The Church in the Whole World

The Church in the New Testament stormed the gates of hell and the Church is always presented as victorious, not even once as weak or defeated.

“Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” is God’s order in heaven as the standard for what to do on earth (Matthew 6:10), and this command has never been rescinded.

In fact, in Acts, Epistles, and in Revelations, the Church is consistently described in relationship to cities, such as the Church at Antioch or Jerusalem. When I refer to the Church, I mean the people that constitute the congregation, not a building or institution.

The Church is the men and women who have been set free from the Kingdom of Darkness and transferred into the Kingdom of Light, and these people carry that Kingdom with them wherever they go.

Church Planting and the Bible

The disciples knew that they were to witness all over the city, and when they did, a Church was planted. They never saw themselves establishing an outpost of heaven inside a building called Church amid a city that they did not believe could be reached or transformed.

To the contrary, they saw themselves infiltrating the very fiber of the city. Their model was salt and light, which are the elements that touch, penetrate, and change those they came in contact with. (Matthew 5:13,16).

Paul’s Reason for Entering the Marketplace

When Paul, a rabbi, joined the Church or Ecclesia, he naturally gravitated toward the synagogue in his initial evangelistic endeavors, making synagogue preaching his main focus.

But after repeated rejection he announced that he was moving on to the Gentiles (Acts 13:46).

Even though Paul, upon arriving in a city, always went to a synagogue, if there was one, he began to gravitate more and more toward the Gentiles.

Being rejected by the religious leaders happened so often that by the time he arrived in Corinth, (Acts 18:1-9), he deliberately exchanged the synagogue for a private home.

This allowed him to teach and preach every day, instead of only on the Sabbath. Obviously, Gentiles did not meet in synagogues, they gathered in public forums, business places, and plazas, in the marketplace.

Paul, like Peter, John, James, and Phillip, turned those public forums into places where the presence and power of God became evident to the lost in the city.

In short, the Kingdom of God was manifested where everyday people gathered, just like in Jesus’ day, except that it quickly transcended the familiar territory of Judea and Samaria.

As the disciples moved deeper into Gentile territory, the marketplace became central to the Church’s activities, especially evangelistic endeavors.

Power Encounters and Divine Intervention

The book of Acts records 40 major supernatural actions, many of which are dramatic power encounters. It is interesting that only one of them took place in a religious setting which is the healing of the lame man at the temple gate called “beautiful”. (Acts 3:1-10).

The other 39 divine interventions written in the book of Acts happened;

In city streets,

1. Acts 2:37-41 (The Conversion Of The 3000 Jews)
2. Acts 5:15-16 (Peter’s Healing)
3. Acts 7:56 (Jesus Sighting)
4. Acts 8:5-8,13 (Healings, Casting Out Spirits, Baptism)
5. Acts 8:18-24 (Simon’s Story)
6. Acts 8:26  (Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch)
7. Acts 9:32-35  (Peter Heals Aeneas and Raises Dorcas)
8. Acts 13:6-12  (Blinding of Elymas)
9. Acts 13:48-50  (Appointed to Eternal Life)
10. Acts 14:1-5 (Paul and Barnabas in Iconium)
11. Acts 14:8-11 (Healing of Man with Crippled Feet)
12. Acts 17:5-9 (Assault on Jason’s House)
13. Acts 19:11-13  (Paul’s Extraordinary Deeds in Ephesus)
14. Acts 19:17 (Spreading Stories about God’s Work)

In the public square,

1. Acts 5:12-16 (The Apostles Healed Many)
2. Acts 16:16-18 (Casting Out a Spirit)
3. Acts 17:17 (Speaking in Public Square)
4. Acts 19:18-20 (Paul Ministers in Ephesus)
5. Acts 19:23-41 (The Riot in Ephesus)

Believer’s gathering,

1. Acts 4:31-31 (The Believers Share Their Possessions)

In a prison,

1. Acts 5:19 (The Apostles Meet Opposition)
2. Acts 12:1-19 (Peter’s Miraculous Escape from Prison)
3. Acts 16:26 (Earthquake in Prison)
4. Acts 23:11 (Lord Appeared to Paul)

In a home,

1. Acts 9:10-16 (Saul’s Conversion)
2. Acts 9:18 (Saul is Baptized)
3. Acts 9:40-43 (Paul Raises Dorcas)
4. Acts 10:1-6 (Cornelius Calls for Peter)
5. Acts 10:9-16 (Peter Visits Cornelius)
6. Acts 16:9-10 (A Call from Macedonia)
7. Acts 20:6-12 (Paul’s Final Visit to Troas)
8. Acts 28:8-10 (Publius’s Father and Others are Healed)

On a desert road,

1. Acts 8:39 (Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch)

On the Damascus road,

1. Acts 9:1-9 (Saul’s Conversion)

In a Gentile home,

1. Acts 10:44-48 (The Gentiles Receive the Holy Spirit)

In a palace,

1. Acts 12:23 (Lord Struck Herod with a Sickness)

In a lecture hall,

1. Acts 19:10 (Paul Ministers in Ephesus)

On a ship,

1. Acts 27:23-26 (The Storm at Sea)

On a beach

1. Acts 28:1-5 (Paul on the Island of Malta)

This highlights the fact that the early Church was not confined to a building or to a prearranged schedule of meetings.

In Acts, the Church was a movement that shook or took cities.

Make your workplace your pulpit.

We should expect God to show up in the marketplace, that is why it’s important to understand that your workplace should be your pulpit and your circle of influence your congregation.

Then recognize that God has appointed you and anointed you to bring His Kingdom into your workplace.

The notion that the marketplace is less spiritual than a Church is false.

This article is an extract from the book written by Ed Silvoso, called “Anointed For Business” (pg. 101 – 102).

This is a book I recommend every Christian working in the marketplace or owning a business should read.

It delves into how the Early Church impacted society, transformed cities, and expanded their sphere of influence.