What did Stephen tell the nation of Israel to believe?
Stephen appealed to the nation of Israel to realize and believe that the one they had killed was indeed the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of the living God. His message called them to acknowledge that truth about the one they had slain.
Les explains that Stephen, like Peter and the eleven, was appealing to the nation of Israel during this transitional period in Acts. Stephen urged Israel to realize and believe that the one they had killed was indeed the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of the living God. The nation rejected his appeal and stoned him, and Saul of Tarsus was present where they laid their cloak. This event introduces Saul, a Pharisee who hated Jesus' name out of religious conviction.