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But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. \u201cLook,\u201d he said, \u201cI see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.\u201d At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him\u2026 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, \u201cLord Jesus, receive my spirit.\u201d Then he fell on his knees and cried out, \u201cLord, do not hold this sin against them.\u201d When he had said this, he fell asleep. (Acts 7:55-60)

Stephen seems to be in an entirely different world than his attackers (if you missed the context for why he was being attacked: see June 16\u2019s post). Stephen here is full of the Spirit, eyes wide open seeing a vision of God, praying, forgiving. This is in stark contrast with his attackers who had made themselves deaf: rushing, yelling, dragging, stoning. At the crux (and yes, for Christians\u2014I quite literally do mean the cross)\u2014at the crux of this clash between kingdoms, the contrast between the way of Christ and the way of the world is fully revealed.

The way of this world is revealed to be a way of sin and death. A way that shuts up our ears and our eyes so that we cannot see or hear God. A way of rush and noise and hot anger. A way that forces, drags away, and makes captives. A way that ultimately kills.

But the way of Christ is a different way\u2014His is a way of life. He opens our eyes and ears and invites us to keep them open. He restores, heals, and sets captives free. He is the one who says come away with me and get rest for your souls. The one who says: \u201cbe still and know that I am God.\u201d He is the one who promises life in abundance and to whom we entrust ourselves for life everlasting.

Stephen had the eyes to see Jesus in the throne room of heaven, even as he faced the moment of his death. He had peace, humility, and love as he sought\u2014not vengeance\u2014but forgiveness from God for his enemies. The picture Luke paints of Stephen is that of a person molded by the Spirit into the likeness of Christ through the humble, life-giving ways of Christ. That is, the Christ who also humbly submitted to death, giving up His spirit to the Father while praying: \u201cforgive them.\u201d

I don\u2019t know about you, but I have been feeling tugged and tuckered out by the ways of death. The rush and noise of new information and regulations coming at us these last weeks. The weight of trying to figure out racism and my part in it. The near-constant worry for those that we can\u2019t meet with in person. The sadness of seeing what seems to be so much death and hardship for so many in our community and beyond.

It\u2019s more than I can bear.

And so in times like these when I reach the limits of what I can do, or feel, or worry about: the way, the voice, and the vision of Jesus tell me that it\u2019s not time to cover my ears and start yelling. It\u2019s time instead to hear His call to open my eyes and to look and see Him still there on the throne. To open my ears and hear Him call out: come away with me and find rest and freedom for your heart and soul.

Only then, refreshed by Jesus\u2019 life in me can I begin to join Him in facing the death in me and in our world with eyes and ears wide open once again.

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