Acts 6 - Deacons Are Chosen to Feed the Greek Speaking Widows - Stephen is Persecuted!

Click Here to Read or Listen to Acts 6

The Choosing of the Seven

As the early church grew, a problem arose with the Greek speaking widows, who were being neglected in favor of the Jewish speaking widows. The apostles knew it was a problem but decided that they could not do everything. They needed to focus on praying and spreading the word. So the community chose 7 men, who were full of the Holy Spirit. They ministered to these widows. Later they were called "deacons". The word means simply "servant". 

This is a great example of the apostles not trying to do everything themselves. They delegated and allowed other people in the community to use their spiritual gifts to meet this problem. This decision was a good one because it not only met the problem of feeding the widows, who were being neglected, but it also freed the apostles and got more people involved in the ministry. This principle is as much needed now than ever. We call this "equipping the saints for the work of ministry". This is also spelled out by Paul in Ephesians 4, as one of the principle duties of pastors and teachers. 

Stephen Seized

Though the community was growing in number and favor, persecution started happening more frequently and severely. As Stephen performed great signs and wonders, he received great opposition from different Jewish groups. Who were the Synagogue of Freedman?

The Synagogue of the Freedmen is called the Synagogue of the Libertines in the KJV. The word libertine is from the Latin and originally referred to a man who had been a slave but had been set at liberty. Some scholars believe that these persons were slaves of the Romans who had been freed, became proselytes of the Jewish religion, and had a synagogue in Jerusalem. The NLT calls this group the Synagogue of Freed Slaves.

It is ironic that the Synagogue of the Freedmen should call themselves that. They may have been freed from one type of slavery, but they were slaves nonetheless. Jesus said, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin” (John 8:34). The Jews to whom He was speaking had objected to the idea they were slaves, but Jesus showed them the path to true freedom: - Got Questions.org

Note they could not stand up against the wisdom of Stephen, as he relied on the Holy Spirit. As we have seen every day in the book of Acts, it is the Holy Spirit that is working so powerfully through the apostles. Since they could not refute Stephen's argument, they went to the members of the Jewish Sanhedrin, the same group who accused Jesus and eventually sent him to the cross. 

Like Jesus, the offense they pinned on him was that he was speaking blasphemous words against Moses and God. Most likely there were teaching how we are freed from the Law through the death of Jesus, who claimed to be God. His resurrection proved he was God, which would have been deemed blasphemous  by the elders and teachers of the Law. 

Meanwhile Stephen was at peace listening to all this and it says, "He had the face of an angel". 

How can the Holy Spirit help you when your faith is called into question? Why do you think Stephen was so at peace, when he was being questioned? 

We learn a lot more about Stephen tomorrow!!


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