Why I Hope My Sons Grow Up To “Act” Like A Martyr

I’m praying that my three young sons will grow up to be just like Stephen from the Bible.  Well, almost just like him, that is.  You see, Stephen was the first Christian martyr of the early church in Acts chapter seven.  He literally gave up his life for the glory of God.

Stephen was many things in this life; a servant, a godly man, and a preacher…just to name a few.  But in the face of his harshest critics, he never looked like anything other than an angel.

An angel—even while stones smashed into his face!

With both respect and self-control, Stephen debated with his enemies to the point that they were “unable to cope with the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking” (Acts 6:10).  In their frustration and unbridled hatred of the Messiah he so passionately served, they “stirred up the people, the elders and the scribes, and they came up to him and dragged him away and brought him before the Council” (Acts 6:12).

They accused Stephen of blasphemy and of altering the customs of Moses.  These were charges he was totally innocent of but which the Sanhedrin violated almost daily.  Yet when confronted with lies about his reputation, the threat of bodily persecution, and the uncertainty of his immediate future, Stephen’s resolve to remain a radical witness for Jesus Christ left the Council to see no less than “the face of an angel” (Acts 6:15).

Rather than close with an altar call and a few stanzas of Just As I Am, Stephen preached a sermon on Israel’s history.  The climax came when he accused the Sanhedrin of committing blasphemy and for being just like their fathers who always murdered the prophets.  His words cut deep like daggers.  Yet his behavior so pleased the Lord that Stephen was granted a rare glimpse of the risen Savior, even while the stones rained down upon his frail frame.

Far from returning the assault of stones with a hail of rebuke, Stephen retaliated with the spiritual fruit of love and self-control.  He prayed for both the forgiveness and the salvation of his murderers.

The Council raced toward Stephen with gnashed teeth and lawless intentions, but all Stephen could do was petition God for their forgiveness.  As stone after stone sliced through the air and met its fatal mark, the resolve of that godly man was to do nothing less than cry “out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!” (Acts 7:60).

Rather than vengeance, Stephen prayed for divine mercy.  Such radical love!

Stephen remained faithful while the faithless “witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul” (Acts 7:58).  It is likely that Saul of Tarsus (who later became the apostle Paul) was present in the synagogue when Stephen debated with his accusers.  But he was definitely present when Stephen preached against the leaders of the Sanhedrin before being driven out of the city to meet his death.

And yet, while staring into the face of martyrdom, Stephen never took his eyes off the Lord, remaining faithful even in the end.

Through the unimaginable pains of those fatal blows, Stephen begged for the forgiveness of his murderers.  He prayed that God would forgive the worst of his enemies.  Sometime later God answered that prayer, at least in the life of one of those present that day.  God forgave Saul, the man who held the cloaks of Stephen’s accusers and “was in hearty agreement with putting him to death” (Acts 8:1).

As we commit ourselves to deliberate Great Commission Discipleship, God works through our actions and prayers in amazing ways.  Only the Lord knows in what capacity Stephen’s prayer provoked the Lord to move in Saul’s life with mercy and salvation.  I suppose we may only ever know once we get to Paradise.

Regardless, however, Stephen’s witness was so powerful that God chose to devote a fair amount of Scripture to it, just to tell us the story.

We are rarely more like Jesus than when we are witnessing to unbelievers, for Christ spent so much of His time spreading the gospel among sinners.  This is supported by our Lord’s own Great Commission words in John 20:21 when He said, “as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

Jesus offered His life as a ransom for many because He refused to allow the comforts of this world to compete against His mission to glorify His Father.  Stephen’s life and death are reminiscent of that singular devotion as well.

And that is why I want my sons to grow up and be just like Stephen!

John MacArthur wrote the following words about this godly man named Stephen:

“Both in life and in death, Stephen was so much like his Lord.  Jesus was filled with the Spirit, so was Stephen.  Jesus was full of grace, so was Stephen.  Jesus boldly confronted the religious establishment of his day, so did Stephen.  Jesus was convicted by lying witnesses, so was Stephen.  Jesus had a mock trial, so did Stephen.  Jesus was executed though innocent of any crime, so was Stephen.  Both were accused of blasphemy.  Both died outside the city and were buried by sympathizers.  And as already noted, both prayed for the salvation of their executioners.  Was there ever a man more like Jesus?” (John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary; Acts 1-12; page 226)

Allow me to pose a question or two as this post draws to a close.

• Are you content with being just an average, run-of-the-mill churchgoer or do you want to become more like Jesus every day?
• No, I mean do you really want to be Christ-like?  (There is a big difference, after all.)

We need to be intentional as we “Go” day by day making “disciples of all the nations.”  That is our chief duty.  It is God’s revealed will for each of us.  Regardless of the end results to our reputation or physical bodies, we need to strive toward radical obedience, passionately worshipping the King of kings and warning sinners to flee from the wrath to come.

It is the main reason we are here on earth.  It is why you are still inhaling and exhaling right now.

You are an ambassador for the Lord. You have been commissioned with the God-ordained ministry of reconciliation.  And fruit-bearing ambassadors earn their living in a foreign land (earth) far away from the comforts of their true home (heaven).

So “Go therefore and make disciples” of Jesus Christ for the glory of God alone.

QUESTION:  What do you think about Stephen?  What can we learn from this man?

* Photo credit: elycefeliz (Creative Commons)