In Acts 8, there are two main figures on which the narrative focuses: Simon, the Sorcerer, and Philip, the apostle. In these two we see contrasted two approaches to Christian faith. One views faith as a transaction, a quid-pro-quo. The other views faith as a movement of the Spirit as a witness to Jesus. Transactional…
Jesus instructed his Galilean disciples in Acts 1:8 to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth. However, when the Twelve are slow to carry God’s mission beyond Jerusalem, God uses Hellenistic Jews Stephen and Philip (who were delegated for food distribution) to preach and evangelize in and outside of…
Today in the United States and in the American church, there are a lot of reasons for the church to speak truth to power like the apostles in Acts 5. This prophetic role is essential. We are allegiant to Jesus and his Way is our law, even if that sets us at odds with the…
Terence Austria is a Chicago native who attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) with the intention of continuing on to law school. Upon graduating in 1991, he decided instead to become a college pastor at UIUC, developing a campus ministry committed to prayer, discipleship, and outreach. In February 2016, he joined the staff of Salt &…
Osheta Moore is a writer and podcaster, mother and wife, and international speaker on subjects of peacemaking and racial righteousness. She is author of Shalom Sistas: Living Wholehearted in a Brokenhearted World (Harold Press, 2017) and her work has been featured in spaces such as Sojourners, SheLoves Magazine, A Deeper Story, The Art of Simple, ReKnew, and Rachel Held Evans’s blog. You can…