Foxe on the Martyredom of Stephen and Christ's Disciples

I. St. Stephen
St. Stephen suffered the next in order. His death was occasioned by the faithful manner in which he preached the Gospel to the betrayers and murderers of Christ. To such a degree of madness were they excited, that they cast him out of the city and stoned him to death.
The time when he suffered is generally supposed to have been at the passover which succeeded to that of our Lord's crucifixion, and to the era of his ascension, in the following spring.
Upon this a great persecution was raised against all who professed their belief in Christ as the Messiah, or as a prophet. We are immediately told by St. Luke, that "there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem;" and that "they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria, except the apostles."
About two thousand Christians, with Nicanor, one of the seven deacons, suffered martyrdom during the "persecution that arose about Stephen."

II. James the Great
The next martyr we meet with, according to St. Luke, in the History of the Apsotles' Acts, was James the son of Zebedee, the elder brother of John, and a relative of our Lord; for his mother Salome was cousin-german to the Virgin Mary. It was not until ten years after the death of Stephen that the second martyrdom took place; for no sooner had Herod Agrippa been appointed governor of Judea, than, with a view to ingratiate himself with them, he raised a sharp persecution against the Christians, and determined to make an effectual blow, by striking at their leaders. The account given us by an eminent primitive writer, Clemens Alexandrinus, ought not to be overlooked; that, as James was led to the place of martyrdom, his accuser was brought to repent of his conduct by the apostle's extraordinary courage and undauntedness, and fell down at his feet to request his pardon, professing himself a Christian, and resolving that James should not receive the crown of martyrdom alone. Hence they were both beheaded at the same time. Thus did the first apostolic martyr cheerfully and resolutely receive that cup, which he had told our Savior he was ready to drink. Timon and Parmenas suffered martyrdom about the same time; the one at Philippi, and the other in Macedonia. These events took place A.D. 44.

III. Philip
Was born at Bethsaida, in Galilee and was first called by the name of "disciple." He labored diligently in Upper Asia, and suffered martyrdom at Heliopolis, in Phrygia. He was scourged, thrown into prison, and afterwards crucified, A.D. 54.

IV. Matthew
Whose occupation was that of a toll-gatherer, was born at Nazareth. He wrote his gospel in Hebrew, which was afterwards translated into Greek by James the Less. The scene of his labors was Parthia, and Ethiopia, in which latter country he suffered martyrdom, being slain with a halberd in the city of Nadabah, A.D. 60.

V. James the Less
Is supposed by some to have been the brother of our Lord, by a former wife of Joseph. This is very doubtful, and accords too much with the Catholic superstition, that Mary never had any other children except our Savior. He was elected to the oversight of the churches of Jerusalem; and was the author of the Epistle ascribed to James in the sacred canon. At the age of ninety-four he was beat and stoned by the Jews; and finally had his brains dashed out with a fuller's club.

VI. Matthias
Of whom less is known than of most of the other disciples, was elected to fill the vacant place of Judas. He was stoned at Jerusalem and then beheaded.

VII. Andrew
Was the brother of Peter. He preached the gospel to many Asiatic nations; but on his arrival at Edessa he was taken and crucified on a cross, the two ends of which were fixed transversely in the ground. Hence the derivation of the term, St. Andrew's Cross.

VIII. St. Mark
Was born of Jewish parents of the tribe of Levi. He is supposed to have been converted to Christianity by Peter, whom he served as an amanuensis, and under whose inspection he wrote his Gospel in the Greek language. Mark was dragged to pieces by the people of Alexandria, at the great solemnity of Serapis their idol, ending his life under their merciless hands.

IX. Peter
Among many other saints, the blessed apostle Peter was condemned to death, and crucified, as some do write, at Rome; albeit some others, and not without cause, do doubt thereof. Hegesippus saith that Nero sought matter against Peter to put him to death; which, when the people perceived, they entreated Peter with much ado that he would fly the city. Peter, through their importunity at length persuaded, prepared himself to avoid. But, coming to the gate, he saw the Lord Christ come to meet him, to whom he, worshipping, said, "Lord, whither dost Thou go?" To whom He answered and said, "I am come again to be crucified." By this, Peter, perceiving his suffering to be understood, returned into the city. Jerome saith that he was crucified, his head being down and his feet upward, himself so requiring, because he was (he said) unworthy to be crucified after the same form and manner as the Lord was.

X. Paul
Paul, the apostle, who before was called Saul, after his great travail and unspeakable labors in promoting the Gospel of Christ, suffered also in this first persecution under Nero. Abdias, declareth that under his execution Nero sent two of his esquires, Ferega and Parthemius, to bring him word of his death. They, coming to Paul instructing the people, desired him to pray for them, that they might believe; who told them that shortly after they should believe and be baptised at His sepulcher. This done, the soldiers came and led him out of the city to the place of execution, where he, after his prayers made, gave his neck to the sword.

XI. Jude
The brother of James, was commonly called Thaddeus. He was crucified at Edessa, A.D. 72.

XII. Bartholomew
Preached in several countries, and having translated the Gospel of Matthew into the language of India, he propagated it in that country. He was at length cruelly beaten and then crucified by the impatient idolaters.

XIII. Thomas
Called Didymus, preached the Gospel in Parthia and India, where exciting the rage of the pagan priests, he was martyred by being thrust through with a spear.

XIV. Luke
The evangelist, was the author of the Gospel which goes under his name. He travelled with Paul through various countries, and is supposed to have been hanged on an olive tree, by the idolatrous priests of Greece.

XV. Simon
Surnamed Zelotes, preached the Gospel in Mauritania, Africa, and even in Britain, in which latter country he was crucified, A.D. 74.

XVI. John
The "beloved disciple," was brother to James the Great. The churches of Smyrna, Pergamos, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea, and Thyatira, were founded by him. From Ephesus he was ordered to be sent to Rome, where it is affirmed he was cast into a cauldron of boiling oil. He escaped by miracle, without injury. Domitian afterwards banished him to the Isle of Patmos, where he wrote the Book of Revelation. Nerva, the successor of Domitian, recalled him. He was the only apostle who escaped a violent death.

XVII. Barnabas
Was of Cyprus, but of Jewish descent, his death is supposed to have taken place about A.D. 73.

And yet, notwithstanding all these continual persecutions and horrible punishments, the Church daily increased, deeply rooted in the doctrine of the apostles and of men apostolical, and watered plentously with the blood of saints.
(Copied from Foxe's Book of Martyres - in public domain)

Degrees of Punishment in Hell

As to the Issue
Adequate time needed to devote a detailed response to this article is lacking. This article is not to serve as a research paper and thus will not be treated as such, but rather, a digested yet rough response to my position 2 weeks ago that Scripture does in fact validate the notion of degrees of punishment in hell based upon what a person knew (in terms of the Law). As to what edification this may serve in knowing this position, perhaps three responses come to mind. The first is that it does paint a picture of a just God. The second edification is for us as believers no to give up too quickly on those that have heard the gospel. The fact that they know the gospel should drive us to mourn more for them because of the severity of punishment they will receive in hell unless they repent and turn to the Lord. The third edification is having a heart for the lost who haven’t heard the gospel. I will qualify my position at this moment in saying that this does not mean that there is a ‘Lesser Hell’ or ‘a More Hell.’ What it means is that within hell there is severer torment for others. However, Hell is still Hell of conscious eternal torment and separation from God.

As to Why Those Without the Gospel Will Perish
Paul’s apology in Romans is that in all man there is a light of who God is. By ‘light’ I mean a knowledge or understanding. God has revealed Himself in their hearts by some code of ethics telling them that God exists. It is this truth (this light) that if they should follow and acknowledge, should lead them to the knowledge of God. The second reason is that God has also revealed Himself in nature or creation. Instead of man honoring God because of this, they suppressed this truth and worship idols. The idea here is as follows: man has been given enough light by God in his heart and in creation to know that God exists and deserves honor. God looks at this understanding and judges in His infinite wisdom that they have no excuse. Therefore, the wrath of God is upon them. Their sin is that they did not honor God or give Him glory.
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for [because] God made it evident to them. For [because] since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures (Romans 1:18-23).”

As to why those with the Gospel will perish
Paul attacks the false assurance that the Jews had in their heritage. They had the Law, but they did not live it and rejected the Messiah. Instead, in their pagan false assurance, they were quick to judge others based on the Law, and yet they themselves disobeyed it. As a result God’s name was blasphemed among the Gentiles because of them (Romans 2:17-24). What advantage did the Jew have then? They had the oracles, or law of God (Romans 3:2) which were meant to lead them to the Messiah and be a light to the Gentiles (Exodus 19:3-6).
The problem with the Jews was not that they had the Law. The problem was that they thought that the Law could save them from sin, which it didn’t (Romans 7:13-25, Galatians 3:11). The Law was never meant to save anyone, but was given to reveal sin and show that no one could keep the Law by himself and they needed someone who would fulfill the Law for them eternally and thus give them peace with God. Galatians 3:13 reads,

“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us--for it is written, " CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE"”

What then did the Law ultimately do for the Jews? Simple…it brought them under greater condemnation before God, because they knew God’s standard.

“Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:19-20).
The reason why I belabor this point is to show that there was a greater responsibility on the part of the one who had the Word of God. The book of Romans is clear on that.
As to the Justice of God
Scripture affirms the justice of God in several passages. The context of Romans 2 is that of how God is justified to judge ‘in the day of wrath.’ This is a future day referring to the Great White Throne of Revelation 20. On that day, God will render to each person according to his deeds (Romans 2:6). This will be the standard of judgment for the saved and the unsaved…deeds. This is not to say we are saved by deeds or works but that God will look at the deeds as evidence of a person as being saved or unsaved. Salvation is by faith alone (Ephesians 2:8), but it does bring forth works or fruit produced by the Spirit as a natural consequence. God will look at these as the basis of judgment (Romans 20:12, 13). To those who have not produced fruit unto salvation will be punished with eternal damnation.
Paul then moves a step further in verse 11 saying that “there is no partiality with God.” The idea here is that God will be fair according to His justice. There is not going to be any favoritism. God will not say “oh…because you are Jewish, you get to go to heaven.” No! He will be just. The word for ‘partiality’ literally means ‘respect of persons.’ God’s justice will be based also on what each person was given without respect of persons. Romans 2:12 reads,
“For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law and all who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law”
The word for ‘perish’ is ‘apollumi’ which, when talking about people, speaks of either physical or eternal death. In the context of chapter 2, since Paul is talking about the Day of Wrath, the word then is speaking of eternal perishing. In essence Paul is saying that those who did not have the Law, will be judged as those who did not have the Law, and those who did have the Law will be judged as those who had the Law. The term ‘Law’ here is speaking of the written Law of God. As I noted earlier, the Jews were under greater condemnation because he knew God’s standard. God will take this into account when judging the unredeemed. The text is still saying that both groups (those who had the Law and those who didn’t have the Law) will still be condemned to hell. They both, as Romans 1 said, have the Law of God on their heart (in this case meaning that God revelation of God in man’s heart and nature which is sufficient for them to honor Him and not idols) and that in itself makes both groups have no excuse.

As to the degrees of condemnation
With the consideration that there is no one who has an excuse before God, that there are people who have a greater knowledge, and that God will be just, are there any allusions in the Gospels that would suggest that there will be degrees of punishment in Hell? I would venture to say yes, and will consider at least two of them before looking at Hebrews 10.
Matthew 11 (Luke 10:12-15)
The context of this passage is with the backdrop of how Christ came to offer the Kingdom during His earthly ministry. He had done so to the Jews first (Matthew 10:5-15) and it has been rejected several times (Matthew 11:16-19). They have been told that He is the Messiah, He has explained the standard of God’s Law and how they cannot keep it, He has performed many miracles and they have been rejected. In essence, the Jews have a greater knowledge. With this backdrop, Christ denounces them saying,
“Then He began to denounce the cities in which most of His miracles were done, because they did not repent.
"Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had occurred in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
"Nevertheless I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.
"And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will descend to Hades; for if the miracles had occurred in Sodom which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day.
"Nevertheless I say to you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for you (Matthew 11:20-24)” [Emphasis Added]
The people in the cities of Tyre and Sidon, did not have these miracles performed in by Jesus to authenticate His Messiahship. The people in Sodom did not have this greater knowledge. Christ is saying that because the people in Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum had this great revelation of Christ with them and they rejected it, they are more accountable in the day of judgment. The ‘day of judgment’ is once again talking about the Great White Throne judgment when unbelievers will be judged. The phrase ‘more tolerable’ is the word ‘anektoteron,’ in Greek which literally means ‘bearable,’ or ‘endurable.’ It is used as a comparative in the Greek, as also seen in the context. In brief, it is comparing something to another in the Day of Judgment.
Luke 12: 41-48 (Matthew 24:45-51)
The context of this Parable is within the second coming of Christ. Verses 47-48 drive the point of greater knowledge coming with greater condemnation home when Jesus says,
"And that slave who knew his master's will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes,
but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.” [Emphasis Added]
This passage is primarily talking about unbelievers. The reason is that we see punishment (lashes) in this judgment on the slave. It would be inconsistent with other Scripture passages for it to be talking about believers, because when believers come before the Lord, their judgment is going to be one of rewards, not punishment. The believer’s punishment has already been met by Christ when He suffered on the cross. Matthew 24 goes into greater detail on this passage and describes the place the slave is sent to as one where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 24:51). This clearly is talking about unbelievers.
Having said that, to those who have known more and still not been faithful to do God’s will as unbelievers, there is a higher degree of judgment.
Hebrews 10
Perhaps the caviar of passages talking about the degrees of punishment is that of Hebrews 10, which needs little to no explanation.
“For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,
but a terrifying expectation of judgment and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES.
Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?
we know Him who said, "VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY " And again, "THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE."
It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:26-31) [Emphasis Added]
The phrase, ‘how much severer a punishment’ is comparative in construction. Who is this being compared to? It is the one who never ‘received the knowledge of the truth’ (Romans 1). The context here is that of judgment once again. The point is that to whom has received knowledge (specific) of the truth, in this case of the Son of God, and has rejected it, he is more accountable than the one who hasn’t received the same specific knowledge.

As to the Evaluation
God is just. His justice is interwoven in the whole of Scripture as He is the one who will punish for eternity those who have not honored Him. His justice also demands that there be no partiality, or ‘respect of persons.’ To whom much has been given, much will be required. To those who have tasted, or experienced of the truth (Hebrews 6:4) and rejected it, there stands before them greater condemnation than the one who has not had the same advantage. Scripture also affirms that to the one who has not received Special Revelation, God has put enough light in that person’s heart and in creation to be held accountable (Romans 1). Both groups will be condemned to hell, but with different degrees on that Day of Judgment. As noted at the beginning of this article, this encourages me not to be complacent or indifferent too quickly towards those who have heard the gospel but have not responded. My heart should burn more for them to be saved, knowing that they are more accountable, and therefore they will receive a greater punishment. As to what exactly that will look like, I do not think Scripture reveals. But as to what it reveals, it is enough for me to want to continue to pursue them and pray for them continually.

Every so often

It is every so often that God places trials in our lives.
Every so often God brings us to the end of ourselves.
Every so often God seems to have taken a vacation
And does not seem to be in the midst of our circumstances

Every so often God calls us to walk by faith
It is as if taking a stroll in a foggy forest
Where there's nothing to lead you but His hand
It is in those times that letting go of it is such a temptation
But every so often He still reminds you that in His leading is life

Every so often God brings us to the end of ourselves
It is a rough and rugged road to this destination
Every so often we cry out to Him 'Why does it have to be this hard!'
It is at these times that we see the problem is sin and not Him

Every so often the waters are not as calm as we want them to be
The streams are not as cool and pleasing to the ear and we hope
The clouds sky is not as clear as we would like
But Every so often God paints a picture for us that surpasses all this beauty
This picture is signed 'grace' next to its author

'Every so often' is necessary
Were it never there I would go my own way
How I long for that day when 'every so often' will be needed no more
In that day 'every so often' will be replaced by every moment of eternity

If there were an 'every moment' in my life,
I would not need 'every so often'
I would not need trials and tribulation
I would rest in His glory and see Him for who He is
I would not forget my God and replace Him with me
As much as I long for this on this earth I am still with this flesh
But my God is still gracious to hold me near with my 'every so often'

How Big is my God?

How big is my God? The past few days have seen blow after blow seem to be thrown at me unexpectedly. It is interesting how that tends to be a test of focus. I was thinking today of how we as believers are constantly under attack by Satan through the art of distraction. He knows that he cannot take away our salvation, but one thing he will not stop at is in distracting us from our focus on our Lord. I was sitting in class as one of my professors was talking about the glory of God. I was awestruck particularly by how purposeful God's plan is for mankind throughout all history and how He has been faithful to His Word. I think of how God has visibly manifested His glory as He dwelt among man throughout history and also removed Himself from then in, terms of His visible manifestation of glory, as man sinned. And yet, to think that God's plan is not dependent or moved out of place by man's sin and inadequacy, is just mind blowing. It blew my mind as I thought of how the shepherds must have felt when they saw that manifestation of glory as Christ's birth was announced as God Himself incarnate among man. What a vision that must have been, what a vision it will be in Heaven.How big is my God? I sat staring at this question for a while and could not even begin to put in in words. Everything else, what we stress about, what we are concerned about, our doubts, fears...they all melt into a melting pot of insignificance held together by a God who is able. I think that's the problem a great many times and how we fall into the temptation of destruction. We focus so much on our circumstances and lose sight of the glory of God. That is how Satan tempts. The real test is a test of focus. It is a test of who to trust. How big is my God?

Live Again Prayer Requests

This Saturday was the first day of the ministry now starting with me heading it. Before I had been doing it under Tony but now have a time slot of my own. It was humbling and scary at the same time but I took comfort in the fact that these men need the gospel and the Lord was with me. It was really need to see some of the men there who I believe are already believers. The focus was on breaking the ice with them and allowing them to know me and well as I getting to know them a little. Please join me in praying for these prayer requests.

Carlos - Please pray for his mother and children (4 Children) during this time he is in rehab
Chris - Requests prayer for guidance and strength. He has 4 children that are unsaved
Ricardo - Prayer for his mother who is having nerve attacks
David - For wisdom in the decisions that he will have to be making while in rehab
Mike - For his relationship with his ex-wife and 2 daughters
Eddie - Just signed the papers for a divorce with his wife. Please pray for both of them and that he may be allowed to see his children.

Reflection

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me and know my anxious thoughts
And see if there's any hurtful way in me
And lead me in the everlasting way (Psalm 139:23-24)

There is an appointed time for everything
And there is a time for everything under Heaven (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

In perplexity...But God

Words tend to be used in a very fluid, articulate way in life a great many times. Whether there is substance to them is a different matter. It is so easy to say the things that we say. The question really is that when we are in that particular situation that tests our convictions, are our words going to remain just words or prove to be substantive conviction leading to action? We say we believe a lot of things, and we hold to them. Is that just a matter of convenience or do we still hold to them when it seems inconvenient? Sometimes what we deem as the right thing to do will be the hardest thing to do.
The story is told of one man who lived a life riddled with perplexity and struggled so much with the question, who am I? He stood for nothing really and was like a leaf at the mercy of the wind in the choices that he took. He built so much anger inside him as this is what made sense in his mind. The world was made up of randomness, there was no real sense to it. There was no fairness, or justice...there was no purpose and trying to figure it out was pointless. All the while he had no idea that there was a specific purpose and plan for that young man. Someone, before he was born, had thought of Him and planned his whole life. There was going to be purpose in everything that happened to him. He was going to have great times, and sad times. He was going to rejoice, and suffer according to the will of this One.
I know this young man intimately, perhaps not as much as I would want to. God know him much more.
And I was dead in my trespasses and my sins, in which I formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among the, I too formerly lived in the lusts of my flesh, indulging in the desires of the flesh and the mind, and I was by nature a child of wrath, even as the rest. But God...

He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?

There is a lot of grace for the child of God who has been saved by the work that Christ did on the cross. When I think of who I was and what I have been saved from, how can I doubt that there is grace freely given in my walk with Him. God has already done the hardest part of saving me, a sinner.

For while I was still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly (me). For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God...

Against all contrary thinking and notions, God transcends the impossible, the hard times in life. We can rest as believers knowing that He holds all things together for His glory.

We know this from Scripture, that God is in control of all things and it's not as if He is surprised by the events that happen in our lives. All things were planned before the beginning of all beginnings (in essence there is no beginning) and we are called to trust in Him. We say this in words. The question is...when the rubber meets the road and we are in situations that test that, do we live out what we believe? Inspite of what we think, what people say...where is the 'But God...' in our lives?