And Red Herrings
A Day in Church History
When I read the account of Stephen’s death in Acts 7, my heart aches. Luke tells us Stephen was dragged outside the city, surrounded by a hostile crowd, and stoned to death for his witness to Jesus. This was the first recorded martyrdom of the church, and it must have shaken the young community of believers to the core. Imagine their fear, their questions, and their grief. Yet, woven into Luke’s narrative is a subtle thread of hope—a reminder that God is always at work, even behind the darkest of scenes.
Stephen’s final words echo Jesus on the cross: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them” (Acts 7:60). To pray for one’s enemies at the point of death is no small thing. It’s a Spirit-filled act of mercy that reflects the heart of Christ. And God answered that prayer in a way no one could have expected. In the middle of this horrific scene, Luke introduces a seemingly minor character: “The witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul” (Acts 7:58). On first reading, it feels like a throwaway detail, perhaps even a red herring. But it is anything but irrelevant.
At this moment Saul is a determined enemy of the church, breathing threats and violence. Yet, God was already working in his life. Soon, Saul would encounter the risen Christ on the road to Damascus and become Paul—the greatest missionary and advocate for the gospel the early church would ever know. In this juxtaposition, Luke helps us see that Stephen’s death, painful and unjust though it was, did not signal defeat. Instead, it marked a turning point in God’s unfolding story. What looked like tragedy was actually a seed planted that would grow into something greater.
This gives me pause as I reflect on my own life. How many times have I looked at a situation, declared it hopeless, and forgotten that God works beyond what I can see? Stephen’s prayer was not wasted, nor was his life cut short in vain. Through his martyrdom, God birthed courage in the early believers, scattering them to spread the gospel even further (Acts 8:1). And through Saul, God turned a persecutor into a preacher. It reminds me of Joseph’s words in Genesis 50:20: “You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.”
I think about Job’s cry in Job 19:25: “I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth.” Job was crushed by loss, yet he held to a living hope. The same hope threads through Stephen’s story, even when the stones fell hard. The lesson here is not that pain and loss are somehow less painful, but that they are never wasted in God’s economy. He is weaving even the darkest strands into His redemptive tapestry.
Stephen’s resilience and Paul’s eventual conversion remind us of a central truth: God is not finished. What feels like an ending may actually be a beginning. That encourages me when my circumstances seem grim. It challenges me to trust that God is gathering His community, working through people I might least expect, and redeeming stories I cannot yet understand.
And isn’t that often how Jesus works in our lives? He appears in the margins, in the details we might dismiss as irrelevant. He works through interruptions, unexpected faces, and surprising turns. He is the Lord who transforms persecutors into preachers, brokenness into blessing, and despair into resilient hope.
So how can I turn to Jesus for hope when life feels hopeless? I begin by remembering Stephen’s prayer. I ask Jesus to shape my heart so that I, too, can extend mercy to those who hurt me. I remember Saul standing by with cloaks at his feet, and I remind myself that God is working in unseen ways, even through people who may look like enemies. And I cling to Job’s words, declaring that my Redeemer lives—even when all evidence seems to suggest otherwise.
Friend, the same God who raised Jesus from the dead is the One weaving your story today. Your trials are not wasted, your tears are not ignored, and your prayers are not forgotten. You may be facing a circumstance that feels final, but with God, nothing is final except His victory. As N. T. Wright has said, “The resurrection is not a wishful thought, but the reality that God’s new world has already begun.” That means hope is never absent, even when it feels hidden.
As the day unfolds, take comfort in this: Jesus is still praying for you (Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25). He has not abandoned you to your despair. He is active, present, and faithful. Even when life throws red herrings that confuse or discourage, God is writing His story through you. And one day, you will see how even the darkest chapters pointed toward His light.
May you walk today with resilient hope, trusting the God who turns enemies into friends, despair into witness, and sorrow into seeds of joy. May your heart rest in Jesus, who is always working behind the scenes. And may you find courage to pray as Stephen prayed, knowing that nothing is wasted in God’s hands.
For a deeper study on Stephen’s witness and the growth of the early church, see this article from Christianity Today: Stephen’s Lasting Witness.
FEEL FREE TO COMMENT AND SHARE