Devotionary

Stephen finally finished his little dissertation on Israelite history and, when he had said his last word, the Jewish religious leaders lost it. They had heard more than enough. And when Stephen claimed to be seeing a vision of the resurrected Christ sitting at the right hand of God in heaven, that’s when the high priest and the members of the Sanhedrin ganged up on Stephen, dragging him out of town, where they preceded to stone him to death. While they had listened for a long time, they had not heard a word Stephen had said. They had not been persuaded by his rhetoric or convicted by his words of accusation. As far as they were concerned, Stephen was the guilty party. He was a blasphemer and a traitor to the Jewish faith. They thoroughly believed that his execution was appropriate considering what they believed to be his crimes. But Luke’s portrayal of this entire event creates a dramatic juxtaposition between the faith of Stephen and that of the religious leaders. They had faith, but it was misplaced. Their