Persecution Ignites Mission – Acts chapter 8, verses 1 to 8
God intends to make His name known so that all will call on Him. Persecution is part of this, for it ignites and fuels the mission of the Gospel of Jesus.
The Reality of Persecution: Acts 8:1-3 – a murderous rage against Jesus’ followers, still happening today in many places.
The Response to Persecution: Acts 8:4-8 – the Christians scattered, sharing the Gospel message. The believers were not good at the concealing their faith!
Pray for those in persecution, that they will be able to press on sharing the Gospel, bearing suffering as Jesus our Lord did.
The church persecuted and scattered
On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2 Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3 But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.
Philip in Samaria
4 Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. 5 Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. 6 When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. 7 For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralysed or lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city.
Acts 8:1-8 New International Version – UK (NIVUK) Holy Bible, New International Version® Anglicized, NIV® Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
