Philip’s Invincibility

Those who had been scattered went about preaching the word.
–Acts 8:4

Every Christian is called to be an evangelist–to share the message of Jesus Christ. Through the story of Philip in Acts 8, we see three characteristics of an effective evangelist.

First of all, Philip demonstrated the quality of invincibility. At the end of Acts 7, Stephen was put to death because of his faith. Acts 8:1 says, “On that day a great persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.” Just as the smell of blood causes sharks to attack, so Stephen’s death stirred up the enemies of Christianity into a feeding frenzy.

Notice the effect of this persecution: “Those who had been scattered went about preaching the word” (v. 4). Sometimes “scatter” means to spread something until it virtually disappears, like scattering ashes. But the Greek word used in these verses, diaspeiro, refers to scattering seed so that it sprouts up in many places. The early church fled persecution, but not to hide; they scattered to preach the gospel.

This was a fulfillment of the prophecy Jesus gave in Acts 1:8 before He ascended into heaven: “You shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” Many people picture Jesus with a map and a pointer explaining the sales strategy for Christianity: “We’re going to start small here in Jerusalem, then we’ll grow organically until we’ve spread to all of Judea and Samaria. Once we’ve saturated those markets, we’ll go global.” Yes, this was a reminder of the assignment Jesus gave His disciples, but it was not a command or a strategy; it was a prediction. Persecution pushed the disciples out of Jerusalem.

Acts 8:5 says, “Philip went down to the city of Samaria and began proclaiming Christ to them.” Philip fled to Samaria not to hide away but to keep on preaching the gospel. He had seen the courage of Peter and John, who had responded to the religious leaders’ threats by saying, “We cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard” (4:20). Philip had the same invincible spirit. He had to change locations, but he kept on sharing the gospel. He refused to back down.

Today’s devotion is adapted from “Portrait of an Effective Evangelist,” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2021.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org.