Jesus Calls Us
The Birth of the Church
The Baptized Ethiopian
Live in the light of God (Isaiah 2:5Acts 6:8-15 The Voice. 8 Stephen continually overflowed with extraordinary grace and power, and he was able to perform a number of miraculous signs and wonders in public view. 9 But eventually a group arose to oppose Stephen and the message to which his signs and wonders pointed. (These men were from a group called the Free Synagogue and included Cyrenians, Alexandrians, Cilicians, and Asians.) 10 The Holy Spirit gave Stephen such wisdom in responding to their arguments that they were humiliated; 11 in retaliation, they spread a vicious rumor: “We heard Stephen speak blasphemies against Moses and God.” 12 Their rumor prompted an uprising that included common people, religious officials, and scholars. They surprised Stephen, grabbed him, and hauled him before the council. 13 They convinced some witnesses to give false testimony. False Witnesses: This fellow constantly degrades the holy temple and mocks our holy law. 14 With our own ears, we’ve heard him say this Jesus fellow, this Nazarene he’s always talking about, will actually destroy the holy temple and will try to change the sacred customs we received from Moses. 15 The entire council turned its gaze on Stephen to see how he would respond. They were shocked to see his face radiant with peace—as if he were a heavenly messenger They laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul, 59, while they were pelting Stephen with rocks. Stephen (as rocks fell upon him): Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. 60 Then he knelt in prayer, shouting at the top of his lungs, Stephen: Lord, do not hold this evil against them! Those were his final words; then he fell asleep in death. Stephen’s sermon weaves together the story of the Jews and the life of Jesus. The point of the message is that God pursues His children despite their constant failure. The crucifixion of Jesus is the greatest of all of these failures. Stephen affirms that through circumcision, they have made themselves look like Jews, but their hearts and ears need circumcising as well. Of course, telling the Jewish leaders to get their hearts and ears circumcised elicits a rather violent response. Stephen speaks the truth so that all might hear, including a man named Saul. 8 1-2 Some devout men buried Stephen and mourned his passing with loud cries of grief. But Saul, this young man who seemed to be supervising the whole violent event, was pleased by Stephen’s death. That very day, the whole church in Jerusalem began experiencing severe persecution. All of the followers of Jesus—except for the emissaries[b] themselves—fled to the countryside of Judea and Samaria.
For Reflection
'In the first conflict, discernment of gifts and division of tasks provide a way to resolve neglect arising from language differences and perhaps prejudice. We are familiar with similar conflicts in our own communities. In the second case, false witness and harsh judgment threaten traditional norms and identity. Stephen is murdered; Saul (apostle Paul) approves. But Stephen’s speech, the longest speech in Acts, dominates the narrative.
The rehearsal of the family story is an act of identity formation. Within communities, how might different groups or individuals tell the history of a congregation or faith community? How does telling the story of patriarchs and matriarchs, leaders, and teachers, reveal values and define identity? Is it possible that constructing a narrative might lead to mutual understanding and respect? We might consider also the different ways we choose to tell the stories in the Bible. Perhaps Stephen’s story is a good place to begin." https://www.workingpreacher.org/commentaries/narrative-lectionary/stephen/commentary-on-acts-61-15-71-2-44-60 Pray
Pray so praying so that you might be able to tell the story of your life from the church to those with whom you speak. Pray so that your actions witness your faith story.
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