12/03/08

The Acts of the Apostles-Week 13

Chapter 7

Verses 54-60

The Stoning of Stephen

1.     …the Sanhedrin…v 54…”they were furious…” meaning they were “cut to the heart” in anger

2.     …Stephen…vv 55a…”full of the Holy Spirit…” this is not the first time that Luke used this to describe Stephen so he is saying that these events were not of or for the moment. Stephen was filled of the Holy Spirit continuously.

3.     …what Stephen saw…v 55b-56…”Look”…believing that what he saw others could see as well so Stephen directed those there to look and see as he did. “I see heaven open…Son of Man…” Here he is saying that God is revealing Himself by allowing heaven to be opened. Stephen also uses the self description that Jesus used so often to refer to Himself. This relates both to the humanity of Jesus and to His divinity as well as His position at the right hand of God the Father. FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Stephen proclaimed that He saw Jesus and we do not question that he did. How would we or have we reacted to someone that has claimed to have seen or is seeing Jesus? How would be accept or reject someone that said that Christ spoke to them? How quickly do we accept or reject when someone tells us that God has healed them of something? Or, do these things still happen or does God not work today as He did in Bible days? Malachi 3:6 may answer that.  

4.     …vv 57-58a…”they covered their ears…yelling at the top of their voices…” the crowd was trying to drown out what Stephen was saying so they could not hear it including those that were close by and listening as well. NOTE: Does this still happen in the world and in the church?  “...they all rushed him, dragged him out…and began to stone him…” giving Stephen no chance to atone for the things that he had said prior to his death which was the custom of the Jews.

5.     …v 58b…Luke places this in the text as more of a “oh, by the way”, that there was a young man named Saul that was present and was holding the coats of those that were stoning Stephen. Notice that this places Saul there but does not say that he participated in the actual stoning. That fact would have been very difficult for Saul/Paul to have overcome later when witnessing to the Greeks as Stephen was a Greek.

6.     …vv 59-60…Even in the midst of the horror and the pain, Stephen remains faithful and prays “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” and adds “Lord, do not hold this sin against them”. Luke then says…”he fell asleep”. In saying it this way, Luke is telling us that Stephen died in peace and strength in his faith and in the Lord. See Luke 23:32 and 46. Luke being the author of both books it is easy to see the similarities in text and perhaps some of the meaning. As much as Jesus was a sacrifice for all of mankind, Stephen was a sacrifice for the church. Were it not for the sacrifice of Jesus we could have no salvation. Were it not for the sacrifice of those like Stephen (Stephen being the first recorded martyr), there would be no church. This is the legacy that we have been given. We, at least in this country, are seldom called upon to die for the church yet often we grumble deeply when we have to do extra or go out of our way for the church. But something we must remember: it is not the church, nor is it our church…it is His church. What little extra we may have to give to further the work is little compared to what our Lord gave or those like Stephen.