- Act 6:1 Now at this time while the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint arose on the part of the Hellenistic Jews against the native Hebrews, because their widows were being overlooked in the daily serving of food.
- Act 6:2 So the twelve summoned the congregation of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable for us to neglect the word of God in order to serve tables.
- Act 6:3 “Therefore, brethren, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task.
- Act 6:4 “But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
- Act 6:5 The statement found approval with the whole congregation; and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas and Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch.
- Act 6:6 And these they brought before the apostles; and after praying, they laid their hands on them.
- Act 6:7 The word of God kept on spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith.
- Act 6:8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and signs among the people.
- Act 6:9 But some men from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen,includingboth Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and argued with Stephen.
- Act 6:10 But they were unable to cope with the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking.
- Act 6:11 Then they secretly induced men to say, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses andagainstGod.”
- Act 6:12 And they stirred up the people, the elders and the scribes, and they came up to him and dragged him away and brought him before the Council.
- Act 6:13 They put forward false witnesses who said, “This man incessantly speaks against this holy place and the Law;
- Act 6:14 for we have heard him say that this Nazarene, Jesus, will destroy this place and alter the customs which Moses handed down to us.”
- Act 6:15 And fixing their gaze on him, all who were sitting in the Council saw his face like the face of an angel.
- Act 7:1 The high priest said, “Are these things so?”
<< Stephen’s Speech >>
- Act 7:54 The Jewish leaders were infuriated by Stephen’s accusation, and they shook their fists at him in rage.
- Act 7:55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily into heaven and saw the glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand.
- Act 7:56 And he told them, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand!”
- Act 7:57 Then they put their hands over their ears and began shouting. They rushed at him
- Act 7:58 and dragged him out of the city and began to stone him.
- Act 7:59 As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
- Act 7:60 He fell to his knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” And with that, he died.
Our First Introduction to Saul of Tarsus and the beginnings of Persecution
- Act 8:1 Saul was one of the witnesses, and he agreed completely with the killing of Stephen.
- Act 7:58 His accusers took off their coats and laid them at the feet of a young man named Saul.
- Act 8:1 A great wave of persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem; and all the believers except the apostles were scattered through the regions of Judea and Samaria. 8:1
- Act 8:2 (Some devout men came and buried Stephen with great mourning.)
- Act 8:3 But Saul was going everywhere to destroy the church. He went from house to house, dragging out both men and women to throw them into prison.
- Act 8:4 But the believers who were scattered preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went.
Phillip in Samaria
- Act 8:5 Philip, for example, went to the city of Samaria and told the people there about the Messiah.
- Act 8:6 Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did.
- Act 8:7 Many evil spirits were cast out, screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed.
- Act 8:8 So there was great joy in that city.
Simon’s Example
- Act 8:9 A man named Simon had been a sorcerer there for many years, amazing the people of Samaria and claiming to be someone great.
- Act 8:10 Everyone, from the least to the greatest, often spoke of him as “the Great One—the Power of God.”
- Act 8:11 They listened closely to him because for a long time he had astounded them with his magic.
- Act 8:12 But now the people believed Philip’s message of Good News concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. As a result, many men and women were baptized.
- Act 8:13 Then Simon himself believed and was baptized. He began following Philip wherever he went, and he was amazed by the signs and great miracles Philip performed.
- Act 8:14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted God’s message, they sent Peter and John there.
- Act 8:15 As soon as they arrived, they prayed for these new believers to receive the Holy Spirit.
- Act 8:16 The Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them, for they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
- Act 8:17 Then Peter and John laid their hands upon these believers, and they received the Holy Spirit.
- Act 8:18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given when the apostles laid their hands on people, he offered them money to buy this power.
- Act 8:19 “Let me have this power, too,” he exclaimed, “so that when I lay my hands on people, they will receive the Holy Spirit!”
- Act 8:20 But Peter replied, “May your money be destroyed with you for thinking God’s gift can be bought!
- Act 8:21 You can have no part in this, for your heart is not right with God.
- Act 8:22 Repent of your wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps He will forgive your evil thoughts,
- Act 8:23 for I can see that you are full of bitter jealousy and are held captive by sin.”
- Act 8:24 “Pray to the Lord for me,” Simon exclaimed, “that these terrible things you’ve said won’t happen to me!”
Phillip in Gaza with the Ethiopian
- Act 8:25 After testifying and preaching the word of the Lord in Samaria, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem. And they stopped in many Samaritan villages along the way to preach the Good News.
- Act 8:26 As for Philip, an angel of the Lord said to him, “Go south down the desert road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza.”
- Act 8:27 So he started out, and he met the treasurer of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under the Kandake, the queen of Ethiopia. The eunuch had gone to Jerusalem to worship,
- Act 8:28 and he was now returning. Seated in his carriage, he was reading aloud from the book of the prophet Isaiah.
- Act 8:29 The Holy Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and walk along beside the carriage.”
- Act 8:30 Philip ran over and heard the man reading from the prophet Isaiah. Philip asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?”
- Act 8:31 The man replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” And he urged Philip to come up into the carriage and sit with him.
- Act 8:32 The passage of Scripture he had been reading was this: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter. And as a lamb is silent before the shearers, He did not open His mouth.
- Act 8:33 He was humiliated and received no justice. Who can speak of His descendants? For His life was taken from the earth.”
- Act 8:34 The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, was the prophet talking about himself or someone else?”
- Act 8:35 So beginning with this same Scripture, Philip told him the Good News about Jesus.
- Act 8:36 As they rode along, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look! There’s some water! Why can’t I be baptized?”
- Act 8:37 [“You can,” Philip answered, “if you believe with all your heart.” And the eunuch replied, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”]
- Act 8:38 He ordered the carriage to stop, and they went down into the water, and Philip baptized him.
- Act 8:39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away. The eunuch never saw him again but went on his way rejoicing.
- Act 8:40 Meanwhile, Philip found himself farther north at the town of Azotus. He preached the Good News there and in every town along the way until he came to Caesarea.
Picking up on Saul Again
- Act 9:1 Meanwhile, Saul was uttering threats with every breath and was eager to kill the Lord’s followers. So he went to the high priest.
- Act 9:2 He requested letters addressed to the synagogues in Damascus, asking for their cooperation in the arrest of any followers of the Way he found there. He wanted to bring them both men and women — back to Jerusalem in chains . . .
As I indicated back at the beginning of Acts, Luke has arranged his material in very specific ways. I told you there are a number of ways to look at the arrangement of the book of Acts. It is very clear that it is structured around the geographic spread of the gospel around the world. Jerusalem, Judea , Samaria and the ends of the earth. It is also written to show the ever increasing inclusion of those who are his witnesses. The continuing refrain of the Word of God continuing to spread and the believers (read witnesses) increasing is important. If, as some suggest, Luke marks the boundaries between the phases of Luke’s written work (Acts) then notice that the marker at 6:7 comes immediately after the seven deacons have been chosen. Notice that what then follows is all about the role of the seven deacons as witnesses, although only two are used as examples. The same question that Kev asked related to the disciples also applies to the deacons. Kevin asked what was happening with the other disciples – there were not just two – Peter and John. There were more. In the case of the deacons there were not just two – Stephen and Philip, there were more. Isn’t that the point of the way Luke has written this? You shall be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth. God always seem to focus on individuals or the one nation (Israel) but He always has the whole earth in mind. He is the Universal God.
Notice after Peter and John (and the other disciples who are rarely mentioned), we now have Stephen and Philip (and five others who are not mentioned). Luke makes it clear to us that because of Saul’s persecution, the witnesses were forced to bear witness to the Gospel outside of Jerusalem. The Good News was given firstly to the Jews but then to the Gentiles. Not only that but the purity of the witnesses is at stake. So we have stories which bring into the focus the motivation of the witnesses involved. There has been increasing opposition from the religious leaders throughout Luke’s first work – his Gospel. Now we have the same refrain occurring in his second book – Acts. To the point where now they have this man Saul zealously pursuing them wherever they go. At the same time we have the stories of Ananias and Sapphira and Simon which examine the motivation of the disciples. Do the disciples have pure motives to be classed as witnesses to the Risen Christ or not? The stories merely make an example out of those who wanted to become witnesses and part of the exciting things that were going on, but their heart motivation was wrong. These two accounts sit there in the text to remind us as witnesses to ensure our hearts are pure.
Now lets examine where the Gospel was being taken. The religious leaders had a problem with Jesus in that he received tax collectors and sinners and ate with them. All through Luke’s gospel Jesus is relating to sinners, the poor, the lame, the blind and the weak. These were all people the Pharisees and Sadducees excluded from the kingdom because the fact that they were sick, poor and weak indicated to the religious mind that God’s favour was not upon them. The religious leaders were shocked that Jesus related to these untouchable people. The good news of God’s Kingdom was for the Jew only. It was for Israel. That is what they thought. But there’s more to the story. One year I read the Bible in its entirety solely looking to see how the Word of God handled the Gentile, the non Jewish person. All over the Bible God’s heart has always been for all of mankind. He merely started with an individual (He always does) and told us that through that individual all people of the earth would be blessed. You were blessed to be a blessing. You are blessed so that you will become witnesses to the One Who blessed you. God said He was going to make Abraham into a great nation. His hand would then be upon that nation, they would be His people and he would be their God. But also effectively He said, watch them to see how I work with mankind. I have given them my principles and when they put them into practice they will be blessed. When they don’t put them into practice they will be cursed – they will suffer. God is concerned for all people, not just the Jews. The Good News is for Israel and the nations.
Notice now that the focus has been put on the other nations. They begin by choosing Hellenists – those who have been assimilated into Greek culture. Often in Scripture “Greek” is used to refer to people who are simply non-Jewish. The Gospel now has turned not only to those the Jewish religious leaders despised among Jews, but now it is going to Greeks and even worse than that, it is being taken to the those despised Samaritans. Beyond them it is being taken to Ethiopians. Oh yes people, pay careful attention to Luke’s words. He is telling us the very clear path the Gospel is on. Geographically, in terms of the witnesses used and in terms of the people being told. Luke has chosen his stories to illustrate this fact. If the Jewish religious leaders were angry about the idea of the kingdom including the poor, the sick and rejected in Israel, they must have been incensed that the gospel now includes non-Jews and even Samaritans. (As an aside here, noticed how often Luke used the example of the Samaritans in his Gospel). Now the gospel is heading for Africa in the care of an Ethiopian who is treasurer in the royal court of the Queen of Ethiopia. Notice how Luke told us this connection came about. It was not a random chance connection. God was behind the spread of the Gospel. God sovereignly led Philip to the Ethiopian, a court treasurer. When Philip had finished the explanation of the Good News about Jesus, God snatched him up and put him in the midst of the coastal Samaria. The way it happened highlights the significance.
But don’t forget the fact that Luke described the Ethiopian as a eunuch as well as a court Treasurer. His role was hugely significant. There is little wonder that this man was hugely influential among the Ethiopians in the spread of the Gospel to his region. It is not by chance that a strong Christian community developed in this area in the early centuries of Christianity. Yes the fact that he was the court treasurer and that he had the ear of the Queen was important. The fact that he was a eunuch was also important. Eunuchs, those who had been castrated for whatever reason, were totally unacceptable in temple or in Judaism in the eyes of the religious leaders. No one who was maimed, crippled or in anyway defective was allowed a role in the Temple court. Luke in his typical style and by his recurring themes, highlights the significance of the poor, the weak and the outcastes to God. He makes it very clear to all of his readers that this man who was to be used in the spread of the Gospel was not only a despised foreigner, and likely a black-skinned African, but he had also been castrated. And furthermore, let me remind you again that God himself had led Philip to catch up with him in the wilderness of where? You guessed it Samaria.
Luke is telling us the story of the spread of the Gospel but he is doing it in a specific way. Do you see how it matches the way in which Stephen retold Jewish history? We have a parallel to Stephen’s perspective of Jewish history in the way in which Luke is telling us how the Gospel spread. It spread in the unlikeliest of ways and yet all of it had God’s stamp all over it. Now that is fascinating. But of course there is more to come. Notice now how Luke brings Saul back into the story. We were introduced to him in just a few verses as the one who was holding the clothes. Do you remember what I told you of the significance of that? Luke is building the story for us here to the point where Paul is introduced. He has gone from the one holding the clothes to the one persecuting the Church with murderous zeal. But God has a plan for this man. Just wait and see.
For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:8-9
In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.
Abraham Lincoln
Worship is not singing a song in tune with a beautiful voice; rather its found in a heart toward God.
Anon
To continue to pray about what God has told you to do is rebellion.
Anon
An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.
Mahatma Gandhi