Acts 7:54-60
54 When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. 55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
57 At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, 58 dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul.
59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
Faith often involves reconciling seemingly contradictory events, experiences, and aspects of human behavior. This passage reveals such a dichotomy as it contrasts the violence of Stephen’s stoning and the serenity he finds in his faith. Stephen was “full of the Holy Spirit” and as he was surrounded by an angry mob and the certainty of death, all he saw was the glory of God. We should all take note. As we face those moments of life when we must encounter those throwing emotional or verbal stones, when we must encounter chaos, when we must encounter closed minds and closed hearts, we can look to the model of Stephen. We can focus on the glory of God and a life eternal promised through the sacrifice of his only son. We must not forget the other major symbol offered in this passage—the symbol of forgiveness and conversion. As Stephen braced for the end of life on earth he asked for forgiveness for those who had wronged him. One of those in the crowd was Saul, and the story of his own conversion offers another dichotomy—that is one of light emerging from darkness.
Sarah C. Latham
Prayer:
Father, we pray for the strength to find clarity in the face of chaos. We pray for the strength to find light in the face of darkness. We pray for the strength to find forgiveness in the face of hate. We ask these things in the name of our Savior, your son, Jesus Christ. Amen.
