A Martyr’s Witness—Lectionary Reflection for Easter 5A (Acts 7:54-60)

Acts 7:54-60 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

⁵⁴ When they heard these things, they became enraged and ground their teeth at Stephen. ⁵⁵ But filled with the Holy Spirit, he gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. ⁵⁶ “Look,” he said, “I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” ⁵⁷ But they covered their ears, and with a loud shout all rushed together against him. ⁵⁸ Then they dragged him out of the city and began to stone him, and the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. ⁵⁹ While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” ⁶⁰ Then he knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he died.

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                We remain in the season of Eastertide, which serves as a reminder that not only is Jesus risen from the dead, but he appeared to his disciples, instructing and encouraging them until the moment when he ascended. Of course, the Resurrection served as the impetus for the ongoing mission of his followers who could have dispersed after his death. It is the Resurrection of Jesus that serves as the foundation of the future life and ministry of the church, for without it there is no gospel message. We see the importance of the Resurrection to the continuing life of the church in the Book of Acts. Because the Revised Common Lectionary replaces the Old Testament readings with readings from the Book of Acts during the Easter season, we get to see how the Resurrection impacts the message of Jesus’ followers. In prior weeks we’ve spent time looking at the aftermath of Pentecost. Now we jump forward to one of the witnesses to the resurrection, a witness given by a man named Stephen. It is the story of martyrdom, but it serves as an opportunity for Luke to share an extended message concerning Jesus from the lips of Stephen, one of the Seven, who was appointed to serve tables so that the Apostles could focus their attention on preaching (Acts 6:1-7). In my tradition, these seven are called deacons and serve as the model for our lay order of deacons (who serve communion and take up the offering). Of course, here in the Book of Acts, the work of these seven believers involved much more than serving tables, because at least two of them took up the ministry of preaching.         

                Our reading focuses on the martyrdom of Stephen, but to understand what is happening here we need to set the context. As noted above, Stephen was numbered among the seven believers who are chosen by the church to take care of the needs of a portion of the community that appears to have been marginalized. That group is known as Hellenists (Greek-speaking Jews, most likely from the diaspora). The seven emerge from that group (Acts 6:1-7). Although Stephen received a call to serve tables, he had other gifts, as seen in the fact that he became known for doing “great wonders and signs among the people.” When Stephen paid a visit to the Synagogue of the Freedmen, whose members came from places such as Cyrene, Alexandria, and Asia, many in that community resisted his message and plotted to have him killed. Members of that synagogue had Stephen arrested and put on trial for blasphemy. Stephen used his trial, to give a lengthy witness that sought to connect Jewish history to the ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus (Acts 6:8-7:53). Our reading doesn’t address that message to the council, but it is assumed to be the background for what happens here.

                Our reading for the Fifth Sunday of Easter (Year A) begins in verse 55 of Acts 7, though we might want to begin in verse 54, which sets up what happens next while connecting our reading with what precedes it. As Stephen concludes his defense, which was less a defense and more an argument for what he believed was the truth about Jesus, those who heard his message became irate. We’re told in verse 54 that not only were they enraged, but they “ground their teeth at Stephen.” That reference to grinding the teeth is often used in the Old Testament to describe enemies of God or God’s people (see Ps. 35:16; Ps. 37:12). After Stephen finished his defense, accusing those who judged him, of heinous crimes, they became angry. You might expect him to let the temperature in the room go down a bit, but that wasn’t his intention. Instead, he simply adds more wood to the fire.

                Having stirred up the crowd against him, we hear that Stephen is full of the Spirit. With that, he takes on the role of a prophet. According to Luke, Stephen turns his attention from the council and the gathered crowd and gazes into heaven. He tells the judicial body that he can see God seated on the throne of heaven with Jesus standing at God’s right hand (Acts 7:55-56). In making this declaration, he makes himself a prophet who can see what they need to see. Of course, Stephen knows in his heart that whatever happens next, he has proven himself a faithful witness to Jesus. Willie Jennings writes that “No matter how hard they are thrown, the stones cannot separate Stephen from God. Nor can any stone, no matter its velocity, its surprising angle, or its accuracy in hitting our vulnerable places, ever separate those who know the savior from God” [Jennings, Acts: Belief, p. 73].

                When Stephen began speaking of his vision of Jesus seated at the right hand of God, the crowd became sufficiently enraged that whatever inhibitions had held them back before this disappeared. They rushed Stephen and dragged him outside the city and began to stone him. For this crowd, Stephen’s blasphemies could not stand unanswered. It’s at this point, as they begin to stone Stephen, an important figure in the history of the Christian movement appears in the story for the first time. That person is a young man named Saul. The fact that the crowd places their robes at his feet, perhaps suggests that he was in charge of the mob. While Luke introduces him, he doesn’t say anything further, such as he was a Pharisee or even where he hailed from—Tarsus.

                Now, it’s likely that this execution was unauthorized and illegal. From what we understand of the era, the Jewish leaders needed Pilate's consent to execute someone. That’s why, according to the Gospels, Jesus was taken first to Herod and then to Pilate. This wasn’t, however, an official government act. This was a mob action that apparently Pilate turned a blind eye toward. Letting this go, might serve to ingratiate him with religious leaders like Caiaphas. Stoning, of course, was the traditional response to blasphemy, which is what the crowd saw Stephen doing in his final witness to Jesus.

                As the crowd stoned Stephen to death, he prayed. Much as Jesus prayed while on the cross, he prayed to Jesus: “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (Acts 7:59). Stephen shows no fear in the face of death. Instead, he entrusts his present and his future to the care of Jesus. Then Stephen knelt and cried out in a loud voice. He prayed for the crowd who was at that moment killing him: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” After he said this, he died. In his final words, we see a parallel with Jesus’ final declarations while on the cross. The form of execution might be different, but the final words are quite similar (Lk. 23:34,46). In praying for his tormentors, speaking of them here with a generosity of spirit, he reflects the ministry of Jesus to the end. In offering this witness, he models for us the way of Jesus when it comes to those who would sin against us. As for Saul, if we follow Luke’s narrative into chapter eight, we are told that “Saul approved of their killing him” (Acts 8:1A).

                As the story continues into chapter 8, not only does Saul approve of Stephen’s execution (martyrdom), but it serves as the beginning of a “severe persecution . . . against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria” (Acts 8:1B). Therefore, there is more to this story than the first martyrdom. It is the beginning of a movement by the early Christian community out from Jerusalem in fulfillment of Jesus’ commission to his followers before his ascension, that they would proclaim the gospel to the entire world, beginning in Jerusalem, and from there to “Judea and Samaria” and then to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Thus, with the martyrdom of Stephen, phase two of the church’s mission begins. Persecution will not deter the community from fulfilling its calling. Persecution will serve as the impetus to move forward with the ministry. While Saul’s call to join in the church’s mission has yet to be revealed, he will eventually serve as a primary participant in that mission moving toward the ends of the earth. However, before Saul receives his call on the road to Damascus in chapter nine, another of Stephen’s colleagues, a man named Philip, who had also been ordained to serve tables, will take the message to Samaria and elsewhere (chapter 8).

                Before we head out on this mission, we need to take note of the actions taken by devout members of the community, who bury Stephen’s body with loud lamentation (Acts 8:2). Stephen’s death must be grieved. It is a loss that the church deeply felt, and we must not move on too quickly. Willie Jennings acknowledges this truth, writing: “Christians must lament loss, never brushing it aside and never normalizing martyr’s blood as an assumed and necessary aspect of the church’s growth. Christians should in fact lament the loss of all those whose courageous voices pointed toward life and in so doing were the friends of God” [Jennings, Acts, p. 74].

                If we are to truly understand the story of Stephen and the contribution he makes to the forward movement of the Gospel, we must stop and grieve his death. The Book of Acts offers us a missional story, reminding us that proclaiming the gospel can be dangerous and even include martyrdom, though martyrdom should never be courted. While Stephen’s life ends at this point, soon the one who gave assent to his death will hear the call of God, and take up the work given first to Stephen. That is to proclaim that the one who had died on the cross sits at the right hand of God. This work will be done in the power of the Holy Spirit.