Acts 9:1-2

Meanwhile Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any who belonged to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

These two verses are really important.

They are important for us when we are looking at the credentials of those who lead us.

They are important for when we are looking at the credentials of those who sit next to us in the pews on Sundays or who sit next to us in the office or cubicle next door.

They are important when we think we believe the right way.

Or do the right thing.

Or worship correctly.

Or know our Bible really well.

Or follow the right doctrine.

They are important for when we think that God only chooses "good" people.

Or people like us.

Or people different from us.

They are important for whenever we try to box God in in anyway whatsoever.

Because Paul is probably the most important figure in the early church.

Because Paul is responsible for so much of our theology.

And Paul was Saul.

And Saul breathed threats and murder against Jesus' followers.

Before he became a follower himself.

So when you think you know what a follower of Jesus should look like.

Think again.

Because God showed us that we should expect the unexpected.

Because God showed us that unexpected people can do extraordinary things.

Holy One, help me not to judge. Not myself, and not others. Open my heart to those who follow you who surprise me at every turn. Amen.

Acts 8:26-40

Then an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Get up and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is a wilderness road.) So he got up and went. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning home; seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over to this chariot and join it.” So Philip ran up to it and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah. He asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” He replied, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to get in and sit beside him. Now the passage of the scripture that he was reading was this:

“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter,
    and like a lamb silent before its shearer,
        so he does not open his mouth.
In his humiliation justice was denied him.
    Who can describe his generation?
        For his life is taken away from the earth.”

The eunuch asked Philip, “About whom, may I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” Then Philip began to speak, and starting with this scripture, he proclaimed to him the good news about Jesus. As they were going along the road, they came to some water; and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water! What is to prevent me from being baptized?” He commanded the chariot to stop, and both of them, Philip and the eunuch, went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he was passing through the region, he proclaimed the good news to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

And so it begins.

The gospel moves from the heart of the Jewish community of Christians toward the Gentiles.

Beginning with an Ethiopian Eunuch.

Of all Biblical stories that should caution us against who we count as "inside" vs. "outside" of our tribe, this is it.

Philip witnesses to someone who was an outsider in more ways than one: racially and sexually.

And this eunuch was left rejoicing with the Spirit of God he'd been given.

"What is to prevent me from being baptized?" the man asks Philip.

The answer: nothing.

God of all people, help me to see your Spirit at work in people who are not part of my tribe that I might love them and serve them with joy. Amen.

Acts 8:1b-26

Acts 8:1-26

That day a severe persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria. Devout men buried Stephen and made loud lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church by entering house after house; dragging off both men and women, he committed them to prison.

Now those who were scattered went from place to place, proclaiming the word. Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah to them. The crowds with one accord listened eagerly to what was said by Philip, hearing and seeing the signs that he did, for unclean spirits, crying with loud shrieks, came out of many who were possessed; and many others who were paralyzed or lame were cured. So there was great joy in that city.

Now a certain man named Simon had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he was someone great. All of them, from the least to the greatest, listened to him eagerly, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called Great.” And they listened eagerly to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. But when they believed Philip, who was proclaiming the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Even Simon himself believed. After being baptized, he stayed constantly with Philip and was amazed when he saw the signs and great miracles that took place.

Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. The two went down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit (for as yet the Spirit had not come upon any of them; they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus). Then Peter and John laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give me also this power so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain God’s gift with money! You have no part or share in this, for your heart is not right before God. Repent therefore of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and the chains of wickedness.” Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may happen to me.”

Now after Peter and John had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, proclaiming the good news to many villages of the Samaritans.

Then an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Get up and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is a wilderness road.)

Acts is known mostly for the witnessing of Peter and then Paul, but here in a small section we get a little bit about Philip. We get to see through him the gospel spread after the martyrdom of Stephen and the scattering of those who were persecuted after his death.

And then this funny story about Simon the magician.

Only not so funny, really. Because I'm sure that trying to use money to get power isn't something that stopped happening in the first century!

There's a lot of detail here I think to show that the witnessing not only didn't stop when trouble hit with Stephen's death, but instead it began to spread out. And as it spread, inevitably problems occurred.

So perhaps we shouldn't be surprised when we run in to a few along the way ourselves or when things don't go in church or in our faith the way we want or expect them to.

And even when they don't, God will always be sending us out. Moving on ahead of us to prepare the way for us to pick ourselves up and try again.

Lord, prepare the way! Amen.

Acts 7:58-8:1a

Then they dragged him out of the city and began to stone (Stephen); and the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he died. 

And Saul approved of their killing him.

Backtracking a little bit to mention what could be missed in a cursory reading of this passage - at least until you get to verse one of chapter 8.

Saul is there when Stephen was killed.

Saul holds the garments for the "witnesses" (and irony here: The Book of Acts is about very different kinds of witnesses!)

Saul approves of Stephen's death.

And, oh yeah: Saul becomes Paul.

As Acts continues, it will be impossible not to see the enormous - the invaluable - impact Paul has on the Christian church and the Christian faith. Paul is perhaps the architect of that faith: giving structure to the foundation of Jesus' life and ministry, and giving substance to followers about the reality of the Cosmic Christ.

Paul is perhaps the greatest witness of Acts.

And this is how he begins.

It is a beginning Paul himself will not forget.

It is a beginning, also, that is forgiven by the Stephen himself.

Forgiven, Saul is set free.

You. Me...also set free.

So, as my great Lutheran Confessions professor, Timothy Wengert, used to say (quoting his own professor): "What are you doing to do now that you don't have to do anything?"

What are you going to do with this freedom that comes from forgiveness?

In Acts, we'll see just what Paul will do after a very auspiciously dark beginning.

Free at last. Free at last. Thank God Almighty I am free at last! Now...help me to see what comes next! Amen.

Acts 7:51-60

“You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you are forever opposing the Holy Spirit, just as your ancestors used to do. Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? They killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One, and now you have become his betrayers and murderers. You are the ones that received the law as ordained by angels, and yet you have not kept it.”

When they heard these things, they became enraged and ground their teeth at Stephen. But filled with the Holy Spirit, he gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. “Look,” he said, “I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” But they covered their ears, and with a loud shout all rushed together against him. Then they dragged him out of the city and began to stone him; and the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he died. 

For the majority of chapter 7, Stephen preaches and tells the history of the Jewish people leading to Jesus. 

And then come the harsh words of condemnation to the council.

To those who are supposed to be upholding God's word.

To those who are meant to be leading.

And see where it gets him?

Now, granted most pastors and preachers don't have to worry about being stoned to death when they have some tough things to say in their sermons.

And we don't usually have to be worried about dying when we talk to others about our faith.

And yet from Stephen we learn that upholding God's word isn't always easy. 

Or comfortable.

And that is true for leaders for certain. I had a preaching professor who once advised that good preachers should always "preach with their bags packed!"

How comfortable are we in our faith?

How comfortable are we talking about it?

How comfortable are we, when we lead, to face being disagreed with?

And yet still love those who are angry with us? Stephen prayed for those who killed him.

Can we do the same for those who disappoint us on our faith journey?

Lord, help me to lead in love and share my faith with conviction. Amen

Acts 6:8-15

Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs among the people. Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and others of those from Cilicia and Asia, stood up and argued with Stephen. But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke. Then they secretly instigated some men to say, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.” They stirred up the people as well as the elders and the scribes; then they suddenly confronted him, seized him, and brought him before the council. They set up false witnesses who said, “This man never stops saying things against this holy place and the law; for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses handed on to us.” And all who sat in the council looked intently at him, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.

Have you ever known someone - whether inside or outside the church - that made you feel more connected to God than others?

Someone who, when they spoke, warmed your heart?

Or when you saw the love shining through them, humbled you?

I've seen lots of them. I've been privileged working for one church or another for the last eleven years, and before that serving on church teams or committees for another eleven or so. And in that time, I've met a number of folks who have inspired me in such a way. 

And to be honest, the majority of them weren't "apostles" (or pastors). They weren't the called leaders (though I've worked closely with some wonderful called leaders as well).

Most of them were ordinary people called to do extraordinary things. And many of them had no idea how extraordinary they were.

Stephen was called to feed widows and orphans. He wasn't called to be another Peter. Saul, not Stephen, would become Paul.

And yet Stephen did great signs and wonders.

And had the face of an angel.

Stephen incited the fury of the high council with his integrity and truth.

Truth often has a way of doing that.

Stephen was an ordinary man who did extraordinary things.

What extraordinary things are you being called to?

God of signs and wonders, help me not fear the extraordinary work you have called me to. Amen.

Acts 6:1-6

Now during those days, when the disciples were increasing in number, the Hellenists complained against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food. And the twelve called together the whole community of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables. Therefore, friends, select from among yourselves seven men of good standing, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this task, while we, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word.” What they said pleased the whole community, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, together with Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. They had these men stand before the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.

So early into the life of the Church and already it's clear that there's more work to be done than the apostles can do on their own.

Of course, I take a tiny bit of exception to the twelve saying "it is not right that we should neglect the Word of God in order to wait on tables." Sadly, I think sentences like this have led many in and out of the church to think that the only important job was the priest's or pastor's or preacher's job.

But it isn't.

And the Word of God leaves lots of room for waiting on tables.

And serving at food serving lines.

And cleaning up after preschoolers running around Sunday School.

And making the coffee.

And leading the meeting.

And singing in the choir.

And being the church sexton.

And giving rides to shut-ins.

And closing the church up at night.

And paying the bills.

And all the many, many things that happen IN...

And OUT...

Of a church every week.

So remember when you feel like whatever calling or vocation that you have in the world isn't as true calling (like a pastor might have). Remember that Stephen was called to feed the widows and orphans.

And Stephen, we will learn, served like no other.

Lord, you have called me to ventures which serve your world. May each time I serve be a blessing to myself and to others and may I always serve with a heart brimming with joy. Amen.