Theological term
Finished Work of Christ
2 sermons · All terms
The Martyrdom of Stephen
Acts 7:54–60 records the martyrdom of Stephen, the first Christian martyr, whose death exhibits divine sustaining grace amid murderous opposition. This exposition traces three movements in the passage: the blessedness of Stephen as the triune God fills, illumines, and comforts him; the murderous rage of the Sanhedrin, whose violent reaction to his vision of the exalted Christ exposes their guilt and apostasy; and the death of Stephen, whose dying prayers — for Christ to receive his spirit and to forgive his murderers — mirror the death of the Lord Jesus and further corroborate his entire defense. The sermon closes with the conversion of Saul of Tarsus in Acts 9 as God's answer to Stephen's intercessory prayer, and with a call to trust Christ as the one who hears prayer, forgives sin, and grants access to God.
Who is Jesus?
Hebrews 1:1–3 presents Jesus Christ as the final and supreme revelation of God — prophet, priest, and king — whose identity is not negotiable. This sermon exposes the bankruptcy of reductive or sentimental views of Christ and argues that the message and the messenger are inseparable: to accept Jesus is to accept his exclusive claims. The exposition works through Christ's appointment as heir of all things, his role as creator and sustainer of the universe, his purging of sin as the perfect high priest, and his present session at the Father's right hand as the ground of the believer's confidence.