God Will Make A Way

GOD WILL MAKE A WAY (ACTS 11:19-26)

This year’s Putonghua revival meetings gave me a sharper focus in ministry. On the opening day (March 4, 2019), the speaker (Kiven Choy) gave a touching message on suffering and sacrifice. The previous week before the revival meetings, I had quickly turned down an invitation to interview for more leadership. The sermon told about how missionaries like Hudson Taylor traveled six months by ship just to reach China, how scrawny John Sung was mistaken for a homeless man by the church he was invited to speak at, how Baptist missionary Lottie Moon died a 80-pound weakling on a ship in Japan on the way to America to regain her health, and how early Korean pastors were rejected by like pariahs by their fellow countrymen. Halfway through the sermon I had completely repented and rededicated my life to God.

After the two morning sessions, I had lunch with the Revival Meetings’ organizing committee, Rev. So and the morning sessions speakers Rev. Choy of Hong Kong and Rev. Huang from Singapore. I was seated to the left of Rev. Choy, who was seated to the left of Rev. So. At lunch my first remark to Rev. Choy was, “I’m glad you didn’t come last week to speak, or I’m going to be very busy in the future.” Rev. Choy had no clue what I was talking about, but Rev. So, seizing the moment, said, “The door is still open.” I replied, “No thanks, I’m sure God has a way to open the door for me if I’m needed.” The Singapore pastor Rev Huang chimed in and said, “If you preach this message in Singapore, the hearers will ask, “What suffering?”

The early church was a dynamic, developing and dauntless community. Three thousand people accepted Christ and were baptized on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:41). Shortly after, Peter and John were imprisoned, but 5,000 men were added to the church (Acts 4:4). Before too long, the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith (Acts 6:7).

What defines the church? Why is the church of God more afraid of riches than repression, comfort than challenges, and luxury than lacking? How did persecution affect the church?

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19 Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen travelled as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to none but unto the Jews only. 20 And some of them were men of Cyprus and Cyrene, which, when they were come to Antioch, spake unto the Grecians, preaching the Lord Jesus. 21 And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord. (Acts 11:19-21)

Open Doors, a ministry to believers in persecuted countries, wrote a four-part Bible study series on persecution and asked these three hard-hitting questions in its opening statement:

Would you go to church if you knew it could be attacked mid-service?

Would you own a Bible if being caught with it could send you to prison?

Would you be ready to give your life up for your faith?

https://www.opendoors.org.au/assets/08-Resources/06-Misc-Resources/ODY-BibleStudySeries.pdf

The verb “scattered abroad” (v 19) or diaspeiro, the verbal form for the noun “diaspora,” made its debut in Acts, fittingly, with Stephen’s death (Acts 8:1) and Saul’s consent. Persecution (v 19) is translated as tribulation (Matt 13:21), afflicted (Matt 24:9), anguish (John 16:21) and trouble (1 Cor 7:28). It is used in three situations in Acts – Israel’s affliction in Egypt (Acts 7:10-11), the Jerusalem church’s persecution in verse 19, and Paul’s future persecutions (Acts 20:23).

Stephen’s death resulted in the spread of the church and not the silence of the church, her growth and not her grave, and her dispersion and not demise. The church grew in leaps and bounds, multiplied, crossed the boundary of land, race and gender. Stephen's martyrdom moved the gospel into Samaria (Acts 8:1) and then spread to Gentile lands, such as the slightly north Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch (v 19). Phenice is local Gentile territory near Syria, Cyprus is an island, and Antioch is extreme north in foreign, some say 280 miles from Jerusalem and the third greatest city in the Roman empire besides Rome and Alexandria. Phoenicia residents are Canaanites while Antioch residents are Arameans, Phoenicia is the northern coast, Antioch is the great Syrian city and Cyrus is the island.

Persecution is a scary word, but it never slowed the church down. The greatest revivals broke out in history in the midst of persecution, whether in Korea, China or east Europe. What are we supposed preach? Preach the kingdom of God (Luke 4:43), the glad tidings (Luke 8:1), the gospel (Luke 9:6), Jesus Christ (Acts 5:42) and peace by Jesus Christ (Acts 10:36).