Acts - 18

Acts - 18

Acts 6:8-15

Introduction

Sgt. 1st Class Paul Ray Smith could have retreated. But he did not retreat. Doing so would have allowed Iraqi troops to overrun an American aid station at the Baghdad International Airport. Instead, Sgt. Smith grabbed a rifle and continued fighting, single-handedly holding off over 100 enemy soldiers. When a fellow soldier shouted at Smith to take cover, Smith refused. He eventually suffered a severe wound and died at his post. Yet his efforts halted the April 4, 2003 assault.

Two years later, President Bush presented the Medal of Honor to Smith’s 11-year old son. Speaking of her late husband’s heroism, Smith’s widow commented, “Paul is showing the soldiers what it means to be a soldier.” The power of a good example is undeniable. The Army could produce thousands of pages of information about what it means to be a faithful soldier, and they do. But one example sums it all up.

The Bible offers much teaching. Hundreds and hundreds of pages showing what it means to be a faithful follower of the Lord Jesus. But helpfully, the Bible provides for us numerous examples. Some are good examples for us to follow, while others are bad examples for us to avoid. Either way, the power of a good example is undeniable. As we continue working our way through the Book of Acts, the narrative now turns to one of these good examples, an early follower of Jesus named Stephen.

We first meet Stephen at the beginning of Acts 6. There was an administrative problem in the Church regarding the daily food distribution to the widows in the Church. The Apostles designate seven men to take charge of the issue. First among those men is Stephen, described in Acts 6:5 as “a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit.” Of the seven men chosen for this ministry, we only know more details for two of them, Stephen and Philip. Because the narrative of Acts shifts now to follow how their ministries progress. Here is how Stephen’s ministry continues:

Acts 6:8-15 - 8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people.

9 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 were arguing with Stephen.

10 But they were unable to oppose the wisdom and the Spirit by whom he was speaking.

11 Then they secretly induced men to say, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.”

12 And they stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes, and they came up to him, dragged him away, and brought him to the Sanhedrin.

13 And they put forward false witnesses who said, “This man never ceases speaking words against this holy place and the Law;

14 for we have heard him say that this Jesus the Nazarene will destroy this place and alter the customs which Moses handed down to us.”

15 And fixing their gaze on him, all who were sitting in the Sanhedrin saw his face like the face of an angel.

TS - Even in this little section that merely gives us a glimpse into Stephen’s life and ministry, and introduces us to the context of what will happen over the next chapter or so, we already see that Stephen sets a good example for us to follow.

2 Timothy 3:12 - Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. The Bible promises that one of the results of living a godly life, of following Jesus faithfully, will be some form of persecution. How do you respond when that happens? Stephen shows us:

STAND YOUR GROUND (V. 8-10)

Though verse 5 already described him as “a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit,” we are now told in v. 8 that he is “full of grace and power.” This is obviously a pretty great guy. God has done a transformative work in his life. Remember, he is Greek (as his name tells us). So he comes out of a totally pagan background. He has worshiped false gods in the past. He has embraced a life of immorality. He has grievously offended God in too many ways to count. But God has saved him. At some point, and we don’t know when or how, but at some point someone told him of the grace available in Jesus.

Stephen understood his guilt before God and knew he could never please God on his own. So he placed his trust in Jesus Christ and his sins were forgiven. He received the indwelling presence of God the Holy Spirit. And not only did God remove his sin, God gave him some gifts. God gave him the gift of faith. God gave him a measure of wisdom (v. 10). God gave him miraculous power. V. 8 - And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people.

Apparently Stephen’s ministry expanded beyond administrating the daily food distribution to the widows in the Church. God had given him miraculous power to do ‘signs.’ Now remember, we’ve talked about this before. Not everyone was given power to do miracles. Only the Apostles and those on whom they Apostles lay their hands have miraculous power in the Book of Acts. Stephen is one of those men. And the purpose of those miracles is to prove the authenticity of the gospel message they are preaching. There is no completed NT that has any authority behind it yet. So the only way to prove that what they are saying is true is for their message to be accompanied by these miracles that show the endorsement of Heaven. This is why the miracles are called ‘signs.’

And even though it seems Stephen is just doing a great job and faithfully serving and doing some miracles, people aren’t happy with him and begin to rise up against him. What is their problem? It isn’t with the miracles. The entire account makes it clear they do not like his message. His teaching is the problem. So they try to shut him down.

V. 9 - But some men from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedman, including both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and were arguing with Stephen.

The Synagogue of the Freedman was a well-known group in Jerusalem, comprised of those who were once slaves but had earned their freedom. And it is an international group for sure…Cyrene and Alexandria are in North Africa. Cilicia and Asia are further north in the Middle East. All of them from a Jewish heritage, decide they don’t like what Stephen is saying and take it upon themselves to argue with him. They ‘rise up’ against him, signaling a sort of hostility. They argue. They debate. They dispute.

V. 10 - But they were unable to oppose the wisdom and the Spirit by whom he was speaking.

It didn’t work. They ‘rise up’ against Stephen, but Stephen is immovable. Like waves crashing against the rocky shoreline, it doesn’t move no matter how hard you hit it. Notice the shift in language here. They ‘rise up.’ That’s active. That’s offense. They initiate and come after him. But then we are told they cannot oppose him. Meaning Stephen is meeting the challenge head on. And now they are on the defensive. Stephen didn’t lay down at their challenge. He didn’t fear their questions and comments and walk away, tail between his legs. He was prepared to answer their questions. He was ready.

Jesus had predicted this very thing would happen. In Luke 12 and again in Luke 21, Jesus instructed his disciples that the religious authorities would drag them into courtrooms and dispute them. Jesus said not to fear that moment because He would give them the words to say because it would be a great opportunity for their testimony. Stephen certainly lives that out. Precisely because he does not cower in fear. He is not intimidated by questions and debate. He stands his ground.

This is the Bible’s continual instruction to us:

1 Corinthians 15:58 - Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

1 Corinthians 16:13 - Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.

Ephesians 6:10-13 - 10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the might of His strength.

11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.

12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.

13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.

We live in a weak culture surrounded by weak people. Weak because their lives are built on how they feel. That is easy. That takes no effort. Whatever you feel, however you feel, just do that. It is easy to live based on how you feel. It is hard to live based on what you know is right, regardless of how you feel. Strength is built as you work past your feelings and stand on the solid ground of truth. Power comes when you stand in opposition to something when it would be much easier to lay down, roll over, and let it go on by.

We need strong men and women who will stand up and fight for what is right. Who will resist the easy way and push back against the opposition. We need strong men and women who will live out the reality of 1 Peter 3:15 who are “always ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you.” Who will do the reading and the research. Who will study God’s Word. Who will think through the lies the world traffics in. Who will prepare a defense. Who will stand their ground without fear.

STAND WITH GOD (V. 11-15)

Standing your ground has consequences. They can’t oppose him to his face, so they scheme behind his back.

V. 11-14 - 11 Then they secretly induced men to say, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.”

12 And they stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes, and they came up to him, dragged him away, and brought him to the Sanhedrin.

13 And they put forward false witnesses who said, “This man never ceases speaking words against this holy place and the Law;

14 for we have heard him say that this Jesus the Nazarene will destroy this place and alter the customs which Moses handed down to us.”

The frontal assault failed, so they manipulate and fabricate. They “secretly induce” men to start the rumor mill. And it works. V. 12, they “stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes.” I don’t imagine it took much work to stir up the elders and the scribes. The Jewish religious leaders were already stirred up against these Christians. But notice the new detail…they stir up the people. So far when persecution came against the Church by the religious leaders, the people were on the Christian’s side. It was the Christian’s popularity with the crowds that had kept them alive. The religious leaders had not wanted to turn the crowds against themselves, so they had gone easy on the Christians. Now, that protection is removed. Now everybody is against them.

This leads to Stephen’s arrest and now a trial before the Sanhedrin. Notice how fast this happens. Before in Acts 4-5 there is a bit of a runway leading up to the persecution. Now it just turns on the dime. Public opinion has changed. The Church is now the enemy. Not only do they start the rumor mill, they drum up some false witnesses. They did this at Jesus’ trial as well. They got some guys to testify to things they had simply made up. That is the sad thing that can happen with a group of people…if you want them on your side, you just make stuff up.

ILL - Andy Andrews wrote a compelling little book in 2011 titled “How Do You Kill 11 Million People?” In it, Andrews asks a simple question…how did Hitler get away with it? How did he create a scenario where he was able, both directly and indirectly, to be personally responsible for the deaths of 11 million people? How do you get the power and the position to pull that off? His answer is as simple as his question. How do you kill that many people? You lie to them. It’s just that easy. Make promises you don’t keep. Tell them one thing and then do another. And make up for it by making more promises. If there is something you want, and the conventional ways of getting it are gone, you just make stuff up.

That is what they do here. They lie. They take his teaching, based on Jesus’ teaching, and twist it. Exactly what they did at Jesus’ own trial. They accuse Stephen of undermining the Jewish faith. V. 11 - We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God. V. 13-14 - This man never ceases speaking words against this holy place and the Law; for we have heard him say that this Jesus the Nazarene will destroy this place and alter the customs which Moses handed down to us.

Those are some strong accusations. Jesus did not speak against the temple and against the Law (the two most precious pieces of Jewish life). But He did say in Matthew 12:6 that someone greater than the temple has arrived. And he did say that the temple would be destroyed (Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 21) and that He would build it again in three days. They had scoffed at such ridiculous words. They had misunderstood Him. He was speaking of His body that would be killed, yet raised from the dead on the third day. And that now God’s presence would not dwell in the physical temple in Jerusalem, but in His own body called The Church. They didn’t like that.

Jesus had also said that He did not come to abolish the Law (Matthew 5) but to fulfill it. Jesus said that the OT Scriptures all found their fulfillment in Him. He is the completion of the Law. It spoke of Him. It pointed to Him. It promised Him. They didn’t like that either. The refused to believe Jesus was the centerpiece of the faith. Jesus said that He was the promised Messiah, the Anointed Ruler over God’s people. Jesus said He was God come in the flesh. They really didn’t like that.

Jesus was a threat to their way of life. He was a threat to their religion. Jesus tends to do that, doesn’t He? He tends to poke at the things in your life that are most valuable to you. Your comfort. Your money. Your independence. Even your religious views. He pokes at them. He challenges them. He confronts them. Until you see that He is the center of it all.

Here stands Stephen. Everyone is against him. Everyone is opposing him. And how does he react? V. 15 - And fixing their gaze on him, all who were sitting in the Sanhedrin saw his face like the face of an angel. He’s just sitting there. Smiling. Radiating the very presence of God. This points back to Moses in Exodus 34 who, after spending time in the presence of God on top of Mt. Sinai, came down to the people and his face was glowing. It was radiating the brilliance of God’s presence. It made the ancient Israelites so uncomfortable, they had him cover his face with a veil.

Stephen, in the midst of controversy, in the midst of opposition, is just gazing at God. And it shows on his face. This is a sign of divine vindication for Stephen. He is right; they are wrong. He is with God; they are against God. God is with him; God is against them.

If you are going to stand your ground, then you need to be prepared to stand alone. Your friends may not stand with you. Your family may not stand with you. But know there is always One who does. Stand with God. He always stands faithfully with His faithful people. Martin Luther - “God plus one is a majority.”

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

What will you do when the crowds turn on you? When your family opposes you? When your friends dispute you? Will you be ready? Will you be strong? Follow the example of Stephen. Stand your ground. Stand with God.