Shabbat Shalom, everyone. We are turning today to the book of Acts, and we are going to read today a whole chapter, Acts chapter 6 today, as we are moving along in a study of the book of Acts. In Hebrew, we call it Maasei Shlichim, the Acts of the Apostles, but actually, it is the Acts of the Holy Spirit of God through the Apostles, as God was using the Apostles to present the Messiah to the nation of Israel, and then later on to the nations beyond the borders of the land of Israel. And so today, we have arrived to chapter 6, and it is a very interesting chapter because it is extremely practical.

In this chapter 6 of the book of Acts, here we learn of some challenges that were facing the believers that have occurred within, not only problems without, which we are also going to see here in chapter 6, but some issues that they had to deal with that occurred within the body of Messiah here in the city of Jerusalem. And so I am reading this chapter. We have 15 verses, and let me begin from verse 1. "And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration. "Then the twelve called a multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, "It is not reason that we should leave the word of God and serve tables.

"Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. "But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word. "And the saying pleased the whole multitude, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith, and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Procurius, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicholas, a proselyte of Antioch." "Whom they set before the apostles, and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.

"And the word of God increased, and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly, and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith." "And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people." "Then there arose a certain of the synagogue, which is called the synagogue of the Libertarians, and the Cyrenians, and the Alexandrians, and of them of Cilicia, and of Asia, disputing with Stephen." "And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he speak." "Then they sabonned men, which said, 'We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God.' "And they stood up the people, and the elders and

the scribes, and came upon him, and caught him, and brought him to the council, and set a false witness, which said, 'This man ceases not to speak blasphemous words against the holy place and the law.' "For we have heard him say that this Yeshua of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses delivered us." "And all that sat in the council, looking steadfastly on him, looking steadfastly on him, saw his face, as it has been a face of an angel." "I'm stopping here at the end of chapter 6." "Interesting chapters, dear brothers and sisters, here in chapter 6." "We have just finished a deal in chapter 4, and in chapter 5

of the book of Acts." "The first persecution in Jerusalem, chapter 4." "The second persecution in Jerusalem, chapter 5." "And actually, really, what we have here in the second half of the chapter 6, here we have really the third persecution of the believers in the city of Jerusalem in the land of Israel." "But you can notice here, that the theme here of this chapter 6 is really the choosing of the servants, or the deacons, decanos, those who serve and minister among the people of God in the local assembly in the city of Jerusalem." "Now you can just imagine, dear brothers and sisters, that in our looking throughout those first five chapters, by the time we get

to chapter 6, there are so many believers in Israel." "So many believers in Yeshua the Messiah who are part of the assembly of the church of the ecclesia." "Some suggested there were above 25,000 Jewish people who believed in Yeshua the Messiah who were part of the local assembly in Israel, and specifically in the city of Jerusalem." "But you notice what happened?" "Up to this point, there was persecution from without." "And there were problems that came upon them from without." "And the last verse of chapter 5 says, "Daily in the temple and in every house they cease not to teach and to preach Yeshua the Messiah." "Every day they went to the temple and they spoke

of the Lord." "Every day they went from house to house and they shared with each other." "And they were growing spiritually." "But with growth, brothers and sisters, problems also come along." "It is what you call growth pain." "Labor pain." "You know, just the same like a woman who is going to deliver a baby." "Before the baby came into this world, there is what you call labor pain prior to the birth into this world." "And what we see here is growing trials among the people of God." "Years gone when we participated in the work of the Lord here in Toronto in another Messianic congregation." "There was a time that we had a growing of numbers." "There

was a full house in the meeting hall." "And it is amazing as the house was full, problems came along with it." "And the problems and the challenges and some of the things that came along with it is that which we find here in verse 1." "Is the murmuring and the complaining." "Now, not to blame anybody, this is embedded in our hearts as people, as human beings." "It is so much part of our nature to murmur and to complain." "And not to be satisfied." "In fact, as we have just read, when the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron and against God." "Because they were not satisfied with what God had provided for them." "And

God had to deal with his own people because of their murmuring." "And in Exodus chapter 16, the first time we find out." "And the whole congregation," verse 2.

"Of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron in the wilderness." "And they said, 'Wood to God that we have died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the fresh pots, and when we did eat bread and we were full." "For ye have brought us forth into this wilderness to kill the whole assembly with hunger." "For ye have brought us forth into this wilderness to kill the whole assembly with hunger." "You see, Israel of old have not been satisfied with what God had provided for them during the wilderness." "And they complained." "And the Hebrew word here in Exodus chapter 16 and verse 2." "Vayalonu." "Vayitlonenu."

"And they complained." "And they complained." "And they complained against Moses and Aaron saying to them," "Hoi, Moses, Aaron, you brought us here to the wilderness to kill us in this wilderness?" "What, do you think that's why God took Israel outside of Mitzrayim of Egypt in order that they would kill them in the wilderness?" "He could have allowed them to be killed in Egypt." "But no, he brought them out, out of love and out of grace." "And he provided the lamb for the Passover, for the Pesach." "Because of the blood that was shed, Israel had been delivered and brought out of bondage into liberty." "And you can see that even when there is liberty, there is

the old nature rises again and began to complain." "And so you can see, brothers and sisters, this come home very well into our own hearts." "You can see in the first seven verses here of Acts chapter 6 that the complaining had began." "Now I want you to notice that, very interesting." "And in those days when the number of the disciples were multiplied." "Isn't that amazing?" "The number is multiplying?" "There is growth among the people of God?" "More people are coming to know Yeshua as the Messiah in the city of Jerusalem?" "Ah ah!" "But then immediately you look to the right and what you see?" "And there arose a murmuring." "Now what was the murmuring and

who murmured against whom?" "There arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews." "Because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration." "Now let me tell you, this is a Jewish problem here." "Because the Grecians are actually Jewish believers of the diaspora." "Who have immigrated to the land of Israel." "Who made what we call in Hebrew 'aliyah." "They have come to Israel and in the land of Israel they became believers." "But they were under the Grecians influence." "In other words, because they lived in the diaspora." "Remember hundreds of years prior to it." "The Grecians empire had a lot of impact upon many around the world." "And so these Grecians Hebrews or Grecian Jewish people have

complained against the Hebrews." "This is the local Hebrews." "What we would call today the Tzabarim." "Those Jewish people who were born in the land of Israel." "And what was the complaint?" "It says here in verse 1." "Because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration." "Now apparently, even that time already they understood the place that God had given to the widow." "They understood very well from the Tanakh." "From the Old Testament and the instructions of God through Moses to the people of Israel." "The responsibility that the nation of Israel have to take over the widows." "Over the ones that are fatherless." "Over the ones that are strangers." "There was a responsibility that the nation is

supposed to have towards the widow." "And it's the same thing in the assembly in the city of Jerusalem." "There is a responsibility that the local believers, the local assembly, have to care and give concern to the person who is a widow." "Her husband has passed away." "She is alone." "She is an aide." "She is a widow." "And she needs care." "So apparently what happened here." "It seemed to be that there was a problem that the Grecian Jewish believing widows were not taking care as much as the local Jewish believing widows." "Is that what we really see here?" "So there was that murmuring and complaining." "Now, sometimes complaining is in place, and sometimes complaining is not

in place." "In this case, brothers and sisters, you see that it was a genuine concern." "There was not a fair distribution of the funds, perhaps, that they have had towards the needs of those widows." "And so the Grecian Hebrews were complaining against the local Hebrew believers, and they said, 'Listen, you are neglecting our widows while you are taking care of your own widows." "Now let me show you a verse in Deuteronomy chapter 14, in verse 28 and 29, what God says to Israel about the widows." "At the end of three years, you shall bring forth the tithe of thine increase, the same year, and you shall lay it up within the gates." "And the Levites,

because he has no part of no inheritance with you." "And the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within thy gates, shall come, and shall eat, and be satisfied." "That the Lord thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hand, which you are doing." "You see, God have made sure that the widows, and the fatherless, and the Levites, and the stranger will be cared for by the nation of Israel." "The same book of Deuteronomy chapter 24, and in verse 19, he's repeating the very same thing in connection with the stranger, the fatherless, the Levites, and the widow." "Look, I'm reading verse 17." "Thou shall not prevert the judgment of the

stranger, nor the fatherless, nor take a widow's raiment to pledge, but thou shall remember that thou was a bondman in Egypt." "You see, there was a care to give to the widows in the local assembly in the city of Jerusalem, but some things were not done right." "And you know, it's amazing that it is so much up to date, because sometimes we don't do things fairly, rightly so, in a right way, and sometimes there is justification to murmuring and to complain." "But unfortunately, much of the complaints that we complain have no justification, and just many of our complaints are really selfish, and we don't honor the Lord with this type of attitude." "And here, beloved

brothers and sisters, you can see that the need arises, and here we see how the apostles, the early believers, deal with the issue of the need that arose." "Now, if you want to look later on, look at 1 Timothy, and in chapter 5, you will notice that God gave instruction through Paul to Timothy how to deal with the widows in this present-day dispensation of the church age." "There it's even mentioned how old the widow is considered to be a widow." "It's three scores, 60 years of age." "It's interesting that even here in many countries, they give a pension for the ladies, at least it used to be, when they are 60 years of age." "Maybe

it changed, but you can see that there are some guidelines that we have in the Word of God of how to treat a widow." "And so now, when the murmuring came, the complaint arose, and you can see how wonderful the apostles, spiritual-minded men, guided by the Spirit of God." "Look what they said in verse 2, they are gathering all the disciples together." "And they say in verse 2, the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and they said it is not a reason that we should leave the Word of God to serve tables." "Now, you have to understand that the apostles here, they were not looking down on those who are what we

call deacons or servants." "In fact, they are now ready to appoint deacons, servants." "The word deacons simply means servant, those who serve, practical service." "And they are ready now to appoint them, but they could only appoint them because they were an apostles." "Those kind of things of appointments these days by men is not necessarily in light of the Scripture, because only people such an apostles could do such a thing." "We can recognize today, someone, and acknowledge someone in a service." "It's another thing of appointing." "Here you see the apostles calling the disciples, and the word disciple in Hebrew, talmid." "Talmid means like a student, a learner, a follower." "And they are calling the disciples together,

and they say to them, 'Listen, really no reason for us to deal with those things, to live the study of the word, the leadership in the spiritual authority, and to lead in teaching, in ministering.

It's not right for us to stop that and to go and to deal with the things that others who have gifts in this area should be doing." "They are not putting the others down and elevating themselves." "No, the opposite. What they really do here, they show the necessity of the members of the body of Messiah in the city of Jerusalem to take responsibility and to act upon it." "That word for serving table simply means, you know, to minister, to do the practical responsibility, whether it is to organize certain things that are practical, to meet the needs of the widows in this case. Those are practical responsibilities that many can do this, and those that have been gifted by God should take the responsibility in doing this." "And so now, in verse 3 and 4, the instructions of the apostle." "And you know, you can see the wisdom of these apostles as they give the instructions to the rest of the disciples there." "They say in verse 3 and verse 4, "Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business, but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word." "Now, you notice, when they give this kind of instruction to choose those seven men, they give them five qualifications that those men who are going to serve as deacons, as servants among the people or the believers in Jerusalem, they must be qualified for that ministry." "You know, sometimes we think, well, the spiritual leaders or the pastors, they should be spiritual-minded, and the rest should not be spiritual-minded.

They should not be guided by the Holy Spirit of God." "Sometimes we think like that." "But here, look at this, what he's saying." "There are five qualifications that they are giving to the disciples in Jerusalem for those who are going to serve as the servants among the people of God." "Number one, notice that in verse 3." "Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you." "Among you, brethren, that for the person that is going to be elected and chosen to serve must be a believer among the believers, the brethren." "What a sad thing that you have someone who is handling the affairs of the local assembly, the local church, who is not a believer." "How is it

possible?" "How can he even grasp the needs that exist among the people of God when he is not part of the family of God, when he is an unbeliever?" "It's clearly here in this chapter in verse 3." "Wherefore, brethren, achim in Hebrew." "You are our brethren in Messiah and you choose from among yourselves." "First of all, there has to be a believer." "They couldn't recommend the Pharisees, the Sadducees to the rest of those around them who are not believers." "No, they focus among themselves." "The person must be a child of God, a believer." "One among the believers in the city of Jerusalem." "Secondly, you notice in the qualification, it says in verse 3, seven men."

"Now, I want you to know that this is masculine in contrast to feminine." "Now, here they don't put the sisters down." "But they understood the principles of leadership in the local assembly that it is the male leadership." "You know, we had those issues all the time throughout the church age." "To understand that the brother and the sister, though they are united in the body of Messiah, they are part of the assembly of the Lord Jesus the Messiah." "The leadership position, God have given male leadership in Scripture." "We did not decide it." "Israel did not decide it." "The assembly did not decide it." "It is clearly given to us in the Word of God." "There is

so much room." "And there is so many blessings that the sisters can be in the assembly of Yeshua the Messiah." "In so many spheres." "And we don't limit it." "We don't belittle it." "It is valuable." "But nevertheless, we have the instruction that God has given us in His Word." "And it's so important to follow this up and to get this instruction." "I didn't write it." "The Spirit of God placed these seven men." "Thirdly, in this qualification in verse 3, they are saying to them that they should be men." "Having honest report." "In other words, they are known in their relationship with others in their dealings." "They are known to be pretty decent and honest." "They

were known to be of good report." "And the good report means that others, when they will say, you know, this brother so-and-so, you know, he deals fairly." "He's not perfect, by the way." "No one is perfect." "Not the apostles, nor the disciples, nor the seven men that are going to be chosen." "But nevertheless, they had an honest report." "They had a good report from among the people of God." "In their dealings, in their communication with others." "They have been really people that were used for the benefit of the believers." "They had honest report." "And this is very important, brothers and sisters, in the qualification." "Now, fourthly, you notice in the same verse 3, there were

to be men that are full of the Holy Spirit of God." "Now, let me say that.

This is also very important." "What does that mean?

Full of the Holy Spirit of God." "You see, all believers have the Holy Spirit of God." "Every child of God who is truly, sincerely have accepted Yeshua the Messiah." "He or she have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit of God, the sealing of the Holy Spirit of God." "And they are literally people that belong to God." "They are saved and forgiven and part of the assembly of God." "It's one thing to have the Holy Spirit of God indwelling us." "It's another thing to be full, in a practical way, full of the Holy Spirit of God." "You remember in the book of Ephesians, chapter 5, the apostle said to the believers in verse 18, "Be not

drunk with wine wherein there is excess, but be filled with the Spirit." "To be filled with the Spirit, it means that they are being controlled by the Holy Spirit of God." "He is the guide." "He is the one that leads them and directs them." "And when they are going wrong, they realize that they confess before the Lord and they ask the Lord." "They confess and they repent and the Lord can again fill them with the guidance of the Spirit of God." "These are men that were occupied with Yeshua, the Messiah." "This is so beautiful." "He didn't tell them, you know, you just lift up your hand, let's do seven." "And then the seven, we are

going to just make them in charge on those things." "There were people that were believers, there were men, there were honest reports, and they were guided by the Spirit of God." "And fifthly, you notice here, in verse 3, they were full of wisdom." "In Hebrew we call Chochma." "Wisdom is more than knowledge." "We sometimes have so much knowledge in our head, but not to know how to apply knowledge in a practical way in our lives." "So, wisdom is knowledge applied." "And so, these men were not only guided by the Spirit of God, but they have practical wisdom that they have applied to their life." "No, how to practically deal with the problems that occur among

the people of God in the city of Jerusalem." "Yerushalayim." "Beautiful." "So, notice by the way, he's saying to them," "Brethren, you look out for these seven men." "But notice at the second half of verse 3, that we will appoint them to do this business." "You notice that interesting?" "He didn't say, you choose and you appoint." "No." "He says, you choose, you bring to the surface those men that you would think that they are suitable for this ministry." "But we, the apostles, will appoint them to this business." "In other words, not everyone can just appoint somebody." "The apostles were the immediate connection to Yeshua, the Messiah." "They were chosen by Yeshua." "They were elected by the

Messiah himself." "And that's what they had an authority that nobody else had." "I mean, sometimes when I'm hearing about appointment and they appointed this and appointed that." "If they have the authority to do it." "The biblical authority." "The biblical authority was given to the apostle." "And perhaps some of them were immediate legates," as it's called.

"Those were connected with them immediately." "The apostolic ages passed by." "That authority had no longer existed." "Today, it's a matter of recognition, not appointing." "I remember, and I said this years ago, I was invited to go to a so-called apostolic church group." "And I remember going to this meeting and then everybody's sitting and all of a sudden there was a door open and the apostle is coming." "And we all had to stand because the apostle was coming." "I mean, I can't believe it." "How can one claim to be an apostle of God?" "Now, THE apostles were those whom we have here, the twelve that were called directly by Yeshua, the Messiah, and were not chosen

of man." "Including the apostle Shaul, Paul, who was chosen by the glorified Messiah on the way to Damascus in Acts chapter 9, which we're going to get to it in due time." "So, here's the qualification." "Seven men, number one, they were believers." "Number two, they were male." "Number three, they should have honest report." "Number four, they were full of the Spirit of God, guided by the Spirit of God." "And number five, they ought to be full of wisdom, knowledge applied in a practical way." "So, it says in verse 3, and we will appoint them to take care of this business." "Brothers and sisters, they needed a lot of wisdom." "When you have the flock, the

people of God with so many needs." "Here, the case was not taking care of the widows of the Hebrew, of the Jewish people from the diaspora." "But do you know how many needs are existing among the people of God?" "So many needs.

Who is able to take care of all these needs?" "And if you or I are going to take part of this kind of a ministry," "we also need this qualification." "I know we fall short." "And I'm sure these men did not have everything here in perfection." "But nevertheless, they got to be some measure of spiritual direction from the Lord as they are serving the Lord in this capacity." "And so here, we see them." "And then it says in verse 4, after they said, we will appoint them." "The apostles are saying, and we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word." "You know, they had a responsibility as elders to teach

the word." "To minister the word." "Now, all were to pray." "All were to read the scriptures." "All were to take care of their spiritual life." "But the apostles were to be distinguished for those deacons." "Just the same, like even in this present day, there are those who have the qualification and the gifts to deal with the practical things." "While others had the gift of dealing with another area of the ministry of the word of God." "In Romans, in chapter 12, the apostle, if you remember Paul, when writing to the believers, he says there," "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God." "And he was speaking about the gifts now." "He is leading to

the gift." "And he said, having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given unto us." "And then he began to speak about the gifts." "Some have prophecy, some have ministry, some have teaching, exhortation, and giving, and ruling, and showing mercy." "And you can see that in 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4, and 1 Peter 4, all these chapters that deal with gifts that need to be practiced by the people of God." "But there must be also this type of qualification, believers, and other areas that the apostles here are mentioned to those people in the city of Jerusalem." "Now, look at this, as we are moving along here, now we find out the selection."

"Look at this, verse 5 and 6, here's the choosing from among those seven men." "And look, it is so interesting, because if you notice, all these names are Grecians' names." "All these names were given to those Jewish people from the diaspora, who immigrated from the diaspora to the land of Israel." "They were actually Greek, Hebrew individuals." "They were also Jewish, but they were coming from a Greek culture." "They were coming from the diaspora." "Look at the name." "And the saying pleased the whole multitude." "And they chose, notice, Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit." "And Philip, and Procorius, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parminas, and Nicholas." "Listen, a proselyte of Antioch."

"Now, I tell you, this is interesting, because there was some wisdom there." "Notice, all these names are not those Hebrew names that you and I know." "Yohanan." "Shimon." "Yaakov." "All those names are names that were given to them by their family in the diaspora, outside of the land of Israel." "It was a Grecian name." "But they were part of the Grecian Empire." "In other words, they have been influenced by the Grecian customs and name and culture." "But it is interesting that they have chosen those Grecian Jewish believers." "They were the ones that were set before the apostles." "Now, I think there is a lot of wisdom here." "Because it was the Grecian Hebrews, who were

complaining about the Israeli Hebrews." "That they were neglecting their own widows." "So you know what they did?" "Okay, you brethren from the diaspora, you are going to be in charge of this issue." "You cannot accuse and blame us, local Hebrews, who are guilty in not taking care of your widows." "And so they have chosen those seven." "And you notice the first one is Stephen." "We are going to read about Stephen a little bit more next." "But Stephen, even his name, it comes from the word Stephanos in Greek." "And the word Stephanos means a crown, but it is a victor's crown." "It is different with the crown that we find Yeshua the Messiah in Revelation chapter

19 when he is coming on horse." "And there is a diadem." "It is not a victor's crown, but it is a royal crown that is laying on the head of Yeshua the Messiah." "Here this man by the name of Stephen, even through his name you can see the victor's crown." "A victory that he is going to win because of his faithfulness to the Lord." "A victor's crown." "The crown that Stephen speaks of his victory and his faithfulness." "It says that he was full of faith and that he was full of the Holy Spirit of God." "Here's a man that they watched him at the time in the land of Israel." "And he was a man

that was full of faith." "He trusted the God of Israel." "He trusted Yeshua the Messiah." "And he was guided by the Holy Spirit of God." "There is another man after him by the name of Philip." "Philip, we will read about Philip who became the evangelist." "We find him in chapter 8." "Who went to Samaria and the Ethiopian eunuch." "And was used by God to preach the message of the Messiahship of Yeshua to the men from Ethiopia in the desert on the way to Gaza." "And then you have the other names." "It says here Pocurs and Nikano and Timon and Parmenas." "And notice the last one is called Nicholas." "And it says that he was a

proselyte of Antioch." "Apparently this Nicholas was not really Jewish." "But he became Jewish by becoming a proselyte." "He believed in the God of Israel." "He then adopted the God of Israel and became a Jewish individual." "Not necessarily by birth now, but by believing in the God of Israel." "And then also in addition to that became a believer in Yeshua the Messiah." "So you can see how beautiful here." "All of these individuals who were with a Grecian name from the diaspora." "Jewish men who have accepted Yeshua the Messiah." "They are the ones that were set before the apostles to be chosen and to be appointed." "And so in verse 6, very beautiful, after the choosing of

these seven men." "We read in verse 6." "Whom they set before the apostles and they laid their hands upon them." "They have acknowledged them and recognized them as those that will be the ones that are appointed over those affairs." "Now also this expression, the laying of the hands." "I know a lot of misunderstanding is going on today about laying of the hands." "Everybody is laying of the hands as if it is some kind of a miracle, hocus pocus with the laying of the hands." "But I want to say, beloved brothers and sisters, in biblical time, the laying of the hands is an expression of identification." "When Moses, we read of him in the book of

Numbers in chapter 27, when he laid his hand upon Joshua." "He recognized Joshua and identified with the ministry that Joshua was going to accomplish among the people of Israel." "I want to read that verse." "If you turn to Numbers, please, for a moment so you can have a verse before you." "Numbers chapter 27 and verse 22 and 23." "And Moses did as the Lord commanded him." "And he took Joshua and he set him before Eliezer the priest and before all the congregation." "And he laid his hands upon him and he gave him a charge, as the Lord commanded by the hand of Moses." "You see, Moses laid his hands upon Joshua in recognizing him as

the servant that is going to serve among the people of Israel." "The language of identification." "In other passages in scripture, like in the book of Exodus and Leviticus." "For example, in Leviticus chapter 4." "When the animal was to be killed and to offer as a sacrifice on behalf of the nation of Israel." "The priest was to lay his hands upon the sacrifice." "And what he was really saying before he was slain and he was killing and the blood was shed." "He was confessing the sin of the nation of Israel." "And where he is laying the hands, he is really saying," "I am confessing the sins of the nation of Israel." "Identifying with the sacrifice." "And

in a sense, all the sins of the nations were transferred to the sacrifice." "And he was killed on behalf of the nation." "In other sacrifices, like the burned offering." "It was also the laying of the hand." "But the laying of the hand there is exactly the opposite." "It's the value of the sacrifice had been transferred to the nation." "Because the sacrifice speaks to us of Yeshua, the Messiah." "And the value of the Messiah had been transferred to those that have accepted him as their Lord and Savior." "You can see the laying of the hands." "It is very important here in this passage." "By the way, there is a verse in 1 Timothy chapter 5 and

verse 22 where Paul said to Timothy," "Lay not your hands suddenly upon no one." "1 Timothy 5 and verse 22." "And he said to Timothy 5 and Paul." "In other words, don't be in a hurry to identify and to recognize everyone and anyone at any time." "Think about it." "Pray about it." "Ask the Lord for guidance." "You know, we cannot just say, well, somebody come and he says, listen, I want you to part with me in what I do." "Well, we need to find out what do you do?" "What kind of ministry you do?" "How do you function?" "And so on." "What do you believe?" "What your teaching is?" "And so we are not to

lay suddenly hands on no man," "because it speaks of identification." "And therefore he gave the warning," "Lay not suddenly on no man's hands." "Neither be partakers of other men's sins." "Keep thyself pure," God said through Paul to Timothy.

"You lay your hands quickly upon anyone." "And here the apostles recognized these seven godly men who are full of the Holy Spirit, who are believers, who are male, who are honest report and the wisdom that they have had." "And they laid their hands upon them in a scene of identification and commendation." "And so it is precious." "The story of a local church in some place." "I don't know if it was in the United States or elsewhere." "When they noticed that there are people getting saved and coming to their assembly, to their local church." "And as they were looking and they found out these people that came, they noticed that most of the people came from

a certain area." "And they were wondering and saying, how come they all come from this area?" "And so as they were investigating, they found out that one of these brothers from the church, from the local assembly, who lived in this area, he was just a painter or something like that." "But he had a heart of an evangelist." "And he was sharing with people the word of God." "And he was telling them about Yeshua the Messiah." "And it affected the Lord Jews so much." "Many of this area where he was living and sharing in his life have come to faith in the Messiah." "And asked him, where do you fellowship?" "Where is the place where you

attend?" "And were you part of the local church?" "And he invited them and they came." "And the leadership of this local church, they recognized, here's a man who may not be standing in the front and preaching the word." "Here's a brother." "But he's used by the Lord because he shared the word." "His testimony is good." "And you know what they said?" "They said, brother, we would like to commend you." "In other words, we like to identify with the work that you are doing." "So they brought him to the front." "Their leadership there laid their hand on him." "And again, I want to say it's not their hands that is holy." "It's the thought of identification."

"And they just commended him." "And publicly acknowledged him before the rest of the local assembly." "That he's really gifted in this area." "And that the Lord had commended him to his work." "And had fellowship with the work that he was doing among people in his local area." "And that is wonderful." "To identify with those who serve the Lord in a way that is pleasing to him." "And so the apostles laid their hands upon them in identification." "And now notice that when these issues were dealt with." "It says in verse 7, the word of God increased." "The number of the disciples multiplied." "Remember, we are not talking about any place else in the world at this

moment." "We are talking about Israel." "We are talking about Jerusalem." "We are talking about the land that God had given to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob." "Where the Gospel had began with." "Where the Messiah came and he died and he was buried and he rose." "When the Spirit of God came and founded the assembly, the church in the city of Jerusalem." "We are talking still in the land." "We are not talking yet what will happen in a future day when the apostles and the disciples will go to preach the message outside of Israel." "Here, the word of God increased." "The number of the disciples were multiplied in Jerusalem greatly." "And a great company of the priests

were obedient to the faith." "Even those priests, many, it says here, great company of those Kohanim." "The priests, the people who were really religious community of Jerusalem." "As it says here, great company of them were obedient to the faith." "Meaning that they have acknowledged the Messiahship of Yeshua." "And they recognize him as the one that was promised to the nation of Israel." "And of course they needed to grow themselves to understand more and to develop as part of the body of Messiah." "Now let me move on here to the next half of this chapter." "While we learn here in the first half of the chapter, the first servants that have been chosen and appointed by

the apostles." "Now in the next verses, verse 8 to 15, we find out the arresting of Stephen." "And this is really the beginning of the third persecution of the believers in the city of Jerusalem by their own brethren." "So look at this." "It says first of all, look at the doings of Stephen." "Stephen full of faith and of power." "He did great wonders and miracles among the people." "Now Stephen that was chosen to deal with the problems of the widows in the city of Jerusalem." "He had gone beyond merely just this." "Why?" "Because he was a man that was sought to serve the Lord and the Lord used him." "Stephen now was full of faith."

"He was full of power." "It is the Spirit of God who empowered Stephen to do what he did." "And I want you to notice, it says he did great wonders." "He did miracles among the people." "Now again, I would like to suggest dear brothers and sisters, not everyone did miracles and wonders." "It was either the apostles or the immediate legates of the apostles, those who were connected with the apostles." "They have been used by God to do all sorts of things for the benefit of the believers and for the benefit of the nation of Israel." "There was great wonders and miracles among the people." "And then in verse 9, look at the problems that he

had to face." "It says they arose certain of the synagogue, which is called the synagogue of the Libertarians, Cyrenians, the Alexandrians, and them of Cilicia, and of Asia, and they were disputing with Stephen." "Now, you notice there are five groups that are mentioned here." "They had been suggested that the first one, the synagogue of the Libertarians, those are the Jewish people who came from Rome and have been liberated." "After they have left Rome and came to the city of Jerusalem, to the land of Israel." "Then you have the Cyrenians, speaking about those from the synagogue of Cyrenians, these are Jews who came from North Africa." "Then you have another group, the Alexandrian, and you know

Alexandria is in Egypt." "Jewish people who immigrated to the land of Israel from Egypt." "And then we have others in Cilicia and of Asia." "These are the Asia Minor and even broader than Asia Minor." "Those are Jewish people that immigrated to Israel." "Formed certain Senagogues in the land of Israel and in the city of Jerusalem." "And they began to dispute with Stephen." "They were discussing with him." "Just like, you know, any Jewish conversation today, when you try to speak to our own people about the Messiah." "You need to do a lot of explanation." "And you can find, sometimes you think, why are they shouting so high?

Why are they fighting?" "And so on." "No, many times the conversation is so aggressive and so intense that it sounds like you are fighting." "Some may fight, but in many of the conversations it's just a high-speed type of a conversation." "They may have told him, who do you think you are?

What are you speaking about this Jesus the Messiah?" "And he was telling, but listen brothers, he is the promised Mashiach of Israel." "I'm telling you about him." "And they would tell him all kind of things." "And they came, immigrated to the nation, to the land of Israel from various nations." "From Asia Minor, from North Africa, from Rome and from Egypt and so on." "And they came to the land and they were not ready to accept as a nation the Messiah." "So they were disputing with Stephen." "But it says here, in verse 10, that they were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit in which he spake." "Steven was a man of God, who

loved Yeshua the Messiah." "They couldn't resist him." "As they have spoke to him, he must have quoted to them the Hebrew Scriptures." "He was saying, thus saith the Lord." "I don't know what he quoted to them, I can just imagine." "Maybe he was telling them, look what Isaiah said in chapter 53." "All we like sheep have gone astray." "We have turned everyone to his own way." "And the Lord laid upon him, the Messiah, the iniquity of us all." "He maybe quoted to them the promises that have been given through the prophet Zechariah." "Behold, your king cometh, sitting upon a colt." "And he may have quoted to them all the various passages from the Scripture because

he knew the Word of God." "And the fulfillment that is found in the person of Yeshua the Messiah." "But what did they know?" "They were instructed as people that belong to the synagogue through what is known today, the rabbinical writings." "The rabbinical influence." "And the leaders of Israel, the Pharisees and the Sadducees did not accept Yeshua as the Messiah." "And yet this man, by the name of Stephen, was speaking to them and they could not resist him because of the wisdom that he has." "And because of the Spirit by which he spake." "And so, you know what happened?" "That's what Satan does." "When he cannot get you in one way." "As an angel of light

trying to trick you into all kinds of things." "You know what he does?" "He acts as a roaring lion." "If we don't succeed to win battle against them with our mind and with our words." "What are we going to do?" "We're going to get hurt physically." "And harm physically." "That's exactly what Satan does." "And men who follow Satan." "And so, we find here that what did they do?" "Look, in verse 11, they hired some people to accuse them." "It says in verse 11," "Then they suborned, they paid some men which said," "We have heard him speak blasphemous against Moses and against God." "When you cannot convince somebody in what you believe, then you will try

to do it in another way." "What do you do?" "You hired somebody." "You pay them money to accuse them." "So, when you put them before the court, they will be accused." "What a sad thing it is." "You remember what we had just in our Bible class yesterday in John chapter 18?" "Where Yeshua was taken by the leaders and brought to Pilate." "And Pilate asked him," "What is the accusation that they have against you?" "What have you done?" "He hasn't done anything wrong." "And then later on, after they asked him," "What have you done?" "Then he came out." "And he said to the leaders of Israel, he said," "I have found no fault in this man

at all." "There was no fault in Yeshua." "There was no guilt in him." "He was the perfect one." "The sinless one." "Israel promised Messiah." "The one who loved Israel, loved the world, gave himself for us." "And so what did they do?" "They accused him." "And here they paid money to people to accuse Stephen." "Who was a man that was guided by the Spirit of God." "By the way, they have done it throughout history." "Men have done it." "When Daniel was in Babylon." "How the magicians of Babylon accused Daniel." "When Daniel was praying three times a day towards the city of Jerusalem." "He was a man of God." "When the king did not want anyone to

pray to any other person." "And they came and they saw Daniel praying." "And they went to the king and they accused Daniel for praying towards Jerusalem." "Instead of praying to the king." "And that's what men does always." "Accuses somebody else." "Because they couldn't find any fault in these men." "And so here, Stephen is being accused." "And those people were paid in order to say," "He specced blasphemy." "Against whom?" "Against Moses, number one." "And number two, against God." "That's what the accusation was." "While he, I'm sure, was quoting to them the word of God." "What Moses said." "What God said." "But I can twist the scripture." "To blame Stephen." "And so look." "It says here in

the next verse." "And they stirred up the people." "And the elders." "And the scribes." "By the way, this time it's not so much the Sadducees." "Who instigated the first and second persecution." "This time it's the Pharisees." "They were stirred up." "The people and the elders and the scribes." "And they came upon him." "He was a sudden catching him." "And they caught him." "And they brought him to the council." "Here we go again." "Peter and John were before the council earlier." "The apostles were before the council earlier." "Yeshua the Messiah was before the council earlier." "And now Stephen." "Before the son had leaned." "Before the council." "So those last verses, beloved brothers and sisters." "In these

verses at the end of this chapter." "Verses 13, 14 and 15." "And here, look." "We find in verse 13, they set up false witnesses." "This man ceases not to speak blasphemous words against the holy place and against the law." "Against Moses." "Against the law." "Against the temple." "Against the law." "Against the temple." "Against God." "Now they're adding, they said, against this holy place." "That's meaning the temple." "And against the law." "Against Moses." "Against the law." "Against the temple." "Against God." "You can just imagine." "Brothers and sisters." "That Stephen must have quoted to them scripture." "And he quoted to them perhaps some of the prophets of Isaiah prophecies concerning the destruction of the temple." "And he

perhaps quoted to them some of the words of Yeshua the Messiah." "Where Yeshua said there shall not be left here one stone upon another." "When Yeshua was prophesying concerning the coming of the Romans." "To destroy the temple." "To destroy the city of Jerusalem." "To burn the temple in 70 AD." "He was probably telling them what he himself understood." "That Yeshua was speaking concerning the temple." "Why?" "Because the temple was right now." "You remember when Yeshua says you have made it a den of thieves." "Yeshua himself now." "He was accusing the leadership of Israel that now what's happening here." "You are not using the temple." "It was called the house of prayer." "But you have made

it a den of thieves." "Now again I want to say Stephen was a Hebrew." "The apostles were Hebrews." "The people who were hearing him were all Hebrews." "It's a story within the family of the nation of Israel." "He was not just saying it because he was anti-Semite." "He was a lover of Israel." "He wanted the nation to be restored and come back to God." "And he was quoting to them some of the things that were prophesied by Isaiah." "And some of the things that Yeshua himself was speaking about when he was healed still alive." "Isaiah said in chapter 64 and verse 8." "O Lord, thou art our Father." "We are the clay." "Thou art the

potter." "We are the work of your hand." "Be not wroth." "Very sore, O Lord." "Remember iniquity forever." "Behold, see, we beseech thee." "We are all thy people." "Thy holy cities." "We are a wilderness." "Zion is a wilderness." "Jerusalem a desolation." "Our holy and our beautiful house." "Where our fathers praise thee is burnt up with fire." "And all our pleasant things are laid waste." "Isaiah was prophesying concerning the future day when God is going to destroy the temple because of what the disbelief and disobedience of the nation of Israel." "Yeshua himself, in the Olivet Discourse, he himself says, listen." "And Jesus went out and he departed from the temple." "This is Matthew 24 verses 1 and

2." "And his disciples came unto him and they show him the buildings of the temple." "And he said to them, see ye not all these things?" "Verily I say unto you, there shall not be left here one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down." "And so when Stephen was ministering and sharing the word, they were accusing him speaking against God, speaking against the temple, speaking against Moses, and speaking against the law." "And while Stephen did not speak against the law, he spoke against the law against the law against Moses, he spoke against the law against the law against Moses, but he also told them the truth concerning the temple in Jerusalem." "And finally

listen, in the last verses, it says here in verse 14." "For we have heard him say that this Yeshua of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses delivered unto us." "You see, Stephen was probably speaking about what Yeshua had said." "Jesus from Nazareth shall destroy this place." "You remember in the Gospel of John?" "Yeshua said, destroy this temple, and in three days I will restore it." "He was speaking about himself, about the resurrection of himself, the destruction of the temple of his body, meaning that he will die, he will be buried, and he will rise again." "And so as he was sharing this with them, they accused him for blasphemy,

speaking against the house of God, the temple in Jerusalem." "And so, to close this chapter, you find out that when the council looked at him, when the sun had dreamed, those seventy-one individuals looked at Stephen, what do you think they saw?" "It says here, they looked at him steadfastly, they saw his face, as it had been a face of an angel." Stephen, Stephen, his face reflected whom he trusted, reflected the Messiah.

Some suggest that it's like the Shekinah glory, the Shekhinah, that the Holy Spirit of God produced in his face this shining beauty of this person. A reflection that comes from Yeshua himself, Yeshua the Messiah. So they looked at him, and they saw his face as a face of an angel." Well, brothers and sisters, beautiful chapter here we have in this chapter 6 of the book of Acts. The choosing of the servants in the early assembly in Jerusalem. And the arresting of Stephen. It's actually the beginning of the third persecution of the Hebrew believers in the city of Jerusalem. Well, may God bless this word to us all, and may God encourage us to seek to learn from these seven men, that we also can be used by the Lord in the assembly, in the body of Christ.

Can we say amen to that? Amen. Amen.