But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. – Acts 7:55

Today's Scripture Reading (March 3, 2024): Acts 7

There are consequences for behavior. I wish I could get this message through to every person before they reach my age. I am not saying there is no forgiveness or hope, but sometimes we make our lives more challenging than they need to be, which is on us. But there is also the other side of the story. Sometimes, we can do everything right and still suffer negative consequences. For most of us, our stories exist somewhere in between.

I struggle with Stephen's message in front of the Sanhedrin. Part of me wonders if it wasn't a little over the top. What would have happened if Stephen had pleaded with the Sanhedrin to understand or if he had placed himself in their midst? What if his reaction had been less you and more we? But that might be just a personal communication difference.

We know little about Stephen besides what is contained in his selection as a leader and his trial. We know he was a man of faith filled with the Holy Spirit. And he was in trouble. A funny thing happens when stress attacks and we realize that trouble is in the wings. We stop seeing the world as it really is, and everything starts to be about us. Everyone is against us. We begin to believe that God doesn't love us anymore, and, as a result, we are left on our own.

It is the reality of most of our lives, and anger is often the result. For most of Stephen's defense, we see this anger. He is accusing and bullying. His theology is correct, but his practice seems wrong. There is no love. And there is no grace.

But all that appears to change as Stephen sees God with Jesus standing on his right. At this moment, Stephen could have exclaimed, "I see grace." And because that grace was extended to Stephen in his worst moment, Stephen was accepted. God's grace covered Stephen just as it covers us. It may not change the outcome from an earthly point of view. But His grace covers us, all of us.

The rock band, "A Room Full of Walters," wrote a song that, to be honest, haunts me. The piece bore the title "Jeffrey Dahmer Went to Heaven," and it unpacks an interview that Jeffrey Dahmer had just days before he was beaten and murdered in prison. In the interview, he professes faith in Jesus. We tend to minimize jailhouse conversions as somehow being an effort to get out of a prison sentence that the person is serving. But the song takes the confession of faith at face value, and then it makes a point that grace is truly universal. Grace is greater than all of the things we have done; it is greater than all of our wrongs and sins. This is true even when our iniquities are greater than anyone can imagine. Dahmer murdered 17 people that we know of, he raped them, and he ate them. It is hard to envision a more horrifying person than Jeffrey Dahmer.

"Jeffrey Dahmer Went to Heaven" is a song about a God who offers us grace. Here are the words.

               Jeffrey Dahmer went to heaven, or else he lied on television

               He told us that he found you; he told us that you were true

               Jeffrey Dahmer went to heaven, or else he made a wrong decision

               He told us that he saw you; he told us you were true

 

               But what did he tell you? What did he tell you?

                Did he just bow down before you? Did he just say

                That he was wrong?

                And what about us? What about all of us?

               Can we just bow down before you?

                Can we just say we were wrong?

"A Room Full of Walters" reminds me of two realities. The first is that it doesn't matter what Dahmer told ABC television reporters. What matters is what Dahmer told God. And the second thing is that God's grace makes his acceptance of us possible. And if God can accept Jeffrey Dahmer, then the rest of us can also be welcomed into his church and his presence.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Acts 8