Reading 1
Acts 7:51—8:1a
Stephen said to the people, the elders, and the scribes:
“You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears,
you always oppose the Holy Spirit;
you are just like your ancestors.
Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute?
They put to death those who foretold the coming of the righteous one,
whose betrayers and murderers you have now become.
You received the law as transmitted by angels,
but you did not observe it.”
When they heard this, they were infuriated,
and they ground their teeth at him.
But Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit,
looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God
and Jesus standing at the right hand of God,
and Stephen said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened
and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
But they cried out in a loud voice,
covered their ears, and rushed upon him together.
They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him.
The witnesses laid down their cloaks
at the feet of a young man named Saul.
As they were stoning Stephen, he called out,
“Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice,
“Lord, do not hold this sin against them”;
and when he said this, he fell asleep.
Now Saul was consenting to his execution.
Gospel
Jn 6:30-35
The crowd said to Jesus:
“What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you?
What can you do?
Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is written:
He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”
So Jesus said to them,
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven;
my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.
For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven
and gives life to the world.”
So they said to Jesus,
“Sir, give us this bread always.”
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life;
whoever comes to me will never hunger,
and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”
Meditation: Acts 7:51–8:1
Lord Jesus, receive my spirit… . Do not hold this sin against them. (Acts 7:59,60)
Every now and then, you hear about someone who “died a beautiful death.” Most often, this is said about people who died in their beds after having said their good-byes and made their peace with God.
Stephen’s death was beautiful in a different way. There is nothing pretty about being pelted with stones until your organs fail. But Stephen’s martyrdom was a thing of beauty because he died the way Jesus did. It wasn’t just that Stephen was falsely accused, charged with blasphemy, and killed outside the city walls. It wasn’t even that he had a final vision of “the Son of Man” that recalled what Jesus said at his own trial (Luke 22:69). Even more striking is how Stephen prayed as the stones rained down on him. He commended his spirit to Jesus, as Jesus had commended his to the Father, and he imitated Jesus in asking forgiveness for his executioners (Acts 7:59-60; Luke 23:34,46).
What enabled Stephen to face this excruciating death so peacefully? There’s only one explanation: He was “filled with the holy Spirit” (Acts 7:55). From the very first moment Stephen accepted the gospel, the Holy Spirit had been at work—changing him, empowering him, making him more like Jesus. This was the secret to his Christlike living and dying. It was his most outstanding characteristic.
Today, take the example of Stephen’s transformation as God’s personal word to you. Right now, no matter what your circumstances, God is inviting you to ask for a greater release of the Holy Spirit in your life. He wants to help you think and act like Jesus a little bit more today. He wants to help you choose holiness over sin today in a way you never thought you could before. Just keep your eyes and ears open, and you’ll detect his work.
Remember: The Spirit really does want to do for you what he did for Stephen. So seek him, listen to him, and follow his lead. In that way, both your living and your dying will become something beautiful for God.
“Holy Spirit, I turn to you now in faith and gratitude. Help me to open my life to you in a deeper way today. Whatever it takes, please make me like Jesus!”
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