Thank you for the shortest passage. Sorry.. Christine =)
Even in these short three verses, we can see the significant events that would take a place.
1. Persecution forced people to scatter. The Christians needed to move out of Jerusalem to spread the Gospel to the people in different regions. As we read in Acts 1:8, Jesus commanded His followers to go to Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth to be His witnesses. God used what seemed to be tragedy and evil for His ultimate purpose and will.
2. The infamous Saul who had a such hatred toward Christians was at Stephen's murder sight (8:1). He was charged up after the incident and continued to pursue in destroying Christianity. We all know how Jesus grabbed hold of this evil man and turned him into the greatest missionary through whom many people came to know Jesus Christ as their savior. There is no one else like Paul understood what it means to be touched by Jesus Christ; life that was completely changed. Again God uses something impossible from our understanding to more than possible for His purpose and glory.
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2 comments:
thanks for your insightful reflection, kwijung. this passage is a reminder that everything that happens, even tragedies and calamities, are under the sovereign control of God and in accordance with His purpose. when we are "scattered", we should know instead that we are being "sent". when we find we have to be associated with godless people, we should remember that we are being "sent" to them to bear witness to our faith. likewise, our griefs and tragedies and how we deal with them may be the means by which others come to the knowledge and salvation of Jesus Christ.
we must not be too "wise" in our own eyes in deciding what the calamities and separations in our lives "say" about God's goodness or His purposes.
Thank for sharing!
It's like the great Salem Witch Hunt started, except it's Christians who they were hunting. Either way the Pharisees saw them all as heretics.
Dang, Saul was an evil character. It is surprising who God will use to spread his kingdom on this earth. Saul was the worst of all enemies to Christians at that time...It's pretty amazing and it shows the true power of God to change even the hardest of hearts.
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