Community Bible Study -- Acts Text of Presentation, Lesson 6, Acts 6:8-8:3 Click Here to see Lesson 6 Photos . . . Click Here to return to Acts Home Page

Stephen

Last week the Sanhedrin was about to kill the apostles . . . but as the result of an appeal by a Pharisee named Gamaliel, they were only flogged. Last week we were introduced to Stephen, the church’s first “deacon,” described as "a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 6:5) . . . "full of God's grace and power (who) did great wonders and miraculous signs" (Acts 6:8). This week the Sanhedrin vents their blood lust on Stephen.

To put Stephen into context, recall last week's discussion about “Hebraic Jews” and “Hellenized Jews” (aka “Grecian Jews”). “Hebraic Jews” live mostly in Jewish villages in the land now called Israel (or Palestine), where they are in the majority. By contrast, “Hellenized Jews” live in the Greco-Roman cities around the Mediterranean, and are a small minority living and working among Gentiles. Most of them assimilate into Greco-Roman culture to some extent . . . but a few devout Hellenized Jews react against Greco-Roman culture and become extremely zealous for Jewish law. Stephen is one of these.

There are enough Hellenized Jews in Jerusalem to have their own synagogues – probably because devout Hellenized Jews come there to study with the great rabbis . . . like Saul of Tarsus, whom we meet at the end of the lesson, who studied under Gamaliel. The same is true today; a friend of mine sent his daughter to Jerusalem to study to be a rabbi, where she joined many other American Jews doing the same thing.

Stephen is an ardent student of the scriptures. He listened carefully and critically to the preaching of Jesus’ followers: that Jesus is God's promised Messiah – the savior for the Jews prophesied in scripture. Stephen has carefully reviewed scripture with regard to the claims and evidence that Jesus fulfills prophesy of the Messiah; he has utilized his God-given powers of logic and reasoning, and come to believe Jesus is the Messiah. It's important that he reached this conclusion as a devout Jew. To Stephen – as with the apostles – Jesus is the fulfillment of Judaism. So, with the passion for scripture that brought him to Jerusalem in the first place, Stephen preaches to his fellow Jews that Jesus is the Messiah . . . forcefully arguing his points from scripture. But no matter how right the arguments from scripture by Stephen and the apostles may be, they break the Jewish paradigm of the Messiah as a military leader who will overthrow the Romans. Therefore, most Jews refuse to believe.

Stephen's strongest opponents are fellow devout Hellenized Jews from "Cyrene and Alexandria" in Egypt and from "Cilicia and Asia" (Acts 6:9) in Turkey, who attend what is called the "Synagogue of the Freedmen." Perhaps Stephen worships here . . . and Saul of Tarsus also attends and is one of Stephen's opponents (since Tarsus is in Cilicia). Stephen’s opponents are very knowledgeable in scripture . . . but they can “not stand up against his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke" (Acts 6:10). The truth is, since the scriptural evidence that Jesus is the Messiah is so overwhelming, Stephen's opponents are reduced to arguments based on disbelief; but Stephen thinks he can make them believe by overwhelming them with evidence . . . so he keeps at it. But this just makes them mad . . . and it makes them madder that they can’t refute him!

So Stephen’s opponents plot to get rid of him. They recruit false witnesses (Acts 6:11). They plot with prominent members of the Sanhedrin (Acts 6:12). Then they bring Stephen before the Sanhedrin accused of "blasphemy against Moses and against God" (Acts 6:11) . . . "speaking against (the temple) and against the law (of Moses)" saying "Jesus of Nazareth will destroy (the temple) and change the customs Moses handed down" (Acts 6:13-14). The charge of destroying the temple is the same charge false witnesses brought against Jesus in the Sanhedrin some weeks earlier (Matt 26:61, Mark 14:58), and it seems to come up only after Stephen’s opponents have talked with members of the Sanhedrin . . . so the Sanhedrin may be behind all this.

At his hearing before the Sanhedrin, Stephen remains serene and peaceful despite the lies of false witnesses: "his face was like the face of an angel" (Acts 6:15). This no doubt surprises his opponents; Stephen is such an intense personality his opponents probably expect him to make a scene and challenge the false witnesses. But the power of the Holy Spirit gives Stephen what he needs when he needs it, someone who looks like an angel must be treated with respect. So far, Stephen is winning.

Then Stephen is called on to make his defense. Again he ignores the false witnesses, but uses scripture to address the charges against him: "blasphemy" (Acts 6:11) . . . "speaking against (the temple) and against the law (of Moses)" (Acts 6:13-14). He does this with a thumbnail sketch of Jewish history beginning with Abraham, and emphasizing God’s fulfilled promises and prophesy. Since Moses is referred to in the charges against him, Stephen spends a lot of time with this story. He notes how God prophesied Jewish slavery in Egypt and deliverance after 400 years, and that Moses was God’s instrument for deliverance . . . but he constantly had to climb a wall of opposition from his people to save them. "Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them,” Stephen says, “but they did not" (Acts 7:25). Instead, his people "rejected (him) with the words, `Who made you ruler and judge?'"(Acts 7:35). And as far as the law of Moses is concerned, Stephen points out that even after Moses led the people out of slavery in Egypt and God gave the law on Mt. Sinai, "our fathers refused to obey (Moses). Instead, they rejected him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt" (Acts 7:39). And Stephen also reminds his hearers that Moses prophesied about the Messiah – that God would send “a prophet like me” (Acts 7:37) . . . presumably to also be rejected.

Since the temple is another basis for the charges against him, Stephen includes the story of the temple. The Jews believe it contains the “presence of God,” but when Moses led the Jews out of Egyptian slavery, God’s presence dwelt in a “tent of meeting”: the tabernacle. Joshua brought the tabernacle into Israel, and David brought it to Jerusalem, where Solomon built the first temple as a permanent house for God’s presence. There it lasted less than 400 years; although Stephen devotes only one sentence to the Jewish exile in Babylon around 600 BC, his hearers all know the temple was destroyed by the Babylonians, and rebuilt only after the Jews returned from exile about a century later . . . yet God’s presence remained with them even without a temple or a tabernacle. As Stephen says: God “does not live in houses made by men” (Acts 7:48)!

Stephen does not mention that the Babylonian exile was punishment of the Jews by God because they continually ignored the law of Moses and worshiped idols – but his hearers all know this . . . and it ties into the two fundamental points Stephen makes in response to the charges against him:

1.      The Jews consistently rejected Moses – who prophesied about the coming Messiah (Acts 7:37) – and have ignored the law of Moses again and again.

2.      God’s presence does not depend upon the temple. In 2000 years of Jewish history, there has been a temple for less than half that time, yet God’s presence was still with the Jews. God – not man – decides how to manifest His presence.

Then, as Stephen concludes, he morphs from mild-mannered angel to the in-your-face combatant that so infuriates his opponents:

"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 and murdered him—you who have received the law . . . but have not obeyed it" (Acts 7: 51-53).

Not only is the rhetoric harsh, Stephen chooses words that are particularly offensive:

·        He calls his fellow Jews "stiff-necked": the same term used 18 times before the Babylonian exile by Old Testament prophets describing how the Jews were failed to obey the law of Moses.

·        Circumcision is the sign of God’s covenant with the Jews . . . so Stephen’s charge of “uncircumcised hearts and ears” says that his opponents are Jews on the outside – but not on the inside. This echoes Jesus’ charge that the Pharisees followed the letter of the law of Moses, but not the intent of the law.

·        Stephen’s charge that the Jews “always resist the Holy Spirit,” reminds them their forefathers persecuted God’s earlier prophets – who the Jews believe were inspired by the Holy Spirit.

·        And finally, Stephen says the Sanhedrin have now "betrayed and murdered" the Messiah, fulfillment of the law of Moses. This is the quintessential rejection of the law of Moses; his fellow Jews are just like their forefathers!!

It's easy to see why the Sanhedrin is so angry when Stephen finishes! But so far, Stephen hasn’t made any charges the Sanhedrin hasn’t heard before from Peter and the apostles – though perhaps with more inflammatory rhetoric. However, Stephen’s next comment seals his doom. Remember . . . when Jesus was on trial for blasphemy before the Sanhedrin, He said – speaking of Himself:

"In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One" (Matt 26:64).

Now Stephen says:

"Look," he said, "I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God" (Acts 7:56).

Son of Man a name for the Messiah. A few weeks ago Jesus said to the Sanhedrin: "I am the Messiah, and I will be at the right hand of God in heaven." Now Stephen says, "Jesus was the Messiah, and I see Him now at the right hand of God in heaven." 

It’s hard to imagine a more direct slap-in-the-face to the Sanhedrin. After reminding the Sanhedrin their forefathers persecuted and killed 1000 years of Jewish prophets, Stephen says Jesus' words to the Sanhedrin were also prophesy – and they just killed another prophet . . . but this one was the Messiah Himself!

Nevertheless, Stephen now plays right into the hands of the Sanhedrin. Just as Jesus’ words a few weeks ago were considered blasphemy and self-incriminated Him – leading to his crucifixion – Stephen is now likewise self-incriminated for blasphemy. And like a "hear-no-evil" monkey, the Sanhedrin and their supporters cover their ears and shout at the top of their lungs to drown out the “blasphemy.”

What happens next is may be a set-up. The Sanhedrin probably expected inflammatory rhetoric from Stephen, and may have arranged to have a "mob" waiting in the wings; some commentators suggest the “mob” was from the Synagogue of the Freedmen. Nevertheless, upon hearing this self-incriminating “blasphemy” – and probably with a nod from high priest Caiaphas – the mob attacks. Jewish law prohibits killing Stephen in the temple, so they drag him outside . . . and beyond the city wall, where they stone him to death. A Roman garrison is stationed in the northwest corner of the temple, but no one calls soldiers to break up the riot . . . so Stephen is killed – in a way that gives “plausible deniability” to both the Sanhedrin and the Romans. 

As Stephen is dying, he prays to Jesus to receive his spirit . . . and to God to forgive his murderers. Stephen is the first in a long line of Christian "martyrs," who submit to death, rather deny Jesus.

“On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria” (Acts 8:1). Whether or not the Sanhedrin was behind the stoning of Stephen, they are definitely behind this organized persecution of Christians (Acts 9:1-2) . . . which is actually a good thing.  Up until now, the Christians stayed in Jerusalem – as Jesus instructed. But now they’re forced scatter to Judea and Samaria – also as Jesus instructed, but they needed a little push. In this way, the apostles begin phase 2 of Jesus’ instructions in Acts 1:8 about how to spread the gospel throughout the world.

This lesson concludes with the first 3 verses of Acts 8: an introduction to Saul of Tarsus – who we all know later becomes the apostle Paul. Saul was present at the trial of Stephen, giving “approval to (Stephen's) death" (Acts 8:1). He did not throw stones, but supported Stephen's murderers by guarding their coats. Saul then became a leader in the persecution of Christians: going “from house to house” – with the authority of the Sanhedrin – to capture Christians who had not fled, and "put them in prison" (Acts 8:2).

Saul’s involvement against Christians surely did not begin with the stoning of Stephen. As discussed earlier, it’s possible he and Stephen worshiped together and argued at the Synagogue of the Freedmen. Was Saul one of those who complained about Stephen to the Sanhedrin – maybe even the “ringleader”? Possibly . . . but we’ll never know.

Next week we talk about how the gospel is spread to Samaria by the Christians who fled persecution. Samaria is close to Jerusalem geographically, but far, far away religiously.  The Samaritans were half-Jewish, but had a separate religion which was only partially based on Judaism. Jews despised Samaritans, but since the Samaritans believed in the Jewish Messiah, they were receptive to the "good news" of Jesus. Remember . . . John’s gospel records that the Samaritans of Sychar became some of the first believers in Jesus when He told the "woman at the well" he was the Messiah (John 4:39-42).