I’ve been reading through Acts and have come away with a few cool observations.
In the early days of the Church there wasn’t a roadmap for evangelism. It wasn’t like it is today, where there are books and tools to help us evangelize as effectively as possible. They were figuring it out as they went along. Flying by the seat of their pants. Plus, there wasn’t a Bible! It must have been hard for the original disciples to trust that new believers understood and shared correct doctrine. If it was me, I would have worried constantly that Jesus’ teachings were inadvertently being twisted.
How did they get past that?
I think it comes down to two things:
1. They lived in an oral culture, where literacy rates were low and information was passed by mouth. Because of this, extra emphasis was placed on accuracy of the details. They understood how easily ideas can be accidentally manipulated by the telephone game. They made an extra effort to ensure that everything they were teaching stayed true to the original words of Jesus.
2. More importantly, the Holy Spirit was in control. Several times throughout Acts you read about the Holy Spirit taking the wheel and leading the early Church. For example, the Spirit preventing paul from entering Asia in chapter 16. And with the Holy Spirit at the helm, they were surely spreading God’s intended message.
This is still the case today.
Mission work has an inherent risk to it. Whether it be physical danger, or just putting yourself out of your comfort zone. There’s no faith without risk. And there are a ton of uncertainties.
For example, every time I take a mission trip to Reynosa, I meet a lot of strangers. On my most recent trip I spent all day handing out food with a group I had never met. They were Texans, born in Mexico, that felt called to the mission field in Reynosa. Despite knowing next to nothing about them, there was an unspoken bond. Something about having a common goal and the same set of values, made them more trustworthy. Not saying I’d give them my wallet, but I was more than comfortable with hopping in their van to head to the first dispensa of the day.
I believe these types of relationships are enabled through the Holy Spirit. That it facilitates a seamless increase in Christian networks in order to further God’s will.
The original disciples had to trust that the Holy Spirit had things under control. That as long as they were staying true to Jesus’ message, things would turn out right. And now, it’s up to us to do the same.