The Scattered Preach the Word

Who they are.
1. The Christian church in Jerusalem had grown in number to the thousands (4:4; 5:14; 6:7).
2. One of the deacons, Stephen, did great miracles (6:8), which occasioned much opposition (6:9-11).
3. To escape persecution the Christians moved out of Jerusalem, first going to other parts of Judea and into Samaria (8:1).
4. “Every where” they went, they spoke and lived the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ.
  1. These are not the apostles, who were officially ordained to preach, for they stayed in Jerusalem (vs. 1b).
  2. Rather these “scattered abroad” (8:1), some of whom were men “of Cyprus and Cyrene” (11:20).
The scattered ones “preached the word.”
1. What does it mean that they were “preaching the word?” Not officially proclaim as a herald (used in vs. 5).
  1. Our text uses a different word – one which means: to bring or tell good tidings or news.
  2. This word focuses on the content of the message as the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ.
  3. This activity of every believer is intimately related to the official preaching by the church.
2. “The hand of the Lord was with them” (11:21).
The motivation is one of spontaneous and ardent love.
1. We are not interested in presenting ourselves nor in gaining notches on our evangelism belt.
2. Rather the love of Christ constrains every believer just as it did Paul (II Cor. 5:14).
3. The result is always spiritual growth and development and sometimes numerical growth.