When reading the book of Acts, one cannot help but feel invigorated, refreshed and convicted. Invigorated because of its pace and pioneering nature. Refreshed by the courage shown and the depth of relationships experienced in the early church. And convicted because we don’t feel that our lives or our church look very similar!
We’re going to focus on a small section, Acts 6:8-8:40, which tells the stories of how God used Stephen and Philip to fulfil his purposes and spread his message. Reflecting on the ‘surprising power’ in these two men can help us as we look to be witnesses for Jesus in our ‘Judea & Samaria’ (Acts 1:8)
Here are five things that made their power surprising:
(1) Ordinary People
Stephen and Philip are not apostles; they are just ‘ordinary people’. This was the power that made the early church so potent— these were ordinary men and women, spontaneously sharing their faith within their normal circles of family, friends and colleagues. When the pastor speaks of Christ, people are not surprised; when anyone else does it, people are usually amazed! Evangelism is a task that Jesus gave to everyone, and therefore, the power of the Holy Spirit to share the message was given to everyone too. This is for ‘ordinary people’ like you and me, who get ‘caught up’ in something that God is doing.
(2) All Races
Not only are Stephen & Philip not apostles, but we see also in chapter 8 a key transition from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria (Acts 8:1). And who gets converted in chapter 8? First, a group of Samaritans (half-Jews, half-traitors) and secondly, an Ethiopian eunuch (so a black man who would have been excluded from temple worship in the Old Testament— see Deut 23:1). Luke, who wrote the book of Acts as the sequel to his gospel, makes it very clear that the gospel is for all people, all races and all nationalities. And the gospel must ‘go out’ from Jerusalem to all geographies and people groups.
(3) All Means
There is not ‘one way’ of doing evangelism. In these passages, we’re going to see God use dialogue, preaching, signs & wonders, angels, Bible study, suffering, martyrdom, Bible history and team work to convert people. There was a flexibility to the early church’s evangelism that is worth considering for our day. As Paul would later say about himself,
I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some (1 Corinthians 9:22).
(4) For Suffering
In Acts 7, we read about the first Christian martyr. Stephen means ‘crown’, and he is certainly worthy of one because of his willingness to suffer and the manner in which he suffered. The power that the Spirit gives us for evangelism is not only to speak about Jesus, but also to suffer for Jesus. In fact, the word ‘martyr’ comes originally from the ancient Greek legal term for ‘witness’: someone who gives testimony or evidence in a court of law. So to witness is to suffer. That is why we need power.
(5) Upside-down power
In chapter 8, we’re going to come across Simon, who boasted that he was someone great. Others even came to call him ‘the Great Power’ (Acts 8:8-9). He wanted the power of the Spirit (that Peter and John had), but he wanted to control and sell the Holy Spirit rather than be controlled by and used by the Holy Spirit. The temptation for the Christians in Samaria was to distort the gospel to be about power in a worldly sense. Simon believed the gospel, but he was not willing to deny himself; he loved himself and his status too much. We learn later in chapter 8 that Philip, from Isaiah 53, speaks about the humiliation and suffering of Christ. The power we have is upside-down: it is not to lift us up (to make us great and build a platform for ourselves); it is so we can stoop low (to serve, to suffer and to die).
This is surprising power indeed! Here is how we will break the series up through the month of April and start of May:
1. Stephen (part 1) – surprising power to suffer (Acts 6:8-15, 7:54-8:1)
2. Stephen (part 2) – surprising power to speak (Acts 7)
3. Philip (part 1) – surprising power to discern (Acts 8:1-25)
4. Philip (part 2) – surprising power to ‘be available’ (Acts 8:26-40)
The original series was extended by 3 weeks and now includes Acts 9, which introduces Saul/Paul and reintroduces Peter
5. Saul & Ananias: surprising Power for personal transformation (Acts 9:1-19)
6. Saul & Barnabas: Surprising Power to persuade (Acts 9:20-31)
7. Peter: Surprising Power to heal (Acts 9:32-43)
Do join us every Sunday, 4.30 PM for our online service.
Books that you might find helpful if you want to read deeper into the book of Acts are:
- Men in Action – Paul Rees
- Acts – a visual guide (Kevin DeYoung & Chris Ranson)
- Acts – The word of his grace (Chris Green)
- The message of Acts (John Stott)