Acts 6
In chapter six of Acts, Luke introduces us to a problem in the early Church and the man selected to address the issue. Stephen is one of my favorite Biblical characters, a Spirit-led doer of the Word. Let us begin with issue before turning to the man.
In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. 2 So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. 3 Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them 4 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”
Up to this time, the collection and distribution of goods was managed by apostles. In a nutshell, the problem was that the Gentile (Greek) widows were not getting as much food as the Jewish widows. From the map we can see that there were a substantial number of Greek people in the church and therefore a substantial number of Greek widows. The solution was to select a separate ministry team (a CARE TEAM) to oversee this ministry and ensure that the Apostles could dedicate their time to prayer and teaching. Luke continues....
5 This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. 6 They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them."
From these servers of tables, we get the term deacon. These were seven men, though later the Bible names Phoebe as a “deaconess.” What was the criteria used to select these seven men? It is noteworthy that with the exception of Stephen, the six other names are Greek. Perhaps this is evidence of the wisdom and diplomacy of the Apostles.
7 So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith."
In the map above we can see a number of the nations that are already part of the growing Church. Let us turn now to the man, who Luke addresses in verse 8:
8 Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. 9 Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia—who began to argue with Stephen. 10 But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke."
The Synagogue of the Freedman (or Libertines) was a group of Greek speaking followers of the Jewish faith. For the most part they were freed slaves. As non-Hebrew they could not worship inside the Temple so they met together in their own synagogue. Scholars assume that their issue related to the issue of their widows not being treated fairly - the very issue that was to be addressed! Luke continues in verse 11:
11 Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, “We have heard Stephen speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God.” 12 So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin. 13 They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. 14 For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.”
Apparently, these "Freedmen" did not voice their true concern. Rather, they attacked Stephen (as Jesus had been attacked) by producing false-witnesses who declared that Stephen sought to change the customs of Moses. In any case, Stephen is brought before the Sanhedrin (again as Jesus had) for a hasty trial. Luke continues at verse 15:
15 All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel."
What is your first impression of Stephen? The story continues in chapter seven.