Lesson Thirteen: Stephen's Defense (Part 2)

Supplementary Materials

Moses at the Burning Bush (7:30-34) After forty years as a shepherd in Midian, God appeared to Moses:

Moses: Rejected Yet Used by God (7:35-43) Stephen emphasizes the pattern of rejection: "This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer." — Acts 7:35

Israel's Actions Toward Moses God's Actions Through Moses "Refused" him (7:35) Sent him as "ruler and deliverer" (7:35) "Would not obey" him (7:39) "Shewed wonders and signs" through him (7:36) "Thrust him from them" (7:39) Received "lively oracles" (the Law) through him (7:38) "Turned back... into Egypt" in heart Prophesied of "a prophet" like himself (7:39) (7:37) Made a golden calf and worshiped it God "gave them up" to their (7:40-41) idolatry (7:42)

Moses as a Type of Christ Stephen quotes Deuteronomy 18:15 — "A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me" (7:37). Moses foreshadowed Christ in many ways: Moses Christ Preserved as an infant from Pharaoh Preserved as an infant from Herod (Matt. 2) Rejected by his brethren the first time Rejected by His own people (John 1:11) Became deliverer of Israel from bondage Deliverer from bondage to sin (Rom. 6:17-18) Mediator of the old covenant Mediator of the new covenant (Heb. 9:15) Prophet, lawgiver, leader Prophet, Priest, and King

Moses Christ Faithful in God's house (Heb. 3:2) Faithful over God's house (Heb. 3:6)

The Temple: Made With Hands (7:44-50) Stephen was charged with speaking against "this holy place" (6:13). His response:

• The tabernacle was made "according to the fashion" God showed Moses (7:44) — God gave the pattern
• The tabernacle served before the temple existed (7:44-45) — God's presence isn't tied to one building
• David wanted to build a house; Solomon built it (7:46-47) — acknowledging the temple's history
• "The most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands" (7:48) — the key point!

Stephen then quotes Isaiah 66:1-2: "Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest? Hath not my hand made all these things?" — Acts 7:49-50

Stephen's point: he honored the temple's God-given origin, but the temple was never meant to contain or limit God. The accusers were the ones who had made an idol of the temple itself.

Stephen's Direct Accusation (7:51-53) Stephen's conclusion is devastating: Accusation Meaning "Stiffnecked" Stubborn, unbending — like an ox that won't respond to the yoke "Uncircumcised in Outwardly religious but inwardly rebellious — hearts heart and ears" closed to God's word "Ye do always resist A continuous pattern — "as your fathers did, so do ye" the Holy Ghost" "Persecuted... the Their fathers killed those who foretold the "Just One" prophets" "Betrayers and They had done what their fathers did — killed murderers" the Righteous One "Have not kept" the They, not Stephen, were the true lawbreakers law

Stephen's Martyrdom (7:54-60) Stephen became the first Christian martyr. Compare his death to Christ's: Stephen Christ Accused by false witnesses (6:13) Accused by false witnesses (Matt. 26:60) Charged with blasphemy (6:11) Charged with blasphemy (Matt. 26:65)

Stephen Christ Saw the Son of Man at God's right hand Declared He would sit at God's right hand (7:56) (Matt. 26:64) "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit" (7:59) "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit" (Luke 23:46) "Lord, lay not this sin to their "Father, forgive them; for they charge" (7:60) know not what they do" (Luke 23:34)

"A Young Man Whose Name Was Saul" (7:58) Almost as a footnote, Luke introduces a man who will dominate the rest of Acts:

• The witnesses laid their clothes at Saul's feet (7:58)
• "Saul was consenting unto his death" (8:1)
• Saul would later "make havock of the church" (8:3)
• Yet this same Saul would become Paul the apostle (Acts 9)

Stephen's death and witness may have planted seeds in Saul's heart that eventually bore fruit. Paul later described himself as "the chief of sinners" (1 Tim. 1:15), likely remembering this day.

Key Cross-References

Note: Stephen's death marks a turning point in Acts. The persecution that follows scatters the church (8:1), which ironically fulfills Jesus' commission to take the gospel to "Judaea, and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth" (1:8). What the enemy meant for evil, God used for good.