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55 But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, 56 and said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing on the right hand of God. 57 But they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and rushed upon him with one accord; 58 and they cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And they stoned Stephen, calling upon [the Lord], and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. 60 And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep. (Acts 7:55-60 American Standard Bible)
My two top favorite persons of the New Testament, besides Jesus, of course, are Peter and Paul. And Mary, of course! But in this passage, which is a very sad passage, we're introduced to a man who later would become the greatest evangelist of his time, named Saul. Those who know his story know this was not the highpoint of his Christian life. It was however, the high point of his religious life as a Jew and a leader at that. The Martyr Stephen was an awesome man, who died an early death like Jesus, for his views. Stephen was one of seven (7) deacons ordained and consecrated for servanthood (not preaching or prayer), but he did share his witness over and over again, much to the dislike of the Pharisees. You can read the entire story in the earlier verses of this chapter 6 of Acts.
All seven were chosen because they exhibited the presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives; though Stephen is listed first and his qualities are "a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit." It didn't help matters that Stephen didn't stay in his lane, for he was out and about when he wasn't serving tables in the meeting hall, and he did peform "great wonders and signs among the people." Such was his caring for others beyond his "job" in the church. The members of a Synagogue of the Freedman, tried to argue with him, but were powerless against a man filled with the Holy Spirit. And so, like Jesus, they got false witnesses to testify against him and they found him guilty of blasphemy.
The passage for today is what happened next. Even in his death he annoyed the so-called religious people. Note that even at the point of his death, he dies "being full of the Holy Spirit," and looking up "stedfastly into Heaven," he saw "the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God," which caused Stephen to say, "Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing on the right hand of God." BOOM! So much for your arguments that Jesus is not the Messiah nor the Son of God! They cried out in a loud voice, and stopped their ears, grabbed him and threw him out of the city, and stoned him. To keep the law, there had to be witnesses and there had to a man to guard the coasts and that was a young man named Saul. The murderers as they stoned him. Even with the blows of each rock and stone, Stephen was able to cry out, "Lord, Jesus, receive my spirit." What a wonderful faith he had. Stephen knelt down and cried out, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge." Having said this, "he fell asleep." A nice way to say he was dead.
It is so sad to read in the Bible, and in the news, that religous people do kill. And killing others in the name of God or this religion versus that one, is part of human history. I was amazed to learn a true story of murder within the United Methodist church in a small town in Texas. HBO filed Love and Death here in Seguin, and in Smtihville, Georgetown, and a couple of other spots and it was recently relesed. Two couples that attended the same church grew close and the wife of one couple propositioned the husband of the other to have an affair, which led to a showdown between the two wives and an axe. No bueno. We cannot be mislead by our feelings or thoughts; we have to be, as Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit and go and do, not misdeeds and blunders, but signs and wonders for the love of God and the love of God's people.
PRAYER: Loving God of love, speak to our hearts and fill them with the power and peace of the Holy Spirit. Lead us to glorify You in outstanding ways. In Christ Jesus we pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord. YOUR CALL TO ACTION: Be a Spirit-led person today and all days.
Receive my blessings of joy and peace,
Pastor Eradio Valverde, Jr.
