Tim Keller’s excellent new book ‘The Prodigal God’ is, and I don’t say this lightly, probably the best book I have read this year. He looks at the parable of the lost son and considers that both sons in the story were equally lost. The younger lost, in the traditional sense, the older son lost in the religious, Pharisaical sense.

Note that it was the older brother that didn’t appear at the feast at the end of the story..

Buy the book, give it as a gift, read it yourself.

buy it here

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.

1 John 3:16

I had the privilege of attending the Newfrontiers prayer & fasting event this last week. There is always such a sense of God speaking during these times (Approximately 700 pastors praying and fasting for two days). With the opportunity to hear news from the UK and around the world comes many jaw-dropping moments, my jaw dropped as news of church plants in many capital cities around the world were announced. Many of these are capitals that Christians might consider no-go areas because of their commitment to other religions.

As the news was shared about one such city those who had been to visit (the small group of Christians who are already there) told of how they had, of nesessity discussed what their approach would be to their own safty. They had options; to remain indoors and unseen, to travel only with a recognised driver/body guard or the approach they actually took which was to move about freely and stand with the local chrstians as much as possible.

Their conclusion to act like this was based on the verse we started with, and these are their words.

‘We’ve not been called to save our lives but to lay them down’

This is, of course, following Jesus great example.

Cain & Abel, Abraham & Lott, David & Saul etc…. Here in Acts 7-8 we have another fascinating contrast, Saul and Stephen.

While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.

And Saul was there, giving approval to his death.

Acts 7 v 60 – 8 v 1

Both are young, passionately committed, men seeking to serve the Lord.

They are both marked by different approaches to God. Saul by the law, Stephen by grace. If ever there was an example of law leading to death and grace to life, outside of the cross, here it is.

On the surface these two men should have been friends, both worshiped the same God, both seeking to advance the cause of God. Yet the gulf between them is vast.

Paul tells us about his credentials as a Pharisee

circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless.

Philippians 3 5-6

Jesus saved a particular disgust for the Pharisees. He gives His reasons for this

Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.

Matthew 23 v 13

Saul displayed this kind of religious evil as he stood giving approval to Stephen’s murder. Religion without grace is death, it is just a series of rules actually designed to keep men and women away from God. When the church becomes nothing more than a religious club we should all be fearful.

The Pharisees hated Jesus and his followers because they showed that God’s desire was to dwell with people, ordinary, everyday people. This rendered the livelihoods of the Pharisees meaningless. When the temple curtain was torn in two, demonstrating that God and man could now dwell together, the law became obsolete. It still is.

Stephen was a man full of grace, wisdom and power (Acts 6 v 8). His life and death were a demonstration that the gulf between God and man has been dealt with. He reflected Jesus own example as He faced his accusers, he looked to win them but offered no resistance in is own defense.

My observation is that we each have some of Saul’s attitude and some of Stephen’s in us.

We need to keep watch over our own attitudes and motives the consequences are as dramatic as life and death.