Stephen concludes his sermon in Acts 7:37-8:3 with bold accusations against the religious leaders for continually failing to truly follow God’s law, turning to idolatry, missing His glory, and being spiritually dead. As their outrage culminates in Stephen’s death by stoning, we are introduced to Saul, who launches a rampage of persecution against the early church.

As Stephen is stoned to death, he utters some truly remarkable last words in Acts 7:59-60 that reveal the powerful transformation Jesus had upon his life. In much the same way, Jesus wants to change us too. As we study, we learn how He can bring about this change in our lives by rescuing us from our sins and giving us new hearts that will help us face any circumstance while glorifying God —just like Stephen.

In one of Scripture's most powerful sermons, Stephen recounts Israel's history to reveal how it foreshadowed Jesus as the Messiah while addressing the people's repeated rejection of God’s plan. As we study the first half of his message in Acts 7:1-43, we cover their history from Abraham to Moses to see the prophetic implications, the beginning of God's plan for the Jewish people, and how Jesus was pictured throughout this history.

Accused of blasphemy by the religious leaders, Stephen begins his defense in Acts 7:2-8 with a history lesson on God’s promise to give Abraham’s descendants the land of Israel. Starting with Stephen’s statement, we trace Israel’s history to the present day to explore who should possess the land and why, the current narrative in the Middle East, and how these controversies are leading to God’s ultimate plans for the Jews in the End Times.

The early church is growing and doing great things in Acts 6, but complaining begins to creep in as organizational challenges arise. As we study their problem, we see how church leadership addressed the issue and how their solution continues to influence the organization of the church even today.

While Stephen is preaching about Jesus in Acts 6:8-15, a group of men come against him by spreading lies and accusing him of sharing misinformation. And unfortunately, twisting the truth is the oldest trick in the book and is still in play today. As we study how truth is distorted, we learn how to combat these attacks by knowing what Scripture actually says and how we can become people full of faith and power, like Stephen.

The early church is flourishing in Acts 5 as many come to know the Lord, miracles abound, and the Gospel is boldly proclaimed. However, Satan attempts to stop the growing power of the church with attacks from both within and without, and the opposition becomes increasingly hostile.

Ananias and Sapphira appear to be outstanding members of the early church in Acts 5:1-11, but an act of hypocrisy and deceit leads to their dramatic destruction. By examining why God made an example of them—and others throughout Scripture—we uncover why hypocrisy in the church is so serious, the importance of fleeing from unrighteousness, and how God’s grace and mercy cover us when we are overtaken by our faults.

The religious leaders are furious with Peter and John in Acts 4 for preaching the name of Jesus Christ and respond by arresting them and forbidding them to do so. Despite this mounting persecution, Peter and John are ultimately released, and the church gathers to pray for boldness, asking the Holy Spirit to fill them with the courage to continue declaring the truth and power of Jesus Christ to everyone – including those opposing them.

After healing a crippled man and preaching about Jesus to the astonished crowd, Peter and John find themselves in big trouble with the religious leaders. As Peter defends their actions in Acts 4:1-14, he boldly declares who Jesus is and that salvation can only come through Him.