Last time we were introduced to Paul at the stoning of Stephen. Acts 8:1a says “And Saul approved of his execution.” This verse is really the closing statement of the previous paragraph in chapter 7 about the stoning of Stephen after his trial.

Acts 8:1b-3 then tells us:

“And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.“

This paragraph emphasizes two things. First, that the Jerusalem believers – which would have numbered over 10,000 at this point – were persecuted and scattered to Judea and Samaria. The second thing is that Paul was instrumental in much of this persecution. I would like to examine these two things a little closer.

Scattering of the Church

I believe that Luke (the writer of Acts) deliberately used the words to describe this scattering “throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles” to make a point. He had already quoted Jesus back in Acts 1:8: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” These words were said to the apostles just before Jesus ascended into heaven following his many resurrection appearances.

Stephen’s stoning may have been as much as three years after Jesus’ death, resurrection and ascension. It had been as much as three years since Jesus told the apostles to be his witnesses in Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

But they were still in Jerusalem. And the scattering that occurred was the new believers – not the apostles. I think this was Luke’s commentary on the subtle disobedience the apostles had done. Granted, they had been great witnesses in Jerusalem and had a fruitful ministry. But they had already lost sight, or at least lacked urgency for, the commission that Jesus had given them.

This reminds me of the story from Genesis of the tower of Babel. When God created humanity (Genesis 1), He said, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it.” After that a lot of history happened: the fall into sin, the first murder, many new generations, Noah’s flood… but the people in all those years failed to leave the “fertile crescent” region of Mesopotamia. In Genesis 11:4 the people collectively said, “‘Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.‘ In response God said, ‘let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another’s speech.’ So the LORD dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth.“

Not only had the people turned their eyes off of God and onto themselves, but they had not fulfilled his original commands to populate the earth either. So he intervened.

Paul’s Persecution of the Church

Acts 8 and 9 only gives us a brief view of Paul’s persecution efforts. However, we can glean a little more from Paul’s own words in scattered references in his letters and in the speeches he makes recorded later in Acts.

In Galatians 1:23, Paul described how the Judean churches knew that “He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” Earlier in that chapter, Paul said, “For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.“

In Philippians 3 he describes himself as zealous in his persecution of the church. Then, in a speech in Acts 22, Paul asserts, “I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women, as the high priest and the whole council of elders can bear me witness.” He further describes his activities during another speech in Acts 26:9-12:

“I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority from the chief priests, but when they were put to death I cast my vote against them. And I punished them often in all the synagogues and tried to make them blaspheme, and in raging fury against them I persecuted them even to foreign cities.“

After becoming a Christian himself, Paul reflected back on those days with some agony. He told the Corinthian church, in 1 Corinthians 15:9, “I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.” He had an even harsher description of it in 1 Timothy 1:13 – “though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief.”

We know that Paul was a very focused missionary, and this drive was characteristic of his persecution of the church as well. I believe that God used Paul to drive the church beyond the gates of Jerusalem, and I think Paul, to a degree, may have recognized that fact by the statement to Timothy above, that he “received mercy because [he] had acted ignorantly in unbelief.”

This brings us to Acts 9:1-2.

“But 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 belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.“

We’ll pick up Paul’s story there next time.