Series: You are the Church! - Antioch – An example we can follow!

Been talking about what it means to be the church…

This morning I want us to look at a church that got this! I love this Church

-it’s a church we’ve looked at before, it’s a church worth looking looking at once in a while

-Antioch - started after church in Jerusalem scattered because Stephen was stoned to death

-church started by people just like you – no professional pastors/apostles

Acts 11:19-20 “Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in connection with Stephen travelled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, telling the message only to Jews. (here’s where it gets good – her’s where the course of the church changed forever towards what Jesus had in mind) Some of them, however, men(probably means families) from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus.

Here’s my first question - What good news? (let them answer)

-we found the real God and he’s loves you!!!

-his name is Jesus and he’s not just a Messiah for Jews, he’s a saviour for everyone

-unlike all your other god’s you believe in - made of stone, wood and clay…

-doesn’t just tell you what you need to do so that maybe you’ll be accepted

-Jesus actually took your place, paid price for all your sin, offers you his perfection

-last week – he’s invited you to join him in a resurrection rescue of people and the world

-…join him in the putting back together of all things to what they were created to be

-until, once and for all, he makes all things new, us, earth, heaven

And the passage doesn’t tell us this, but I think we can safely surmise some things…

-and there’s a chance I could be wrong here (so I’ll give you that)

-but I think this was more than just a group of people with a door to door evangelism strategy

-now the Bible says they spoke these good news – so verbal sharing was a part of it

-but these are the people we read about early on in acts

-these are same people who sold things so that no one was without what they needed

-these same people allowed the good news to influence everything they did every day

-they cared for one another, for the poor, widows, orphans, celebrated/mourned together

worshipped together, learned together, served God, each other and the world together

-so, when the scriptures say that they shared Jesus’ good news

-I believe they were practicing what they learned in the beginning

-and if that is true – then the life that they lived because they followed Jesus

-was the catalyst that led them to share verbally

-because when you live like that people are interested in why you live like that

-act out a conversation – “so why have you come from Jerusalem? Adlib w/someone”

Here’s what passage says happened because these people were about living/sharing Gospel

v.21“Lord’s hand/power was with them and a great number of the people turned to the Lord.”

Don’t miss this, why did a great number of people turn to the Lord?

-how much influence did their pastor have - 0 – they didn’t have one

-do you think they had a vision statement & a five year ministry plan? (could die soon)

-They were surrendered/available and God was working in/within/through them

Without any experience, these people understood what “being” the church is about…

-they were a community (people) united by faith in Jesus (surrendered)

-their focus was Jesus’ focus – loved God & love all people

-when people got to know these followers of Jesus (actually felt & experienced God’s love)

And the Bible says the Lord’s hand/power was with them – God blessed their efforts

So much so, that news got around…

ACTS 11:22,23 “News of this reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived (don’t miss this) and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts.”

When Barnabas arrived, Bible says, he SAW the evidence of God’s grace

-so what did he see? What made him say, “This is the work of God!”

Here’s what the Bible says stood out in Antioch!

1. He saw “Great numbers of people turning to the Lord.”

-people surrendering to God is always a sign of God at work

-remember, following Jesus was not popular (real costs including dying)

Here’s how that should impact us this morning…

-is anyone aware of God’s good news because you/we together are followers of Jesus?

-is God calling you to die to something in your life, so that Jesus can live through you?

-is God breaking through your comfort zones so you can be a more effective instrument?

But Barnabas saw more…

2. He saw sacrificial and spontaneous giving.

11:27-30 “During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world…the disciples (all the people there), each according to his ability, decided to provide help for the brothers living in Judea.”

In Antioch, people had a sense that God owned and gave them everything they had

-if a need rose up they gave – because they trusted God would provide for/through them

-and the interesting point we know from churches like this – their needs were always met

-were they rich (not likely) but they always had what they needed and that was enough

When it comes to giving the question isn’t how much should you give…

-the real question is, how much do you trust God?

God asks each of us, as his followers, to give him everything

-to live with an understanding that we have job/money/stuff, it all comes/belongs to him

-but here’s the thing he says, it’s all mine, but I’ll let you take care of it

-having said that, asks us 2 make it a habit to give me a portion of what I’ve let you manage

-doing that allows us to partner with God in doing his work (POG)

-doing that allows us to show God where our treasure is – it’s either God’s/or it’s not

-doing that says to God, all I have is yours I want to manage it in a way that pleases you

Let me just clarify for a second what that doesn’t mean…

-some people will tell you giving to God will mean that everything will go $ well for you

-or if you give to God, he will sure your life will go easier

-here’s problem, I know way too many people who are responsible with money / give over

and above 10% and still find themselves struggling financially/or w/other circumstances

-also, it seems, that the people in this world who sacrifice the most to follow Jesus

-often have everything taken away from them / and many of them are put to death

-and all over Africa, Christ-following parents who serve God and give to him

-find themselves burying their children

-because it hasn’t rained and they can’t grow food to feed their children

-many of whom die of starvation

So, when I hear a preacher say, just give this much and everything will go well $

-I get pretty ticked off – maybe that will happen and maybe it will not

-and honestly, I don’t know why it is the way it is

-all I know is God invites you to give sacrificially and spontaneously according to how he’s

blessed you (all that means is don’t skimp on God)

-and he will use your gifts to help in the redeeming of people and this world

-and he will take care of you and meet your needs even in incredible ways

-except it might not look like the way you expect it to

The other thing I know, is that if every Christian became about giving sacrificially

-there would be less and less people in this world who didn’t have their needs met

-so maybe the reason that so many Christians go without

-is because the ones God’s blessed with so much, see it belonging to them/not God

-that’s just me thinking out loud.

Here’s the question that you need to think about?

What does how you use your money say about the place that God has in your life?

And if according to scripture, loving others is the way you show God you love Him

-what does what you do with your money in relation to others

-say about the place God has in your life?

I’ve talked about this before, the most incredible thing Barnabas saw in Antioch

3. Jews and Gentiles served God together and loved each other like brothers & sisters

In Paul’s letter to Galatians 2 he tells them that Jews & Gentiles ate together in Antioch

Just in case you don’t understand how significant that was at the time…

-imagine a bunch of white Christians getting together fifty years ago

-moving somewhere in the southern states – lets say Jackson Mississipi

-start a church for white & black people & begin sharing things like…

-in God’s Kingdom there’s no black or white all are children of God

Point: these Christian really got Jesus’ command to love one another

(John 13:34,35) “A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Jesus commands us to love one another as he loved us because…

-that’s the one thing that will show the world that we are his disciples.

-God’s waiting, the world’s waiting for the church, for us, to love this way

-and Jesus says the place where it needs to be visible first is right here with us

-and if you read John’s letters later on in the New Testament

-you realize how serious this is

-when he says things like, don’t say you love God if you don’t love your brother or sister in Christ – to do that is to lie.

So, what would/could happen if this became our number one concern?

-whatever we think /say /do /conversations/ plans we make

-always ask ourselves – am I loving, trying to love people the way Jesus loved me?

-what would change in our lives, families, work, play?

I’ve told you this before…

until this time, no one had ever been called a Christian!

11:26b “The disciples were first called Christians at Antioch.”

Here’s the important part, this wasn’t a name they gave themselves (their community)

-point: lived their lives in such a way, people called them “little Christs”/ imitators of X

So why talk about a church that existed two thousand years ago…

-because by putting it in the scriptures and commending them, Jesus was saying

-that’s what I was dreaming of when I said “I will build my church”

-that’s the kind of church I want you to be

Jesus wants us to be like the church at Antioch

-a community that is surrendered & obedient so that God’s hand will be with us

-responsive to God’s needs so that we’ll give sacrificially & spontaneously as we’re able

-to love in such a way that will surpass any/all barriers (age, appearance, race, status, etc)

-to live in such a way that people would accuse us of being imitators of Christ

And that’s the kind of church I think most of us are believing we could become…

-that’s the kind of church I we’re trying to become

-and, again, this morning, I invite you to partner with us on that journey