Study Desk

And so now I tell you: Stay away from these men, and leave them alone. If their plan comes from human authority, it will fail.

So, brothers and sisters, choose seven of your own men who are good, full of the Spirit and full of wisdom. We will put them in charge of this work.

The whole group liked the idea, so they chose these seven men: Stephen (a man with great faith and full of the Holy Spirit), Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas (a man from Antioch who had become a follower of the Jewish religion).

But the Spirit was helping him to speak with wisdom, and his words were so strong that they could not argue with him.

So they secretly urged some men to say, "We heard Stephen speak against Moses and against God."

So Abraham left the country of Chaldea and went to live in Haran. After Abraham's father died, God sent him to this place where you now live.

God made an agreement with Abraham, the sign of which was circumcision. And so when Abraham had his son Isaac, Abraham circumcised him when he was eight days old. Isaac also circumcised his son Jacob, and Jacob did the same for his sons, the twelve ancestors of our people.

"Then all the land of Egypt and Canaan became so dry that nothing would grow, and the people suffered very much. Jacob's sons, our ancestors, could not find anything to eat.

So Jacob went down to Egypt, where he and his sons died.

Moses saw an Egyptian mistreating one of his people, so he defended the Israelite and punished the Egyptian by killing him.

So Moses led the people out of Egypt. He worked miracles and signs in Egypt, at the Red Sea, and then in the desert for forty years.

So the people made an idol that looked like a calf. Then they brought sacrifices to it and were proud of what they had made with their own hands.

You have carried with you the tent to worship Molech and the idols of the star god Rephan that you made to worship. So I will send you away beyond Babylon.' Amos 5:25–27

‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. So do you think you can build a house for me? says the Lord. Do I need a place to rest?

When the leaders heard this, they became furious. They were so mad they were grinding their teeth at Stephen.

So the people in that city were very happy.

Simon had amazed them with his magic so long that the people became his followers.

Simon saw that the Spirit was given to people when the apostles laid their hands on them. So he offered the apostles money,

saying, "Give me also this power so that anyone on whom I lay my hands will receive the Holy Spirit."

Simon answered, "Both of you pray for me to the Lord so the things you have said will not happen to me."