Introduction: Would you like to do great things for God? Is your
desire to do great things hindered by the fact that your Church
assignment is something ordinary? For example, “soul-winning” is not
your assignment, rather coordinating potluck. This week we turn our
attention to a man who stands out in the potluck crowd when it comes
to witnessing. His assignment was food distribution. Let’s jump into
our study of the Bible and learn more!
- Controversy
- Read Acts 6:1. What is the claim of discrimination? (It is
not a claim based on religion or race, but rather on
national origin. It appears to be more of a cultural
claim.) - Do you think the charge is true? Or, is this just
the kind of false claim that arises from cultural
differences and hypersensitivity? (We don’t have
enough information to know.) - Read Acts 6:2-3. Do the twelve disciples believe the
charge is true? (What they actually decide is that they do
not want to deal with it. They resolve to set up a group
of administrators who will be sure that the distribution
of food is done fairly.) - What are the qualifying traits they are looking for
in the seven food administrators? (Men who are full
of the Holy Spirit and wise.) - Why do they need to be wise? (Discrimination
claims between different cultures is a
difficult matter. It is hard to know exactly
how to fix the problem without creating more
discrimination.) - Read Acts 6:5. Recall that the original charge was that
the Greek widows were being neglected. These names are all
Greek. Is there a lesson in this? (Certainly, having Greek
Jews involved is important. However, the names may not
accurately reflect their cultural backgrounds.) - Who did the choosing here? The Twelve? (No. The
members of the early church. This was not a
choice made by the leadership.) - Why? (This is further proof the Twelve
wanted this responsibility taken from
their shoulders.) - Read Acts 6:4. What will be the focus of the Twelve?
(Prayer and ministry of the word.) - What lessons should we learn from these four verses? (You
don’t want complaints to fester. Whether they are true or
not, you want to address them in some way and not ignore
them. Letting the complainers have a hand in the
resolution is important. Responsibility in the Church
should be focused. If it is too broad, then important
details may be missed. All those in administration should
be full of the Holy Spirit, even if they have a seemingly
mundane task. Being wise is also important.) - Read Acts 6:6-7. My translation states, “So, the word of
God spread.” Is there a connection between growth and the
resolution of the controversy? (I think this is what the
writer has in mind. He wants us to know that resolving
this problem in the church allowed it to grow.) - Stephen
- Read Acts 6:8-10. What is Stephen’s job? (Read Acts 6:2.
The Twelve were to engage in ministry and Stephen was to
“wait on tables.”) - Why is Stephen involved in ministry? Has he forgotten
his job description? Is he invading the work of the
Twelve? (Nothing in this account suggests that
Stephen is doing anything wrong. This tells us that
it is the opportunity of everyone in the church,
regardless of formal responsibilities, to share the
gospel.) - What other reason do we have to believe that ministry
is part of Stephen’s proper work? (Verse 10 tells us
that the Holy Spirit is speaking through Stephen. We
also read that he does “great wonders and miraculous
signs.” Clearly, God is promoting Stephen’s ministry
work.) - Read Acts 6:11. Stephen’s opponents cannot meet his
arguments. What do we know about the honesty of the
charges brought against Stephen? (If a group has to work
secretly, if they have to “persuade” people to make
charges, then you know the charges are questionable.) - What lesson do we learn about deciding who is right
in a debate? (If one side gives up debating the
merits, and instead uses contrived legal attacks or
physical attacks, that gives you a clue as to who is
right.) - Read Acts 6:12-15. What do you think it means that
Stephen’s face “was like the face of an angel?” - If you were a member of the Sanhedrin, and the person
facing charges had a “face like the face of an angel”
what should you conclude? - Read Acts 7:1-3. How do we know that Stephen is a lawyer?
(The question presented to him has a “yes” or “no,”
answer. Instead of answering the question, Stephen goes on
for another 49 verses!) - I invite you to read the next 49 verses, but for our
discussion let’s skip down and read Acts 7:54-58. What
kind of judicial process is this? (Stephen does not answer
the question posed to him, instead, he outlines the
history of the relationship of Israel and God. He recites
that Israel resisted and killed God’s prophets up through
the killing of Jesus. In response, the crowd becomes angry
and kills him. This is complete chaos as far as any legal
process is concerned.) - Read Acts 7:59-60. Why not hold this sin against them?
Stephen just got through explaining why their ancestors
and now they were guilty of rebellion and unfaithfulness
to God. His murder is consistent with the line of sins he
has just outlined. - Do you think that God holds the murder of Stephen
against those who killed him in anger? (Read Luke
11:4. The issue is not whether they were sinning,
they were. The issue is forgiving those who sin
against us.) - Have you forgiven those who have sinned against you?
- Saul/Paul
- Read Acts 8:1. Saul (who is later known as Paul)
understands the law and he understands the Scriptures. How
could he approve of Stephen’s murder? (We all do things
that are irrational because we want a certain outcome.
Saul thought that the Christians were harming his
religion.) - Why do you think the apostles stayed in Jerusalem?
- Read Acts 1:7-8. How do you think the apostles
understood this direction from Jesus? - Read Acts 8:2-3. If you had just been converted to
Christianity, would this make you more or less determined
to stay with your new faith? (The statement that Saul was
destroying the church tells us that people were
intimidated, and perhaps gave up their new beliefs.) - Read Acts 8:4-8. Let’s assume that Satan or his angels are
inspiring this persecution. How is their strategy working?
(I think it is backfiring. Instead of destroying the work
of God, they are spreading it.) - Think about this for a minute. Isn’t this result
predictable? Does this mean that Satan is not that
smart? (Read Romans 8:28 and Genesis 50:19-20. We
must not leave the hand of God out of our evaluation.
He takes things that are meant to be bad and turns
them into something good. I also believe that Satan’s
intelligence is clouded by his anger and animosity.) - Read Acts 8:14-17. Is this a reason for the apostles to
have remained in Jerusalem? (The new church needed
leadership. It needed a “headquarters.” This allowed the
people to report back and the Apostles to go to places
they were needed.) - Friend, if you desire to do great things for God, ask Him
to fill you with the Holy Spirit and direct the path of
your life. Why not do that right now? - Next week: The Conversion of Paul.
