The First Christian Martyr – June 27, 2021
Exodus 32:1-10, Acts 6:1-15, 7:44-60
June 27, 2021
Today in Acts, we meet Stephen. And Stephen was one of seven who were chosen to expand the leadership of the Church. They didn’t have the structure we have today. And as I said last week, we Presbyterians are proud of ours! But they knew they needed some kind of organization. There was just too much for the Apostles to do!
So here in chapter 6, they chose seven who would help with the organization of the Church. And very quickly we find that Stephen is special. He does more than just organize things! Luke tells us that he was an exemplary believer, full of the Holy Spirit. Verse 8 says, “And Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs among the people.” It seems to me that he was more like another Apostle, than an elder or a deacon.
But Stephen rubbed some people the wrong way. It says here, “But some of those who belonged to the synagogues of the Freedmen, and the Cyrenians, and the Alexandrians, and the Cilicia and Asia, arose and disputed with Stephen. But they could not withstand the wisdom and spirit with which he spoke.” (Acts 6:8-9) Apparently, Stephen was very good debater! He was also what we have come to know as an apologist. That is, one who speaks out and defends the faith. When I think of an apologist, I think of C. S. Lewis. Lewis had one of the greatest minds of the 20th century! His reasoning ability was powerful. And he was an amazing defender of the faith!
Well, the men from these synagogues couldn’t “withstand” Stephen in open debate, so they “secretly instigated” others who accused him of speaking blasphemy. They said that he “spoke out against their holy place and the law,” saying, “Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change all the customs of Moses.” And so, like Peter and John before him, Stephen was arrested, thrown into prison, and brought before the council. (The council sure was busy in those days!)
So Stephen stood before them and the High Priest asked him, “Is this true, these things they’ve been saying about you?” And that opened the floodgates! In his answer, Stephen gave these leaders of Israel a history lesson. He gave them a lesson in their own history! He told them what they already knew, beginning with Abraham. There wasn’t time to read that whole thing today in a worship service, but it’s worth reading sometime on your own.
In his answer, Stephen went on for 50 verses. And then in the end he turned really contentious! In verse 51, he said, “You stiff necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the spirit. And which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered!” Then he said, “You received the Law, as delivered by angels, but did not keep it!” That was probably the harshest condemnation of them yet! It was stronger than anything Peter and John had said! I wonder if these men ever even imagined anybody speaking such words to them in that council!
And note that calling them “stiff necked” wasn’t something Stephen made up. God had called his people “stiff necked.” In other words, they were stubborn and willful! And the context in which he called them that was when they had forsaken him in the wilderness and worshipped the golden calf! In Exodus 32:9, God said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff necked people!’”
Think about it! That business with the golden calf was seen as one of the biggest transgressions of God’s people in their history! And now those words are coming back to the leaders of Israel – from this prisoner, Stephen. That was the level of this condemnation! And they were enraged, just like they were with Peter and John last week. Do you remember? Luke told us “They were enraged, and they wanted to kill them.” That’s when Gamaliel stepped in and told them to leave them alone, because if what they were doing was of their own making, it would fail, but if what they were doing was of God… Do you remember those words?
Well, this time there was no placating them! And like the killing of the prophets Stephen had just talked about, they “cried out with a loud voice, they stopped their ears, and they rushed together upon him.” “And they cast him out of the city, and they stoned him.” And we can only imagine what that was like. All the artists depictions over the years have sought to make Stephen’s death noble in some way, even holy. And I’m sure it was. But I have no doubt that it was also horrific!
And that’s the story of this first Christian martyr. And as this stoning was happening, Luke introduces us to the next major character in the story, the next of the antagonists. He is a pharisee named of Saul of Tarsus. “As they stoned Stephen,” Luke says, “the witnesses laid their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.” “And Saul was consenting to his death.”
And I think it’s no coincidence, if we read on, that that sentence is followed immediately by this one. “And on that day a great persecution arose against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the region of Judea and Samaria.” From the way it’s presented here, I believe Saul was part of – and a big part of – that persecution!
In next week’s reading, chapter 9 starts out, “And Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord…” I think we have to conclude from all that, that Saul is one of the main instigators of that persecution! That’s what we’ll be thinking about next week.
But here in our story for today, Stephen is the first victim of that persecution. He is the first Christian martyr. And as I asked last week, would things have gone better for the Apostles if they had just stuck with the story of Jesus, and concentrated on the love and grace of God? Would they have suffered the same persecution if they had not condemned the religious leaders so severely?
That’s an interesting question. Because I think there’s no doubt that at least part of the anger of the Pharisees was due to the accusations against them. And it would continue in the message of the early church. They had betrayed and murdered the one everybody was starting to worship in this new faith. That would continue to be a part of this picture. And it would be hard for anyone to talk about the cross and the empty tomb and the glory of all that, without thinking about them and their role in that story. They would be as infamous in the story of Jesus as Pontius Pilate!
And as we think about all of that, we have to ask ourselves, “What about us?” “Are we ever a ‘stiff necked people?’” Do we ever find ourselves resisting God? Are we ever ones who received the law, as delivered by angels, but did not keep it? I think we should keep those as constant questions to ourselves. Because even God’s own chosen people betrayed him in a big way. And we are all capable of that.
But do we sometimes forget that? Do we sometimes like to think only about the glory of our redemption, without thinking about the sinfulness that made that redemption through the cross necessary? Do we sometimes choose to concentrate only on Grace – which is the undeserved love of God – without thinking of why that love is so undeserved?
I think we’re all guilty of that from time to time. And I think sometimes we placate ourselves by choosing to see our own sinfulness in a comparative way. In other words, we say to ourselves, “At least I’m not as bad as those Pharisees were!” I think we need to remember our own sinfulness. And I’m not saying we should dwell on it. But we do need to remember it. And when we see someone, who we think as being sinful, we need to remember those old words, “There but for the grace of God go I.”
So, when we read these stories, may we see the rich history, which is our history as well. But may we also see ourselves in these people, even these people who martyred Stephen, and may we know that we are not immune from their jealousy, their short-sightedness, and their pride. May we see these “stiff necked people” and recognize our own “stiff necked-ness.” And may that make us ever strive to be better, and may it help us to appreciate indeed how amazing God’s Grace really is!
Prayer
Eternal God, we cannot begin to fathom your love and Grace for us. But for it, we are eternally grateful! Help us to live our lives as people of Grace. Help us to reach out others with that Grace, living lives worthy of the calling to which we have been called, following Jesus, who is our Lord and Savior and Friend. For this we pray in his name, Amen.