A Champion Of Freedom

Acts 6:8 

"And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great

wonders and miracles among the people." 

     After the Church's appointment of the seven men at the beginning of Acts chap. 6, in a since the great struggle had begun. The Jews always looked on themselves as the chosen people; but they had interpreted chosen in the wrong way, regarding themselves as chosen for special privilege and believing that God had no use for any other nation. They never dreamed that they were chosen for service to bring all men into the same relationship with God. But Stephen was one they could not deal with because he was full of faith, power and he did great wonders and miracles among the people. They were not able to resist the spirit and the wisdom when he spoke.

    Here was the thin end of the wedge. It is not a question of bringing in the Gentiles. It was Greek speaking Jews who where involved here. And not one of the seven has a Jewish name; and one of them, Nicolaos, was a Gentile who had accepted the Jewish faith. And Stephen had a vision of a world for Christ. To the Jews two things were specially important: the Temple, where alone sacrifice could be offered and God could be truly worshipped and the Law which could never be changed.  

    Stephen, however, said that the Temple must pass away, that the Law was but a stage towards the gospel and that Christianity must go out to the whole wide world. None could withstand his arguments and so the Jews resorted to force and Stephen was arrested. His career was to be short; but he was the first to see that Christianity was God's offer to all the world.
Amen!

Reading: (Acts 6:1-15)
Ref: (HG SB)

May God Bless You

And Your Family

Minister Robert A. Lail Sr.

The Cross Life Ministry