July 1967

Ever wonder what makes a Christian different from everyone else in the world? Preaching on Acts 7:54–60, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones explains that it is the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. It is He who empowers the lives and ministries of all believers. This is what made the early church in the time of the apostles so transformative and powerful. The apostles were bold in the face of persecution and even death. They did not fear what anyone could do to them because the Spirit-wrought faith in the person of Jesus Christ. One of the clearest examples of this is Stephen, the first martyr of the church. He was brought before the Sanhedrin for preaching the message of Jesus Christ. As Stephen preached in Acts, he boldly told who Jesus is and how Jesus fulfills the whole of the Old Testament. Because of this boldness, he was stoned to death but as he was dying, he asked God to forgive the very people who were killing him. This is the life lived in the Spirit, unlike the Jewish leaders who represented the unregenerate who reject the Holy Spirit and fight its influence. This is the greatest tragedy: those who are dead in sin fight against the only power that can save them and give them eternal life.

Sin contaminates everything. Although God created the first two humans to be sinless, pure, and upright, they quickly fell into sin. What started with their act of sin continues in everyone today. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones preaches the sermon “Uncircumcised in Heart” from Acts 7:54–60 and proclaims that sin blinds and makes humanity unable to hear the things of God. Even when the gospel first enters the ears, it sounds foolish and incomprehensible. This is the case of many who saw Jesus perform great miracles yet because of their unbelief did not understand what they saw. Just as a blind person cannot heal themselves, neither can a sinner save themselves. This why God in his grace provided a way of salvation. This is the gospel of grace. It is the Holy Spirit that convicts people and enables them to believe. While sinful people can and do resist the Holy Spirit as the Pharisees did, the Holy Spirit can ultimately overcome the most deep-seated unbelief. God is able to overcome the most irrational aspects of unbelief. When God’s Holy Spirit works to make sinners born again and give circumcised hearts, they receive the new life in Christ and the Spirit indwells them, making them new creatures.