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Stephen
To Remember: God
is pleased when we endure persecutionVocabulary
- deacon: a man who serves the church by fulfilling a function or service
- stoning: a Jewish capital punishment; the group throws stones at a man until he dies
Discussion: Who is suffering today for preaching the gospel? As a class, send a card encouraging a preacher in a hostile land, a politician who is ridiculed for stating his faith, or anyone else you know of who is suffering for the stand he or she has taken for Jesus.
- Character of Stephen
- appointment as deacon
- Ministry of Stephen
- Arrest and Defense
- Stoning
- Vision
Discussion: In what ways will we see persecution? Will we be picked on? Will we be passed over for work? Will we forgo monetary pleasures in order to fund God's work? We must expect these things and be willing to endure them for Christ. Will God abandon us to endure these things alone? No!
Sing: This little Christian light of mine
True or False
- Men lied about Stephen's preaching. T
- Stephen was too scared to defend himself before the Council. F
- This was the same Council that killed Jesus. T
- Stephen asked God to punish the Council. F
- Stephen saw Jesus in heaven during his stoning. T
Acts 6:8 "Now Stephen, a man full of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people."Review Questions for gameboard
Rev. 2:10b "Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life."
2 Tim. 1:8a "So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord..."
linguistic
questions - Describe stoning.
- What was the Jewish Council?
- Which book (and chapter) is this lesson from? Acts 6 & 7
activity questions - Draw a throne like the one Christ sits on.
- Act out Stephen seeing into heaven.
- Find Jerusalem on a map.
emotion questions - How does it feel to be accused of something you haven't done?
- What feelings spurred the men to lie about Stephen? anger, jealousy
- Was God pleased with Stephen? yes, he showed Stephen heaven
application questions - Will good Christians ever experience suffering? yes
- How should we feel about those who hurt us? We should be willing to forgive them
- Should we defend our faith in every situation? yes
fact questions - Who was present at the stoning? Saul
- Who made up the Council? ruling Jews
- What did Stephen accuse the Council of? killing the Messiah
review questions - Why was Stephen stoned? for teaching about Christ
- Why did Stephen see Jesus? God was showing Stephen his approval and comfort
- Why did Stephen ask forgiveness for those killing him? He was imitating Christ