Resurrected Life: Justice, Mercy, and Humble Witness

To follow Jesus isn't to secure power. It's to embody a different kind of power all together. A power of love, truth, and the self given. This becomes especially clear when we consider how Stephen responds in his final moments as the stones begin supplied, he doesn't defend himself with anger or fall down judgment. Instead, he prays, lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And then, echoing the words of Christ on the cross, he says, lord, do not hold this sin against him. [00:44:39] (40 seconds)  #LoveNotPower

And that is the hope of Easter. Not just of Easter Sunday, this whole season. Not that everything resolves immediately. The resurrection is already at work, even in the midst of brokenness, even when we can't see the full picture, even when the cord remains unresolved. So we live as people that hope. We remain faithful with attention. We practice justice, kindness, and humility. And we fix our eyes on Jesus. [00:56:05] (33 seconds)  #EasterHope

So as the tension rises, we're told something striking, that Stephen, filled by the Holy Spirit, lifts his eyes and sees the glory of God. He sees Jesus standing at the right hand of God, not seated as in my extent, but he's standing. And as I said, Jesus will welcome him or honor him. That heaven himself is leaning forward in that moment. And yet, while Stephen sees glory, the crowd sees a threat. While Stephen proclaims truth, the crowd responds with fury. [00:41:31] (35 seconds)  #SeeingHeaven

And yet that certainty leads into violence. Now, from our Anabaptist perspective, this is a sobering and really a necessary warning. The question is not simply what we believe, but how we live out what we believe. The question is not whether we're passionate, but whether our passion reflects the way of Jesus. Because history reminds us that Christians have not always walked this path very well. There have been times when the church has aligned itself with power, with coercion, with systems that harm rather than heal. [00:43:22] (37 seconds)  #FaithOverForce

This is at the heart of Christian discipleship in general. Not simply believing in Jesus, but following it, taking seriously his teachings on non violence, on loving our enemy, on humility, and on service, trusting that the way of Jesus is not only true, but it's good even when it leads us into the tension, into discomfort, into dissonance. And of course, this way of life doesn't come without cost. It may cost us our comfort, it may cost us our reputation, it may cost us our sense of control over our everyday life. [00:50:05] (42 seconds)  #CostOfDiscipleship

They refuse to listen to him, and then they rush him as one body. They drag him outside the city and they begin stone him. The contrast is stark and is unsettling. Here is a man deeply rooted in God, reflecting the very character of Christ. And then he is destroyed by those who believe they are defending God. This is the dissonance that we can't rush past. Because it's not just Stephen's story. It's a mirror held up to every generation. [00:42:08] (36 seconds)  #MartyrdomMirror

Stephen's vision is not incidental. In while the crowd is consumed by anger, seeing that it's focused on Christ, while others see a threat, he sees flooring. And what he sees shapes how he responds. If the world, or if we see the world rather primarily through fear and anger, that's how we're going to act. And if we see others as our enemies, we're going to treat them like their own enemies. But if we fix our eyes on Christ, if we are present and we stand in him, seeing him, inviting us into his way, then our lives begin to reflect his love. [00:49:18] (46 seconds)  #VisionShapesAction

It means engaging the world differently. It means confronting injustice without becoming unjust ourselves. And it means speaking truth without dehumanizing others. It means holding convictions without losing compassion. And perhaps most importantly, it means trusting that God is still at work, even when the story feels unresolved. Because Stephen's story doesn't end me. It ends in death and scattered in uncertainty. And yet we know that this is not the end. [00:54:31] (38 seconds)  #EngageWithoutHarm