Spend time in prayer and silence with God, asking Him to meet with you and speak to you.
Bible Reading
“You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit! Was there ever a prophet your fathers did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered Him—you who have received the law that was put into effect through angels but have not obeyed it.” When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
– Acts 7:51-60
Devotion
In Acts chapter seven, Luke records Stephen’s speech to the Sanhedrin. This speech was a scathing rebuke of Israel’s history of rebellion against God and His prophets. His speech closes with a reminder that they had killed their own Messiah. This rebuke would cost Stephen his life. By the way, notice who was part of this angry mob in verse fifty-eight: a young man named Saul! Saul would persecute the early church until he encountered a resurrected Jesus on the road to Damascus. After this, his name would change to Paul, and he would become the apostle to the Gentiles and write a significant amount of the New Testament.
The Big Question
Stephen did not fear the leaders of Israel because of a resurrected Jesus. He was willing to give up his life in hopes that he might reach some of his own countrymen with the truth about Jesus. To what lengths would you go that you might reach people you know with the Good News of Jesus? Who is in your top three?
Conclude your time in prayer and silence, reflecting on what God revealed to you today.