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yes, even Samaria...

Acts 1:8
"But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."

Yet, another place where Jesus promises to send the Holy Ghost! They needed the Holy Ghost and you and I need the Holy Ghost! Here, in the book of Acts, Jesus spends 40 days teaching His disciples. Still, the Apostles do not comprehend exactly what Jesus is teaching. They had low expectations. They were thinking about themselves and their country, their people. The Disciples still thought Jesus was restoring the kingdom of Israel. Jesus simply tells them the timing of God's plan is not for them to know.

In today's verse, Jesus tells them, "ye shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem," The Apostles and followers will be cheering! Then, when Jesus says, "and in all Judaea," they would be applauding! Maybe even singing "Alleluia!" And, then when Jesus says, "and in Samaria," The crowd would have gone silent. They didn't want to go to Samaria. They feared and loathed the Samaritans. This would NOT be something Jewish people did. It might be a relief to think about the rest of Jesus's advice, "and unto the uttermost part of the earth." The rest of the world would be preferable to Samaria! Now, don't think for a minute you or me are better than the Apostles. We all have our own Samaria. A place or a group of people we would rather not have to help. Even though GOD wants us to help them. Guess what, we need to help them for our own good.
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