Stephen's Witness Saves a Life
You may someday be martyred for your faith; then again …
Could you die for what you believe? Martyrdom is a strong witness! Martyrdom also says a lot about the killer. After all, taking a person’s life is a much of a witness as being willing to die for a cause.
President Obama said that an accepted U.S. practice of torturing prisoners says as much about our country as it does about those we torture. Whether you believe that is partisan and political rhetoric or principled leadership, the truth of the matter is this: how we behave is always a witness to others. Jesus himself said that.
The Bible describes Stephen’s martyrdom: “And Saul was there giving approval to his death” (Acts 7:60). There Saul stood, the clothes of Stephen’s killers lying at his feet (to give them extra stone-throwing power). With the blood of Stephen still dripping from his hands, in the days to come, “Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison (Acts 8:3).
Saul stood strong in approval at Stephen’s murder. He stood strong against the Christian church. And not long after he fell hard with his face shoved into the dirt of Damascus and he whimpered at the feet of the ascended Jesus. Jesus, whom he was persecuting, wanted Saul bad – not to punish him or persecute him in return but in mercy to pardon him, change him, recruit him, and send him as a witness. There at the feet of Jesus Saul was killed and Paul was born. Stephen’s witness helped to make Paul the witness he became.
Whatever we decide among our hundreds of decisions each day … however we behave among our hundreds of behaviors each day … people observe us. We’ve been there, like Saul. We’ve stood around giving our approval to the mockery of God’s name, or by our silence giving approval to the verbal persecution of a fellow Christian. People don’t hear anything from us so they assume, by our behavior, that we approve. We’ve been there, like Paul. Face buried in the dirt, looking at the bright light of Jesus and dreading his wrath, led blindly to a place we wouldn’t have otherwise gone, and delivered by the mercy of Jesus. Not punished or persecuted in return but pardoned, changed, recruited, and then sent as a witness.
When people come to you not throwing stones but they ask you, “How’s your health?” or “What are you doing this weekend?” or “Have you found a job yet?” It’s an opening for you to let them know that Jesus is in charge there, and you are his witness. You can witness Christian priorities to your children by your family scheduling. You can witness Christian generosity to your friends by giving your money or your time to volunteer. You can witness Christian forgiveness to a family member.
You may someday be martyred for your faith. Then again, Jesus gives you plenty of opportunities to witness in less dramatic fashion today.
PRAYER: Dear Jesus, if I ever have to die or instead betray you, let me die no matter how painful, torturous, or demeaning. If that happens, make my martyrdom a witness to your saving power. On the other hand, if I die a normal death then also give me the Christian courage to speak clearly and boldly of you in my life and by my death. Before then, for as many days as you want me on this earth, open my eyes to see opportunities to witness, and open my lips to tell others about you. Amen.