Thursday 10 July 2025
But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke. (v. 10)
Background
Every Friday (and also in any emergency) the early followers of Jesus copied the Jewish custom of collecting money and goods from the wealthier and redistributing them to the needy, particularly to widows who had no husband to support them.
However, it was soon alleged that there was a disparity in treatment between what was being offered to the two types of Jews who had joined the apostles. Some spoke Aramaic (the language developed from Hebrew) because they were from Jerusalem or other Palestinian places. Others spoke only Greek because they came from Jewish families who had lived in other countries, often for many generations. It was felt that the Aramaic Jews looked down on the Greek-speaking (or Hellenistic) Jews meaning the needs of Greek-speaking widows were being neglected. The disciples therefore appointed seven officials (called deacons) to handle the redistribution of money to the widows and, judging from their names, they deliberately chose seven Hellenistic Jews.
One of these was Stephen, who we read about today. We know nothing of his background except that he spoke about Jesus in the synagogues which contained Hellenistic Jews. His belief that the gospel was for all people brought him into conflict with those who attended the synagogue of the Libertines. The Libertines were descendants of Jews enslaved by the Roman general Pompey after the conquest of Judea in 63 BC. Most had returned to Jerusalem from Cyrene in Libya, although Luke (the author of Acts) also refers to some of Stephen’s opponents having come from Alexandria on the Egyptian coast and Cicilia (now called Anatolia) in Turkey.
There’s a saying that when you encourage people to break rules, you’re not just challenging the status quo, you’re redefining it. These Hellenistic Jews could not cope with Stephen’s redefinition of what God wanted. Instead of their time abroad having liberalised their thinking, they wanted to assert that they were rigidly obedient to the Jewish Law. They arranged for false evidence to be brought against Stephen to show he had no respect for either the Law or the Temple.
To Ponder:
- To what extent do we today view those from a different religious background as inferior to those who share our upbringing? What can we do about this?
- Does the desire to prove we are doing what God wants sometimes lead us into taking actions that are unworthy?
- Rather than risk appearing to lose a debate with Stephen, his opponents resort to denigrating and silencing him. What issues facing the Church today would benefit from more open discussion?
Prayer
Dear God, help me to see that everyone has value in your eyes. Do not let me fall victim to the pressure that comes from social media to distrust, vilify and look for scapegoats for problems we face. Help me always to look to the example set by Jesus and to love my neighbour. Help me to do that even if others mock me for doing so or try to stop me. And keep me open to your guidance, not thinking I know it all. Amen.
Bible notes author: Gary Best
Gary was headmaster of Kingswood School from 1987 to 2008 and volunteer warden of the New Room in Bristol from 2009 to 2019. He has published over 20 books, including The Christian Alphabet, a study book for home groups.