Acts 7:44-60
Lord Jesus, Receive My Spirit
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44Our fathers had the tabernacle of the Testimony with them in the wilderness. It was constructed exactly as God had directed Moses, according to the pattern he had seen.
45And our fathers who received it brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations God drove out before them. It remained until the time of David,
46who found favor in the sight of God and asked to provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.
47But it was Solomon who built the house for Him.
48However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands. As the prophet says:
49‘Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. What kind of house will you build for Me, says the Lord, or where will My place of repose be?
50Has not My hand made all these things?’
51You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did.
52Which of the prophets did your fathers fail to persecute? They even killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One. And now you are His betrayers and murderers—
53you who received the law ordained by angels, yet have not kept it.”
54On hearing this, the members of the Sanhedrin were enraged, and they gnashed their teeth at him.
55But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked intently into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.
56“Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
57At this they covered their ears, cried out in a loud voice, and rushed together at him.
58They dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile the witnesses laid their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.
59While they were stoning him, Stephen appealed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
60Falling on his knees, he cried out in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
Stephen recalls the tabernacle God directed Moses to make, its journey with Israel, and the temple Solomon built. These places belong to Israel's history, but they cannot contain the Most High. Stephen quotes the prophet's picture of heaven as God's throne and earth as His footstool.
He then confronts his hearers. Like their ancestors, they resist the Holy Spirit. Their fathers persecuted the prophets; they have betrayed and murdered the Righteous One. Receiving the law has not meant keeping it. Stephen turns the accusation back toward people who claim to defend God's honor.
The council is enraged. Stephen, full of the Spirit, sees God's glory and Jesus standing at His right hand. When he tells them, they cover their ears and rush at him. They drag him outside the city and stone him. The witnesses put their garments at the feet of Saul.
Stephen appeals to Jesus to receive his spirit, then asks the Lord not to hold this sin against his attackers. Luke says he falls asleep, describing his death in words that fit Christian hope. Stephen is not rescued from the stones, but he entrusts himself to the living Jesus he has seen.
His final prayer names the act as sin while asking mercy for those committing it. Trust and forgiveness are present without any suggestion that the violence is right.
Questions
1 What did Stephen say about God and houses?
AnswerHe said the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands, because heaven and earth are His work and cannot contain Him.
2 What did Stephen see?
AnswerHe saw God's glory and Jesus standing at God's right hand. He described heaven as open and identified Jesus as the Son of Man.
3 What did Stephen ask Jesus to receive?
AnswerHe asked the Lord Jesus to receive his spirit, entrusting himself to the risen One he had seen in glory.
4 What did he ask for his attackers?
AnswerHe asked the Lord not to hold this sin against them, echoing Jesus’ mercy even while the stones were falling.
What This Means for Us
Stephen sees the Lord to whom he entrusts his life. His hope helps us look beyond the approval of people, even people with religious authority. The One who receives His servants matters more than a council's verdict.
His prayer for his attackers is difficult to hear and harder to imitate. We can ask God to free us from revenge while still naming wrongdoing, seeking protection, and supporting justice. Forgiveness does not require calling cruelty harmless.
Pray for those whose faith has put them in danger. Ask that they know Christ's care and receive help from His people.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, receive our lives and keep us faithful under pressure. Guard us from revenge, and give us courage that remains tender. Amen.