Stephen was one of the men chosen in Acts 6 to oversee care for the widows so that the apostles could concentrate on the Word. It is widely agreed that these 7 men were the beginning of what would later become the office of deacon. Apart from being a great Chairman of Deacons, Stephen was one of the great leaders of the Early Church. He was full of grace and power and doing great wonders and signs among the people. It is interesting to note the many connections Stephen had with Moses.
First, Stephen was accused of speaking against Moses. Stephen was speaking of Jesus fulfilling the Law of Moses and salvation through Christ, not through keeping the Law. Second, Stephen’s face shone like an angel’s face as did Moses’ face! Just like Moses, Stephen was in close communion with the Father! Third, Stephen’s defense was a sermon basically on the life of Moses. Fourth, one of Stephen’s main points was that Jesus was the prophet like Moses. Fifth, just as Moses declared that the people would turn from the Lord, Stephen ended his message by denouncing the Jews as law-breakers!
As you know, Stephen’s daring sermon of truth got him killed! He was stoned to death, but as if in a peaceful state, the Bible says, “he fell asleep.” There happened that day to be another man who was a student of Moses’ Law standing against Stephen. He was a man of authority for it was he who gave approval for Stephen’s execution. That man was Saul. In just a few days from there, the Jesus who Stephen testified for and died for will confront Saul. Saul, who has given his life in defense of Mosaic law will lay his life down as Paul in defense of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That was the purpose of Moses all along!
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