St Louis UBF UBF Bible Study : Acts 7:1-60

Bible Materials

Acts 7:1-60

by Paul Choi 06/17/2012 Acts 7:1~60

Message

STEPHEN’S SPIRIT AND FAITH

Acts 6:8-8:1a

Key Verse: 7:59 “While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

“Anne Askew was imprisoned and greatly tortured for her faith. Placed on a cruel rack, her joints and bones were pulled out of place. She fainted from the pain, but when she regained consciousness, she preached for two hours to her tormentors. On the day of her execution, she was carried to the stake in a chair because her bones were dislocated and she couldn’t walk. At the last moment, she was offered the king’s pardon if she would recant. She said: “I did not come here to deny my Lord and Master.” She died praying for her murderers in the midst of the flames”. (Quote: “Why I came”, ‘Jesus Freaks’ by The Voice of the Martyrs, 1995)

This is a true story about Anne Askew who was martyred in England in 1546 because of her faith in Jesus Christ. She is not the only one who has been killed for Jesus’ name sake. Since St. Stephen was martyred in Jerusalem in AD 34, numerous Christians including most of Jesus’ disciples were killed because of their faith in Jesus Christ. Even today in various places around the world such as in China, North Korea, Africa, and the Arab world, many Christians have been persecuted and killed by anti-Christians. Today, we’ll study about the faith and spirit of St. Stephen, the first martyr in Christian history. St. Stephen’s testimony is the longest testimony in the New Testament. Through Stephen’s testimony and his martyrdom, we may renew our gospel faith and martyrdom spirit in doing the work of God in our generation. Amen.

First, charges against Stephen (6:8-7:1) St. Stephen was one of the seven deacons who had been chosen by the Apostles in order to take care of administration and business in the Jerusalem Church. (6:5) Among the seven, Stephen, a man of full of God’s grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. (8) When the Holy Spirit was working mightily, Satan also was working to hinder God’s work. Opposition arose from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen-Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia.(9) All of them were members from the Hellenistic community. They began to argue with Stephen, but they were not able to stand up against his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke. (10) This reminds us of Jesus’ promise in Luke 21:15 which says, “For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.”

Then these wicked people secretly persuaded some men to say, “We have heard Stephen speak words of blasphemy against Moses and against God.” (11) After agitating the religious leaders, 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.” (13,14) At that time, in Israel anyone who insulted or spoke ill of God’s holy temple or Moses’ law was arrested as a blasphemer and punished. Look at verse 15. “All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.” The faces of those who are on trial are often disfigured by their emotional turmoil. But the face of Stephen was different. It was radiant like an angel because of his spirit, faith, confidence, and courage. Then the high priest asked him, “Are these charges true?” (15)What was Stephen’s defense?

Second, Stephen’s defense (7:2-53) Stephen’s defense was divided into three parts: defense on the holy land (2-36), on the law (37-43), and on the temple (44-50). First, his defense on the holy land: Stephen’s defense on the holy land started how God called Abraham and gave him promises and established covenants with him. God called Abraham while he was in Mesopotamia. According to Genesis 12:1-3, God promised Abraham to make him into a great nation and a source of blessing to all nations. God also promised to give him the land where God commanded Abraham to go.(Ge 12:7) God’s promise to Abraham was too good to believe. This was because at that time Abraham had no child to inherit from him and no land to inhabit. By faith Abraham obeyed and left for the Promised Land. Not only did God promise children and land, but also God previewed what would happen to Abraham’s descendants after 430 years later. When Abraham believed God’s promise, God established his covenant with Abraham through circumcision. (Ge 17:7)

According to His divine sovereign power and will, God sent Jacob’s family to Egypt to make them into a great nation as he had promised Abraham. Through God’s favor on Jacob’s son Joseph, who became the prime minister of King Pharaoh in Egypt, Jacob’s family survived a severe famine and became prosperous and numerous in Egypt. In God’s appointed time, God raised Moses to deliver the Israelites, the descendants of Abraham, from the hand of Pharaoh and brought them into the Promised Land. It took more than 430 years for God to keep his promise with Abraham. But, our God was so faithful to keep his promise with his servants and so mindful to provide the Promised Land for his people. These days there are still unceasing conflicts and wars between Israel and the Arabs in the Middle East. Israel believes that the land of Canaan is God’s Promised Land for Abraham, their ancestor, while the Arabs believe that their ancestors already occupied the land even before Abraham moved there. According to Stephen’s testimony, the land of Canaan was the holy land, the Promised Land, which God had promised to give to Abraham.

Second, Stephen’s defense on the law. Israelites had lived as slaves in Egypt for over 400 years. They were lawless people. But God called Moses to Mt. Sinai and gave him the Ten Commandments. These Ten Commandments taught the Israelites how to live as people of God. They should worship God only, not having any idols for themselves. They should not misuse the name of the Lord and they should remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. (Ex 20:1-11) God also taught the Israelites how to love others just as themselves as people of God. God’s purpose of imparting the law was not only to allow them to enjoy milk and honey in the promised land by themselves, but also to make them a kingdom of priests and a holy nation, a shepherd nation for the whole world. (Ex 19:5,6)

What was the response of the Israelites toward God and Moses? Look at verse 39. “But our fathers refused to obey him. Instead, they rejected him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt.” The Israelites rebelled against God. While Moses went up to the mountain to receive God’s law, they made an idol in the form of a calf. They brought sacrifices to it and held a celebration in honor of what their hands had made.(41) Their rebellion and idol worship provoked God to anger. God turned away from them and gave them over to the worship of the heavenly bodies, and he finally sent them into exile to Babylon as the prophet Amos had prophesied. (42-44; Amos 5:25-27) Idol worship is a sin against God’s law. Idol worship is an act of infidelity just like a woman who abandons her husband to follow her lover. Idol worship is an act of rebellion just like children who disobey their parents to follow their own way. When you love someone or something more than God, you are worshiping idols. The Israelites violated the Ten Commandments by worshiping idols. Stephen pointed out the sin of their forefathers so that the religious leaders might have repented of their rebellion against the Holy Spirit (51).

Third, defense on the holy temple. While the Israelites stayed in the desert, God directed Moses to make the tabernacle of the Testimony. In Exodus 25:8,9, God said to Moses, “Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them. Make this tabernacle and all its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you.” The Tabernacle, which means ‘tent’, was God’s dwelling place and the preview for the temple which contained the ark of the covenant. This tabernacle was the symbol of God’s presence among his people the Israelites. So Joshua brought the tabernacle into the Promised Land during the Conquest War. (45, Jos 3:14) The tabernacle was the portable tent for the holy God. King David, who lived in a luxurious palace, felt sorry that the Holy God dwelt in a portable tent.(2 Sa 7:2) So David wanted to build a temple for God’s permanent dwelling place. But God did not allow David to build the temple for him, but rather his son Solomon, because David was a man of war who had shed blood. (47; 2 Chr 28:3)

The first temple was built by Solomon in BC 957 and completely destroyed by Babylonia in BC 586. The second temple was built under Zerubbabel in BC 515 after the exile from Babylonia, but it was also destroyed by Alexander the Great in BC 332. The third temple which had been rededicated by Judas Maccabaeus was renovated by King Herod in BC 20. The temple was the pride of the Israelites and glory of God’s presence among them. However, each of God’s holy temples had been defiled, ruined, and destroyed by these foreigners. Whenever the temple was destroyed, the Israelites cried out as if their God had abandoned them.

However, what did Stephen say about the temple? Look at verses 48-50. “However, the Most High God does not live in houses made by men. As the prophet says: “Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. ‘What kind of house will you build for me?’ says the Lord. ‘Or where will my resting place be? Has not my hand made all these things?’” Stephen quoted Isaiah 66:1,2 in order to explain the true temple of God. Our God is the Almighty Creator God. He cannot be confined to a certain place. He is omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient. Heaven is God’s throne and the earth is his footstool. God dwells wherever he desires. In fact, where two or three gather in God’s name, God is there with them. Jesus said this in Matthew 18:20, “For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.” While the Israelites were suffering in Egypt under King Pharaoh, God was with them. When they crossed the Red Sea as on dry land, God was with them. When they were in the desert for forty years, God was with them. While they fought against their enemies to conquer the Promised Land, God was also with them. Our God does not stay in a certain place. He dwells wherever he desires. Now God dwells in us through his Son Jesus Christ. We can meet God and come to God through Jesus Christ. Jesus became our temple, and he himself is our High Priest.

Third, Jesus Christ in Stephen’s testimony. Jesus Christ is the focal point of God’s redemptive history. Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise and Moses’ law. He is the true temple where we worship the Living God. Without Jesus, the Scriptures have no meaning. As Abraham gained the Promised Land through his faith in God’s promise, we also enter the Kingdom of God through our faith in Jesus Christ. Humanly speaking, the life of Abraham was not perfect. But he was credited as a righteous man through his faith (Ge 15:6). In the same way, we are sinners and objects of God’s wrath. But we become righteous and are justified through faith in Jesus Christ who died for our sins. Through faith in him we are justified, and through faith in him we enter the Kingdom of God, our Promised Land. Praise Jesus who opened the way to God through his death and resurrection. Amen.

As God gave the law to his people through Moses, God gave us the gospel through Jesus Christ. Jesus is God himself. He is the Word. John 1:1-3, 14 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made…the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (Jn 1:14) John continues. “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” (Jn 1:17) While Jesus lived on this earth, he taught about the Kingdom of God, how to love God, and how to love our neighbors as ourselves. Jesus is the fulfillment of the law, whose spirit is love.

One day Jesus cleared the temple by driving out all the animals and the merchants who were making money in the temple with the help of the corrupted religious leaders. Jesus answered when he was asked by what authority he was doing so, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” (Jn 2:19) The Jews replied, “It has taken forty six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” But the temple he had spoken of was his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said.(Jn 2:20-22) Here, Jesus compared himself to the temple. The temple is God’s dwelling place where we meet Him. We cannot meet God because our God is holy and we are sinful. But when Jesus died on the cross, the temple curtain which separated us from God was torn in two (Lk 23:45). This meant that we sinners could come to God because Jesus removed the barrier between God and us (Heb 10:19,20) Jesus himself shed his own blood to reconcile between God and sinners. (Heb 9:12) Jesus himself became the High Priest and the Holy Temple.

St. Stephen did not mention the name of Jesus directly in his testimony, but revealed the truth that Jesus is the promised descendant of Abraham (5), the Promised Messiah (37), and the Righteous One. (52) His testimony covers from the Book of Genesis to the prophecies of Isaiah and Amos. It teaches us God’s history with his people Israel. In his testimony, Stephen revealed God’s faithfulness and unceasing love for his people Israel. We also must find Jesus Christ in our life-testimony. Those who have an understanding of God’s history appreciate God’s love and grow as history makers for world salvation.

Fourth, Stephen’s reproach and his glorious death (51-8:1a) Stephen suddenly finished his testimony and rebuked the religious leaders. “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 the law that was put into effect through angels but have not obeyed it.” (51-53) The words, “You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts” were God’s own expression toward the rebellious and idol worshiping Israelites. (Ex 33:5, Deut 9:13, Lev 26:41, Deut 10:16, Jer 4:4; 9:26) The ancestors of these Israelites killed many prophets and servants of God. Here, Stephen equated the religious leaders to their ancestors who had persecuted and killed the prophets. What was their response to Stephen’s indictment?

Look at verse 54. “When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him.” The content and tone of Stephen’s address infuriated the council. 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.” (55,56) Stephen was on trial under threat of death. But he was full of the Holy Spirit. He did not look at his accusers, but to heaven, and saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God. Stephen’s vision reminds us of Jesus’ word before the Sanhedrin. Jesus said, “I am.. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Mk 14:62)

Look at verses 57,58. “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.” In the past, the council merely threatened the apostles not to preach and released them. (4:17,21). Then they flogged the apostles and ordered them not to preach. (5:40) Now, they killed Stephen by stoning to death. As their sin grew, their response to the Apostles testimony became more evil. How did Stephen respond to their stoning? Look at verses 59,60. “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.” At the last moment of his life, Stephen prayed to God. “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” His prayer reminds us of Jesus’ prayer on the cross. “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” (Lk 23:46) Stephen also prayed to God for the forgiveness of the sins of his enemies saying, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” His prayer for the forgiveness of their sin also followed Jesus’ prayer on the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Lk 23:34) Stephen was not Jesus. He was but one of the seven deacons in the Jerusalem Church. How was he able to love like Jesus? He was able to forgive like this because he had Jesus in his heart. He could love so because he loved Jesus more than himself. He was not afraid of death because he had the hope of eternal life in the Kingdom of heaven. He was not afraid of losing his life on this earth. He was filled with the love of Christ. In Romans 8:35-39, the Apostle Paul says, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? …For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor death, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Ironically, the young man who took the witnesses’ clothes and gave approval to Stephen’s death was Saul, who later became St. Paul. Stephen’s death must have greatly challenged Saul’s life. Later, Paul confessed that he was a murderer because of his approval of Stephen’s death. Paul knew that he was saved only by the grace of God and the love of Christ. He confessed to the saints in the Philippian Church, saying, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” (Php 1:21)

Stephen’s death not only had a great impact on Paul’s personal life, but also on the ministry of all the believers in the Jerusalem church. From a church history viewpoint, Stephen’s martyrdom was the culmination of the ministry in Jerusalem. It also triggered an expansion of the ministry of God’s word to all Judea and Samaria. (Ac 1:8, 8:1b) Stephen is the first Christian martyr. Since his glorious martyrdom, many Christians have been willing to die for Jesus’ name sake. St. Stephen’s martyrdom spirit and his faith in Jesus Christ are good examples for all those who want to follow Jesus Christ. Jesus said in Matthew 10:32,33. “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.” May God help us to have Stephen’s martyrdom spirit and faith so that we may be fearless and diligent witnesses of our Lord Jesus Christ in this sinful and adulterous generation. Amen.

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