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Acts chapter 8. Actually, I'll pick 
up reading in Acts chapter 7 at verse 54. We'll read to chapter 
8, verse 4. Beginning in Acts 7, 54, when 
they heard these things, they were cut to the heart and they 
gnashed at him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy 
Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus 
standing at the right hand of God and said, Look, I see the 
heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand 
of God. Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, 
and ran at him with one accord. And they cast him out of the 
city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their 
clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned 
Stephen as he was calling on and saying, Lord Jesus, receive 
my spirit. Then he knelt down and cried 
out with a loud voice, Lord, do not charge them with this 
sin. And when he had said this, he fell asleep. Now Saul was 
consenting to his death. At that time, a great persecution 
arose against the church, which was at Jerusalem. And they were 
all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, 
except the apostles. And devout men carried Stephen 
to his burial and made great lamentation over him. As for 
Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house and dragging 
off men and women, committing them to prison. Therefore, those 
who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word. Amen. Let us pray. Father, thank you 
for the word. Thank you for the glory of the 
gospel of Jesus Christ that necessitates the hearing of all men. We ask 
God in heaven that you'd encourage our hearts now with a view to 
the early church and the book of Acts. We ask God that you'd 
help us to be prayerful at the throne of grace concerning the 
preaching of the word throughout the world. We pray, God, that 
you would help us to see that Christ at the right hand of the 
Father is orchestrating all things over all things for the church. Do forgive us again for our sins 
and unrighteousness and fill us with your spirit. And we pray 
through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. Well, this morning we're 
going to see the extension of Christ's kingdom. And the way 
that we want to do that is by reflecting in the first place 
on the mission of Christ as given to the disciples in Acts 1, verse 
8, and then secondly, to see the means employed by Christ 
in this particular section. This persecution, this great 
persecution of the church was the occasion for scattering the 
disciples, removing them from Jerusalem, to extend the commission 
given to them by Christ. In other words, it isn't normally 
the case that we would say to God, may you bring great persecution 
so that blessings would indeed prevail. But that oftentimes 
is the way God does cause blessings to prevail. It may not be our 
first choice, via persecution, but it's certainly under God 
a means by which he extends Christ's kingdom. And the flow is obvious. What happens with Stephen sort 
of promotes or instigates on the part of others this enmity 
and animosity against the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. What 
we see in other parts of the world, what we saw last week 
in Sri Lanka, what we see in many places that are steeped 
in Islam, many places that are steeped in Roman Catholicism 
or places steeped in atheism is not new. The people of God 
have been persecuted. The people of God have been murdered. 
The people of God have been in prison. And the people of God 
have had their lives made miserable by the people of this world because 
the people of this world can't get to God, so they target His 
people here on earth. It's not a new thing, what we 
are witnessing today. There is this antithesis. Genesis 
3.15 speaks of it. Those connected to the woman 
and those connected to the devil. And there is this animosity that 
obtains, and the ones that are connected to the devil, more 
often than not, violently oppose and persecute the people of God 
Almighty. So that's what's happening here 
in a general sense in verses 1B to verse 4. So let's look 
first at the mission given by Christ, and then we'll look at 
the means employed by Christ. Go back for just a moment to 
Acts 1, verse 8. It's good for us to remind ourselves 
of this particular statement because it is how the book sort 
of proceeds. It's how the book moves. It's 
how the book unfolds. In verse 8, the Lord says to 
his apostles, but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has 
come upon you. And you shall be witnesses to 
me in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of 
the earth. They would receive the power 
of the Spirit. This indicates that it's not 
simply men, it's not simply courageous men, it's not simply intelligent 
men, but it's Spirit-filled men that advance the cause of Jesus 
Christ on the earth. Christ was a man who had the 
Spirit without measure, and that self-same Spirit is given to 
his disciples so that they can, in turn, face a hostile world, 
so that they, in turn, can preach that gospel of free grace, so 
that they can, in turn, by God's grace, be the human means by 
which the kingdom extends and the church grows. And so they 
needed to receive that power. Jesus promised to them that they 
would receive that power. And once they had gotten that 
power, verse 8 tells us what they were supposed to do with 
it. You shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea 
and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. The apostles witnessed 
the life of Christ, the apostles witnessed the resurrection of 
Christ, the apostles knew the significance behind that, and 
therefore they were called to go and witness or testify concerning 
Christ. And if you look at the particular 
geographical locations referred to, this is how the book of Acts 
proceeds. You shall be witnesses to me 
in Jerusalem. That is precisely where they 
have been. That's what we've been studying 
in Acts chapters 1 to 7, the church at Jerusalem. Well, because 
of this persecution that comes on the heels of the murder of 
Stephen, now they are scattered from Jerusalem. They move to 
Judea and Samaria, and then with the call and conversion of Saul 
of Tarsus, the apostle Paul takes the gospel to the uttermost parts 
of the earth. So chapter one, verse eight is 
programmatic for the history of the church, but it's also 
the outline for the book of Acts. And we've moved in now to that 
second phase. The gospel is moving forward 
from Jerusalem into these other parts. Why hadn't they done this? 
I don't know. Maybe they were content to stay 
there in Jerusalem. Maybe they were content with 
the status quo. Well, sometimes when we're content 
with the status quo, a good dose of persecution may help us to 
get up and to move from that place of status quo-ness and 
to take the gospel into other parts of the world. We ought 
never to get too content or too happy or too complacent when 
it comes to life in this world. We ought to be ready to pack 
a bag and move to Judea and Samaria and to the uttermost parts of 
the earth to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord. Now, 
don't go home today and sell everything you have and move 
to Timbuktu, but ponder the reality that at least some people within 
the context of the preaching ministry of the church ought 
to be those who are willing to go to Judea, Samaria, and to 
the uttermost parts of the earth. Jesus said, all authority in 
heaven and on earth has been given unto him. Go therefore 
and make disciples of what? Just the Jewish nation? No, of 
all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and 
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all 
things that I have commanded you. And lo, I'm with you always, 
even to the end of the age. We are to be going. If we're 
not going, then we are to be praying. If we're not praying, 
then we are not doing what the Lord God's called us to. We need 
to be happy, obviously, with the salvation that we enjoy. 
We need to be happy, obviously, with our local church. If you're 
not, I apologize. But we also need to be somewhat 
unhappy or discontented at the reality that men are steeped 
in false religion by droves in other parts of the world. I mean, 
the religion of Islam, for instance, is not a good thing. It is not 
peaceful. It is not happy. Women don't 
thrive and flourish under that sort of regime. And we ought 
to pray that gospel preachers be raised up. We ought to pray 
that gospel preachers be sent forth. We ought to pray that 
God will indeed bring men upon us and help us to educate them 
and point them in the right direction to get education so that they 
can be mobilized and so that they can go and preach the gospel. In the last hour, we considered 
our confession of faith, specifically with reference to the only begottenness 
of the Son of God. And it was observed by one of 
the brothers there that more often than not, churches don't 
think about these sorts of things. They don't think about the Trinity. 
They don't think about Christology. I'm not suggesting we should 
be proud. Oh, we do that. I'm suggesting we all ought to 
be ashamed because we should do it a whole lot more. We are 
drowning in practical drivel. We have no concept whatsoever 
of one glorious God who exists eternally as Father, Son, and 
Holy Spirit. We have no concept whatsoever 
of the hypostatic union of Jesus Christ. We need men, not as trained 
as CEOs or movers and shakers or cheerleaders or pep squad 
leaders. We need men who are theologically 
astute, who have that fire in their breasts and want to speak 
the truth as it is in Jesus. That's what we should be praying 
for as the people of God. We ought not to be so content 
and so complacent in our Jerusalem that we don't think about Judea, 
Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the earth. Do you pray Psalm 
67 ever? Is it a concern to you that nations 
are steeped in darkness and in madness? Is it a concern to you 
that believers are brutalized in other places in this world 
without any concern whatsoever? I mean, brethren, we need to 
be a prayerful people. Take Psalm 67, sing it, chant 
it, pray it, get it in your heart, get it in your mind, get it in 
your soul. Reflect upon the reality that 
what is happening here in Acts chapter 1, verse 8, chapter 8, 
verses 1b to 4, is that Christ is bringing persecution upon 
the church so that the church will get off its complacentness 
and go forward and take the gospel where it needs to be. It's a 
beautiful thing. Again, we wouldn't choose God 
bring persecution so that we'll do what we're supposed to do. 
but God does oftentimes choose persecution so that we'll do 
what we're supposed to do. So, the witness to Jerusalem, 
the witness to Judea, Samaria, the witness to the ends of the 
earth. Bach says, from a literary standpoint 
within Acts, the reference to Rome after a long providential 
sea journey in Acts 27 would mean that the message has now 
reached the hub of the Gentile world from which it can proceed 
everywhere." So basically what he's saying is that they do precisely 
what they were bidden to do in Acts chapter 1 verse 8. They 
took the gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth. They took 
it to the Roman Empire and it's from that vantage point that 
it would then be disseminated throughout the known world. It's 
a blessed and wonderful thing that we see in this book of Acts. 
Now notice, secondly, back to Acts chapter 8, the means employed 
by Christ. I want to consider three things 
here. First, the persecution of the church. Secondly, the 
examples of persecution in the church. And then thirdly, the 
consequence of the persecution of the church. Notice the persecution, 
verse 1b in chapter 8. At that time, a great persecution 
arose against the church, which was at Jerusalem, and they were 
all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, 
except the apostles. Now, the timing At that time, 
it's connected very specifically to the murder of Stephen. It's 
connected to the martyrdom of Stephen. The idea seems to be 
this, that once the council had engaged in eradicating Stephen 
and his witness, it emboldened others, not just the council, 
but others that were sort of at odds with Christianity, to 
really move now against Christianity. The Roman Empire, as I've said 
many, many times, will later become involved in actively opposing 
the Church. But at this particular juncture, 
it is unbelieving Israel that targets the Church for destruction. 
And its chief representative is Saul of Tarsus. Saul understood, 
we can't have any sort of an ecumenical movement here. You 
can't have Judaism and Christianity sort of exist together. Saul 
of Tarsus understood that. That's why he made havoc against 
the church. That's why he went into people's 
homes and dragged off both men and women and committed them 
to prison. He knew there would be no rival to Judaism. And they 
had to liquidate it, they had to exterminate it, they had to 
eradicate it. And so this martyrdom of Stephen 
emboldens others so that they will now go out and target the 
church. Gil says, as soon as they had 
put him to death, these bloodthirsty wretches were the more greedy 
after the blood of others. That's what's happening. Now, 
notice as well the specific target. At that time, a great persecution 
arose against the church, which was at Jerusalem. Prior to this 
time, we've seen persecution. Prior to this time, however, 
it has been confined to the apostles. The apostles are arrested in 
Acts chapter 4. The apostles are warned against 
preaching the gospel in Acts chapter 4. The apostles are called 
again to stand before the council in Acts chapter 5, and then the 
warning has moved into corporal punishment. According to Acts 
540, the Apostles are beaten, the Apostles are flogged, the 
Apostles have their backs opened up, of course, with that continued 
warning that they better not continue to speak in the name 
of Jesus. Well, you see the escalation of persecution in the martyrdom 
of Stephen. What begins as a warning turns 
into a flogging, and then ultimately Stephen is martyred for the faith. 
And now it moves from just the apostles to the church, the whole 
church at Jerusalem. This is what verse three speaks 
to. Paul, Saul rather, makes havoc upon the church. He goes 
into persons' homes, believers' homes, and he takes out normal 
men and women. These aren't the apostles' homes. 
So what we're seeing here is the escalation of this persecution. 
And again, if you look at the history of Christianity, that's 
what's happened. They say the 20th century was 
the most bloody century for all of Christianity. Of all the 20 
centuries, there were more martyrs in the 20th century. We don't 
know what the 21st century holds for us yet, but so far, it ain't 
looking good. We are looked at as the plague 
on society. We are looked at as the freaks 
of nature. We are looked at as the oddball 
out, because we affirm manhood and womanhood. We don't affirm 
the rest of the letters of the alphabet being some sort of a 
gender identification. So we're the bad guy? We speak 
against unrighteousness and the murder of babies, and we're the 
bad guys. Brethren, there are causes for 
concern, not fear and trepidation that paralyzes us, but a concern 
that mobilizes us to the throne of grace and to our Bibles so 
that we'll know how to respond to a God-hating generation. The 
21st century thus far is not looking real promising that there's 
going to be less persecution of the church. But we need to 
see that at this particular time, when Stephen is murdered by the 
council, it emboldens others to engage in this great persecution 
against the church, not just the apostles. The targeting of 
the apostles takes place in 4 and 5, and now the targeting of the 
entire church is seen here with that escalation. We're warned. We are beaten, murdered, and 
then this great persecution is poured out. Now, notice what 
happens. There's a dispersion. You've 
probably heard that word before, dispersion. Diaspora refers to 
the Jews being dispersed from their homeland to the various 
parts of the empire at that particular time. Well, the word's used here. 
And in Jewish literature, it was often thought that when there 
was a dispersion of Jews from their homeland, they would be 
of benefit to Gentiles. Perhaps Luke is using that particular 
term with all of its loaded freight, telling us that this dispersion 
was for the benefit of the spiritual Gentiles. This act of persecution 
got everybody mobilized. This act of persecution got everybody 
to stop being complacent. This act of persecution worked 
out favorably for the glory of God and the extension of the 
throne of Jesus Christ. That's what's happening here. 
There's a dispersion of these people into various regions. Now, the reference to all probably 
doesn't mean all without exception. It probably means a lot. If you 
have a problem with hyperbole, then you've got a problem with 
the Bible. The Bible uses hyperbole. The Bible uses metaphor. The 
Bible uses simile. The Bible uses the word all when 
not every single human being is man. It means a lot of people 
were scattered. A lot of people were dispersed. 
A lot of people left Jerusalem at this particular time. because 
of the persecution. So they were scattered, according 
to verse 1, throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria. Now go 
to Acts chapter 11. Acts chapter 11. It wasn't only 
these places that they were scattered to, but Acts chapter 11 indicates 
something else. Notice in Acts 11 at verse 19, 
now, those who were scattered after the persecution that arose 
over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, 
preaching the word to no one but the Jews only. But some of 
them were men from Cyprus and Cyrene who, when they had come 
to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists, preaching the Lord Jesus. And 
the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed 
and turned to the Lord. So back in chapter 8 at verse 
1, yes, they're moving to Judea and Samaria. They're also going 
to Phoenicia. They're also going to Cyprus. 
They're also going to Antioch. You see what's happening? Gentile 
inclusion in the covenant promises of God. You see what's happening, 
we're moving out from Jerusalem. What did Isaiah and what did 
Micah prophesy, chapters 2 and 4 respectively, concerning the 
messianic reign of Jesus Christ? The nations would stream to Zion 
and they would hear the law of the Lord. That's how the book 
of Acts functions. Where do they all come? They 
come to Jerusalem. Men from every nation come to 
Jerusalem. They hear the law of the Lord. 
Now they're being sent back to their places. They're being equipped. 
They're being given that mission. They're given that specific set 
of marching orders, and they're taking the gospel to Gentiles 
so that the covenant promises of God, which are yea and amen 
in Christ Jesus, would be fulfilled in the calling of sinners unto 
repentance and faith by the preachers of the gospel. It's a beautiful 
thing. And notice the means are here 
specifically employed by Jesus. You can't miss this, and we're 
gonna focus on this or visit this at the end of the message 
today, but Christ has universal authority. He has universal authority 
even over the council members that took up stones to throw 
against Stephen. He has universal authority even 
over those who engage in great persecution. And some people 
see this as a great argument against Christianity. If God 
is good, why is there evil? They forget that necessary sort 
of other piece of data that the Bible provides for us. God uses 
evil to accomplish good things. If you doubt that, then we need 
to have more time together, because I don't know what Bible you're 
reading, but God overrules the wickedness of men and brings 
even straight things out of crooked sticks. You see this in Acts 
2. It was the predetermined plan 
of God that they murder Jesus. Joseph confessed this in Genesis 
chapter 50. You meant this for evil, but 
God overruled it for good. Brethren, if you live in a world 
where you think that evil is outside of the control of God, 
I don't know how you get out of bed every morning. If you 
think the political leaders of our day are running around without 
any leash, how do you make it? How do you function? How do you 
think? If you do not know and are convinced 
and believe assuredly that Christ has absolute authority and dominion 
and that he's over all things with specific reference to the 
church, Ephesians 1, 19 to 23, then you're going to be in sad 
shape. This is the reality. Christ is 
over the persecution that takes place. Not because he rejoices 
to see Stephen executed, not because he rejoices to see the 
menaces of his church prosper, but so his church will stop being 
complacent. So his church will stop being 
lazy, so that his church will start to extend something concerning 
the love that he speaks of there in John 13. By this all men will 
know that you are my disciples. If you sit on your couch and 
you rehearse how wonderful a thing it is to be saved. Certainly, 
sit on your couch and rehearse. What a wonderful thing it is 
to be saved. But love men. Love your fellow men in terms 
of believer, and love your fellow men in terms of teaching them 
the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord. I've often thought 
that evangelism, the missionary enterprise with reference to 
the church, is the application of the second great commandment. 
The first is, love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, 
mind, and strength. And the second is like it. Love your neighbor 
as yourself. Oh, don't you know when you go 
to that person's house and you knock on their door, you're bugging 
them? Yeah, I know that. I don't like to get bugged by 
Jehovah's Witnesses, and I get the vibe when I do that to others, 
but it's an application of love for their souls. What's the best 
thing you and I could do for somebody but to tell them about 
Christ? Isn't that what we've been saved 
to do? Well, sometimes we get lazy, sometimes we get complacent, 
sometimes we don't exemplify the love for one another that 
John 13 says we're supposed to manifest. Sometimes we don't 
exemplify that love for our fellow man that the rest of the Bible 
says we are to manifest. And so Christ brings these persecutions, 
Christ brings these afflictions, Christ brings these hardships 
to wake us out of our stupor. Again, we might think, oh Lord, 
you know, just let me have ease and comfort and joy, and I'll 
serve you, world without end, amen. It doesn't work that way, 
and you know it as well as I do. With ease and comfort and contentedness, 
we grow complacent. Read the prophets sometimes. 
Read what God says concerning the various nations and how the 
ones that weren't tried, the ones that weren't afflicted, 
the ones that weren't tested, the ones that didn't have any 
difficulty settled on their lease. They needed to be poured out. 
The sense, brethren, where persecution in the context of the local church 
will embolden the people of God. If the murder of Stephen emboldened 
the enemies of the gospel, then the murder of Stephen ought to 
embolden the friends of the gospel. It ought to make us in earnest. 
It ought to make us prayerful. It ought to make us pray to God 
most high. We know that the harvest is plentiful, 
but the laborers are few. I don't think that's changed 
since Jesus first gave that. How many guys are going in to 
gospel ministry? How many guys are saying, not 
only gospel ministry, but I want to go to the foreign mission 
field. I want to go and be a means in the hand of the Redeemer to 
let the nations be glad. I want to see these people that 
are steeped in Islam learn the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ 
our Lord. I'm not meeting these young fellows. 
Parents, are we telling our sons, not our daughters, our sons that 
this is a noble calling and a wonderful thing and that they ought to 
count everything lost for the excellence of the knowledge of 
Christ Jesus, our Lord? It's not going to happen without 
human beings. It's not going to happen without 
men. It's not going to happen without men that are theologically 
astute and men who actually care about the fact that sinners are 
dying and going to hell. Again, maybe I'm just in some 
enclave. I'm just not meeting these droves 
of young men that want to go into the gospel ministry. Where 
are they? And if they're not there, are 
we praying that God would bring them there? Are we praying that 
God would supply men to fit this particular task in this particular 
age? And I would suggest we need men 
like these men. We don't need males. We need 
men. There's a distinction there. 
We don't need males, we need men. Men that have this kind 
of zeal, this kind of a burden, this kind of a desire. But back 
to our text, we see this idea of persecution being a means 
in the hand of God for the good of His people. Turn to Philippians 
chapter 1. We rehearsed this when we considered the persecution 
of the apostles, but I think it bears repetition. Philippians 
1 12, but I want you to know brethren that the things which 
happened to me What things are those Paul? Well Philippians 
is one of the prison epistles. That means that Paul was in prison 
when he wrote these epistles Now we think of prison and I 
don't know if you've had any experience with the prison system 
but we used to go when I lived in California to preach at the 
prison and it was very common to see a lot of sort of luxury 
items in the prison. I don't necessarily subscribe 
to solitary confinement and bread and water and all that. But I 
got a problem with TVs and whatever sort of resources you want, law 
degrees on your off time. Isn't the life of a prisoner 
off time? I mean, they get law degrees. 
They get buffed. Cops don't have the time to lift 
weights and get muscular like the prisoners do. I mean, they're 
out there jacked and pumping big weight. I mean, they get 
a lot of good things. That's not the kind of prison Paul is 
in. If you ate, it was because somebody loved you and provided 
food for you. That's kind of Paul's point in 
Philippians. I'm thankful that you didn't forget about me. I'm 
thankful that through Epaphroditus, you sent some gifts to me. You 
sent some sandwiches. You sent some cookies. You sent 
something to keep me alive. It wasn't three hots and a cot 
provided by the Roman Empire. It was, if you've got people 
that care about you and love you, you might get some food. 
You know when he says in 2nd Timothy bring the cloak that 
I left with Karpus and Troas Why do you think that is because 
there wasn't heat in the prison system there or the jails there? 
I mean again air-conditioned jails and and prisons and heating 
systems and all that sort of thing again I don't think we 
should tar and feather everybody I mean there should be justness 
and the way that we apply penology and whatnot but but boy they're 
gonna complain if the heats off or the you know the the the air 
conditioning is off Well, Paul wanted his cloak because he was 
cold in a jail cell. Now, that's his second imprisonment 
in 2 Timothy. This is the first imprisonment. 
And so he's writing to the Philippians, yes, to thank them for the gift 
that they had sent by way of Epaphroditus. But he also tells 
them this very intriguing piece of data in verse 12. This is 
a progress report. I want you to know, brethren, 
that the things which happened to me have actually turned out 
for the furtherance of the gospel. so that it has become evident 
to the whole palace guard and to all the rest that my chains 
are in Christ. And most of the brethren in the 
Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold 
to speak the word without fear." You see, under the hand of Christ, 
the imprisonment of the apostle Paul, which don't miss this, 
The same Paul that had made havoc on the church, dragging men and 
women off and throwing them into prison is now in a prison himself. But he's saying, I don't want 
you to worry about me. Don't forget about me. Keep sending 
food by way of Epaphroditus. But don't worry about me because 
what's happened to me has actually caused or has turned out for 
the progress of the gospel. See, that's what I meant. God 
takes crooked sticks and he makes them straight. God takes wicked 
acts and he overrules them and brings good. God takes the imprisonment 
of the chief apostle to the Gentiles and uses it as a means to actually 
further the progress of the gospel. It's a beautiful thing. 2 Timothy 
chapter 2. 2 Timothy chapter 2. Again, text 
that I hope that you are familiar with. from our study on the persecution 
of the apostles in Acts 3, 4, and 5. But in 2 Timothy 2, notice 
in verse 8, remember that Jesus Christ, of the seed of David, 
was raised from the dead according to my gospel, for which I suffer 
trouble as an evildoer, even to the point of chains, but the 
word of God is not chained. So Paul suffers, Paul is in prison, 
Paul is in this jail cell, but you can't change the Word of 
God. You can't stop its progress. Christ the Sovereign, at the 
right hand of the Father, orchestrates all things. Even the persecution 
of the church, even the imprisonment of its chief apostle, doesn't 
restrict the spread of the truth. The Lord God Most High has all 
things under His control, and He is orchestrating them for 
His glory and for the good of His people. It really is a beautiful 
thing. Calvin says, here is set down 
the end of persecutions to wit, that they are so far from breaking 
off the course of the gospel that they are rather made helps 
to further the same through the wonderful counsel of God. You 
see, that's what happens. People try to destroy Christians, 
they try to destroy Bibles, they try to destroy the thought of 
Christ on the earth. Have they succeeded? Absolutely, 
positively not. Rest assured, brethren, if the 
world operating according to the devil could stop Christianity, 
they would. They've certainly tried hard 
enough, they're presently trying hard enough, but you cannot stop 
the spread of God's Word. He will have dominion from sea 
to sea. That's not just a wonderful hymn 
that would be great to sing on that day that we die, but it's 
the truth of Holy Scripture. The psalmist says that. The prophet 
Isaiah says that. The prophet Habakkuk says that. 
He will have dominion from sea to sea. That is a reality. Interesting. Our own country pays lip service 
to Psalm 72 with reference to dominion, with reference to Christ's 
power and reign and rule and glory. And as Christians, brethren, 
we need to capture some of that. Not triumphalism, but the reality 
that even in the midst of persecution, suffering, hardship, affliction, 
and woe, Christ shall have dominion. It's a beautiful concept. The 
Geneva Bible comments, it says, Christ useth the rage of his 
enemies to the spreading forth and enlarging of his kingdom. Now, you kind of wonder, are 
the enemies just that ignorant? You've got to have to conclude, 
yeah, they are. They think, oh, we're going to 
stomp this out, and then it pops up over here. We're going to 
kill it here, and then it pops up over here. We're going to 
stop it, and then more people get converted. You can't stop 
it. You're fighting a losing battle. 
See, I think today the Christian church has adopted precisely 
the opposite mindset. We think we're fighting the losing 
battle. We think we're the losers in 
history. We think that we're going to 
always be the derelicts in society. Now, I'm not speaking again of 
triumphalism or utopian on earth or heaven. I'm not speaking of 
any of that. But you need to understand that Christ must reign 
till all of his enemies are made his footstool. That's the reality 
of Psalm 110.1. That's the reality highlighted 
in various places in the New Testament. They quote that, they 
allude to that, they cite that because that put steel in their 
bones. that put fire in their hearts, 
that moved them from Jerusalem to Judea, Samaria, and then to 
the uttermost parts of the earth. They understood the reality that 
He shall have dominion from sea to sea. Now, Luke tells us the 
apostles remained in Jerusalem, and that makes sense, because 
later on we're going to see a church in Jerusalem. It's not as if 
all the apostles left, it says specifically at the end of verse 
1, except the apostles. And some ask the question, well, 
why didn't the apostles leave? Why didn't the apostles leave? 
I don't think Luke supplies us with a specific answer, but probably 
the idea is that they didn't want to desert their post. They 
saw that these others were mobilized. They saw that these others were 
scattered. They saw that these others were going to Judea, Samaria, 
and to the outermost parts of the earth. See, no one man can 
do it all. No twelve men can do it all. 
There's a division of labor involved in the context of church. There's 
a division of labor involved in the missionary enterprise, 
in evangelism. If these twelve men leave their 
particular post, then that leaves a vacancy or a wanting there. Now, later on, they will move. 
Later on, there will be dispersion on the part of the apostles. 
But for this present time, they stay there. John Calvin, pages 
324 and 325 in his commentary, has a beautiful exposition or 
explanation about this whole idea of these men sticking there 
at Jerusalem. He says he exempts the apostles 
out of this number, not that they were free from the common 
danger, but because it is the duty of a good pastor to set 
himself against the invasions of wolves for safety of his flock. In other words, if the persecution 
comes and the apostles bail, then that persecution may overcome 
the persons to whom the apostles are responsible. So he says they're 
faithful pastors, they're faithful shepherds. They're not going 
to leave their flock. When this great persecution arises, they 
steel themselves against it. He goes on later to describe 
it this way. He says, it shall sometimes so 
fall out indeed that the pastor may also fly. Not wings, kids, 
but leave the particular church. There may be an eventuality where 
they leave. In Matthew 10, when Jesus gives 
instruction for mission, he says, if they persecute you in one 
city, flee there and go to another city. So there are seasons, there 
are times, there are occasions when it is legit for a man to 
leave a particular post. This wasn't it. But back to Calvin. It shall sometimes so fall out 
indeed that the pastor may also fly. Now, I read this and I'm 
quoting this because I think it's very important. I want you 
to appreciate what Calvin says here. They don't fly because 
they get a better offer somewhere else. They don't fly because 
there's more money down the road. They don't fly because of prestige. They don't fly because of notoriety. They don't fly because of their 
own wickedness. There may be instances, there 
may be seasons, there may be times where a minister flies, 
but he doesn't fly for money, he doesn't fly for prestige, 
he doesn't fly for celebrity, he doesn't fly because he's weak. 
He goes on. This is very perceptive. It shall 
sometimes so fall out indeed that the pastor may also fly. 
That is, if they invade him alone, if the laying the waste of the 
church be not feared if he be absent. In other words, he may 
fly if the people of God are not at danger. He may fly if 
nobody's going to be a casualty. He may fly if everything's going 
to be okay. He may fly. It says, but if both 
his flock and he have to encounter with the adversary, he is a treacherous 
forsaker of his office if he stand not stoutly to it even 
until the end. That's the kind of stuff that 
these men were about. This idea of three-year pastor, 
it's on to the next gig. Three-year pastor, it's on to 
the bigger church. It just can't be biblical. It 
just can't be right. I mean, for better or for worse, 
we like each other, don't we? and you know me and I'm messed 
up, but there's a part where God knits the hearts of peoples 
and pastors together. We don't leave that because of 
a better gig. We don't leave that because of 
more money. We don't leave that because of discontentedness. 
We don't leave that when there's a threat to the people of God. He says in the very last stroke, 
private persons have greater liberty. You see, pastors don't 
have the liberty that private persons have. See, private persons 
can just leave whenever they want. And unfortunately, in our 
ecclesiastical milieu landscape, that happens. This idea of church 
hopping, this lack of connection, this lack of fighting, bleeding, 
sweating, not with each other, but in our own hearts, to deal 
with the difficulties involved in biblical churchmanship. I 
preached in Surrey last week, and I said to them, and I'll 
say it to you, if you ask me what's the one thing missing 
today in biblical churchmanship, it is biblical churchmanship. 
We're going to sin against each other. We're going to make each 
other upset. We're going to hurt each other. 
We're going to be unkind to each other. Do we just take our marbles 
and run? We run to another place. Guess what's going to happen 
there? We're going to get hurt. We're going to get offended. 
We're going to have problems there. What do we do then? Do we run? 
I have this zany idea that we deal with it like we do in families. Do you just stop being a brother 
or sister to your earthly brother and sister because they make 
you mad? You don't, do you? You don't say, well, I'm out 
of this family. I mean, I guess some people do that, at least 
in America. What's the word? They emancipate. You get these 
discontented teenagers that want to emancipate themselves from 
their parents. That's an exception to the rule. Most of us just 
deal with the Looney Tunes that we happen to be related to. Why 
can't we extend that principle to the church? Oh, he offended. 
I know I've offended most of you. If I haven't, stick around, 
it's going to happen. Pastors aren't supposed to leave, 
but I don't think people are either, unless heresy is being 
preached or certain biblical things just aren't happening. 
There's no stick-to-itiveness today. You know, I like to talk 
to the older people. Some of you kids are saying, 
you're one of them. No, I'm not. There's a lot older people than 
I am. But you know what they have? You know what they had 
in their day and age? They didn't whine about everything. 
They didn't just get so easily offended. This is what we're 
having to contend with. I'm not talking about Democrats 
and liberals and their snowflake mentality. I'm talking in the 
church. We're all so easily offended. We're all so easily ready to 
pick up our marbles and leave. Brethren, there's got to be a 
stick-to-itiveness about our Christianity, or it's not the 
real deal. By this, all men will know that 
you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. That 
love will reflect itself in the ability to forgive one another. 
That love will reflect itself in the ability to talk with each 
other. That love will reflect itself in the ability to deal 
with one another in a way that is honoring to God Almighty. 
In this instance, the apostles stayed behind. They stuck it 
out there in Jerusalem. Now, I want to look quick at 
the two examples. I actually thought we were going 
to be further along than we are. I apologize. But notice the examples, 
verses 2 and 3. And devout men carried Stephen 
to his burial and made great lamentation over him." I don't 
think that's simply a statement to tell us the disposition of 
the body of dead Stephen. I think it's a reminder. I think 
it exacerbates. I think it highlights. I think 
it shows how serious the great persecution is. Devout men, believers 
in Jesus Christ, are carrying away the body of Stephen, a man 
filled with the Holy Spirit, a man who takes Israel's history 
and scripture and biblically, theologically weaves together 
a defense before the council which shows that he himself is 
not guilty of their false charges, but does show that they are guilty 
of having violated the law of Moses and the very concept of 
the temple in their rejection of Jesus Christ. I mean, Stephen 
is a champ, and these men are carrying him off to bury him. 
They're making great lamentation. What kind of great persecution 
was it? Well, there's those men carrying 
the body of our holy brother Stephen to bury him in the ground. 
That's what this persecution looked like. And then in verse 
3, we're given more of a glimpse into the life of this Saul of 
Tarsus. We've already met him in 818. Saul was consenting to 
his death. Saul was consenting to the murder 
of Stephen. Saul was consenting to the execution 
of Stephen. And then in verse 3, as for Saul, 
he made havoc of the church, entering every house, dragging 
off men and women, committing them to prison. The verb make 
havoc means to cause harm to, injure, damage, spoil, ruin, 
destroy, eradicate, decimate. Paul tried to liquidate the church 
of Jesus Christ. Again, he saw there was no compromise. There's no median position. There's 
no, oh, a little bit of Judaism and a little bit of Christianity. 
Paul saw or Saul saw Christianity as a threat. to the religious 
life of Israel. And for Saul, the response was 
to make havoc upon the church. To try and destroy the church. 
To try and liquidate, exterminate, and eradicate the church. To 
rid ourselves of this vile thing called the church. It gives a 
concrete expression of how Saul of Tarsus does this in verse 
3. He entered every house and he 
dragged off men and women, committing them to prison. The verb there, 
dragged off, means dragged off. He put his hands on women. I 
think the reference to and women there, if Saul told Luke to incorporate 
818, he certainly told Luke to incorporate this stuff as well. 
I mean, it's bad for a man to lay his hands on a man and drag 
him off to prison for no good reason. But a man to lay his 
hands on a woman and drag her off to prison for no good reason, 
What would you think, man, if Saul of Tarsus did that to your 
wife? You'd want to punch him out. 
You'd want to exterminate him. You'd want to make havoc on his 
face because that's a terrible thing that he did. You see, brethren, 
what is happening here? This chief persecutor of the 
church becomes the chief apostle. So that when we see great persecution 
break out, we don't lose it. We don't freak out. We don't 
jump ship. We don't abandon the faith. We 
realize Christ is in control. That Christ can make straight 
things out of crooked things. And Christ does that in the conversion 
of Saul of Tarsus. He goes from going into houses, 
dragging men and women off, and putting them in the prison, to 
being a man who goes from house to house and with tears testifies 
concerning the gospel of Jesus Christ. So as I said, with reference 
to the God haters, bring it on. I don't mean that, you know, 
let's open the door and let machine guns come and get us. But if 
they bring it on, Christ will have dominion. He can't be stopped. He can't be thwarted. He can't 
be resisted. Isn't this Nebuchadnezzar's great 
confession in Daniel 4? Who can say, what doest thou? Who can stop the hand of God 
Almighty? All the nations are like a drop 
of water in a bucket. The Lord God Most High reigns. And in our text, we see great 
persecution. We see it exemplified in the 
Saul of Tarsus. And lo and behold, a chapter 
later, we don't have to wait for 5, 10, 15 chapters. The next chapter, Saul of Tarsus 
is called out of darkness into marvelous light. The Lord Christ 
says, He must suffer many things for my name's sake. And Saul 
of Tarsus does this, and he goes out and he puts more miles on 
his feet than we do on our cars in the extension of the kingdom 
of Jesus Christ our Lord. That's how Christ works in the 
midst of great persecution to bring about glorious, wondrous 
things. Paul reflects on this, Luke reflects 
on this, and then Paul does. I just want to give you these 
verses. Notice in Acts chapter 9. Acts chapter 9, before conversion, 
before salvation, before he actually comes to know Jesus Christ as 
Lord and Savior. Look at verses 1 and 2. Then 
Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples 
of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked letters from 
him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were 
of the way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to 
Jerusalem. This was in his DNA to be a zealot, wasn't it? Praise 
God, the Lord saves him and sanctifies that zeal and turns it in the 
right direction pro Christ. See, Saul of Tarsus was the kind 
of guy that actually went to the high priest and said, can 
you give me a warrant so that if I meet any believers, I can 
arrest them and take them off to jail? They were only all too 
happy with that. Sure. Here you go. You go at 
it. You use that zeal. You use that 
native zeal. You stomp out the cause of Jesus 
Christ and his gospel. Notice in 9.3, as he journeyed, 
he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from 
heaven. Then he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, 
Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? Don't you love that? Saul, 
why are you persecuting me? Remember, I pointed out Jesus 
is the head of the body. If you hit me on the head, my 
body suffers. When the body is attacked, Jesus 
says, you're persecuting me. There's a unity that obtains 
between the head and the body. There's a cohesiveness that is 
there with reference to Jesus and his people. So that when 
his people are persecuted, when his people are bombed, when his 
people are slain, when his people are in prison, he says, why are 
you persecuting me? Saul of Tarsus will rehearse 
this sort of thing later on in the book of Acts. Notice in Acts 
chapter 22. Acts chapter 22. Now, just while you're turning 
there, remember that Gamaliel was Paul's rabbi. And Gamaliel 
had the good counsel in Acts chapter 5 to the council to basically 
say, leave him alone. Wasn't that Gamaliel's approach? 
Gamaliel said, leave them alone. If this is of God, it'll prosper. If it's not, it'll dissipate. 
So Saul of Tarsus didn't even take the counsel, the good counsel, 
of his own professor, of his own rabbi, of his own sensei, 
if I could use that language. He doesn't take it. He is more 
zealous to try and exterminate the very church. Notice in Acts 
22 4, I persecuted this way to the death, binding and delivering 
into prisons both men and women, as also the high priest bears 
me witness, and all the council of the elders, from whom I also 
received letters to the brethren, and went to Damascus to bring 
in chains even those who were there to Jerusalem to be punished. Notice in 26, 9 to 11, 26, 9, Indeed, I myself thought I must 
do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. This 
I also did in Jerusalem. And many of the saints I shut 
up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests. 
And when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. 
And I punished them often in every synagogue and compelled 
them to blaspheme. And being exceedingly enraged 
against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities. See, 
when we get this snapshot in 8.1b to 4, Luke doesn't amplify 
and tell us all the particulars. You get that later from Saul's 
own mouth. He was viciously opposed to the 
church. He wasn't just debating with 
Christians. He wasn't just trying to silence 
or best them in the arena of idea. He is compelling them to 
blaspheme. He is arresting them. He is taking 
them to be punished. He reflects upon this in his 
own writings. Notice in 1 Corinthians 15. Again, just fleshing out 
for us what this great persecution looked like in Acts 8. 1 Corinthians 
15 9 for I am the least of the Apostles whom not worthy to be 
called an Apostle because I persecuted the church of God It's just amazing 
Galatians 1 13 and 14 Galatians 1.13, For you have heard of my 
former conduct in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God 
beyond measure and tried to destroy it. And I advanced in Judaism 
beyond many of my contemporaries in my own nation, being more 
exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers. Galatians 1.23, 
but they were hearing only he who formerly persecuted us now 
preaches the faith which he once tried to destroy. Philippians 
3.6, his religious resume prior to his conversion to Jesus Christ. Philippians 3.6, concerning zeal, 
persecuting the church, concerning the righteousness which is in 
the law, blameless. And of course, 1 Timothy 1. 1 
Timothy 1.12, And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has enabled 
me, because he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, 
although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent 
man. But I obtained mercy, because 
I did it ignorantly in unbelief. And the grace of our Lord was 
exceedingly abundant, with faith and love, which are in Christ 
Jesus. This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptance, 
that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom 
I am chief. Now, brethren, kind of bring 
this back to Acts chapter 8. We can't ever for a moment abandon 
our Calvinism when persecution comes. Oh, what shall we do now? There's hardships in our midst. 
What we should do is wait upon Jesus and see how He is going 
to turn things around for His glory and for the good of His 
people. It may not happen immediately. 
It may not happen in our lifetime. But happen it will according 
to the Psalter according to the prophets according to the New 
Testament documents He has all authority. He has been given 
the nations He has told his disciples to go and make disciples of them 
He has promised his presence with his people while they're 
in the activity engaged They have the confidence that as they 
do what he calls them to do He is there present with them in 
the midst of the doing of it It's a beautiful concept. Persecution 
doesn't destroy the church. More often than not, persecution 
advances the church. It's a tough concept because 
we don't like it. It's a tough concept because if I was Paul 
and God said, I want you to go to Rome, the city of Rome, I 
would have opted for a luxury liner. I'd want one of those 
Bible cruises. I've often thought, that's suffering 
for Jesus, isn't it? We're going to go on a Bible 
cruise. We're going to eat midnight buffets and study the suffering 
saints in the book of Acts while we're eating lobster. You know, 
these Bible cruises. That's how I'd want to go to 
Rome. I'm not going to lie to you. If you ask me, how would 
you want to go to Rome? Do you want to be arrested, almost 
murdered, and put on a boat that almost sinks? Or would you like 
to go on this luxury liner and eat midnight buffet? Well, I'll 
take the latter. Thank you very much. I mean, 
if given my druthers, I'd want lobster along with my Bible study. 
One man was once asked, would you rather have Jesus or silver? 
He said, I want Jesus and silver. And if you're asking, right, 
if you're asking my opinion, but what does God do to get Paul 
the apostle to Rome? It's not a luxury liner. You 
know, we read those chapters in, you know, 26, well, 27, 28, 
it was this long journey. Do we realize what Paul went 
through? Do we realize what he endured? Do you see, in one sense, 
practically speaking, how the tables were turned in that man's 
life? He made havoc upon the church. He went into people's 
houses. He dragged off men and women. His life was somewhat 
miserable in terms of temporality from then on. He didn't have 
the life of luxury. He didn't have lobster at the 
midnight buffet before he spoke the Bible truth the next day. 
He had it rough, brethren. And Jesus said he would have 
it rough when he calls him and saves him in Acts chapter 9. 
I'm going to show him how many things he must suffer for my 
name. But you never see that in Paul 
saying, oh, this is terrible. He doesn't complain. He doesn't 
whine. He doesn't moan. He doesn't grumble. 
He's the kind of man that the church needs. Not just males, 
but men that are committed to God and truth. Now, finally, 
quickly, very quickly, I don't want to keep you past 1230. The 
consequence of the persecution is clearly spelled out in verse 
4. My Bible puts a mark or a break between 3 and 4. I don't think 
that's good. I think we ought to read verse 
4 with verses 1b to 3. Verse 4 tells us, therefore, 
those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word. 
They weren't just scattered from Jerusalem to find a better place 
where there wasn't any persecution, but they were scattered and they 
preached the word. See, that's the end game, that's 
the rub, that's the emphasis. They were together in Jerusalem, 
this persecution comes, now they're scattered, and when they're scattered, 
they go to Judea, Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the 
earth, not so they can find a place where there's a nice golf course 
and Bible cruises, but they go to these places so that they 
can preach the word. Then we get to Acts chapter 8, 
5 and following, and we get one more of the seven. Remember the 
seven that were chosen by the church in Acts chapter 6. Stephen 
was one of them, he gets chapter 7. Philip is one of them, he 
gets chapter 8. And it's Philip who is the spearhead 
to take the gospel into Samaria, that second leg of the mission 
given by Jesus to the church. You'll witness to me Jerusalem, 
Judea, Samaria, and then to the uttermost parts of the earth. 
That's how the book of Acts unfolds. 1 to 7, Jerusalem. Roughly 7 
to 12, Judea, Samaria. And then 13 to 28, uttermost 
parts of the earth. In the call of Saul of Tarsus, 
he becomes the apostle Paul, the chief apostle to the Gentiles, 
so he takes that gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth. 
It really is a beautiful display of the power of Jesus Christ. 
If you just read Acts, and you forget about God, you forget 
about the Spirit, you forget about purpose, you forget about 
mission, it's sort of a ragtag collection of stories of weird 
things that happen to a group of people. But that's not what 
it is. It's Christ building His church. 
It's Christ displaying His power from the right hand of the Father. 
It is Christ carrying out, through the agency of the Spirit and 
His men, that mission given by Him in Acts 1, verse 8. Christ useth the rage of his 
enemies to the spreading forth and enlarging of his kingdom." 
I think the Geneva Bible nails the section with that comment. 
John Calvin, in an exhortation to us, says, therefore, if we 
desire to be counted their brethren, let us prick forward ourselves 
so diligently that no fear or bitterness of cross discourage 
us, but that we go forward in showing forth the profession 
of faith, and that we never be weary of furthering the doctrine 
of Christ. For it is an absurd thing that 
exile and flight, which are the first exercises of martyrdom, 
should make us dumb and faint-hearted." What's he saying? Don't fear 
that stuff. That's the means by which Christ 
extends His kingdom. They are not to promote dumbness 
or faint-heartedness on the parts of God's people. God's people, 
according to Paul in 1 Corinthians 16, are supposed to act like 
men. They're supposed to be good soldiers of the cross of Jesus 
Christ. They're supposed to realize that they've enlisted in a glorious 
army, that there is a promise and an assurance of victory. 
We're not to whine, grumble, complain, or usurp the authority, 
but rather we're supposed to to toe the line, lockstep, Word 
of God in hand, prayers in our hearts, corporate worship to 
feed our souls, and the ministry that Christ has given to us to 
fulfill. That's the point, and that's 
what we need to take away. Well, brethren, I had several 
other things. I'll maybe save them for next week or another 
day, but I do want to close on this note. They were preaching 
the Word. If you have not believed the gospel, the word that is 
in view here is the word concerning Jesus. It is the word about Christ. See, it's not just, you know, 
a religious dimension or, you know, a novelty in terms of, 
well, this is the one thing that Christianity has. It's Christ. He's the sum and substance, as 
we studied in the last hour, quoted from Hermann Bavink. He 
says that Christ, or Christology, or the doctrine of Christ, is 
not foundational to Christianity, but it is certainly central. 
It's like all roads lead to Christology and Scripture. All theology leads 
to Christ. That's the uniqueness of our 
religion. The uniqueness of our religion isn't that we show up 
to church. It isn't that we homeschool our 
children. It isn't that we use discipline on our children. It 
isn't that, you know, we say prayers before we eat. All that 
stuff may be unique and it may be wonderful in a day and age 
in which we live. The uniqueness of our religion is the Christ. 
The uniqueness of our religion is that the second person of 
the Trinity took on our humanity, and the second person of the 
Trinity, having taken on our humanity, subjects himself to 
the Father's law and carries it out perfectly, and that he 
obeys God for us. and that He goes to the cross 
and dies for us, such that when He's raised from the dead, all 
of the benefits associated with that work are given freely by 
God's grace, and we receive them by faith alone. That's the uniqueness 
of Christianity. It's a redemptive religion. It's a buy-back religion. We 
were dead in our trespasses and sin, we were in the slave market 
of sin, and God, through the blood of Jesus, bought us, saved 
us, secured us, reconciled us, redeemed us. That's the uniqueness. If you have not believed that 
unique word, I encourage you that you come, that you believe, 
that you see the emphasis and the importance that God places 
upon this message of the cross. And that is for His glory, but 
it's also for the good of your soul. Well, let us close in a 
word of prayer. Father, we thank you for your 
word. We thank you for the truth as it is in Jesus. We thank you 
for Acts 8 and the reality that even in the midst of great persecution, 
Christ is doing great things, and that that mission that has 
gone from Jerusalem goes now to Judea, Samaria, and will go 
on the call of Saul of Tarsus to the uttermost parts of the 
earth. God, help us to see and help us to be encouraged and 
help us to be thrilled by your power, by your sovereignty, by 
your majesty, at work in the world of men. And Lord, may it 
not be the case that we fret that the church will be overcome, 
that we fret that the Muslims or the atheists or the secularists 
will win. But may we know that Christ will 
have dominion from sea to sea. May we know that the knowledge 
of Yahweh will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. 
And may these things steal us. May they encourage us. And may 
they help us to do those things that you call us to do in this 
world, namely to shine as lights in a crooked and perverse generation. 
and to hold forth the word of truth. Thank you for this church. 
I thank you for my brothers and my sisters here. And I pray that 
we would know your nearness and your goodness and your kindness 
to us. And we ask in Jesus' name, amen. Well, we'll close by singing 
hymn number 564. Hymn number 564. We'll stand 
as we sing praise to God. you. Israel, who told me new and wondrous 
works in glory and excel, who told me new and wondrous works 
in glory and excel. ♪ Blessed be His glorious name 
to all eternity ♪ ♪ The whole earth let its glory fill, all 
men so, let it be ♪ ♪ The whole earth let its glory fill, all 
men so, let it be ♪ Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ 
and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you 
all. Amen. Father, help us to sanctify 
the day, help us to enjoy the day, to enjoy the fellowship 
of the saints, to encourage one another, and God, give us grace 
to bring glory, honor, and praise to such a wonderful God, Father, 
Son, and Holy Spirit, who has saved His people from their sins. 
Go with us, we pray, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, amen. 
Please be seated for a brief moment.