A Bible Study on the Book of Acts Session 17
The Church of the Holy Apostles;
Based upon the Homilies of St John Chrysostom (SJC)
Study Guide – Acts 7.6-34, Homily 16
Chapter 7 v. 6-8 – “But God spoke in this way: that his descendants would dwell in a foreign land, and that they would bring them into bondage and oppress them four hundred years. ‘And the nation to whom they will be in bondage I will judge,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and serve Me in this place.’ “Then He gave him the covenant of circumcision; and so Abraham begot Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot the twelve patriarchs.
Delayed fulfillment of promise of God – great lesson on endurance
SJC “He the Same, that promised, He that gave the land, first permits the evils. So also now, though He has promised a Kingdom, yet He suffers us to be exercised in temptations. If here the freedom was not to be till after four hundred years, what wonder, with regard to the Kingdom?”
SJC “This above all showed the riches of God’s resources, that in its very reverses, the nation increased, while enslaved, while evil-entreated, and sought to be exterminated. And this is the greatness of the Promise. For had it increased in its own land, it had not been so wonderful.”
Joseph is introduced as a “TYPE” for Christ
Chapter 7 v. 9-16 – ” And the patriarchs, becoming envious, sold Joseph into Egypt. But God was with him “and delivered him out of all his troubles, and gave him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house. “Now a famine and great trouble came over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, and our fathers found no sustenance. “But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent out our fathers first. “And the second time Joseph was made known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family became known to the Pharaoh. “Then Joseph sent and called his father Jacob and all his relatives to him, seventy-five people. “So Jacob went down to Egypt; and he died, he and our fathers. “And they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem.
The Jews themselves were the cause of their own evils
The Jews had to depend upon Joseph for everything
Stephen teaches the Resurrection from the Dead figuratively using the Jewish Plight – famine, enemies, destroyed by foreign king.
Stephen humors the Jews by retelling the Jewish History – retelling of the Patriarchs’ jealousy
Chapter 7 v. 17-22 – ” But when the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt “till another king arose who did not know Joseph. “This man dealt treacherously with our people, and oppressed our forefathers, making them expose their babies, so that they might not live. “At this time Moses was born, and was well pleasing to God; and he was brought up in his father’s house for three months. “But when he was set out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him away and brought him up as her own son. “And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds.
Pattern of the Imagery – Joseph, Moses, Christ
Constant fight against the People of God, but God always wins
SJC “Mark how it shows the truth of that saying of Gamaliel’s”
Every attempt to destroy God’s promise is used to fulfill it. SJC “They were saved by the means of the very person whom they expected to be destroyed.”
God always sends help when things are at their worst. SJC “He who is to be their champion, is born, neither after nor before, these things, but in the very midst of the storm.”
SJC “Thus also does Christ in His death give proof of His power: thus also does He reign as King where they sold Him.”
Chapter 7 v. 23-29 – “Now when he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel. “And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended and avenged him who was oppressed, and struck down the Egyptian. “For he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand. “And the next day he appeared to two of them as they were fighting, and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren; why do you wrong one another?’ “But he who did his neighbor wrong pushed him away, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? ‘Do you want to kill me as you did the Egyptian yesterday?’ “Then, at this saying, Moses fled and became a dweller in the land of Midian, where he had two sons.
Stephen is patient and not offensive – he draws them in to save them.
SJC “So habitual a thing was it for the Jews to wrong their benefactors when in the act of receiving benefits.”
Chapter 7 v. 30-34 – “And when forty years had passed, an Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire in a bush, in the wilderness of Mount Sinai. “When Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight; and as he drew near to observe, the voice of the Lord came to him, “saying, ‘I am the God of your fathers — the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and dared not look. ‘Then the LORD said to him, “Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground. “I have surely seen the oppression of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their groaning and have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.” ‘
Time does not dilute the Promise of God during suffering
SJC “The greatness of His tender care…see how He shows, that both by kindness, and by chastisements, and by miracles, God was drawing them to Him: but they were still the same. That God is everywhere present, they learned.”
Teaching on Trusting in Spiritual Endurance – (see Homily 16, pp 103-105)
- The Power of God is revealed in affliction
- Nothing good is from bodily origin, but spiritual origin
- To go without joy here, is to go without grief also
- The humble man lives in much enjoyment
Life Application – A Healthy Body requires labor, so with the soul (Homily 16, pp 105-106)
- If you desire a healthy soul, you will not fill it with excess. Just as the body is ruined by excess good without physical work, so too the soul is ruined by experiencing only blessings without suffering.
- Labor for the soul = affliction, humility, sacrifice