“Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia—who began to argue with Stephen. But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke.
Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, ‘We have heard Stephen speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God.’
So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin. They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.”
Then the high priest asked Stephen, ‘Are these charges true?’“
Acts 6:8-14, 7:1
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NOVEMBER 6, 2024
Remember the old saying that “if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is”? This proverb helps us realize when we’re being conned. If a salesman says, “For just $100 I can sell you a pair of shoes that will never wear out!” don’t give him your credit card! That’s too good to be true.
An equally important proverb would be handy for our culture right now: If something sounds too bad to be true, it probably is. At the top of my social media feeds are truly egregious claims about what certain groups or segments of our society believe or want or do. The rare times I respond to my friends with a fact-check, the response is almost always “Well, this might not be true, but [this group] is dangerous.”
What we are doing is believing (and then becoming) false witnesses. We’re being taught to fear, hate, and persecute fellow humans that God calls us to love and care for.
It’s an old tactic, and we see it working against Stephen and the early church in this week’s passage. As we’ve seen, there’s plenty of good reasons for the religious leaders to be wary of this crew. The easiest way to harm the church and regain power is to get some truly awful rumors going.
So they concoct a false story that’s just true enough to be believable. And as a result, real people suffer and die.
Friends, this still happens every day. Let us be very, very sure that we are not believing, or becoming, false witnesses. People with power still exploit our fears to turn us against our fellow humans, but our calling as Jesus-followers is to love and serve—even our enemies. And to declare the truth, not spread rumors.
Questions for reflection and discussion:
- What fearful, hateful rhetoric do you hear in the news, social media, or among your friends?
- Do these voices help you love your enemies…or does it turn people you don’t know into enemies?
- Why is it so tempting to pass on rumors about people we don’t like before researching to see if it is truthful or helpful?
Church Reading Plan: Hosea 12; Psalm 135-136