(The First Christian Martyr) Acts 6:8-8:1 The Stoning of Stephen (The First Christian Martyr) Acts 6:8-8:1 1. Cover The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org 2. Stephen was a man from Jerusalem who was full of God’s grace and power. He wanted everyone to know about Jesus Christ. The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org 3. He went to a synagogue and told the people there about Jesus. The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org 4. The people in the synagogue became very angry and began spreading rumours and lies about Stephen. The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org 5. Soon Stephen was arrested and taken before the religious court called the Sanhedrin. The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org 6. People from the synagogue told lies about Stephen and said Stephen was saying bad things about God and about the temple. They accused Stephen of trying to hurt the Jews. The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org 7. When the leader of the Sanhedrin asked Stephen if these accusations were true Stephen decided to tell all about how God had always had a plan to send Jesus. He started in the Old Testament and talked about how Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon and others had all looked forward to Jesus coming to save the world. The Jews would be wrong if they rejected Jesus. The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org 8. The people in the Sanhedrin became more and more angry. They did not want to believe in Jesus. But even though they yelling at him Stephen remained calm. The bible says he had “the face of an angel.” The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org 9. The people became so angry that they took Stephen outside the city and threw stones at him until he died. The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org 10. But Stephen never stopped trusting in God. He looked up to heaven and saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God. Stephen kept praying while he was being stoned. Just before he died he said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” and then “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org 11. There was one young man who stood by and watched while all of this was happening. He helped the people by watching after their cloaks as they stoned Stephen. We will learn more about this man later. His name was Saul. The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org 12. Stephen was the first man to die because he believed in Jesus. He is called a martyr because he died for what he believed in. After this Christians became very frightened and many left the city of Jerusalem. The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org Teacher Notes Page 1. Cover: The Stoning of Stephen 2. Stephen was a man from Jerusalem who was full of God’s grace and power. He wanted everyone to know about Jesus Christ. 3. He went to a synagogue and told the people there about Jesus. 4. The people in the synagogue became very angry and began spreading rumours and lies about Stephen. 5. Soon Stephen was arrested and taken before the religious court called the Sanhedrin. 6. People from the synagogue told lies about Stephen and said Stephen was saying bad things about God and about the temple. They accused Stephen of trying to hurt the Jews. 7. When the leader of the Sanhedrin asked Stephen if these accusations were true Stephen decided to tell all about how God had always had a plan to send Jesus. He started in the Old Testament and talked about how Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon and others had all looked forward to Jesus coming to save the world. The Jews would be wrong if they rejected Jesus. 8. The people in the Sanhedrin became more and more angry. They did not want to believe in Jesus. But even though they yelling at him Stephen remained calm. The bible says he had “the face of an angel.” 9. The people became so angry that they took Stephen outside the city and threw stones at him until he died. 10. But Stephen never stopped trusting in God. He looked up to heaven and saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God. Stephen kept praying while he was being stoned. Just before he died he said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” and then “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” 11. There was one young man who stood by and watched while all of this was happening. He helped the people by watching after their cloaks as they stoned Stephen. We will learn more about this man later. His name was Saul. 12. Stephen was the first man to die because he believed in Jesus. He is called a martyr because he died for what he believed in. After this Christians became very frightened and many left the city of Jerusalem. The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org

The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org This visual aid was constructed by Mary Nelson www.missionbibleclass.org using artwork from http://sweetpublishing.com Creative Commons Attribution_Share Alike 3.0 Unreported License. User may reproduce it without permissions. The Stoning of Stephen - Acts 6:8-8:1 www.missionbibleclass.org