144,000 are going to, eh?

ANSWER: Right.

QUESTION: So, how do you apply the Great Commission by application —

ANSWER: You take, since this thing didn’t happen right here, then whatever over is back in here that doesn’t contradict the Pauline Epistles goes right slap on through. And it doesn’t contradict Paul’s ministry. Paul baptizes Gentile converts, Acts 16 and Acts 18. And 1 Corinthians chapter 1. If it doesn’t contradict the teaching of the Pauline Epistles, it’ll come on through. If it contradicts them, then it’ll have to drop out.

QUESTION: When they ordained the deacons to the church, was it permanent?

ANSWER: Yes, that’s the old argument among the Southern Baptists: once a deacon, always a deacon. How many years do you rotate deacons? You have elections of deacons every year, this and that. And as far as I’m concerned, once a man is ordained as a deacon, he is a deacon.

QUESTION: Then why do they do that? Why do they have rotation, and election?

ANSWER: Because Baptist churches are not Scriptural. If you try to make a Baptist church Scriptural, you’d be accused of teaching heresy. Just like that.

QUESTION: Are our lives like that?

ANSWER: Yes sir. Yes sir. Now Calvin has it this way. Calvin has it fixed so God knew what would happen, and God just laid it out, just like that. And that isn’t right. The Lord’s got that thing laid out so He can adapt and adjust Himself to any number of possibilities, and you determine the possibilities. And somebody said, “The Lord knows what you’re going to do.” Yeah, and He’s going to know what you’re going to do if you don’t do what you decide to do.

In plainer words, you can say, “Well, the Lord knew about that.” Well, the Lord wasn’t interested, so He put that one down with that one there, and now it is up to me. Well, in case I put that one down, it’s fixed over here; if I put that one down, it’s fixed over there.

QUESTION: Did he preach to a whole lot of people here?

ANSWER: He’s preaching to a minimum of a hundred, and they make up the Sanhedrin, and the Senate, and the scribes, and the Pharisees, and the elders.

QUESTION: Do you think some of those Jews would have received Stephen’s preaching, and let the majority overrule them?

ANSWER: If some of them did, it would come to one or two men, like Nicodemus or Joseph of Arimathea. If any of them would, it would be something like one out of fifty.

All right, let’s take a break.

Now, I want to call your attention to a couple of things in chapter 7 before we close. In 7:59 and 7:60 — Mr. Burchard, lead us in prayer.

Now, in verse 60, where it says, “He fell asleep,” the reference will always have to be to the body, not the soul. And the best cross-reference to prove this is going to be Matthew chapter 27, verse 52: “Many bodies of the saints which slept arose.” Another good verse to use is in 1 Corinthians 10, where it says, “For this cause, many among you are sickly” — that’s a physical thing — “and many are weak” — that’s a physical thing — “and many sleep.” So that’ll have to be a physical thing. In all cases, it’s talking about the sleep of the body, not the soul.

Now, the next thing about the passage is, in verse 59, the way the King James Bible is translated, they inserted a verse here that backs up the deity of Christ: “They stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus.” That is calling God, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” That word is in italics, so it’s missing from the text, and the question is, what to put there. The verse says, “They stoned Stephen, calling upon, and saying...” Calling upon what? So the King James put in “God” — which is the correct thing to put in. But the rest of them will not put in “God” — no, not by any stretch of the imagination.

QUESTION: Isn’t that the only time where they put “God” in italics?

ANSWER: I haven’t checked it. It might be. Might be.

QUESTION: Scofield’s got a note here that says, “Omit ‘God’.”

ANSWER: Yeah, that’s a fine note for a Christian to put in. “Omit ‘God’!” Yeah, just try it and see where it gets you!

What are you going to put in? You gonna put in, “Calling upon Jesus and saying, Lord Jesus”? “Calling upon Christ, and saying, Lord Jesus”? “Calling upon the Lord and saying, Lord Jesus”? I mean, God is good as anything. If you believe Christ is God, why not put it in?

QUESTION: What did you say about verse 59, it’s talking about what?

ANSWER: That body. Some people teach soul sleep. And the references I gave you show the body sleeps, not the soul.