<< Previous | Index | Next >>"THE BOOK OF ACTS" The First Martyr (6:8-7:60) INTRODUCTION 1. As the church in Jerusalem grew, persecution intensified... a. Beginning with threats not to preach - Ac 4:18-21 b. Followed by beatings and more threats - Ac 5:40 2. The persecution soon reached a new level... a. Beginning with the martyrdom of Stephen, one of the seven - Ac 6:5 b. Leading to a great persecution against the whole church - Ac 8:1 [Stephen was the first martyr who gave his life for Christ. A man "full of faith and of the Holy Spirit" (Ac 6:5), his example has inspired many to suffer for Christ in a similar manner. To appreciate why, let's begin by reviewing...] I. STEPHEN'S ARREST A. PROMPTED BY HIS MINISTRY... 1. Full of faith and power, he did great wonders and signs among the people - Ac 6:8 2. He disputed with some from the Synagogue of the Freedmen - Ac 6:9-10 a. Cyrenians, Alexandrians (Africa), and those from Cilicia and Asia (Turkey) b. Who were unable to resist the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke B. LED BY FALSE ACCUSATIONS... 1. By men secretly induced to charge him with blasphemy against Moses and God - Ac 6:11-12 a. Who stirred up the people, the elders and the scribes b. To seize and bring him to the council (the Sanhedrin) 2. By false witnesses set up to charge Stephen with blasphemy - Ac 6:13-14 a. Against the holy place (temple): "We have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place" b. Against the law (of Moses): "and change the customs which Moses delivered to us" 3. Stephen may have referred to what Jesus spoke about: a. Destroying the temple and rebuilding it in three days - Mk 14:58 b. Which John explained referred to the temple of His body - Jn 2:19-21 4. Stephen may also referred to what Jesus spoke about: a. The destruction of Jerusalem and the temple - Mt 24:1-2; Mk 13:1-2; Lk 21:5-6 b. Which did affect customs that Moses delivered (e.g., animal sacrifices ceased) C. ACCOMPANIED BY COMPOSURE... 1. All who sat in the council looked steadfastly at him - Ac 6:15 2. They saw his face as the face of an angel - ibid. 3. Evidence that he was filled with the Spirit - cf. Ac 6:5; Ga 5:22-23 [Stephen faced his accusers with "a presence marked by confidence, serenity, and courage." (EBC) With the question of the high priest (Ac 7:1), the stage is set for Stephen's defense...] II. STEPHEN'S DEFENSE A. GOD'S DEALINGS WITH ABRAHAM... 1. The call to leave Mesopotamia - Ac 7:2-3 2. The sojourn in Canaan - Ac 7:4 3. The promise of possession to his descendants - Ac 7:5-7 4. The covenant of circumcision - Ac 7:8 5. His descendants: Isaac, Jacob, the twelve patriarchs - Ac 7:8 B. THE PATRIARCHS' SOJOURN IN EGYPT... 1. Joseph sold into Egypt, becomes governor - Ac 7:9-10 2. Jacob and his sons move to Egypt during the famine - Ac 7:11-14 3. The patriarchs buried in Canaan - Ac 7:15-16 C. GOD'S DELIVERANCE OF ISRAEL BY MOSES... 1. The children Israel in Egypt become slaves - Ac 7:17-19 2. The work of Moses, deliverer of Israel a. Raised by Pharaoh's daughter - Ac 7:20-21 b. Educated by Egyptians, mighty in words and deeds - Ac 7:22 c. Kills an Egyptian, but despised by his brethren - Ac 7:23-28 d. Flees to Midian where he has two sons - Ac 7:29 e. The Lord appears to him in a burning bush at Mount Sinai - Ac 7:30-34 f. Returns to Egypt, delivers Israel and brings them into the wilderness - Ac 7:35-36 D. ISRAEL'S REBELLION AGAINST MOSES AND GOD... 1. Moses is the person: a. Who said God would raise up another prophet like him - Ac 7:37 b. Who spoke to the Angel on Mount Sinai - Ac 7:38 c. Who received living oracles to give to Israel - Ac 7:38 d. Whom the fathers would not obey but rejected - Ac 7:39 2. Israel is the nation: a. Who turned back into Egypt in their hearts - Ac 7:39 b. Who pressured Aaron to make a golden calf - Ac 7:40-41 c. Whom God gave up to worship idols for forty years in the wilderness - Ac 7:42-43 1) They may have offered sacrifices to the Lord 2) But they also worshiped Moloch and Remphan - cf. Am 5:25-27 E. GOD'S TRUE TABERNACLE... 1. The fathers of Israel had the tabernacle of witness a. In the wilderness, built according to the pattern shown Moses - Ac 7:44 b. Brought into the promised land by Joshua - Ac 7:45 2. They also had the temple a. Asked for by David, who found favor before God - Ac 7:46 b. Built by his son Solomon - Ac 7:47 3. Yet the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands a. For heaven is His throne and earth is His footstool - Ac 7:48-49 b. His hand has made all these things - Ac 7:50; cf. Isa 66:1-2 c. This may have been to allay any concern about the destruction of the temple, as God is not bound to be worshipped at just one location - cf. Jn 4:19-24 F. ISRAEL'S RESISTANCE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT... 1. Stephen charges the council of resisting the Holy Spirit, like their fathers - Ac 7:51 2. Their fathers persecuted and killed the prophets, so they have killed the Just One - Ac 7:52 3. They received the law, but did not keep it - Ac 7:53 [Stephen surveyed Israel's history of rejecting God and His Spirit, then charged that they followed in their fathers' rebellion by having murdered the Just One (Jesus). They themselves had not kept the very Law they accused him of having blasphemed! With such accusers, the outcome is not surprising...] III. STEPHEN'S DEATH A. THE REACTION OF THE COUNCIL... 1. They were cut to the heart a. They gnashed at Stephen with their teeth - Ac 7:54 b. Compare those on the day of Pentecost - cf. Ac 2:37 2. Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven a. He saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God - Ac 7:55 b. He tells what he saw: "The Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!" - Ac 7:56 c. Why is Jesus standing? 1) He is otherwise described as sitting - Lk 22:69; Mk 16:19; Ac 2:34; Ep 1:20; Col 3:1; He 1:3; 8:1; 10:12; 12:2; Re 3:21 2) Could it be out of respect, to welcome His first martyr? 3. In response, the council: a. Cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears - Ac 7:57 b. Ran at him with one accord, and cast him out of the city - Ac 7:58 B. THE STONING OF STEPHEN... 1. The witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of Saul - Ac 7:58; 22:20 a. Who consented to Stephen's death - Ac 8:1 b. Who later led a great persecution against the church - Ac 8:3; 9:1-2 2. They stoned Stephen as he was calling on God - Ac 7:59-60 a. "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit" - cf. Lk 23:46 b. "Lord, do not charge them with this sin" - cf. Lk 23:34 3. Having said this, he fell asleep (i.e., died) - Ac 7:60; 8:1 CONCLUSION 1. Stephen's death was the first of many... a. Saul (Paul) would later confess of others - Ac 22:4; 26:9-11 b. We read of other martyrs: James, Antipas - Ac 12:1-2; Re 2:13 c. Countless thousands have died for Christ over the years, even to the present day 2. We may never face martyrdom; but when we encounter persecution for our faith, we should... a. Face with it the composure of Stephen - Ac 6:15 b. Possess the forgiving spirit of both Jesus and Stephen - Lk 23:34; Ac 7:60 Remembering Jesus' promise: "Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life." - Re 2:10<< Previous | Index | Next >>
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