Acts 7:54-60
The Jewish leaders were stung to fury
by Stephen’s accusation and ground their teeth in rage. But Stephen,
full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily upward into heaven and saw the
glory of God and Jesus standing at God’s right hand. And he told them,
“Look, I see the heavens opened and Jesus the Messiah standing beside
God, at his right hand!”
Then they mobbed him, putting their
hands over their ears, and drowning out his voice with their shouts, and
dragged him out of the city to stone him. The official witnesses—the
executioners—took off their coats and laid them at the feet of a young
man named Paul.
And as the murderous stones came hurtling at him,
Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” And he fell to his
knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” and with that,
he died.
The Living Bible
copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of
Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights
reserved.
I don’t know about you, but I feel like in so many ways, I have often failed to keep “the main thing” the main thing!
When “life” gets in the way, it’s sometimes hard to focus on what
really matters, because we get stuck “in the weeds” of illness…death and
the “business” that must be attended to
afterward…holidays…work…studies…kids and their
activities/needs…caregiving…and so much more. We look up and realize
that we have not spent much quality time with God.
Oh, sure,
we’ve talked to God and asked Him for help…strength…courage…stamina…and
healing. We’ve thrown out some desperate cries for His attention. We
might have even mentioned to someone else that we are getting through
the days “only because of the grace of God.” But are we really focused
on Him? Are we truly engaged in living for Jesus and sharing His Good
News with others?
If you have a few minutes today, please read
the entire seventh chapter of Acts. Stephen was witnessing and
preaching in Jerusalem, and as we read in Verse 9, he met up with “the
Jewish cult of ‘The Freedmen’… joined by Jews from Cyrene, Alexandria
in Egypt, and the Turkish provinces of Cilicia, and Asia Minor.”
Basically, Stephen gave these men a history lesson of Old Testament
scripture, then accused them of resisting the Holy Spirit – and killing
Jesus. It was more than the group could handle…and they dragged Stephen
out to the edge of town and stoned him to death.
I am struck by
Stephen’s words as he saw the heavens open up and Jesus appeared. He
asked Jesus to receive his spirit…and also to forgive these men who were
killing him. This was a truly amazing demonstration of “keeping the
main thing the main thing.” Even in the midst of this horrific
act, Stephen was focused on Jesus. And while hopefully, none of us will
ever be literally stoned to death, this scripture passage has practical
application for each of us.
Surely there have been times when
you wrestled with which way to turn. On one hand, you could “do the
right thing” and face the ridicule (or even wrath) of those around you.
Your choice to honor God with your commitment and daily living might be
uncomfortable in a lot of ways. Despite our best efforts to please God,
there will be times when we fall short, because we are human. As I sifted through memories and
“treasures” my mother saved, I found a 7-year baby book. In it, she
wrote an account of my 2nd birthday party, which included several
invited guests. Mother noted that “Debbie fought with Robin (my cousin,
who was also two!), as usual…and Mommy was embarrassed.” Trust me…it
was not the last time I embarrassed my mother! I know she loved me, but
I could easily picture her greeting me with outstretched arms - and a
look of disappointment on her face!
So often, we buckle when
things get hard and take the easy way out. And Stephen could have
easily done this. He could have “folded his tent” and moved on and left
these rabble-rousers to believe and act as they pleased. He could also
have condemned them for stoning him to death and asked Jesus to “pour
out your wrath” on these evil men! But this would not have honored
Stephen’s commitment to Jesus - or his trust in Him to handle such
matters according to His will. And the account of Stephen’s reaction as
he saw the gates of Heaven open and His Lord standing there to greet
him illustrates the consolation.
I cling to the thought that
when it’s all said and done, Jesus will great me at Heaven’s gate with
outstretched arms and a look of delight. It will make everything
worthwhile, won’t it? So I am working to make better choices…to keep
the main thing (Jesus) the MAIN THING! I am trying to let Him handle other people and mete out justice as He determines.
I look forward to the day when I can say with confidence, “Lord Jesus,
receive my spirit” and see His welcoming smile. What about you?
©2016 Debbie Robus
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