Acts 7:44-56
“Our ancestors carried the Tabernacle with them through the wilderness. It was constructed according to the plan God had shown to Moses. Years later, when Joshua led our ancestors in battle against the nations that God drove out of this land, the Tabernacle was taken with them into their new territory. And it stayed there until the time of King David. “David found favor with God and asked for the privilege of building a permanent Temple for the God of Jacob. But it was Solomon who actually built it. However, the Most High doesn’t live in temples made by human hands. As the prophet says, ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Could you build me a temple as good as that?’ asks the Lord. ‘Could you build me such a resting place? Didn’t my hands make both heaven and earth?’ “You stubborn people! You are heathen at heart and deaf to the truth. Must you forever resist the Holy Spirit? That’s what your ancestors did, and so do you! Name one prophet your ancestors didn’t persecute! They even killed the ones who predicted the coming of the Righteous One—the Messiah whom you betrayed and murdered. You deliberately disobeyed God’s law, even though you received it from the hands of angels.” The Jewish leaders were infuriated by Stephen’s accusation, and they shook their fists at him in rage. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily into heaven and saw the glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand. And he told them, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand!”
One reality that has always gripped
me about the way Stephen spoke is the complete lack of concern for what happens,
as long as he’s faithful in delivering this testimony of Christ; he was speaking
before, and to, a group that had the power to punish him, make his life miserable
socially or economically; they had the power to pronounce him a spiritual leper
to the rest of Israel, or even put him to death; Stephen cared nothing for any
of that. His purpose of speaking Christ’s
message, bubbling forth like the prophets of old, was all that mattered.
A second, quite sobering reality,
is the ending of the story; they dragged Stephen to the edge of town, picked up
stones and bludgeoned him to death. This
was no “fluff” Hallmark movie with a fairy tale ending; this was life as a
Christian, lived to the faithful max!
Stephen’s final words echoed two of
the seven words of Jesus from the cross, both prayers that God would receive his
spirit when it left his body, and the other that his false accusers/executioners
would be forgiven:
As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” He fell to his knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” And with that, he died. Acts 7:59-60
It is one thing to speak out a
truth to the powerful…because you know it’s the truth, and you can do no
less. It’s something entirely different
to beg God for the forgiveness of the ones who won’t hear the truth and reject
it so violently they put you to death for it.
But that is what Jesus did; and
that is what Jesus’ disciple Stephen did.
It is what those committed to truth do.
For You Today
The strangeness of the times in
which we live should give us plenty of break from whatever “normal” used to be
in our lives – enough time to reflect on what is required of a Christian to be
counted faithful in God’s eyes when it comes to what we’ve done with the light
we’ve been given.
If the light we’ve been giving is the
message of Jesus Christ, and we are judged on the basis of what we’ve done with
what we’ve been given…can our standard be any less than what compelled Stephen
to hold up that light in the face of evil without fear?
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