Pastor's Ponderings: Tuesday Bible Study on Acts of the Apostles 8:1-4 (November 4, 2025)

November 4, 2025:  Tuesday Bible Study on Acts 8:1-4

Dear Bible Study folks, I hope that this passage today is a reminder of the power of the world to seek to undo the work of the Gospel that has been the mission of the Church now for nearly 2000 years. Though we are reading about Stephen's death by stoning, and, in today's passage, the outrage of the Jews at Christians in Jerusalem, and the Jews willingness to chase them down, enter their homes, and begin an early first century diaspora of Christians in the Middle East.  It seems that Rome saw this as a hands-off issue. After all they certainly did not want to encourage the belief of the Christians in the Savior and King, Jesus Christ. However, in our reading today, as short as it is, we discover the upheaval of all people who came to believe in Jesus as the Savior and Messiah. At the time of all this happening in Jerusalem, there were about 200 + new Christians in Jerusalem. This must have been a very frightening time for them as they were actively being sought to be imprisoned or killed. As we know from recent news, there are nations where Christians are still being persecuted with violence by governments and other religious groups in those nations. So, what is the path that Christians should take when this kind of hatred is aimed at them. Let's look at our reading for some clues.

1. The leaders, the Apostles stood fast, not leaving Jerusalem, while others fled to other communities outside of Jerusalem, with some of them going to other nations.

   1. This was possible for the leaders because they were people of courage. Really interesting when we consider how they had, at one time, hidden themselves away.

   2. They were also men and women of the highest repute in their communities, acting out of the love they had first experienced from Jesus in their own lives. There was little question about their character.

2. Scripture indicates to us that Saul was like a wild boar rooting out and destroying anyone who was found to be a Christian. There was a great, easy to see, difference in the character of Saul vs the character of the Apostles who were people of kindness, gentleness, and passion for the good of all people, even their enemies.

There is another thing here that is written between the lines, at least at this time. It will become more obvious as we read on in the Acts. The intent of the Apostles was to maintain and grow the new Church in Jerusalem, but because of the rampant persecution of the new believers, the enemies of the Church inadvertently caused the "Good News" to spread across the Middle East, and even into Asia Minor.  The people who have been chased away by the actions of those persecutors shared what they had come to know about the grace and power of Jesus Christ, and also about His death on the cross, and His Resurrection, when he was beheld by Mary, and later by Peter, and eventually by all of them many times.  The communities to which they traveled to find safety were just like Jerusalem, filled with corruption, hatred, and the seemingly ever-present Roman army. These communities hungered for the refreshing stories, and Word about this Jesus who changed everything for those who believed.

We who are in the Church understand and know that our Savior is always with us through the presence of His Spirit. It changes the life of everyone who comes to believe. What we do know is that this is not a non-participatory relationship. Once our hearts have been transformed by Christ's Love for us, things should be different. We too become those who share our faith, perhaps not so easily in words, but through our acts of grace and love for the people we encounter in our lives.

Thanks for being with me today.

Please remember that this Sunday we will be blessing the animals at worship. If your pet cannot come, please bring us a photo that can be placed on the table in front of the Altar on the main floor.

God bless you on this day, and always. With Love in Christ, Pastor Kim