Last week we had a special service where we observed both the Lord’s Supper and baptism, and I preached a sermon specifically about understanding the ordinances of the church. We took a one-week break from our series in Acts.

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This week, we’re back in Acts.

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You may recall that the last major event that happened in our study of the Book of Acts was the killing of Stephen. That’s where we’re going to pick up our study this morning: just after the death of Stephen.

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Before we go any further, let’s pray together.

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(prayer)

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Today’s sermon is entitled “The Gospel Expansion Begins.”

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You see, up until this point, all of the work of the Church was focused in and around Jerusalem. However, the death of Stephen and the persecution of the church would serve as an expansion of the reach of the gospel.

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Let’s learn about that and more in today’s passage.

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First, let’s learn about . . .

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‌I. The ravaging of the church.

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Let’s start off by looking at Acts 8:1–4:

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“Saul agreed with putting him to death. On that day a severe persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the land of Judea and Samaria. Devout men buried Stephen and mourned deeply over him. Saul, however, was ravaging the church. He would enter house after house, drag off men and women, and put them in prison. So those who were scattered went on their way preaching the word.”

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Notice, first of all, that it says Saul agreed with putting him to death.

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Of course, it’s been a couple of weeks since we were in Acts, but if we were reading straight through, you would remember that the him that is spoken of here is Stephen.

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Also, you would remember that those who killed Stephen took off some of their outer garments and kept them under the watch of a man named Saul.

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This is the same Saul. This is Saul of Tarsus. Luke (the author of Acts) is revealing more and more about Saul of Tarsus, as he will become a central figure in the Book of Acts.

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So, Saul agreed with putting Stephen to death.

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What’s more, we see that on the day that Stephen was killed, a severe persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem.

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Remember, when it speaks about the church in Jerusalem, it’s talking about the people, not a building. A severe persecution broke out against the followers of Jesus in Jerusalem.

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Luke tells us what happened as a result of that persecution.

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Verse 1 says, “ . . . all except the apostles were scattered throughout the land of Judea and Samaria.”

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So, the twelve apostles stayed in Jerusalem, but we see the majority of the followers of Jesus scattered throughout the land.

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Don’t forget, there are not just a few Christians at this point. As we’ve learned throughout the first seven chapters of Acts, the Lord continued to add to the church daily those who were being saved.

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There was great expansion of the church in Jerusalem, and now we start to see the expansion of the church outside of Jerusalem.

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Verse 4 says that as they were scattered, they “went on their way preaching the word.”

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Lest we forget, we must remember what Jesus said in Acts 1:8. He said,

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“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

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We see this happening here, don’t we? The gospel reach is expanding into Judea and Samaria right here in Acts 8.

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However, Saul is not having it. He is on a mission to stamp out this expansion of the Church.

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Verse 3 says Saul was ravaging the Church.

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Saul would actually go house to house and drag off men and women to put into prison.

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Saul wa