Acts 8:4

Acts 8:4 - Those who had been scattered preached the Word wherever they went.

What the devil meant for harm, God turned around and used for good. The early church was under a lot of persecution. People were being beaten, thrown into prison and even killed. It did not look good. Christians were being scattered to outlying towns and villages to avoid persecution. It may have looked like the enemy was getting the upper hand, but God had a plan.
God always has a plan. As the Christians were scattered they preached the gospel. Wherever they went, God went with them and the message of Christ spread. Now, just to keep it straight, God was not the one causing the persecution. He does not want harm to come to His children.

We, however, live in a fallen world. Because of the choices of man, sin entered into the world and now bad things will happen. God does not cause them to happen, but He will make good come out of them for all those who Love Him.

If you trust in Him, God will take all of the bad things in your life and bring good out of them. Sometimes this is hard to remember, especially when we are going through the hard times, but it is the truth and we need to hold onto it. Jesus tells us that we will face hard times because we are in the world, but then He reminds us that He has overcome the world.

So, the next time that you are going through something difficult, don’t let it get you down. Instead, do like these early Christians and find a way to continue your message of spreading the gospel. Look for the good to come out of every situation.

Mark 4:26-27

Mark 4:26-27 - He (Jesus) also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether He sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how.”

Jesus has given us many examples of what the kingdom of God is like. He’s trying to help us understand since we are now a part of this kingdom. 

In this picture we see a farmer scattering seed. After he has scattered the seed we know that he has no power over whether the seed grows or not. He can water and fertilize it, but as far as what goes on inside the seed he has no control. 

As we compare this story to our lives we see that the seed is the Word of God and we are likened to the farmer. We have a job to do; we must scatter the seed. After that we have no control of how the seed grows.

That is what makes it hard sometimes. As we preach the Word and speak into people’s lives we want to see the fruit of our labor. We want to see the change it is making in people’s lives, but that should not be our concern. Our concern should be in doing God’s will and then trusting that He is working in those that are receiving the seed.

We are promised that His Word will not return void, so we know that as we speak it, things are happening. It is powerful and will change people’s lives.

Our job is to scatter the seed. Get it out there and let God take care of the rest. His Spirit will work and grow the see inside the hearts of those it reaches. We must preach the Word and trust God.

2 Timothy 4:2

2 Timothy 4:2 Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage – with great patience and careful instruction.

           You don’t have to be a preacher to preach and you don’t have to be a full time minister to speak the Word. God gave us all the Word. It is there for us to use in every part of our lives. We must apply it to our own lives, and then use it to correct, rebuke and encourage those around us.

           As we know from 2 Timothy chapter 3 “All scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching, correcting, rebuking and training in righteousness.” Every Word in the bible is from God. There is not one part of it that we cannot use. And we must be ready. “Be prepared in season and out of season.”

           There will be opportunities for you to speak the Word. God will open doors and prepare the way, but it is up to you to take advantage of it. You must be familiar with the Word. We are told that the Holy Spirit will bring the Word to our remembrance when we are in need of it, but you cannot remember something that you never knew. Spend time in the Word; become familiar with it.

           When God opens a door into someone’s heart you want to make sure that you are ready. You don’t want to miss the opportunity. Use the Word for correcting, rebuking and encouraging.

           This passage continues on to remind us that we must exercise great patience and careful instruction. When you are correcting your fellow brother or sister, don’t get frustrated. Instead, be patient, understanding the difficulties of change. Be careful to instruct them and show them where they messed up so they can make it right. And most of all do this in Love. If you Love them you will correct them in a way that is encouraging and uplifting, instead of tearing them down.

Acts 8:4

Acts 8:4 - Those who had scattered preached the Word wherever they went.

This was a time of great persecution for the early believers. Stephen had just given up his life for the cause. He was just the first. Saul (who had been there at Stephens death) was determined to put an end to all who called on the name of Jesus. Some he put to death, many were thrown into jail. As Saul went from town to town persecuting the Christians he was scattering them. Often when they heard he was coming they would disperse and leave before he arrived. Through Saul, Satan was trying to break up the early church.

Even though this was a hard time and Satan meant it for harm, God still used it for good. As the believers were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria they continued to preach the Word. Even though they were facing persecution and possible death they would not keep quiet. They could not help but share the message of Jesus and tell His story.

What are you facing today? Are you being persecuted or ridiculed because of your faith? While there is still heavy persecution in some parts of the world, most of us just face peer pressure and the fear of man. We are talking about persecution, but ask yourself this: “Do those around me even know that I am a Christian?” These early Christians faced death for sharing the gospel, yet they still would not keep quiet. They still preached Jesus in word and deed. And it wasn’t just in church, they preached wherever they went.

We often speak of wanting to see the power manifest now as it did in the early church, but we won’t get off our butts and share Jesus with those around us. We are too afraid of what people may think. Our Nation is currently in a place where we have freedom to speak what we want and we need to take advantage of it. If you want to see our society change for the better it is time to do something about it. As Jesus told us, “Go and make disciples!” It is time for us as the church and as individuals to step up in the boldness of the Spirit and take the world for God. We need to preach the Word wherever we go.