Date: September 19, 2025 Passage Read: Acts 6-7 Meditation Verses: 7:51-54

Thought

What was Stephen thinking? How could he say such things to them? Sure, they had resisted the Holy Spirit, they persecuted and killed Jesus, and they were not keeping the Law of Moses. But to say that all their fathers did the same? Certainly many, even most people of each generation disobeyed the Law, ignored the Spirit and didn't support the prophets, but Stephen implies that all of them did that and worse! No wonder the leaders were furious with him! Yet they didn't justify killing Stephen! They must have been pretty tired of hearing about Jesus and how they killed Him. Or, they were proving Stephen's point. Stephen was painting with a broad brush, but for the most part he was right, especially from God's perspective. While they might think they were pretty good, I'm mean, they were priests and scholars and leaders who studied God's Word and knew which commands mattered most and which didn't matter anymore, so surely they were doing great! Yet to hear again and again that they had messed up, even killing God's Son, well, that just pushed them too far. God was angry with them because of their continued rebellion, even as they appeared to seek and do His will--He was most furious because of their hypocrisy! They were leading others astray, giving them a false sense of security, making all the people worse sons of Hell than themselves. They were a plague on His people, people He wanted to save, but they were driving them further from Him. Stephen's harsh words were right, and probably not far enough! And they proved their evil by their deeds, killing one more person who showed them who they were. Instead of repenting, they shattered the mirror.

Application

We have far too high an opinion of ourselves, and it blinds us to real repentance, inoculates us against true repentance. And we're so afraid of offending sinners that were unwilling to speak the truth to them. If we did, we'd discover how wicked we really are too! We can see the sins of others better than our own, but we have all kinds of excuses and justifications. To call others out would turn their guns on us, and we know there are evil things we're not willing to admit or give up. We'd rather live a peaceful and quiet life, minding our own business so no one can call us out. Be as good or maybe a little better than others, but don't get crazy and follow too much of what God says! So better not to rock another's boat for fear of having ours rocked in return. That's no help to anyone. That's salt losing its saltines and becoming good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled. That's a loss of salvation--or never having it! No, like Paul, I need to come to grips with my wickedness, not my mistakes and ignorance, but my wickedness, and beat my body to make it my slave and discipline myself to walk in complete obedience to God, so I can call everyone to account and repentance so that they might be saved! And if they call me out, well, they may be right and I need to take their rebuke before God and see if He agrees. But God forbid I pull back at their insistence and minimize sin in anyone, either myself or especially those who don't fear God or care what He says! I'll surely anger some people, maybe a lot of people, and maybe that'll get me in trouble. God have mercy on the lukewarm or cold believers who would tell me to pipe down. God have mercy on me in my timidity. I need to see things as God sees them and be truly offended by my own wickedness and that of others, enough to rebuke it and to repent of it, not to silence godly messengers, especially the Holy Spirit!

Natalie Layne

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