Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

“Now those who had been scattered went about proclaiming the good news of the word. And Philip came down to the city of Samaria and began proclaiming the Christ to them. And the crowds with one mind were paying attention to what was being said by Philip, as they heard him and saw the signs that he was performing. For many of those who had unclean spirits, they were coming out of them, crying out with a loud voice, and many who were paralyzed and lame were healed. And there was great joy in that city” (Acts 8:4-8)

Chapter seven is the trial of Stephen. He’d been seized on false charges of blasphemy and dragged before the Sanhedrin. The high priest demanded to know if the charges were true. Instead of answering the question, Stephen spoke what Holy Spirit told him to (Luke 12:12). He gave them a recap of the entire history of the Hebrews. From Abraham, through Moses, along into the prophets, and finally landing on Jesus. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a history that sang the praises for the religious elite. It clearly showed the propensity of the people to rebel against God and kill His messengers, culminating with them killing His Son Jesus, the Righteous One. In fact, even as these rulers were foaming at the mouth and screaming about blasphemy, Stephen had a vision of Jesus standing to welcome him into Heaven. They couldn’t take it. They dragged him out of the building, tossed their robes at the feet of an eager young Pharisee (Saul), and stoned Stephen. Stephen forgave them and was whisked to Heaven, not feeling the brunt of what happened to his body.

Chapter eight continues this train wreck of religious rage. The chief priests persecuted the church, dragging men and women to prison because of their belief in Jesus. These efforts were led by that eager young Pharisee Saul. They did this to crush the belief in Jesus, but all they did was spread it. All throughout Samaria and Judea, wherever they were driven, they preached Jesus and signs and wonders were performed by Holy Spirit through the believers. Many who were paralyzed, lame, or had unclean spirits were healed. Even some who were active in the occult gave up their evil practices and embraced the salvation Jesus offered. One of the most startling events was that when people in Samaria (those hated Samaritans who were looked down on by the Jews as being impure in their worship of Yahweh) heard the gospel, they believed in Jesus and got saved. The church sent Peter and John to them. They prayed for them and the Samaritans received the Holy Spirit. It was one more proof that God accepted EVERYONE.

The Lord also sent Phillip to go hang out on a road leading from Jerusalem to Gaza. Phillip obeyed. When he got there, he saw an Ethiopian eunuch who had come up to Jerusalem to worship. Holy Spirit told Phillip to get close, so he started running beside the chariot. The Ethiopian was reading aloud to himself the book of Isaiah. Phillip asked him if he understood it. The Ethiopian did not, so Phillip offered to teach. He was invited into the chariot and together they went through Isaiah and Phillip taught on how Jesus was the fulfillment of the prophecies Isaiah spoke. The eunuch believed, was baptized in a nearby river, and went on his way rejoicing and worshipping. Phillip, however, was not left on the side of the road. Phillip suddenly found himself in Azotus, a long way from where he started (he’d been instantly translated there). So he did what all believers did. He started preaching Jesus throughout all the cities he came to as he made his way home to Capernaum.

Summary

Key Players: God, Jesus, Apostles, Stephen, Sanhedrin, Saul, Phillip, Ethiopian Eunuch, Jews

Key Verse(s): Acts 7:34-53; 8:36-40