Persecution and Progress

PERSECUTION AND PROGRESS
Acts 8:1-8

As hell was being unleashed on the people of God, heaven was rejoicing at the progress of the kingdom of God. This is the way it has been through the centuries. Every blow taken has made the church stronger. For every Christian killed in the Roman empire, there were seven converts. “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.” It is when we are comfortable that we grow weak. If we had persecution, the true church would grow.
About times of trial, James exhorts us to Count it all joy . . . that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing (that really matters spiritually). We do not pray for persecution, but in the face of persecution we pray that the Lord’s will be done.

PERSECUTION (Acts 8:1-3)
This is the first time the church was going through systematic persecution. The church went through seasons of such persecution, and at other times, the world admired the church, as we see in Acts 5:12. The stoning of Stephen was the straw that broke the camel’s back. We also see that a young man zealous about persecution had come on the scene. He became the lead persecutor of the early church, ravaging the church.
The church was so bold in the face of this persecution. 1. The believers came boldly and took Stephen’s body, which they buried and gave “loud lamentations” over, something that was forbidden for executed criminals. The church honoured the saint whom the Lord had welcomed into heaven. 2. When many saints were scattered, the apostles stayed on, because they were not going to be forced out by persecution. It was not wrong to flee when persecuted, but in this case the apostles stayed put.

PROGRESS (Acts 8:4-8)
The progress of the kingdom of God was multidimensional:
– Progress in the evangelistic efforts of Philip the deacon. Samaria was a part of God’s plan for the church’s progress. On the other hand, Jerusalem was described as the city that had stoned the prophets. Even when the Christ was sent to them, they killed Him. And now, the city was driving out the church. But when Samaria got one evangelist, Evangelist Philip, almost the entire city came to faith.
– Progress in the Mission of Christ. In the mission statement Jesus included Samaria as a gateway before the gospel made its way to “all the earth.” Samaria had a special place in the Lord’s heart. It was to the sinful adulteress of Samaria that He first revealed that He was the Messiah. By revealing this to a woman, a Samaritan, and a serial adulteress, Jesus showed that the gospel was for those who do not deserve it. In the famous miracle of the healing of the ten lepers, the grateful leper is identified as a Samaritan. The parable Jesus told to explain who our neighbour is features a Samaritan as the neighbour. When James and John wanted to call down fire from heaven on this ‘evil city’ they were rebuked by the Lord. And now we see that the gospel reaches this city that was so dear to Jesus.
– Progress in the preparation of the apostle Paul. Saul saw first hand how the Christian martyrs embraced the suffering that the Lord had ordained them to go through. His own life was similar to Stephen’s. He too was falsely accused of blasphemy, was dragged before the Jewish council, was stoned, and eventually martyred.

You are not too sinful or ugly for the gospel, which went through the gateway of the most hated and ugly and sinful people. Who knows what God has in store for the most vile God-hating people of the world. Isn’t it worth being stoned if the person who stoned you would greet you in heaven. Stephen’s prayer for Saul was answered in exactly that way.