Read the Word:
Acts 7:54-8:1
Meditate on the Word:
When Stephen became the first Christian martyr, it set in motion the rapid spread of the gospel throughout the world. Followers of Christ to this point had been largely congregated in Jerusalem and the church was growing. But of course, Jesus had commanded the disciples to be His witnesses not only in Jerusalem, but in Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Stephen’s martyrdom, at the hands of the Jews, caused the church to scatter, taking the gospel with them to other places. But we can overlook something important due to the unnatural chapter division in the narrative.
Saul witnessed this killing and consented to it. He would join in the fury, setting the stage for his encounter with Christ on the Road to Damascus. Stephen’s martyrdom led directly to the conversion of the one who planted churches in various locations and wrote 13 of the books of the New Testament. So one could argue that Stephen’s death led to salvation for a lot of people. Stephen had no way of knowing this. He only knew that he was obedient to Christ until the very end. Do we know the same thing?
Pray the Word:
Ask the Lord for courage to remain true to Him until the very end.
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