In a mere ten verses, the situation in the Acts of the Apostles veers from stones shattering the body of Stephen to joy overflowing in a Samaritan city. The transition is startling. Luke records Stephen’s prayerful surrender and his Christlike intercession in the face of death, then immediately introduces a ferocious program of suppression in Jerusalem. Yet the result is not the silencing of witness but its multiplication. In Acts 8:4, Luke explains, “Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word,” and then summarizes the outcome in Acts 8:8, “So there was much joy in that city” (English Standard Version). The Church moves from martyrdom to mission to rejoicing. The pattern discloses a deeper reality: God’s sovereign grace often turns persecution into something precious.
The Apostle Peter prepares the Church to read such events rightly. He writes, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you” (1 Peter 4:12–14, English Standard Version). Taken together, 1 Peter 4 and Acts 7–8 teach that persecution is neither an aberration nor a defeat. It is the crucible in which God purifies His people, magnifies Christ, and advances the Gospel.
In what follows, we will consider the exegesis of key terms in 1 Peter 4:12–14 and Acts 7:59–8:8, and then trace the theological logic by which the Lord transfigures opposition into joy. The aim is not to romanticize suffering, nor to ignore the grave evil of persecution, but to interpret the Church’s trials in the light of Scripture. God does not waste the fire. He uses the fire to refine faith, to spread His Word, and to fill cities with joy.
Exegeting 1 Peter 4:12–14 — The Purifying Fire and the Resting Glory
Peter’s words address Christians surprised by hostility. He frames the ordeal as a participation in Christ and as the prelude to glory.
“Do not be surprised” — The Alien Feel of Faithfulness in an Unreconciled Age
Peter’s admonition begins with a prohibition: “do not be surprised.” The underlying verb is xenizesthe, from xenizō, which means to regard something as foreign or alien. Peter assumes that believers will be tempted to treat suffering as an alien intrusion upon the normal Christian life. He reverses the instinct. In the last days, when the Church bears witness to the crucified and risen Lord among peoples and powers that do not yet acknowledge Him, opposition is not an alien element. It belongs to the Church’s normal state in a world that remains unreconciled. Faithfulness will feel foreign to a culture ordered by different loves. Therefore, believers must refuse to “think it strange.”
“Fiery trial” — Not Annihilation, but Refinement
Peter names the ordeal a “fiery trial.” The noun is pýrosis, drawn from imagery of smelting or burning. Peter already used refining imagery in 1 Peter 1:7, where he speaks of the “tested genuineness” of faith, “more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire.” In 4:12 the fire is not the fire of final judgment. It is a proving fire. The clause “when it comes upon you to test you” uses a purpose nuance that aligns with God’s intent to refine, not to destroy. The ESV’s “to test you” captures the nuance well. The trial is real in heat and hazard, yet its design under God is constructive. Fire does not invent impurities, it reveals and removes them. The Divine Refiner aims to bring forth a faith unmarred by dross, bright with the luster of Christ.
“As though something strange were happening to you” — The Providential Frame
The phrase “as though something strange were happening to you” reinforces the call to theological sobriety. The participle for “happening” conveys the sense of an event that comes by, as if by chance. Peter denies that the Church’s trials are random. They are not a cosmic accident. Set within the providence of God, they are an instrument of sanctification. The believer refuses both fatalism and surprise. Instead, believers interpret their ordeals within the broader economy of the cross and resurrection.
“Rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings” — Participation, not Substitution
Peter commands, “But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings.” The verb “share” translates koinōneite, from koinōneō, which means to participate, to have fellowship with. Peter does not imply that our sufferings add to the once-for-all atoning work of Christ. The sacrifice of Christ is sufficient and complete. Rather, he declares that when believers are reviled or harmed for the name of Christ, their sufferings are a fellowship with the Lord who suffered. They are being conformed to Him. The imperative to “rejoice” guards against a morbid spirituality that treats suffering as an end in itself. The joy is not in pain per se, but in being counted worthy to belong to the Messiah and to bear His Name.
“That you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed” — The Eschatological Horizon
The purpose clause anticipates the Parousia. Peter writes, “that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” The key noun is dóxa for “glory,” and the verb “is revealed” is from apokalyptō, to unveil. The twinned verbs “rejoice and be glad” echo the language of exaltation and point to an eschatological festival. The present rejoicing in trials is an anticipation of future exultation. Present fire is not the final word. Future glory is. The Christian imagination is trained to view today’s losses in the light of the unveiling of Christ’s dominion tomorrow.
“If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed” — The Beatitude of Bearing the Name.
Verse 14 transposes the Beatitudes into the register of persecution. “If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed.” The verb for “insulted” is oneidizesthe, a term of verbal shaming and reproach. It points to social exclusion, slander, and reputational harm. Peter calls the insulted “blessed,” makarioi. The logic is not psychological stoicism. It is pneumatological. The reason for this status is that “the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” The verb “rests” is anapauetai, which evokes the imagery of divine presence settling upon the people of God. This resting presence is reminiscent of the glory that filled the tabernacle and temple. The Spirit who glorified the Son in His sufferings now rests upon those who bear the Son’s Name in theirs.
In sum, 1 Peter 4:12–14 calls Christians to interpret fiery trials as refining providences, as participations in Christ that lead to joy, and as occasions when the Spirit’s resting presence is most intensely experienced. Such exegesis prepares us to read Acts 7:59–8:8 not as a tragic derailment but as a Divinely orchestrated advance.
Exegeting Acts 7:59–8:8 — Witness, Scattering, Proclamation, and Joy
Luke’s narrative gathers several linguistic threads that reveal the constructive work of God amid violence.
Stephen’s Christlike Death — Invocation, Intercession, and Sleep
Acts 7:59–60 reads: “And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’ And when he had said this, he fell asleep” (English Standard Version). Three movements deserve attention.
First, Stephen “called out” to the Lord Jesus. The verb is from epikaleō, “to call upon.” The form Luke uses portrays Stephen as one who invokes the Risen Lord in active trust. The object of the invocation is decisive. Stephen does not simply entrust himself to God in general. He entrusts himself to “Lord Jesus,” thereby bearing explicit testimony that the crucified Jesus lives and reigns. The petition “receive my spirit” echoes the language of Psalm 31 and the Lord’s own words in Luke 23:46, signaling Christlike filial trust in the Father through the Son.
Second, Stephen’s intercession mirrors the cruciform ethic: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” The verb “hold” is a forensic term that may be glossed as “reckon” or “charge.” Stephen asks for a divine non-imputation. Whether or not the persecutors consciously repent, Stephen surrenders the right to vengeance and models the way the Church witnesses to the Gospel under pressure.
Third, Luke writes that Stephen “fell asleep.” The verb koimaō has a well-established use in the Scriptures for death viewed under the sign of hope. Sleep is not a euphemism but eschatological shorthand. The narration gently discloses that Stephen’s death is not a final defeat. It is the moment of rest before the resurrection, and the moment God uses to set new movements in motion.
Saul’s Approval and the Great Persecution — The Catalyst Nobody Sought
Acts 8:1 begins, “And Saul approved of his execution.” The verb suneudokōn connotes wholehearted approval. Luke then reports, “there arose on that day a great persecution against the Church in Jerusalem.” The phrase “great persecution” employs diōgmos megas. The intensity is “great” not because the Church had never suffered, but because now the entire community is targeted. The Church, ekklēsia, is threatened with dispersal.
Luke adds, “they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.” The verb “scattered” is from diaspeirō, the same root that forms “diaspora.” The resonance is agricultural. The seed is scattered in order to take root elsewhere. Luke wants readers to see the providential irony. What the persecutors intend as fragmentation, God uses as sowing.
Ravaging and Dragging — The Ferocity of Opposition
Acts 8:3 intensifies the portrait: “But Saul was ravaging the Church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison” (English Standard Version). “Ravaging” translates lumainomai, a verb used of wild beasts or invading armies. Luke refuses to sentimentalize. The movement from Acts 7 to 8 is not a soft transition. It is rupture. Yet even here, the ferocity of Saul cannot outstrip the sovereignty of God. The future Apostle will one day confess how greatly he persecuted the Church. For now, Luke makes clear that persecution is real, personal, and devastating.
“Those who were scattered went about preaching the word” — The Birth of Accidental Missionaries
Acts 8:4 describes the effect: “Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.” The participle behind “went about preaching” draws from euangelizō, to announce good news. Philip will “proclaim” Christ in Acts 8:5 with kērussō, to herald. Both verbs underscore that the scattered believers became heralds and evangelists by necessity and by Spirit-driven impulse. They are not apostles by office. Many are displaced artisans, widows, and ordinary families. Their witness is the overflow of hearts that know the worth of Christ. Persecution did not produce silence. It produced speech, not in a disciplinary program but in a joyful compulsion to make Christ known.
The Samaritans Hear and See — Unity, Deliverance, Healing, and Theological Surprise
Acts 8:5–7 reads, “Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ. And the crowds, with one accord, paid attention to what Philip was saying when they heard him and saw the signs he performed. For unclean spirits, crying out with a loud voice, came out of many who had them, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed” (English Standard Version). The phrase “with one accord” translates homothymadon, a favorite Lucan term that conveys corporate unity and shared intent. The Gospel that divides Jerusalem’s leadership now unites a Samaritan crowd that Jews typically despised. The signs of deliverance and healing mark the inbreaking of the kingdom. “Unclean spirits” are expelled. The paralyzed and the lame are raised to mobility. The theological surprise is striking. The Messiah of Israel extends mercy to a people whom many Jews considered compromised. Persecution pressed the Church into the geography of promise in a way that comfortable Jerusalem would not have attempted. The Spirit moves the mission to Samaria, in line with the Risen Lord’s commission in Acts 1:8.
“So there was much joy in that city” — The Fruit of a Scattered Church
Luke concludes, “So there was much joy in that city.” The noun is chara and the modifying adjective in the underlying Greek indicates the abundance of joy. The ESV renders “much joy,” though the sense of “great joy” is also accurate as a gloss. Regardless of the English rendering, the point is clear. The story that began with an unjust execution now reports a city saturated with joy. The pathway runs through the furnace of persecution, the scattering of believers, the heralding of Christ, and the healing of the oppressed. The harvest is joy.
How God Turns Persecution into Something Precious
A canonical synthesis of these passages reveals at least four ways God transfigures persecution into a precious gift for the Church and for the world.
Persecution Purifies the Church: The Fire That Reveals Genuine Faith
Peter’s “fiery trial” places refinement at the center of the theology of suffering. Trials burn away that which is inessential. They expose counterfeit loyalties and purify trust in Christ. Persecution presses the Church to ask what it believes, whom it serves, and where its hope is fixed. Institutions may carry barnacles of cultural accommodation or reputational anxieties. The fire dislodges these. Individuals may harbor lesser loves. The fire discloses and reorders. The result is not human heroics but clarified devotion. Theologically, this is sanctification by providence under the Spirit, resulting in a people who rejoice “insofar as [they] share Christ’s sufferings” and who anticipate “when his glory is revealed” with deeper longing.
This purification has corporate dimensions. In Jerusalem a community of believers had to learn that their identity could not be confined to a single city. The Great Commission already declared as much, yet comfort inhibits obedience. The fire of persecution purified the Church’s mission focus and unlatched the doors. The refinement is therefore both moral and missional. The Church loses its illusions and finds its vocation.
Persecution Deepens the Presence of God: The Resting Glory in the Furnace
Peter’s beatitude for the insulted includes a promise that “the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” The verb anapauetai points to an intensified experience of divine presence precisely in moments of dishonor for the Name. This aligns with the narrative of Acts. Stephen, filled with the Spirit, beholds the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God before he surrenders his spirit. The martyr is not spiritually abandoned. He is enveloped by presence. Likewise, those scattered experience God’s power attending the Word as they bear witness in strange places. The expulsions of unclean spirits and the healings of the lame in Samaria are not merely wonders. They are signs of the Spirit’s resting power on a Church under pressure.
This reality is pastorally significant. Many believers assume that God’s presence is most tangible in seasons of institutional growth and social favor. Scripture corrects the assumption. The Spirit often makes His resting known most sweetly when bearing the Name of Christ costs something. The furnace becomes a sanctuary. The insult becomes the occasion for divine consolation. The Church learns to prize the nearness of God more than the approval of the world.
Persecution Propels the Mission: The Sowing of the Word Through Scattering
Luke’s choice of diaspeirō encourages the reader to interpret the Church’s dispersal as sowing. Agricultural imagery implies design. The seed is scattered to grow. The persecutors intend to crush. God intends to plant. The scattered believers “went about preaching the word.” What appears as institutional contraction in Jerusalem becomes missional expansion across Judea and Samaria. Philip’s ministry in Samaria is emblematic. He preaches Christ and embodies Christ’s mercies, and a city resonates with joy.
Theologically, this displays the cruciform pattern of the Gospel itself. Death and resurrection is not merely the content of the message. It is also the shape of the mission. When the Church is pressed down, the Word springs up in unexpected fields. The Samaritans are not a strategic afterthought. They are included in the covenant mercy promised through the prophets and authorized by the Risen Christ. Persecution becomes the servant of providence. The pressure that aims to silence actually amplifies the Gospel.
Persecution Produces Joy: The Fruit of the Kingdom in Unlikely Places
Acts 8:8 teaches that the end of this trajectory is joy. Joy is not the denial of Stephen’s death. Luke preserves lament in Acts 8:2, where “devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him.” Christian joy does not erase tears. Christian joy arises through and beyond tears as the Spirit magnifies Christ and liberates the oppressed. The Samaritans’ joy is the signature of the kingdom’s advance. This joy is precious precisely because it is born in adversity. It testifies that the Lord reigns in the midst of enemies and that His reign is good.
In pastoral terms, the Church can expect that where faithfulness perseveres under pressure, joy will eventually break forth, perhaps in a different place than expected, perhaps among people not first imagined. The Church prays, preaches, serves, and trusts. God writes the chapter in which the city rejoices.
Key Greek Terms and Their Pastoral Significance
For readers who desire closer engagement with the original languages, the following brief glossary highlights several terms already noted and shows how the ESV renders them. The point is not to promote technicality for its own sake, but to illuminate what the ESV translations faithfully convey.
1 Peter 4:12 — xenizesthe (“do not be surprised”). The verb’s sense of foreignness clarifies Peter’s counsel. Hostility toward Christ is not alien to the Church’s pilgrimage. The ESV’s “do not be surprised” rightly conveys the call to reject astonishment and to embrace sober expectation.
1 Peter 4:12 — pýrosis (“fiery trial”). The smelting metaphor communicates that trials expose and refine. The ESV’s wording keeps the imagery vivid. The believer is not consumed, but purified.
1 Peter 4:12 — peirasmos (“to test you”). Often associated with temptation or testing, peirasmos here confirms divine purpose. The ESV makes the telos explicit: testing, not pointless suffering.
1 Peter 4:13 — koinōneite (“you share”). Participation language highlights communion with Christ, not contribution to atonement. The ESV’s “share” helps the reader hold fellowship and imitation together.
1 Peter 4:13 — dóxa and apokalyptō (“glory is revealed”). The twin of glory and revelation fixes hope on the unveiling of Christ’s lordship. The ESV’s “when his glory is revealed” aligns the reader’s horizon with the Parousia.
1 Peter 4:14 — oneidizesthe and makarioi (“insulted” and “blessed”). The juxtaposition of insult and blessedness reverses worldly valuations. The ESV holds the beatitude force without exaggeration.
1 Peter 4:14 — anapauetai (“rests upon you”). The resting of the Spirit portrays intimate presence. The ESV’s “rests” preserves the Old Testament sanctuary resonance without overstatement.
Acts 7:59 — epikaleō (“he called out”). Invocation vocabulary stresses active trust in the Lord Jesus. The ESV’s “he called out” makes audible Stephen’s faith.
Acts 7:60 — koimaō (“he fell asleep”). Hope-filled idiom for death. The ESV preserves the idiom, allowing readers to feel how early Christians spoke about dying in Christ.
Acts 8:1 — suneudokōn (“approved”). Wholehearted sanction. The ESV’s “approved” captures moral complicity without rhetorical flourish.
Acts 8:1–4 — diaspeirō (“scattered”). Sowing term. The ESV’s “scattered” allows preachers and readers to unpack the sowing connotation that Luke intends.
Acts 8:3 — lumainomai (“ravaging”). Violent tearing. The ESV’s “ravaging” preserves the ferocity.
Acts 8:4 — euangelizō (“preaching the word”). Announcing good news. The ESV’s “preaching the word” conveys the public proclamation inherent in the term.
Acts 8:5 — kērussō (“proclaimed”). Heralding. The ESV’s “proclaimed” appropriately signals authoritative announcement.
Acts 8:6 — homothymadon (“with one accord”). Unity of mind and heart. The ESV’s “with one accord” retains Luke’s favorite descriptor of Spirit-wrought unity.
Acts 8:7 — pneumata akatharta, paralelymenoi, chōloi (“unclean spirits,” “paralyzed,” “lame”). Vocabulary of bondage and healing. The ESV renders each with clarity, painting the liberating scope of Christ’s power.
Acts 8:8 — chara with abundant modifier (“much joy”). Overflowing gladness. The ESV’s “much joy” communicates the abundance that crowns the passage.
A Theology of Enduring Trials with the Right Attitude
Peter’s exhortation includes a pastoral program for enduring trials rightly. Several resolutions follow.
Reframe the Trial under the Cross and Resurrection
Believers are instructed to expect opposition without cynicism. The cross assures that suffering for Christ is not accidental. The resurrection guarantees that suffering is not ultimate. Therefore, the believer refuses surprise and chooses joy. Joy is an act of allegiance to the future unveiling of Christ’s glory.
Seek the Spirit’s Resting Presence
When insulted for the Name, believers should immediately claim the promise that “the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” Prayer in such moments is not escapist. It is a plea for the Spirit’s consolations in the furnace. Stephen’s prayers model this posture. His invocation and intercession are Spirit-wrought acts by which the Church learns to die and to live well.
Witness Wherever the Lord Scatters You
The scattered believers “went about preaching the word.” The Church should cultivate a reflex: whenever displaced or pressured, bear witness to Christ in the new circumstance. In workplace marginalization, in neighborhood suspicion, in academic circles that misread the Gospel, believers can speak with grace and courage. The mission of the Church does not wait for favorable conditions. It moves with the Spirit into the places where the Spirit has sown the Church.
Maintain Lament and Pursue Joy
Luke refuses to erase lament. “Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him.” The Church must grieve losses honestly. Yet the same Church looks for the Lord to create joy where no one expected it. Lament and joy are not enemies. They are companions in the biblical life. Grief names evil as evil. Joy names Christ as Lord in the face of that evil.
Love and Pray for Persecutors
Stephen’s plea, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them,” becomes the seed of future mercy. The later conversion of Saul testifies to hidden answers that are years in the making. The Church prays for those who oppose the Gospel. It refuses to indulge hatred. It surrenders vengeance to God. Such love does not excuse injustice. It enrolls enemies in the same mercy that saved us.
Patterns for the Church Today
Although the historical circumstances of Acts 7–8 and the recipients of 1 Peter differ from modern contexts, the underlying patterns remain instructive.
When the Church faces restriction or ridicule, it should expect the Spirit’s companionship. The promise that the Spirit “rests upon you” in times of reproach means that believers may anticipate unusual measures of consolation and boldness precisely when insult intensifies.
When believers are displaced or scattered, the Church should interpret the movement as sowing. Migration, whether voluntary or forced, is not beyond God’s mission. The diasporic Church can be a remarkably fertile Church. University students returning home after facing hostility on campus, professionals relocated after corporate downsizing, refugees who flee war with Christ’s Name on their lips, all may become heralds of the Word in their new cities.
When authorities attempt to ravage the Church, leaders should prepare the flock to respond with witness and mercy. Ravaging tears, but it does not determine. Pastors and elders can teach congregations to view the next neighborhood, the next culture, and even the next hostility as the next field.
When joy erupts in unexpected places, the Church should interpret the joy as God’s answer to prayers offered in the furnace. Joy is not merely a psychological relief. It is the kingdom’s signature. The Samaritan city’s gladness honors the Lord who sent His herald through persecution’s gate.
The Sufferings and Glory of Christ Shape the Church’s Story
Peter frames the Christian life under the pattern of Christ’s sufferings and glory. The Church’s experience follows the trajectory of its Head. In Christ, suffering for righteousness’ sake is not a cul-de-sac. It is a corridor to glory. In Acts, Stephen’s death is not the failure of the mission. It is the seed of the mission’s expansion. The Risen Lord stands to receive His servant, and then He uses the very rage that killed the servant to send heralds to Samaria. The Christological center holds the exegesis together.
Consider again the language of participation. “Rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings.” The saints do not suffer alone. The Lord is near, and the Church participates in His pattern. Consider also the eschatological promise. “That you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” The Saints’ present rejoicing is anticipatory. It trains affections for the unveiling. Finally, consider the pneumatological assurance. “The Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” The Spirit who glorified the Son in suffering now glorifies the Son through the suffering saints. This is why joy can crown a Samaritan city shortly after a martyr falls. The Spirit is at work, and Christ is not defeated.
Practical Counsel for Believers Under Pressure
Catechize Your Expectations
Memorize 1 Peter 4:12–14. Let the words recalibrate instinct. When insult comes, reply in your heart with Peter’s beatitude. He has already named you blessed. He has already told you what rests upon you. He has already pointed you to the unveiling of glory.
Practice Stephen’s Prayers
Regularly pray, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” That prayer is not only for the moment of death. It is an everyday surrender of agency, agenda, and anxiety. Then pray, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” That prayer guards the heart from bitterness and keeps witness from curdling into self-righteousness.
Embrace Small Witnesses
The scattered believers did not form a grand strategy committee. They spoke. The next neighbor, the next conversation at the well, the next meal with a stranger, the next classroom, the next hospital bed, the next refugee camp becomes the field. Tell the truth about Jesus. The Spirit will write “much joy” across unlikely pages.
Hold Lament and Joy Together
Attend funerals with tears and with hope. Lament Stephen’s falling asleep. Lament the imprisonments and the losses. Then listen for the Spirit who sooner or later will make the joy of Samaria echo again. The Church is not a stranger to sorrow. Nor is the Church a stranger to joy. Both belong to the pilgrimage.
Prepare for Surprises
The Gospel often triumphs beyond the boundaries we set. The Samaritans’ embrace of Christ should embolden the Church to expect conversions and healings among peoples and subcultures we scarcely imagine. Persecution will send the Church into neighborhoods it avoided. Expect the Lord to write joy there.
The Preciousness on the Other Side of the Fire
The Scriptures do not glamorize persecution. They do not deny its cruelty. They do not minimize lament. Yet they also insist that persecution does not sit upon the throne of history. Jesus does. The crucified and risen Lord governs even hostile events so that the Church is refined, the Spirit’s presence rests, the Word is sown, and joy blooms.
Peter’s language of “fiery trial” prepares Christians not to be surprised, but to rejoice as they share the sufferings of Christ, with their eyes trained on the day “when his glory is revealed” and with their hearts steadied by the beatitude that pronounces insulted saints “blessed,” because “the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you” (1 Peter 4:12–14, English Standard Version). Luke’s narrative of Stephen’s death and its aftermath shows how the Lord turns that theology into history. A martyr falls asleep. A persecutor ravages. A Church scatters. A deacon preaches. Devils flee. Bodies are healed. A city rejoices. The movement is not accidental. It is providential.
Therefore, when forces in our world resist the truths and teachings of Scripture, especially the Gospel of Jesus Christ, believers do not give up. They yield themselves to the Refiner. They seek the Spirit’s resting presence. They witness wherever they are sent. They lament real losses. They expect real joy. Perseverance is not naivete. It is faith. It is hope that reads Acts 7:59–8:8 as a template for God’s dealings in many times and places. Because Jesus reigns, the path from persecution to precious joy runs through every era of the Church until the day when the unveiled glory of Christ fills every city with everlasting praise.
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