++

V
c havc bccn working through thc Gospcls.
Now wc arc plunging o thc cnd ol thc
Gospcls to bcyond thc Rcsurrcction, and
thc book ol Acts is our guidc lor a whilc. Spccically,
wc arc moving out ol Jcrusalcm into thc rcst ol thc
world. !n a ccrtain scnsc, you could say this is thc most
momcntous momcnt lor all history. bviously thcrc
would bc othcr candidatcs lor that distinction likc thc
cross ol Christ and all kinds ol othcr important cvcnts.
8ut in tcrms ol Gods plans to rcconqucr this planct,
ccrtainly this pcriod is signicant. Tc dccisivc movc
ol thc church in Jcrusalcm into thc rcst ol thc world
is taking placc in lulllmcnt ol Acts 1:8, which statcs,
You shall bc witncsscs lor mc in Jcrusalcm and in all
Judca and Samaria and unto thc uttcrmost parts ol thc
carth. Tat kind ol outlinc lor thc book ol Acts, ol
coursc, is vcry basic. 8ut this movc bcyond Jcrusalcm
initiatcs a dccisivc changc in all ol world history.
Vc do not want to ovcrcmphasizc thc changing ol
plans. At thc samc timc, wc must rccognizc by any
comparison that in thc 2,000 ycar pcriod bctwccn
2000 8C and thc birth ol Christ, and thc pcriod ol
2000 ycars bcyond, that thcrc is an absolutc, lantastic
dicrcncc. Tc dicrcncc bcgins right hcrc in Acts.
Tcrc is a dicrcncc, but thc dicrcncc is not total.
!t was Abraham, 2,000 ycars bclorc, who was pushcd
into gypt in Gods providcncc. Tc word ol God,
thc powcr ol God, thc Gospcl ol God (Gospcl is
what Paul talks about in Galatians 3 as having bccn
prcachcd to Abraham) bcgins to movc out ol Palcstinc
into gypt, a rcally major rcgional powcr.
l coursc, latcr on many othcr activitics wc havc alrcady
studicd indicatc that God is conccrncd, hc is intcrcstcd,
and hc is working. Hc is accomplishing thc pushing out
ol thc witncss ol thc powcr ol his Spirit into thc dark
cncd pcoplcs ol thc world long bclorc this. Vhat is so
uniquc about this: Paul sums it up latcr on in Romans
11 whcn hc talks about thc natural branchcs bcing cut
o and articial branchcs bcing graltcd in. Tat ncvcr
took placc bclorc. Hc assurcs thc rcadcr that docs not
mcan that thc natural vinc will ncvcr bcar lruit ol itscll.
Hc talks about thc timc ol thc Gcntilcs as bcing lul
llcd. !t is not as il !sracl is cut o lorcvcr, but thcrc is a
distinct changc that can bc obscrvcd.
Again, a qualication may bc hclplul as thc changc
was not ncccssarily vcry obvious. Tc twclvc disciplcs
thcmsclvcs did not sccm to bc lantastic missionarics,
at lcast within thc pagcs ol thc book ol Acts. Pctcr is a
vcry rcluctant missionary. Tc cultural obstaclcs immc
diatcly loom vcry, vcry largc. His cthnoccntrism would
lcad him to bclicvc that you cannot bc acccptablc to
God il you cat thc wrong kind ol lood. !n any cvcnt,
you havc a distinct changc ol mood and pacc. Tis is a
momcntous momcnt!
!l you considcr Valtcr Russclls lcsson, Tc Growth
ol thc Church in Judca and Samaria (chaptcr 14 in
Intertestamental and New Testament Periods from a Mis-
siological Perspective), ! am not rcal cxcitcd about that
titlc il ! can bc vcry tcchnical lor a momcnt. Tc kcy
phcnomcnon hcrc is thc bursting out ol Jcrusalcm into
largcr spaccs and that is not callcd growth. !n a way,
thc church did grow, takc root and grow in thc rcst ol
Judca and in Samaria. 8ut thc ccntral motil is that ol
moving out, ol expansion.
Lct us undcrstand that this pcriod is not just simply
thc growth ol somcthing that was thcrc alrcady. Tis is
a brand ncw movcmcnt. Pctcrs cxpcricncc is dccisivc.
Te Growth of the Church
in Judea and Samaria: Acts 312
Ralph D. Winter
Adaptcd with pcrmission lrom Vintcr, Ralph ., cd., ct al. (2006) Global Civilization, Classical World: Lesson Overviews, Filth dition. Pasadcna, CA: Vil
liam Carcy Library, pp. 152155.
++8 Tnv Gvow:n ov :nv Cnivcn ix Jibv~ ~xb S~:~vi~: Ac:s +:
!n Chaptcr 15 ol Acts, Pctcr rclcrs to thc lact that in
cvcry city, Moscs is alrcady bcing prcachcd. Vhat is
ncw thcn about thc moving out ol Jcrusalcm: Tc ncw
dimcnsion is in this casc highlightcd by Pctcrs cxpcri
cnccthc shcct lct down lrom hcavcn (Acts 10:148).
h, no, Lord, ! couldnt do that! Tc missionarics
that had gonc bclorc Pctcr wcrc cxtcnding not just thc
Gospcl. Tcrc was an clcmcnt ol thc Gospcl in which
thc Gcntilcs wcrc vcry intcrcstcd. Tat is why thcy
crowdcd in thc synagogucs in thc back rows and wcrc
trcatcd as Godlcarcrs and dcvout pcrsons.
Tc lact is that no onc cvcr clcarly undcrstood that thc
salvation ol thc Living God is not a mattcr ol meat or
not meat, ol cating this or not cating that. !t is not thc
cultural tradition. All ol us lall prcy to our own rcli
gious cthnoccntrism again and again il wc assumc that
thc way wc do things, thc way wc say things, has got
to bc what ncw bclicvcrs arc to do. Tc shock wc havc
introduccd hcrc is that cvcn going bcyond Judca into
Samaria, whcrc thcy had a somcwhat similar cultural
tradition cvcn though distinct in many ways, thcrc was
a hugc obstaclc ol communication. Pctcr had a crisis ol
missionary stratcgy, you might say. !nstcad ol travcrs
ing land and sca to makc a singlc prosclytc, thcy wcrc
now going to makc not prosclytcs, but believers.
!n our cra wc talk vcry looscly about making convcrts.
Vc rcally ought not to usc that word. Vhat wc mcan
to say is just nc. Tc only catch is that in gcncral
nglish thc word convert mcans thc wrong thing. !t
mcans cxactly what Pctcr cxpcctcd, rathcr than what
hc was lorccd to acccpt. Tc word convert implics a
convcrsion cxtcrnally as wcll as intcrnally pcrhaps. 8ut
that cxtcrnal dimcnsion is dccisivcly liltcd in this scc
tion ol Scripturc, and cvcn morc so whcn wc gct into
thc ncxt scction.
Now ! havc to arguc with thc nglish languagc. !n
nglish it can bc so glib, thc rclcrcncc to thc Gcntilcs
and to this man, Lukc, lor cxamplc, who was a Gcntilc.
Tc nglish word is clcar. Vc know what that phrasc
mcans: Lukc was a Gcntilc. Hcs thc only Gcntilc
who wrotc that much in thc Ncw Tcstamcnt. !n lact,
hc wrotc morc than anybody clsc in thc Ncw Tcsta
mcnt! Tis in itscll is an arrcsting lactthat God
would cmploy a Gcntilc lor thc biggcst singlc scction
ol thc Ncw Tcstamcnt. How about that: 8ut in any
casc, thc vcry phrasc, Lukc was a Gcntilc alrcady
throws us o. ! want you to think about this. Tc word
Gentile is usually thc translation ol thc word ethnos,
or in thc plural ethn. !n our mcntality as Amcrican
individualists, wc can casily conccivc ol thc Gcrmans
instcad ol thc Gcrman nation, or thc Jcws instcad ol
thc nation ol Jcws. How vcry intcrcsting that whcn
thc Ncw Tcstamcnt uscs thc tcrm thc ethnos ol thc
Jcws, which you nd in Acts 10:10, thc translators can
no longcr translatc that Gcntilc. You cant spcak ol
thc Gcntilc ol thc Jcws. 8ut whcn you say thc word
ethnos, yourc always rclcrring to a group. Yourc ncvcr
rclcrring to a pcrson.
You can chcck this out both in thc Scptuagint and in
thc Ncw Tcstamcnt. 8ut in thc nglish languagc, thc
word Gcntilc in thc singular rarcly il cvcr rclcrs to a
group. You could say in nglish, by strctching things a
littlc, thcrc was a Gcntilc group, but you almost havc to
add thc word group lor it to havc thc samc mcaning as
thc word ethnos. Hcrc you havc thc pcculiar situation.
Amcrican individualism divcs into thc Ncw Tcstamcnt
and translatcs thc words ethnos/ethn laithlully as Gcn
tilc/Gcntilcs. 8ut our culturc lorccs thc word to mcan
what thc words ethnos and ethn do not mcan. At kcy
points whcrc it just is not possiblc to think in tcrms ol
individuals or an individual, thcn thc translators shilt
ovcr to what thcy should havc choscn in thc rst placc,
namcly nation. !t would bc much bcttcr, whcn you scc
thc word Gcntilc in thc singular, to rcad nation, and in
thc plural, rcad nations. Tat is not always thc casc, but
almost always.
Tc word spirit in nglish, coming lrom pneuma in
Grcck, is anothcr onc ol thcsc words that gcts hijackcd,
in a scnsc. Vc practically ncvcr usc thc word spirit. !l a
window brokc out in a tornado and thc wind burst in
through thc classroom, wc wouldnt say, h! Tcrcs a
spirit moving hcrc. Vc rcscrvc thc nglish word spirit
lor somcthing that has distinctly to do with thc lilc ol
a pcrson, or an inncr rcality, or a thcological conccpt.
Vhcn Jcsus said, thc wind blowcth whcrc it wills and
you dont know whcrc it comcs lrom or whcrc its go
ing, hc uscd thc word spirit ( John 3:8). Tis samc word
can no longcr bc translatcd as spirit clscwhcrc bccausc
thc word ncvcr mcans wind in nglish. 8ut thcrc is ab
solutcly no distinction in thc Grcck bctwccn that word,
hcrc and clscwhcrc. You can vcrily this lor yourscll both
in thc Scptuagint and in thc Ncw Tcstamcnt.
l coursc, thcrc is so much in this scction that can
not bc dcalt with in a limitcd timc lramc. Sit back and
cnjoy thc phcnomcnal signicancc ol this rst momcnt
in all ol history, whcn God is rcally gctting thc movc
Ralph D. Winter ++
mcnt to thc cnds ol thc carth o thc dimc, on to a
ncw planc.
Reections
Vc havc noticcd during thc ministry ol Christ with
his disciplcs, that thc disciplcs laggcd considcrably in
thcir grasp ol what Jcsus was intcnding. Probably thc
most rcgrcttablc scrics ol cpisodcs has to do with thcir
dcnial, or rclusal, with rcgard to his dcath. Tcy could
not acccpt it. !n Mark 8:31, 9:31, and 10:3334, whcrc
this announccmcnt ol his dcath comcs up, thc disciplcs
in cach casc do not want to hcar this kind ol thing. Pc
tcr takcs him asidc on onc ol thosc occasions and says,
Youvc got to cut this out! Yourc rcally brcaking down
thc moralc ol our guys hcrc. Youvc got to think morc
clcarly whcn you say stupid things likc that.
!n thc third occurrcncc (10:34), Jcsus introduccd lor
thc rst timc thc word torturc. Tcy kncw what that
mcant. Most ol us do not know what that mcans. Tat
should havc shockcd thcm to thc corc. 8ut in this third
incidcnt, Jamcs and John wcrc somcwhat ippantly
saying, kay, arc you through with your littlc para
graph, Jcsus: Vcvc got somcthing important. Tcy
had thcir littlc slip ol papcr thcy wantcd him to sign to
clarily thc lcadcrship structurc. Tcy had bccn rcading
Pctcr. !t is important to havc clcar lincs ol lcadcrship.
Tcy wcrc on thc right track. !ts probably thc most
phcnomcnal non sequitur in all thc worlds litcraturc.
At thc tcrmination ol his much morc dctailcd account
ol what was up ahcad ol him, thc disciplcs say, Jcsus,
wcvc got to talk to you about somcthing. Tcy wcrc
just waiting lor him to gct through with this nonscnsc
or this irrclcvancy. l coursc, Jcsus says, o you know
what you arc asking: Hc is saying, Go ahcad and sign
thc littlc slip ol papcr. Gct this thing straightcncd out.
8y thc rst chaptcr ol Acts, thcy kncw that Jcsus got vcry
upsct whcn thcy talkcd about who is thc most powcrlul
and whcn arc thcy going to gct powcr. Vhcn arc thcy
going to get, get, get: Tcy kncw that thcrc was somcthing
vcry verboten about that. Tcy had a ncw tack. Tcy got
out thcir littlc diary books. Tcy said, Now, Jcsus, wcrc
not rcally intcrcstcd in grcat things lor oursclvcs. Vc just
want to makc surc wc havc thc schcdulc right. Vhcn is
it that you are going to comc into your powcr, comc into
your kingdom: Tcy wcrc talking about him, not thcm.
Tcy thought that thcy would ridc into powcr with him.
Jcsus saw right through thcm.
Tc vcrsc that lor most ol my lilc has always bccn a
wondcrlul promisc, You shall rcccivc powcr altcr thc
Holy Spirit comcs upon you, all ol a suddcn is sccn in
a dicrcnt light. !t sccms as il Jcsus is saying, kay, il
its powcr you want, thcsc arc thc tcrms. Tcy would
havc said, h! Vc didnt say anything about powcr.
Hcy! No, no, no! Vcrc just trying to gct our schcd
ulcs straight. 8ut Jcsus gocs on, Ycs! You will rcccivc
powcr whcn thc Spirit ol God takcs ovcr your lilc, and
you arc on your way to thc cnds ol thc carth. ! think
that is not so much a promisc as a putdown. A dircct
contradiction ol thcir own intcrcsts and motivation oc
curs hcrc. Tis, ol coursc, is still prior to thc coming ol
thc Spirit in thc Uppcr Room. Somc prctty signicant
aspccts arc happcning hcrc.
!n considcring thc mcaning ol thcsc Grcck words,
! think wc havc to rcalizc dicrcnt culturcs look at
things vcry dicrcntly. Although thc Amcrican indi
vidualization proccss may havc somc mcrit, our culturc
docs not cvcn allow us to talk in thcsc tcrms. Tc
Amcrican translators go astray again and again. For cx
amplc, in thc Paulinc pistlcs whcrc Paul says, You,
hc mcans plural. Hc talks to thc group. Tc promiscs
ol God, thc prcscncc, thc powcr ol thc Holy Spirit,
arc almost always dircctcd to a lcllowship: whcrc two
or thrcc arc gathcrcd togcthcr in my namc (Matthcw
18:20). 8ut thc Amcrican translators translatc thosc
vcrscs as il to say, you, you pcrsonally. As you rcad
along in thc Ncw Tcstamcnt, it is spcaking to you. h,
thats grcat! !ll makc it pcrsonal. 8ut it docs not work
whcn thcrc is just onc pcrson. ! am only saying that thc
Ncw Tcstamcnt is gravcly distortcd on this vcry subjcct
ol whcthcr wc talk about a group or an individual. Tc
kcy point hcrc is not in rcgards to thcsc two words. Tc
big point is thc drastic dicrcncc bctwccn culturcs.
Reection #2: Acts 12 is onc ol thc grcat, grcat pas
sagcs in my wholc lilc. Tc bcsctting sin ol thc disci
plcs was not that thcy wcrc immoral, or cvcn goolos.
Tcir problcm was thcy could not bclicvc. Tcy could
not lollow. Tcy did not havc thc idcas, or thc goals or
purposcs. Tcy could not rcally bclicvc as Jcsus wantcd.
Hc spokc to thc slow ol hcart to bclicvc.
Tcrc is no morc gravc indictmcnt ol anyonc than
slow ol hcart to bclicvc (Lukc 24:25). !n my opinion,
thc most graphic illustration ol that is whcrc Pctcr is
in prison. Hc gcts out, thcn hc is in prison again. Tc
Lord dclivcrs him. Hc cnds up in prison a third timc.
8clicvcrs arc praying lor him. (Naturally, thcy want
+:o Tnv Gvow:n ov :nv Cnivcn ix Jibv~ ~xb S~:~vi~: Ac:s +:
to bc laithlul in thcir rcligious dutics.) Hc comcs out
ol prison a third timcnot thc rst timc, thc third
timcand hc is knocking at thc gatc. Tc littlc girl,
shc can bclicvc. Shc comcs to thc praycr room, and
thcy say, Vill you shush up! ! mcan, it is just hilari
ous hcrc! Tcy tcll this girl, Yourc crazy!
Now, whcn bclicving that God can do grcat things bc
comcs crazy, this is a dcspcratc situation. Tis is bcyond
Pcntccost. Tis is bcyond thc giving ol thc Holy Spirit.
Tosc pcoplc prcsumably wcrc llcd with thc Holy
Spirit, but thcy wcrc still slow to bclicvc.
Reection #3: Anothcr opportunity lor rccction pcr
tains to thc timctablc ol cxpansion ol thc kingdom ol
God. Vc oltcn rcmark that thc wholc 8iblc could bc
callcd Tc Rcconqucst, or Tc Story ol thc King
dom. !t is thc story ol Gods rccovcring a darkcncd
world, likc C. S. Lcwis put in his book Out of the Silent
Planet. A planct was out ol contact with thc Living
God. All across thc ccnturics, il you look closcly in
thc ld Tcstamcnt, you scc Gods insistcnt, rc lcntlcss
lovc lor all pcoplcs. Tc rathcr spcctacular occurrcncc
ol Gcntilcs in thc gcncalogics is onc cxamplca vcry
discordant phcnomcnon lor thosc who would bc purc
pcdigrccd typcs. 8ut thc 8iblc rclcntlcssly portrays that
univcrsal conccrn ol thc Living God. on Richardson
counts 480 timcs that this global commission ol thc
Living God looms into thc picturc.
arlicr, ! implicd a qucstion whcthcr this is so unusual
that hcrc in Acts things arc going to bc moving out lor
thc rst timc. Rcmcmbcr that thcrc wcrc prosclytcs all
ovcr thc mpirc. Tc Pharisccs had littlc missionary
bands going out. Tc synagogucs and thc missionary
bands wcrc both borrowcd structurcs that God had no
troublc using lor his purposcs. Tc synagogucs wcrc
clustcrs ol cxtcndcd lamilics whosc cldcrs lormcd
a collcgiatc ministry. Tis is vcry dicrcnt lrom our
modcrn churchcs, which arc csscntially thc gathcr
ing ol brokcn picccs ol pottcry, lragmcnts ol lamilics
put togcthcr. ur mission agcncics today arc likc thc
Phariscc bands that rcachcd out. Paul cmploycd thc
samc sort ol thing. 8ut thc thing that was ncw, that
was radically dicrcnt, was that God was using other
languages and other cultures in which thc trcasurc could
bc invcstcd.
Always bclorc, thc idca was that a pcrson had to put
on Jcwish clothcs to bc acccptablc to Godnot an
unrcasonablc assumption at all. Tis assumption is cvi
dcnt in onc way or anothcr by almost cvcry missionary
in cvcry situation around thc world. nly whcn thc
plantcd church gcts complctcly loosc lrom mission
ary inucncc, somctimcs, can rcally ourish within thc
garmcnts and thc structurcs ol its own socicty.
Tis movcmcnt to Christ throughout thc world was
clcarly out ol thc Jcwish control. vcn today, thc work
crs, thc powcrs ol thc kingdom, arc in lull pursuit ol
thc cncmy. Tc cncmy is still thcrc. 8ut wc arc ovcr thc
top, ovcr thc hump, coming down thc othcr sidc. Vc
arc in thc nal strctchcs ol this campaign.
Vhat a marvclous, incrcdiblc opportunity was bcgun
through a radical contextualization. Tis allowcd thc
lull lrccdom ol thc Spirit within thc pcrsonalitics and
thc culturcs whcrc thc gospcl wcnt, rathcr than a lcgal
istic conlorming and bcnding ol pcrsons and culturcs
to t somcthing that is lorcign. Tcrc is still a grcat
dcal to bc lcarncd hcrc.