Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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Jesus’ instruction to the 12 in Acts 1:8
chapter 2 - the coming of the HS at Pentecost - speaking in other languages - Peter preached and bore witness to Christ - 3000 were added
chapters 3-4 - lame beggar healed - Peter’s sermon - appearance before the Council - bold witness - prayer for boldness - fellowship of the believers by sharing possessions
chapter 5 - Ananias and Saphira lie to the HS in their attempt to gain recognition - put to death - Apostles arrested for preaching - were beaten and freed
up to chapter 6 the apostles had been witnessing only in Jerusalem
this is where the initial growth of the church had been experienced
Peter was the key spokesperson
in chapter 6 another problem arose
the church had developed a feeding program for widows and some and had been neglected
the Apostles delegated this responsibility to 7 men chosen by the church so that they could keep focusing on their responsibilities of preaching and prayer
two of the men chosen were Stephen and Philip
Stephen and Philip serve as the transition from Peter’s ministry to the Jews to Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles
both men were also gifted teachers and evangelists and both were used mightily by God
Stephen became the church’s first martyr and his death sparked a wave of intense persecution which forced the believers out of Jerusalem into Judea, Samaria and beyond
as they fled they kept preaching the gospel and it spread from Jerusalem into Judea and Samaria
this is where we find Philip preaching and ministering
then in chapter 9 the focus shifts to Paul and his ministry to the Gentiles and the spread of the Gospel to the ends of the earth
today we are going to look at what made Stephen such a great servant of God
what was it about Stephen that made him such an effective evangelist?
what made him a man of calm assurance in the face of vicious persecution?
is it possible for us to be like Stephen? a highly useful servant?
The Man
met the qualifications of 6:3: what the church saw in Stephen
of good repute
anyone who knew him, Christian or non-christian, spoke highly of him
when people spoke in his favour there were no “buts”
he had a reputation for being good and doing good
he was blameless
full of the Spirit
this is not a supernatural gift!
baptism vs filling of Spirit
baptism: happens when God calls us out of our sin into saving faith
God sends the HS to take up residence within us
we are baptized with the Spirit
the experience of every true believer when they are justified
filling comes immediately after being baptized
as the HS takes up residence in us he begins his work of sanctification
the process of making us righteous and holy
the speed and depth of that work depends on our submission to him
experiencing the fullness of the Spirit is tied to knowledge of the Word and working it out in daily living
being full of the Spirit is the key to being effective in your witness
the reason why there is so little evangelism happening:
professing Christians are more full of the world than of the HS
full of wisdom
“the capacity to understand, and hence act wisely”
the ability to assess a situation or matter and choose a godly course of action
Solomon possessed this before he turned to idolatry
example of the 2 women arguing over the baby
where does this wisdom come from?
Read Proverbs 2
Stephen named first among the 7 indicating that he was the chief (5)
of all the believing men in Jerusalem the 7 best men were chosen
of the 7 Stephen was first among them having a great reputation, full of the Spirit and full of wisdom
full of faith & the HS (5)
full = filled up
he was totally controlled by faith and the HS
to be full of faith is to trust god
to be full of the Spirit is to fully obey His will
focus is heavenward
describes his relationship with God
Stephen was a man who walked with God
cannot be such a man without sacrifice
as it is with those who would become professional athletes so with those who would be most useful to the Lord
read Col 3:1-17
full of grace and power, was doing great wonders & signs (8)
filled up with grace and power it overflowed in his ministry to the blind, the lame, the sick and the demon possessed
when Luke says that Stephen was full of faith and the Spirit the focus is heavenward, here the focus is outward toward others
Stephen’s love for God spilled over in his love for others
Jesus’ and the greatest commandment
signs and wonders were God’s seal of approval on the man and his message
a man whose doctrine and behaviour met the approving eye of God
The Opposition
opposition to the gospel from the Jewish people
those who belonged to the synagogues of the Freedmen, Cyrenians, Alexandrians, Cilicia & Asia rose up and disputed with Stephen (9)
Paul’s method of evangelism:
when he came to a town he would go the synagogue and preach
unbelieving Jews would eventually reject Paul and his gospel being filled with jealousy because of the great numbers who were drawn to him to hear the gospel
out of those synagogues converts were won and churches were established
it is more than likely Stephen was doing something like this, going to these synagogues mentioned by Luke and preaching the gospel
rose up = they confronted Stephen
they rejected the gospel and were unwilling to let him teach
“disputed” (9) = a formal debate
“could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking” (10)
the Jews with their manmade reasoning could not win against the wisdom and Spirit with which Stephen spoke
The Plot
unable to win fairly the debate the Jews recruited and coached false witnesses to accuse Stephen of blasphemy
just like was done at Jesus’ trial (Mt 26:59-61)
plural, “men”: OT law required more than one witness in order for the charge to be heard
then they stirred up the people, the elders and the scribes
they seized Stephen and brought him before the council
The Charge
speaks blasphemous words against Moses and God (11)
note how in their accusation they put Moses before God, such was their zeal for the Law
the false accusations against Stephen (13-14) give us more insight into the reason for the opposition of the Jews
"this man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law” (v13)
the temple and the Law were most highly revered by the Jews
Temple represented God and the Law Moses
to speak against either the Temple or the Law was to speak against God and Moses
was considered blasphemy for which the penalty was death
what Stephen was most likely saying:
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