Fan the Flame - a Journey Through Actsഉദാഹരണം

Day 16 - Stephen's Speech

Stephen was confronted by the Sanhedrin, the Jewish legal council, about the claims from chapter 6 that he was blaspheming. Stephen’s response is full of wisdom and great faith, he shows the crowd that he has a deep understanding of the Jewish faith, explaining much of their history. At the end of his speech, he challenges the crowd, accusing them of resisting the Holy Spirit like their ancestors had. He knew that the history of the Jewish people had been leading to the person and work of Jesus, and many of those present had rejected the Messiah they had been waiting for.

Stephen understood the Jewish Scriptures and was able to boldly declare God’s truth when he was called upon. There may be moments for us, too, where we are called upon to give an answer for our faith, and understanding the truth of God’s word will help us in those moments. Psalm 119:11-12 says, ‘I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Praise be to your Lord; teach me your decrees. With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth’. Storing up God’s word and truth in our hearts will help us when we are questioned.

When we speak from the truth of God’s word, we can be like the person Paul describes in 2 Timothy 2:15, ‘a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth”. Even though Stephen finds himself in a tense and dangerous situation, he is clearly brave and unashamed of the message he shares because he knows it’s the truth of God.

When we are questioned about our faith, we can trust the Holy Spirit to give us wise words to share, but we also need to be people who are in the Word – learning and studying it so that we can share with some of the confidence and assurance we see in Stephen. Let us pray that God would help us know His word and live out of it. That way, even if we find ourselves accused like Stephen, our good conscience and behavior will help us stand tall.

Written by Godfrey Egwu