From
Acts to Revelation
Part
31 – THE CHURCH IN ANTIOCH
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House
of Faith Church | www.PS127.org
| www.TruthDigest.org
INTRODUCTION
What has happened in Acts so far;
We have seen the ascension of Christ, and
the instruction given to the Disciples to wait for the Holy Spirit in
Jerusalem. Once the Holy Spirit came, the Apostles began to preach the Gospel
as Christ had instructed them to do.
The church began to grow, and Jerusalem
founded the first church, or body of believers.
Many were coming to the Lord, accepting
Jesus as the Christ and Messiah promised in scripture. But the message was only
preached to the Jews.
After Stephens death, the followers of
Christ fled to Judea and Samaria, taking the Word of God with them, where even
more came to the Lord through the message being preached.
Peter, given a message and vision from God,
began the process of taking the message to the Gentiles, which he delivered to
Cornelius, the first Gentile to accept Jesus Christ, and be filled with the
Holy Spirit.
After returning to Jerusalem, the Apostles
agreed that God wanted the same salvation message they were preaching to the
Jews, to also be given to the Gentiles.
Today we see the Gospel message spread
throughout Phenice, Cyprus and Antioch, preached to both the Jew and the
Gentile.
Is this desire to share the “Good News” of
Salvation through Jesus Christ, still alive today in the church today? If so,
how has the Holy Spirit led you to share this message?
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE
Acts 11:18-26
THE CHURCH IN ANTIOCH
19 Now
those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was
killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the
word only among Jews. 20 Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and
Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling
them the good news about the Lord Jesus. 21 The Lord’s hand was with
them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.
22 News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent
Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had
done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with
all their hearts. 24 He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith,
and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.
25 Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and
when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and
Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The
disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.
I.
THE GOSPEL CONTINUES TO SPREAD
a. The
Word of God begins in Jerusalem
i.
Stephens murder causes God's people to flee
Jerusalem
ii.
They run to Samaria and Judea, taking the
Word of God with them
iii. We now
see them spread the Gospel into surrounding areas
iv.
Phenice (Lebanon), Cyprus and Antioch (a
city in Syria)
b. Until
God spoke to Peter, and gave him the vision, the Gospel had only been preached
to the Jews.
i.
Now, the gentiles were receiving the
message of the Cross!
c. vs. 20
tells us that the message was being preached to the Greeks (Gentiles)
i.
We also see in vs. 20, that they were
preaching the Lord Jesus, not about keeping the Law of Moses.
d. The
Lord was with them (those preaching the Gospel), and many believed.
i.
vs. 21 lets us know that God was pleased
with the Gospel being preached to the Gentiles.
II.
THE HOLY-HEADQUARTERS
a. News of
this returned to Jerusalem, where the first Church resided
i.
This was the acting headquarters, where the
Apostles worked from
b. Led by
the Holy Spirit, the Apostles sent Barnabas to Antioch
c. Barnabas
witnessed first-hand the conversion of Gentiles (vs. 23)
i.
Barnabas is described in the same manner
that Stephen was in Acts 6:5
ii.
vs. 24 “He was
a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of Faith”
a.
Barnabas, described by the Holy Spirit in
scripture!
b. LIT. “because
he was a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit, and of faith, and a great
multitude was added to the Lord.”
d. Many
Gentiles and Jews were coming to Christ
i.
But they needed further instruction for
growth!
III.
SEARCHING FOR SAUL
a. Led
again by the Holy Spirit, Barnabas traveled to seek out Saul
i.
This took place in 43 A.D., about ten years
after the crucifixion
b. Barnabas
returned to Antioch with Saul where they taught for one year together
i.
This begins the teaching of the New
Covenant as it had been given to Paul by Christ!
c. It was
here, in Antioch, where the disciples of Christ were first called “Christians”
by the world
i.
A title which they accepted (Acts
26:28 & I Peter 4:16)
CONCLUSION
Is this desire to share the
“Good News” of Salvation through Jesus Christ, still alive today in the church
today?
ñ It
seems that not many would cross the street to share the Gospel, let alone,
travel to a foreign city to give the message.
ñ We need
to be listening to what the Holy Spirit has to say to us.
ñ God has
a mission for each one of us...doing what God instructs us is “Obedience”
ñ Not
doing what God instructs us is “Disobedience”
ñ Where
are you right now in your relationship with the Lord? Are you in obedience, or
disobedience?
If you are listening, how is
the Holy Spirit leading you to share this message?
Want to learn more about Salvation and Getting Saved? CLICK
HERE!
