A LIFE WELL LIVED

 

A LIFE WELL LIVED

Acts 7:56 And he told them, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand!” NLT

We don’t know much about Stephen. We do know that he was a man of God. He believed Jesus was God and trusted Him with his life. He was not ashamed of Christ and proclaimed Christ boldly before those who were against him. Even when his accusers turned on him and started stoning him to death, Stephen looked to heaven for his help. Jesus was there for him. Even as he was dying, Stephen saw his Lord and knew he was not alone.

Stephen was the first martyr that we know of for his faith. Notice Jesus was standing and not sitting on His throne. This is the only time we are told that Jesus was standing in heaven affirming the life of His saints. It was as if He was standing to applaud Stephen for a job well done. It was as if Jesus was telling Stephen all was well, soon it would be over and he would be home with Jesus.

We see Stephen’s heart on his death bed. Before he died, he prayed for those who were stoning him. He could easily have done what most would do, despise those who killed him to his grave, but he didn’t. He forgave them and asked the Lord to be merciful to them and bring forgiveness to them as well. I wonder if there might be those in your life that you need to forgive before you die.

I wonder what the Lord thinks of the life we are living. Are we meeting God’s approval for a life well lived, or are we lacking? Let us live each day in such a way that the Lord will be well-pleased with us and applaud us for a job well done