Martyrdom

Stephen was the first Christian martyr. A martyr is a person who dies for his beliefs, and a Christian martyr is a person who is killed because of his or her witness to Jesus Christ, which is what the word “martyr” actually refers to. Martyr comes from the Greek word martys, which means “a witness” or “one who bears a testimony.” Stephen was an outstanding witness for Jesus Christ, and it was because of his witness that he was put to death.

The first section of Stephen’s speech deals with Abraham. It is found in verses 1-8. There were many things that Stephen could have said about Abraham, since a very long section of Genesis is given to Abraham’s story. But Stephen is selective. It is important to notice what he emphasizes.

When Stephen begins to talk about Moses, it is much the same thing. Only he deals with the story of Moses at greater length because Moses was the one the Sanhedrin was chiefly concerned about. Moses was the one through whom God had given the law, and these leaders had built their whole lives around keeping the law of Moses.

The temple of Herod was the glory of Jerusalem at this time. Much of it was covered with gold. So as a person drew near Jerusalem, he saw it shining against the skyline. The temple had never been as glorious as it was in that day, and the priests, like priests who serve in cathedrals everywhere, loved the temple and could not see beyond it.

At the end of his sermon (vv. 51-52) Stephen applied what he said in true prophetic fashion. In doing so he made three accusations against the religious leaders: 1) they were resisting the Holy Spirit, as they had always done; 2) they were persecuting and killing the prophets, as they had always done; and 3) they were breaking the law of Moses, as they had always done. At that last point, their anger against Stephen reached such a heat that they would not hear him anymore and rushed him outside and stoned him.