Acts 7:44-53 God Can't Be Boxed In

Observation: Stephen is preaching about Jesus to the high priests in Jerusalem, home of the holy temple, the center of first century Jewish life. After talking about the history of God's temple, he goes on to say God does not dwell in temples made by human hands. Not surprising, when you think about it, that before long he's stoned to death for blasphemy.

Application: In my new call, I have the pleasure of working in a brand new church building, and I must say it's beautiful. But even after a couple of weeks, I'm finding it hard to take time and get out into the community, where God is already working on healing, liberating and reconciliation. It's important to remember that God is too big to fit in a building, or a congregation, or a denomination, or even an entire faith tradition. Any box we try to find, God will always be bigger. If it's made by human hands, God doesn't live there. But God will gladly meet us there and invite us out to explore.

Prayer: God, thanks for all you are doing outside the walls of my church, my denomination, my faith tradition, and even beyond the bounds of what I can imagine. Amen.