Stephen's Speech
Acts • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 19 viewsNotes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
The Charges
The Charges
Blasphemy
Moses,
the holy place
law
Then they secretly instigated men who said, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.”
Acts 6:
and they set up false witnesses who said, “This man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law, for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses delivered to us.”
Acts 6:
for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses delivered to us.”
The Defense
The Defense
The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Acts of the Apostles B. Stephen’s ‘Defence’ (7:1–56)
The main intention of this prophetic-type utterance is to ‘turn the tables’ on his opponents by presenting an extensive indictment against them.
Land, Law, and Temple
Land, Law, and Temple
Israel consistently rejects God and those sent by Him to fulfill His purpose for His people.
Stephen’s defense is a focused approach disputing each of the charges that were ultimately addressing the three great pillars of Jewish piety
Format
Format
Narrative: 2-34
Three great pillars of Jewish piety
Land: 2-36 What makes the Holy Land holy?
What makes the Holy Land holy?
The foundational Promises to Abraham ()
Stephen is challenging a narrow interpretation of this tradition.
Focus on the gracious activity of God. (appeared,[v. 2], spoke [v. 3], sent [v. 4], promised [v.5] spoke [v. 6], and gave the covenant [v. 8]
The promise is not tied to geography.
The call and promise were given to Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran.
Isaac, Jacob, Joseph all received the promise while they were still outside of the land.
Moses Blessed with Wisdom and Power, in Words and Deeds, for the Salvation of God’s People. ()
The call to Moses took place outside of the land.
Moses never experienced the promised land.
Joseph and Moses can be considered types of Christ.
When we say that someone is a type of Christ, we are saying that a person in the Old Testament behaves in a way that corresponds to Jesus’ character or actions in the New Testament.
In what ways do Joseph and Moses correspond to Jesus’ character and/or actions?
Joseph was envied and hated by his brothers.
Joseph suffered unjustly.
Joseph was exalted to a position of great power.
Joseph saved many of the very people who intended to do him harm.
Joseph Blessed with Grace and Wisdom for the Salvation of God’s People ()
Joseph suffered unjustly by his bretheren
Moses was both a prophet and a lawgiver.
Moses was born in a perilous time and narrowly escaped death as an infant.
Moses and Jesus both have a connection to Egypt
Moses brought salvation to the nation of Israel.
“The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen—
Moses Blessed with Wisdom and Power, in Words and Deeds, for the Salvation of God’s People. ()
The call to Moses took place outside of the land.
Moses never experienced the promised land.
Law:
If we were to summarize all of the law, it would be thus:
This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”
Mat 22:
The root of every sin is breaking the first commandment. Its not a matter of the sin we are committing, but the god that we are worshiping.
Israel has always exhibited a pattern of disobedience to God.
“Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? You shall take up Sikkuth your king, and Kiyyun your star-god—your images that you made for yourselves, and I will send you into exile beyond Damascus,” says the Lord, whose name is the God of hosts.
Israel does not have a monopoly on disobedience.
“Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
Rom
Amos
Temple:
Temple: 44-50
God of glory. The concept of God’s glory was particularly linked with the tabernacle and temple in OT theology.
Stephen is challenging a narrow interpretation of this tradition.
The argument is not tent vs house, but rather true and false thinking about God’s presence
God’s presence cannot be localized.
Thus says the Lord:
“Heaven is my throne,
and the earth is my footstool;
what is the house that you would build for me,
and what is the place of my rest?
All these things my hand has made,
and so all these things came to be,
declares the Lord.
But this is the one to whom I will look:
he who is humble and contrite in spirit
and trembles at my word.
Stephen quotes from
Isaiah
The Lord is in his holy temple;
the Lord’s throne is in heaven;
his eyes see, his eyelids test the children of man.
Spend some time contemplating the glory of God and how we glorify God.
“Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more.” —John Piper in Let the Nations Be Glad
You can’t handle the truth
You can’t handle the truth
Other
Abraham
Joseph and Moses as types of Christ.
When we say that someone is a type of Christ, we are saying that a person in the Old Testament behaves in a way that corresponds to Jesus’ character or actions in the New Testament.
“The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen—
Appeal: 51-53
Despite the covenant of circumcision, the Jews show themselves to be stiff-necked people with hearts and ears that are still uncircumcised.
The rejection of Jesus is shown to be part of a continuing pattern of disobedience to God ()
The foundational Promises to Abraham ()
God of glory. The concept of God’s glory was particularly linked with the tabernacle and temple in OT theology.
Stephen is challenging a narrow interpretation of this tradition.
Focus on the gracious activity of God. (appeared,[v. 2], spoke [v. 3], sent [v. 4], promised [v.5] spoke [v. 6], and gave the covenant [v. 8]
The promise is not tied to geography. The call and promise were given while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran.
Joseph Blessed with Grace and Wisdom for the Salvation ofGod’s People ()
Moses Blessed with Wisdom and Power, in Words and Deeds, for the Salvation of God’s People. ()
The call to Moses took place outside of the land.
Jesus Rejected as Part of a Continuing Pattern of Disobedience to God (Acts (7:39-53)
Jesus as the Glorified Son of Man ()