The Power of a True Witness

 and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” (Acts 7:56 NKJV)

Stephen was a witness for Christ.  He was unwilling to keep his mouth shut about Jesus, even when it cost him his life.  And in the exact moment of his death, he is still proclaiming the truth of God.  He is stating what he clearly sees.  He is testifying as to the truth of Heaven, of God, and of Jesus.  And his proclamation is a public, unashamed, and unfiltered invitation to all to LOOK. 

In his dying moments Stephen still gives a magnificent example of what it means to be a witness for Christ.  On the verge of being stoned, Stephen refers to Jesus as the “Son of Man,” a term that would have instantly struck a chord for the crowd.  He did not use the term “Son of God,” which was the other phrase often employed to describe Jesus.  There was a reason for his choice of terms. 

Just months prior to this event, at His trial before Caiaphas, the high priests, scribes, and elders, Jesus made this statement:

… From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Matthew 26:64 NKJV)

Bible scholars infer that the phrase “Son of Man” draws its implications from the Old Testament references in Leviticus 25:25-26, 48-49; Ruth 2:20 to the kinsman redeemer.  By Jewish law, the next of kin (one related by blood) always functioned as the "kinsman-redeemer" of a family member who needed redemption from jail.   That is why Christ had to take on humanity in order to bring us to Divinity. He needed to be blood related so that we could be blood bought back from the prison of sin.

By using this phrase, “Son of Man,” Stephen is bringing the bystanders back to the reality of who Christ claimed to be.  He is testifying as to His ability to redeem them.  So, in his final breath, Stephen is a true witness to the saving power of Christ.

Stephen’s life makes me ponder some important questions - Is my life devoted to the things of God in such a focused way?  Do I make the saving power of Christ my bottom line on all I say and do?  Today, I will use my words wisely to be a witness to the power of the resurrection and the reality of my Kinsman Redeemer.