Turn with me to Matthew chapter 28, Matthew 28 as well as Acts 7. We will read together the last few verses of Matthew chapter 28, part of our text being verse 18, and then reading together a portion of Acts chapter 7, a few verses from chapter 6, And then a portion of Acts chapter 7 and our text also being chapter 7 verses 55 and 56. Matthew 28 beginning at verse 16. Hear now the word of the Lord. Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw Him, they worshipped Him, but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always to the very end of the age. And turning over to Acts chapter 6, first of all, reading verses 8 through 15, we're going to read the portions that really surround a sermon, Stephen's speech to the Sanhedrin, beginning at verse 8 of chapter 6. Now Stephen, a man full of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. Opposition arose, however, from members of the synagogue of the freedmen, as it was called, Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria, as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia. These men began to argue with Stephen, but they could not stand up against his wisdom or the spirit by whom he spoke. Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, We have heard Stephen speak words of blasphemy against Moses and against God. So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin. They produced false witnesses who testified, This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us. All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel. And then Stephen begins to give his speech, beloved, And in that speech, really, he goes back in time, he goes back in history, beginning with Father Abraham making his way through the patriarchs and so forth, and Israel in Egypt, and then he talks about the fact that the Lord sent them Moses. He sent them Moses to be a deliverer for them, and he reminds them of the fact that he highlights your forefathers, your forefathers, your forefathers. What did they do? They rejected the deliverer. They rejected the one that God had sent to them, even Moses. And he even continues to go on, even up through David. And we want to pick up our reading again, beginning at verse 51. As he comes to the conclusion, we might say, of his sermon. You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears, you are just like your fathers. You always resist the Holy Spirit. Was there ever a prophet your fathers did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the righteous one. And now you have betrayed and murdered Him. You who have received the law that was put into effect through angels but have not obeyed it. When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at Him. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. Look, he said, I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. At this they covered their ears and yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. 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. Beloved of our Lord Jesus Christ, Jesus is out of sight. Boys and girls, you know that's true. We cannot see Jesus physically. He's not with us on this earth. We know that He physically rose again from the dead. We know that He physically ascended into heaven. As we read, He was lifted up before the very eyes of His disciples until the cloud hid Him from their sight. He is out of sight to us physically speaking. But is He also out of mind? You see, that's what his enemies thought. That's what they hoped would happen if they were successful in getting rid of him. And they thought that they were successful in getting rid of him. But something, you see, was backfiring. His apostles, as we read in the early chapters of Acts, his apostles were preaching with a boldness they had never seen before. And now here's this man, Stephen. We don't know if Stephen ever met Jesus face to face. We're not told that in Scripture. But here's this man, Stephen, who is willing to give his life for this Jesus. And Stephen's message burned the ears of his murderers. Rage and anger filled their hearts as he preached that the ascended Christ stands ready for his people. You see, beloved, he stands ready. He's not on vacation. He didn't need a much needed rest from his grueling work of saving. by which He suffered the torture of crucifixion in hell. He suffered the wrath of God. No, He rose again from the dead to receive the exaltation of His Father, to take up His cosmic work of reigning and ruling all things on behalf of His church. He stands ready for action. He stands ready by virtue of where He is. Again, first of all, as we consider Stephen's message, going back in history and reminding them how their forefathers rejected Moses, he goes on to say that Jesus was the righteous one who was prophesied by Moses and the prophets, and just as their forefathers rejected Moses, you have rejected him, you have killed him. You put him to death. We can't help but notice the response of the Sanhedrin. Now, boys and girls, the Sanhedrin was the highest Jewish authority. The Sanhedrin, we might say, was the supreme court of the church of that day, of the Jewish faith. The Sanhedrin, filled with religious leaders, is the very body that prosecuted Jesus and put Him to death. And no doubt, in some ways, the Sanhedrin was confused. Yes, this Jesus, this troublemaker, He was dead, they thought. And when He died, you see, His cause was also supposed to die with Him. And His followers were supposed to crawl into a hole and hide for fear of their lives. But no, again, this Stephen was bold. He was unafraid. He was willing to give His life. And His message, and now I'm not talking about the long sermon He gave, but the little message He gave in our text, His message was frightening. He is given this sight filled with the Holy Spirit. He looked up to heaven. We don't understand how, beloved. But He was allowed to see right into heaven. And He said, matter-of-factly, He spoke of what He saw. And they understood what He was saying. They understood that He was saying that the Christ that they hated, the Christ they thought was dead and gone, that He was really ruling with all authority and with all power. And if this was true, they were in trouble. And therefore, they were besides themselves, not with humility and not with repentance, but they were besides themselves with anger. The Bible says they gnashed their teeth. And the idea is they snapped their teeth together like an animal with rabies uncontrollably. And they simply had to get rid of Stephen. They had to silence His voice. They had to silence His message. And it was so troublesome, the Bible says, they covered their ears yelling at the top of their voices. Boys and girls, maybe you've had it before when you were arguing with a brother or sister and finally you've had enough and you plug your ears and you say, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, I can't hear you. I don't want to hear you. That's what they were doing. Only not with a smile on their face. They covered their ears, yelling at the top of their lungs to silence any echo even of Stephen's voice and message. But you see, Stephen's dying sermon, the sermon that he uttered with very few words as he was about to die, lives on and it will continue to live on until our Lord Jesus Christ returns as He left on the clouds of glory. And beloved, even as Stephen was given a view of the glory of Christ, a view that was sufficient to fill him with joy unspeakable, this was not only for his encouragement, but it's also for the comfort and the support of all of God's suffering servants in all ages as by faith. We too see that he stands ready for us in heaven. Stephen looks into heaven. He sees the glory of God. And specifically, he sees the Lord Jesus Christ standing at the right hand of God. Our Lord is located in a most powerful place, the dwelling place of God, the Maker of heaven and earth. It's the place of God's throne. Isaiah 66, verse 1, there we read, this is what the Lord says, heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool. And that throne, we know, represents rule. It represents judgment. It represents power and authority. And the right hand of God reinforces that whole idea of the throne. That right hand is a place. It's a position of honor. It shows that one is trusted. It shows that one participates in the government and the rule of the kingdom. Again, the Sanhedrin, you see, they weren't stupid. They understood very well the meaning of what Stephen said, that he said Jesus had an important position, something to do with ruling and judgment and from the glory of heaven. Which meant somehow that that was also over. He was also over the Sanhedrin. But how could this be? Because Jesus stands ready not only by virtue of where He is, but also by virtue of who He is. Again, the Sanhedrin knew that heaven is the dwelling place of God. And they knew, they understood that Stephen was saying Jesus is God. And Stephen confirms that with the title Son of Man. Now that was a title that Jesus often took to Himself. He often referred to Himself as the Son of Man throughout His ministry on this earth. This title pointed to the incarnation of God. It pointed to the humanity of the Son of God. To God with us. To Nicodemus, Jesus said in John chapter 3, No one has ever gone into heaven except the One who came from heaven, the Son of Man. And Jesus made it clear that that title, Son of Man, was a title of authority. Authority to heal the sick. Authority to raise the dead. Authority to forgive sins. Authority to judge the hearts of mankind. Authority to give authority to His followers. and the Sanhedrin also was familiar, no doubt, with the Son of Man as spoken in the prophecy of Daniel. In Daniel 7, verse 13, we read that Daniel says, In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into His presence. And then in that chapter, Daniel goes on to talk about the authority and the glory and the sovereign power given to this one. And also about the fact that He was given this over all peoples and all nations and that men of all languages would worship Him. And that His kingdom and His dominion would be an everlasting kingdom and an everlasting dominion. The Sanhedrin knew that this prophecy pointed to the One who would appear on the Day of Judgment to judge all. They knew that it pointed to the Messiah who would receive worldwide dominion and worship. Stephen was telling his murderers that Jesus is the Messiah and that the Messiah is Himself God and therefore that this Jesus is God Himself. This Jesus is the son of Psalm 2, verse 6 who was installed as king on Zion's holy hill. This Jesus was the very one the Jews expected but rejected. You see, beloved, Stephen testifies that he sees what Jesus had claimed about himself. Jesus said, I and my Father are one. He said, anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. And Jesus claimed what only God could claim. All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. As Stephen looks into heaven, he equates Jesus with God and he sees and he reports the fulfillment of Christ's words to the very same Sanhedrin that we find recorded in Matthew 26, verse 64. The high priest had just asked Jesus, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God. Yes, it is as you say, Jesus replied. But I say to all of you, in the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven. and now here was Stephen saying exactly what Jesus said. Here was Stephen seeing exactly what Jesus had said. And if what Stephen said was true, that meant trouble for these people because they had said that Jesus was in the company of Beelzebub. They had said that he was a friend of Satan. But Stephen says, no, he is God. They were in danger. They must silence Stephen. If they can, maybe that will put an end to his words. They rush at him and stone him to death. But beloved, even in the midst of this hatred, even in the midst of that trouble, Stephen was comforted. Because Jesus stood ready in heaven as God for him. He saw proof of Christ's exaltation. He saw both Christ's transcendent dignity that He is God as well as his sovereign dominion that he is at the right hand of the Father. And beloved, he had the comfort of knowing that Jesus stood ready to receive him and to crown him with that crown of righteousness. And in the meantime, he gave him the prospect of the joy that was set before him even as Stephen looked into the glory of heaven. You see, this sight that Stephen was given, this vision, if we might call it, that was for Stephen's encouragement that no matter who was against him, Christ is for him. But we too, beloved, have the same comfort like Stephen. Those who suffer for Jesus might not find earthly relief. But also like Stephen, we are called to look above the fury and the power and the hatred and the anger of our persecutors and we are to find our strength in the Lord. The Sanhedrin had their eyes, their eyes that were filled with malice and cruelty and hatred. they had their eyes fixed on him. But Stephen looked up to heaven. He never minded them. He never gave them a second thought. But he was so taken with the eternal life that was before his eyes that this life simply meant no more to him. And brothers and sisters, this is comforting because who could truly be against Stephen? And who can truly be against the child of God? Our confidence is that we are more than conquerors because Jesus Christ stands ready as God on His throne in heaven. But He also stands ready by virtue of what He has. You see, the great foundation of the Christian faith is that our God is sovereign. We believe the sovereignty of God, all power, all authority, all majesty, all might belongs to Him. Christ's claim in Matthew 28 verse 18 is that all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me, he says. His words, which if you remember were pre-ascension, he spoke those words before he was taken up before the eyes of his disciples. His words hinted at his ongoing work in heaven, which Stephen now saw and confessed. Stephen sees Jesus in this position as God in heaven, standing ready on behalf of Stephen to God. He is Stephen's advocate, his defense attorney, to plead his cause before the Father in heaven. But he also sees Jesus stand ready on behalf of God to Stephen. As Stephen's defender, as Stephen's deliverer. And we need to understand that the Son of God, the second person of the Blessed Trinity, has always enjoyed all authority and power as God. It's always been Him. But now all authority had been given to Him as the Son of Man, as the God-Man. And this, because as Paul says in Philippians 2, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death, even death on a cross. Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. Beloved, Jesus has all authority. It's His. Whether man believes it or not. Whether man acts like it or not. Whether man accepts it or not. Whether man responds to it or not. It's His. He doesn't have it only if we say that He has it. Only if we ascribe it to Him. It's His. God the Father gave it to Him. And we know, of course, that His authority and power were evident even before He was crucified and died. He taught, the Bible says, with all authority and amazed those who heard Him. His authority was evident in the fact that He was able to judge the hearts, to read the hearts and the thoughts of mankind. His authority was evident in that He forgave sins. It was evident in that He gave life, He restored life to some who had died. It was evident in His promise of eternal life, especially to the thief on the cross. And how should we understand the nature of Christ's authority? What can we say about it? Well, for one thing, we can say that it's the highest authority. There is no higher authority than the authority of Jesus Christ. There is no higher one to appeal to. In our justice system, you can always appeal to a higher court. You can go through the stages if you've been wronged Until you get to the Supreme Court, then their word is final. Even in the church, within our federation, for example, you can go to the consistory if you've been wronged. If you don't feel you receive justice, you can appeal to the classes. Then you can appeal to the synod. There are ways to appeal. Jesus Christ is the highest authority, and that is to be comforting to you and me, because as our advocate, as our mediator, He says in Matthew chapter 10, Whoever confesses Me before men, him will I confess before My Father who is in heaven. But He also says, Whoever denies Me before men, him will I deny before My Father in heaven. But also we must say that His authority is absolute. It's absolute authority. His will, His commands must be obeyed. And they are to be to our delight, beloved, because they are for our own good. His way is the way of righteousness. His way is the way of wisdom. His is absolute power to take to heaven or to send to hell. His authority is comprehensive in heaven and on earth. All things. All the powers of heaven, the angels, are in His hand to be obedient to His command without question, without backtalk. But as well, His authority is over all the power and the dominion manifested on earth. Sometimes we have a hard time with that one, don't we? Sometimes it's hard to see, but in truth, His authority is over all the power and the authority that is manifested on earth. His authority, beloved, is an active authority, and this is seen in His threefold office of prophet, priest, and king. As prophet, His authority is active through the preaching of His Word. Those who are called to be His ministers speak on His behalf. They speak with His authority. With His authority, they proclaim, repent of your sins and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. And they declare with the authority of Jesus that if you believe on Him, you shall be saved. Those called of Jesus Christ have the resources of heaven at their very disposal. And He alone gives the preaching of His Word success and victory against all opposition. You see, Satan is bound. Satan cannot deceive God's elect nation. He cannot stop the spread of the Gospel. Again, this might not always be clearly seen today by you and me, but when Jesus Christ comes again, the cause of the believer will be seen clearly for what it is. The cause of Christ. His active authority is seen also in that He is our priest. As a priest, again, He's our advocate as He continues to present His completed sacrifice to the Father as the sufficient and only basis for the Father's pardoning grace. And as our mediator, the one who reconciles us with the Father, He turns the gaze of the Father, as we said this past Sunday, against our sin, away from us. He turns it away from us and He turns the loving eyes of the Father toward His own righteousness for your sake and mine. His priesthood is also seen in that He continues to make intercession for us. He intercedes for you and me for our safekeeping, for our acceptance, making our prayers and our service acceptable to God. His authority, His act of authority is seen in His office of king as He rules and He protects His church by His Holy Spirit. As a king, He governs His church through the appointed offices. As well as a king, he commands the forces of heaven for our blessing. As well as for our protection from the forces of evil. And finally, one more thing we can say about his authority is exactly that. That it is final. It is the last authority anyone will ever face on the day of judgment. The last authority anyone will ever face. For you and I, beloved, that will be a delight. But for those who rejected Jesus Christ, that will be terrifying. Because every knee, as Paul says, will bow before him. Every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God. Some will confess in faith. But others will confess simply because they cannot any longer ignore the truth. But then we might also ask, is there evidence of Christ's authority today? I mean, that which we can see, that which we can make sense of. Can we recognize His reigning and ruling power? Well, think about this earth. Think about this life that we live. Think about the laws of nature. Think about the fact that our hearts continue to beat, that our lungs continue to breathe, that we're able to be active and to live. All of it, beloved, is evidence of Christ's reigning and ruling power of His authority. Think about the last time you can remember that you were able to resist temptation. Or even when you fell into temptation and you sinned against God and your conscience accused you and you repented of your sin and you were restored. That's not because of your strength or my strength. It's because of the authority of Jesus Christ, His reigning and ruling power. Think about the comfort and the peace and the contentment that you and I as believers enjoy when the world can't understand it and says, that doesn't make sense. How can you have contentment in that kind of a situation? Again, it's evidence of Christ's reigning and ruling power. Think about the conversions that continue to take place throughout the world and the spread of the Gospel. Church growth. As well, baptisms. professions of faith. It's all evidence of Christ's authority, His reigning and ruling power. But then someone might say, well, what about the evidence that is against all of that? You see, we see evil. We see it all around us and it seems to increase. It seems to grow day by day by day. Ungodliness and open rebellion against God is beyond our imagination. And the truth of God's Word is challenged. It is attacked publicly more and more every day. More boldly, it seems, every day. It seems like Christ has no authority on this earth. But beloved, be comforted. Because our comfort is that history is going His way. History is going His way. Even though at times things seem contrary to that, All that takes place is for the purpose of the church. For the building of His kingdom. It's all for the purpose of the glory of God. And all of it will be revealed clearly on the day of judgment also. What will be revealed is that Christ was all along preparing the wicked for that day. Beloved, Stephen's vision is for the benefit and the encouragement of all of Christ's redeemed people in every age, even today. He stands ready. He is active every moment for you and me and this as God in heaven with all power and authority. So that even now, He is protecting, He is guiding, He is guarding, He is providing for you and me even as He prepares a place in His Father's house for each of His believers. And therefore, we have no need to fear. We have no need to fear wondering who really is in control. Jesus is with us through His Holy Spirit. His Holy Spirit who takes of what is Christ's and gives it to you and me. The Holy Spirit who reveals to you and me the truth of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit who was sent by Christ Himself to comfort you and me until Jesus comes again. You see, Satan might be busy trying to harm us and cause us to doubt. But our ascended Lord also rules Satan and make no mistake about it, beloved, He has Him under control. And therefore, we can go about our daily work, we can live our lives with the confidence that we serve the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Our ascended Lord is out of our sight physically. He's out of our physical sight. But we are not out of His mind. And He blesses us, beloved, so that just as Stephen saw the glorified Christ on His throne, We see Him with the eye of faith. And all those who believe in Him and trust in Him alone for salvation, just as His ascension is proof of His victory, we are more than conquerors in Him. And nothing will be able to snatch us out of His hand. Is that your comfort? It is if you trust in Him alone for your deliverance and your salvation. And beloved, because He stands ready for you and me, He reigns and reigns in heaven. We are safe. We are secure on this earth, even in the midst of trouble. And we will be brought safe and secure as Stephen was to our ascended Lord in glory. Amen. Let's pray. Father, indeed, we thank You again for the blessed truth that even though our Lord Jesus Christ is no longer with us physically, that He is busy and He is active for Your people, even at this moment. Indeed, Father, at times that is so very hard to contemplate. It's hard to make sense of. Yet, Father, You make that real to us day by day, moment by moment. Even as You work in our hearts and lives by your Holy Spirit you help us to know the truth that we are not alone that Jesus Christ has not truly left us but he is with us even as he said and he will come again to take us to be with him and until that day oh Lord we pray that you would help us to live with courage help us to live in confidence that we serve the risen and the ascended Savior we serve the king of kings and the Lord of Lords. Father, again, we thank you and praise you for that blessed truth. We ask, Lord, that you would hear our prayer, not because we deserve it, but for Jesus' sake. In his name we pray. Amen.