Authorities Grit their Teeth at the Gospel of Jesus Christ

Acts 7:54-60

Click for a description of the mark of the beast.
Click for a description of the image of the beast.

• Jewish rulers were extremely infuriated with Stephen for preaching to them in the name of Jesus.
• Stephen is stoned to death after seeing heaven open and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.
• Stephen calls on God to forgive his persecutors.

Jewish rulers were extremely infuriated with Stephen for preaching to them in the name of Jesus.

“When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth.” Acts 7:54

Stephen was a “waiter of tables” [Acts 6:2-5], filled with the Holy Spirit and a tongue of fire. What is it that he said to them? “They” were the Jewish rulers whom Stephen was speaking to in the name of Jesus Christ. The things they heard are described in the posts on Acts 7:1-53.

What the Jewish leaders heard Stephen speak, that hurt them so much, was 1] that the promise God made to Abraham was fulfilled through Jesus Christ. 2] that they were the same as their forefathers who threw Joseph into the pitch because they threw the Christ, Jesus into the “pit”. 3] that they were the same as their ancestors who rebelled against Moses because they rebelled against the Lord Jesus. 4] that they were the same as their ancestors who built the Golden Calf because they rejected Jesus Christ to build their own laws. 5] that they were still like their forefathers who served God through manmade buildings, instead of serving the Christ, Jesus who has made us the temple of God, the temple of the Holy Spirit. 6] that they always resist the Holy Spirit who is the One who draws people to the Truth, to Jesus Christ.

On top of that, Stephen said to them, “You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you.” Acts 7:51 They were offended and extremely infuriated with Stephen.

Jesus said this about the Jewish leaders, “Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs.” Luke 11:47-48

They gnashed their teeth at Stephen, like they did at our Lord Jesus, meaning they were outraged beyond words.

Today’s culture, which is global, does not want to hear that they are sinners in need of forgiveness for their unbelief. They shut the Holy Spirit out of their spirit and soul as they live for the beast that infiltrates their spirit to give them what to speak, do, feel, and think. They become infuriated to be told that they are stubborn, not cleansed in their attitudes, and hostile to the presence of the Holy Spirit. They despise the name of Jesus Christ and His Gospel. They are those who serve the beast who is, “…enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.’” Revelation 12:17

As followers of Jesus Christ, sanctification is a process that cleanses our spirit and attitudes from being greatly offended and being extremely infuriated to the point of acting out aggressively towards others. This cleansing is Holiness working in us and can only happen by being receptive to the Holy Spirit, who is given by Jesus Christ. The Jewish rulers were definitely stubborn against the Holy Spirit as they harbored malicious, hostile, and murderous feelings towards others, especially those who spoke in the name of Jesus.

Stephen is stoned after seeing heaven open and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.

“But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; and they cast him out of the city and stoned him.” Acts 7:55-58a

Stephen saw the wrath, anger, and vengeance of the Jewish leaders and knew they had murderous intent towards him as they were extremely offended that he was preaching in the name of Jesus Christ and they “…gnashed at him with their teeth…” [Acts 7:54]. Stephen and knew they were about to stone him to death. Those hostile attitudes of the Jewish rulers come by living by the flesh and fighting against the Spirit, which is to oppose Jesus Christ and Christianity.

Instead of apologizing for speaking the Gospel of Jesus the Christ, Stephen turned his face towards heaven and focused on the glory of God, and saw our Lord Jesus standing at the right hand of God. Stephen declared to the murderous Jewish leaders and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”. At that point, the Jewish leaders began to stone Stephen. The Jewish leaders considered it blaspheme to put Jesus on the same level as God, in the same place as God, to be standing as God’s “right hand man”. That is why they felt the same murderous intent towards our Lord Jesus, who said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you will see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” John 1:51

Today’s culture see it as being terribly wrong to put the Christ, Jesus, in the same place as the beast who claims the body as its possession by giving people what to speak, do, think, and feel. The beast gives breath/ life to the image of the beast to speak by speaking and living through people, the beast “…was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.” Revelations 13:15 Click for a post on the image of the beast.

Stephen saw the Christ, Jesus, standing because He was ready to receive Stephen into eternal life…Stephen’s name was written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

The Jewish leaders led Stephen out of the city to stone him to death. The Jewish people had a custom that stoning people should not be done within the borders of Jerusalem. That is why Stephen was taken outside the city to be stoned. Our Lord Jesus was also crucified outside the city gate, as quoted, “Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate.” Hebrews 13:12

Today’s culture, which is global, has a similar policy of not having “blood on their hands” by “stoning” people within the gates of their own culture. People who are suffering affliction, harassment, and persecution are those considered to be outside the social network of their culture. The persecuted are we who see the present global government and its global culture as the government and culture of the beast. We choose to believe the warnings of the Bible, to acknowledge God as our Creator, acknowledge Jesus as the Christ and our Lord, and welcome the presence of the Holy Spirit to be part of who we are.

Stephen calls on God to forgive his persecutors.

 “And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.” Acts 7:58b-60

The Jewish leaders led Stephen out of the city to stone him to death. When Stephen was about to die from the rocks hitting him, he said, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” When Stephen was expressing forgiveness for those killing him, he was not expecting them to stop stoning him, was not expecting a reconciliation with them. Stephen was asking for God’s forgiveness to be extended to them so that one day his murderers would still have the opportunity to come to Christ through the grace and mercy of God.

Our Lord Jesus is the example of what forgiveness means, “And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him…Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” Luke 23:32-34

The “witnesses” were those who heard the “blasphemy” of Stephen and they legitimized his murder. “Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.” Hebrews 10:28 That is from the laws of Judaism as quoted from Deuteronomy 17:6.

The witnesses laid their outer clothes at the feet of Saul. Removing their clothing gave themselves more freedom to throw the rocks at Stephen. Saul was there, consenting to Stephen’s death, consenting that it was a good thing to stone him . Saul was an enforcer of the laws of Judaism [Acts 9:1-2], a Roman citizen [Acts 22:25-28], and a Pharisee [Philippians 3:5]. Later, Saul said “Yes” to Jesus Christ [Acts 9:1-22]and now is known as Paul. Paul started his missionary journey in Acts 13 and went through Acts 28. 

Envision what would have happened if Stephen said, “Lord, hold them accountable for everything they deserve” and the Lord agreed not to extend His mercy, grace, and did not allow them the opportunity to repent by saying “Yes!” to His Son, Jesus. Paul would never have lived for Jesus Christ, his missionary journey would never have occurred, and none of his letters would have been written. Paul wrote about 13 of the 27 books of the New Testament. “[God] has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities...But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Psalms 103:10, Romans 5:8

The work of sanctification removes the feelings and attitudes that urges us to live by the creed, “an eye for an eye”. The Holy Spirit leads us into a more civil response to respond with goodwill towards others, to have faith for our eternal home in heaven, to persevere in Christ when we are harassed, and to live at peace with others, “For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness.” 1 Thessalonians 4:7 Our Lord Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.” Matthew 5:38-39 When we are harassed, afflicted, and persecuted in this world, may we be able to say, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”

The ministry of Salvation is impossible without Holiness because without the Holy Spirit, we would never have it in our heart to give people the time of day if they did us wrong. Without Holiness, our Lord Jesus would never have given His life on the Cross for a world of sinners.

Every day, those of today’s culture finds a way to afflict belief in God, to make it difficult to live for Jesus Christ, and to fight against the presence of the Holy Spirit. And every day we must be ready to share our born-again experience, which is the Gospel of Christ written on our heart. Every day we must live in Holiness, by the process of sanctification, to be able to forgive those who afflict us over and over again. The day we stop forgiving is the day grudges set in, the Holy Spirit is grieved, sanctification stops, and the life of Holiness is wounded with conflict. A forgiving heart separates us from the ways of an unforgiving, corrupt, and lawless world filled with antagonism.

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“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,“
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’”
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:11