SCRIPTURE
13The lying witnesses said, “This man is always speaking against the Holy Temple and the law of Moses. 14We have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy the Temple and change the customs Moses handed down to us.” 15At this point everyone in the high council stared at Stephen because his face became as bright as an angel’s. Acts 6:13-15
OBSERVATION
I don’t know about you but when someone is falsely accusing me I don’t normally have the face of an angel. Being one who shows everything on my face, you’re going to see the face of someone ready to square off with his accuser. Not so with Stephen. Like his Savior Jesus, Stephen never stood in self-defense, he never tried to argue his case, he willingly laid down his life in service to the Father. His face became bright has an angel because the next chapter shows us what he was looking at. He wasn’t looking at his accusers He was looking at his Savior: 55But 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. 56And 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!” (Acts 7:55-56). Our focus will show on our faces. If Stephen was uncertain of His standing with Christ he never would have seen Christ standing for Him. He would have been, as I often am, too focused on the opinions of those around him to notice that God was with him amid this firing squad. When we have face time with the Lord we can face whatever is coming our way. Remember how the face of Moses was glowing as he came down off Mt. Sanai after receiving the 10 commandments? Our very appearance can change when we stop focusing on our accusers and we start focusing on our advocate. He stands for us so we can stand for what we believe in a day and age when many believers are bowing to the cultural pressure to conform out of fear of rejection. David knew this very well. Even as King Saul tracked him down to kill him he would continue to seek the face of God and find strength. He exhorts us to do the same in Psalm 34: “O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the LORD, and he heard me and delivered me from all my fears. They looked unto him, and were lightened: and their faces were not ashamed. This poor man cried, and the LORD heard [him], and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encamps round about them that fear him, and delivers them.”
APPLICATION
Let’s face it, our face is speaking volumes and most of the time it’s not what we want to be saying. When we were kids we couldn’t hide what we felt because we weren’t trying. Even if we have developed the skill over the years of hiding our true feelings our face still gives us away. As Shakespeare stated, the eyes truly are the window to the soul. I used to watch this intriguing detective show called “Lie To Me”. It was based on the very real science of microexpressions. A microexpression is a brief, involuntary facial expression that appears on a person’s face according to the emotions being experienced. Unlike regular, pro-longed facial expressions, it is difficult to fake a microexpression. According to Dr. Paul Ekman, who the show was based on, there are seven universal microexpressions: disgust, anger, fear, sadness, happiness, surprise and contempt. Once you learn to read these it’s like granting yourself a superpower. Now, I haven’t studied this out in-depth but I have tried some of what I saw on the show, specifically shifting eyes, and have been able to catch my boys in an occasional lie. Yes! Superpowered parenting for the win! The real point here, of course, is that if I want to change what my face is showing I must change where my face is going. Am I seeking the Lord and focused on Him even in high-pressure situations? This will show on my face. Am I bringing the Lord the hurtful words and unmet expectations of others? This will show on my face. If most of the communication is non-verbal it doesn’t matter what I’m preaching from the stage if my face isn’t matching up with my words. The last thing I want to do is contradict the unconditional love of Jesus with my face because I haven’t been seeking His face. Jesus said it this way, “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”(Mt. 26:22-24) Our face in this sense represents the focus of our lives and what we are continually seeking.
PRAYER
The eyes don’t lie, so I fix my eyes on You this morning! I want to preach the Gospel before ever saying a word through what people see on my face. If I want them to see You then I must seek you and find Your heart for them even as Stephen did. If I want people to know Your love then even when, especially when, I’m tired, annoyed, or feeling defensive I need to seek Your face so they see Your face. If Stephen could look at the accusers who were killing them and ask for their forgiveness then what’s my excuse for not showing the same unconditional love? Jesus shines on me so You can shine through me in every interaction I have.
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