Sermon Tone Analysis
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Apostles tasked church with choosing men to take over the ministry of feeding widows
those chosen had to have had a great reputation, be full of the Spirit and full of wisdom
Stephen one of 7 men chosen to take over the ministry of feeding widows
Stephen was first among the 7
Stephen himself was full of faith and the HS and also full of grace and power, doing great wonders and signs
love for God was demonstrated in his ministry to people
was called to debate in the synagogues of the Jews
when the Jews were unable win those debates and silence Stephen they falsely accused him of blasphemy
if they could not silence his preaching they would kill him
dragged him before the Sanhedrin where he was accused of speaking against Moses and God, the Law and the Temple, all of which were capital offences
God caused his face to shine, a clear testimony to the Jews that like Moses, Stephen was a man who enjoyed God’s favour
Stephen’s ability to perform signs and wonders was also God’s confirmation of His approval of the man and his message
today we are going to consider Stephen’s defence before the Council, the Sanhedrin, the supreme court of the Jewish people
they have already heard the gospel 2x from Peter and John
to reach the world with the gospel believers must be able to defend their faith
Peter’s instruction to believers
it is sad fact that many Christians are unable to do this
they have little understanding of what they believe and why
they are described by Paul
instead, believers should have a thorough understanding
believers must be able both to defend and confirm the gospel
defend against false teachers and wrong views
affirm what it really is to unbelievers
Stephen exemplified this
when his opponents rejected his message and could not overcome his logic and reason they hired false witnesses who accused him of blasphemy
they they dragged him before the Sanhedrin
chapter 7 is his defence and his declaration of his commitment to God and to Moses
accused of blaspheming God, Moses, the law and the Temple Stephen would show that he was not guilty on each charge
Stephen’s Defence
question from the High Priest: “Are these things so?”
“do you speak against God and his Temple and Moses and his Law?”
Stephen’s response was to declare his innocence by affirming his faith in Israel’s history
he knew he had to capture and hold their attention
what better way to do this than to recite their history which they were fiercely proud of
Nehemiah did something similar in Neh 9 - recounted Israel’s history in order to highlight the faithfulness of God in spite of Israel’s unfaithfulness
Psalmists also used the same method in Ps 78, 105, 106
in each of these texts Israel’s unfaithfulness is contrasted with God’s faithfulness and justice
his purpose to show that his teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ was not opposed to the Old Covenant but the fulfillment of it
traced God’s sovereign will from Abraham through Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses and David to Jesus
would show them that they were the ones who were guilty of rejecting Joseph, Moses and even God
finally, to present Jesus as Messiah using Joseph and Moses as types
1. Blasphemy Against God
as this was the most serious of the charges Stephen deals with it first in Acts 7:2-16
addressed his accusers as brothers and fathers
he is one of them and he honours those in authority over him
calls God, “the God of glory”
the One who orchestrates all of redemptive history from Abraham through Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David and ultimately Jesus
glory is the composite of all that makes God good
he establishes the fact that he believes firmly and fully in the God of Israel
his plea concerning the charge of blasphemy against God: “not guilty”
having affirmed his faith in the Sovereign God he turns his attention to God’s redemptive work through Abraham as a man of faith
not only was Stephen saying he was not a blasphemer of God but he was also saying he believed in the purposes of God through key figures in Israel’s history
“Go out from your land and from your kindred and go into the land that I will show you.”
(3)
because of his faith and obedience, Abraham became the father Isaac, Isaac of Jacob and Jacob of the 12 patriarchs
Abraham’s obedience under God’s sovereignty enabled him to experience God’s good purpose for his life and that of his offspring
following the flow of God’s saving work in Abraham, Stephen focused next on the 12 patriarchs, the 12 sons of Jacob
as Stephen deals with the patriarchs and their treatment of Joseph he begins laying the groundwork for his blistering condemnation in vv.
51-53
the patriarchs were among the most revered men in Israel’s history
they became jealous of Joseph and sold him into slavery
they rejected the one whom God had chosen to save them
in spite of Joseph’s brothers’ rejection,
God was with him 10 and rescued him out of all his afflictions and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his household.
Stephen clearly identified the sin of the patriarchs as their rejection of God and the the deliverer he sent to them
they sold Joseph but God rescued him
they served as a striking illustration of the Jewish nation’s rejection of God’s purpose in Jesus
the Jewish opposition to God’s sovereign will began with the patriarchs
Stephen was subtly highlighting the similarities between Christ and Joseph:
both were Jews
both were given up because of envy
just as Joseph was falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife Jesus was wrongly accused by false witnesses
just as God freed Joseph from prison and exalted him to the highest office in Egypt God freed Jesus from death and exalted him to his right hand
just as Joseph delivered his sinful brothers from death by starvation Jesus delivers His brothers from spiritual death
Stephen defended himself against the accusation he blasphemed God
he affirmed God’s glorious covenant work through Abraham
he held Joseph up as an example of Christ
2. Blasphemy Against Moses (17-37)
in his first defence Stephen covered the first great period of Israel’s history from Abraham to Joseph and the captivity of Israel in Egypt
having successfully defended himself against the charge of blasphemy against God Stephen then focused on the charge of rejecting Moses
having shown that he revered God he will declare his respect for Moses
again his plea is, “not guilty!”
in this second defence he covers the history of Moses to the captivity of the nation in Babylon
“as the time of promise drew near” (17)
the time when God would fulfill his promise Abraham that his offspring would inherit the Promised Land
by this time the patriarchs were all dead and the Israelites had increased and multiplied in Egypt
they were content and they had not returned to the land God had promised them through Abraham
God orchestrated events which would force them to leave Egypt
“there arose over Egypt another king who did not know Joseph” (18)
alarmed at the rapid growth of the Israelite nation and afraid that they might rebel or join an attacking army he forced Israel into slavery and hard labour
sought to stifle their growth by infanticide
by casting their male infants outside where they would perish
at this crucial time Moses was born
Stephen made a point of describing him as “beautiful in God’s sight”
Moses could not escape the edict of the king
like many other infants he was to be thrown into the Nile to drown (Ex 1:22)
his parents however put him into a basket believing God had a plan for him
according to God’s sovereign purposes Pharaoh’s daughter found him, took him in and raised him as her own son and he became the adopted grandson of the King
as such Moses was given the best education of the time
Stephen again praised him as “mighty in his words and deeds” (22)
as Moses approached the age of 40 he began to see himself as God’s appointed deliverer
visiting his people, saw a fellow Hebrew being wronged by an Egyptian and killed him
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