Acts 7:54-8:3

This morning we’ll be participating in the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. When the early Christians had to choose a word to identify those who had suffered intensely and even given their lives for their faith, it would make sense if they had chosen a word that identified them as victims of injustice. Instead they chose to call them martyrs—which means witnesses—those who confirm or testify to the truth of something. Luke’s account of Stephen’s martyrdom serves as a witness to two of God’s great promises to his church: that he will in all things work for the good of those who love him, and that the gates of hell cannot prevail against his church. Throughout history and still today the suffering of our persecuted brothers serves as a profound witness, to the world and to us, that God remains on the throne of the universe and that not even life itself is more precious than our faithful saviour Jesus Christ.