Good News Scattered

Good News Scattered

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.

Acts 8:1

In Switzerland, the Zurich Council demanded a unified church and state. The free church radicals not only refused to let their children be baptized, they met on January 21, 1525, and baptized one another. It was the birth of the Anabaptist movement, and it symbolized the need to be baptized upon a confession of faith in Christ. These men also decided to form a church apart from the state:

In rejecting infant baptism, the Anabaptists separated that political tie between church membership and citizenship. By challenging the unity of the church, the Anabaptists shredded the social fabric. In rejecting the state’s authority in matters of religion, the Anabaptists threatened anarchy, and, by refusing military service, the Anabaptists made the city vulnerable to foreign attack. Anabaptists were imprisoned and exiled, fined and threatened. Meanwhile their ideas, already present in the rural countryside around Zurich, spawned a number of fellowships beyond the city walls.

A similar scattering happened in the early church. Because of the persecution of Christians, many families left Jerusalem. With parcels on their backs, they carried faith in their hearts. Like dandelion seeds on a summer’s wind, they splayed out in many directions. In Acts 8:4 we read, “The believers who were scattered preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went.”

So many times we question why persecution comes. We might not personally face punishment or death for our beliefs, but in this world there will always be those who oppose Christ and those who follow Him. Peace comes when we find Jesus in the midst of everything we face and point others to His saving grace.

Dear heavenly Father, it’s so easy in retrospect to see Your plan in the spreading of Your Word in history. Help me to know that I am part of Your plan too. Help me to open my mouth and share Your goodness, even when doing so is costly.