In Acts 7:9-43, Stephen focuses briefly on Joseph and then on Moses, which will bring forth a key theme in his sermon—there have always been a large percentage of those among God’s people who repudiate God’s word and live in idolatry, while esteeming the outward practices of worship; in this case, esteeming the temple and the sacrifices.
This leads to a more general danger and that is, when participating in even prescribed things becomes the means of getting right before God, God’s standard is dropped down and his redemptive activity towards mankind is turned on its head—from undeserved favor to wages due for good works. It’s then true that God’s Word can be repudiated, even with great church attendance, Bible reading or studying theology books, when those things fail to lead to faith-filled obedience to Christ commands.
Moreover, when man’s personal applications of God’s Word, which make sense and are accepted by the natural mind, become supreme—mass confusion sets in and it always leads to the blind leading the blind. It’s so disheartening when you see this because the blindness and deception has spiritually crippled such a one and the truth seems to bounce off of them like a golf ball off of the sidewalk. Accordingly and ironically, the very thing Stephen accuses these leaders of, by linking them to the disobedience of the OT Israelites, is the very thing they manifest towards the end of Acts 7 in response to his indictments.
May we be on guard against this blindness and fear it as we should!
The Religious Blindness That Denies Christ
