Stephen’s Speech
7:1 And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2 And Stephen said:
“Brothers and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran, 3 and said to him, ‘Go out from your land and from your kindred and go into the land that I will show you.’ 4 Then he went out from the land of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran. And after his father died, God removed him from there into this land in which you are now living. 5 Yet he gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot’s length, but promised to give it to him as a possession and to his offspring after him, though he had no child. 6 And God spoke to this effect—that his offspring would be sojourners in a land belonging to others, who would enslave them and afflict them four hundred years. 7 ‘But I will judge the nation that they serve,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and worship me in this place.’ 8 And he gave him the covenant of circumcision. And so Abraham became the father of Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs.
9 “And the patriarchs, jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt; but God was with him 10 and rescued him out of all his afflictions and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his household. 11 Now there came a famine throughout all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction, and our fathers could find no food. 12 But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent out our fathers on their first visit. 13 And on the second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family became known to Pharaoh. 14 And Joseph sent and summoned Jacob his father and all his kindred, seventy-five persons in all. 15 And Jacob went down into Egypt, and he died, he and our fathers, 16 and they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of silver from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.
17 “But as the time of the promise drew near, which God had granted to Abraham, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt 18 until there arose over Egypt another king who did not know Joseph. 19 He dealt shrewdly with our race and forced our fathers to expose their infants, so that they would not be kept alive. 20 At this time Moses was born; and he was beautiful in God’s sight. And he was brought up for three months in his father’s house, 21 and when he was exposed, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. 22 And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was mighty in his words and deeds.
23 “When he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brothers, the children of Israel. 24 And seeing one of them being wronged, he defended the oppressed man and avenged him by striking down the Egyptian. 25 He supposed that his brothers would understand that God was giving them salvation by his hand, but they did not understand. 26 And on the following day he appeared to them as they were quarreling and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers. Why do you wrong each other?’ 27 But the man who was wronging his neighbor thrust him aside, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? 28 Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’ 29 At this retort Moses fled and became an exile in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons.
30 “Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and as he drew near to look, there came the voice of the Lord: 32 ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and did not dare to look. 33 Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.’
35 “This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. 37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’ 38 This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. He received living oracles to give to us. 39 Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, and in their hearts they turned to Egypt, 40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who led us out from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ 41 And they made a calf in those days, and offered a sacrifice to the idol and were rejoicing in the works of their hands. 42 But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets:
“‘Did you bring to me slain beasts and sacrifices,
during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
43 You took up the tent of Moloch
and the star of your god Rephan,
the images that you made to worship;
and I will send you into exile beyond Babylon.’
44 “Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness, just as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it, according to the pattern that he had seen. 45 Our fathers in turn brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our fathers. So it was until the days of David, 46 who found favor in the sight of God and asked to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. 47 But it was Solomon who built a house for him. 48 Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands, as the prophet says,
49 “‘Heaven is my throne,
and the earth is my footstool.
What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord,
or what is the place of my rest?
50 Did not my hand make all these things?’
51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. 52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, 53 you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it.”
The Stoning of Stephen
54 Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. 55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. 58 Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep. (ESV)
51 “You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit!
Stephen did not use the traditional stories about Jesus when outlining the Gospel to these men. Instead, He used an approach that he knew they would listen to, and he tied it in with showing them their need to repent and place their trust in Christ. We can learn a lot from this example. Every person that we come into contact with has a different point of view, so we cannot merely have a memorized speech that we repeat every time we witness to someone. We need to find out where the person is at, and then use that to bring them the Gospel. If Stephen had used the “you killed Jesus” speech to start with, his case would have failed long ago. But instead, he caught their attention as he unfolded the story of their forefather’s stubbornness, and then showed them how they were no different and needed to change. By doing this, we will start to see more fruit in our evangelism, as it allows people to get more plugged in to what you are saying.
Great comment Mike! That was really helpful to me, thank you :)
5He gave him no inheritance here, not even a foot of ground. But God promised him that he and his descendants after him would possess the land, even though at that time Abraham had no child.
We have nothing to give God as sinnners. Just like Abraham, we have nothing that can help God; but when God calls Abraham and Abraham responds in faith, God changes all of that. Just like Abraham, when we respond to God’s call to salvation with repentance and faith, we are given the blessings of God that would seem impossible to others. We are transformed from a sinner without the hope of eternal life into a sinner that desires the things of God, and has Jesus’ righteous life that counts as his own. God wipes our sin away and we wants to use us. All we have to do is respend obediently in faith and God will be faithful to finish the good work He started in us.
The last part of this passage really stuck out to me. We need to put our full complete trust in Christ and not doubt his plans for us.
55But 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.
That is so cool. I had to re read the passage just to get a better understanding of what Stephen had to go through. First they arrest him and put him on trial, than they convict him of nothing, and then throw rocks at him till he dies. But, he sees heaven before he dies. He SAW heaven! How cool is that? Only two people were taken to heaven, but Stephen SAW it before he went there. That would be very cool and i wish that God would let us see heaven.
54When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him.
55But 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.
56″Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
Stephen had been preaching to the high priests about Moses and how God saved the Israelites. He also talked about how the High priests and many others had killed Jesus Christ whom God sent from Heaven. Jesus was God’s one and only Son. He came down here to be crucified for the sin of the world. The priests did not like this and they took Stephen and stoned him. I bet when Stephen was being stoned he was thinking that he would get to see his heavenly Father in just a few moments.
MARANATHA!!!!!
55 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.
56 “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
This is the only place in the Bible, that we see Jesus STANDING at the right hand of God, everywhere else, he is always sitting at the right hand of God. Many dispensational pastors say that He was standing because he was ready to pour out His wrath on the earth, but instead decides to pour out this dispensation of grace which we are now living in. This is the “mystery” of grace that Paul talks about! The reason it is called the mystery is because it was never prophesied about in the OT. It was kept hidden until it was revealed to Paul! This totally relates to the sermon this last weekend! Right now, God has poured out His grace. But this grace, is only for a limited time! So we need to take advantage of the time we have, and let people know that the wrath of God is coming soon and they need to repent and turn to Christ! So let’s be sure to take the message to the streets, double it up, and always be prayin Maranatha!!!
40They told Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who led us out of Egypt—we don’t know what has happened to him!
It is so sad how they did not trust God even though he brought them out of slavery. This verse helped me because I go through my days sometimes not trusting God in my school work because I have so much to do and I get so fustrated. So that is a verse that really stood out to me one and i will think about this verse daily this week.
53you who have received the law that was put into effect through angels but have not obeyed it.”
The Israelites had recieved the divine law through Moses and the Prophets and knew it well. However, they repeatedly missed the point of applying it to their lives. Their study of the scripture led to head knowledge, pride and self righteousness. Worst of all they missed God’s will for their lives. Christians today have the benefit of the Scripture as revealed by both the Old and New Testaments. Let’s not make the same mistake.
55 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.
56 “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
What an amazing sight to see this would be!! I bet Stephen didnt even know what was coming to him, but he got to die, right after seeing Jesus standing right next to God. I would feel honored in a way to have that.
60Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
This verse puts me in awe.. Stephen acts very christ-like in this as they are stoning him… It is soo incredible to see this slave of Jesus Christ being stoned to death for spreading the gospel, and throughout all the pain and agony he still asks that God has mercy on these people! What an amazing capacity of love and compassion that must take!! We need to show God’s love to those we evangelize to.. not just evangelizing because it’s a command, but also evangelizing out of our love for these people!! :D great comment Mike, very encouraging indeed!!
51″You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit!
Yeah, I agree with Mike that we need to catch peoples attention when we evangelize, but still bodly proclaim the Gospel. In the Old Testment, that the Israelites would not obey God, and then God would punish Israel for it’s sin, and then Israel would get delivered into the enemy’s hand like the Philistines and then Israel would cry to God for help and God would save them. I hope that some of us and there are probably some at True North are like this, we hear Bobby’s sermon and then we don’t apply it to our lives or read the Bible and do not apply it.
after relating the gospel in a way that the priests would understand, Stephen is sent to be stoned, in the name of Lord Jesus Christ. again the followers of Christ are persecuted. this brings up the point that Jesus made, the cost of being his disciple. in Luke 14:24-26, Jesus explains to the crowd that they must hate everything compared to loving Christ and following him. unfortunately, many people left. sometimes this happens with “Christians” today. they are all about Jesus in church, but when school comes around they are ashamed. if we really are Christians, we should be ready to give up ANYTHING for him and to obey ALL of his commands. Stephen was boldly evangelizing and got stoned. we wont have anything close to this happen in America (yet); the worst is we will lost friends or get cussed out. the disciples in Acts did not care, they feared the Lord, and it is Him we should fear, not men.
60Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
this verse was my favorite in the whole chapter. while being stoned, Stephen CRIES out to the Lord and asks that the people that are stoning them are forgiven. this is absolutely amazing! imagine if someone was chuckin stones at you, and you were asking God to forgive them! that is such love and compassion that it must be from Christ. the love of Christ should compel us to forgive anyone who does something wrong against us, over and over and over again. in Matthew 18:21-23 Jesus tells us that forgiving is what we need to do. sometimes witnessing to non-Christians doesnt involve us confronting them (though we boldly should) but it comes from us doing things for us that no one else would do, except through the love that Christ gave us. this is the sacrificial love that the Bible talks about. we need to have the boldness that Stephen does to evangelize to those who are not saved, and to forgive those who sin against him, not matter the magnitude of it
correction in last sentance:
I meant to say I hope that we are not like this but there are probably some at True North like this, that hear Bobby’s sermon and then we don’t apply it to our lives or read the Bible and do not apply it.
Wow what an example is Stephen in boldness!! He, at the end, told them how it was and compared them to their stubborn, closed hearted, unlistening forefathers! They knew what he was talking about to. Instead they chose to not listen to him though, and killed him. At the end of the passage, Stephen is also a great example in following Christ by asking God not to hold the sin of killing him against them. How forgiving of a heart he had at that time and knew that it was God’s will to die and was glad to die for Christ’s name. How awesome is that!
35″This is the same Moses whom they had rejected with the words, ‘Who made you ruler and judge?’ He was sent to be their ruler and deliverer by God himself, through the angel who appeared to him in the bush.
I just wanted to point out the ownage here. Wow it’s the exact same person that they mock that comes back and rescues them and is their leader. I never really noticed that until now. hmm that’s something.
53you who have received the law that was put into effect through angels but have not obeyed it.”
54When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him.
And then I was shocked when I read this verse where they “gnashed their teeth at him” seriously, they must have been pretty angry at Stephen if they did that! And for what reason? For telling the Truth? They were very confused people. I also want to agree with Sarah. Even after enduring stones being thrown at him he still asks God to have mercy on them! How selfless he must have been! I’m in total shock and I pray that I may be as selfless as him. :D
55But 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.
56″Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
57At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him,
58dragged 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.
59While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
60Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
This verse makes me think a little bit. It makes me think if we as Christians are willing to speak in a city like this the word of God even if they have talked about stoning people or throwing them in jail or something. It makes me think, am I ready for that? Can I do what Stephen did, just so the people could here the word of God? That’s a good question I think all Christians should ask themselves. Would anyone be willing to admit that they are a Christian and believe the gospel if someone was pointing a gun at them? That is pretty intense. Then it gets even better when Stephen is getting stoned and he still asks God to not hold these sins against them. That reminds me of when Jesus said that when he was already crucified onto the cross. I am still going to keep asking myself this throughout my life if I am ready for this kind of punishment or persecution.
55But 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.
What struck me was that Stephen had his eyes on Christ during his greatest trial…he literally had his eyes on Christ, as God allowed him to see into heaven. What a privilege! When we are in trials we are called to respond the same way as Stephen and Jesus did. We can when he have our eyes on Christ. God might not open heaven and allow us to see Him in a literal sense, but He has given us the Scriptures and the Holy Spirit to show us who He is. The only way we can respond like Stephen did in a trial is to keep our eyes on the prize…think of Hebrews 6:13a “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” Our hope in Christ is what gets us through tough times.
I totally agree with Mike. If I spoke for how ever much amount of time on the past of God’s people, the Israelites to some of my friends who have never read the Bible. They would be completely lost, they would see no relevance of it to their lives. Stephen spoke to the priest of the church and the Jews listening, telling them why they needed to repent in a way that connected to them. Everyone is different and we won’t 100 percent connect to every one that we evangelize to, but we have to trust that the Holy Spirit will be working inside those who have been predestined by God and who’s names are to be written in the Book of Life.
I love how Stephen related to the high-priests on their level by speaking about the history of Israel and the example of Moses. Unfortunately these men were too prideful and self-righteous to realize what Stephen was trying to tell them. In the end he epitomized the love of Christ by losing his life to try to save theirs. In addition, he prayed for their forgiveness as he was being stoned! What an example Stephen was to us with his boldness and his Christ-like love.
56″Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
57At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him,
I find it interesting how the high-priests covered their ears and yelled as Stephen was receiving a vision from God. These men were not “for God” which meant that they were “against God” which would explain their intolerance for the presence of the holy spirit.
There is a similar spiritual-battle that goes on today. Have you ever noticed when engaged in discussions with non-believers one can freely discuss the religions of Buddah, Hinduism, Muslim, Judaism, Scientology, Mormonism, etc. without reproach. But the minute the name of Jesus Christ is mentioned-their ‘hackles’ go up, they get defensive and angry? That is because we are dealing with the One True God of the Universe. The mere mention of His name instigates a reaction from people. It is simple: Good and Evil cannot co-exist which is the plain reason that we need a savior in order to be presentable to GOD.
Let’s be like Stephen; showing Christ-like love and boldly evangelizing to the lost. Loosely translated-”Let’s Double It Up!!!”
59While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
60Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
This also stood out to me. Stephen is one of my favorite heroes from the Bible. I love that he gives this huge summary of Genesis and doesn’t hesitate to tell all of the people the Truth even when he is faced with his own death. And as he is dying, he prays for his murderers. Wow.
Jacob nice comment, that was very insightful.
59.) While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
60.) 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.
Wow, just like Melissa said, it is so cool to see how Stephen handled the situation he was put in; he basically outlined Genesis for them and told them how there forefathers had messed up. Then, as he is being stoned, Stephen asks the Lord to forgive the people murdering him! Stephen is such a great example of someone who is very bold and well-grounded in the faith.
Wow what an intense ending to Stephens ministry! I was reading through Jesus Freaks (the book written by DC Talk) and it talkes about how he was the first martyr for Christ. The entire time he was being stoned to death he was preaching the Truth to his murderers, including Paul the apostle before he was saved. He had so much knowledge of the old testament and from that he defended his faith by speaking their “language” and summerizing Genesis for them while he was filled with the Holy Spirit. Through his pain and suffering he was relentless and kept preaching to them, we who live in the beautiful and relevantly safe southern orange county have no excuse to not be preaching because even though Stephen was dying, he still was preaching. How easy for us to share the gospel while we are in this safe enviornment where few physical persecution occurs!
Last weeks message really helped me to go out and just evangilize, because judgement day is coming. i cant wait for that day but jesus has had patience for us and we should have patience so that we can bring more people in gods word and live for him.
60Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
What Steven went through just shows me that I need to be bold and have faith in God. So we as believers need to tell others about what Christ did for us. lets double it up!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY HUNTER
59While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
I am encouraged by Stephen’s faith. While he was being stoned to death, the only thought occupying his mind was that he would soon be in heaven. Just before his death, he asks for his murderer’s forgiveness. Only a life truly characterized by a constant desire to live for God’s glory would produce such faithful thoughts at the end of one’s life.
51″You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit!
woa very intense no holding bak,strait ot the point.This tells you pple dont change and its sad.I think we should all change and put our complete trust in God
53you who have received the law that was put into effect through angels but have not obeyed it.”
54When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him.
It’s really sad how people seem to associate turn or burn sermons like Bobby talked about this weekend with being harsh, intense, and judgmental. Really though, telling people these things about their future state is the most loving thing we can do. Here Stephen shows how the Jews, like their fathers, had received God’s Word but didn’t obey it, which was a simple and truthful statement. Yet when he shows them their error, they explode and stone him. Its sad that sin is so entangling, as it hardens peoples hearts into not wanting to let go, when really sin is not fulfilling and will just lead them to judgment. Its sad how people get so upset when other people lovingly try to save their lives from Hell. All we can do is keep at it, even if people don’t want to listen, because if we keep silent, they will eventually meet Judgment and wished they had repented, but it will be too late then.
Yes, this was a very awesome chapter I thought! Stephen, the first Matyr of Christ representin’ you go man you go! I look forward to seeing his position in Heaven!
What happened to Stephen encourages me so much, I know that sounds funny but it is so true! What an example Stephen set for all of us, he is a man of true Faith and not for his own reputation but for Christ’s! I look forward to what persecution comes my way, I hope it is something like this!
But one thing we must know is that Stephen died for telling the truth. I know it is awesome to be persecuted but sometimes people just wanna be persecuted so they can say they are persecuted. So the might for example just tell everyone they are goin to hell, ya that will get them persection but that doesn’t mean what they did was right.
We need to do what is right, and what God tells us to do! When we do this we will be persectuted for the right reasons! And for God’s glory, so lets do it right, fearlessly as we should!
56″Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
How Stephen responds to this trial is pretty amazing, but he got to see the reward as he was going through the trial. Trouble in this world pales when we think about heaven and being with Jesus in his glory.
Verses 57-60 really caught my attention. I meen Stephen is being a true disciple of God, even when being persucted and stoned he forgives the people. To pray and ask God to forgive the people for stoning him is something to set a example to, being able to forgive when the people dont deserve it.
60Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
Talk about loving your enimies. that is one of the most controversial things that Jesus taught during those times. If you want to do something that really makes you stand out as a christian, you should love your enimies. when you think about it, even sinners will love those who give back to them. I think that when someone is bothering you, it is the time that your christian character really shows, not based on how you normally treat others. it is very difficult for me to love my enemies. I won’t do anything toward them and will try to act kindly to them, but I find myself having difficulty not talking about how annoying they are with my friends. I think that loving our enimies is an essential part of living a christian life but not many people are good at it. this is another subject that I believe most christians need to work on.
60 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.
Wow!! This whole chapter is so amazing! I love reading this part about Stephen. What a courageous attitude. He is being stoned to death and still takes the time to pray for the people stoning him. This is how we need to be toward our enemies, which is hard sometimes, but what God expects from us :)
How’s the botox feel Mr. Burke?
Stephen is such an incredible example of someone who not only had the courage to be bold in the the face of deadly opposition, but he also had a thorough understanding of Scripture. We are often afraid of sharing Christ with our friends because we do not know what to say and do not know how they will respond. Like Stephen, we should be not only bold, but also prepared to give a response/challenge straight from the Word of God.
51″You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit!
Wow. The priests must’ve felt insulted if the person the were about to kill knew just as much of the Bible as they did and then he calls them this! Stephen was totally right and it just shows how hardened people’s hearts can be and that we need to pray for them.
49″ ‘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?
50 Has not my hand made all these things?’
these verses just put God into better perspective… our view of God should be as high as possible if we truly desire to fear Him. This verse just shows that God cannot and will not be contained by anything earthly because he made all that to begin with. Our view of God should lead us to a genuine fear of his consequences for sin.
1Then the high priest asked him, “Are these charges true?”
2To this he replied: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran
Stephen could have simply answered the high priest with ” No I am not guilty” but being the wise man that he was Stephen saw a chance to share the gospel and he took it. He started out with a story of Abraham the great patriach. As Mike, said Stephen’s audience was very familiar with this story. They all knew it by heart and most of them had made a career out of studying the Law. Thats why the high priest and company got so upset when Stephen accused them of being prophet killers just like their forefathers. They probaly viewed themselves as false prophet killers not prophet of God killers. Stephen was very bold with his faith and his committment to preach the truth no matter what is an example to us all.
55But 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.
How amazing to think that in the hardest time and trial of Stephens life his eyes were focused on Christ. He was bold as he spoke to the High Priest’s and accounted the history of the Isrealites and he did not hold back or hesitate when he spoke the truth because he was full of the Holy Spirit. How awesome to think that we also have the power that Stephen had given to us by the Holy Spirit which allows us to focus completely on Christ and not our circumstances or others around us. Stephen is one of the great men in the scripture who boldly spoke the truth and who’s eyes were fixed on Christ. And then to think that he is rewarded by having his eyes literally opened to see Christ standing ready to welcome him in.
I pray that he of is will fix our eyes on Christ as Stephen did. That we won’t be distracted or fearful in sharing the gospel with friends, family, or the church.
48″However, the Most High does not live in houses made by men. As the prophet says:
49″ ‘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?
50Has not my hand made all these things?’
I like the picture that it portrays here… God is so big that he does not live in earthly houses made by men, but in heaven! He is outside of time and the heavens! The Lord is truly Almighty!
Then in verse 50, it just shows that the Lord created everything with His hands…. mmmm
60Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
this is the epitome of love… while Stephen is being stoned he is crying out to God to have mercy on the people stoning him..so amazing..i want this kind of love in my life
It’s amazing to me how these 60 verses cover so much important biblical history, culminating with the death of the first Christian martyr. Not to give props to Mrs Burke, but her comments were spot on…
Its great to see so many people posting today. Sorry I will not be at small group tomorrow but I will be there in spirit and praying for Gods will and presence to help the Laguna Hills/Mission Viejo and others walk the walk and talk the talk. God Bless
Great to see so many comments today! Let’s keep them coming all week long!
54When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him.
Yikes! What Stephen said made these guys mad. So mad that they killed him. Stephen knew what he was saying would not go over well. What a picture of guys literally gnashing their teeth at him! We need to be bold for the Lord and not be afraid of what man may do to us!
24He saw one of them being mistreated by an Egyptian, so he went to his defense and avenged him by killing the Egyptian.
25Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not.
26The next day Moses came upon two Israelites who were fighting. He tried to reconcile them by saying, ‘Men, you are brothers; why do you want to hurt each other?’
27″But the man who was mistreating the other pushed Moses aside and said, ‘Who made you ruler and judge over us?
28Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’
These verses are a great example of why we should always be thinking whether what we are doing is what jesus would do or not. How we handle things and act has a huge effect on other people. If Moses wouldnt have killed the egytian then the Isrealites might have took him a little more seriously.
51″You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit!
This chapter is awesome! As I was reading I’m thinking, “Where was he going with this Old Testament lesson…” and then I remembered that he nails them right here, where his whole speech climaxes in 51-52, for being just like their ancestors in resisting God. He speaks with such clarity, purpose and boldness. This is an inspiring example to me to not be afraid of people or what might happen to me, but be bold in the Lord, fearing Him.
Stephen is the perfect model of a true Christian. He did not give a strong defense for himself so that no harm would come to him. Instead Stephen selflessly gave an account of Israel’s past with Gods works to give defense to the Christian faith. Only thru the Holy Spirit is this faith possible. Stephen did not fear man or death. Instead Stephen was more concerned with bringing glory to God thru the spreading of the Gospel. Wow this is a real hero to be imitated.
59While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
60Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep
these verses are amazing, that stephen while he was getting stoned and persacuted he prayed for jesus to recieve his spirit and forgive the men that were doing that to him! thats amazing that he would do that while being in such pain….we should not be holding grudges on anyone and be forgiving if some one did something to us
Forgivness! thats what we should be doing, no matter what happens! If Stephen could forgive the men who were paining him, then we can too! it may be hard but we have to learn, if you hold grudges then you are not loving your neighbors! God has shown forgiveness when as it says in John 3:16 he gave jesus to us. He was willing to forgive our sins so much that he even sacrificed his one and only son for us! We must remember this and rejoice, and strive to do our best everyday for this is the life that HE gave us!
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