JOIN THE JOURNEY JR.
Families Abiding in Jesus together
With shorter reading assignments and kid-specific focus areas, Join The Journey Jr. is designed to help parents disciple their kids and engage with Scripture in the best ways for their age.
This month's memory verse
For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
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Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word. Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ.
Acts of the Apostles 8
1Saul was one of the witnesses, and he agreed completely with the killing of Stephen.
Persecution Scatters the Believers
A great wave of persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem; and all the believers except the apostles were scattered through the regions of Judea and Samaria. 2(Some devout men came and buried Stephen with great mourning.) 3But Saul was going everywhere to destroy the church. He went from house to house, dragging out both men and women to throw them into prison.
Philip Preaches in Samaria
4But the believers who were scattered preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went. 5Philip, for example, went to the city of Samaria and told the people there about the Messiah. 6Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did. 7Many evil* spirits were cast out, screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed. 8So there was great joy in that city.
What You Need
What To Do
In Acts 8, the believers got scattered out of Jerusalem like water spreading into new cups. They didn’t stay put—they carried the gospel with them wherever they went. Even as Saul was telling believers not to talk about Jesus, and was hurting them when they did, the Gospel continued to spread further into the world. The believers didn’t let the persecution stop them from sharing their faith with other people. Because of their courage, the Gospel spread to parts of the world that didn’t know Jesus yet, like Samaria.
Like the cups, empty places got filled. What started in one place ended up everywhere. Today, the Gospel is still spreading. The news of Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection continues to change people’s lives.
Jesus, we pray that your Word would continue to spread around the world. We pray that, even in places where the Gospel is not allowed, your Spirit would make a way for the Gospel to be shared. Jesus, help me to share how much you love us with friends who don’t know you so the Gospel can spread where I live.