Acts 6:8, "And Stephen, full of faith[a] and power, did great wonders and signs among the people."
The key words here are full of faith and power. Stephen was a man moved by the Spirit’s leading to perform the miracles and signs that God wanted to do; too testify to His ministry through Stephen. Stephen was a willing vessel full of faith and the understanding of the working of the Spirit in His own life. Thus, God was able to move through Him freely, because He didn’t have hang ups or hold backs, but instead God moved through Him.
Stephen’s role in the congregation was not only in the operations of the congregation but also in the outward witness as we will see later. The faith and power in Stephen’s ministry was only in direct relation to his own outgrowth and development as a man of faith moved by the power of God. Hill, in his article Hellenists and Hebrews p.59; cf. also Richard, Acts 6.1-8.4; p.281 points out the Parrels between the passion of Yeshua and Stephen need to be enumerated: 1) Trial before high priest/Sanhedrin (Mark 14:53 and par./ Acts 6:12;7:1) 2) False witnesses (Mark 14:56-57; Matthew 26:60-61; not in Luke/Acts 6:13). 3) Testimony concerning the destruction of the Temple (Mark 14:58; Matthew 26:61; not in Luke/Acts 6:14). 4) Temple ’made with hands (Mark 14:58; not in Luke/Acts 7:48). 5) Son of Man saying (Mark 14:62 and par/Acts 7:56) 6) Charge of blasphemy (Mark 14:64; Matthew 26:65; not in Luke/Acts 6:11). 7) High Priest’s question (Mark 14:61; Matthew 26:63; not on Luke 22:67, ’they" Acts 7:1). 8) Committal of spirit (only in Luke 23:46/Acts 7:59) 9) Cry out with a loud voice (Mark 15:34=Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:37 and par/Acts 7:60). 10) Intercession for enemies forgiveness (Only in Luke 23:34/Luke 7.60)."
"Several things must be said about this list; however, two of the ten items are found only in Luke and Acts and nowhere else (no.8 and 10). Five of the ten items are found in Acts and in the other Gospels of Jesus death, but not in Luke’s Gospel. Here is compelling evidence that Luke had Acts in mind while writing his Gospel, and edited certain items out of his Markan source about Jesus; Passion, but wrote up the Stephen story using language reminiscent of the Markan Passion account! The end result in any case is to highlight the close parrels between Stephen’s end and that of Jesus. (Witherington, Ben: The Acts of the Apostles: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary; p.253).
It is time that we had a few Stephen’s in our congregations today, a people who were full of faith and power, not tossed two and fro by every, which doctrine which proceeds out of the mouth of the preacher. It is time that we studied the Word of God ourselves, and become full of faith and power in Him, and for His glory. Its time in a sense that we understand who we are in Him. God didn’t call us His children for no reason, and He certainly didn’t call us so that we wouldn’t do anything for His glory. Rather He paid the ultimate price so that we could have eternal life, and live for His glory.
Acts 6:9, "Then there arose some from what is called the Synagogue of the Freedmen (Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and those from Cilicia and Asia), disputing with Stephen."
The synagogue of the Freedmen where composed of Jews who were either formerly Roman slaves or the free children of Jewish slaves. Stephen debated with four international factions within this one synagogue, Cyrenian Jews from Libya, Alexandrian Jews from Egypt, Cilician Jews, and Jews of various provinces of Asia Minor.
The synagogue is said to have arisen during the Babylonian exile circa 586 BC, as a stopgap measure to keep Judaism alive absent the destroyed Temple. The local synagogues served as localized community centers for prayer and Torah study. As the conclusion of the exile, the returnees established local synagogues in Israel, and those who remained in the Diaspora continued regular meetings in their synagogues. It had proven a useful institution as a supplement to formal Temple worship.
Over time the synagogue has become as central to the Jewish community in Israel as the Temple itself, and even more so within the Diaspora. Synagogues served not only as community centers, but also as places of worship, prayer and preaching. They provided gathering places for the celebration of social occasions and the debating of contemporary and political issues. In addition and perhaps most critically the synagogue functioned as schools for the theological education of Jewish adults, children and prospective proselytes. The synagogue was situational most often near water to facilitate the Jewish ritual baptism (mikvah in Hebrew and baptisma in Greek).
It is important for us to understand the role of the synagogue in the early 1st century. "Luke mentions the synagogue nineteen times in Acts which indicates the incontrovertible role the institution played not only in Jewish cultural life, but also as a medium for the propagation of the gospel. Indeed, one may only speculate at the magnitude of the task the apostles, Paul in particular would have faced in sharing the gospel without the multitude of previously established synagogues strewn throughout the Roman Empire (Flavius Josephus, the Works of Jospheus: Complete and Unabridged (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1996), Ant. XIV, vii2.)
Acts 6:10, "And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke."
Luke 21:16, For I will give you a mouth and wisdom that none of your oppents will be able to withstand."
Stephen was filled with the Spirit, and understood who He was in Yeshua (Jesus). As a result of this God spoke through Him with wisdom which comes from Him. When we are in Him, He will use us to further His kingdom purposes. God has a now word for us, and that word is His Wisdom that can seep into every fabric of our lives. We must yield to His leading and control in order to let others also experience the wisdom and anointing of the Lord’s voice. We must be the vessel from which God can and will move through. The people around Stephen couldn’t resist the logic and authority Stephen spoke out against them, because it was the Spirit speaking through Stephen.
Acts 6:11, "11 Then they secretly induced men to say, "We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God. And they stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes; and they came upon him, seized him, and brought him to the council. 13 They also set up false witnesses who said, "This man does not cease to speak blasphemous[b] words against this holy place and the law; 14 for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs which Moses delivered to us."
Witherington rightly points out, "These are in essence false charges, and Stephen intends to present his own true witness, not answer someone else’s trumpeted up charges. We have here a battle of witness-the false one’s verses the true one, whose integrity and witnesses are maintained and demonstrated even at the price of his life."
As will be seen later in our examination of Acts 7 the basis of the argument on those accusing Stephen’s was the implication that following the resurrection and exaltation of Yeshua, the Law of Moses had been rendered inoperative by the New Covenant. Needless to say if the obedience to Torah’s legal code were no longer needed, the convoluted oral law of the Pharisees would then be complexly void. The implication then that the Temple worship of God was no longer in need or relevant was to much for these leaders. The Mishnah records that blasphemy was the improper utterance of the covenant name of God, YHWH (Mishnah Sanhedrin 6:4). It is also possibly; however that their was a broader definition of blasphemy as recorded in Numbers 15:30, ""’But an individual who does something wrong intentionally, whether a citizen or a foreigner, is blaspheming ADONAI. That person will be cut off from his people."
The implication that someone not only preaching against the Resurrection but also against the law in Israel was indeed a courageous act by Stephen, for the Sadducees despise the Pharisees regarding the doctrine of the Resurrection, and the Pharisees were extremely stringent on the law. Therefore, having offended both parties Stephen was at the mercy of the mob, but God was still in charge. The accusations centered on blasphemy against Moses (Acts 6:11), blasphemy against God (Acts 6:11), threatening the Temple (Acts 6:13-14), and challenging the Torah (Acts 6:13-14).
Ger points out, "These accusations which concerned the foundations of Judaism itself-God, Moses, Torah and Temple- had broad appeal; there was something here to inflame everyone equally. The Sadducees would react to the Temple accusation, the Pharisees to the one concerning Torah, and the accusations regarding God and Moses would likewise enrage both groups. The allegations made against Stephen read like a greatest hit list for Jewish heresies. Furthermore within a nation that would not have grasped the concept of "separation of church and state," Stephen’s aberrant teaching would strike the people not only as theologically scandalous but also downright unpatriotic.
The crime of false witness warranted the death penalty (Mishnah, makkot 1:5). The validity of these witnesses aren’t valid in Luke’s eyes however, for these witnesses not only misunderstood, but were driven by power hungry theologies which did not find root in love, but in jealousy. Luke is going on the basis of Stephen’s defense of the faith before the Sanhedrin (Acts 7), yet this examination reveals a committed Jew who not only had high regard for both Moses and the Temple, yet with an appropriately realigned perspective relative to the Messiah’s accomplishment’s regarding salvation. Stephen’s public preaching probably had a great deal in common with the argument of the Book of Hebrews: contending Jesus’ superiority to every revered Jewish institution, including Moses, Torah, and the Temple. Yeshua Himself claimed to be greater than the Temple (Matthew 12:6). Stephen citied his Lord’s claim as well as Yeshua’s prophecy of the Temple’s imminent destruction (Luke 21:6), which had also been twisted out of context by the false witnesses who had accused Yeshua (Mark 14:58). Stephen stood in good company. When we know who we are in Him it will inevitable cause conflict with a sin stricken world. The Lord told us that we would encounter such disgrace for His name, but it’s only when we have yielded to His leading and power in our lives. Its time that we did speak out against the society that we live in, but stand upon the Word of God while doing so. Stephen did not teach anything contrary to what the Apostles laid down as taught by their Master Yeshua.
For a Jew like Stephen to speak out against Moses and God would be a high crime according to Jewish law. To speak out against Moses was like someone speaking out against your favorite teacher, professional athlete or someone you really cared about. To the Jew life revolved around Torah, which Moses wrote, so the charge carried signifanct basis for offense of the people, but to speak out against God as well was a direct attack against Judaism which believed in the One True God-Adonai. Here then we have a set up by power hungry people who induce the people to say what they will. We have here a situation of mind control and manipulation by those who don’t like the fruit of Stephen’s ministry. What we encounter here is Jealousy in the world. We encounter a people who are power hungry, and don’t want to lose their power, even though God’s fingerprint is right in the midst of it all.
Acts 6: 15 And all who sat in the council, looking steadfastly at him, saw his face as the face of an angel."
Stephen’s face changed as he witnessed of the name of the Lord. This change took a physical manifestation so much that his face shun reminiscent as Moses, whose face brilliantly reflected his encounter with God at Sinai (Ex 34:29-30). Here now we are confronted with Stephen being prepared to confront the people who arose against him. Yet here we have a verse in which we can see in which God is preparing His servant by reflecting the physical manifestation of an inward work of the Spirit. Stephen was endowed with the divine presence of the Lord and now prepared to speak the authorative Word of God to God’s people, whither they are spiritually prepared to receive it or not.
It must be duly noted before we close the nature of the congregation in relation to what we have discussed today. There are many in the congregation who have "risen" up against men and women of God who God has ordained to speak His Word just as Stephen did. These people are the one’s who cause the problems in our congregations who are the backbiters, mockers and deceivers who wish to tear apart, and make people feel like they are all that, or in other words holier than thou. There are still many like the Diaspora Jews today in our congregations who wish to have a form of godliness but deny the power to live the life God wants them. It is easy to say you are a believer, but much harder to live the example of one.
Here then we see quite the contrast between a man of faith, and power in His Spirit and then the Diaspora Jews who lacked the power and the testimony to contradict Stephen’s statements. What is the real issue? The issue was they wanted to hide behind others, because they were jealous of what God was doing through Stephen and the other early leaders. So far in our study of Acts we have seen the Apostles be persecuted through a warning, a flogging and in the case of Stephen death. This shows us that those who are power hungry lack the power to hold the power, and those who are weak are those who are truly the one’s who are powerful. Those who are servants of Him are those who are meek, mild, and humble enough to realize that they do not wield a power of their own making, but the power of the Spirit to shine forth as lights to a world that needs it.
It is high time brothers and sisters that our faith caused others to rise up in jealousy of us as was the case with Stephen. It is time for a few believers to rise up and say, "I will not do the pew game", and I will not just sing the songs. It is time that we all rose up and did the work He has called us to do. It is time that we let the Spirit move through our congregations to change the hearts, and minds of those who otherwise might never know of the riches of His grace and mercy. It is time that Spirit moved in our lives, and throughout our congregations and ministries. It is time for a good old fashioned revival in our congregations and our world. It is time that believers (all of us) looked inside of us and asked ourselves, are we (believers) provoking others to question where they stand on issues in relation to God, and His Word. Are we causing others to be jealous because of what we have? An old song by Newsboys goes like this, "Make them wonder what you got." Its time brothers and sisters that we made them wonder what we got. Its time that we got down, into the trenches, like Stephen did, in our congregations and our world, and shine forth the Light of His Word, and be ready to count the cost of following hard after Him in our sin stricken world.
Perhaps today you don’t know Him, or think you do. Is your life a living example of what God is doing now? Are you thinking you’re serving God? Are you mindful of not lying and cheating to others? The Bible teaches us that sin is sin, and sin is a direct affront to God’s holy character. Psalm 5:4, "Psalm 5
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O God, you take no pleasure in wickedness; you cannot tolerate the slightest sin. 1st Peter 1: 13 Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 14 as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; 15 but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 because it is written, "Be holy, for I am holy."[c] 17 And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; 18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. 20 He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you 21 who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God."
May we all be mindful that the witness that Stephen gives us, even in the midst of such a great persecution based upon false witness, and lies, that the testimony of the Lord is sure and strong. Let us as believers be those who have counted the cost of living our lives for self, and for our own glory, but now only desire to have Him live/breathe through us so that we can minister to those who are broken and help them to find/know Him. Let us empty all that we are into a bowl, and throw the bowl with all of its contents to the ground to shatter. Its time that we let God live through us by His Spirit and minister to others through His power as Stephen did. Its time that we caused others to rise up against us, because His Word is the Word of Truth. If more people in our world would only see the grace of God perhaps today including in America we would have more people who were being persecuted, so that the congregation would go ablaze and not lukewarm for the Gospel. Its time for a few more Stephen’s to step up to the plate, and hear the Word of God calling from the east to the west, to move in the unction and authority of the Spirit. Its time that we let the Spirit minister unto us, so that we can walk in the authority of the Spirit, and not under the bondage of man. Its time that we case ourselves upon Him whose life is now in us.
John 15: 18 "If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20 Remember the word that I said to you, ’A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me. 22 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. 23 He who hates Me hates My Father also. 24 If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father. 25 But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, ’They hated Me without a cause.’[c]"
Psalm 11
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The LORD examines both the righteous and the wicked. He hates everyone who loves violence.
Psalm 5:6
You will destroy those who tell lies. The LORD detests murderers and deceivers.
Give your life unto Him today, and let Him breathe and move in your life today. If you haven’t received Him into your life today, all you must do is confess/ and believe in your heart in what He did on the Cross to give you new life through His resurrection and He proved it by Ascending to the Right hand of the Father. If you did that or made a recommit to Him today, praise God, the angels in heaven are rejoicing. Let us all come humbly before His throne, and ask Him to fill us with His Spirit so that we can be a people full of faith and the power of God may rest upon us so that we can win the world for Him, for His glory and praise.
In Him, I live/breathe/move for His glory, and praise,
Pastor Dave
