Summer Devotional:
​No Other Name - A Devotional on the Book of Acts

Day 16 – June 22nd, 2021
Read Acts 8:1b-25

Helpful Background
Chapter 8 begins a new section of the book of Acts. The focus of the early Church, moves from “Jerusalem to Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the Earth.” (Acts 1:8) Luke uses the death of Stephen, and the resulting persecution of the Church, to propel the narrative into a new energetic phase of outreach and expansion.  (As sparks fly outward from a burning log if it is struck, so the “on fire” followers of Christ scattered outward from Jerusalem after the death of Stephen.)  The followers of Jesus in Jerusalem, had not yet begun to fulfill the “Great Commission,” (Matt. 28:19-20) and may have expected all interested in Jesus to come to them. The death of Stephen compelled them to “go” out, and take the gospel message with them.

​Questions - What can we learn from the believers who were scattered out from Jerusalem after the death of Stephen?  What can God do, even through tragedy?  What did their actions and attitudes indicate?​

Grab your journal or use the notes section on your phone.
Respond to the Scripture reading with your thoughts, questions, and/or prayer response to today’s Bible verses.​

Who was instrumental in your life in helping you to meet and/or follow Jesus? 

One key person who was instrumental in developing the priority of God first in everything we say and do was Pastor Al V.

When Gina accepted my proposal for marriage, we agreed we wanted to have Christ at the center of our marriage. We started attending different churches in the Fresno and Clovis area and over time we decided to be married at Saint Luke’s United Methodist Church in Fresno, California. We did not have the ability back then to stalk the church through social media, so we had to do it the old fashion way by attending and asking questions. Pastor Al V. performed our marriage ceremony but went on to preach to our souls and guide us into placing God first in our marriage and teaching us the importance of giving not only through our finances but also our time. Pastor Al would return years latter into our lives and guide us to Asbury Seminary in Wilmore Kentucky. He was instrumental in securing a scholarship and giving us confidence to trust God on this challenge to pick up our family and move into God’s call on our lives.
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-Shared by Pastor Tim G.

For more background information & study questions on the Book of Acts, check out Brian Ralston's handouts here.