In reading through the Acts of the Apostles, it can seem like the dynamic spread of the gospel dissipated over time.
I remember when I first became a Christian. I was a sold out follower of Christ, a soul winner. Even though I was only six years old, I made sure to witness to all of my friends. If we were having a sleepover, I would wait until the lights were out to warn them about the perils of hell. I even forced my childhood cat to say the sinner’s prayer, or something in that ballpark as I forced her to meow something I deemed passable.
I can look back on those early years with a sense of humor, shaking my head and thinking, “If I only knew then what I know now.” But honestly, as naive as I was, I still wish I had that kind of zeal. Even though my understanding hadn’t fully formed and my presentation could have used a little work, I had no hesitation in sharing my faith.
Pentecost to Prison
In reading through the Acts of the Apostles, it can seem like the dynamic spread of the gospel dissipated over time. It began at Pentecost where, in just one day, the gospel was preached and three thousand souls were saved (Acts 2:41). After that people were being added to their number daily (Acts 2:47). Just a few chapters later they are already up to 5,000 men, not including women and children (Acts 4:4). They were held in high esteem by all the people (Acts 5:13). All of Jerusalem was filled with their teaching (Acts 5:28). Even a great many priests became obedient to the faith (Acts 6:7).
The first century church was growing exponentially. Apart from a few minor obstacles, there didn’t appear to be anything in the way of its expansion. They were meeting daily, sharing all things in common, and growing in number as well as in unity, wisdom, and spiritual maturity.
By the end of the book, however, we see that the church was being persecuted and scattered across the ends of the earth. They were meeting on average one day a week, desperately raising money to support the church in Jerusalem, and the Apostle Paul was imprisoned in Rome. How did they get to this point?
It would be easy to look at the trajectory of the church in Acts and think that there was a decline. If they could only get back to their glory days when they were at the height of their influence. If we read it in that way, the story could be rather discouraging, but is that how we were meant to read the history of the first century church?
Gospel Expansion
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” - Acts 1:8
This verse serves as the geographical outline to the Book of Acts. It is a prophecy that Jesus gave to the Apostles about how the gospel would spread throughout the world, but it is also a commission to send them out as His witnesses.
We can assume that the Apostles had their own ideas of how they would fulfill their calling. Perhaps they thought that they would be able to reform Judaism from the inside. Their initial success and growing support seemed to lead to that conclusion, but that wasn’t what God had intended, nor was it the direction the Holy Spirit was leading them towards. Once persecution began, the believers who had been gathering in Jerusalem were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria, advancing them to the next stage of the prophecy.
This wasn’t how the Apostles thought they would fulfill their mission, but it was effective. Like throwing water on an oil fire, the more the Jewish council and the Roman government tried to snuff out the gospel, the more it spread. By Chapter 10, Gentiles would be welcomed into the Body of Christ. By Chapter 13, the Apostle Paul, who had previously persecuted the church, would begin several missionary journeys, each reaching further out as the gospel message expanded throughout the ends of the earth.
After Paul’s third missionary journey, he was imprisoned and sent to Rome to face trial. Yet, he didn’t consider this a setback. He saw it as yet another missionary journey which he expressed in his letter to the Roman Church, “For I long to see you…I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome” (Romans 1:11-15).
In the last verse in Acts we see the Apostle continuing to proclaim the gospel with boldness, even while under house arrest (Acts 28:31). There is an open ended conclusion because Acts 1:8 had not yet been fulfilled. In fact, Paul wrote that he had hoped to continue on in his journey through Rome to Spain (Romans 15:24, 28). Even though he never reached the ends of the earth, he was motivated by Christ’s prophecy and commission to the church.
Facing a Task Unfinished
What should we glean from our study in the Acts of the Apostles? What is the role and application of Acts 1:8 for us today? I think it is easy for us to assume that apart from a few small unreached people groups, the ends of the earth have already been reached. Yet, I would argue that there are people in our own communities who have never heard the gospel.
It is incumbent upon every believer to take seriously the call to carry the gospel to the ends of the earth. For some, that will mean leaving the comforts of home and traveling to the unreached people groups of the world. For others, it will involve supporting the missionaries that go. But for everyone, it is a call to preach the gospel with boldness.
The ends of the earth are not that far away. There are people in our lives who need to hear the good news. Sure, they may know something about the gospel, Jesus, and Christianity, but have they ever actually had someone whose life has been transformed by Christ take the Scriptures and show them the power of Christ unto salvation?
Here is where the Book of Acts can offer us some guidance. First, we need to remain in alignment with the Holy Spirit. Allowing Him to lead us in the will of God to opportunities for kingdom expansion. Then, we ought to use the two primary spiritual tools the Holy Spirit has given us to reach the lost: the Word of God and prayer.
We ought to be in the Scriptures every day, reading the Bible in the way Jesus taught His disciples, to see Christ on every page. We need to preach the gospel to ourselves, lingering a little bit longer at the foot of the cross. We need to meditate on the Scriptures throughout the day so that what sinks deep into our hearts would be fresh on our lips and ready to share with anyone who crosses our path.
Then we ought to pray every morning for the Spirit of God to make us aware of the people around us, asking for boldness and the right words to say.
May we all continue in the way of Christ and the Apostles to live out our faith day by day, to keep in step with the Spirit, and to be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks us about the hope we have in Christ. Let the redeemed of the LORD say so.
Adam Miller is the President and host of Songtime Radio and serves as the pastor of South Chatham Community Church.
You can hear his teaching on our daily broadcast on the radio or online, watch his preaching live on Facebook, and read his articles on our website.
