Acts 8:1-8. This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on January 29, 2023.
In Acts 1:8, Jesus says, "[Y]ou shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." The book of Acts can be outlined using these three geographical descriptions.
The phrase "ends of the earth" is not fixated upon a geographical point on the globe. It is a picturesque way of describing all of the nations of the globe. We see this supported in Revelation 5, particularly verse 9, where those worshiping God around the throne are "out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation."
The death of Stephen is presented as the transitional point for the Gospel spreading from Jerusalem into the surrounding area of Judea and Samaria (further north). Luke shows through his book that the words of Jesus in Acts 1:8 happened as he said from roughly AD 30 to AD 62. Of course, the book ends with Paul under house arrest in Rome, but spreading the Gospel.
Obviously, the Gospel had not made it to the ends of the earth, but the burden is not upon him alone. He hands the torch down to others. In fact, far more happened in those thirty years by others to spread the Gospel. This has led to the concept of an Acts 29 Christian, or an Acts 29 church. It simply means that they recognize, we recognize, that we are continuing the witness to all the nations that the apostles started.
We will see today that persecution is one of the things that God uses to spread the Gospel. It isn't necessary. But, when it comes, it is used of God for the good of souls who need to hear.
Let's look at our passage.
In verse one, Stephen gives us a snapshot, summary, of this transitional point of the Church. We have seen persecution upon individuals like Peter, John, and the apostles up to this point. However, after Stephen's death a "great" persecution begins.
There are several words for persecution that are used. This one emphasizes that the hunt is on and people are made to flee from pursuers. Yet, we should know that the demeanor of those fleeing is not part of this word. Some could flee in terror, but we do not see this in the book of Acts. They do not flee in terror, but they do not want to be imprisoned or die. Thus, they pragmatically move out of the sphere of danger. They move on, but go forth victoriously- as we will see in the rest of this passage.
At this point, it begins to cost more to follow Jesus. There is the question of whether you will stay or leave Jerusalem, but it also demands an answer to this question. Is it worth it to keep following Jesus? The heat is now on all believers in Jesus.
Luke tells us that this pursuit of anyone who was a Christian is what led to them being scattered throughout the region. The word for "scatter" pictures the casting of seeds. Each one of these Christians is a seed, or earthen vessel, containing the treasure of the Gospel and the Holy Spirit. That seed and Spirit are capable of fruit in their lives, but also of life for others.
This is something that we need to get into our heart. I might have a wart on the end of my nose and people tend to avoid me. However, if I have the Gospel and the Holy Spirit, then there is a treasure in me that people need. Of course, many who are very easy to look at are empty of any treasure. May God teach us as believers in Jesus to remember that "he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him." (Isaiah 53:2 ESV).
What the enemy intended for evil, God turned to the good. These believers went forth telling people about Christ and seeing others believe.
It is interesting to me that Jesus had told them that he wanted them to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Yet, it took persecution to kick-start this part of the mission. Were they being disobedient? I do not think that Luke is showing this at all. There does not seem to be any sense of this in the text. I think the real point is that there is a proper timing of the Holy Spirit, and a proper way. It doesn't always have to be because of persecution, but God was allowing Jerusalem to have as much grace as they would take. They needed to hear the Gospel because the clock was ticking on Israel remaining as a nation. Judgment was coming. God gives them as much grace as they will take, and this persecution is basically the leadership pushing the grace of God out of Jerusalem. Of course, they weren't able to push it all out.
Make sure that you don't miss this progression for us as individuals. We need to receive the Gospel and the Holy Spirit within our own heart and mind, within our own family, which is our "Jerusalem." As God teaches us and fills us with His Holy Spirit, He will then lead us forth to witness in our community and as far as the scope He has given us will lead. We shouldn't rush it, but neither should we lag behind being dilatory or lazy. God's heart is for the nations, and it begins for each one of us at the center of our hearts and minds.
Verse two shows us that Stephen is buried by his fellow Christians, "devout men." It was considered an offense to publicly lament one who had been executed, especially for blasphemy. However, these men make it abundantly clear that they are sorrowing over the death of Stephen. He was a righteous man who did not deserve such a death.
This sorrow is understandable and should not be rebuked. Though we do not sorrow as those who have no hope, we do sorrow nonetheless. 2 Corinthians 7:9-10 makes this point. They weep because they are separated from one they love, and in a horrible way. They weep for the loss of such a man who was used of God to heal people and set them free from evil spirits. He fed widows and cared for the unfortunate. We should weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice (Romans 12:15).
Yet, we do not want to become stuck in grief, and paralyzed by it. Just as Stephen had served God faithfully to the end of his life, so too we must go on without him and serve God faithfully. We do no one honor by walking away from God because of what happened to them. Stephen's witness was that it was worth it to die for Jesus! Grief has a natural cycle that is not exactly the same for each individual, but will definitely take as much as a year to fully absorb.
This hounding of Christians is lead by the young man Saul. He seems to be zealous for removing Christians from Jerusalem. Of course, he is being zealous to push the grace of God out of the city. In such, we can become blind to the things that God is using in our life in order to bless us. In our ignorance, we can push out the grace of God, bringing harm to ourselves and others around us.
Luke writes that Saul made a "havoc" of the Church. The word has the idea of publicly shaming it by defiling their dignity, even causing a stigma to be attached to these Christians. We see this with Saul entering "every house," and "dragging" them off to jail. The dragging may or may not have been literal. It is a word that is frequently used for arrests. In many cases, it is clear that there is no actual dragging taking place. It would be similar to a person today saying that, "They slapped him in cuffs and dragged him off to jail." Again, it could be literal, but the language of slapping and dragging can be metaphorical.
Regardless, it was a difficult time for believers.
Saul is clearly trying to contain this "heretical sect," as he takes them to prison, but it doesn't work. We should remember that there are at least 5,000 Christians in the city, and Luke has given several other summary verses where he describes the Church growing more. Thus, we have a magnitude of thousands of Christians spreading out into the region. This will cause the Gospel to spread out into Samaria and Judea as well- just as Jesus said.
It is interesting to me that Saul cannot seem to keep himself from doing the work of Jesus, whether he is trying to stop Jesus or help him. Ironically, he is really bad at stopping the Church. Everything he does only spreads it more. This is the tragic fate of those fight against Christ and his purposes. In the end, they only help us to do what God wants us to do.
Of course, the world is a lot better at trying to put out the fire of Christians today. Yet, if you have your eyes upon Jesus, and are filled with his Holy Spirit, it is not that good! We may be spiritually kicked in the gut and lose our breath, but the Breath of God will fill our lungs and enable us to catch our breath. Just know that God is in control, not in that He is operating humans as marionettes. However, His eternal purposes will always be accomplished in our lives and this world! You can't lose on His side!
Luke then turns away from the persecution of Saul in order to give some stories of God powerfully working through these dispersed ones.
The scattered believers preached the Word. Though the believers are scattering because of persecution, they are not keeping quiet. They are using the Scriptures, the Word, to explain to people about the recent events in Jerusalem. These are the Scriptures that talk about Jesus. The Messiah had come, was executed, but then was resurrected. He has now poured out the Holy Spirit upon those who believe. Luke has already given us a taste of such preaching through Peter and Stephen's accounts in chapter 2 and chapter 7. None of these events involve a pulpit or podium. Preaching is not solely the work of a pastor. It simply means to proclaim.
This brings us to Philip. We know that this is not the Apostle Philip because verse 14 will tell us that the apostles were at Jerusalem when this happens. Acts 6 describes the calling of seven men to be deacons in the early Church at Jerusalem. Luke then went on to describe the ministry and martyrdom of the man who was first on that list of deacons. Now, Luke shows us that the second deacon on that list, Philip, was powerfully used of the Holy Spirit as well.
As a side-note, the Apostle Philip is never specifically mentioned by name after Acts chapter one. He is generally mentioned in the phrase "the apostles." The Philip here is Philip the Deacon. Of course, that ministry is not going to be able to continue with the scattering of the Church, at least not in the form that they had set up. He will be later described in Acts 21:8 as "Philip the Evangelist, who was one of The Seven." Saul had caused Philip to be promoted from a deacon to an evangelist, i.e., someone who has a ministry of telling others about the Gospel of Jesus. For some reason, Philip goes to the city of Samaria.
The city of Samaria is in the middle of the region of Samaria. It had been destroyed several times through the centuries. It was actually rebuilt and renamed by Herod the Great in the 1st Century BC. It's new name was Sebaste, which is Greek. Clearly, this was not a name that was popular with first century Jews. This city was populated with around 6,000 people or more. Note: Here is a link to a map to help you picture where Samaria (Sebaste) is in relation to Jerusalem. You may also note that Sychar is where Jesus ministered after speaking to the Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well.
Philip does not go to Samaria to hide. He begins "preaching Christ" to them." This is essentially the same as preaching the Word and we should not try to make a technical point out of these two phrases. The early Church did not study the Word out of a mere desire to grow in intelligence. They studied and taught the Word to know Jesus the Messiah better! In fact, the word translated "preach" in both instances is different in Greek. The first is literally to "Good News" someone. The second is to proclaim, or herald, news that may or may not be good news. It emphasizes the proclamation. Jesus, the resurrected Lord who is in heaven pouring out the Holy Spirit on those who believe in Jesus, is good news that we should be proclaiming!
Notice that this deacon, now Evangelist, does miraculous signs by casting out demons, and healing people, specifically those who had paralysis and were lame. He is not an apostle, but He is filled with the Holy Spirit and being led by the Holy Spirit. There is no sense in the Bible that we have to have a title in order to be used greatly of God. Any one who believes upon Jesus and is filled with the Holy Spirit can be used to do miraculous things. Yes, God can do these things through us today.
There are seasons in which God gives signs or not. However, we must be careful of using this as an excuse. Maybe, they were far more desperate than we are as a people? You can be cynical about God doing such things today. However, it can also be our cynicism and lack of faith that leads to these things not happening right now. Many in the Church, lean on everything, but God. May we learn to lean upon Him and be in the place where He can do anything through us that He desires. This calls for a person to be in prayer, in the word, seeking the leading of the Spirit, and then obeying His leading!
Luke mentions that the people paid close attention to what Philip had to say. We do not know how many of these people were religious Samaritans. Herod had brought people in to populate the city, and it had several pagan temples. Still, the ministry at Sychar would have primed the pump in the area. They would have known about Jesus and his disciples. These inhabitants of Sebaste are transfixed at the message of Philip and the power of the Holy Spirit working through him.
This brings us to verse eight, which tells us that there was great joy in the city. Think about the many people who are no longer demon-possessed, and those who knew them. Think of a desperate parent who has tried everything to help their child, and now they are completely healed! Think about those who can now walk, and are running around leaping and praising God! Think about those who had been paralyzed showing everyone who will listen how they can now use their limb!
How long had they gone without much in the way of God's grace, and then one day things changed. Remember that about God. We may be hyper-cynical about a move of God in our family, city, or Republic, but some days, God just changes things! Maybe, He has been wanting to move for decades, perhaps centuries, but no one was in the right place spiritually for it to happen? This day, Philip was in the right place with God. Amen!
What a beautiful thing. It was almost as if Jesus was back! In truth, Jesus is back in us when we cooperate with and operate in the power of the Holy Spirit. Yes, there are seasons to the work of God, but its foundation is a person who: believes in Christ, seeks to be filled with the Holy Spirit, and asks Jesus each day what they should be doing for him. We don't know if we are a generation that will experience what Jeremiah experienced, unbelief and the judgment of God upon the nation. How can we know? We can only know by being faithful like Jeremiah. Even though it fills like he didn't do any good, Jeremiah lived a life of the Spirit of God and passed that torch on to the next generation. He didn't fail, the people of Israel stuck in their flesh failed. The faithful remnant is always victorious to accomplish exactly what God sent them to do!
You and I can be those people who are doing the will of Jesus and are ready for what he may have next. We are Acts 29 Christians whether we use that phrase or not. Until Jesus comes back, we aren't done working. Let's get to work!