Antioch: the Mission-Minded Church

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Antioch: the Mission-Minded Church

In the seventh chapter of the book of Acts, we read of the beginning of violent persecution against Christians in the church at Jerusalem. A gospel preacher named Stephen was the first to be martyred for the faith, and there would be many more to follow. In Acts 7:58, we read of a young man named Saul, who held the coats of the men who stoned Stephen to death. In Acts 8:1 and 3, we find that Saul went on to become a zealous persecutor of the Lord’s people and that the resulting persecution caused Christians to become dispersed throughout the region.

These events are believed to have resulted in the establishment of several congregations of the Lord’s church in Judaea, Samaria, Galilee and Syria. In ninth chapter of the book of Acts, We read of a congregation that already existed in the Syrian city of Damascus, where Saul was baptized and began to preach the gospel. At about that same time, the Lord’s church in the Syrian city of Antioch was established (Acts 11:19-21). The apostles sent Barnabas to work with the church in Antioch, and it became a home congregation for him (Acts 11:22-24). Then, Barnabas sought after Saul, that he might join him in the work at Antioch (Acts 11:25-26). Saul began to use the name Paul in Antioch, and he and Barnabas did an outstanding work in that place.

It was suggested, in time, that Paul and Barnabas ought to launch out from Antioch and go on a missionary journey to preach the gospel and establish church in places where Christianity had not yet gone before (Acts 13:1-3). All three of Paul’s epic missionary journeys would begin and end in the city of Antioch. The church in Antioch would become a kind of home congregation for Paul, but he would spend much more time away from it than he would working with it. It would be the church in Antioch that would call together the council of apostles and elders in Jerusalem to discuss the “problem” of the Gentile converts to Christianity. It was a mission-minded church, to be sure.

“Then departed Barnabas to <a target=”_blank” href=”http://www.biblemap.org/#Tarsus”>Tarsus</a>, for to seek Saul: and when he found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.” – Acts 11:25-26