Sunday, June 1 – Acts 6, 7 – Additional Reading: The Acts of the Apostles, Chapters 9 and 10, Pages 87-102. Also, The Bible Story, Volume 10, Pages 31-34.
1. Why did the elders want the church to choose and have deacons? Acts 6:2-6.
2. What did Stephen’s face look like when the jealous people falsely accused him? Acts 6:15
3. As the jealous people were killing Stephen, what did Stephen see? Acts 7:55-56
Acts 6 begins with the elders being distracted by physical labor, which distracted them from their true calling of preaching the Gospel. So, they had the church choose seven men full of the Holy Spirit to do the physical labor while the elders focused on prayer and preaching. This in no way meant the elders were above the deacons. It is crucial to know how different offices in the church are all equal but not the same. For example, a few years ago, an elder was preparing a group of people for baptism one evening at a church when one of the baptistry pipes broke and flooded the room behind the baptistry. Deacons were quickly summoned to bail out the water. One deacon yelled at the elder to grab a bucket and join in, but the elder had an entire group of people he had to clear for baptism that night before the baptism the next morning. He could not do both. The deacon got upset, thinking the elder thought he was too good to bail water. That was not the case, though. Both jobs were equally important that evening. The elder could not do what he was called to do if he was bailing water, but the deacon’s job was just as crucial for the baptism. They were equal but not the same.
In Acts chapters 6-7, we see that Stephen, a deacon, was filled with the Holy Spirit just as much as any elder. More than being compared to an elder, he was compared to an angel. We see that while Stephen “waited on tables,” he also preached the Gospel. Being a deacon is no small calling. After all, Stephen was not martyred for taking up an offering or changing the thermostat. He was martyred for boldly preaching the Gospel.
When people were jealous of Stephen, they brought false charges against him. Stephen took advantage of this to further the kingdom of God. He began his sermon by finding common ground with the people, using illustrations and stories they related to. Sadly, though, as the Holy Spirit tried to prepare their hearts for conviction of the truth as it is in Jesus, Stephen could see that they were rejecting the Holy Spirit just as their fathers had done many times in the Old Testament. Stephen loved them so much that he had to warn them that they were rejecting the Holy Spirit’s convicting power. When he did this, they sealed their rejection of Jesus by stoning His servant to death. Even this Stephen took advantage of to further the kingdom of God. Just as Jesus did on the cross, Stephen cried out for the forgiveness of those killing him. It was crucial to Stephen’s salvation that he die with a forgiving heart instead of a heart filled with hate and bitterness.
While Stephen was boldly standing up for Jesus, his eyes were opened so he could see into heaven, where he saw Jesus standing up for him before the Father’s throne. In Revelation 1:12-20, we see Jesus walking among the seven golden candlesticks, holding seven stars in His right hand. The candlesticks represent the seven churches, and the seven stars represent the messengers of the seven churches. The seven churches represent Christ’s church throughout time. The stars in Jesus’ hands represent all of His messengers who are in His hands in every age of the Church’s history.
Every deacon, elder, man, woman, or child who boldly shares the Gospel, furthering the kingdom of God as Stephen did, is in Jesus’ hands. Jesus stands up for all who proclaim Jesus as the world’s Savior. In Revelation 3:5 Jesus promises He will profess the name of every believer before the Father, who is faithful to Him, just like He did for Stephen. When Stephen stood up for Jesus before men, Jesus stood up for Stephen before the Father. He will do the same for you.