Stephen, the First Martyr for Christ

This chapter is based on Acts 6:5-15; 7. 

Stephen, the most prominent of the seven deacons, spoke the Greek language and was familiar with the customs of the Greeks. Because of this, he found opportunity to preach the gospel in the synagogues of the Greek Jews and boldly spoke of his faith. Educated rabbis and doctors of the law engaged him in public discussion, but “they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke.” He completely defeated his opponents. To him the promise was fulfilled, “I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist” (Luke 21:15). 4TC 50.2

The priests and rulers were filled with bitter hatred. They determined to silence his voice. Several times they had bribed the Roman authorities to overlook situations where the Jews had tried, condemned, and executed prisoners. The enemies of Stephen did not doubt that they could do this again, so they brought him before the Sanhedrin council for trial. 4TC 51.1

Well-educated Jews were called in to refute the arguments of the prisoner. Saul of Tarsus was there and used eloquence and logic to convince the people that Stephen was preaching dangerous doctrines. But in Stephen he met someone who had a full understanding of God’s purpose in spreading the gospel to other nations. 4TC 51.2

The priests and rulers determined to make an example of Stephen. It would satisfy their revengeful hatred, and they would prevent others from adopting his belief. They hired witnesses to give false testimony. “We have heard him say,” they declared, “that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs which Moses delivered to us.” 4TC 51.3

A Holy Radiance Shines on Stephen’s Face

As Stephen stood to answer the charges, “all who sat in the council ... saw his face as the face of an angel.” Many trembled and shaded their faces, but the rulers’ stubborn unbelief and prejudice did not waver. 4TC 51.4

Stephen began his defense in a clear, thrilling voice that rang through the council hall. In words that held the assembly spellbound, he reviewed the history of the chosen people. He showed a thorough knowledge of the Jewish religious system and the spiritual interpretation of it now evident in Christ. He made plain his loyalty to God and to the Jewish faith, while he connected Jesus Christ with all the Jewish history. 4TC 51.5

When Stephen connected Christ with the prophecies, the priest, pretending to be horror-stricken, tore his robe. To Stephen this was a signal that he was giving his last testimony. He abruptly ended his sermon. 4TC 51.6

Turning on his enraged judges, he called out: “You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers, who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it.” 4TC 51.7

Priests and rulers were beside themselves with anger. In their cruel faces the prisoner read his fate, but he did not waver. For him the fear of death was gone. The scene before him faded from his vision. The gates of heaven seemed open to him, and, looking in, he saw Christ, as if just risen from His throne, standing ready to sustain His servant. Stephen exclaimed, “I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” 4TC 52.1

As he described the glorious scene, it was more than his persecutors could endure. Covering their ears, they ran furiously at him in one united action and “cast him out of the city.” “While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ Then he knelt down and cried in a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’ When he had said this, he died” (NRSV). 4TC 52.2

The Roman authorities accepted bribes of large sums of money to make no investigation. 4TC 52.3

Stephen’s Martyrdom Makes a Deep Impression

The memory of Stephen’s face and his words, which touched the hearts of those who heard them, remained in the minds of the onlookers and testified to the truth of what he had preached. His death was a bitter trial to the church, but it resulted in the conviction of Saul, who could not erase from his memory the glory that had rested on the martyr’s face. 4TC 52.4

Saul’s secret conviction—that Stephen had been honored by God when dishonored by men—made him angry. He continued to persecute the followers of Christ, arresting them in their houses and delivering them to the priests and rulers for imprisonment and death. His zeal brought terror to the Christians at Jerusalem. The Roman authorities secretly helped the Jews in order to make peace with them and win their favor. 4TC 52.5

After Stephen’s death, Saul was elected a member of the Sanhedrin council in recognition of the part he had acted. He was a mighty instrument in the hands of Satan to carry out his rebellion against the Son of God. But Someone mightier than Satan had chosen Saul to take the place of the martyred Stephen, to spread far and wide the news of salvation through His blood. 4TC 52.6