A Growing Church Even When We Have Differences

In Acts 8, we see Saul persecuting the Church in Jerusalem. It’s a very interesting series of verses that describe an important event that led the churches expansion to take place throughout the world. Was this positive or negative for the early church?

“On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison. 4Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.”

If you lived during this trying and difficult time, you might think, “how could this ever be a positive thing?” If you were running for your life because you were being persecuted for worshipping a God who had sent his only Son to live among the people and then died for all humanity and then arose……the political leaders were looking for ways to stop this church expanding in any possible way.

Three thousand years later I believe it was the turning point in the history of the church. It allowed the church to move and grow in different ways among the many cultures of the time. The church grew and prospered.

One of the reasons some churches experience peace and productivity today is because the shepherds allow those who are unhappy about issues to move on without disturbance. They don’t chase after nor cater to dislikes for it is clear they can’t please everybody. They don’t carry ill-will toward any for not preferring the way we do things, but they gently refuse to hold court night after night in effort to appease the disgruntled. They strongly believe those special ones leaving are called to do so by God to bless, richly bless, other congregations. The spreading of believers has always been a mark of God’s move in the early church. Why is it we applaud the results of Acts 2 likeness among us, but criticize Acts 8 likeness among us as if some strange thing was happening? His ways have always been higher than ours and always will be.