"A Dirty Job"
August 9, 2026
Background: Acts 6:1-7:60; Print: Acts 6:7-10; 7:54-60;
Key Verse: Acts 6:8; Devotional: Luke 23:32-43

Acts 6:7-10 (ESV) 
7  And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith. 
8  And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people. 
9  Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of those from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and disputed with Stephen. 
10  But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking. 

Acts 7:54-60 (ESV) 
54  Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. 
55  But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 
56  And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 
57  But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. 
58  Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 
59  And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 
60  And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep. 
 

Acts Chapters 6, 7 (Commentary)

Acts 6:5-7 The whole company of disciples agreed with this proposal. They chose seven spiritual men, all of whom had Greek names (6:5). That’s an important point because they wanted men who could relate to the Hellenistic Jews so that they could address their specific needs and concerns. So the apostles laid their hands on them and prayed for them, commissioning them for their work (6:6). Then the word of God spread, and the disciples grew in number (6:7). A legitimate need was not ignored but addressed with wisdom—and God blessed their faithfulness.

6:8-10 One of these men, Stephen, receives high praise from Luke. He was “full of faith and the Holy Spirit” (6:5), full of grace and power, and was performing great wonders and signs among the people (6:8). That’s quite a resume. Clearly, then, Stephen was no spiritual slouch. When opposition arose from various

Acts 7:54-56 Stephen was a man full of the Holy Spirit and spoke by means of the Spirit’s power (7:55; see also 6:5, 10). So when his listeners were enraged at him (7:54), they actually were enraged at God himself and the truth that was spoken about them.

As their animosity reached a fever pitch, Stephen looked into heaven and saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God (7:55-56). His Lord and Savior, about whom he had faithfully testified, was ready to receive him into glory with a standing ovation! This is the way our Lord wants to receive all of his faithful servants. He received a glimpse of heaven before he died, one of the glorious privileges God gives to faithful believers as they transition from earth to heaven.

7:57-58 The Jewish leaders couldn’t stand to listen to him any longer. They covered their ears and dragged him out of the city, and stoned Stephen to death (7:57-58). And it’s at this point in the narrative that Luke introduces us to the man who would become one of the most significant persons in the book of Acts and who would write more New Testament Letters than any other: Saul (eventually known as Paul) (7:58). At this moment, however, Saul was united with those putting Stephen to death. Stephen became the first martyr of the church.

7:59-60 Before he died, Stephen followed in Jesus’s footsteps, commending his spirit to the Lord and praying that God would forgive his attackers (see Luke 23:34, 46). That kind of response is impossible without supernatural enabling.

Event Location