God peels back the curtain for just a moment and allows this man who's on trial for his life here before this hostile kangaroo court. God shows Stephen His glory. The teeth of men that are being gnashed at him are not worthy to be compared. With the blessed vision that Stephen now enjoys. As he looks up, Into heaven.
There are only a few instances in the Bible where we read about someone seeing God's glory. and Stephen, the church's first martyr, is one of those rare examples. Even as he was about to be stoned to death for his faith, Stephen looked to heaven and saw the glory of God and the risen Lord Jesus. Thank you for joining us for the Sunday edition of Renewing Your Mind. For the past few weeks, we've been enjoying Dr.
R. C. Sproll's sermon series from the book of Acts. and will be concluding that study this week. Which means today is your final opportunity to get Dr.
Sproll's hardcover commentary on the book of Acts. You can receive this resource today by donating at renewingyourmind.org. or you can use the link in the podcast show notes. But right now, here's Dr. Sproll with today's message.
And Stephen Full of faith and power. did great wonders and signs among the people. But then there arose some from what is called the synagogue of the freedmen, Cyrenians, Alexandrians. Those from Cilicia and Asia. disputing with Stephen.
And they were not able to resist the wisdom and spirit by which he spoke. And then they secretly induced men To say, we have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God. They stirred up the people, the elders and the scribes. They came upon him and seized him. and brought him to the council.
They also set up false witnesses who said, This man does not cease to speak blasphemous words. Against this holy place and the law. For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth, will destroy this place. and change the customs which Moses delivered to us. And all who sat in the council looking steadfastly at him.
saw his face As the face of an angel. And then the high priest said. Are these things so? And what follows is this lengthy sermon. Then we read the climax in verse fifty-one.
Where Stephen, after reciting the history of God's redemption in the Old Testament, says. You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart. And ears. You always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did.
So do you. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They kill those who foretold the coming of the just one. of whom you now have become The Betrayers and Murderers who have received the law by the direction of angels. But have not kept it.
Now when they heard these things. They were cut to the heart. And they gnashed at him with their teeth. But he being full of the Holy Spirit gazed into heaven. And saw the glory of God.
And Jesus standing at the right hand of God. And said Behold. Look. I see the heavens opened. And the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.
And then they cried with a loud voice. They stopped their ears and ran at him with one accord. They cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned Stephen.
as he was calling on God and saying, Lord Jesus Receive my spirit. Then he knelt down. And he cried out with a loud voice. Lord Do not charge them with this sin. And when he had said this.
He fell asleep.
Now, as Luke continues his narrative of the early church. He focuses on that one whose name was Stephen. And as we read this, Luke said. And Stephen Full of faith and power Did great wonders and signs among the people. But as he was doing these marvelous things, In the midst of this people.
There was a group A group basically from the Greek-speaking community, among them. who raised up in opposition Against the teaching. And preaching. Of Stephen. And they entered into a dispute with him.
But Luke tells us they weren't able to resist his wisdom. Or the spirit by which he spoke. They started, first of all, obviously engaging. Stephen in honest debate. But their honesty was short lived.
When they were unable to stop his arguments. They turn to corrupt manners. in order to silence him. By beginning a program of subordinating witnesses against Stephen. And so one by one These suborned witnesses came and bore False witness against Stephen, and listen to what they accused him of.
They said, We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses. And God And they stirred up the people, the elders and the scribes. And they came upon him, they seized him, and they brought him before the council. And again, they set up false witnesses who said, This man doesn't cease speaking. Blasphemous words.
against this holy place, referring of course to the temple. And the law. And we heard him say. That this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs which Moses delivered to us.
Now before I go on, let me just remind you. that not a single word of what they said. was true except That Jesus did indeed say, He was going to destroy that temple. But the way Jesus' words were twisted. in the mouths of these false witnesses was all part of their grand conspiracy.
Against this eloquent spokesman. For Christ In their midst.
Now, listen to this. almost parenthetic footnote that Luke gives to us. And all who sat in the council. looking steadfastly at him. Saw his face.
As the face of an angel. We've seen that a couple of times before in Scripture. We see it in the Old Testament when Moses goes up to the mountain and speaks with God and asks God if he could see his glory. And so Moses gets this instantaneous glance. At the back of God.
And suddenly, Moses' face begins to shine with such intensity. That it is blinding to those around him.
Now that light On the face of Moses did not come from inside of Moses. It was reflected glory. Reflected by his having been in the presence of God. The next one we see is at the Mount of Transfiguration, where Christ is transfigured, and now the light that radiates from his garments and from his face is not a reflection from outside, but it comes from within. As for a moment The divine bursts through the veil of the human.
And those in his presence fall. On their faces. At this sight But it's more like Moses than Jesus. that this radiance shines from the face of Stephen because he is at that moment Reflecting not the ugliness. And horror that's being reflected in the faces of his accusers.
But they're saying the grace and loveliness and sweetness of God. Pouring force From his countenance. Then the high priest asked the question Are these things so? You've heard the charges. Are they correct?
Are you speaking blasphemous things? About Moses. and about God and in the law. Are you guilty or innocent? What do you say?
Well, he doesn't just say, well, I plead innocent, Your Honor. He begins to give them a lesson. in Redemptive History. He takes them back to Sunday school, or I should say. Friday school.
for a little training in the synagogue. And he goes back. To Abraham. He said, You remember Abraham? You want to know if these charges are true?
Think about Abraham. Don't you remember that God called Abraham out of Ur the Chaldeans? And how God made a covenant with Abraham, and in his old age. He was blessed with the son Isaac, and that covenant promise was passed on down to Isaac, and he speaks about that, and then how that it goes down to Jacob, and Jacob to his sons. And how the sons of Jacob rose up against their brother.
Joseph and sold him into slavery. where he then became imprisoned. And finally, after his release, he was elevated to the position of prime minister in Egypt. You remember that? Stephen is saying.
He said, and how in those desperate times of famine when Joseph was the prime minister, God told Jacob to go down into Egypt with his family and to reside there where there was plenty of food to eat and they would be under the protection of Joseph. And so they went. and settled in the land of Goshen. Remember that, Steven said? Stephen said, and then you recall, of course, how Another pharaoh came to power who didn't know Joseph.
And instead now of treating the people of Israel graciously, he enslaved them. And they groaned under this burden of oppression for so many years. Until God heard. They're groanings. And then Stephen reminds them of Moses.
Who, defending his own people, became a cast out and an exile into the Midianite wilderness. And it was there that God came to him in the burning bush. And said, Moses, you go to Pharaoh. And you tell him I said, let my people go. And so on he goes through the Exodus.
And after the people were liberated by God, they began to murmur and complain and want to go back to Egypt. You know, the same story. God sends the prophets, and what do they do? They kill the prophets. And this litany goes on.
This rehearsal of Jewish history is set before the leaders in Stephen's defense. And so you would think he would conclude his Overview by saying So you see, Your Honor, said I'm really just trying. to follow in the tradition of our fathers. I'm just trying to be an obedient Jew, just like them. That's not what he said.
He comes now to the incendiary part of the sermon. When he said, You stiff-necked. An uncircumcised In heart and ears. Oh, I know you're of the circumcision. We know that we have in your body the sign of this old covenant that I've just rehearsed.
But your circumcision never went beyond your private parts. It never reached your heart. Never reached your neck. Never reach your ears. You always resist the Holy Spirit.
Let me ask them a question. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute. Name one. Who was well received? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the just one, the righteous one.
And whom you've now become? The betrayers and the murderers. Don't you understand? I'm giving you the history of you. I'm telling you that your fathers killed the one who predicted the coming of the one that you just killed.
You who have received the law. By the direction of angels that have not kept it.
Now, in a sense. They were circumcised. But in a strange and different way, because Luke tells us. that when they heard Stephen speak these words to them, words so inflammatory, so directed at their guilt, That they were cut. To the heart.
Not in the sense that That now their hearts were opened To the word of God no. But here's one of those cases where the word of God, when it is faithfully proclaimed, cuts between bone and marrow, flesh and tissue. These are stinging words. Words with barbs on them. Words that so cut through the outward appearances of these people that it cuts to the very heart of their listeners.
But instead of repenting, Their response is this They gnashed at him. with their teeth. What an image They didn't smile. They didn't show their teeth by smiling. They started gritting their teeth, clenching their jaw.
Gnashing their teeth back and forth. They're so angry. They are so furious at this one who's just accused them of killing Jesus. unjustly. That they're growling at him like a dog.
But Stephen. While they're gnashing their teeth at him. Being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven. And saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.
Now, listen to this, ladies and gentlemen. I mean, if you have a mob ready to kill you.
so furious at you, and their advancing on you, gnashing their teeth How can you take your eyes off them? Boy, I would take my eyes off a crowd like that. I'd be looking behind me. I'd be looking for a place that I could escape from them. Instead, Stephen looks up.
And God in His grace Gives him a taste of heaven. God peels back the curtain for just a moment and allows this man who's on trial for his life here before this hostile kangaroo court. God shows Stephen His glory. The teeth of men that are being gnashed at him and not worthy to be compared. With the blessed vision that Stephen now enjoys.
As he looks up, Into heaven. And somebody told me after the first service. He saw his escape route. It wasn't back. It was up.
But I read rather quickly over what else he saw, which is absolutely astonishing. When he looked up and he saw the glory of God, Luke tells us that he also saw Jesus. He had just been Witnessing to Jesus. You know, the word for witness in the New Testament, the Greek word, is the word martaria. from which we get the English word Martyr.
And this first one to be martyred. In the name of Jesus. At the very moment that he's about to be martyred. He looks up and he sees Jesus. But what is Jesus doing?
He sees Jesus. Standing At the right hand of God. He's overcome with this. He now directs his gaze. I don't know how he could take his gaze off that.
He comes back to the group and he says, Look at. Do you see that? I see the heavens open. And I see the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.
Now when we have a trial today. Who stands in the courtroom? The prosecuting attorney. And the defense attorney. What does the judge do?
He sits. The presiding judge sits on the bench. And he remains seated throughout the trial. And now, Stephen is on trial for his life before the highest earthly court of Israel. And he looks up.
And he sees Jesus. Not sitting at the right hand of God. His customary place. He sees Jesus standing.
Now imagine you're on trial for your life. And you come into the courtroom. And you're sitting down there and You've already made your plea and said you're innocent, but Now here comes the opening statement from the prosecuting attorney. And he charges you with everything imaginable for this heinous crime that you've committed. And then when he's finished with his Opening statement, he asked for the defense attorney.
To give his opening statement, he looks around, there's no attorney. No counsel for the defense. And what would you think if that happened to you?
Well, you didn't have anybody to defend you. And then all of a sudden... The judge gets up off the bench. Comes down on the floor. looks up at the vacant bench and says Your Honor.
I am counsel for the defense. I mean, it doesn't get any better than that in the trial than to have the judge be your defense attorney. And that's what Stephen sees. The heavens open. Look at that.
I see the judge of heaven and earth. Rising In my defense. Remember, Jesus had told his disciples before he left that he was going to send them. Another paraclete. I ask my seminary students, who's the paraclete?
And they say, oh, that's the Holy Spirit. That's the main title for the Holy Spirit. I said...
Well, almost. He's the other one. He's Paraclete JG. The primary paraclete. The first one to be given the title of Paracletus in the New Testament.
Is Christ. Who is our advocate? with the father. Who is our defence attorney? And God has appointed him both judge.
And Defense Attorney. If you are in Christ. You have Christ as your advocate before the Father. If not. You will have him simply.
as your judge. After Stephen tells them what he'd just seen. They cry. With a loud voice. And they stopped their ears.
Did you ever see little kid do that? Done wanna hear it? Don't tell me that I don't want to hear it. I'll stop my ears. And so this crowd stop their ears and they rush at him as one person.
They grab him and they take him outside the city. Pilate's probably has already been deposed and brought out of office. We don't know if there was a Roman procurator here at this time, but they're still not allowed to execute the death penalty. Under Roman rule But they're so furious, they're kangaroo court.
So illegal doesn't matter. They grab Stephen, drag him outside of the city to the place of stoning, where the traditional place was where people were stoned. And they are so mad, they want to do the job right, they take off their coats. And they lay their coach at the feet. of a young man named Saul.
Who was complicit? In this godless act. And I'm sure he never got over it. As we will see when we take him up. In our next study of Acts.
But here's the first introduction. of the Apostle Paul in biblical history. As part of this mob. Taking the life of Stephen.
So they put down their clothes and they all grab rocks and stones and with all their might they begin to throw these rocks into the face, into the chest, into the head of Stephen. And he's being cut and marred and bruised. What a horrible way to be executed One stone at a time. And in the midst of all of this pain. He was praying.
And he called on God. And he asked for two things. Just like his Saviour before him, he had said, Lord. Receive my spirit. Into your hands.
I commend my spirit. And the second thing he asked, just as his lord had before. Lay not this sin. to their charge. And having said that.
He breathed his last.
So many times it's almost trite. Blood of the martyrs. It's the seat of the church. This was the first seed. that was sown in the apostolic community.
and was watched over. By the Lord Jesus. The blood of the martyrs is indeed the seed of the church. And just as Stephen's gaze was fixed upon the Lord Jesus in the moment of his greatest suffering, may our eyes be fixed on Christ, In life. and in death.
Thank you for joining us on this Lord's Day for Renewing Your Mind. The sermon you just heard was part of R. C. Sproll's series on the book of Acts. and all of doctor Sproul's sermons from his series have been compiled in his Expositional Commentary on X.
you can receive the hardcover edition of this resource today by making a donation at renewingyourmind.org. And just a reminder that today is your final opportunity to request this commentary from Dr. Sprohl. When people ask hard questions about your faith, how do you respond? I hope you'll join us next Sunday as we hear a sermon from Dr.
Sproll exploring apologetics. or the Christian discipline of defending our faith. That's here. Renewing Your Mind.
