Stephen Remains Faithful

The Bible Story

The church in Jerusalem kept growing. More and more people were becoming followers of Jesus. They learned together, prayed together, shared what they had, and cared for people who needed help.

As the number of believers grew, a problem appeared. Some widows were not receiving the daily help they needed. The apostles knew that caring for these women mattered. They also knew they needed to continue praying and teaching God's Word. So the believers chose seven trustworthy men to help with this important work.

One of them was Stephen. Stephen was known as a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit. He did not begin by standing before a crowd or trying to become important. He was ready to serve. The apostles prayed for Stephen and the other men and entrusted this work to them. The church continued to grow, and many more people heard God's Word.

Stephen also spoke about Jesus, and God worked through him in remarkable ways. Some people began arguing with him, but they could not overcome the wisdom with which he spoke. Instead of accepting what Stephen was saying, some of his opponents secretly persuaded people to make false accusations against him.

Soon Stephen was taken before the council. People stood up and said things about him that were not true. Everyone in the council looked at Stephen. Even surrounded by accusations, Stephen did not answer with panic or hatred. The Bible says that his face appeared to them like the face of an angel. Then the high priest asked Stephen whether the accusations were true, and Stephen began to speak.

Stephen did not simply tell the council about himself. He reminded them of the story of what God had been doing for generations. He spoke about Abraham and God's promises. He told them about Joseph, whose own brothers rejected him even though God was with him.

Stephen also spoke about Moses. At first, the Israelites did not understand that God was using Moses to rescue them. Yet God sent Moses to lead His people out of Egypt. Stephen reminded the council about the wilderness, the tabernacle, the temple, and the long history of God's people. Again and again, God had been faithful. And again and again, people had resisted what God was doing.

Then Stephen spoke very directly to the leaders. Their ancestors had rejected God's messengers, and now they had rejected Jesus, the Righteous One. The people listening understood what Stephen was saying, and they became furious.

But Stephen remained focused on God. Filled with the Holy Spirit, he looked toward heaven. He said that he could see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. Stephen was speaking about Jesus—the risen Lord he trusted.

The crowd did not want to listen anymore. They shouted and rushed toward Stephen. They took him outside the city. There, they began throwing stones at him. The people taking part laid their outer clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. This is the first time Saul appears in this part of the story.

Stephen knew that his life was in danger. Yet even then, his trust remained in Jesus. As the stones were being thrown, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Then he prayed for the people who were hurting him and asked the Lord not to hold their sin against them. Stephen was not saying that their violence was acceptable. What they were doing was terribly wrong. But he refused to answer hatred with hatred.

Then Stephen died. The people who killed him had taken his life, but they had not taken away his trust in Jesus. Stephen had served, spoken the truth, and remained faithful to the end. And his story was not the end of what God was doing. Saul had been there. Soon Saul himself would encounter the risen Jesus, and his life would change in a way almost no one expected.