The Fruit of a Faithful Servant

Introduction

Background: There are two points of emphasis that we have seen in the opening stages of the book of Acts.

There is the growth of the church.

God has established His church, God has protected His church when He dealt with Ananias and Sapphira. God has emboldened HIs church as they continue to preach regardless of circumstances. We see God in these opening chapters continue His redemption of the entire world.

We see the increasing persecution of the church.

Every time you experience trouble in life, it’s an opportunity to allow the grace of God and His plan for humanity to shine through. We have seen persecution taking place in the early church, and we are about to see a persecution take place that is going to spread the Gospel from Jerusalem and Judea into Samaria, and from Samaria to the ends of the earth.

I told you last week that God’s work will not be stopped, and even when it seems like evil is winning, we have to remember that God is guiding us all by His sovereign hand. He is using every ounce of pain, and He is using every ounce of sin to bring people to Him and to bring this world to a close.

Context:

Church Growth

In chapters 6 and 7, the things that take place are nothing short of monumental. The church is growing at such a rapid pace that the Apostles are being bogged down by ministry and food distributions. These Apostles are called to preach and to disciple, they cannot be bogged down by serving tables, so they establish the office of deacon to help in the ministry of service.

The First Martyr - “The Victor’s Crown”

Not only do we see the ministry of the deacon established, we see the first Martyr, the deacon Stephen. Now the name Stephen means “the victors crown”. What you need to take from that is when it seemed like Stephen lost, he was the victor. When a Christian dies, it seems like all is lost, but we live in victory over death.

Saul - Paul

The man who ordered this martyrdom was none other than Saul, who would become the Apostle Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles.

Jesus Rejected One More Time by Israel

Perhaps the most significant detail in these two chapters is this next rejection of salvation for these Jewish leaders. Because they rejected Jesus, as God knew they would, the Kingdom of God is getting ready to spread to the Gentile nations. You need to remember this principle about God, that He does everything according to order, and He allows everything to come to completion before He enacts judgement.

This doesn’t mean that Gentiles couldn’t be saved at this point in history, it simply means that God made the promise of salvation to Israel first, and promised that from Israel He would save the world. When Jesus gives His Great Commission in Matthew 28, He gives the pattern for this….He says you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and then Judea, Samaria, and then to the ends of the earth.

In this particular rejection of Jesus Christ by Israel, the commission of Jesus is being finalized, and they will be His witnesses unto the ends of the earth.

Now there is a lot packed in here, but the focus of today’s message is on the man named Stephen. Even though he was be brutally murdered because of his faith, he won the victory. He is in Heaven with riches untold because of his faithfulness. From these chapters, we are going to see four truths about Stephen’s heart. And if you will strive you have these Godly characteristics in your own heart, you will accomplish many things for the Kingdom of God. Things that you never thought possible.

I. The Heart of a Servant

We see a need arise

Acts 6:1 NKJV

Now in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a complaint against the Hebrews by the Hellenists, because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution.

This was a great need. The church is growing at record speed, and the Apostles are being bogged down by complaints and by ministry needs.

There are two groups here.

The Hebrews

The Hellenists

The Hebrews are what we are going to call the hometown Jews. The Hellenists are Greek-Speaking Jews. These Greek Speaking Jews have come from all over back to Jerusalem, and the complaint is that their widows are being discriminated against by the Hebrews.

This is very serious. Discrimination in any form is serious. This is getting serious enough to where the church is in danger again.

One danger we saw the early church face was concerning the love of money and the deception of its members.

The danger we are seeing now is the danger of favoritism. That is, not allowing those who are new to the church and to the community in on the love and affection of the church.

Sometimes churches now behave like that. The church will change, new life will come, but because of the newness, there is conflict, and how we deal with conflict will make or break this church.

A New Plan/Servants Selected

The Apostle’s are then tasked with taking over this distribution to make sure its done fairly. The Apostle’s get together, and they say, “Guys, now wait a minute. Our job is to administrate the church, to preach the word, and to disciple these new converts, we can’t neglect our job to take on this new one.”

In response to that, they come up with a new plan.

Acts 6:2–4 NKJV

Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables. Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business; but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

Look at how they selected these men.

Look in v. 3 and I want you to tell me what it says

Does it say popular? Does it say degreed? Does it say able to sing? Does it say important?

No, it says “good reputation”, and full of the Holy Spirit and Wisdom.

What is a good reputation? They show up to church, they show up to serve, they love people, they’re not bullies, and they have high moral character, as in you can trust them and take them at their word, and they are at peace with the people around them.

What is it to be full of the Holy Spirit?

Galatians 5:22–23 NKJV

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

highlight the issue of self-control

People full of the Holy Spirit will have signs of the Holy Spirit. This isn’t a special class of people…in fact, people who think they are a special class and think they are superior are full of themselves, not of the Spirit. Full of the Spirit = Empty of Self.

Then it says and wisdom

Now wisdom is different than intelligence and its not the same thing as knowledge. Someone who is wise is able to take the principles in the Bible and make good decisions even in new situations. Someone with knowledge and no wisdom is destined to fail because they cannot apply what they know to the situation at hand.

Age doesn’t necessarily equal wisdom.

What are the qualities that Stephen possessed that got him noted and promoted?

Qualities of a Servant

In v. 5-7 we see they they select a few men here, but we are going to place and emphasis on Stephen.

The Bible says that he is full of the Spirit, full of wisdom, and has a good reputation.

I was talking to Tim Keenum the other day sharing that we are looking for a youth minister. We started talking about the lack of qualified men in the ministry and in churches…and when we got our brilliant minds together down there at the Steak and Biscuit, here’s what we came up with.

1. Servants don’t have to be told to show up to church or Sunday School…they just do.

2. Servants don’t have to be asked to be involved in ministry…they just are.

3. Servants don’t have to be in charge…because it’s not about them its always about other people.

The reason Peter and John had standards for leadership in that day is the same reason why we have standards for leadership in this day. In the church, there are a bunch of pseudo-servants. They’re pretenders. They act humble, they talk humble, but if you place them in charge they can really mess the place up. They’ll stop the work of God, they’ll alienate people because of their attitudes, they’ll let titles and positions in the church go to their head.

What a person with the heart of a servant will understand is that every operation of the church is important.

Moms, do you agree that Kid’s church and nursery is important.

Folks, don’t you agree that light bulb changers are important?

Every body wants to be singers, teachers, deacons, and preachers, but you shouldn’t be a singer, teacher, deacon or preacher until you are a light bulb changer.

These men, these deacons, these servants, were selected because nothing was about them, everything was about other people.

Why they were selected

These men were selected so they wouldn’t show favoritism to the hometown Jews. These men were selected because they were trusted to administrate the money. These men were selected because they would listen to the Apostles, they would take their instruction, and they were just there to lend a helping hand.

If you want to make a difference in the Kingdom of God…if you want God to establish you in leadership…if you want to do it the right way…

1. You have to be biblically humble.

2. You have to be biblically wise.

3. You have to have the heart of a servant.

1 Peter 5:6 NKJV

Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,

These men didn’t select themselves, they were ordained and called by God…confirmed and ordained by the Apostles.

Which means that these men were serving like deacons before they got the title of deacon.

Now, what kind of impact can a servant make?

Acts 6:7 NKJV

Then the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith.

II. The Heart of a Witness

Not only did Stephen have the heart of a servant…Stephen had the heart of a witness.

Acts 6:9–10 NKJV

Then there arose some from what is called the Synagogue of the Freedmen (Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and those from Cilicia and Asia), disputing with Stephen. And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke.

If you want to impact the Kingdom of God, you need to be a servant and a witness.

More than waiting Tables

Do you see the initiative Stephen took?

He didn’t just say, “Well, I’m just a lowly servant, I have no power, I can’t do anything of value…I’ll just sit here and get spoon fed sermons by the Apostles. Here you go, here’s your daily distribution.”

He didn’t act like that…and that’s not humility, that’s called poor mouthing.

Acts 6:8 NKJV

And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people.

Stephen got out in the street and he was a witness of the power and authority of Jesus.

His witness was so powerful, his words were so spirit filled, that the people there couldn’t resist him.

He was so tenacious in his study and his witness that he suffered the same persecutions as Jesus and as the Apostles. They come, they seize him, and they put him on trial.

Acts 6:11–15 NKJV

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. They also set up false witnesses who said, “This man does not cease to speak blasphemous words against this holy place and the law; for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs which Moses delivered to us.” And all who sat in the council, looking steadfastly at him, saw his face as the face of an angel.

And look what it says in v. 15…his face was as the face of an angel.

In the Kingdom of God, who you are is the only thing that matters. What you are doesn’t matter.

I’ll take a light bulb changer full of the Spirit over a business admin or a supposed theologian any day.

I’d actually make the argument that the light bulb changer full of the Spirit understands more about the Bible than the theologian void of the Spirit.

Adrian Rogers says it like this, “Seminaries and pulpits are full of men with Bibles under their arms and sin in their hearts.”

Just because you know what the Bible says, doesn’t make you Spiritual. Doing what the Bible says makes you spiritual.

Stephen was so full of the Spirit, this nobody, this servant of tables, was so full of God’s power, that when they looked at him, his face was shining like the face of an angel.

Who else had a face like and angel and what was taking place? Exodus 34:29

Exodus 34:29 NKJV

Now it was so, when Moses came down from Mount Sinai (and the two tablets of the Testimony were in Moses’ hand when he came down from the mountain), that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone while he talked with Him.

Moses had an encounter with God, and his face was shining.

Stephen was so full of the Spirit that the glory of God was radiating from him.

I’m not saying that its possible for us to have our face glowing from God, but I’ve heard testimony that when Billy Graham came into a room and made eye contact with you, it’s like he was looking through your soul. I believe in the anointing of God, I believe in this power from God, but I also believe that it only comes when a man or woman is completely pure and holy before the God of the universe.

So Stephen has the heart of a servant, and he has the heart of a witness.

III. He had the heart of a Scholar

In Acts 7:1-53 Stephen recounts the history of the nation Israel. He talks about Abraham, he talks about Moses, and then he moves to David and Solomon. His point is to unravel the mystery of the Gospel, and to teach the people about God and His presence.

John 4:23–24 NKJV

But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

This is what Stephen is telling them, that God doesn’t dwell in places made with hands, that we have to worship God in our inner man. He is saying to them that we need the Spirit of God to be in us, and we are the temple of God. Not some building.

People treat the church like that, they say the church is the “house of God.” No friend, you are the house of God. This is where God’s people gather and worship Him together.

Worshipping God together is commanded in Hebrews. Coming to church and gathering is a biblical command.

but church, let’s say we gather down there at Hatton football field to celebrate Jesus. Are we any less of a church there? Absolutely not. Let’s say we meet with each other in houses. Are we any less of a church there? If you believe that then you disagree with the early church that exclusively met in houses.

If we gather together at any place, we are still the church, because the building is not the church, we are the church.

I hear people use this kind of logic sometimes.

“You can’t say that at church!” or, “We can’t listen to that kind of music at church!” Well , if it’s inappropriate to do, say, think or watch at church, it’s inappropriate for you…because you are the church.

That’s not legalism, that’s just basic biblical principle, logic, and obedience.

Notice some things here about Stephen and having the heart of a scholar.

Unashamed and Unafraid

Stephen was riding solo. He wasn’t afraid of criticism for his beliefs. He wasn’t ashamed of Jesus in any way, shape, form, or fashion. He was completely unashamed of the Gospel of Christ.

Romans 1:16 NKJV

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

Church, how can we be an effective witness, how can we be a servant of God, if we are embarrassed to say, “I am a Christian, I live by Godly principles, and I don’t care who knows it.” How can we be? We can’t.

He was unafraid.

This was a bad situation. They have already beaten the Apostles for what Stephen was doing. They have already threatened the church. Stephen didn’t care. He was unafraid.

Why was he unafraid?

He was unafraid because he had boldness that came from God. He was full of the Holy Spirit and he was sure that he was on the right track. If you find yourself presented with an opportunity of any kind, whether its witnessing, purchasing, or any other decision and you find yourself unsure…you need to go back and make sure you are filled by the Holy Spirit, you need to seek council from other people that are full of the Spirit.

He was able to stand tall because he was standing on the promises of God. Amen.

Practiced and Prepared

Some people have this mentality. “If I just show up, God will tell me what to say.”

Alright fine, if that’s the case then I want you to sign up, and next week when you get here, I’ll give you a subject, and I want you to preach on it for 40 minutes.

the subject could be axiology, soteriology, pneumatology, or ecclesiology.

you won’t know what the subject is, I’ll tell you right before you get up there and you’ll run the service and preach it.

That’s a horrible mentality. I do know some men that could probably do that, but none of them are in this room.

Stephen was practiced, and he was prepared.

This wasn’t the first time he unraveled the scripture. He was avid in teaching and preaching of God’s kingdom. He practiced on 100s of people before he was ever in this situation.

If you want to be a teacher or a preacher, before you preach or teach in here, you need to preach and teach out there.

When I show up to preach, I show up prepared, and I showed up practiced.

To me, this pulpit is the highest honor and privilege, and I don’t take it lightly.

However, it’s nothing for me to share the gospel with a sinner. I can rattle it off at a moments notice, I can share with anyone because I have the confidence, the practice, and the preparation.

Now listen to me, I can do that, but if I did it empty of the Spirit it doesn’t do any good. If I preach, teach, or witness without first having a servants heart, and without first having the filling of the Holy Spirit, it’s no good. You have to have it all.

This is part of Stephen being prepared.

He was a servant, he was full of the Spirit, he was a faithful witness, and because of all these things that God accomplished in him, he was prepared for the stage. He was prepared in more ways than just knowledge, and he was prepared in something more important than his knowledge.

Stephen was prepared in his character.

I’ve heard it said like this 1,000 times, “if you want to see what a man is made of, just squeeze him and see what comes out.”

Stephen was squeezed, and what came out was a message that was filled with the Spirit.

If he wouldn’t have been prepared in his character, there’s no telling what would have come out.

The big issue with becoming a deacon, a leader, or a teacher before you are ready is that you aren’t prepared in either your character or your love for other people. It’s just that simple.

1 Corinthians 13:1 NKJV

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.

Don’t tell me about your qualification until you show me your love. Amen?

Having the heart of a Bible scholar means to have boldness that comes from God, it means practicing what you know it right, and it means being prepared in your character to handle the challenges of life.

Articulate and Knowledgeable

Once you have God’s blessing and filling, and then once God develops your character, then you can begin to articulate your knowledge.

Stephen knew the history of Israel.

He rightly applied the Bible to the situation and to the leaders

He spoke with conviction and with boldness

And he used God’s word to convict the sinners.

2 Timothy 2:15 NKJV

Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

This means that young Timothy was supposed to be a Bible worm. He was supposed to know it, how to preach it, and how to teach it. He was supposed to be able to clearly articulate it.

Stephen was practiced enough, he was knowledgeable enough to articulate his message. This message was one that Stephen preached 100 times before.

What happens when someone begins to teach and lead without a proper knowledge of God’s word? Well, they either become swelled with pride, they become a legalist, or they lead people down the wrong path.

Paul is addressing Israel in the book of Romans and he says this…

Romans 10:2 NKJV

For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.

It just means that they are ignorant. It’s not enough to have a passion for God, it’s extremely important that we are knowledgeable of God, of people, and of the Bible too.

Could you imagine if you called me as your pastor, and I was so passionate, and I got up here and I walked around so hard and I preached so hard that I began to sweat profusely. If I was passionate from the pulpit, but when you come to ask me a question about the Bible or how we should administrate the church and I said, “I don’t know and I don’t care to know.”

Be honest, you’d lose some confidence in me.

Your willingness to follow me as your pastor is directly concerned with my knowledge of God, of people, of the Bible, and of the church.

Now, I didn’t say you wouldn’t like me, I didn’t say you wouldn’t allow me to preach here, I just said you wouldn’t be so keen on following me.

If I was all passion and no knowledge, anytime I said something, you’d be saying, “Yeah, I don’t know about that ole buddy.”

As a Christian, you need to be knowledgeable of the Scripture, and you need to study to show yourself approved.

A Warning

But be careful with this point.

1 Corinthians 8:1 NKJV

Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies.

Imagine I did know everything about people, the Bible, God, and the church, but I wasn’t a friend to you. In fact, you were almost positive I didn’t really love you.

Every time I said something I said it as if you were beneath me.

You wouldn’t follow me then either.

Get the order right

If you want to begin the journey to being a faithful servant, then you need to get these things in order.

You need to have the heart of a servant.

be quiet, be teachable, observe what is going on.

volunteer for anything and everything and be faithful to it; show yourself an approved worker of God.

Show up to church and Sunday School and love it, we don’t want to have to strong arm you.

Doing these things develops your character and develops your humility.

You need to have the heart of a witness.

You don’t need to have a position or title to witness. In fact, you shouldn’t get one if you’re not a faithful witness.

Spend time with God and let Him give you a passion for sharing His salvation with others.

Be faithful to share about Christ

Once you have done these two things, then you worry about knowledge.

If you skip these things, your knowledge will swell you with pride.

No one will follow you, no one will listen, because you didn’t serve them first.

Knowledge puffs up, love builds up. Amen?

IV. The Heart of a Martyr

Acts 7:54–60 NKJV

When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

We are going to suffer because we follow Jesus. Whether thats from people or from satan, suffering is guaranteed.

As we live this life, as we strive to be faithful servants of a Holy God, imitate Stephen here.

Stephen kept his eyes on Jesus

He didn’t look at the stones or the council, he looked to Jesus

He didn’t see his circumstance, he saw his future glory.

He was filled with grace and compassion

The greatest evidence that Stephen was filled with the Holy Spirit is found in v. 60.

He says, “do not charge them with this sin.”

His love for people far exceeded their sin…church, to be a faithful witness, you have to have grace and compassion even for people who hate you.

Faithful to the very end.

He didn’t get offended because he didn’t get his way and decide he wasn’t going to play anymore. He didn’t quit because he didn’t get to be an Apostle, and because he didn’t get to teach. He was content serving God as he was, and he was faithful to the very end.

Let us all be like Stephen.