But Some of Them

Scripture:

“But there were some of them…who…began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.” – Acts 11:19–21

Think:

For generations, the line between Jew and Gentile had been deeply drawn. It shaped where people went, whom they welcomed, and who was allowed at their tables. Even after coming to Jesus, many Jewish believers still carried those old boundaries within them. They preached the gospel—but only to people who looked like them, lived like them, and shared their history.

But some of them went farther.

Luke does not give us their names. He does not tell us they were apostles, gifted speakers, or trained theologians. They were simply believers who looked across a line everyone else accepted and saw people who still needed Jesus.

Perhaps they remembered how it felt to be lost. Perhaps grace had so overwhelmed them that they could no longer decide who deserved to hear about it. Whatever compelled them, they opened their mouths and told the Greeks the good news about the Lord Jesus.

And heaven moved.

“The Lord’s hand was with them.” The power was not in their eloquence, confidence, or ability to produce a response. Their responsibility was to speak; God’s hand did what their hands never could. He opened hearts. He awakened faith. He turned people from death to life.

A great number believed because a few unnamed Christians were willing to cross the distance.

Someone you know may be standing on the other side of a line you have never crossed. They may seem too different, too hardened, too uninterested, or too far from God. But beneath everything you see is a soul made in the image of God—someone Christ considered worth the cross.

What if their distance from Jesus is not the end of their story? What if God has placed you near them because He intends to reach them? What if the next “great number” begins with one ordinary believer refusing to remain silent?

You do not have to save anyone. You cannot. But you can carry the name of Jesus across the distance—and trust the hand of God to meet you there.

Application:

Who have you quietly assumed would never respond to Jesus? Ask God to break your boundaries, then take one intentional step toward that person with the hope of the gospel.

Prayer:

Jesus, forgive me for deciding who is likely to receive Your grace. Give me courage to cross the distance, love the person in front of me, and speak Your name. Place Your hand upon my small obedience and draw someone to Yourself. Amen.