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Moving Out
(Acts 8:1-8, 14-17)
January 9, 2022
Read Acts 8:1-8, 14-17 – II Kings 19:25 is wonderful!
God speaking: “Have you not heard that I determined it long ago?
I planned from days of old what now I bring to pass.”
That’s what this text is about – God in total control.
Theologian Bing Hunter says this, “Because of God’s providential care for His creation, ultimately, there is no such thing as luck.
What is more, from God’s perspective, there are no accidents, surprises, or ‘curious turns of history.’
What we call chance doesn’t exist.”
That’s what we see in this text.
Jesus’ last recorded words: Acts 1:8b: “you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Many have faulted the disciples for not leaving Jerusalem sooner.
But Jesus’ words were not a command, they were a prediction.
With the Jerusalem church settled, that time has come.
They’re going!
Not all – but some.
It’s a divinely executed event.
It almost had to be.
The Jews and mixed blood Samaritans hated each.
But when a Jew comes to preach Jesus of Nazareth – revival breaks out.
Incredible.
Only God’s grace could do this.
Here’s the divine plan!
I. Divinely Animated Movement (1-3)
At first, Stephen’s life looks like a waste.
A powerful witness cut down.
And worse – his death led to a firestorm of persecution.
The Jewish leaders, having gotten away with it in Stephen’s case, went after others as well.
Saul – who held the coats at Stephen’s stoning, was worst of all.
3) “But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.”
Hitler’s gestapo had nothing on Paul.
“Ravage” (λυμαίνω) is used in Psa 80:13 of wild boars destroying a vineyard.
Saul was dragging men and women alike from their homes.
Pix someone holding on for dear life as they’re pulled from a place of safety.
He’s ruthless, sincerely believing he was pleasing God.
But sincerely wrong!
Perhaps convicted by Stephen’s message of the OT pointing to Jesus, Paul went on the warpath.
When in doubt, kill the messengers!
So, many decided to get out of Dodge.
“All” is an exaggeration.
Not everyone left.
The Jerusalem church continued to exist and even occupy a leadership role throughout Acts (9:26; 11:2; 15:4; 21:17).
But many left – probably primarily Hellenists.
Imagine uprooting your family, your career and your home because your life is threatened because of your faith.
It was a hard time.
But Satan overstepped his bounds.
In 8:1 “They were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria” just where Jesus had predicted.
There are a 2 Greek words for scattered.
One means to get rid of – scattering ashes at sea.
But Luke’s word (diesparēsan) comes from speirō, to sow seed.
This is scattering to sow.
8:4: “Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.”
They left Jerusalem, But they never quit sowing the Word.
Rather than a few people preaching the Word in Jerusalem, Satan had planted little firestorms of gospel truth all over Judea and Samaria.
He’d outdone himself.
God turned Satan’s bad to good, as with Joseph, Daniel, Moses and others.
A young man headed home one night from law school.
A powerful storm arose, and a bolt of lightning flung him to the ground.
Fearing for his life, he cried out, “Help me, and I will become a priest.”
When he told his father of his vow, Dad chastised him and ordered him to remain in law school.
But 15 days later, Martin Luther enrolled at the monastery in Erfurt, Germany, from which he eventually turned the whole corrupt Roman system on its ear.
Luther later said his vow was a sin, “not worth a farthing” bc it was made against his father and out of fear.
But, he added, “But how much good the merciful Lord has allowed to come of it.”
Another case of God being in control.
We note the apostles did not scatter.
Did they sin by staying?
I don’t think so.
They were endangered by staying.
The infant church needed them.
Their time to leave would come.
But first, they needed to see the church established in the midst of severe testing.
The whole church was learning the truth of George Keith’s hymn: “When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie, / My grace, all-sufficient, shall be thy supply.
/ The flames shall not hurt thee; I only design / Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine.”
In God’s time, He began to unleash the power of the gospel through His persecuted saints.
II.
Divinely Authenticated Message (4-8)
So, what of those who scattered?
They took shelter and hid?
Not at all.
V. 4: “Those who were scattered went about preaching the word.”
Persecuted in one place, they went elsewhere and kept preaching!
Amazing Boldness!
Philip, one of the table servers, He went to Samaria where Jews would expect to be isolated.
But in God’s providence, revival broke out.
Philip was a Grecian Jew, and thus of a different ilk from the Jerusalem Jews.
Second, the Samaritans retained enough of the Jewish faith (Torah) to expect a Moses-like deliverer.
They described him as Taheb (Restorer), so when Philip began to show how Jesus fulfilled prophecies of this Messiah, he got a hearing.
Further, his message was authenticated by spectacular miracles.
6) And the crowds with one accord paid attention to what was being said by Philip, when they heard him and saw the signs that he did.
7) For unclean spirits, crying out with a loud voice, came out of many who had them, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed.”
Here is the gospel going to a new place thru an unknown messenger.
They “paid attention” to the message bc of the signs.
And -- Jesus had been there.
Recall the woman the well in John 4? She was a Samaritan – and it was to this immoral, social outcast woman that Jesus first revealed himself as Messiah!
Remember?
John 4:25: “The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ).
When he comes, he will tell us all things.”
26) Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am he.”
What a revelataion!
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