Pastor's Points Acts 8

After Stephen was stoned a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem. At the forefront of the persecution was Saul. Verse three says, "Saul began to destroy the church." One of the results of this persecution was that the disciples were scattered all over the place. Another result was what verse 4 tells us:

Acts 8:4 Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.

Something great happened as a result of the persecution. The gospel was spread in ways it wouldn't have been if they had faced such hard opposition.
John Stott say, "What is plain is that the devil (who lurks behind all persecution of the church) over-reached himself. His attack had the opposite effect to what he intended. Instead of smothering the gospel, persecution succeeded only in spreading it."

Point 1 - God doesn't cause bad things to happen
Point 2 - God can take bad things and make them into something good
Point 3 - When we are facing hardship we must look and see what God is doing.

Another commentator puts it this way, "The wind increases the flame."