Acts 7:52 (KJV)
Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which showed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers:
Seems like an unfair accusation levelled by Stephen! And yet one that is also echoed by Jesus Himself - Matthew 23:35
That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zechariah son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.
And in fact, according to Jesus, the Pharisees were even more despicable ! Matthew 23:29-30 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchers 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.
Before we too shake our heads and wag our tongues, let us be reminded that it is so easy to go about establishing our own righteousness. That we too can focus on the things that we “feel good”, “feel right” about, yet only serves to offend and insult God.
And even today, the responsibility and consequence is ever more heavy and dire because we have had the hind-sight of history. Let us be forewarned, even as the Hebrew writer penned in Heb 10:26-29, that we should ever more be diligent to follow exactly what He has commanded, lest we too be labeled as betrayers and murderers!
No comments:
Post a Comment