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- Preaching the Living WORD through
the Written WORD - 2 Tim 4;:2 - |
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STEPHEN’S DEFENSE TO CHARGES OF BLASPHEMY - Pt. 3b & 4 (Ac 7:39-50)
11/24/13 Grace Bible Church,
Gillette, Wyoming Pastor Daryl Hilbert I. THE LAW OF GOD WAS GIVEN TO ISRAEL
(38-43) A. The Giving of the Law (38) B. The Disobedience and Idolatry of Israel
(39-43) 1. Disobedient Fathers Turned Back to
Idolatry (39-41) a) [39] Returning to his familiar theme,
Stephen spoke of the disobedience of Israel. (1) The fathers were continuously “disobedient”
(ouk ēthelēsan hupēkooi genesthai - “not willing to be
obedient,” Is 28:12; Je 5:3; 8:5; Eze 20:8). (2) They “repudiated” (apotheō - lit.
“push aside, or reject” Ac 7:27; 13:46; Ro 11:1-2; 1Ti 1:19) God. (3) They “turned back (in their hearts)” (strephō
- turn toward, return) to Egypt (Nu 11;5). b) Though Stephen exalted Moses, he asserted
that the Jews themselves rejected him. In essence, they rejected God’s
spokesman and the message from God’s Law. c) [40] Stephen connects turning to Egypt in
their hearts with the idea of idolatry, for he quotes Ex 32:1. (1) They wanted a new leader because Moses was
not coming back. (2) In addition, they wanted a new god, because
the LORD had abandoned them. d) [41] Consequently, they made their own god
by making it in the image of a calf (moschopoieō - moschos - calf
& poieō - to make). They assimilated the worship of the Egyptian
god, “Osorapis” (Osiris-Apis, bull deity). In what has been termed, “the
unspeakable deed,” they brought a sacrifice to the idol and “rejoiced” (euphrainō
- celebration and merriment) in what they had done. Aaron declared
concerning the calf, “This is your god,
O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt” (Ex 32:4). Though God did not abandon the nation of Israel, three
thousand died for their disobedience (Ex 32:28). 2. God Turned Back and Handed Israel over to
Idolatry (42-43) a) [42] Furthermore, though God did not
abandon Israel, He was eventually incited to “turn away” (strephō,
same word as vs. 39) from helping Israel and “delivered them over” (paradidōmi
- hand over, give to, permit, Ro 1:24, 26, 28) to foreign gods (Ho 4:17).
(1) God handed over disobedient Israel to their
sin (idolatry) and its consequences, proving that their false gods could not
deliver them (cf. Jdg 10:10-14). (2) Quoting Am 5:25, God sarcastically reproved
Israel for its history of sacrificing to other gods rather than to Him. b) [43] The false gods mentioned were the
“host of heaven” to which Amos referred in Am 5:26. (1) Amos referred to the “tabernacle of
Moloch.” Though different from the Hebrew text (MT), Stephen quoted from the
Septuagint (LXX). “Moloch” was the “Canaanite-Phoenician god of the sky
and sun” (or Venus) (IDB). (Also called Molech, the god to whom children
were sacrificed, Le 20:2-5; 1Ki 11:7; Je 32:35). (2) Amos mentioned the “star of the God
Rompha.” “Rompha” (with many variations in spelling, Heb. Chiun) is
another name for the planet Saturn (EXP). (3) Though prohibited by God (Ex 20:1-4; Dt
5:7-8), Israel, as well as pagans, had a propensity to worship images and
creation rather than the Creator (2Ki 17:16; 21:3-5; 23:4; 2Ch 33:3; Je 8:2;
19:13; Zp 1:5 cf. Ro 1:23; 25). (4) In addition, Amos spoke of God’s discipline
of Israel by sending them into Babylonian Captivity (Am 5:27). “Damascus” (MT
& LXX) is replaced with “Babylon” by Stephen. Amos’ prophesy was for the
northern kingdom at the hands of the Assyrians. Stephen included the later
captivity of the southern kingdom taken to Babylon (2Ch 36:15-21). In this
way, Stephen’s theme applied to all of Israel, who were disciplined by the
Lord for their idolatry (Dt 17:3, 2 Ki
17:16; 21:3). (5) Stephen, who was charged with blaspheming
against the Law, charges the Jews, the possessors of the Divine Law, with
disobedience and rejection of it. II. THE TEMPLE OF GOD WAS GIVEN TO ISRAEL
(44-50) A. The Tabernacle was Among Israel (44) 1. [44] Having acquitted himself of the
charge of blasphemy against the God, Moses, and the Law (Ac 6:11, 13),
Stephen now addresses the subject of the Temple of God. 2. The “holy place” (Ac 6:13) referred to
the place where God met with sinful man. It was called the “tent of meeting”
(Ex 27:21). It began with the tabernacle in the wilderness and continued with
Solomon’s Temple and then Herod’s Temple. 3. It was called the “tabernacle of
testimony” (skēnē tou marturiou, Ex 38:21; Nu 1:50, 53;
10:11; Re 15:5) because it contained the testimony of the two tablets of
stone upon which God inscribed the Ten Commandments. These were in the “ark
of testimony” (Ex 26:33-34; Dt 10:1-5) or “ark of the covenant” (Dt 31:9) in
the Holy of Holies. 4. This concept of the tabernacle was
instituted and designed by God who instructed Moses (Ex 25:8-9, 40). We can
see the Jewish importance and the logical connection between God, Moses, the
Law, and the Temple (tabernacle); and Stephen was in agreement with all of
them. B. Israel took the Tabernacle into the
Promised Land (45) 1. [45] Only God’s people (Jews) possessed
the privilege of the tent of meeting. Furthermore it was the focal point of
worship for Israel down through the generations to take it with them wherever
God would lead them. 2. Consequently, Israel brought the
tabernacle with them into the Promised Land. God had given them the Promised
Land and He drove out the nations before them (Ex 34:24; Dt 11:23). C. A Temple was Built for God (46-47) 1. [46-47] David, another great patriarch,
found favor in God’s sight. David had the same focal point of worship and
asked to build a permanent “dwelling place” (skēnōma
fr.skēnē - dwelling place or habitation) for God. 2. However, because David was a warrior(1Ch
22:8; 28:3), Solomon, David’s son, was chosen to build it(2Sa 7:13; 1Ch
28:5). D. God is not Contained in His Temple (48-50) 1. [48] It was at this point, that Stephen
showed where the Jewish mentality halted. “However” (alla - contrast)
the Most High (Ge 14:18-20; Dt 32:8), does not dwell in houses made by human
hands. In other words, God did design a temporary meeting place with Israel,
but that was not God’s ultimate plan for a better and permanent place to meet
with man, i.e. Christ. The Jews attempted to confine and contain God and His
revelation in the Temple. 2. [49-50] Stephen quoted Is 66:1-2 as evidence of this. Some 200 yrs
after the Temple was built, God said “HEAVEN
IS MY THRONE, AND EARTH IS THE FOOTSTOOL OF MY FEET. Therefore, God did not
live nor was confined in Temples built by human hands. 3. Stephen believed everything the Jews
believed concerning God, Moses, the Law, and the Temple. Thus, he did not
blaspheme. However, the Jews were guilty of making the Temple as the apex of
revealed revelation. Therefore, they were guilty of blaspheme against God,
Moses, the Law, and the Temple by containing God and His revelation in the
Temple, thereby rejecting Christ. III. OBSERVATIONS AND APPLICATIONS A. God is contained in a box 1. The expression “containing God in a box”
usually suggests that certain Christians claim that God is not doing
something today which He did in the past. 2. The Jews in Stephen’s day contained God
in a Temple box. 3. Charismatics accuse Cessationists of
“containing God in a box” with regard to spiritual gifts. However,
Cessationists maintain that God is able to work in different ways through
different dispensations. In fact, to insist that God must do something the
way He has always done it is to put God in a box. 4. God is not contained in a box but reveals
Himself today according to the full understanding of the Word. B. God has revealed Himself in Christ (Col
1:15; Jn 1:14; He 1:1-3; Jn 14:6) 1. Colossians 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 2. John 1:14 And the Word became
flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only
begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. 3. Hebrews 1:1-3 God, after He spoke long ago to the
fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, 2 in these last days has spoken
to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He
made the world. 3 And He is the radiance of His
glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by
the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at
the right hand of the Majesty on high, C. The way to the Father is not in or through
a church, or good works, or baptism but through Christ. Jn 14:6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the
truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. 1.
All who come to the Father are those who come through Christ. 2.
True believers come to the Father. 3.
Therefore, true believers have come through Christ. 4. Therefore, if someone claims salvation through any other way
except Christ, then that person has not come to the Father. |
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