THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO Acts ~ Chapters 7 & 8
The high priest asked, ‘These charges are
true, are they not?’
But Stephen answered, “Men, brothers and
fathers, listen! When our father Abraham was in Mesopotamia, before he had
moved to Haran, the God of glory already appeared to him. And he said to him, ‘Leave
this, your native land and your kinsfolk, and go to a land that I shall show
you.’ Then he departed from the land of the Chaldeans and went to Haran to
live. And after his father had died, he was led to this land where you now
dwell. Yet Elohei did not give him any ownership in the land – no, not even a
foot of ground. But Elohei promised that the Land should be his, and that it
should belong to his children and children’s children after him, even though as
yet he has no child. This is what Elohei said, ‘Your posterity will be
strangers in a strange land where they will live four hundred years, will be
made slaves and cruelly treated. But,’ said Elohei, ‘I will pass judgement on
the nation that holds tem in bondage, after which they will be freed and will
worship Me in this place’.
Elohei also gave him the covenant of circumcision,
and so when he had a son, Isaac, he circumcised him on the 8th day.
And so Isaac did as the father of Jacob, and Jacob to his 12 sons, the Patriarchs.
These brothers, because of envy against
Joseph, sold him to the Egyptians. But Elohei was with him. He rescued him from
all his troubles. He gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt,
who appointed him governor over all Egypt and even over the king’s whole
household. Then a famine came upon all the land of Egypt, and Canaan also, with
terrible hardships, so that our fathers could not find food. But Jacob heard
that there was grain in Egypt, so he sent our fathers there on their first
errand. On the second visit, Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and
Joseph’s origin was made known to Pharaoh. Then Joseph sent word to his father
Jacob and invited him and all his relatives – numbering 75 souls. And Jacob
moved down to Egypt and died there, as did also our fathers. They were brought
back to Shechem, and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of
money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.
When the time of the promise Elohei had given
Abraham drew near to fulfillment, the people had increased and were getting
more and more numerous in Egypt. Then there came a power in Egypt a king who
knew nothing about Joseph. He was treacherous toward our people and oppressed
our fathers. He forced them to expose their infants so that they would die. At
that time, Moshe was born; and he was beautiful in Elohei’s sight. For 3 months
he was nursed in his father’s house. When he was found in the reeds, Pharaoh’s
daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. And so Moshe was
trained in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he became a great man, both in
words and deeds. When he had reached the age of 40 the idea came to him to
visit his people, the sons of Israel. He saw one of them had been wronged, and
defended the oppressed man by killing the Egyptian. He supposed that his people
would understand that Elohei would give them freedom by his help, but they did
not understand.
On the following day he came upon some of
them quarreling, and he urged them to keep the peace. He said to them, ‘Sirs,
you are brothers. Why do you injure each other?’ Then the one who was beating
his neighbor pushed him aside and said, ‘Who made you our ruler and judge? Do
you wish to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’ At that retort,
Moshe fled to Midian, where he lived as an exile and where 2 sons were born to
him. 40 years came and went; then an angel appeared to him in the desert of Mount
Sinai, in the flame of a burning bush. On seeing this sight Moshe was full of
wonder. He had come up closer to examine it, when he heard the voice of Adonai
speaking to him, “I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and of
Jacob”. At this, Moshe began to tremble, and he did not dare to look further.
Then Adonai said to him, “Unfasten your shoes, for you are standing on holy
ground. I have long seen the oppression of My People in Egypt, and I have heard
their groans. Now I have come down to take them out. Come now, I will send you
to Egypt”. This Moshe they rejected when they said, ‘Who made you our ruler and
judge?’ This same man Elohei made a ruler and liberator by the hand of Adonai who
appeared to him in the bush. Yes, this man led them out, after working miracles
and signs both in the land of Egypt and in the Red Sea, as well as in the
desert for 40 years. This is the Moshe who said to the sons of Israel, “Adonai
will raise up from among your brothers a prophet just as He appointed me”. This
is the man who was with the congregation in the wilderness and was the
go-between between Adonai Who spoke to him on Mount Sinai and our fathers. He
also received the living Word of Elohei to be handed down to us.
But our fathers would not listen to him. On
the contrary, they ignored him, while their hearts hungered for Egypt. To Aaron
they said, ‘Make us gods to go before us. As for this Moshe who brought us out
of the land of Egypt, we have no idea as to what happened to him’. In those
days they made a golden calf, and to this idol they offered sacrifices, and
then were in great glee over their own handiwork. Consequently Elohei abandoned
them and let them worship the sun, moon and stars. This is referred to in the
Book of the prophets, as follows, “Oh House of Israel, was it to Me that you
offered slain beasts and other sacrifices those 40 years in the wilderness? No.
You set up the tabernacle to moloch, and worshipped the star of your god remphan,
and you made images so as to worship them. But I will carry you away beyond Babylon”
(Amos 5:25-27).
Our fathers had a tent of witness in the
wilderness. It was made according to the model Moshe had seen, and as ordered
by Elohei Who had spoken to him. Our fathers who in turn inherited it under Joshua
took it with them when they dispossessed the tribes that Elohei drove out
before them. They used it until the time of David. He found favor with Elohei wanted
to build a tabernacle for the God of Jacob. Solomon, however, was the one who
built the Temple for him. Still, the Most High does not dwell in temples made
by hands. The prophet has said as much: “Heaven is my home, and the earth is my
footstool. What house will you build for Me?” says Adonai. Or, “What is the place
of MY rest? Did not My hands make all these things?” (Isaiah 66:1 & 2).
Oh you stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in
heart and ears! It is you who always resist The Ruach. Your fathers did it, and
so do you. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? Did they not
also kill those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One? And now you
yourselves have become His betrayers and murderers. You received the law by the
help of angels, yet you have not kept it.”
As they listened to Stephen, they became
infuriated and gnashed their teeth at him. But he was filled with The Ruach
and, gazing up into Heaven, he saw the glory of Elohei and Yeshua standing at
the right hand of Elohim. And he said, “Ah, I see Heaven open and the Son of
Man standing at the right hand of Elohim!” At this, they shouted with all their
might, held their ears and all together rushed upon him. Then they cast him out
of the city and stoned him. The witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet
of a young man named Saul.
While they were stoning Stephen, he was praying,
“Adonai Yeshua,” he said, “receive my spirit!” And finally, kneeling down, he
prayed with a loud voice, “Adonai, do not count this sin against them!” When he
had said this, he fell asleep (died).”
~CHAPTER 8~
Saul approved of the stoning of Stephen. And
that very day a great persecution began against the Church in Jerusalem, the
members of which, with the exception of the Apostles, were being driven into
various parts of Judea and Samaria. Pious men buried Stephen and they sorrowed
much over him. Saul, meanwhile, was prosecuting the Church. He went from house
to house, dragging men and women out and committing them to prison. But those
who had taken flight preached the Word as they went from place to place.
Philip went down to a town in Samaria and
preached Christ to them there. The people there all paid attention to what
Philip said, both when they listened to him and when they saw the miracles he
did. There were many who had unclean spirits, and these left them, crying out
with a loud voice, and many suffering from paralysis and lameness were healed.
There was great joy in that town.
A man by the name of Simon had previously
practiced magic in that place. He had amazed the people of Samaria, both by his
magic arts and his claim to be a man of note. Everyone, therefore, from the
least to the greatest, hung upon his words and they said, ‘This man is the
great power of God’. And they thought a great deal of him because he had for so
long thrilled them with his skill at magic. But when Philip came, telling the
Good News of the Kingdom of Elohei and the Name of Yeshua Ha’Mashiach, they
believed and were baptized, both me and women. Even Simon believed and was
baptized, after which he stayed by Philip faithfully, being especially
interested in the remarkable signs and miracles he was continually performing.
When the Apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria
had received the Word of Elohei, they sent to them Simon Peter and John, who,
when they came down there, prayed for them that they might also receive The
Ruach, for He had not as yet come upon any of them. They had been baptized only
in the Name of Adonai Yeshua. So they laid hands on them, and they received The
Ruach.
When Simon saw that The Ruach was given
through the laying on of the Apostles’ hands, he offered them money. He said, ‘Let
me also have this power to give The Ruach to anyone on whom I lay my hands’. “May
your money perish with you”, Simon Peter said to him, “for thinking that Elohei’s
gift can be bought with it! You have no part, no share in these things, for
your heart is not right in Elohim’s sight. You must repent of this sin of
yours, and ask Elohim to forgive you for having such a thought in your heart.
For I see that you are poisoned with envy and are a slave to wrong-doing”. ‘Pray
for me’, said Simon, ‘that nothing you have said may come upon me’. Then Simon
Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, after having given earnest personal testimony
and spoken the Word of Adonai, besides preaching the Gospel in many of the
other Samarian villages.
An angel spoke to Philip, saying, “Rise up
and go south. Take the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza. It runs through
wasteland”. He rose and went. On the road was another man, an Ethiopian eunuch,
He was a man of authority under Candace, Queen of the Ethiopians, and the head
of her treasury, and had come to Jerusalem to worship. Now he was going back
home and, sitting in his carriage, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. The Ruach
said to Philip, “Go near that carriage, and keep close to it”. Philip hurried
up to come near and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah. He said, “Do you
understand what you are reading?” The eunuch said, ‘How can I, unless someone
instructs me?’ He then invited Philip to come up and sit by his side.
And this was the Scripture passage that he
was reading, “Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter, and like a lamb that is
dumb before its shearer, He did not open His mouth. He was humiliated and
deprived of the justice due Him. Who will tell the story to His generation? For
His life on this earth was taken away” (Isaiah
53:7 & 8). Philip then spoke to the eunuch. He first raised the
question, “Of Whom is the prophet speaking – about himself or someone else?”
After this beginning, Philip continued, starting with this Scripture passage,
to preach the Gospel of Yeshua to him. As they continued down the way they came
to a pool of water, at which the eunuch asked, ‘See, here is water! What is to
hinder me from being baptized?’ Philip answered, “If you believe with all your
heart, you may.” And he said, ‘I do believe that Yeshua Ha’Maschiach is the Son
of God.’ He then gave orders that the carriage be stopped. They went down to
the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and Philip baptized him.
When they came out of the water, The Ruach of
Adonai carried Philip away. The eunuch saw no more of him, but went on his way
rejoicing. As for Philip, he appeared at Azotus and then went on through all
the villages as afar as Caesarea, preaching the Gospel at every place.
