Acts 7:54-60
54 Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. 55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. 58 Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
Reflection
Stephen’s life is so influenced by the grace of God in the gospel that when faced with an unjust death at the hands of an angry mob, his dying breath is spent pleading with God to forgive his murderers. He has learned this love from Jesus, who prayed for the forgiveness of his persecutors, even as they crucified him (Luke 23:34, 46). It is difficult to imagine a more dramatic example of loving one’s enemies (Luke 6:27–28).
Stephen’s selfless love is motivated by the gospel. Christ died for Stephen and showered him with undeserved grace. As a response to God’s grace, Stephen reflects the same grace to his persecutors. Such radical forgiveness and love shocks a watching world, which has little motivation or power to forgive enemies.
Stephen’s confidence in the face of death and his mercy toward his enemies must have made an impression on Saul (Acts 7:58). At this point Saul was a persecutor of the church, but he would soon become its most famous supporter, receiving and extending God’s grace amid great hostility.
1 John 4:1-6
4: Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. 4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 5 They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
Reflection
Here John calls us to “test the spirits” (1 John 4:1), referring to the spiritual presence behind religious teachings, whether true or false. We are to detect “whether they are from God” (vv. 1, 6).
John mentions two ways to know whether a teaching is from God. First, those who deny that, “Jesus Christ has come in the flesh” are not from God (v. 3). All true teaching must affirm that the Son of God became a genuine human being. The second way to know if a teaching is from God is to test whether what is being taught is consistent with the teaching of the apostles—that is, Scripture. John says, “Whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error” (v. 6).
Psalm 119:130
130 The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.
Many spiritual teachings may have just enough truth to be dangerous. Test everything carefully against God’s Word, and abandon anything that does not align squarely with the teachings of the Bible. Pray for protection from the subtle lies of the Enemy and for the discipline to fill your mind with the Scripture each day.