The rebellion and idolatry of the israelites in the wilderness, acts 7. The seven, often known as the seven deacons, were leaders elected by the early christian church to minister to the community of believers in jerusalem, to enable the apostles to concentrate on prayer and the ministry of the word and to address a concern raised by greekspeaking believers about their widows being overlooked in the daily diakonia or ministry. The facts of israels history that stephen recites were familiar to his listeners. The acts of the apostles, abbreviation acts, fifth book of the new testament, a valuable history of the early christian church. They boasted in the temple as if it gave them special. We have a maxim, apices juris non sunt juramere points of law are not law itself. In this long defense stephen takes a much wider range, and goes less directly into the point raised by. Acts was apparently written in rome, perhaps between ad 70 and 90, though some think a slightly earlier date is also. Acts chapter 7 deals with the defense of stephen, a disciple and deacon in the early church, who was moving among the people performing miracles and preaching. The high priests of the synagogues grew angry and jealous of stephen and accused him of blasphemy. The book of acts was written to provide a history of the early church. A simple outline of the book can be formulated on the basis of jesus statement at acts 1. The god of glory appeared to our father abraham while he was still in mesopotamia, before he lived in harran. As a second volume to lukes gospel, it joins what jesus began to do and to teach 1.
Historical reliability of the acts of the apostles wikipedia. Luke, the author of the gospel of luke, was a doctor and gentile. Beginning with abraham, stephen keeps building and building, as we have tried to do coming through the old testament. Acts 7 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. It is titled acts to emphasize that this book records the acts of. Welcome to ivy baptist churchs bible study on demand before beginning this study, please take an opportunity to download the worksheet for this bible study. By reading the book of exodus, we are told of the events that took place in the life of moses. Chapter 7 of acts tells us his supposed defence, but portrays stephen as making no attempt to defend himself or even talk about his christian faith as later martyrs are said to have done. While there are some areas of great detail of the acts of the apostles, many times you must use cross references to the gospels of matthew, mark, luke and john as well as some other epistles in the new testament to get the full picture of what was. He reminds the sanhedrin that god appeared to abraham while he was still in mesopotamia and told him to go to haran. The emphasis of the book is the fulfillment of the great commission. Then god turned, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven. The erection of the tabernacle of witness, which continued till the time of david, acts 7.
For the history of joseph, begin at chapter 39, and. Most of the sermon focuses on three major characters. On the 40th day after the resurrection the disciples wait in jerusalem 10 more days. The beheading of james and the imprisonment of peter. Acts 7 ananias and sapphira 5 but a man named ananias, with his wife sapphira, sold a piece of property, 2 and with his wifes knowledge v he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and w laid it at the apostles feet. Acts 15 chapter and book in which the jerusalem council is described. The history of moses and his acts till the exodus from egypt, vv. God is preparing for his peoples deliverance, when their day is darkest, and their distress deepest. Acts records the apostles being christs witnesses in jerusalem, judea, samaria, and the surrounding world. Acts is designed to trace the spread of the gospel from jerusalem to antioch to rome. Acts 7 commentary commentary critical and explanatory on. The major areas of history with which the author has dealt are.
A chapterbychapter bible study of the book of acts 7 jesus shows himself to his followers for 40 days after the after he is resurrected resurrection jesus goes up to heaven. The genre of the book of acts is narrative history with several sermons. In acts, jesus sends the holy spirit to empower his disciples as they carry. Acts 7 niv stephens speech to the sanhedrin bible gateway. Actus apostolorum, often referred to simply as acts, or formally the book of acts, is the fifth book of the new testament. Observations from reading stephens speech in acts 7. And they say that paul meant to refer to lukes gospel wherever. Instead, they rejected him and in their hearts turned back to egypt. Our story starts off where the gospel of luke left offjesus is back now that hes resurrected, jesus decides to hang out and chat with his disciples whom luke calls apostles for forty days. Acts 7 is the seventh chapter of the acts of the apostles in the new testament of the christian bible. Verses 116 stephen was charged as a blasphemer of god, and an apostate from the church. The god of glory appeared to our father abraham, when he was in mesopotamia, before he lived in haran. Acts 1 new international version niv jesus taken up into heaven. Watch our overview video on the book of acts, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought.
Stephen brings up the tabernacle and the temple, but not at great length 7. The book of acts provides a bridge for the writings of the nt. Suffering times often are growing times with the church. Studies in the book of acts chapter 7 larrys lines.
The slow steps by which the promise made to abraham advanced toward performance, plainly show that it had a spiritual. Abraham, in an act of faith, had purchased a burial site in canaan. The book of acts was likely written between ad 61 and 64. Acts was written in greek, presumably by the evangelist luke, whose gospel concludes where acts begins, namely, with christs ascension into heaven. His object seems to have been to show 1 that so far from disparaging, he deeply reverenced, and was intimately conversant with, the whole history of the ancient. The historical reliability of the acts of the apostles, the principal historical source for the apostolic age, is of interest for biblical scholars and historians of early christianity as part of the debate over the historicity of the bible archaeological inscriptions and other independent sources show that acts contains some accurate details of 1st century society with regard to the titles. Acts 7 commentary james burton coffman commentaries on. He went on to tell the story of moses and how he was raised by pharaohs daughter as her son, but went out to help his. I wrote out the following observations that i gathered from reading stephens speech in acts 7. Acts 7 and the high priest said, are these things so. Abraham was then a stranger in that land, but he knew it was the promised land. The high priest mentioned here was probably still caiaphas, the same one who presided over the trial of jesus.