The Summit Church | A Journey Through Luke & ActsSample

In this next section, Luke shows that Stephen’s tragic murder cannot stop the Jesus movement. In fact, the persecution has the effect of scattering many of the disciples outside of Jerusalem into the non-Jewish surrounding regions of Judea and Samaria. As the disciples move out, they bring the message of God’s Kingdom with them, just like Jesus commissioned them to do. The disciples proclaim Jesus’ story, and people are miraculously freed and healed. A famous magician sees that God’s power is far greater than his own, and a court official of the queen of Ethiopia is baptized. The Kingdom is spreading and nothing can overthrow God’s plan, not even a man named Saul, a religious leader who drags Jesus’ followers out of their own homes to have them imprisoned.

As Saul travels to Damascus looking for more disciples to lock up, he is stopped by a blinding light and a voice from heaven. It’s the risen Jesus himself asking Saul why he is fighting against him. This encounter and the amazing signs that follow radically change Saul’s mind about who Jesus really is. Saul’s plans are turned upside-down. Instead of persecuting Jesus’ followers in Damascus, Saul becomes one of them and immediately begins to proclaim Jesus as the Son of God.