Acts 7:1
Outline:
I. \\#Acts 1:1-8:4\\ God’s Work in Jerusalem
A. \\#1:1-3\\ The Introduction
B. \\#1:4-26\\ Jesus’ Departure
1. \\#1:4-8\\ The Command
2. \\#1:9-11\\ The Ascension and Promised Return
3. \\#1:12-26\\ The Wait for the Holy Ghost
C. \\#2:1-8:4\\ The Holy Ghost’s Coming
1. \\#Acts 1:1-4\\ The Holy Spirit Comes
2. \\#Acts 2:5-8:4\\ The Power of the Holy Spirit
a. \\#Acts 2:5-13\\ The Power of Languages
b. \\#Acts 2:1-36\\ The Power of Preaching
c. \\#Acts 2:37-41, 47\\ The Power of Salvation
d. \\#Acts 2:42-47\\ The Power of Fellowship
e. \\#Acts 2:44-45\\ The Power of Giving
f. \\#Acts 3:1-11\\ The Power of Healing (miracles) and
more preaching \\#Acts 3:12-26\\
g. \\#Acts 4:1-31\\ The Power of Suffering
h. \\#Acts 4:32-5:42\\ The Power of Chastening
(1) \\#Acts 4:32-37\\ The Continuous Demonstrations
of the Holy Ghost (fellowship, preaching,
giving)
(2) \\#Acts 5:1-11\\ The Holy Ghost Chastens
(3) \\#Acts 5:12-42\\ The Continuous Demonstration of
the Holy Ghost (healing, salvation, suffering)
i. \\#Acts 6:1-7:50\\ The Power of Leadership (salvation,
preaching, persecution)
(1) \\#Acts 6:1-6\\ The Power of Leadership
(2) \\#Acts 6:7\\ The Power of Salvation
(3) \\#Acts 6:8-7:50\\ The Power of Preaching and
Persecution
(a) \\#Acts 6:8-15\\ The Situation
(b) \\#Acts 7:1-53\\ The Preaching
(c) \\#Acts 7:54-60\\ The Persecution
II. \\#Acts 8:5-12:24\\ God’s Work in Judea and Samaria
III. \\#Acts 13:1-28:31\\ God’s Work in Uttermost Parts of the World
I. \\#Acts 6:8-7:50\\ The Power of Preaching and Persecution
A. \\#Acts 6:8-15\\ The Situation
B. \\#Acts 7:1-53\\ The Preaching - The sermon title might well
be, "A Prophet Like Moses." His text was \\#Deut 18:15\\.
1. \\#2-16\\ - A historical introduction, perhaps to
demonstrate to the religious leaders that Stephen was a
Jew and knew their history.
2. \\#17-43\\ - Jesus was "a prophet like unto Moses" -
Stephen compared Moses to Jesus to show that Jesus was
the One of whom Moses had spoken.
a. \\#38-41\\ - Stephen placed a special emphasis on the
fact that Moses had been rejected by the Jews, as
this Jewish council had done when they crucified
Jesus.
b. \\#42-43\\ - "And God turned, and gave them up"
(1) And Stephen emphasized the judgment that
followed.
(2) God allowed the Jews to follow their own heart in
worshipping false gods. It may even be that God
Himself encourages the sinner in his sin that
the judgment might be sure.
2Ch 30:7 And be not ye like your fathers, and
like your brethren, which trespassed against the
LORD God of their fathers, who therefore gave
them up to desolation, as ye see.
Ps 81:12 So I gave them up unto their own
hearts’ lust: and they walked in their own
counsels.
Ro 1:24 Wherefore God also gave them up to
uncleanness through the lusts of their own
hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between
themselves:
26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile
affections: for even their women did change
the natural use into that which is against nature:
(3) This was a subtle warning that as the Jews reject
Jesus, they were rejecting God and would be
subject to God’s punishment.
3. \\#44-50\\ As one of the main charges against Stephen was
blasphemy of the temple, he speaks in closing about the
temple, first giving its history then pointing out that
God can not be confined to a temple building. The later
was probably to point out that if he had made a comment
about the temple, it would not have been a crime since
no temple could hold the presence of God.
4. \\#51-53\\ As diplomatic as Stephen had been, so he
becomes direct and pointed. He was speaking to the very
council and men who had crucified Jesus and probably
knew what they intended next, but it would have been at
the direction of the Holy Ghost that he spoke so
forcefully to them.
a. \\#51\\ "Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and
ears" - They were both of these.
b. \\#52\\
(1) Their fathers had persecuted the prophets.
(2) They were the "betrayers and murderers " of "the
Just One."
c. \\#53\\ They had received and not kept the Law even as
some of them were breaking it to bring Stephen before
the council.
5. Interesting Points:
a. \\#6-7\\ Stephen is quoting from \\#Ge 15:13-14\\.
b. \\6\\ "four hundred years" - Stephen appears to be
speaking of Jacob and his descendents time in Egypt.
(1) \\#Ex 12:40-41, Gal 3:17\\ - Give it as 430 years,
probably meaning that Stephen was using a
rounded number, as God did in \\#Ge 15:13\\.
(2) \\#Gal 3:17\\ - As Paul mentioned the 430 years
as being the time when God gave to Abraham a
covenant, some think the 430 years counts the
time period from Abraham leaving Ur until the
time when the left Egypt.
c. \\#37\\ is a quote from \\#Deut 18:15\\.
d. \\#49\\ is a mixture of \\#Isa 66:1\\ and
\\#2Sam 7:5\\.
C. \\#Acts 7:54-60\\ The Persecution
1. \\#54, 57-59\\ The rage of the hearers
a. \\#54\\ "they were cut to the heart" - A phrase to
mean that they were extremely disturbed.
b. "they gnashed on him with their teeth" - Gnashed means
to grind ones teeth. It is hard to say whether they
actually began to bite on Stephen or if the effect
of the preaching had them so mad that they were
grinding their teeth together. The latter seems more
likely but if they were actually biting on him, it
would be an indication of how influenced they were by
the devil.
c. \\#57\\ "they cried with a loud voice, and stopped
their ears" - They were attempting not to hear
Stephen’s words, perhaps another indication that
Stephen’s killers were demon possessed.
d. \\#58-59\\ "cast him out of the city, and stoned him"
2. \\#55-56, 60\\
a. \\#55-56\\ Stephen, still filled with the Holy Ghost,
was allowed to peer into the heavens to see the Lord
rise to welcome him home. Stephen was the first
martyr for the Lord.
b. \\#60\\
(1) "Lay not this sin to their charge" - Stephen had
love for his murderers. Like his Lord, Stephen
asked for their forgiveness.
(2) "he fell asleep" - Death had lost its sting and
Stephen, with peace in his heart, simply closed
his eyes to rest.
3. \\#58\\ "at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul"
a. Saul may have been from one of the synagogues
mentioned in \\#Acts 6:9\\ or he may have joined
with the group during the council meeting, but he
takes a place of preeminence at the execution.
b. While born at Tarsus, Saul was raised in Jerusalem and
had been taught by Gamaliel. No doubt, he would have
seen Jesus on numerous occasions. On this day, the
Scripture mentions him for the first time.
c. \\#Acts 8:1\\ says "Saul was consenting unto his
death" - That implies that Saul was in favor of it and
encouraging it.
d. The fact that "the witnesses" laid their coats down at
Saul’s feet must mean that he somehow kept up with
who had charged and gave testimony against Stephen.
Although the trial was fixed, at least some wanted
the appearance of propriety.
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