They killed one of the faithful ones, Stephen. The persecution of Jesus’ followers, the early church, was just beginning. It sounds like a horrible time to be a believer. Yet we can marvel with gratitude that those faithful ones stood strong, trusted God, and followed Jesus’ command to make disciples. Despite being scattered, these believers “preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went.” Are we that bold? When was the last time you told someone about Jesus and the promise of salvation?
We meet one of the faithful ones, Philip, in this reading. Since I wondered if this Philip was one of Jesus’ twelve disciples, I did some digging. Biblical scholars seem to agree that this Philip was not the disciple, but one of the seven chosen, like Stephen, to be faithful witnesses running the food program (Acts 6). Because of the persecution, Philip moved on to Samaria. Continue reading “Acts 8:1-25 – Faithful Ones”
