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Lectionary for May 3, 2026
Fifth Sunday of Easter
Acts 7:55-60; Psalm 31:1-5, 15-16;
1 Peter 2:2-10; John 14:1-14
In the New Testament, Jesus’ followers kill exactly zero people. Christians are martyred, persecuted and lynched. Objections are raised. True, Jesus tells his disciples to get a couple of swords so he can have a pretext to be arrested (Luke 22:36-38). But we must note that he condemns the actual use of those swords (49-51). And yes, Jesus made a whip to drive animals from the temple (John 2:14-16 insists that it was a mini-whip, and the humans are still there afterward to hear what he said). John is different from the other Gospels, which do not mention a whip and do quote Jeremiah’s temple sermon against human violence (Jeremiah 7). It’s also true that God smites some Christians who lie to convince people that they are being more generous than they really are (Acts 5). But nowhere do Jesus’ followers in the Bible kill other humans, even in self- or community-defense.
This week, the lectionary texts address Christian responses to violence.
The first and foremost example is the Protomartyr Stephen, who conducted a long extemporaneous Bible study in which he pointed to examples of people missing the point. Of course, Stephen’s hearers were angry at this! But what really stirred the crowd into a murderous rage was when Stephen narrated his vision: heaven opened by the power of the Spirit, and he saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God. When Stephen reported what he saw, the crowd shouted and covered their ears to block out what they understood as blasphemy.
The crowd lynched Stephen. Yet, before they undertook their bloody work of crushing the martyr to death with heavy stones, they had the presence of mind to take off their outer cloaks to prevent bloodstains (Acts 7:58). Propriety demands that murderous lynch mobs be able to pretend immediately afterward that they are decent, law-abiding folks. A little bit of murder is OK if the rest of the day is orderly and people can’t see the bloodstains, right? Of course not! We can’t tolerate a little murder as the cost of doing business!
And Stephen, who had seen into heaven, knows that God doesn’t hold those who murder others “in defense of God” innocent. Make zero mistake here, the crowd thought they were doing what God wanted. Stephen intercedes for their souls because he knows what they don’t: those who follow God’s Chosen Messiah cannot kill others and please God.
But that’s not true all the time, right? Surely self-defense is OK? Well, 1 Peter 2 has some things to say on the subject. Jesus’ followers are to consume the “pure” Christ, unadulterated with weird, violent syncretism (1 Peter 2:2). We are being prepared to offer spiritual sacrifices—ourselves and our wills (5). As we are built up together as living stones, we are conformed to the image of the chief cornerstone—Jesus—who is a stumbling block and an offense to others (5-8).
We see God in Jesus. Those who follow Jesus simply cannot see God as someone who is pleased by killing.
Why would Jesus be a stumbling block? Because his nonviolence in the face of a violent empire makes no sense to a world that is only about personal fulfillment and advancement. 1 Peter goes on to say that true freedom is in acting as a free person, no matter how unjust and wicked the government is toward you and others (16-23). The wisdom of Christ is that the violence of an empire—supposing that good can be done through evil—is foolishness. It is only life that leads to life, not killing.
In the run-up to Jesus’ murder by the Romans, the disciple Thomas asked him about the way to the Father’s house (John 14:5). Jesus didn’t go to prepare an earthly palace but a heavenly reward for those who followed him. Sensing that Jesus might not be leading them toward earthly palaces and castles, Philip asked to simply see God (8)
Jesus insists that those who see Jesus see who/what God the Father is like. At any point, Jesus could have commanded legions of angels to overthrow Rome (Matthew 26:53). But that isn’t what happened at all. Instead, Jesus chose to undergo a sham trial and unjust murder at the hands of the state. Most, if not all, of those who followed him most closely were killed by lynch mobs or various governmental powers as well. We see God in Jesus. Those who follow Jesus simply cannot see God as someone who is pleased by killing.
Look, I know that Lutheran Christians have wide varieties of beliefs about justice in/of war, death penalties, self-defense “castle doctrines” and the like. Jesus does not. Jesus and his followers would rather die, sometimes en masse, than injure other humans. Jesus’ project is love of God and love of neighbor. Anything else is literally anti-Christ.
