Why Was He Standing?

The Lord woke me up at around 2:00 a.m. a few weeks ago with a question: “What does Stephen have to do with the end-time church?” That question led me to the biblical account of Stephen’s life, trial, and execution in Acts 6-7. I’ve read it before a few times, but never really paid it very much attention. It seems to be one of those passages that people rarely discuss, write about, or preach from, but maybe your experience is different.

The indifference makes some sense because Stephen’s execution doesn’t seem particularly relevant to the gospel story or the growth of the early church. It identifies Saul as a Pharisee persecuting Christians, but that’s about it. There was no great conversion or miracle to celebrate. Stephen was simply the first of many martyrs, and plenty of other saints have been killed for following Jesus. Of course, if it is such a run-of-the-mill topic, that begs the question, “Why was it included in Scripture?” We don’t get detailed accounts of all the other martyrs; why Stephen? 

Stephen was not only the first martyr; he was also the first Spirit-filled saint to die. Other believers died, but their situations were all a little different. The Old Testament saints died in faith, but before Jesus arrived on the scene and changed everything. John the Baptist got to see Jesus in the flesh, but still essentially died under the old covenant. Jesus resurrected Jairus’ daughter, the widow’s son in Nain, and Lazarus as part of His earthly ministry. Judas killed himself after betraying Jesus, and the thief on the cross joined Jesus that evening in paradise. And Jesus resurrected many others when He overcame death and walked out of the borrowed tomb. But these all died (at least once) before Jesus’ ascension, and would not have had the opportunity to see Him in heaven. Skipping over Ananias and Sapphira (who died immediately after lying to the Holy Spirit), Stephen seems to be the Bible’s first mention of a Spirit-filled believer going home to glory.

The biblical account of Stephen begins in Acts 6:8, when some people accused him of blasphemy. In verses 8-10, we learn that Stephen was full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs, and spoke by the Spirit with irresistible wisdom. And verse 15 says that the council “saw his face as the face of an angel.” The context here indicates a heavenly angel, not a generic messenger, a pastor, or a demon. I suspect that the tangible glory of God was visible on his face, much like when Moses would meet with the Lord (Exodus 34:29-35).

In Acts 7, Stephen shares the gospel with the religious leaders. He ends with a blistering accusation of their rejection of the Holy Ghost, the Messiah, and the law. As one might expect, they did not respond well to Stephen’s words of conviction. But pay attention to what Stephen said just before they threw him out of the city and stoned him to death, “But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, ‘Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!’” (Acts 7:55-56).

Does that sound familiar? It did to me. It sounds like Jesus, who said just before He was sentenced to death, “You will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven” (Matthew 26:64). In both instances, Jesus is at the Father’s right hand in heaven, and this was the claim that led to both of their death sentences. There are several other parallels between Jesus’ and Stephen’s trials and executions.

• Both were accused of blasphemy (Jesus was accused five times)

• Both had false witnesses testify against them (Matthew 26:59-61; Acts 6:13)

• Both were sentenced to death by the religious leaders (Matthew 26:66; Acts 7:54-58)

• Both asked God to forgive their executioners (Luke 23:34; Acts 7:60)

• Both called on God to receive their spirits (Luke 23:46; Acts 7:59)

Despite all the similarities between them, there are differences in their experiences. One such difference is in the words that led to their convictions. Jesus said the religious leaders would see Him seated at God’s right hand, but Stephen saw Him standing at the right hand of God. So which is it? Is Jesus seated or standing? Did Jesus lie about what He was going to be doing? Did He simply misspeak? Maybe He didn’t know? I love these “contradictions” because that’s where God reveals His truth to me. It also speaks to the authenticity of Scripture because a human author would “correct” the different sentences.

Some modern scholars suggest that when Stephen said “standing,” he really meant something more like “established.” The Greek word here could support either meaning, and either would be significant. If Jesus was “established” at the right hand of the Father, then Stephen saw the fulfillment that Jesus had prophesied. Regardless of Jesus’ posture, Stephen saw his Redeemer, who had finished His saving work and been replaced on earth by the Comforter, established at the right hand of the Father, bestowed with all authority forevermore, and now enthroned once more in the glorious splendor of His majesty.

“Established” would be good, but the early church fathers all understood Stephen’s words to mean “standing.” In fact, they have commented on the distinction between Jesus’ seated prophecy and Stephen’s standing revelation since as far back as the 4th century. So, why was Jesus standing?

Consider the subject of each sentence. Jesus was speaking to the religious leaders. He said they would see Him seated. However, Stephen was speaking of his own experience and said that he saw Jesus standing. It seems that when the religious leaders looked upon Jesus, He was in a posture of authority and judgment, but when Stephen saw Jesus, He was standing to welcome him home. Jesus was like the prodigal’s father, who had every right to judge him, but instead ran to embrace him, kiss him, and welcome him home with a great celebration (Luke 5:20-24).

Stephen offers us a picture of how God’s end-time church should look in the world. We should be full of faith and power, performing great signs and wonders, speaking by the Spirit with irresistible wisdom, and radiating the glory of God. We should look like Jesus, we should think like Jesus, we should sound like Jesus, and we should act like Jesus. Stephen embodied these characteristics, and Jesus stood up to welcome him into glory. 

As a man, it’s sometimes challenging to accept, but Scripture reminds us that we are the bride of Christ. Our wedding day is coming soon. Thinking about it makes me think back to my own wedding and others I have attended. While the Bible does not explicitly say it, I wonder if the same Jesus who sits at the right hand of the Father, who sits on a white horse, and who sits on His throne to judge the nations, will do as many grooms have throughout history and stand to welcome His bride. Soon, we will know. Until then, we must stay ready, like Stephen. We must keep our lamps burning, our eyes fixed on heaven, and live in reverential expectation of Christ’s imminent return. We must have an answer to this question: If you saw Jesus right now, would He be seated preparing to judge you or standing to welcome you home? Maranatha!