Blood Of The Martyrs (Part I)

In Les Misérables, Jean Valjean stole silver from a bishop who offered him shelter. When the police caught him, the bishop covered for Jean and gave him even more silver. The Spirit led the bishop to show mercy, and it changed the direction of Jean’s life.

Following the Spirit is a key part of Christianity. It’s so important that church elders make it their primary focus. They use the Spirit’s guidance to make high-level decisions and delegate practical tasks to team leaders, known as deacons (Acts 6:1-7). However, following the Spirit isn’t just for leaders—all Christians are called to do it. That’s why Stephen started preaching instead of distributing food like the elders commanded (Acts 6:8-15). God had a different plan, and Stephen followed it.

Stephen was bold when preaching. As one might expect when speaking the truth, he said things that those in power didn’t want to hear and got arrested. But Stephen didn’t back down. He exposed a problem that God’s followers have faced from the beginning: we tend to limit God with rules (Acts 7:1-53). We ignore the Spirit because sticking to what’s familiar is more comfortable than following God into unknown territory. It’s easier to make rules based on how He worked in the past than to accept that He works differently at different times. But you can’t turn God into a list of rules. If the bishop had refused to lie, Jean Valjean wouldn’t have turned his life around. Instead of following a rule against lying, the bishop followed the Spirit and saved a life. We must do the same.

Stephen’s story will continue next week, and we will see the early church move to a whole new level.

Watch Part One of the sermon here.