STEPHEN’S DEFENSE BEFORE THE SANHEDRIN
(Part I)
Acts 7:1-34
(Antioch Baptist Church: Wednesday, February 4th, 2026)
There are certain sermons that have been preached throughout church history that are considered “great”. Some examples are Johnathan Edwards’s sermon “Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God”, R.G Lee’s “Payday Someday”, and W.A Criswell’s “The Scarlet Thread Through The Bible”. The reason that these sermons are so powerful is because they are grounded in the Holy Scriptures.
The New Testament records several sermons that are exceptionally powerful and very important. The greatest sermon ever preached was delivered by the greatest Preacher who ever lived; I am referring to “The Sermon On The Mount” that was preached by the Lord Jesus Himself. Jesus also delivered another important sermon shortly before His Passion; we often refer to this as “The Olivet Discourse”.
Thus far in our study of Acts we have covered two noteworthy sermons that were preached by the Apostle Peter. The first was delivered on the Day of Pentecost and the other was preached at Solomon’s Portico. As we arrive in chapter seven we find another amazing sermon that was preached in Jerusalem. The man whom God used to deliver this sermon was named Stephen.
Stephen has been taken before the Sanhedrin and charged with blasphemy; speaking against the Temple, Moses and God. Attempting to cover everything that is recorded in Stephen’s sermon would be a monumental task. Though we cannot examine it all, I would like to consider the primary subjects that he presented in defense of his faith.
- Let’s look to the text and examine “Stephen’s Defense Before The Sanhedrin”.
It is likely that the high priest at this time was Caiaphas; the same high priest who presided over the unjust trial of Jesus. Upon hearing the charges leveled against Stephen, he asked him, “Are these things so?” (v1). This question opened the door for Stephen to make his defense and in the process he confronted the unjust actions of the Jewish people, indicted the religious leaders, and he provided ample evidence that Jesus is the promised Messiah.
In his remarks Stephen gives a brief history lesson concerning the nation of Israel. He speaks of Abraham, the patriarchs, Moses, and the apostasy of Israel. In the end, he declared that the leaders of Israel were guilty of resisting the Holy Spirit, killing the prophets, neglecting the Law of God, and rejecting Christ.
Stephen must have known how dangerous it would be to proclaim such a bold message aimed at the members of the Sanhedrin. If he had simply compromised and altered his message, perhaps his life would have been spared. This faithful servant of God was not concerned with his physical life; risking persecution and death, Stephen planted his feet and boldly preached the truth.
- As we join the crowd that was gathered we will hear:
STEPHEN’S REFERENCE CONCERNING THE LIFE OF ABRAHAM
Stephen begins by describing the origins of the Hebrew nation. It is important to remember that he has been accused of blasphemy. Perhaps his goal was to establish the fact that he believed in the very God that the Jews claimed to serve. He seeks to establish the fact that the Gospel of Christ is not opposed to Jewish history, traditions and doctrine; rather, it is the fulfillment of everything that had been handed down in the Law and through the prophets.
Stephen wants his audience to know that Abraham’s worship was acceptable to God even though it was not confined to a specific location. This was important because Stephen had been accused of speaking against the Temple. (Acts 6:13 “They also set up false witnesses who said, "This man does not cease to speak blasphemous words against this holy place and the law”).
Stephen sought to prove that Israel was favored by God before the formation of the Tabernacle or the building of either of their two Temples. This reality is illustrated in the life of Abraham. God called Abraham while he was in Mesopotamia and led him to Canaan. “The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran, and said to him, 'Get out of your country and from your relatives, and come to a land that I will show you' (v2-3).
After this amazing call, Abraham set out to obey the command of the Lord. Abraham obeyed God and journeyed to Haran and then on to Canaan. Verse four says, “Then he came out of the land of the Chaldeans and dwelt in Haran. And from there, when his father was dead, He moved him to this land in which you now dwell.”
Stephen goes on to say that God promised Abraham and inheritance. “And God gave him no inheritance in it, not even enough to set his foot on. But even when Abraham had no child, He promised to give it to him for a possession, and to his descendants after him” (v5)
Stephen declared that God predicted Israel’s bondage in Egypt. He said, “But God spoke in this way: that his descendants would dwell in a foreign land, and that they would bring them into bondage and oppress them four hundred years” (v6).
Though Israel would endure many years of bondage, God pointed to their eventual deliverance. Verse seven says, “And the nation to whom they will be in bondage I will judge,' said God, 'and after that they shall come out and serve Me in this place.'
Verse eight says that after God spoke to Abraham about these things He “gave him the covenant of circumcision”. The act of circumcision served to identify those who belonged to the physical and ethnical lineage of Abraham. This leads us to:
STEPHEN’S REFERENCE CONCERNING THE PATRIARCHS
Using facts that were recorded in the scriptures, Stephen proved that God fulfilled His promise to Abraham and the Patriarchs were born. (v8b and so Abraham begot Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot the twelve patriarchs.)
Having the benefit of hindsight, Stephen was able to declare that God had been faithful concerning His promises. Abraham was the father of the Hebrew nation and Stephen wanted his listeners to comprehend the fact that God’s relationship with Abraham predated the Law. This relationship was one of grace and faith. God appeared to Abraham and called him out. (This call was not based on anything good that he had done.) Abraham responded to God’s call by faith and this faith was evident in his obedience. Stephen’s accusers needed to know that Abraham was not justified because of his physical circumcision, because of his obedience to the Law, or because he kept certain rituals and ceremonies in the Temple
Again, when God called Abraham the Law had not been given and the Temple did not exist! Abraham was justified in God’s sight the same way that we are, by grace through faith. All of the religious activities that the Jews held to sacred came after the establishment of the Abrahamic covenant. As Paul would later point out in Galatians 3:6, “Abraham "believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness."
- After referencing the life of Abraham and the Patriarchs, Stephen moves on to the life of Joseph, one of Jacobs sons. Notice:
STEPHEN’S REFERENCE CONCERNING THE LIFE OF JOSEPH
Joseph is one of the most notable “types” of Christ presented in the Old Testament. Joseph’s rejection by his own brothers is a clear representation of the way that the Jews had rejected Jesus.
Stephen points out that God protected Joseph while he was a prisoner in Egypt. "And the patriarchs, becoming envious, sold Joseph into Egypt. But God was with him” and delivered him out of all his troubles” (v9-10).
Joseph was sold into Egypt by his brothers. But He was protected and even raised to great power by the mighty hand of God. Verses 10-16 show us that God established Joseph as Prime Minister over Egypt. Notice: v10b (God) gave him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house. 11 Now a famine and great trouble came over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, and our fathers found no sustenance. 12 But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent out our fathers first. 13 And the second time Joseph was made known to his brothers, and Joseph's family became known to the Pharaoh. 14 Then Joseph sent and called his father Jacob and all his relatives to him, seventy-five people. 15 So Jacob went down to Egypt; and he died, he and our fathers. 16 And they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem. Joseph’s brothers were driven to Egypt because of a great famine. Ultimately, the one whom the brothers had previously rejected became their savior.
The Jews that were listening to Stephen’s sermon knew the story of Joseph well; they also knew the horrific things that had happened to Jesus. Many of them had been consenting to and instrumental in the death of Jesus Christ. Rather than repenting of their deeds in response to the truth that Stephen preached, this angry mob hardened their hearts and intensified their persecution.
Moving on from Abraham, the Patriarchs, and Joseph, Stephen transitioned to the life of the very man his accusers had declared that he was speaking against. Notice:
STEPHEN’S REFERENCE CONCERNING THE LIFE OF MOSES
v17 "But when the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt 18 till another king arose who did not know Joseph. 19 This man dealt treacherously with our people, and oppressed our forefathers, making them expose their babies, so that they might not live.
Stephen had been charged with speaking blasphemous words against Moses. In his response to these accusations he declares that the people of Israel were actually the ones who were guilty.
On one occasion when the Jews sought to kill Jesus, He said to them – “Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you--Moses, in whom you trust. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?" (John 5:45-47).
The very men who professed to be so devoted to Moses and the Law, rejected the very One that Moses and the Law pointed to. Moses is the man whom God used to deliver the Law to His chosen people. He is also the one that God used to deliver the Children of Israel from the hand of Pharaoh and their bondage in Egypt.
In his defense, Stephen summarizes the life of Moses. He begins with Moses’ first forty years, which he spent in Egypt. (v20 At this time Moses was born, and was well pleasing to God; and he was brought up in his father's house for three months. 21 But when he was set out, Pharaoh's daughter took him away and brought him up as her own son. 22 And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds.)
Stephen goes on to reference Moses’ second forty years, which he spent in the Sinai desert. (v23 Now when he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel. 24 And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended and avenged him who was oppressed, and struck down the Egyptian. 25 For he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand. 26 And the next day he appeared to two of them as they were fighting, and tried to reconcile them, saying, 'Men, you are brethren; why do you wrong one another?' 27 But he who did his neighbor wrong pushed him away, saying, 'Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? 28 Do you want to kill me as you did the Egyptian yesterday?' 29 Then, at this saying, Moses fled and became a dweller in the land of Midian, where he had two sons.)
Finally, Stephen covers Moses’ final forty years, which he spent journeying towards Canaan. (v30 And when forty years had passed, an Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire in a bush, in the wilderness of Mount Sinai. 31 When Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight; and as he drew near to observe, the voice of the Lord came to him, 32 saying, 'I am the God of your fathers--the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' And Moses trembled and dared not look. 33 'Then the LORD said to him, "Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground. 34 I have surely seen the oppression of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their groaning and have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt." )
Dr. H.L Wilmington describes Moses’ life this way; “In the first forty years God Promoted Him, in the second 40 years God prepared him, and in the final 40 years God empowered Him.” .
If Stephen had stopped his sermon at this point, his life may have been spared. Nothing that he has said thus far could have been disputed by the religious leaders. There is nothing recorded in the first 34 verses of this chapter than any of those men would have took issue with. They may have even been sitting there nodding their heads in agreement.
These men were devout and well-studied in the Old Testament scriptures; so far all Stephen has done is present them with information that they already knew. However, in the following verses Stephen will transition into speaking about the rebellion of their Jewish ancestors and then conclude with a bold indictment of many who were in attendance (especially those who were part of the Sanhedrin.)
It is important for us to understand that there is a major difference in biblical knowledge and spiritual discernment. Those who were in attendance certainly had knowledge, they may have even possessed great wisdom, but clearly they did not have true spiritual discernment.
Upon hearing the message of the Gospel and the proclamation that Jesus is the Christ their hearts were hardened. This is exactly what led many of these same men to reject and crucify Jesus. God was patient, merciful and gracious enough to present them with the opportunity to repent and believe in Jesus for salvation. However, rather than repent they rejected the Gospel and intensified their rebellion, to the point that they killed Stephen because of the message that he preached.
There are multitudes of people in the world today who are no different than those who were in attendance as Stephen preached this bold message. They have varying degrees of biblical knowledge; some have a measure of wisdom but they lack spiritual discernment.
When we hear the truth that Stephen proclaimed we shake our heads in disbelief and ask, “how could these learned men not see that Jesus is the promised Messiah”. We often feel the same way when in personal evangelism we present the truth of the Gospel to someone and they refuse to repent and believe. It can be difficult and heartbreaking to see someone blatantly reject the glorious offer of salvation through Jesus Christ. It is especially frustrating when the one who refuses to surrender to Christ actually professes to believe what the Bible says. Many times these are people who are well studied and have a firm grasp of the truths contained within the scriptures. Again I say, they have knowledge but they lack spiritual discernment.
Once Jesus asked the Disciples who they believed that He was, in response Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16). Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 16:17).
The only reason we know God is because he has revealed Himself to us through the Holy Spirt. If it were not for the Spirit revealing the truth concerning Jesus Christ to us, we would be in the same condition as the lost people that we so desperately want to reach with the Gospel.
Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:14, “the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” He went on to say in 1 Corinthians 12:3, “no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.”
One can have immense Biblical knowledge and still die lost and in their sins. On the other hand, someone can have very little Biblical knowledge and be genuinely born again and assured of eternal life.
You may truly believe every single inspired word in the Bible, but if you refuse to surrender to the Lord Jesus, you are no better than the angry mob that killed Stephen; furthermore, you will suffer the same fate! It is imperative that you repent and believe in the Gospel and surrender to Jesus as Lord.
The Bible is filled with much hope for the unbeliever; in fact there is a wonderful example of this hope contained in this very chapter. In attendance that day was a man who had vast Biblical knowledge; he had been privileged to be discipled by one of the greatest Rabbis of his day named Gamaliel. Gamaliel’s young protégé was Saul of Tarsus and he was in hearty agreement when the angry mob came against Stephen and stoned him to death. Saul was likely more knowledgeable than most that were in attendance, however he lacked spiritual discernment. In one of the greatest acts of mercy and grace in the Bible, Jesus confronted him, saved his soul, changed his life and then used him to reach an innumerable multitude with the gospel.
Jesus can do for you what He did for Saul of Tarsus. Perhaps the Holy Spirit has revealed to you that you have been living your life with ample biblical knowledge but no spiritual discernment. You now realize that you have been professing Christ without truly possessing salvation, if so, I implore you to repent and believe in Him today. Learn from the example of the hard-hearted members of the Jewish High Council. Accept Jesus’ great offer of salvation and eternal life that we learn about in “Stephen’s Defense Before The Sanhedrin”.
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