Acts 8:1-13Saul was one of the witnesses, and he agreed completely with the killing of Stephen.
A great wave of persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem; and all the believers except the apostles were scattered through the regions of Judea and Samaria. 2 (Some devout men came and buried Stephen with great mourning.) 3 But Saul was going everywhere to destroy the church. He went from house to house, dragging out both men and women to throw them into prison.
4 But the believers who were scattered preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went. 5 Philip, for example, went to the city of Samaria and told the people there about the Messiah. 6 Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did. 7 Many evil spirits were cast out, screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city.
9 A man named Simon had been a sorcerer there for many years, amazing the people of Samaria and claiming to be someone great. 10 Everyone, from the least to the greatest, often spoke of him as “the Great One—the Power of God.” 11 They listened closely to him because for a long time he had astounded them with his magic.
12 But now the people believed Philip’s message of Good News concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. As a result, many men and women were baptized. 13 Then Simon himself believed and was baptized. He began following Philip wherever he went, and he was amazed by the signs and great miracles Philip performed.
Perhaps we didn’t push hard enough. But we chose to try to win the hearts of our sons as they grew up. We didn’t want conformity. We wanted conviction in their hearts about right and wrong, good and evil, God and Satan. Maybe you’ve heard the saying, “A person convinced against his will is of the same opinion still.”
Saul seems not to care about people’s hearts and convictions – except insofar as he is able to quash the hearts and convictions of those who were following Jesus. He was bent on shutting down this movement that was turning the world upside down (cf. Acts 17:6). He would stop it whatever the cost.
We’ll see.
The growth of the Christian Church during the time of Constantine was aided by the favor he showed to the Christian Church. There were some forced conversions. When lands were conquered, the people of that conquered territory were made to be Christians. Some of it was surely coerced. But it seems much more was happening. Because during this time many people became Christians out of convenience as well. But God used all of that to advance the cause of the Gospel.
It is my conviction that God will use both persecution and peace to advance the cause of his gracious and good reign. Sadly, Satan does the same to advance the cause of his demonic kingdom. But try as he will, Satan will not have the last word. The persecution may be fierce, but God will use it to scatter his people and through them scatter the seed of the Gospel.
Now it seems God is using the times of affluence and peace to allow us to support those who are facing persecution and hardship for their faith. There may not be anyone today like Saul of Tarsus, or Emperor Diocletian. And the golden age of the church in America seems to have passed. But God will not coerce. he wants conviction not compliance. He desires that all people be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. That happens as God’s people share the message of Good News concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ.
PS: For an interesting article on Constantine’s influence on the Christian Church, check out this website, or paste the link below into your browser.
David Bahn - Reflections 
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