8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people. 9-10 Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of those from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and disputed with Stephen. But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking.

11-14 Then they secretly instigated men who said, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.” And they stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes, and they came upon him and seized him and brought him before the council, and they set up false witnesses who said, “This man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law, for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses delivered to us.” 15 And gazing at him, all who sat in the council saw that his face was like the face of an angel. Acts 6:8 – 15 English Standard Version

Stephen was the first of the seven men named who the early Church selected to make sure the distribution of food to those in need was fairly done. In vs 5 he had been described as a man 'full of faith and of the Holy Spirit'. But what's the surprising thing that we now read about him in vs 8?

I say 'surprising', because we see that he was doing great ‘wonders and signs’. Does that mean that any Christian in those days could do 'wonders and signs'? If so, should that not still be the case today? In the New Testament book, Hebrews, the writer speaks of ‘the message of God's great salvation’ which had been made known. And he says: “It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.” (Hebrews 2:3-4) That looks a clear reference to the men Jesus had called to be with Him throughout His ministry in the world, and who He’d then sent out as apostles.

An important fact to remember here is that, after the seven were chosen by the Christian community for the work of overseeing the distribution of food, vs 6 had said that 'they were set before the apostles, and the apostles prayed and laid their hands on them'. So the wonders and signs of that generation were essentially given to, and through, the apostles, to verify the message, and the messengers who Jesus sent into the world. We now have that message, and the miraculous events that accompanied it, recorded in the whole Bible.

The more surprising thing to me, however, is that despite the wonders and signs Stephen had shown, he still met up with hostile opposition! Just as in our day, there were people then who tried to challenge and contradict the words he was speaking. And, just as today, when they couldn’t win by argument or debate, they resorted to lies and smears. I'm sure they even used the Bible to try and prove him wrong. But they couldn't withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking. We see here the promise Jesus made to His disciples being kept. He warned them that they would face arrests and trials, but said to them: “Don't meditate beforehand how to answer, for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict.” (Luke 21:14-15)

Notice too that the lies and smears are usually brought about by twisting the words a Christian may speak, or even what the Bible says. Jesus had spoken of a coming destruction of Jerusalem, and this was what Stephen may have referred to. And there is a difference between what the law of Moses demanded, and what the grace of Jesus had brought about. But the opponents told it in court in such a way that it made Stephen sound like a criminal.

This could be you or me in the coming days. People twisting our words to hold us up as bigots, racists, Nazis, or blasphemers. But take comfort from what we read in vs 15. There was surely a great calm, an even a radiance on the face of Stephen. Such is the presence and the power of God's Spirit upon His people in the times of greatest trial.