Sermon Restructuring The Church For Expansion
Acts 8:1-8
“Saul was one of the witnesses, and he agreed completely with the killing of Stephen. A great wave of persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem; and all the believers except the apostles were scattered through the regions of Judea and Samaria. 2 (Some devout men came and buried Stephen with great mourning.) 3 But Saul was going everywhere to destroy the church. He went from house to house, dragging out both men and women to throw them into prison.
4 But the believers who were scattered preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went. 5 Philip, for example, went to the city of Samaria and told the people there about the Messiah. 6 Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did. 7 Many evil[a] spirits were cast out, screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city.”
Introduction: Rapid growth, constant persecution and limited resources made the Apostles rethink their future and the future of the church. There are many reasons to reorganize a ministry team. In Acts 8, the apostles were realigning ministry functions and sending forth preachers and witnesses to new strategic directions. Persecution caused the leadership to adapt to changes quickly. The church must become a missionary moment. Leaders must collaborate and communicate to improve decision making, improving performance, counting the cost, and refocusing on priorities. This restructuring move would unlock the full potential of the Church in terms of efficiency and effectiveness. The Church in on the move.
Acts 8 marks the beginning of the expansion of the Church. Christ in his final charge to his disciples commanded them to wait in Jerusalem until they were endowed with the power of the Holy Spirit. They were commissioned to carry the Gospel message to Jerusalem and all Judea, then to Samaria and finally, to share the good news of Jesus Christ with the entire world. Jesus gave them the mandate and a pattern for expansion: "you will be witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." One of greatest blessing of the church was realizing that as the Church expanded, the responsibilities of the church must be shared by all believers.
Several Greek speaking Jews had been selected to serve in the capacity of deacons. These men took care of the daily administration of the food supply and perform other needed ministry responsibilities. Two of the most outstanding deacons were Stephen and Philip. As persecution increased at Jerusalem, the church was forced to scatter, spreading the message of Christ everywhere they went. The Jewish leaders rejected the preaching of Stephen and stoned him to death. Stephen became the first martyr of the Christian faith. He exemplified his spiritual graces at the highest level. He died praying and asking forgiveness for those who falsely accused him, ejected his message, and killed him. He actions cut against the grain of every human emotion. Instead of contempt, anger, and revenge, Stephen was praying with love, compassion, and blessing. We stand spellbound at the death place of this lowly servant with the same awe we hold when we gaze on our dying Savior. In his death, Stephen manifested a supernatural grace, endurance and meekness that could only come from the power of the Holy Spirit. The persecution designed to stop the church, fueled its growth and development. The more they persecuted the Christians, the more the church grew. The fire of the Holy Spirit could not be put out. This persecution caused faithful Christian to spread to the surrounding cities, preaching the gospel wherever they went. Most of the original apostles remained at Jerusalem, but believers scattered spreading the message everywhere. The church was on the move because they restructured the ministry for expansion. Notice the ministry was shared.
1. The Ministry was Shared - Acts 8 introduces us to number of individuals involved in the movement of the church. There was Saul of Tarsus, a zealous persecutor; Philip, a deacon and faithful preacher; Simon Mangus, a clever deceiver who desired the praise of men; and an Ethiopian eunuch, a concerned seeker, who served as the minister of Finance of Ethiopia. All played an important part in the expansion of the church. In this transitional chapter, the message of Jesus Christ goes to the crossbreed Jews of Samaria, and to a gentile Ethiopian eunuch. The Church's only ambition was to be obedient to God. They were empowered by the Holy Spirit to be effective in ministry. The Holy Spirit’s power was present with them, confirming the word they preached. Philip led the charge to Samaria. Read the following verses.
“Therefore they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word. Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them. And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed. And there was great joy in that city.” Acts 8:4-8
When persecution increased at Jerusalem, Philip went to Samaria and preached a revival like few ever seen in history. His powerful preaching followed by miracles, healing and deliverance turned the whole city upside down. Seldom in our time do we hear of “great joy” coming to a whole city because of one man’s ministry. But this is what happened when Philip went to Samaria. “Greater works than these shall you do”, were the words of Jesus and in Philip’s ministry, it didn’t take long to see it come to pass. Of great importance is the fact that this revival was the result of shared ministry. Salvation for the whole world can only accomplished through shared ministry.
The apostle had set strict guidelines for the selection of these deacons, then they entrusted the ministry in their hands. Philip was the ideal person to begin the ministry expansion to Samaria. He was a Grecian Jew, with a Greek name. The Samaritans were probably more receptive to Philip than they would have been to the Hebrew speaking Jews from Jerusalem. After more than 700 years of conflict between the Jews and the Samaritans, the Holy Spirit directed Philip to venture in the region.
Philip preached Jesus unto them. He was not promoting politics, social services, civil rights, current events, or any other popular subjects of his day. He preached Jesus. The church today needs to remember, that people still need the Lord. Jesus the Christ still saves, heals, and delivers. When we preach Jesus, God will still confirm the word we preached. The people of Samaria responded the message, "they gave heed with one accord." God demonstrated His power among them. Miracles were done in the name of the Lord. These people who were bound by Satan were set free. Various types of sicknesses were healed by the power of God and there was great Joy in the city! The church was on the move because ministry was shared. Restructuring the church for expansion caused the apostles to select ministers that cared.
2. The Ministers Cared - Philip demonstrated his love and concern for widow and needy in Jerusalem, He was the ideal person to care for the city of Samaria. He wanted people of Samaria to experience the grace of God in their lives. Even though, people were healed and delivered, Philip wanted them to have even more. He wanted them to be filled with the Holy Spirit. After hearing about the great revival, Peter and John came from the church at Jerusalem to pray for these converted Samaritans that they might receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. God bridges the gap between His people at Jerusalem and His people at Samaritan, lest the Samaritan think that they are a move of God independent from the saints at Jerusalem. God bridges the gap by filling these with the Holy Spirit in response to the ministry of Peter and John. The church can always move forward when her ministers demonstrate genuine love and caring for all of God’s people. The racial barriers were removed, and true fellowship was nurtured. Peter and John took on new role to continue church expansion. The ministers cared enough to be flexible. Restructuring the church for expansion caused the ministry to be shared, then it caused the apostles to select ministers who cared. Together, this created an atmosphere in which the Holy Spirit was free to demonstrate His Power. Then the hypocrites were exposed and became scared.
3. The Hypocrite Scared - When there is a great manifestation of God's power, there is a temptation for some to try advance their personal ambition at the expense of God’s church. Simon Magus, the town sorcerer, who had previously deceived the people by claiming to be some great one, became a follower of Christ. Read the following verses.
“But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done.” Acts 8:12, 13
Simon who believed and baptized in the name of Jesus, followed and supported the ministry of Philip. When he saw the ministry of Peter and John, He greatly admired them. He marveled at the power of God demonstrated through the laying on of the apostle’s hands. He desired to be used by the Holy Spirit to get people filled with the Holy Spirit and to be admired in the eyes of the people. As a practicing Magi, Simon had been famous, admired and sought after. He offered to buy this gift from Peter and John at any cost. Peter confronted Simon because his motives were not right. We too must be careful about our motives. Let’s read that part of the conversation:
“ And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost. But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.” Acts 8:18-21
Simon's temptation is still with us today. Many seek God's power for personal benefit or spiritual pride. Any gift or talent God may give to us is for the advancement of the kingdom of God. WE should never attempt to use God’s power for selfish gain. Some Christians who boast of their superior spirituality have the wrong motives. Peter confronts Simon’s hypocrisy head on. Instead of Simon’s motivation being a heart of purity, benevolence, or love for the souls of men, that he desired to be enabled to confer the Holy Ghost; it was a heart of pride, seeking vain glory, and love of money that drove his request. Simon’s simple request had revealed his whole heart. Peter quickly judged him and pronounced a fearful judgment on him and his money.
God sees and judges whether our hearts are sincere and pure. Our lip’s profession is only as acceptable as our heart’s condition. Is your heart right with God? Are your motives pure--and does God see the contents of the heart as holy, sincere, and benevolent affections towards him? God knows the motives; and with absolute certainty he will judge; and with perfect justice he will pronounce our doom or bestow our reward. It will always be according to the affections of the heart. The church was on the move because the ministry was shared, the ministers cared, and the hypocrite was scared. Restructuring the church for expansion caused the ministry to be shared, then it caused the apostles to select ministers who really cared. Together, this created an atmosphere in which the Holy Spirit was free to demonstrate His Power. Then the hypocrites were exposed, became scared and were called to repentance. Then the ministers became daring. Philip was so successful Samaria, the Holy Spirit called him to venture into unchartered territory, and Philip dared to go.
4. The Minister Dared - How precious is a single soul in the sight of the Lord! To bring one person to the faith, God sends an angel to Philip, and commissions him to go to Gaza. Philip dared to leave a great revival in Samaria to answer a call in the desert. Philip dared to go into the desert, where he meets a lone traveler on his way back home. The African man, he sees is both influential and disadvantaged. He was a eunuch, a man who had been castrated. This was probably done that he might trusted as he climbed the ladder of success. He eventually arrived at the top and became the minister of finance for the queen of Ethiopia. However, he had an inner emptiness that no amount of material success could fill. His recent worship experience in Jerusalem, most likely put him in touch with the Jesus movement, the birth of the Church and its rapid growth. It’s quite possible, his experience left him wondering about many things.
On his return journey, riding on his chariot, he searched the scriptures. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Philip appeared having been supernaturally commanded by God to go where the Ethiopian was. Philip dared to obey the command of God. Then, Philip dared to listen as the Ethiopian was reading. Sometimes, we are so anxious to talk, we forget to listen. When Philip understood the Ethiopian’s struggle, he offered to explain the scriptures from Isaiah that he was reading. Philip preached unto him Jesus Christ, the one about whom the passage was written. The Ethiopian’s eyes were opened to faith in Christ, and he believed, received and was baptized the same day.
Philip dared to allow God to lead him in new phrase of ministry. He dared to leave the comfort of Jerusalem, and venture into Samaria. After successful ministry among the Samaritans, now he must carry the gospel to a lone gentile on the road to Gaza. God demonstrates that the gospel is for all people of all colors, races, cultures, and religious backgrounds. A new situation, but the same old message, Philip preached Jesus unto him. It is the message of Jesus that wins men to Christ. God led Philip into a still wider circle to reach an Ethiopian of a different race. The Holy Spirit leads his people into missions in and beyond the home community. Since we are a part of that same church on the move, we must remember that the Spirit’s call is progressive and continuous. We must remain open because God has prepared plans and people of which we are not aware. God's church is still on the move. This lesson is crucial because it helps us see the importance of evangelism in the church. There are various ways of evangelizing. The best method is still personal soul winning. This means work: it means a willingness to go. This way may seem the most difficult, but it is the most effective way to reach people with the gospel. If Christians dared to follow the example of Philip, they could and would change the world. Today, the Church should use every available means to reach a lost world for Christ such as ministry tracts, Christian literature, social media, and mass crusades, and conference meeting, but never forget, Philip left a large crowd to win one soul for Jesus.
All men were born into sin, and most men don't even know it. They don't know how to have their sin forgiven or how to be set free. There is only one way they can know about forgiveness, healing, and restoration, they must be told. How can they hear if no one tells them? If each believer does their part in witnessing, all will have the opportunity to know. God could have chosen to do this work through angels, yet he chose to use believers. We are His church. When believers move into action, the church moves into action. Stephen was a believing layman; Philip was a believing layman and they willingly shared the ministry. They cared enough to proclaim the good news of God’s saving power in Jesus Christ. Every Christian should share the ministry and care about the souls of men. We are called to be personal soul-winners. God has given us the power and we dare to do the work of ministry, wherever and whenever He gives us the opportunity. It may be in a place like Jerusalem, or Samaria or even on a desert road in Gaza. We must dare to go. This is a chapter on the expansion of the Church through evangelism. The believers scattered by persecution were not ordained clergy, but they went everywhere telling the good news.
This is not an image of glamorous public ministry, but one of faithful witnessing about Jesus with everyone they met. The early church members were willing to share the ministry responsibilities to increase the effectiveness of the church. They were believers who genuinely cared for all people and were concerned about the salvation of mankind. Their leaders were willing to confront and condemn hypocrisy and then provide directions for repentance and restoration. Finally, the early church members dared to follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit as He unveiled God’s continuous and progressive plan to save the world. We are a part of that same church, the church of the move. As seen in the life of Philip, when the Spirit of God is at work amongst us, a response is demanded. The kind of response necessary is more than mere obedience to a command; it is more an inner drive; it is a response empowered by the Holy Spirit, overflowing with joy and new life, bubbling into action seeking to win the world for Christ. We go sharing the message, caring for His people, demonstrating His power that the purpose of God might be fulfilled. It is the work of the Spirit in our life and ministry that the world may know the only true God, who is still at work amongst his people. Amen!
