The Word Reaches Out Through Us

Story persecution

Persecution happened to the first followers of Jesus

Acts 8:1-3.

Growth & persecution

God’s purpose isn’t prevented, but advanced in the mindst of persecution

How?

Acts 8:4.

preached the word

if you were confronted with persecution, how would you respond? Would you share the word?

Take a step back, without persecution, why do we hesitate to share God’s Word? is it b/c of fear of persecution?

If we aren’t willing to step out in faith and share God’s word - we won’t grow the way He longs for us to grow in our faith

It won’t be persecution that hinders the gospel from being advanced but disobedience

God asks us to preach the word. - and this command isn’t just for the pastors

Acts 8:5.

Its for everyday people - philip

Stephen - was a waiter

Where did he go? Samaria

Main Point: The mission of God is not limited to “the professionals.”

Notice it wasn’t the apostles who scattered—it was the everyday believers

They didn’t scatter and hide. They scattered and declared

The early Church didn’t have buildings, budgets, or programs—just the gospel and the Spirit

Application to the Church Today: Most gospel movement in history spreads through ordinary Christians in ordinary places.

Challenge: Where you work, where you live, where you hang out—you are sent there on purpose.

Begin to see the fulfilment of Acts 1:8.

Jesus is calling you to step outside your comfort zone and share the gospel.

But in order to do so - we have to know the Word. // we have to be people of the Word

Being a person of God’s Word - doesn’t mean you have a large social media following for how much scripture you know.

It means you’re willing to love and to faithfully serve those God has entrusted to you.

Acts 6:1-4.

When we are people of the word, we live obedient to the word.

God has empowered you for a purpose.

Acts 8:6-8.

Jesus transforms people, which transforms places.

Philip proclaims Christ,

The gospel brings:

Deliverance (freedom from evil)

Healing (restoration of brokenness)

Joy (v. 8 — “there was great joy in that city”)

We need to preach the gospel because it is the means by which joy is made accessible to people.

Within Reach The Word Goes Out Acts 8:1-8; Acts 1:8

Football analogy - watching film.

Often you and I see the pieces of our daily lives one move at a time. Good move, bad move, hopeful, hopeless, stuck. But what if we could see the all the pieces of our lives from God’s perspective?

Have you ever felt there was a goal just out of reach? Unattainable.

Today, we are starting a new series on helping us understand the power of the gospel. Instead of viewing the pieces of our life one move at a time, we want to see the larger picture and come to understand how God is making moves to draw more people to Himself and He is inviting us to join Him in this work. This series is called, Within Reach because we want to see the people within the reach of our lives as those who are within God’s reach of the gospel. To guide us through this series we will be spending several weeks in Acts chapters 8 and 9. Open up to Acts 8, verse 1 and we will begin.

How is your day?

Good/bad good/not good

Could it be that which is “not good” in our life; we classify that way simply because we struggle to see that which is good in it?

What if there was a better way to classify our life delightful/difficult

What if there was a way to see the good in all circumstances? Not because of blind optimism but because of true faith

What will it take for you to fulfill the calling God has on your life?

Acts 1:8 NIV

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.”

Took time for the disciples/apostles to begin to live this out.

What was the catalyst for obedience to this command?

In the Day of Trouble: Acts 8:1-3

Acts 8:1–3 NIV

1 And Saul approved of their killing him. 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.

Context: Saul - persecutor of Christians

Church was in a state of growth.

Things had been going so well for the early church. Jesus had been crucified, buried, rose again, spent 40 days with His disciples, then ascended to Heaven. Then, the Holy Spirit came on Jesus’ followers and the movement of the church exploded in growth. 3,000 people came to faith in Jesus in one day! Then, people were coming to faith in Jesus, daily. Every day for maybe upwards of a year the church was growing. But while the church was growing, so was the opposition against the church.

But as the opposition grew, God raised up more leaders. First it was the apostles, they got arrested and God sends an angel to open the doors of the prison and they go back to preaching. But it isn’t just the apostles, an incredible gifted leader named Stephen follows Jesus and he is so persuasive, none of the opponents could debate this guy. Since they couldn’t argue against him, they kill him.

What’s the evidence of growth?

Size

Persecution

Persecution is one of the key accompaniments of the Church

Wherever the gospel is, there will be growth and resistance. Did you know that although this are oppositional forces, they are also catalytic forces?

Bone growth necessitates gravity

Plant growth necessitates wind

Spiritual growth necessitates adversity

Jesus tells us to expect persecution

Matthew 5:10 “10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Persecution doesn’t prevent God’s plan it becomes the means by which God’s plan is advanced

Romans 8:28 “28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

Acts 8:1 “On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria.”

Persecution is a foreign idea to us

Story of persecution:

How would we respond?

We know all about days of trouble. The test results come back with a diagnosis we never expected. The company is sold and your position eliminated, a season-ending injury, your parents move for a job across the country and you have to leave all your friends, you get rejected from the college of your dreams, the relationship ends, the stock plumets, or your kids don’t want to have a relationship with you any longer. When we view life one move at a time and things go poorly, we can feel crushed and filled with trouble and wonder what God is doing.

In the midst of this trouble, God’s purpose prevails. God sees the checker pieces differently:

God’s Purpose Prevails: Acts 8:4

Acts 8:4 NIV

4 Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.

In verse four, when it says, preached the word, in the Greek that means they proclaimed the good news. What a contrast, in the midst of this bad situation, they went proclaiming good news.

the gospel speaks to all of our ailments - if we think the gospel is a message only relevant for salvation we miss the tremendous joy and hope offered to us by the gospel.

2 Implications from this text.

How do you respond in hardship? Do you Preach the Word?

Do you know the Word well enough to share it?

Let me ask you, would this be your attitude? I’m not sure it would be mine. What if a great persecution broke out against the church in our country and we all had to flee around the world? What if that happened and what if the result was a 100-fold increase in the number of followers of Jesus around the world? Would that be a good thing or a bad thing? Are we for the Kingdom of God or are we only for the Kingdom of God if it directly benefits us? I’m not saying that is God’s plan for us now. But I am saying, that is what happened to the early church. And the reason God’s purpose prevailed was because of His followers who lived obedient to the Word.

Through People of His Word: Acts 8:4

5 Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there.

Now, Philip is specifically mentioned in verse 5. He goes to a city in Samaria, likely because the Jewish leaders won’t bother going to Samaria because Jews and Samaritans hated each other. It turns out going to Samaria has massive implications for the church. God’s strategic hand is all over these events, and next weekend we will see why this location mattered so much. But for today, I want to focus a bit on Philip. He was a man of God’s Word. He knew the Word; he lived the Word and he preached the Word. We first hear about Philip a few chapters earlier, in Acts 6.

Philip’s Training: Acts 6:1-4

6 In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. 2 So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. 3 Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them 4 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”

In these days there were cultural tensions happening between the Hellenistic (people influenced by Greek culture) and Hebraic (people influenced by Hebrew culture) Jews. While this tension might seem like no big deal to us, this issue had the potential to divide the church. Evidently, there were a number of widows who the church was feeding every day and if they didn’t handle the care of the poor and helpless well, it could disrupt the heart of the church. Philip is one of the seven men called to resolve this important issue.

Let me take a moment for a brief aside. This actually shows us what is at the heart of what it means to follow Jesus. Here the church is growing, and fighting off opposition and in the midst of these massive issues facing the church, they take their best leaders and invest time to determine how to feed poor widows. Do you know why? They were people of the Word.

People of the Word live obediently to the Word regardless of what is going on around them. Taking care of the least of these, has always been what God has told His people to do.

To Expand His Kingdom: Acts 8:6-8

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 paralyzed or lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city.

It is at this point that Philip starts to feel a little distant from us. We had just learned he was a volunteer in the church and now we read he is performing signs and wonders. There are two things we need to understand.

One, the book of Acts is a document about the church in transition and in its start up. When the Gospel goes to a new place, it often comes in with a power that displays these types of dramatic signs. Some people feel these signs and wonders no longer take place, but I disagree with that theology. I have been in places where these types of signs and wonders occur. Typically, they are places where the gospel has not yet been heard. Going in to new territory, this type of activity is fairly common. Actually, next week, we will talk about why we don’t see this more often here.

Second, we need to understand that when these signs and wonders take place, they happen through normal, everyday people who simply trust in God’s Word. Normal people, like you and me, who pray simple but bold prayers for people and they see healing, they see demons cast out of people. It isn’t fanatical or overtly dramatic, but the simple power of God on display. What is happening with this display of the gospel in Samaria is a fulfillment of the words of Jesus.

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 (NIV)

In the face of persecution, the church is fulfilling the words of Jesus. Even in the midst of persecution, the purposes of God’s church are being fulfilled. And so, it is with us.

Many of us find ourselves in a place we didn’t plan to be. We figured we would be married by this point in our life, but we aren’t and it seems that may not be the plan. The job we are in is not at all the job or career we expected to have. The apartment we are living in is not in the city we expected and not with the roommate we expected. The relationship with our kids or grandkids is not what we thought it was going to be. We never expected to be dealing with the health issues we are dealing with. We thought we’d be in a different financial situation. In the midst of these troubling times or difficult places, God’s purpose prevails if we live by His Word. Let’s put all our points together for this big idea:

In the day of trouble, God’s purpose prevails through people of His Word, to expand His Kingdom.

While we might be surprised by the circumstances in which we find ourselves, God is not. He is in control and He knows all. He knew exactly where you were going to be and He has a plan for you and a purpose for you. He sees all the checker pieces and He has you where He wants you so you can join Him in bringing His Kingdom to new places and new people. In fact, you and I are like a checker piece God has placed around others so we can share with them the Word.

It is no mistake the people who live within the reach of our lives. Your coworkers are your coworkers on purpose. God has arranged for you to be around those in your job…yes, even your boss, and yes, even that really annoying person on your team. God has arranged your family to be your family. He has arranged your neighbors to be your neighbors. He picked them for you because He has a purpose for them and for you. The teacher you have was allowed by God for a reason. There are no mistakes in the places we find ourselves or the people we are around.

God has you right where He wants you.

This series is designed for us to see the people we are around to be people who God has placed within our reach because they are within reach of the gospel! This series will encourage us in ways we can reach those within our reach.

How can these people be reached? Step one is to be a person of God’s Word. We are to be the ones who communicate the Word to others. To share the good news of Jesus wherever we go.

Be a Person of God’s Word!

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path… Rulers persecute me without cause, but my heart trembles at your word. Psalm 119:105, 161 (NIV)

God’s Word is like a light to direct our path and even those rulers may persecute us, we don’t live in fear of them. We only live in fear of God’s Word, so we live to know it and obey it.

In order for that to happen, we need to know the Word. Several months ago, a friend who attends Wooddale met with me to tell me about a ministry he supports called Open the Bible. It is a radio broadcast ministry. If you don’t know what a radio is, it was the original Spotify. There is a pastor named Colin Smith who is a wonderful Bible teacher and preacher. His messages are shared through this ministry around the country and our local area in the Twin Cities is the second largest listening audience outside of Chicago where he lives and was a pastor at a large church until his recent retirement. Colin is originally from Scotland and his passion is to help people know the Bible so they can know Jesus and share Him with others. I share that passion. This coming Tuesday, Colin will be here at Wooddale at 6 pm to provide an overview of the entire story of the Bible. It will be 2 hours and think of this as a fly over of Scripture, hence the name of the event, Fly Through the Bible [Slide]. Join us on Tuesday to learn more of how you can be a person of the Word and share it with others.

As we close, I want to invite you to bow your heads. Think about a situation, a relationship, or season in which you find yourself. Maybe it is someplace you never would have chosen. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you His perspective. In what situation has He placed you? How can you be a person of the Word in that place? Think about the relationships in your life. Who is one person within reach of your life who God is inviting you to pray for and to whom you can share the Word?