Day 96: the Comeback Kids

When they heard these things, they were enraged and gnashed their teeth at him. Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven. He saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. He said, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” They yelled at the top of their voices, covered their ears, and together rushed against him. They dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. And the witnesses laid their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” He knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!” And after saying this, he fell asleep. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. . . . And those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. Acts 7:54–8:1, 4 niv

Stephen, likely a relatively new Christ-follower, was also one of seven men the apostles had chosen to manage and allocate the charitable giving situation going on in Acts 7. Why? Because there’d been some fussing about how some of the needy folks were getting more financial assistance than others, so the apostles chose a few good men (which many congregations now refer to as deacons) to sort it all out (Acts 6:1–4).

Therefore, it stands to reason that Stephen, being a chosen member of the very first deaconate, was a wise, honorable, well-liked kind of guy. He was probably on the school board and raised money for the March of Dimes, too. And we know for sure that he was passionate about the Gospel because Luke literally describes him as: a man with great faith and full of the Holy Spirit (Acts 6:5b). So it’s not hard to imagine the collective shock and grief that rippled through that fledgling church community when he was stoned to death by a militant, anti-Christian mob simply because of one straightforward sermon about their generational stubborn streak and desperate need for Jesus.

Humanly speaking, it would’ve made sense for the early church to recoil after the tragedy of their dear friend’s gruesome murder and then retreat. It’d make sense if they chose to circle their proverbial wagons and focus on consoling the core group of their fellowship. Maybe hire a grief counselor, a crisis manager, and some administrative help to wade through all the insurance and liability issues. But they didn’t shrink back in fear. They didn’t go underground and become a secret, self-protective, cultish kind of crew. They didn’t allow a horrific homicide to curb their cause. Nope. They did the exact opposite. Their commitment to love others for the sake of Christ didn’t get buried with Stephen—it rose up and got bigger! The enemy’s knock-out punch didn’t send them reeling to the canvas—it propelled them to the witnessing Olympics!

Here’s the ironic thing about hardship. It tends to have the reverse effect on those of us who’ve put our hope in Jesus instead of our circumstances. Instead of staying down when we’re walloped, God’s people tend to bounce back with more oomph. In fact, church history proves that opposition often works like Miracle Gro on the body of Christ. The power of the Holy Spirit enables us to have Rocky-like comebacks, pointing to the undefeatable, redemptive power of the Gospel. We may be down, but we’re never out!

• When have you been tempted to throw in the towel when it comes to sharing the love of Christ with unreceptive—maybe even antagonistic—people in your life?
• How have you seen God use a tragic situation to mobilize His church for good purposes?
• When you feel the urge to recoil and retreat in the face of hardship, how can you tap back into God’s great power to help you bounce back?