Acts 8:4

Whereas persecution resulted in the death of some believers it also dispersed the disciples over a wider area. Luke described what they did as scattered believers as "preaching the word" (Gr. euaggelizomenoi ton logon, lit. "proclaiming good news the word"). The gospel message is in view. Sometimes what appears to be very bad turns out to be very good (Matthew 16:18).

". . . persecution faced faithfully can have positive results for the church (see also Acts 11:19-30 for more results from this dispersion)." [Note: Bock, Acts, p. 317.]

". . . the thrust of the church into its mission after the persecution of the Christian community in Jerusalem is parallel with Luke’s portrayal in his Gospel of the spread of Jesus’ fame after the devil’s assault in the wilderness." [Note: Longenecker, p. 355.]

"As the mission begins to move beyond Jerusalem and Judea, it is useful to distinguish two roles within it: the role of the initiator and the role of the verifier. The apostles shift at this point from the former to the latter role. That is, their function is reduced to recognizing and confirming the work of the evangelists who bring the gospel to new areas and groups, or to working as evangelists in areas already opened for mission (cf. Acts 8:25; Acts 9:32-42)." [Note: Tannehill, 2:102.]