Acts 8:1-8:8
Recall how last week we talked about Stephen, the first martyr of the church. Stephen was arrested by the temple leaders, charged with multiple things including blaspheming Moses and blaspheming God. Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, responded with a history lesson recorded in Acts 7 that ended with him calling his accusers stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears, and accusing them of being murderers. They responded by murdering Stephen. Acts 7 concludes and Acts 8 begins with the following:
At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Then he fell on his knees and cried out, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he fell asleep. And Saul was there, giving approval to his death. – Acts 7:57-8:1a
What happened next? One might hope that Stephen’s remarkable prayer would soften their hearts and that they would realize they are twice murderers and are really fighting against God. One might hope that they would repent and turn to the apostles and say, “We were wrong! We have sinned against you and against God. Pray to the Lord for us that He would forgive us!” But, as has happened over and over in history, atrocities against God’s people beget more atrocities. Hatred begets an even greater hatred. This has happened in all the great persecutions of the church. It has happened in other movements of evil, including the terrible holocaust against the Jews in World War II. And this is what happened here.
On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison. – Acts 8:1b-3
A great persecution broke out. It says people were scattered (diaspora). Jews today use this term to describe how the Jews are now scattered throughout the earth. Where were they forced to flee? They fled to Judea and Samaria. Do those locations seem familiar? Yes, they are exactly the locations described in Acts 1:8:
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." – Acts 1:8
Isn’t this interesting? For the early church, things were going great in Jerusalem. There were thousands of converts, an impact on the whole city, and large numbers of priests even coming to the faith. People were starting to come from outside the city for healings and to learn more about what was going on. And now, it is all destroyed. The early church is nearly gone from Jerusalem. Only a handful is left. People are forced to flee. Where do they go? They go to Judea and Samaria. What to do they do when they get there? They share the gospel. Many of the people who flee were in fact direct witnesses of the resurrected Jesus. And now, here they are, witnesses to Judea and Samaria! Perhaps not in the way they would have chosen (likely not), but still, they are fulfilling Jesus’ exact words. They are going to Judea, home of many religious Jews, and to Samaria, home of people who have become enemies to the Jews because their religious beliefs are so twisted it up it is doubtful whether they can still be called Jews.
But to the people in Jerusalem, this whole thing was terribly discouraging. The powerful, Spirit-filled, vibrant, encouraged church in Jerusalem is 99% gone. And there is a funeral to perform. Stephen, dearly loved by his people, known for his wisdom and his dependence on the Spirit, is gone. This doesn’t seem right. Where was God? How could He allow this to happen? These and other hard questions were no doubt being asked as they dealt with the death of a beloved brother and the apparent death of God’s true church.
And for those not bold enough to question God, did they instead question what Stephen had done? “Stephen, you didn’t have to say all those things. You didn’t have to call them stiff-necked with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You could have been more politically correct.” Although some may have thought these things, I don’t think the leaders did, and there is no sign Luke did, or by association, since the Bible is “God-breathed,” that God did. In fact, it says the opposite. Stephen was “filled with the Spirit” when he said those things. And it says that the godly people who buried Stephen simply “mourned him deeply.”
And then you have Saul. In a way, Saul became the “Darth Vader” of his time. Eager to wipe out the “rebel alliance,” he goes to great lengths and without limits to put an end once for all to the early church. Notice that it says he arrested men and women and put them in prison. Can you imagine what this was like? What about the children? Who would take care of them? Later the people arrested would be tried, and if found guilty, perhaps they would be executed. No doubt some of them were. Others stayed in prison for long a time – years, even decades. Paul was on his way to becoming one of the most famous (infamous) people in Jerusalem. How do you pray about such an enemy? It would be tempting to pray that God would wipe out such as this. And as the persecution continued, again it would be tempting to ask God, “Where are you? How can you allow this to continue?”
Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there. When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said. With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed. So there was great joy in that city. – Acts 8:4-8
So where was God? He was right there! Acts 1:8 was being fulfilled. We are given the story of Philip in Samaria. Philip, like Stephen, was one of those chosen to help oversee administration of food to the needy. No doubt he was a very close friend of Stephen, still in shock and mourning over Stephen’s death. Yet he continued to proclaim the gospel wherever he happened to be. And what happened in Samaria was quite wonderful. God used Philip to perform miraculous signs, and God used Philip to heal many people and deliver others from evil spirits. Yet most importantly, God used Philip to share the gospel, the good news behind Jesus’ death and resurrection. It says they paid close attention to what he said. Do you know what this is in a more literal translation? Here is KJV:
And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. – Acts 8:6 (KJV)
And what is the Greek word for “with one accord”? Yes, once again, it is homothumadon. The same “on-fire” unity of purpose and belief, the same zeal that was present in Jerusalem is present here. God is with them here just as He was in Jerusalem. His “resting place” is no longer in the temple. It is not even limited to Jerusalem at all! It is with every believer, whether they live in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, or even “the ends of the earth.” This is tremendously encouraging to me. And it should be encouraging to you too. Know that God’s love and power is always available to us, even when we go through some of life’s darkest moments.
Verse 8 says there was “great joy” in that city. The Greek words for this also describes the great joy the wise men felt when they saw the star. It also describes the joy experienced by Mary Magdeline and the other Mary when they saw the resurrected Jesus.
At the wedding of John and Natasha last week, I shared on Mathew 13:44:
"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. – Matt 13:44
The joy described here, the joy of finding the “great treasure” is the same joy.
That treasure is Jesus Christ, and we have Him (and He has us). Let us remember that although we remember His terrible death, we also have great joy in knowing that He is risen, that He is working constantly in our lives, and that despite persecution, despite trials, and despite heartaches, He is actively building His church, and we are His church. He is actively building us.
Following this we shared in communion together, and then we had a sharing time where anyone could come up and share what God was teaching them. It was a great time!
Why did I put a dandelion as the image for this week? Because as the flower dies, the seeds scatter and spread everywhere. Bad if you don't want to have more weeds, but good if you want to have more Christians.
At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Then he fell on his knees and cried out, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he fell asleep. And Saul was there, giving approval to his death. – Acts 7:57-8:1a
What happened next? One might hope that Stephen’s remarkable prayer would soften their hearts and that they would realize they are twice murderers and are really fighting against God. One might hope that they would repent and turn to the apostles and say, “We were wrong! We have sinned against you and against God. Pray to the Lord for us that He would forgive us!” But, as has happened over and over in history, atrocities against God’s people beget more atrocities. Hatred begets an even greater hatred. This has happened in all the great persecutions of the church. It has happened in other movements of evil, including the terrible holocaust against the Jews in World War II. And this is what happened here.
On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison. – Acts 8:1b-3
A great persecution broke out. It says people were scattered (diaspora). Jews today use this term to describe how the Jews are now scattered throughout the earth. Where were they forced to flee? They fled to Judea and Samaria. Do those locations seem familiar? Yes, they are exactly the locations described in Acts 1:8:
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." – Acts 1:8
Isn’t this interesting? For the early church, things were going great in Jerusalem. There were thousands of converts, an impact on the whole city, and large numbers of priests even coming to the faith. People were starting to come from outside the city for healings and to learn more about what was going on. And now, it is all destroyed. The early church is nearly gone from Jerusalem. Only a handful is left. People are forced to flee. Where do they go? They go to Judea and Samaria. What to do they do when they get there? They share the gospel. Many of the people who flee were in fact direct witnesses of the resurrected Jesus. And now, here they are, witnesses to Judea and Samaria! Perhaps not in the way they would have chosen (likely not), but still, they are fulfilling Jesus’ exact words. They are going to Judea, home of many religious Jews, and to Samaria, home of people who have become enemies to the Jews because their religious beliefs are so twisted it up it is doubtful whether they can still be called Jews.
But to the people in Jerusalem, this whole thing was terribly discouraging. The powerful, Spirit-filled, vibrant, encouraged church in Jerusalem is 99% gone. And there is a funeral to perform. Stephen, dearly loved by his people, known for his wisdom and his dependence on the Spirit, is gone. This doesn’t seem right. Where was God? How could He allow this to happen? These and other hard questions were no doubt being asked as they dealt with the death of a beloved brother and the apparent death of God’s true church.
And for those not bold enough to question God, did they instead question what Stephen had done? “Stephen, you didn’t have to say all those things. You didn’t have to call them stiff-necked with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You could have been more politically correct.” Although some may have thought these things, I don’t think the leaders did, and there is no sign Luke did, or by association, since the Bible is “God-breathed,” that God did. In fact, it says the opposite. Stephen was “filled with the Spirit” when he said those things. And it says that the godly people who buried Stephen simply “mourned him deeply.”
And then you have Saul. In a way, Saul became the “Darth Vader” of his time. Eager to wipe out the “rebel alliance,” he goes to great lengths and without limits to put an end once for all to the early church. Notice that it says he arrested men and women and put them in prison. Can you imagine what this was like? What about the children? Who would take care of them? Later the people arrested would be tried, and if found guilty, perhaps they would be executed. No doubt some of them were. Others stayed in prison for long a time – years, even decades. Paul was on his way to becoming one of the most famous (infamous) people in Jerusalem. How do you pray about such an enemy? It would be tempting to pray that God would wipe out such as this. And as the persecution continued, again it would be tempting to ask God, “Where are you? How can you allow this to continue?”
Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there. When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said. With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed. So there was great joy in that city. – Acts 8:4-8
So where was God? He was right there! Acts 1:8 was being fulfilled. We are given the story of Philip in Samaria. Philip, like Stephen, was one of those chosen to help oversee administration of food to the needy. No doubt he was a very close friend of Stephen, still in shock and mourning over Stephen’s death. Yet he continued to proclaim the gospel wherever he happened to be. And what happened in Samaria was quite wonderful. God used Philip to perform miraculous signs, and God used Philip to heal many people and deliver others from evil spirits. Yet most importantly, God used Philip to share the gospel, the good news behind Jesus’ death and resurrection. It says they paid close attention to what he said. Do you know what this is in a more literal translation? Here is KJV:
And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. – Acts 8:6 (KJV)
And what is the Greek word for “with one accord”? Yes, once again, it is homothumadon. The same “on-fire” unity of purpose and belief, the same zeal that was present in Jerusalem is present here. God is with them here just as He was in Jerusalem. His “resting place” is no longer in the temple. It is not even limited to Jerusalem at all! It is with every believer, whether they live in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, or even “the ends of the earth.” This is tremendously encouraging to me. And it should be encouraging to you too. Know that God’s love and power is always available to us, even when we go through some of life’s darkest moments.
Verse 8 says there was “great joy” in that city. The Greek words for this also describes the great joy the wise men felt when they saw the star. It also describes the joy experienced by Mary Magdeline and the other Mary when they saw the resurrected Jesus.
At the wedding of John and Natasha last week, I shared on Mathew 13:44:
"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. – Matt 13:44
The joy described here, the joy of finding the “great treasure” is the same joy.
That treasure is Jesus Christ, and we have Him (and He has us). Let us remember that although we remember His terrible death, we also have great joy in knowing that He is risen, that He is working constantly in our lives, and that despite persecution, despite trials, and despite heartaches, He is actively building His church, and we are His church. He is actively building us.
Following this we shared in communion together, and then we had a sharing time where anyone could come up and share what God was teaching them. It was a great time!
Why did I put a dandelion as the image for this week? Because as the flower dies, the seeds scatter and spread everywhere. Bad if you don't want to have more weeds, but good if you want to have more Christians.
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