Introducing Wolves
Acts 8:9-24
July 1, 2012

Well, tonight we find Satan at it again.
We know that the greater progress a church makes,
The greater resistance they can expect from the enemy.

2 Timothy 3:12 “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”

And so it is no surprise that this early church is under extreme attack.
They were already plagued threats from the Sanhedrin,
But once Stephen was stoned those threats reached a whole new level.

Under Satan’s newest general (Saul)
The church started enduring physical persecution.

Many were forced to flee.
As we saw last week, all that did was
Open the door for the new missionary movement.

As Philip fled into Samaria he started preaching in Samaria and began to see
Captives delivered and eventually even the salvation of the lost.

So God is definitely winning the battle, but it is still a battle.
It is not as though Satan has quit.

Well tonight we are introduced to another attack.
While Satan is using Saul to attack the church from the outside, Satan is about to recruit a new general to attack from within.

This new general is a man named SIMON.
Also called Simon the Magician or even Simon Magnus

Without a doubt Saul was a Lion.
1 Peter 5:8 “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

Saul is a lion, roaming to and fro seeking to kill and destroy.
He is public, he is furious, he is deadly, and he is destructive.
Saul is a lion.

Simon on the other hand is a wolf.
Matthew 7:15-20 “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. “You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? “So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. “A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. “So then, you will know them by their fruits.”

While the lion makes no bones about who he is,
But simply tries to destroy, the wolf is much more seductive.

Jesus portrayed the wolf as one who will dress like the sheep
In order to get in close and destroy from the inside.
Saul was a lion
Simon is a wolf

Both are extremely dangerous.

When Paul said good-bye to the Ephesian elders for the last time he said:
Acts 20:28-31 “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. “I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them. “Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish each one with tears.”

Paul wrote there to shepherds rightly telling them to watch out for wolves.
• He called the “savage wolves”
• That would “come in among you”
• They would not spare “the flock”

Now a literal wolf sneaks in and eats the sheep.
A spiritual wolf sneaks in and deceives them.

“from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.”

And so we learn that wolves are especially dangerous.

Wolves deceive the sheep, they call the sheep to themselves,
And just when the sheep (or the shepherd) drops his guard,
The wolf carries the sheep away in destruction.

Tonight we deal with a wolf.

Peter wrote about them as well.
2 Peter 2:1-3 “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”

He would go on to say:
2 Peter 2:17-22 “These are springs without water and mists driven by a storm, for whom the black darkness has been reserved. For speaking out arrogant words of vanity they entice by fleshly desires, by sensuality, those who barely escape from the ones who live in error, promising them freedom while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved. For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would be better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn away from the holy commandment handed on to them. It has happened to them according to the true proverb, ” A DOG RETURNS TO ITS OWN VOMIT,” and, “A sow, after washing, returns to wallowing in the mire.”

Jude also wrote about these men.
Jude 3-4 “Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”

He would go on to say:
Jude 11-13 “Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah. These are the men who are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever.”

And so while Saul looks like the real enemy, don’t underestimate Simon.
Fortunately Peter did not.
Peter spots the wolf.

But just to show you how deceptive they are,
Peter spotted him, Philip did not.
This requires a definite alertness.

So tonight let’s take a look at a genuine wolf.

May remember that several years ago we actually studied this text
As a response to the “Culturally Relevant, Seeker Sensitive” movement
That is so popular.

That movement that places relevance with the culture above accuracy
And desires to please sinners more than it desires to please God.

Seeks to be “hip” and “cutting edge” and “trendy”.

But we talked about Simon as one of the fathers
Of the modern-day seeker sensitive movement.

HAVING STUDIED AGAIN, I AM STILL CONVINCED.

LET’S LOOK AT A WOLF

There are five things I want you to see about Simon tonight.
#1 HIS SPIRITUAL CLAIM
Acts 8:9-10
This story is in fact about Simon.
This is not a story about missions in Samaria,
It really isn’t even a story about how the Samaritans
Received the Holy Spirit, although we do learn that.

This is about Simon, who he was, what he did,
And why Peter was so harsh on him.

We also learn a little about Simon’s past.
“Now there was a man named Simon, who formerly was practicing magic in the city and astonishing the people of Samaria…”

Simon was a magician.
• He could have simply been skilled in science and math
• He could have simply been deceptive in appearance
• He could have actually been affected by demonic power

Magic is a broad term, and we really don’t know exactly what Simon was doing.
But we do know Simon’s claim.

He was “claiming to be someone great;”

In other words he pulled his rabbits out of his hat
And used those smoke and mirror effects
To claim greatness among the people.

If we move in to verse 10
We find out exactly what he claimed about himself.

“and they all, from smallest to greatest, were giving attention to him, saying, “This man is what is called the Great Power of God.”

He claimed to be “the Great Power of God”

And this is important.
• We know he is a fraud (Peter will prove that)
• At this point he hasn’t even been baptized.
But he claims to be God’s great power.

JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE CLAIMS TO BE FROM GOD
DOES NOT MAKE IT SO

• I don’t care how amazing their power is…
• I don’t care how charismatic their speech is…
• I don’t care how big their following is…

That is one of the tell-tell signs of a wolf.
They dress in sheep’s clothing.

They claim to be from God.
His Spiritual Claim
#2 HIS SENSUAL CONTROL
Acts 8:11

Having already learned about his spiritual claim,
Let me now show you just how effective he was at his game.

“And they were giving him attention because he had for a long time astonished them with his magic arts.”

It wasn’t just that this man claimed to be someone special,
It is that he was good at it.

He had a unique ability to continue to stay on the cutting edge.
His tricks apparently didn’t get old.
He had the ability to continually revamp his show
To keep people “astonished”

And by doing that, he actually continued to maintain control over them.
They continued to come back.

2 Peter 2:2 “Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned;”

Some could look at this and say,
“He has no control over them, they keep coming because they want to.”
They could leave whenever they want.

But that isn’t necessarily true.
He is providing a service that appeals to their fallen nature.

It is like sin or an addiction.
He has them hooked.
This is a dangerous maneuver of a wolf.

HERE IS WHAT SIMON DID.
• He provided an atmosphere…
• He created a product…
• That they could only get from him.

This made him exclusive.
This made him important.
This caused the people to remain.

They had an experience with him they could not get anywhere else,
And because of this he was able to keep them “for a long time”

He had a sensual control over them.
His Spiritual Claim, His Sensual Control
#3 HIS SINISTER CONFESSION
Acts 8:12-13

And this is where Simon really gets sneaky.

You will notice that thanks to the persecution in Jerusalem,
Philip has now entered Samaria and as we learned last week
He is preaching, along with performing signs and wonders.

And so all of these people who once were captivated by Simon,
Now have another outlet for their amazement.

And verse 12 says, “But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike.”

So we find out that Philip’s preaching was in fact effective
For people are being saved.

They are believing in Christ, they are trusting in Jesus
And they are submitting to baptism.

That is certainly good news for them and for Philip.

But it is concerning news for Simon.
• This was his crowd.
• For years he had been the main attraction.
• Now Jesus was moving in on his territory.

And that means that Simon had a decision to make.
We’ve all heard the phrase, “If you can’t beat ‘em…”

(13) “Even Simon himself believed; and after being baptized, he continued on with Philip, and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed.”

Now at this point we recognize the dangers of “Easy Believism” theology.

We have all been exposed to that sort of cheap doctrine
That simply says all you have to do is believe and you’re saved.

And people who hold to that sort of thinking
Have a terrible problem answering the question about Simon.

Based upon their theology they have to say (and many do)
That Simon was saved.

The problem with that is down in verse 23,
After Simon displays his true colors Peter reveals that he is still lost
“For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity.”

SIMON WAS NOT SAVED HERE IN verse 13,
But if all you look at is his claim & baptism then you are apt to be fooled.

After all, even Philip was fooled by Simon.
For Philip baptized him and let him accompany him.

Incidentally I think this event taught Philip about genuine salvation.
For after the Eunich (whom he will meet later) wanted to be saved
We find Philip being a little more thorough.

Acts 8:36-38 “As they went along the road they came to some water; and the eunuch said, “Look! Water! What prevents me from being baptized?” [And Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”] And he ordered the chariot to stop; and they both went down into the water, Philip as well as the eunuch, and he baptized him.”

It is apparent even Philip learned from this incident.

The point to be made here is that Simon did not get saved,
But he sure appeared to from the outside.

It really echoes to us what James taught us:
James 2:19 “You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.”
Intellectual belief is not salvation.
External baptism is not salvation.

Simon’s confession was an empty one, not genuine.

That then begs the question from us as to
WHY SIMON WAS BAPTIZED AND WENT ON WITH PHILIP?

“he was constantly amazed.”

Simon was a man who had made a living by amazing the crowds.
Certainly this required him to always be on the lookout
For new innovative ways to keep the crowds captivated.

Simon wanted to know more about Philip’s ability.
So Simon conformed in order to stay close to Philip.

And this is a dangerous ploy by a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
He isn’t concerned about people.
He isn’t concerned about Jesus.

He just wants on the latest fad that has come down the pipe.
And this is so concerning to me in regard to wolves of our day.
Always chasing the newest fads,
Constantly jumping on board with the latest gimmicks
Even willing to appear like followers of Christ if it helps their cause.

It is a scary thing to know that deceptive men
Will stop at nothing to maintain their crowd.

They will even use the name of Jesus and pretend devotion to Him
If it helps them keep their crowd.

2 Corinthians 11:12-15 “But what I am doing I will continue to do, so that I may cut off opportunity from those who desire an opportunity to be regarded just as we are in the matter about which they are boasting. For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds.”

His Spiritual Claim, His Sensual Control, His Sinister Confession
#4 HIS SELFISH CONSPIRACY
Acts 8:14-19

Now is where the wolf begins to show himself as a wolf.
Jesus said that you would know them by their fruits.

I suppose one could ask, what is the difference between a wolf and a shepherd?
• A shepherd takes care of the flock.
• A wolf takes advantage of the flock.

Here Simon is about to show his teeth.

Now it all starts with a visit from Peter and John.
(14-17) “Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit.”

We won’t spend a lot of time here, for the story is about Simon,
But it does warrant a little discussion.

It is important you understand what is happening here.
Some of used this text as evidence that a person can be saved
And then receive the Holy Spirit later.

That is not true.
Romans 8:9 “However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.”
A person receives the Holy Spirit at salvation.

Some ask, then why did these not receive it?
This was a very specific incident and one that
Was extremely important to the unity of the church.

God sent the Holy Spirit to come to the Samaritans through the apostles
For two reasons, both of which had to do with the unity of the church.

1) So Peter and John could bear witness that Samaritans were saved (similar to why Peter had to go to Cornelius)

2) So the Samaritans would know to submit themselves the apostles authority.

Had these men been saved completely apart from the apostles,
It very easily could have started two separate churches.

God was protecting the unity of His church, but using the apostles.

And so Peter and John came and “began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit.”

Although it doesn’t mention it, it is very likely that they were speaking in tongues, since that is what happened at Pentecost and at the beginning of Gentile salvation.

Either way, it was an outward physical indicator taking place
For it was something that Simon could see.

And this is where Simon begins to reveal his true colors.
(18-19) “Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give this authority to me as well, so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

This really just pulls back the veil on Simon all the way.

A common plan amongst magicians of his day
was to purchase tricks from one another.

And Simon is showing his true colors.
“he offered them money”
• He can hold back his true intentions no longer.
• He has found the gimmick he has been looking for.
• He saw in this, the opportunity to keep his crowd for years to come.
“If I had the ability to lay hands on people and cause them to speak foreign languages, I’d be famous!”

“Give this authority to me as well, so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

I know it all looks good,
After all the end result would be people getting the Holy Spirit,
But don’t miss that this was a selfish request.

Notice it was all about him.
• It wasn’t about the people receiving the Spirit…
• It was about him being able to bestow it.
He is out to get his crowd back.

And this is really sickening, but it is so often seen today.
Church after church purchasing program after program
All just trying to do exactly why Simon was doing…

They’re just trying to keep their crowd.

And any so-called shepherd who is promising spiritual results,
Simply to maintain his authoritative position over you
Is looking more and more like a wolf.

Simon showed who he really was.
• He didn’t care about the sheep
• He didn’t care about the truest Shepherd (Jesus)
• He simply wanted a way to maintain his control over the crowd and he was willing to pay to get it.

His Spiritual Claim, His Sensual Control, His Sinister Confession, His Selfish Conspiracy
#5 HIS SHOWN CORRUPTION
Acts 8:20-21

Well, if you didn’t recognize Simon’s corruption from the previous verses,
You certainly will now, for Peter wastes no time exposing him.
Peter has seen and heard enough, and exposes the wolf.

In fact there are three things Peter exposes about Simon.
1) HIS DECEIVED MIND (20)

(20) “But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!”

J.B. Philips translated that verse, “To hell with you and your money!”

Peter reveals that Simon is deceived.
He thought God was for sale.
He thought God was inventing programs
That could be purchased to help men climb the ladder.

How scary that is today as well.
In our mission meetings we have read numerous sermons, one by a man named Paris Reidhead, entitled, “Ten Shekels and a Shirt”

It is about a priest from the tribe of Levi who didn’t think serving in Jerusalem paid enough so he left and found a man named Micah who offered him ten shekels and a shirt to be his own personal priest. And the priest accepted.

Later however, a band of men from the tribe of Dan came by and offered him more money, and you guessed it, the priest left Micah to serve the tribe of Dan.

He was a man who was using God as a means to achieve his own ends.
He was using spiritual things as a way to serve his own selfish ambitions.

That is what Simon was doing.
That is what many preachers do today.

In fact Mr. Reidhead goes on to talk about a young man he met.
A young preacher came to me down in West Virginia, Huntington, West Virginia. “Brother Reidhead, I have got a great church. We have got a wonderful Sunday school program, got a radio ministry, growing. But I feel a personal need and a personal lack. I need to be baptized with the Holy Ghost. I need to be filled with the Spirit. And someone told me God had done something for you and I wanted you to help me…”
He was like a fellow driving up in a big Cadillac, you know, to someone standing at the filling station say, “Fill it up, Bud, with the highest octane you have got.” Well, that’s the way it looked. He wanted power for his programs. And God is not going to be a means to anyone’s end. I said, “I am awfully sorry. I don’t think I can help you.” He said, “Why?” “I don’t think you are ready.”
I said, “Well, suppose you consider yourself coming up with a Cadillac. You have talked about your program. You have talked about your radio. You talked about your Sunday school and church. It’s very good. You have done wonderfully well without the power of the Holy Spirit.”
That is what the Chinese Christian said, you know when he got back to China.“What impressed you most about America?” He said, “The great things Americans can accomplish without God.”
And he had accomplished a great deal, admittedly, without God. Now he wanted something, power to accomplish his ends even further. I said, “No, no. You are going…you are sitting behind the wheel and you are saying, ‘Give me power so I can go.’ You won’t work. You have got to slide over.”
But I knew that rascal because I knew me. I said, “No, it will never do. You have got to get in the back seat.” And I could see him leaning over and grabbing the wheel. “No,” I said, “It will never do in the back seat.” I said, “Before God will do anything from you do you know what you have got to do?” He said, “What?” I said, “You have got to get out of the car, take the keys around, open up the trunk lid, hand the keys to the Lord Jesus, get in the trunk, slam the lid down, whisper through the keyhole, ‘Lord, look. Fill her up with anything you want and you drive. It is up to you from now on.’”
And that is why so many people, you know, do not enter in to the fullness of Christ, because they want to become a Levite with 10 shekels and a shirt. They have been serving Micah, but they think if they had the power of the Holy Ghost they could serve the tribe of Dan. It will never work, never work.”

And that was Simon, and it is so many of those in ministry today.
They are not serving God, they are serving self
And only using God as a means to help them keep their crowds.

They know that the presence of God is good for business,
And so they will pay any amount in order to make sure that God is present

Some admittedly don’t even make it that far.
They are content to give a counterfeit version of God.
Substituting God for well prepared performances with tremendous talent.

That is what Simon wanted and Peter told him to forget it.
You have a deceived mind if you think you can buy God with money.

As Paris Reidhead said, “God is not going to be a means to anyone’s end”

Simon didn’t know that. He had a deceived mind.

2) HIS DEPRAVED HEART (21-23)

And here Peter really lowers the boom.
Simon’s truest problem wasn’t ignorance, it was depravity.
His heart had never been redeemed.
His life had never been changed.

“You have no part or portion in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.”
Simon was still in his sin.
And that meant for him there was only one option.

(22-23) “Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray the Lord that, if possible, the intention of your heart may be forgiven you. “For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity.”

He needed to see himself enslaved in sin, turn from it and be forgiven.

This is what every wolf needs.
• Quit serving yourself and start serving God.
• Repent of sin and escape from the bondage.

3) HIS DETERMINED WILL (24)

And this is tragic.
Simon would not repent.

He simply told Peter, “Pray to the Lord for me”
And why did he want Peter to pray, because he had offended God and needed forgiveness?

No.
“so that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.”
He still was only concerned about himself.

This man was an imposter and Peter exposed him.
• Claiming Spiritual greatness
• Controlling people sensually
• Confessing Christ in deception and falsehood
• Conspiring to offer money to keep his crowd
• And so corrupt that he would not recognize is his sin or repent of it.

That is a wolf and he laid attack on the church,
But God’s people recognized him and refused to let him ravage the flock.

But there you have it.
Satan certainly attacks with the lions,
But he also attacks with the wolves.
Be on the alert.

To read one more time what Paul said to the Ephesian elders.
Acts 20:28-31 “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. “I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them. “Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish each one with tears.”

Ravaging the Church
Acts 8:1-8
June 24, 2012

Last week when we met we witnessed the death of Stephen.
It was an event that was most precious in the sight of God.

So precious in fact that God showed Stephen His glory
And Jesus gave Stephen a standing ovation cheering him on
From the finish line that Stephen might finish the race strong.

It was a horrific event and yet it was a glorious event.
Stephen victoriously overcame the enemy.

Romans 8:35-37 “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, “FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED.” But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.”

But at the same time that we witnessed the death of Stephen
We also were introduced to one of the darkest villains of the N.T.

Acts 7:58 “When they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and the witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul.”

Up until now we have witnessed villains and enemies
Like Annas or Caiaphas or Pilate or even Judas,
But none could hold a candle to this new super-enemy of the church.

None of those men went to the extremes that Saul would go to
In order to stop the church.

• The previous enemies threatened the leaders…
• The previous enemies even flogged and imprisoned the leaders…
• The previous enemies killed some of the leaders…

But Saul exceeded them all.
Saul didn’t just stop with the leaders, Saul attacked the church members.

See Saul was an ambitious man!
Galatians 1:14 “and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions.”

Philippians 3:5-6 “circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless.”

Saul was ambitious
And we have recently learned where ambition comes from.

James 3:14-16 “But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.”

It is no surprise then that Saul was controlled by demonic influence
And was so dedicated to climb the ladder
That he took opposition to the church to a whole new level.

Acts 22:4 “I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and putting both men and women into prisons,”

Acts 26:11 “And as I punished them often in all the synagogues, I tried to force them to blaspheme; and being furiously enraged at them, I kept pursuing them even to foreign cities.”

The church had yet to meet an enemy like Saul.
• This man was driven…
• This man was ambitious…

And this man had no reservations whatsoever
About arresting and killing Christians.

He was a walking fulfillment of what Jesus said was coming.
John 16:1-2 “These things I have spoken to you so that you may be kept from stumbling. “They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming for everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God.”

That was Saul.
He was dangerous because not only did he do what he thought would gain him advancement, but he had spiritually justified it.
In his mind God was on his side.

• He thought he was wielding the sword of the Lord.
• He thought he was a modern day Joshua cleaning the Promised Land.
• He thought he was like Jehu getting rid of all the heretics.

And so Saul was a force to be reckoned with.
The church had yet to come across an adversary like him.

Saul is literally Satan’s newest general.
And he has set his sights on destroying the church.

So let’s examine our text this evening.
Two main points, but we’ll break each down a little further.
#1 THE ATTACK OF SATAN
Acts 8:1-3

When you just read those three verses you can literally feel
The weight of oppression that just fell upon the early church.

I know we often read about the promises of persecution, BUT reading about it and experiencing it are obviously two different things.
This must have hit the church like a brick.

Earlier when Peter and John were arrested and warned, they went back and told the church and the church responded well.

Acts 4:29-30 “And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and grant that Your bond-servants may speak Your word with all confidence, while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.”

They handled the threats well, but now, thanks to Saul
The threats have become reality.

Let’s just look at what this early church is experiencing.
1) SCATTERED BELIEVERS (1)

It really is eerie what we read here.
“Saul was in hearty agreement with putting him to death.”

Saul didn’t reluctantly agree…
Saul wasn’t sad but willing…
Saul was blood thirsty

You can almost see that sinister look and hear the rejoicing of his heart
With every stone that bounced off the body of Stephen.

And what is worse, it is obvious that
Saul saw this stoning as an opportunity.

He knew if he could seize the momentum and ride the wave of anger
That began here with Stephen’s stoning,
He could use this to catapult his career to new heights.

He loved this and he pushed for it.

And so after Stephen’s death Saul went on the war path.
“And on that day a great persecution began against the church in Jerusalem”

This was no longer focused on silencing the apostles…
This was no longer focused on pushing Peter into hiding…
This attack was not intended to let the church exist at all.

This attack was meant to rip the church apart and stop her forever.

Earlier, Saul’s teacher had warned:
Acts 5:34-39 “But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the Law, respected by all the people, stood up in the Council and gave orders to put the men outside for a short time. And he said to them, “Men of Israel, take care what you propose to do with these men. “For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a group of about four hundred men joined up with him. But he was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing. “After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census and drew away some people after him; he too perished, and all those who followed him were scattered. “So in the present case, I say to you, stay away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or action is of men, it will be overthrown; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them; or else you may even be found fighting against God.”

The men on that day took Gamaliel’s advice, Saul was here rejecting it.

Saul was not about to wait for the church to die a natural death,
Saul was determined to strike the death blow.

He wanted to see all Christians die a cruel death like Stephen.
And so he attacked the church at Jerusalem.

And the result was “they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.”

This is what is referred to as “The Dispersion”

Peter wrote his first epistle to this group.
1 Peter 1:1-2 “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who reside as aliens, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, who are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure.”
They were “The Rejected Selected”
Scattered by the world, but chosen by God.

And it was a very hard thing they were enduring.

It may not seem like much that this church was scattered,
But we can’t forget exactly how close this church was.

Remember Pentecost?
Acts 2:44-47 “And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

This church was tight and now they are being ripped apart.

I couldn’t help but think of the heartache between David and Jonathon
When they were forced to go their separate ways.

1 Samuel 20:41-42 “When the lad was gone, David rose from the south side and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed three times. And they kissed each other and wept together, but David wept the more. Jonathan said to David, “Go in safety, inasmuch as we have sworn to each other in the name of the LORD, saying, ‘The LORD will be between me and you, and between my descendants and your descendants forever.'” Then he rose and departed, while Jonathan went into the city.”

Or I thought about the heartache of the Ephesian elders
When they learned they would never see Paul again.

Acts 20:36-38 “When he had said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all. And they began to weep aloud and embraced Paul, and repeatedly kissed him, grieving especially over the word which he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they were accompanying him to the ship.”

When you see that this church was scattered make sure you also see
All the painful and tearful good-bye’s that went with it.

We see Scattered Believers
2) A BURIED SAINT (2)

And again we are tempted to read this with closed eyes and a closed heart,
Not pondering the heartache attached to such an event.

Here we have “devout men”
And they “buried Stephen, and made loud lamentation over him.”

That is, they wept loudly.
And this is impressive, for the Mishna forbid weeping over a condemned criminal, but these men did it anyway.
They would miss Stephen.

I know when a believer dies we are not to let our hearts be troubled…
I know that we are to grieve, but not without hope…

I understand all that.
But does anyone else remember the pain of having to say good-bye?

Here in just the last few years we’ve said good-bye to:
• Ken Gilcrease
• Max Alldredge
• Mutt Hagins
• Ruth Caplinger

And I know there is hope in the midst of the sorrow,
But that still doesn’t make it fun.

And that is what this early church is enduring.
Only in this case, one of their own didn’t die from natural causes,
He was brutally killed.

What this church is walking through is harsh.

Scattered Believers; A Buried Saint
3) A RAVAGED CHURCH (3)

And this is so harsh it is really hard to fathom.

“Saul began ravaging the church”

The Greek word here for “ravaging” is only used here in the NT,
But in Greek literature it is the word used
For when a wild animal completely mauls someone.

Saul was a wild animal literally ravaging the church.

Oh, he wasn’t just stopping the meetings.
Saul had a personal attack on the members.

“entering house after house, dragging off men and women, he would put them in prison.”

Separating husbands from wives and wives from husbands.
Separating children from parents and parents from children.

Saul is doing everything he can
To rip the church apart and destroy it forever.

Last week we talked about Psalms 44
About the believers who felt God was selling them cheaply.

Let me read more of that Psalm to you here.
Psalms 44:17-26 “All this has come upon us, but we have not forgotten You, And we have not dealt falsely with Your covenant. Our heart has not turned back, And our steps have not deviated from Your way, Yet You have crushed us in a place of jackals And covered us with the shadow of death. If we had forgotten the name of our God Or extended our hands to a strange god, Would not God find this out? For He knows the secrets of the heart. But for Your sake we are killed all day long; We are considered as sheep to be slaughtered. Arouse Yourself, why do You sleep, O Lord? Awake, do not reject us forever. Why do You hide Your face And forget our affliction and our oppression? For our soul has sunk down into the dust; Our body cleaves to the earth. Rise up, be our help, And redeem us for the sake of Your lovingkindness.”

That must have been how the early church felt.
These were dark days, and Satan was at his cruelest.

We know in Scripture Satan is called
• A wolf that seeks to destroy sheep
• A lion that prowls around seeking to devour
• A serpent that is crafty and deceptive
And he is certainly all of those here.

THE CHURCH HERE IS BEING DESTROYED.
Or is it?
When you see it from the outer perspective it looks like this is the end.
• Stephen’s death looks like he died in vain.
• The church looks like it is unraveling.
• All the progress that was gained after Pentecost looks like an afterthought.

But that is only if you look at it through the world’s lens.
Luke makes sure you don’t.

After showing you what Satan is doing,
Now Luke shows you how God responded.

The Attack of Satan
#2 THE WORK OF GOD
Acts 8:4-8

Those first three verses were admittedly dark,
But look at how God responded.

We saw:
• Scattered Believers
• A Buried Saint
• A Ravaged Church

Let me show you what God saw.
1) TRAVELING PREACHERS (4-5)

“Therefore, those who had been scattered went about preaching the word. Philip went down to the city of Samaria and began proclaiming Christ to them.”

The church was scattered, but God used that to spread the gospel.

Remember the final words of Jesus?
Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

Jesus was fulfilling that here.
Judea and Samaria had thus far been un-reached, but not now.

Thanks to Saul the church just volunteered for its first mission trip.
And Philip was its lead missionary.

He was scattered, but he went about “preaching the word”

Saul didn’t stop the church, he spread the church.

It’s like mowing over goatheads.
Before the church was contained in Jerusalem
And everyone was coming there.

Remember?
Acts 5:16 “Also the people from the cities in the vicinity of Jerusalem were coming together, bringing people who were sick or afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all being healed.”

Now Saul just spread his problem out,
Now he would have to chase them down and travel to stop the church.

He didn’t stop the church, he spread the church.
All the way to Samaria.

Traveling Preachers
2) SPIRITUAL OPPORTUNITIES (6)

I know it doesn’t necessarily indicate any salvations taking place here.
We will find later in the chapter that people were in fact being saved.

But even apart from evident salvations,
What is clear is that people who did not previously
Have an opportunity to be saved, now did.

Romans 10:14 “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?”

Romans teaches you can’t be saved apart from the gospel.

Well now, thanks to Saul, Samaria was getting the gospel.
Isaiah 52:7-10 “How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who announces peace And brings good news of happiness, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices, They shout joyfully together; For they will see with their own eyes When the LORD restores Zion. Break forth, shout joyfully together, You waste places of Jerusalem; For the LORD has comforted His people, He has redeemed Jerusalem. The LORD has bared His holy arm In the sight of all the nations, That all the ends of the earth may see The salvation of our God.”

Traveling Preachers, Spiritual Opportunities
3) DELIVERED CAPTIVES (7)

Here people were being delivered from their evil spirits.
People were being healed of their sicknesses.

(8) “So there was much rejoicing in that city.”

Some would indicate that this means people were getting saved,
I’m not sure about that, but they were at least being physically delivered.

Salvation is coming if it is not already here.
Isaiah 61:1-3 “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners; To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, To grant those who mourn in Zion, Giving them a garland instead of ashes, The oil of gladness instead of mourning, The mantle of praise instead of a spirit of fainting. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.”

It really all must have caused Saul to stop and scratch his head.
There is no way this was working according to plan.

See, Jesus had made a promise.
Matthew 16:18 “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

Jesus already said that death wouldn’t stop His church.
And it didn’t.
His church thrived when faced with persecution.

It also brings to mind another promise of God in Scripture.
Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

And I would say that was obvious.

Do we remember Joseph being sold by his brothers?
Genesis 50:20 “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.”

Do we remember Mordecai being threatened by Haman?
Esther 9:24-25 “For Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the adversary of all the Jews, had schemed against the Jews to destroy them and had cast Pur, that is the lot, to disturb them and destroy them. But when it came to the king’s attention, he commanded by letter that his wicked scheme which he had devised against the Jews, should return on his own head and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows.”

Do we remember Jesus being crucified by the enemy?
1 Peter 3:17-22 “For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong. For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water. Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you — not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience — through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him.”

The point is God always wins.
Nothing topples His church.

Now, are there some things which are hard to bear?
Yes

Are there some things which cause us to shed tears?
Yes

But do those things stop the work of God or prevent Him from accomplishing His purposes?
No

And they don’t even come close to stopping God.

Last Sunday morning we read from this Psalm.

Psalms 2:1-4 “Why are the nations in an uproar And the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand And the rulers take counsel together Against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us tear their fetters apart And cast away their cords from us!” He who sits in the heavens laughs, The Lord scoffs at them.”

But that is not the only place it is mentioned.
Psalms 37:12-15 “The wicked plots against the righteous And gnashes at him with his teeth. The Lord laughs at him, For He sees his day is coming. The wicked have drawn the sword and bent their bow To cast down the afflicted and the needy, To slay those who are upright in conduct. Their sword will enter their own heart, And their bows will be broken.”

Psalms 59:1-8 “Deliver me from my enemies, O my God; Set me securely on high away from those who rise up against me. Deliver me from those who do iniquity And save me from men of bloodshed. For behold, they have set an ambush for my life; Fierce men launch an attack against me, Not for my transgression nor for my sin, O LORD, For no guilt of mine, they run and set themselves against me. Arouse Yourself to help me, and see! You, O LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel, Awake to punish all the nations; Do not be gracious to any who are treacherous in iniquity. They return at evening, they howl like a dog, And go around the city. Behold, they belch forth with their mouth; Swords are in their lips, For, they say, “Who hears?” But You, O LORD, laugh at them; You scoff at all the nations.”

The attempts of Saul were pitifully futile here.
He did all sorts of vile things,
But he didn’t even come close to stopping the church.

Yes the church was persecuted,
But the church was never in danger of extinction.
God would not allow it.

I encourage you to learn that in your life.
There are difficult things to swallow in this life,
And things that cause much pain and confusion.

But never be confused about the fact that those difficult things
Will never thwart the plan of God.

God has such power that He has the ability
To take the best schemes of Satan and turn them over on their head.

God took the worst enemy the church had ever had
And used him to start the church’s first missionary movement.
(Later God will enlist him as the greatest missionary)

• Persecution led to preaching
• Ravaging led to rejoicing
• An execution led to evangelism

Romans 8:31 “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?”

“And though this world, with devils filled,
Should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed
His truth to triumph through us

The Prince of Darkness grim,
We tremble not for him
His rage we can endure
For lo, his doom is sure
One little word shall fell him

That word above all earthly powers
No thanks to them abideth,
The Spirit and the gifts are ours
Through Him who with us sideth

Let goods and kindred go
This mortal life also
The body they may kill
God’s truth abideth still
His kingdom is forever”

Faced with threats and persecutions and oppositions and executions,
The church in Martin Luther’s day was under attack.

It was during this time that Martin Luther penned that famous hymn
“A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”

And it is truth that was seen in the early church,
And truth that endures today.

Do not fear when hardship arises,
And do not suppose that the enemy is winning.

“God causes all things to work together for good, to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

The Death of a Godly One
Acts 7:54-60
June 17, 2012

Well tonight we come to an extremely difficult scene.
If there were any doubts about Satan’s hostility toward the church,
Those doubts should be laid to rest here.

Up until now we have seen anger,
We have seen arrests,
We have even seen a flogging,
But aside from the death of our Lord, we have seen nothing like this.

The execution of Stephen reveals to us that
Satan will literally stop at nothing to silence the church.

This is a horrific scene.
But it is not a hopeless scene.

We need not view this story and fall away in fear
That Satan cannot be defeated,
For just as Scripture chronicles his fury, it also chronicles his fall.

Revelation 12:11 “And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death.”

We must remember Satan’s goal is not to kill Christians.
Satan’s goal is to STOP Christians,
Death is merely a threatening tool he uses to try and stop them.

Satan would rather silence them or cause them to stumble,
Killing is merely a tactic he uses to try and accomplish the first two.

And the book of Revelation teaches that in death
A Christian can actually overcome the enemy.

This in reality is Stephen’s finest hour.

You are familiar with how it all started.
• Stephen was first appointed a leadership role in the church when he was put in charge of the ministry to feed widows.

• He was given this charge because he was a man “of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom”.

• And once Stephen rose to prominence he did not disappoint.

Acts 6:8 “And Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and signs among the people.”

And this brought about tremendous opposition from the evil one.

He wanted Stephen stopped.

So he brought men from “what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen, including both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia and Asia” and they “rose up and argued with Stephen. But they were unable to cope with the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking.”

Then Satan brought in false witnesses who accused him of blasphemy saying, “This man incessantly speaks against this holy place and the Law;”

And the trial of Stephen began.

It was then that Stephen arose in his defense,
But Stephen’s defense was hardly a defense,
It was instead to produce evidence against his accusers.

Stephen recounted some of the biggest accounts of rebellion
In the history of Israel.

• God raised up Joseph to be a leader and deliver, BUT the children of Israel sold him to Egypt.

The result was that Joseph rose to power in Egypt instead of Canaan,
And Israel had to wait 430 years to come back.

• Stephen went on to remind them how after many years in Egypt God raised up Moses to deliver, BUT when Moses left Pharaoh’s court and killed an Egyptian the people rejected him again, and instead of pastoring God’s flock, Moses went and fathered two sons.

Israel had to wait 40 more years for deliverance.

• Then God sent Moses back and he led them out, BUT after God gave the “living oracles” they rejected God’s deliverance again wanting to go back to Egypt and building the golden calf.

The result was that God gave them over to idolatry and for the next 800 years Israel failed to have an intimate relationship with God,
Until ultimately they were destroyed for their idolatry by Babylon.

• Throughout this time God also gave them the gift of His presence, but they rejected the presence and began to revere the temple, again missing the point.

But without a doubt the high point of their rebellion is
When God sent His Son to be a deliverer from sin,
They rejected Him and crucified Him.
And that was where Stephen’s point delivered the lethal blow.

Acts 7:51-53 “You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did. “Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become; you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it.”

And now, Stephen’s boldness has led to his execution,
And we are afforded the opportunity to witness the death of a godly man.

Now before we get into Stephen’s death,
There are some things we need to know about the death of believers.

1) IT IS A REGULAR OCCURANCE

Beginning with Abel and continuing through today,
God’s people have been and will continue to be martyred.

We remember in Elijah’s day as he argued with God.
1 Kings 19:14 “Then he said, “I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.”

We are familiar with the writer of Hebrews statements:
Hebrews 11:37-38 “They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.”

Paul quoted from Psalms 44 when He said:
Romans 8:36 “Just as it is written, “FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED.”

Even Jesus taught us:
Matthew 5:11-12 “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Matthew 24:9 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.”

John 16:2 “They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming for everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God.”

The death of Stephen is no new thing, it is common.
God’s people have been and will continue to be
The focus of the attacks of the enemy.

The death of believers is a common thing.
2) GRACE IS AVAILABLE FOR THEM WHEN IT HAPPENS.

We recently studied in Daniel on Wednesday night
About the faithful remnant who would be killed by Antiochus Epiphenes.

Daniel 11:33-34 “Those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many; yet they will fall by sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder for many days. “Now when they fall they will be granted a little help, and many will join with them in hypocrisy.”

That help is real, PARTIALLY SEEN in the assurance that death isn’t final.

This was the mindset of those like Paul.
1 Corinthians 15:55 “O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?”

Philippians 1:21 “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”

Certainly the knowledge and truth about death is a help to believers,
But even more than that, there is grace for such times.

Hebrews 4:14-16 “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

And so while the death of believers is a common thing,
There is grace available.

But one more thing we are confident of in regard to the death of God’s saints is:
3) IT IS PRECIOUS TO GOD

Psalms 116:15 “Precious in the sight of the LORD Is the death of His godly ones.”

One could even argue that it is the death of the saints
That stirs the wrath of God like nothing else.

When you read in the Revelation about the breaking of the seals,
It is the breaking of the fifth seal and the cries of the martyr’s
That really sets God off.

Revelation 6:9-11 “When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained; and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also.”

After that God rips back the sky and men flee in terror.
The death of God’s saints is not small thing.
Matthew 10:29-31 “Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. “But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. “So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows.”

God watches and God remembers and will avenge their blood.
Matthew 23:34-36 “Therefore, behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city, so that upon you may fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. “Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.”

And so to make a point here, you should know that
The scene we watch tonight is a very sacred scene.

This is not insignificant, this is not trivial.
It is not like God is some distant general who only sees His children
As necessary deaths to accomplish a goal.

He is not cold nor callous, this is a big deal to Him.

This is God’s account of the death of one of His saints,
A very serious matter.

And as we study it tonight there are three things I want you to see
About the death of Stephen and by extension the death of any one of God’s children.
#1 STEPHEN’S VALUE (any martyr’s value)
Acts 7:54-56

I read you Paul’s quotation of this Psalm in Romans 8 a moment ago,
But let me give us just a little closer look for a moment.

Psalm 44 is a desperate cry from a persecuted people
Who do not understand what God is up to.

It almost reads as a people put out with God.

Listen to the Psalmist here.
Psalms 44:9-16 “Yet You have rejected us and brought us to dishonor, And do not go out with our armies. You cause us to turn back from the adversary; And those who hate us have taken spoil for themselves. You give us as sheep to be eaten And have scattered us among the nations. You sell Your people cheaply, And have not profited by their sale. You make us a reproach to our neighbors, A scoffing and a derision to those around us. You make us a byword among the nations, A laughingstock among the peoples. All day long my dishonor is before me And my humiliation has overwhelmed me, Because of the voice of him who reproaches and reviles, Because of the presence of the enemy and the avenger.”

There is a Psalmist that sees the continual death of God’s people
And who is tempted to think that God doesn’t care.
I think all of us at some point have faced this dilemma.
Certainly through hardships we face personally,
But in reality even when we are forced to face the reality of martyrdom.

More Christians die today for their faith than at any other time in the world.
And that is a hard pill for us to swallow.

We cling to stories like Daniel in the lion’s den or his three friends in the fiery furnace and we rally around the great deliverance of God.

And yet the cold reality is that not all of God’s children
Receive such a deliverance and it tends to lead us to believe
That God doesn’t care.

That “we are”, as the Psalmist said,
“considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

It can appear that God sells His people cheaply
And does not profit from their sale.

And that is why I am thankful for this story of Stephen’s death,
For we get to see just how valuable he was, even though he was killed.

Now when we talk about Stephen’s value
We get to see this from two perspectives.
We see his value in the world, and his value before God.

His value to the world is obvious.
He had none.

After Stephen preached that tremendous sermon of warning and conviction, Luke tells us:

(54) “Now when they heard this, they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him.”

That is probably the best description of just blind anger
We get anywhere in the Scripture.

• These people were seething.
• They were senseless.
• They were so filled with rage they actually take on the persona of a rabid animal.

And what we realize is that they didn’t appreciate Stephen’s words at all.

You see, when the truth of God is delivered to you,
You have two ways to receive it.

You either humbly accept it – that is to value the message.
Or you angrily reject it – that is to devalue the message.

James 1:19-21 “This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls.”

The message of God is painted as extremely valuable,
As that “which is able to save your souls.”

And it is important that we respond humbly not angrily.
Obviously Stephen had no value to this group.

Jesus Himself said:
Matthew 10:16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.”

When a wolf looks at a sheep,
• He doesn’t see someone to learn from…
• He doesn’t see someone to follow…
• He doesn’t see someone to appreciate…

When a wolf looks at a sheep, he only sees food.
He sees someone to devour.

That is our value to the world.
• We are the base…
• We are the weak…
• We are the foolish…

They don’t covet our wisdom, they don’t desire our power,
They don’t envy our value.
We are as sheep to be slaughtered.

1 Corinthians 4:9 “For, I think, God has exhibited us apostles last of all, as men condemned to death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men.”

And that is our value in the world,
BUT OUR VALUE BEFORE GOD IS JUST THE OPPOSITE.

Look at what occurs here.
(55-56) “But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”

I hope you recognize what is occurring here.
God allowed Stephen to see something
That few men were ever allowed to see.
He “saw the glory of God”

Moses begged God for this privilege and he only saw God’s back.
In Stephen’s darkest hour,
God gave Stephen more of Himself than he had ever had before.

But that isn’t all.
“I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”

WHY IS THAT SPECIAL?
Hebrews 10:11-13 “Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, SAT DOWN AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, waiting from that time onward UNTIL HIS ENEMIES BE MADE A FOOTSTOOL FOR HIS FEET.”

Jesus SITS at the right hand of the Father as an intercessor.
He sits because His work is finished.

But on the day Stephen died Jesus was standing.
Matthew 10:32 “Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven.”

Stephen received a standing ovation from Jesus on this day.

From the world’s perspective Stephen must have appeared expendable.

Nothing could be farther from the truth.
God gave Stephen more of Himself than Stephen had ever had,
And Jesus gave Him a standing ovation.

That was Jesus standing at the finish line
Encouraging Stephen to finish strong!

THAT IS THAT DYING GRACE WE SPOKE OF
Don’t ever assume that the death of God’s saints
Is an insignificant thing to Him.

Stephen was killed, but he obviously had value.

Stephen’s Value
#2 STEPHEN’S VALOR (and that of other believers)
Acts 7:57-60a

This again lies in strong contrast to the world.

We have already seen the world gnashing their teeth
Like some sort of rabid animal.

And now we see them still ignoring the truth.
When Stephen tells them what he saw:
“they cried out with a loud voice, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one impulse. When they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and the witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul.”

The scene here is one of regrettable religion.

The Law said that blasphemers could be stoned
And that the actual witnesses must be the first to cast the stone.

Jewish tradition said that a man must first be thrown off a 10’ parapet, and if he survived that, a large stone should be dropped on his heart, followed by another, and if he still survived, then the onslaught occurred.

This scene is not nearly so humane.

It is apparent that the witnesses went first,
But it was an onslaught from the beginning.

• They screamed…
• They covered their ears…(because they wanted no more defense)
• They rushed at him… (like a mob)
• They drove him out of the city… (like a criminal)
• They pelted him with rocks until he died…

This is NOT the behavior of the Godly
Who regrettably must condemn an obvious blasphemer.

These men were so filled with hate and anger they refused even to listen any longer and killed him as fast as they could.

They had no valor at all.
They had no decency.
They had no godliness.

Stephen of course is just the opposite.
(59-60a) “They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!”

• While they stoned Stephen didn’t utter curses…
• While they attacked Stephen didn’t threaten them…

Stephen called out to Jesus and forgave his attackers.

He was a living picture of Jesus.
1 Peter 2:21-23 “For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously;”

And that was certainly Stephen.

John MacArthur wrote of Stephen:
“Both in life and in death, Stephen was so much like his Lord. Jesus was filled with the Spirit, so was Stephen. Jesus was full of grace, so was Stephen. Jesus boldly confronted the religious establishment of his day, so did Stephen. Jesus was convicted by lying witnesses, so was Stephen. Jesus had a mock trial, so did Stephen. Jesus was executed though innocent of any crime, so was Stephen. Both were accused of blasphemy. Both died outside the city and were buried by sympathizers. And as already noted, both prayed for the salvation of their executioners. Was there ever a man more like Jesus?” (Acts 1-12 commentary – pg. 226)

Stephen was a living picture of valor.

Even during his death, he never lost his faith in Jesus.
“Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!”

He truly believed that what he had entrusted, Christ could protect.
He truly believed that his soul was safe in the arms of Christ.

This man walked above the course of this world.
He was not controlled by the flesh, but by the Spirit.

Stephen was a man of valor.

Stephen’s Value – Stephen’s Valor
#3 STEPHEN’S VICTORY (and all believers’)
Acts 7:60b

“Having said this, he fell asleep.”

You could probably also add to this point that Stephen was victorious
Because his faith did not fail, calling on Jesus to the very end.

But one thing we know for sure is that at this moment
Stephen finished the race.

Hebrews 12:1-2 “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

On this day Stephen won his race.
He finished the course, he kept the faith.

Stephen ended his life in the grace of Jesus.
1 Corinthians 15:55-57 “O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

It’s been nearly 2,000 years since Stephen fell asleep that day,
And he has spent every moment since
In the unhindered presence of Jesus.

• Stephen has not felt a single pain…
• Stephen has not cried a single tear…
• Stephen has not committed a single sin…

Stephen has enjoyed fully the presence of His Lord.
He moved from this life into the truest life he would ever know.

I suppose that is why Luke didn’t say “He died”,
Instead he said, “he fell asleep”

Sleep is a temporary thing and so is the death of Stephen.
He will rise, and in the meantime he enjoys the presence
Of the one who holds his soul.

Stephen had value before God, he had valor before men,
And he had victory over death.

AND THAT IS HOW A BELIEVER DIES.
It is also, by the way, how a believer lives.

Romans 12:1 “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”

Romans 14:7-9 “For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.”

Stephen walked a fine road, a road countless others have also walked.

And one we all must walk as well.
We may not all die a martyr’s death,
But we all must live a martyr’s life.

Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

Matthew 16:24-25 “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”

Stephen died right because he lived right.
He was emptied of himself and filled with the Spirit of God.

That is the admonition to us as well.

The Sermon of Stephen
Acts 7:1-53
June 10, 2012

Alright, fasten your seatbelts and throw away your watch,
We’ve got a long way to go tonight.

But if you are one who thoroughly enjoys a good sermon then pay attention, because tonight we get the sermon of Stephen.

Earlier, when Peter was brought before the Sanhedrin we talked about
The necessary attitude by which a person should face such situations.

1 Peter 3:15 “but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;”

Well tonight we most certainly get another example of that.

Stephen is not only on trial before that same council that tried Peter
But is also standing before the representatives of synagogues
From northern Africa and southern Asia.

Stephen is called to give an account.

And Stephen will do well, with one of the greatest sermons ever preached.

And before we get into what he said, let me remind you that
There are two main things that allowed Stephen to preach like he did here.

One is obvious and we have talked about it over and over.
1) HE WAS FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT

We never want to get away from this point.
Stephen was a man full of the Spirit.

He did not walk in his own strength.
He did not speak from his own logic.

Matthew 10:19-20 “But when they hand you over, do not worry about how or what you are to say; for it will be given you in that hour what you are to say. “For it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.”

To put it mildly, Stephen is abiding in the vine.
God is dwelling in Him, and Stephen is resting in His strength.

We never want to miss that, we never want to let go of that.
We are nothing apart from the Holy Spirit of God.

We will fail miserably without Him.

2) STEPHEN WAS A STUDENT OF THE WORD

This walks hand in hand with being filled with the Spirit.
In fact, as we recently studied, Paul taught us to “let the word of Christ richly dwell within you”

To him that was the same thing as being filled with the Spirit.

But it is important to understand that Stephen was a student of the word.

As we said last time, Peter, John
And the rest of the apostles were eye-witnesses.

1 John 1:1-3 “What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life — and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us — what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.”

Not Stephen.
He was not an eye-witness, Stephen was a disciple.

When we read about the new church after Pentecost:
Acts 2:41-42 “So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand souls. They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”
He was devoted to learning the truth.
Not only that, but he was devoted to studying the Scriptures.

2 Timothy 2:15 “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.”

THIS IS THE FLIP SIDE.
Yes, be filled with the Spirit, but be devoted to knowing the truth as well.

Later on in the book of Acts we find Philip:
Acts 8:30-31 “Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.”

Later consider Apollos
Acts 18:24-26 “Now a Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, came to Ephesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures. This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John; and he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.”

And certainly you get the idea.
Be filled with the Spirit, and be devoted to the truth of the Scripture.
If all we had to do while being a witness was depend on the Spirit apart from any human effort, then why did God give the Scriptures, and why did He gift and appoint men to explain them?

Be filled with the Spirit and be a student of the word.
Stephen was both.

And that is the key to his tremendous sermon here before the council.

So let’s look at his sermon
(we see it all because it is one thought)

What I want you to see is 5 things
Stephen brings to the table here before his accusers.

This is not a history lesson, this is a calculated account
Meant to bring a very specific revelation to the mind of the council.

#1 THE RETAILING OF JOSEPH
Acts 7:1-16

It begins with the high priest asking, “Are these things so?”

He is referencing the accusations made against Stephen up in chapter 6.

Acts 6:13-14 “They put forward false witnesses who said, “This man incessantly speaks against this holy place and the Law; for we have heard him say that this Nazarene, Jesus, will destroy this place and alter the customs which Moses handed down to us.”

So they are accusing Stephen of not only blaspheming God
But of also disregarding the temple and the Law.

The Priest is asking Stephen, “How do you plead? Guilty or not guilty?”
“Is it true that you blaspheme God, disregard the temple,
And disregard the Law?”

And Stephen begins his answer in verse 2.

Now I told you that there are 5 points to Stephen’s sermon.
The first four can all be broken down the same way.
1) Selection
2) Rejection
3) Suspension

• They all start with a sovereign act of grace on the part of God to give a people what they did not deserve.
• It moves from there to that same group of people rejecting the gracious provision that God has made.
• And from there we see that their rejection of God’s provision caused the coming blessing to be suspended or put on hold.
And the first place we see that is in his reference to Joseph.
Now he doesn’t start with Joseph, he starts in the beginning
With God’s gracious selection of Abraham.

(2-5) “And he said, “Hear me, brethren and fathers! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran, and said to him, ‘LEAVE YOUR COUNTRY AND YOUR RELATIVES, AND COME INTO THE LAND THAT I WILL SHOW YOU.’ “Then he left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. From there, after his father died, God had him move to this country in which you are now living. “But He gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot of ground, and yet, even when he had no child, He promised that HE WOULD GIVE IT TO HIM AS A POSSESSION, AND TO HIS DESCENDANTS AFTER HIM.”

We really won’t revisit all of these references that Stephen makes,
It is enough that you get the gist of the story.

But Stephen begins with a tremendous act of grace on the part of God.

“The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham…”
That alone is amazing.
That alone is gracious.
Why Abraham?

Why in the world would the God of glory choose to make Himself known to anyone, let alone Abraham?

It is a sovereign act of grace.
And if that is not enough He tells Abraham He has a better country for him

(5b) “He promised that He would give it to him as a possession, and to his descendants after him.”

And so God did a tremendously gracious thing in selecting Abraham.

Now we also notice that God knew what type of people He was selecting,
For God already knew what was coming.

(6-8) “But God spoke to this effect, that his DESCENDANTS WOULD BE ALIENS IN A FOREIGN LAND, AND THAT THEY WOULD BE ENSLAVED AND MISTREATED FOR FOUR HUNDRED YEARS. “‘AND WHATEVER NATION TO WHICH THEY WILL BE IN BONDAGE I MYSELF WILL JUDGE,’ said God, ‘AND AFTER THAT THEY WILL COME OUT AND SERVE ME IN THIS PLACE.’ “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.”

God chose Abraham, but it is apparent that
God knew what type of people He was choosing.

God knew about the slavery in Egypt long before it occurred.
That is why He asked Abraham to enter “the covenant of circumcision”
And declare himself to be God’s and God’s alone.

His people were entering a foreign land,
Circumcision would be a permanent distinction of who God’s people were

But the first thing you see is the selection.

Then comes the rejection.
(9-10) “The patriarchs became jealous of Joseph and sold him into Egypt. Yet God was with him, and rescued him from all his afflictions, and granted him favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he made him governor over Egypt and all his household.”

And you remember the story.
Joseph was the son of Rachel whom Jacob loved most,
And therefore Jacob loved Joseph more than the other boys.

And we know all about the jealousy
And them throwing Joseph down the well and selling him to the caravan.

But there is something important we must remember about Joseph,
Before all that happened, God selected Joseph to be Israel’s deliverer.

Genesis 37:5-11 “Then Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more. He said to them, “Please listen to this dream which I have had; for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and lo, my sheaf rose up and also stood erect; and behold, your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to my sheaf.” Then his brothers said to him, “Are you actually going to reign over us? Or are you really going to rule over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words. Now he had still another dream, and related it to his brothers, and said, “Lo, I have had still another dream; and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” He related it to his father and to his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have had? Shall I and your mother and your brothers actually come to bow ourselves down before you to the ground?” His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the saying in mind.”

God selected Joseph to be a ruler and deliverer of Israel,
But the rest of Israel (his brothers)
Rejected the notion and shipped him away to Egypt.

But that didn’t stop God from giving wisdom to Joseph and making “him governor over Egypt and all [Pharaoh’s] household.”

Joseph was going to ascend to power and rule the land,
The only question was which land would he rule?
Because he was rejected he became ruler of Egypt.

And so we see the Suspension
(11-16) “Now a famine came over all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction with it, and our fathers could find no food. “But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers there the first time. “On the second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family was disclosed to Pharaoh. “Then Joseph sent word and invited Jacob his father and all his relatives to come to him, seventy-five persons in all. “And Jacob went down to Egypt and there he and our fathers died. “From there they were removed to Shechem and laid in the tomb which Abraham had purchased for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.”

Now here is the point.
WHAT IF JOSEPH’S BROTHERS HAD NOT REJECTED HIM?
Joseph was God’s chosen leader and Joseph
Would have risen to power in Canaan instead of Egypt.
(It was Joseph that turned Egypt into a powerhouse)

Remember the result of people coming to Pharaoh for help?
Genesis 47:20 “So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh, for every Egyptian sold his field, because the famine was severe upon them. Thus the land became Pharaoh’s.”

What if Joseph had stayed in Canaan?
Jacob would have owned it all, not Pharaoh

Israel’s decision to reject their leader cost them 430 years in Egypt.
Their blessing of inheriting the land was suspended for 430 years
Because they rejected the leader God had for them.

Not a high point in Israel’s history.
Let’s move on to Exhibit B

The Retailing of Joseph
#2 THE REJECTION OF MOSES
Acts 7:17-34

So Israel blew it and they were forced to spend 430 years in Egypt.
And these were not glory years.

(17-19) “But as the time of the promise was approaching which God had assured to Abraham, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt, until THERE AROSE ANOTHER KING OVER EGYPT WHO KNEW NOTHING ABOUT JOSEPH. “It was he who took shrewd advantage of our race and mistreated our fathers so that they would expose their infants and they would not survive.”
So the decision to reject Joseph was a bad one.
BUT GOD WAS GRACIOUS WITH HIS SELECTION ONCE AGAIN.

(20-22) “It was at this time that Moses was born; and he was lovely in the sight of God, and he was nurtured three months in his father’s home. “And after he had been set outside, Pharaoh’s daughter took him away and nurtured him as her own son. “Moses was educated in all the learning of the Egyptians, and he was a man of power in words and deeds.”

God raised up a new deliverer.
• A man “lovely in the sight of God”
• A man “educated in all the learning of the Egyptians”
• A man “of power in words and deeds.”

I mean this sounds more like a super-hero than anything else.
Moses was the super-deliverer for Israel.

And God raised him up to set his people free.
(23-25) “But when he was approaching the age of forty, it entered his mind to visit his brethren, the sons of Israel. “And when he saw one of them being treated unjustly, he defended him and took vengeance for the oppressed by striking down the Egyptian. “And he supposed that his brethren understood that God was granting them deliverance through him, but they did not understand.”

God called this Moses out to be a deliverer.
That is what Stephen meant by “it entered his mind”

Moses left the courts of Egypt and came to the aid of his countrymen.
He killed an Egyptian, “And he supposed that his brethren understood that God was granting them deliverance through him”

So once again God has selected Israel
And raised up a leader / deliverer.

And Israel should have understood, but they didn’t.

So here comes the rejection.
(26-29) “On the following day he appeared to them as they were fighting together, and he tried to reconcile them in peace, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren, why do you injure one another?’ “But the one who was injuring his neighbor pushed him away, saying, ‘WHO MADE YOU A RULER AND JUDGE OVER US? ‘YOU DO NOT MEAN TO KILL ME AS YOU KILLED THE EGYPTIAN YESTERDAY, DO YOU?’ “At this remark, MOSES FLED AND BECAME AN ALIEN IN THE LAND OF MIDIAN, where he became the father of two sons.”

And so once again raised up a leader and Israel rejected him.

And instead of leading the children of Israel,
Moses “became the father of two sons.”

Joseph could have led Canaan, but his retailing caused him to lead Egypt.
Moses could have led Israel, but his rejection caused him to raise boys.

A selection a rejection and so naturally a SUSPENSION.
(30-34) “After forty years had passed, AN ANGEL APPEARED TO HIM IN THE WILDERNESS OF MOUNT Sinai, IN THE FLAME OF A BURNING THORN BUSH. “When Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight; and as he approached to look more closely, there came the voice of the Lord: ‘I AM THE GOD OF YOUR FATHERS, THE GOD OF ABRAHAM AND ISAAC AND JACOB.’ Moses shook with fear and would not venture to look. “BUT THE LORD SAID TO HIM, ‘TAKE OFF THE SANDALS FROM YOUR FEET, FOR THE PLACE ON WHICH YOU ARE STANDING IS HOLY GROUND. ‘I HAVE CERTAINLY SEEN THE OPPRESSION OF MY PEOPLE IN EGYPT AND HAVE HEARD THEIR GROANS, AND I HAVE COME DOWN TO RESCUE THEM; COME NOW, AND I WILL SEND YOU TO EGYPT.’”

40 years.
What if they had listened to Moses immediately?
What if they had followed this 40 year old leader / deliverer?

But no, they rejected him and it cost them 40 more years of slavery
Until God showed grace again and sent him back to rescue His people.

And so there is yet another bad piece of history in Israel’s legacy.
They could have had the ruler of Canaan but they retailed him.
They could have deliverance from Egypt but they rejected him.

The Retailing of Joseph, The Rejection of Moses
#3 THE REPLACEMENT OF GOD AND HIS LAW
Acts 7:35-43

God sends a deliverer again.
(35-38) “This Moses whom they disowned, saying, ‘WHO MADE YOU A RULER AND A JUDGE?’ is the one whom God sent to be both a ruler and a deliverer with the help of the angel who appeared to him in the thorn bush. “This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in the land of Egypt and in the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. “This is the Moses who said to the sons of Israel, ‘GOD WILL RAISE UP FOR YOU A PROPHET LIKE ME FROM YOUR BRETHREN.’ “This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness together with the angel who was speaking to him on Mount Sinai, and who was with our fathers; and he received living oracles to pass on to you.”
So again God raises up a man “to be both a ruler and a deliverer”

• And this Moses “led them out”
• And this Moses performed “wonders and signs in the land of Egypt”
• And this Moses parted “the Red Sea”
• And this Moses “received living oracles to pass on to you.”

So even though they had rejected God twice
He still returned and took those people out from Egypt.

And this time, in order to show them how to live,
God gave them “living oracles” that they might know what He expected.

And so God selects again.
But you know the routine.

Here comes the REJECTION.
(39-41) “Our fathers were unwilling to be obedient to him, but repudiated him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt, SAYING TO AARON, ‘MAKE FOR US GODS WHO WILL GO BEFORE US; FOR THIS MOSES WHO LED US OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT — WE DO NOT KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM.’ “At that time they made a calf and brought a sacrifice to the idol, and were rejoicing in the works of their hands.”

What a statement!
• “unwilling to be obedient”
• “repudiated him” (refused to recognize or obey)
• “in their hearts turned back to Egypt”

They got out and once God gave them the Law
They chose Egypt and slavery over obeying God.

And then they replaced God.
“saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us…”

And you know all about the golden calf and the story that follows.
God sends them another deliver and again they reject it.

And so, again came SUSPENSION.
(42-43) “But God turned away and delivered them up to serve the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, ‘IT WAS NOT TO ME THAT YOU OFFERED VICTIMS AND SACRIFICES FORTY YEARS IN THE WILDERNESS, WAS IT, O HOUSE OF ISRAEL? ‘YOU ALSO TOOK ALONG THE TABERNACLE OF MOLOCH AND THE STAR OF THE GOD ROMPHA, THE IMAGES WHICH YOU MADE TO WORSHIP. I ALSO WILL REMOVE YOU BEYOND BABYLON.’”

Israel had an idolatry problem from that day onward,
Until the day that Babylon destroyed the temple.

What you may not have realized is that idolatry problem
Was a direct consequence of the decision they made at the foot of Sinai.
God gave them over to idolatry that day.

Romans 1 speaks of this type of thing.
Romans 1:21-25 “For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.”

This time Israel was suspended for over 800 years.

• Yes they entered the land.
• Yes they had a temple.
But they never had a truly intimate relationship with God
Because they always had idols that led them astray.

And so once again the blessed life in the Promised Land eluded them
Because they continually rejected those whom God sent to deliver.

They Retailed Joseph They Rejected Moses They Replaced God
#4 THE REVERENCE OF THE TEMPLE
Acts 7:44-50

Now this point begins to make a transition
To Stephen’s answer of the accusation against him.

Remember they accused him of blaspheming God,
Or rejecting the Law and of speaking against the temple.

The high priest wanted to know if it is true.

Stephen is just about to answer the question.

But first he comments a little on this temple that they are so fond of.

And the point here is that
They have completely missed the point of the temple.

Now here was the history of the temple.
(44-47) “Our fathers had the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as He who spoke to Moses directed him to make it according to the pattern which he had seen. “And having received it in their turn, our fathers brought it in with Joshua upon dispossessing the nations whom God drove out before our fathers, until the time of David. “David found favor in God’s sight, and asked that he might find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. “But it was Solomon who built a house for Him.”

And the clear point was that God always chose to dwell with the people.
This is selection once again.

You will remember that after the golden calf incident
The first answer was that I’m not going with them.
But Moses interceded and God agreed.

And so God did for Israel what He had never done for another nation.
• He dwelled in their midst.
• They had the tent of meeting.
• Eventually they had the temple.

And the whole point was that God was there.

BUT WHAT DID ISRAEL DO?
They forgot God and started to reverence the temple.

(48-50) “However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says: ‘HEAVEN IS MY THRONE, AND EARTH IS THE FOOTSTOOL OF MY FEET; WHAT KIND OF HOUSE WILL YOU BUILD FOR ME?’ says the Lord, ‘OR WHAT PLACE IS THERE FOR MY REPOSE? ‘WAS IT NOT MY HAND WHICH MADE ALL THESE THINGS?’”

The temple didn’t become the place of God’s presence,
It became a prison for God’s presence.

And the people started to reverence the temple like it was the treasure.

We all remember back in Jeremiah 7
When the people thought God wouldn’t judge them because
They had “the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord”

And they had turned God’s house into a “den of robbers”

They had so completely missed the point
That they had forgotten God in order to reverence the temple.

And so yet again we saw a rejection of God
Simply for love of the temple.

And this leads to Stephen’s answer.

The Retailing of Joseph, The Rejection of Moses, The Replacement of God,
The Reverence of the Temple
#5 THE REALIZATION THAT IT IS YOU
Acts 7:51-53

So here we are on trial.
The high priest looks at Stephen and says, “Are these things so?”

And Stephen answers, “I’m not the one blaspheming God and rejecting the Law and disregarding Moses – YOU ARE!”

You are the “stiff-necked”
• It was a phrase indicating one who would not bow down to God.
• They wouldn’t lower their head.
• They wouldn’t submit.

You are the “uncircumcised in heart”

Jeremiah told the people:
Jeremiah 4:4 “Circumcise yourselves to the LORD And remove the foreskins of your heart, Men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, Or else My wrath will go forth like fire And burn with none to quench it, Because of the evil of your deeds.”

It meant to remove the carnality of your heart.

These men had clean hands and dirty hearts.
They were dishes only clean on the outside.

You are the one with ears “always resisting the Holy Spirit”
And what a horrible way to be described.

Whatever God wants to do you are against it.

“You are doing just as your father’s did.”

HOW DOES HE KNOW THAT?

Because their fathers killed those who announced the Messiah
And they actually killed the Messiah.

(52-53) “Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become; you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it.”

And just like that Stephen turned that council on its head.
YOU ARE STILL KILLING GOD’S DELIVERER!
They were people with opportunity after opportunity
And yet they continually rejected their opportunity
And suffered the consequences of it.

See Joseph was a foreshadow of Jesus.
• A deliverer,
• Rejected by His brethren,
• Who one day would be their ruler and deliverer.

Moses was a foreshadow of Jesus.
• A man who left his home to deliver his people,
• Who was first rejected and then delivered.

And both of those men first went and delivered Gentiles
Before the returned to deliver Jews.

Joseph delivered the Egyptians
Moses fathered two sons by a foreign woman

And now Israel had done it again.
• The Millennium was ready…
• Times of refreshing could come…

But they rejected the Messiah
And now that blessing was once again suspended.
And Stephen let them know about it.

How did he deliver such a convicting sermon?
• He was filled with God’s Spirit
• He was a student of God’s Word

Certainly that is an example for us to follow.

But we would be remiss if we didn’t also take his sermon
And apply it to our own lives.

How foolish is it to have an opportunity from God
And then reject that opportunity?

Israel was given opportunity after opportunity to have a leader,
All they had to do was submit to God’s will through them,
But because they wouldn’t time after time the blessing was suspended.

So we today have a leader, it is the Holy Spirit.
He is the one that the religious leaders were “resisting”

And nothing good comes from that.
Don’t be “stiff-necked” don’t be “uncircumcised in heart”
And don’t have “ears [that] are always resisting the Holy Spirit.”

• Submit to God.
• Be filled with His Spirit
• Study God’s Word
• And be ready to give an account

1 Peter 3:15 “but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;”

Stephen: A Model Christian
Acts 6:8-15
May 27, 2012

We are now embarking upon
A bit of a transitional period in the book of Acts.

Up until the now the entire story
Has been about Peter’s leadership to the church in Jerusalem.

But you and I know Jerusalem was only intended to be the beginning.

Jesus said:
Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

It is clear that Jesus had far more in mind
Than just evangelizing the Jews in Jerusalem.

Certainly that city mattered, but so did the rest of the world.

Starting with our text tonight we are going to see
How Jesus began to thrust His church into the rest of the world.

And it all begins with an incident regarding the man named Stephen.

We have already been introduced to this man, earlier in chapter 6
As he was one of the 7 men selected by the congregation
And entrusted by the apostles to oversee the ministry of feeding widows.
And that is really all we know about him.

But in the next chapter
Stephen is going to be the first martyr of the church
And his death will cause the ministry of the church to change forever.

Acts 8:1-4 “Saul was in hearty agreement with putting him to death. And on that day a great persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. Some devout men buried Stephen, and made loud lamentation over him. But Saul began ravaging the church, entering house after house, and dragging off men and women, he would put them in prison. Therefore, those who had been scattered went about preaching the word.”

The incident with Stephen was clearly the incident in Luke’s mind
That catapulted the church into foreign missions.

Now, it is certainly not that the early church wasn’t mission minded.
But they were so focused on their own city they had yet to branch out.

The issue is that Jesus has bigger plans for the church
Than they had for themselves.
Jesus was about to spread this church out and not just reach Jerusalem,
But the rest of the world as well.
And the catalyst to get all this going was the rise and fall of Stephen.

And tonight Luke gives us a pretty good picture of Stephen.
And I really can’t do justice to the type of man Stephen was.

In my mind you won’t find a better example of Christian life than Stephen.
(Had he not been martyred early, there is no telling what he might have accomplished)

Before we dive into the sermon he preached and the death he died, Let me just sort of lift Stephen up as a model for you to examine.

For Stephen is in fact “A Model Christian”

There are actually 6 things I want to show you about Stephen tonight.
#1 A FULL MAN
Acts 6:8a
“And Stephen, full of grace and power…”

I don’t know how many times I’ve heard a believer pray it,
I’ve certainly prayed it, but it is not uncommon to hear someone pray,
“Lord empty me of me and fill me with You.”

It is a recognition of our own weakness, frailty, and carnality.
It is also a recognition of the Lord’s strength, power, and righteousness.

In reality it ought to be the mindset of every Christian every day.

We ought to realize the fallen nature of our flesh.
Romans 7:18-20 “For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me.”

The fact is clear that on our own
We are only beset with weakness and corruption and failure.

The only possible way for God to use a believer is if
That believer first dies to self and is raised again
In Christ’s likeness and filled with God’s Spirit.

• That is the only way a believer can glorify God,
• That is the only way a believer can make a difference,
• That is the only way a believer can accomplish anything.

Zechariah 4:6 “Then he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel saying, ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the LORD of hosts.”

The New Testament equivalent is: (as we saw this morning)
John 15:4-5 “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.”

And so the prayer to be emptied of ourselves
And filled with God’s Spirit is a perfect prayer of a believer.

And Stephen is a good example of one who not only desired to be filled, but was actually filled.

Here we read that he was “full of grace and power”

But if we remember last week we also read:
Acts 6:5a “The statement found approval with the whole congregation; and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit…”

Stephen didn’t just want to be filled with God’s Spirit,
Stephen WAS filled with God’s Spirit.

I don’t think I would be far off in saying many believers want to be filled,
But often fail to obtain it, where as Stephen did.

That is why Paul said:
Ephesians 5:18-21 “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father; and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.”

In that passage we learn that being filled with God’s Spirit is a command.
That means that achieving it is up to us.

It is no different than “love your neighbor” or “be holy”
It is a command we are supposed to obey.

“be filled with the Spirit”
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
HOW DOES IT OCCUR?

Well, first recognize the evidence that one is “Spirit-filled”
Their heart is filled with singing and they are filled with gratitude.

(That is not how to be filled, but it is evidence that one is filled)

Now let me show you an easier verse to get around.
Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

There we see the same fruit (singing and gratitude)
But the means to achieving it is different.
In Ephesians Paul said “be filled with the Spirit”, but to the Colossians he wrote “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you”

At once we realize that we are not dealing with something mystical.
It is not some sort of ecstatic experience.

It is something rational, something actual.

Let me give you another verse.
Galatians 5:16-17 “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.”

Someone would talk about walking by the Spirit
And it turns into some sort of experiential thing;

Some sort of mystical thing,
• Where you follow the voice in your head,
• Or the feelings of your heart,
• Or even the circumstances
• Or “signs” around you.

But that isn’t it at all.
Walking by the Spirit is merely where you follow His leading.

If being filled with the Spirit is to have Christ’s word in you,
Then walking by the Spirit is to walk in obedience to Christ’s word.

The word of Christ is contrary to the thoughts and desires of the flesh,
And throughout this life you have the choice of
Whether or not to do what the flesh desires or what the word says.
What you choose dictates how you walk.

SO HOW DO I GET FILLED?
“let the word of Christ richly dwell within you”

The Old Testament equivalent would be:
Psalms 119:11 “Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You.”

I always liked the KJV (“They word have I hid in my heart…”)

Now I know that it is a long way around to talk about Stephen,
But I want you to understand what it means when it says he was a man “full of…the Holy Spirit”

It merely means Stephen was a man who knew and obeyed God’s Word.
It was in him, and he died to self to obey it.

Let me take this a step further to let you identify with Stephen.
WHAT WAS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN STEPHEN AND THE REST OF THE APOSTLES; EVEN PAUL?

They were all eye-witnesses, sharing what they SAW.
Stephen was not, he was a disciple, sharing what he LEARNED.

In order for Stephen to share and preach like he does in chapter 7
And refute these men like he does here,
He had to be dedicated to letting God’s word dwell in him.

He was.
God’s word dwelled in him richly, he was full of the Spirit.

But that isn’t all he was full of.
Acts 6:5 also says he was “full of faith”
Acts 6:8 says he was also “full of grace and power”

1. “faith” indicates that Stephen was a man who trusted God.

2. “grace” what does it mean to be “full of grace”?

The only other person in Scripture said to be “full of grace” was Jesus.

John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

So for Stephen to be “full of grace” indicates that he walked like Christ.
Certainly Stephen had received grace, but Stephen also lived it.
He offered it. He was a gracious man.

3. He was also full of “power” and that is of course because he was full of the “Spirit”

Stephen had supernatural strength which is only supplied by the Spirit of God.

In short we would see Stephen as a model Christian.
He wasn’t a fleshly man, he was a spirit-filled man and it was evident.

He was a full man.
#2 AN ACTIVE MAN
Acts 6:8b

Here we find that this Spirit-filled man “was performing great wonders and signs among the people.”

This also is interesting seeing that Stephen was not an apostle.

There are only two men in Scripture who were not apostles, yet who were credited as working “signs” and “wonders” one was Philip and the other was Stephen.
All others were specifically assigned to the apostles,
They were even called the “signs of an apostle”
But it is obvious that God allowed Stephen to work them as well.

But what I want you to see even beyond that is that Stephen did do it.
He “was performing”

In short he was not a passive man he was an active one.

It does little good to be filled with faith and filled with the Spirit
And filled with grace and filled with power if you never do anything with it.

What good is it to know the truth and know the Scriptures
And be filled with the Spirit if you never put it into action?
Stephen wasn’t just a spiritual man, Stephen was an active man.

Now granted, if you aren’t filled with the Spirit
Then all the action in the world is pointless, it accomplishes nothing.

But if you are spiritual and then have no action,
That is pretty well pointless as well.

This is why the Scripture has so many of those action words we hang on.
• “Go and make disciples of all nations…”
• “Let your light shine before men…”
• “Preach the word, be instant in season and out of season…”
• “Give and it will be given to you…”
• “Be doers of the word and not merely hearers who delude themselves…”

Don’t just know it, do it.
• We are disciples, but we are also witnesses…
• We are believers, but we are also followers…
• We are the called, but we are also the sent…

I thought about the parable Jesus gave to the Pharisees.
(I realize we are overlapping a lot tonight)

Matthew 21:28-31 “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’ “And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. “The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go. “Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you.”

It is important that we put feet to our spiritual claims.

Stephen did.
He wasn’t just a man of faith, he was a man of action.

He took his spiritual filling and turned it into works of ministry.

A Full Man, An Active Man
#3 AN EFFECTIVE MAN
Acts 6:9

A few weeks ago we talked about understanding opposition,
And we said that one of the reasons Satan is so opposed to the church
Is because he is jealous of her popularity.

I think that is probably obvious here as well.
Stephen has gotten a little too popular…
Stephen is accomplishing a little too much…

And so opposition arises.
“But some men from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen, including both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and argued with Stephen.”

In regard to who all these people were, John MacArthur writes:
“The Freedmen were the descendants of Jewish slaves captured by Pompey in 63 B.C. and taken to Rome. They were later granted their freedom and a formed a Jewish community there. Cyrenians and Alexandrians were from two major cities in North Africah…Cilicia and Asia were Roman provinces in Asia Minor.” (pg. 193)

The synagogue from Cilicia would have been Paul’s home synagogue
Since he grew up in Tarsus which was in Cilicia,
Which explains why he was present, holding the coats at Stephen’s stoning.

What this shows us is that the fame of the church is spreading
For now their opposition doesn’t just come from Jerusalem,
But even Northern Africa and Asia have entered the fight.

There is serious opposition to Stephen
And the reason is because Stephen was successful.

Satan has no need in stopping a stagnant Christian.
Satan has no need of opposing an apathetic follower.
But he had to try to stop Stephen

So we Stephen was a Full Man, an Active Man, and an Effective Man
#4 A WISE MAN
Acts 6:10

And we just love that verse.
Stephen was a man filled with wisdom.

Just like people couldn’t handle the TESTIMONY of Peter and John,
Now they can’t handle the DEBATE of Stephen.

Stephen had wisdom.

And incidentally this should also be said of every believer.
James 1:5 “But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”

Furthermore wisdom is a bi-product of being filled with God’s Spirit
Since He is the Spirit of wisdom.

Isaiah 11:2 “The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.”

And because He is the Spirit of wisdom, we then obtain wisdom.
1 Corinthians 2:6-13 “Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; but just as it is written, “THINGS WHICH EYE HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD, AND which HAVE NOT ENTERED THE HEART OF MAN, ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM.” For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.”

Every believer ought to have wisdom and Stephen most certainly did.
He had wisdom because He was filled with the Spirit of God.

We all remember what Jesus said in Matthew 10:
Matthew 10:19-20 “But when they hand you over, do not worry about how or what you are to say; for it will be given you in that hour what you are to say. “For it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.”

Stephen was a wise man, namely because he was filled with God’s Spirit
And no one could handle him.

All you have to do is read chapter 7
And as I said, this is really impressive for him
Since he was not an eye-witness, but only a student.

• Stephen had spent time studying the Scriptures.
• Stephen had spent time letting the Holy Spirit explain them to Him.
• Stephen was a wise man as a result.

#5 A PERSECUTED MAN
Acts 6:11-14

And here we read of a tremendous attack that was handed to Stephen,
But it shouldn’t shock us for it was nearly identical to the attack on Jesus.
We see everything there.
Secrecy – “they secretly induced men”
Manipulation – “they stirred up the people”
Physical attack – “they came up to him and dragged him away”
False witnesses – “they put forward false witnesses”

Even the accusations made against Stephen
Resemble those made against Jesus.

“This man incessantly speaks against this holy place and the Law; for we have heard him say that this Nazarene, Jesus, will destroy this place and alter the customs which Moses handed down to us.”

Matthew 26:59-61 “Now the chief priests and the whole Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, so that they might put Him to death. They did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on two came forward, and said, “This man stated, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days.'”

Of course Jesus never said that.
What Jesus did say was that if they destroy the temple (His body)
He will raise it up again.

But with a twisted testimony Jesus was condemned and so was Stephen.

Undoubtedly Stephen had been teaching about the fulfillment of the Law in Jesus and no further need for all the sacrifices.

This teaching, coupled with the fact that Stephen was a Hellenistic Jew
Most certainly did not sit well with the people of Jerusalem.

WHY DOES THAT MAKE HIM A MODEL CHRISTIAN?
It speaks volumes to his faithfulness, holiness, Christ-likeness,
And doctrinal accuracy.

Throughout the Scripture, nothing indicates Christ-likeness
More than suffering for the name of Christ.

So much so that believers are told to count themselves blessed when it occurs.

Matthew 5:11-12 “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Peter said:
1 Peter 4:14 “If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.”

Paul said:
2 Timothy 3:12 “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”

That most certainly causes Stephen to be a model Christian.
He lived Christ so much
That it actually got him in trouble in the world around him.

For a Christian there is no higher form of glory
Than suffering for the name of Jesus.

Acts 5:41 “So they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name.”

That is why when Paul chose to give his resume to the Corinthians
As to why he was legitimate while the Judaizers were not…

• Paul did not give the number of church’s he planted…
• Paul did not give the number of baptisms he recorded…
• Paul did not give the number of professions of faith he received…

When Paul wanted to reveal that was undoubtedly a genuine follower of Christ, Paul listed his record of suffering.

2 Corinthians 11:22-29 “Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I. Are they servants of Christ? — I speak as if insane — I more so; in far more labors, in far more imprisonments, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches. Who is weak without my being weak? Who is led into sin without my intense concern?”

Suffering was Paul’s badge of honor, he would even tell the Galatians:
Galatians 6:17 “From now on let no one cause trouble for me, for I bear on my body the brand-marks of Jesus.”

Perhaps you could attack Paul in a lot of ways,
But not in regard to his devotion for Jesus. That was settled.

And it was also settled with Stephen, for he suffered for his faith,
He was persecuted, and this makes him a model Christian.

A Full Man, An Active Man, An Effective Man, A Wise Man, A Persecuted Man
#6 A GLORIOUS MAN
Acts 6:15

And this is really an astounding verse.
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
“his face [was] like the face of an angel.”

Well obvious that provokes images of glory to our minds.
Commonly in Scripture when angels appeared it caused as much fear over those they appeared to as the Lord Himself.
• Daniel
• John at the Revelation
• Mary or the shepherds

The reason is because Angels reflect the glory of God.
Matthew 18:10 “See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father who is in heaven.”

And by staring at the face of God
They begin to reflect and transmit His glory.

Remember how Moses had to put a veil over his face to keep from transmitting glory to the people, and all he saw was the back of God.

And Stephen’s face was “like the face of angel.”

Stephen’s face shown with the glory of God.
WHY?

Because Stephen was walking close to the Lord.
2 Corinthians 3:18 “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.”

This is just a spiritual reality,
But you can often tell when a believer is walking close to Jesus.
They look more and more like Jesus.
They radiate Him in a special way.
There is literally a glory about them.

• It doesn’t occur through church attendance…
• It doesn’t occur through laser treatment…
But it occurs when a person draws near to Christ.

Certainly Stephen had done that for he was filled with the Spirit.

And that is a model for other Christians to follow.
Draw near to Jesus and let Christ shine through you.

But I would also add in Stephen’s case
That it was more than even just walking with Jesus.

There is sufficient evidence that once Stephen was arrested
He was looking at Jesus.
We all know he is about to preach a powerful and convicting sermon, but remember the end of that sermon?

Acts 7:54-56 “Now when they heard this, they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him. But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”

Stephen wasn’t just walking with Jesus, Stephen was looking at Him.

And without a doubt the glory with which his life shined
Makes him a model Christian.

And we could go on with these attributes even into chapter 7 and say he was also:
• A Knowledgeable man – by reason of the sermon he preaches
• A Courageous man – calling the court “stiff-necked”
• A Convicting man – since they were all “cut to the quick”
• A Gracious man – praying for the forgiveness of his stoners

Stephen was a model a Christian,
Perhaps the greatest Christian who ever lived
And we certainly could follow his example.

• Be Filled with the Spirit
• Be Active in living your Spiritual life
• Be Effective in your ministry through the power of the Spirit
• Be Wise through the wisdom of the Spirit
• Accept Persecution as an indicator of Christ-likeness
• Let the glory of Christ shine through you by walking close with Jesus

That is how a Christian walks and lives.

Hebrews 13:7 “Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith.”

Certainly Stephen is a good place to start.