Barnabas File

My Dad was a great story-teller. He had to go to work as a teen-ager to help support his family and finished high school GED, but he was an avid reader and knew the Bible better than many of us who have studied it all our lives.  He told stories about Bible characters that made them come alive. Stephen was that kind of story-teller.  When he was called upon to give a defense of his faith before the Assembly (Sanhedrin), he began with Abraham and told the story of the Hebrew people up to the time in which he lived.  The point of his story was not the one that his accusers were used to, however. The difference in his story and that of those who opposed him was that their story ended at a particular point with the Law and the Temple.  They considered the status quo as God’s ultimate expression.  Stephen shifted the paradigm and said, “The story doesn’t end there.  God is still working among God’s people.” In his story-telling, Stephen shifted the ...

In regard to Stephen, theologian N. T. Wright comments, “You never know, once you lay hands on people and pray for God to work through them, what new things they will get up to, or rather what new things God will do through them.” In Acts 6:8-15, the ministry of Stephen, a deacon (servant) in the church at Jerusalem, expands.  He moves from administering aid to the needy to healing and teaching.  As Wright notes, once the Spirit starts to work in a person’s life, you never know what will happen.  When Stephen saw need, he responded.  He saw the sick and, through the power of the Spirit, offered healing.  He saw spiritual ignorance and responded with teaching about the Messiah.  As he did so, he was raising the profile of the Way and the church as well as himself.  Throughout Christian history, there have been men and women like Stephen, who saw a need and responded.  They saw sickness and started hospitals.  Th...

Throughout the history of the church, men and women have stepped up to renew the church and stretch its ministry in new directions.   These are pathfinders, entrepreneurs, or pioneers who see new opportunities for Kingdom work and respond accordingly. Stephen, one of the first deacons in the church at Jerusalem, provides a good model of a true “thought leader,” one who moves things in a new direction. Although originally chosen as one “to wait on tables” or care for widows, Stephen had the ability and the opportunity to do much more than this simple task of service.  A servant leader in the best sense of the term, he was ready and willing to follow the leadership of the Spirit. In the descriptions of Stephen in the Book of Acts, a pattern is clear.  He was “ known to be full of the Spirit  and wisdom ” (6:3); “ a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit” (6:5); and “a man full of God’s grace and power” (6:8).  There was a spiritu...

“But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.   “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” --Acts 7:55-56, NIV In the Book of Acts, Stephen is known for several things.  He was chosen as one of the deacons of the church at Jerusalem.  He performed significant ministry.  He was very articulate in proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ.  He was martyred for his faith. Most Bible studies related to Stephen emphasize his role as a deacon in the church and his death as a precursor to the conversion of Saul (Paul).  In doing so, we miss something very significant about this early leader of the church. First, the role of deacon was more a function than an office.  Deacons were not administrators but servants who cared for the needs of church members; in this case, the Greek-spea...