The church experiences a vision

  Acts 11:19-30; 9/17/2023; BCBC/IOUC; Rev. Paul Wang

  Introduction

When the traditional law meets the gospel law, what is our choice?  It is reasonable for the early church to experience the vision given by God during the persecution, which was to preach the gospel to the Gentiles.  Let’s look at the first point:

Difficulty of getting used to being bound

The Jews were told from birth that they were God’s chosen people.  What has been handed down to the chosen people since the ancestors is the law, the blood connection of the twelve tribes, culture, language, etc.  Over time, these traditions gradually turned into bonds.  First of all, the persecution comes as a result.  The Israelites were persecuted and tortured in Egypt for 430 years.  So they prayed, asking God to lead them out of Egypt and immigrate the whole family into the Promised Land.  Now that Stephen was killed, what about the disciples who were implicated and scattered in trouble?  They were all Greek-speaking Jews who came to Jerusalem for the festival from other places.  It was reasonable for them to flee back to the place where they lived when they encountered persecution.  Most of them came from Tire and Hidon on the northern coast of the Mediterranean Sea and Cyprus on the opposite side, including Antioch, which later became a missionary center.  Have you discovered God’s preparation?  He is preparing a missionary sending center and a gospel area.

Second, the power of the gospel has priority to Jews only. Paul said, “it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. (Romans 1:16)”  When Jesus Christ became flesh and became a man, he was born among the Jews.  During his more than three years of ministry, he also mainly or first preached the gospel to the Jews.  However, first the Jews, not only the Jews, but also the follow-up of “then the Greeks”.  Of course, this is not easy for the Jews.  These Greek-speaking Jews in the Phoenician diaspora could never have imagined that they would be the pioneer of evangelization.  God made the Jews in Jerusalem the first people of the gospel, but made the Phoenicians at the northern end of Mount Carmel the earliest witnesses of missionary work.

Finally, there is the power of God’s presence.  The Gospel Mission Center is not for decoration, but to testify for the Lord and spread the Gospel.  The people of Cyprus and Cyrene on the other side of the Mediterranean came to Antioch together to preach the gospel to the Greeks.  Cyrene, today’s Libya, was once one of the five most important cities in ancient Greece.  It can be seen that the Gospel spread to Europe from east to west along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.  The Bible says:  “The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.  (Acts 11:21)”  In contrast, it seems that the Church in Jerusalem was much slower to accept the vision.   This also shows that the Holy Spirit goes before the church, and the believers follow the church.  The same is true today.  The Holy Spirit has led us to become an international Online United Church, which is also inseparable from the power of the Lord and the presence of the Holy Spirit.  Let’s look at the second point:

Barnabas Life Testimony

The appearance of Barnabas was not a personal act, but was inspired and led by the Holy Spirit to the church.  First, word got to the church.  It is about 360 kilometers from Lebanon today to Jerusalem.   For the Jerusalem church at that time, sending Barnabas to Phoenicia was not an easy task.  Those who had been in the church in Jerusalem rejoiced when they saw Barnabas.  When they meet, they will inevitably ask about the church, especially the situation of the church after Stephen was implicated.  Barnabas is a Cypriot and can speak Greek fluently, so there is no problem in communication.  On behalf of the church, Barnabas expressed the church’s concern to these Greek-speaking Jewish believers.  Not only that, but it is possible that the Church of Antioch was also established at this time.  Opening up wasteland and planting churches was also established by the church at this time.

Second, the apostle exhorts the people. Barnabas lived out the gift of the apostle in Antioch, and lived it to the fullest. The bible says,  “ 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. (acts 11:23)”  This is the noble character of a spiritual person, that is, he rejoices when he sees others being blessed.  It’s so different from the jealous strife of the worldly people, isn’t it?  Barnabas not only rejoiced in being blessed by the Phoenicians, but he also went one more step forward, exhorting believers to rely on the Lord to walk the way to heaven.  The Holy Spirit moved Barnabas to establish a church in Antioch, strengthen the church, and encourage believers.  The Bible says about Barnabas:  “He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord. (Acts 11:24)” 

Finally, went to Tarsus to look for Saul.  Barnabas went to Tarsus to find Saul, who later became Paul, and it was the brightest point in his life.  The Bible says: “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. (Acts 11:26)”   It can be said that Barnabas was the first person to train disciples in the history of the church.  At this moment, Saul, who had just believed for two or three years, was still in a daze stage.  Barnabas specially came to the door to care for him and encourage him to live for God.  Not only that, but also led him to Antioch to practice with him for more than a year.  I believe that their discipleship left a good testimony in Antioch, so that “the disciples were called Christians from Antioch.”  Let’s look at the third point:

The ability of the church to function

When we give glory and praise to the Lord through the church, peace and grace come to us.  First of all, this is church behavior.  The church did not ask Barnabas to fight alone in Antioch, but sent several prophets to help.  This concept is very important, that is, don’t send a hero to the mission factory to be tempted.  A lot of money goes into one person’s account all of a sudden, and there is no monitoring system, which will inevitably leave a breach for Satan in the end.  The best way is the team worker system, where a group supervises each other.  In contrast,  a good sound system is far better than a person’s character test.  This point was noticed even by the early churches such as Jerusalem.  Thank God!

Second, this is a special operation.  Why do we say this is a special operation? Luke said:   One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.)  This Agabus was one of the prophets who came from the church in Jerusalem, and he did not appear many times afterwards.  Moreover, it is prophesied that there will be a great famine, which is also a very frequent event in the last days.  The prophecy he said has little to do with the theme of salvation in the Bible, and there is no need to connect it with the last judgment.  Therefore, what the Bible wants to express here is the participation of the church in the Antioch mission.  And those who participated were the condition of the church at that time, which still retained certain types of the Old Testament, such as the office of prophet.  Since then, the records in the Bible have gradually decreased.

Finally, this is Special Whereabouts.  At that time, the church had two types of believers:   one was local Hebrew-speaking believers, such as Peter, James, John, etc., and the other was Greek-speaking believers who had returned from other places.  Usually, the believers speaking the Greek language are relatively well-off financially, while the native believers are relatively poor.  I believe this is inspired by the Holy Spirit, the Church of Antioch decided through prayer,  “The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. (Acts 11:29)” At that time, the money between the churches was delivered by hand, so Barnabas and Saul were entrusted by the Antioch Church to deliver the various donations of the church to the elders of the Jerusalem Church.  Two people to deal with money issues is the basic principle of finance.

Conclusion

Thank God!  The vision the church has received is to preach the gospel to the Gentiles!  For this reason, the church must break free from the shackles of traditional legalism, and be transformed by renewing its mind.  The Holy Spirit inspired the church to send Barnabas, Saul, and several prophets to Antioch to establish the church and encourage believers.  From beginning to end, God’s constant strategy is to fulfill His great commission through the body of Christ, the church.

Let us pray……

 

Acts 11:19-30

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.

27 During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.) 29 The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. 30 This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.

The church experiences a vision

 

  Acts 11:19-30; 9/17/2023; BCBC/IOUC; Rev. Paul Wang

  Introduction

When the traditional law meets the gospel law, what is our choice?  It is reasonable for the early church to experience the vision given by God during the persecution, which was to preach the gospel to the Gentiles.  Let’s look at the first point:

Difficulty of getting used to being bound

The Jews were told from birth that they were God’s chosen people.  What has been handed down to the chosen people since the ancestors is the law, the blood connection of the twelve tribes, culture, language, etc.  Over time, these traditions gradually turned into bonds.  First of all, the persecution comes as a result.  The Israelites were persecuted and tortured in Egypt for 430 years.  So they prayed, asking God to lead them out of Egypt and immigrate the whole family into the Promised Land.  Now that Stephen was killed, what about the disciples who were implicated and scattered in trouble?  They were all Greek-speaking Jews who came to Jerusalem for the festival from other places.  It was reasonable for them to flee back to the place where they lived when they encountered persecution.  Most of them came from Tire and Hidon on the northern coast of the Mediterranean Sea and Cyprus on the opposite side, including Antioch, which later became a missionary center.  Have you discovered God’s preparation?  He is preparing a missionary sending center and a gospel area.

Second, the power of the gospel has priority to Jews only. Paul said, “it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. (Romans 1:16)”  When Jesus Christ became flesh and became a man, he was born among the Jews.  During his more than three years of ministry, he also mainly or first preached the gospel to the Jews.  However, first the Jews, not only the Jews, but also the follow-up of “then the Greeks”.  Of course, this is not easy for the Jews.  These Greek-speaking Jews in the Phoenician diaspora could never have imagined that they would be the pioneer of evangelization.  God made the Jews in Jerusalem the first people of the gospel, but made the Phoenicians at the northern end of Mount Carmel the earliest witnesses of missionary work.

Finally, there is the power of God’s presence.  The Gospel Mission Center is not for decoration, but to testify for the Lord and spread the Gospel.  The people of Cyprus and Cyrene on the other side of the Mediterranean came to Antioch together to preach the gospel to the Greeks.  Cyrene, today’s Libya, was once one of the five most important cities in ancient Greece.  It can be seen that the Gospel spread to Europe from east to west along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.  The Bible says:  “The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.  (Acts 11:21)”  In contrast, it seems that the Church in Jerusalem was much slower to accept the vision.   This also shows that the Holy Spirit goes before the church, and the believers follow the church.  The same is true today.  The Holy Spirit has led us to become an international Online United Church, which is also inseparable from the power of the Lord and the presence of the Holy Spirit.  Let’s look at the second point:

Barnabas Life Testimony

The appearance of Barnabas was not a personal act, but was inspired and led by the Holy Spirit to the church.  First, word got to the church.  It is about 360 kilometers from Lebanon today to Jerusalem.   For the Jerusalem church at that time, sending Barnabas to Phoenicia was not an easy task.  Those who had been in the church in Jerusalem rejoiced when they saw Barnabas.  When they meet, they will inevitably ask about the church, especially the situation of the church after Stephen was implicated.  Barnabas is a Cypriot and can speak Greek fluently, so there is no problem in communication.  On behalf of the church, Barnabas expressed the church’s concern to these Greek-speaking Jewish believers.  Not only that, but it is possible that the Church of Antioch was also established at this time.  Opening up wasteland and planting churches was also established by the church at this time.

Second, the apostle exhorts the people. Barnabas lived out the gift of the apostle in Antioch, and lived it to the fullest. The bible says,  “ 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. (acts 11:23)”  This is the noble character of a spiritual person, that is, he rejoices when he sees others being blessed.  It’s so different from the jealous strife of the worldly people, isn’t it?  Barnabas not only rejoiced in being blessed by the Phoenicians, but he also went one more step forward, exhorting believers to rely on the Lord to walk the way to heaven.  The Holy Spirit moved Barnabas to establish a church in Antioch, strengthen the church, and encourage believers.  The Bible says about Barnabas:  “He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord. (Acts 11:24)” 

Finally, went to Tarsus to look for Saul.  Barnabas went to Tarsus to find Saul, who later became Paul, and it was the brightest point in his life.  The Bible says: “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. (Acts 11:26)”   It can be said that Barnabas was the first person to train disciples in the history of the church.  At this moment, Saul, who had just believed for two or three years, was still in a daze stage.  Barnabas specially came to the door to care for him and encourage him to live for God.  Not only that, but also led him to Antioch to practice with him for more than a year.  I believe that their discipleship left a good testimony in Antioch, so that “the disciples were called Christians from Antioch.”  Let’s look at the third point:

The ability of the church to function

When we give glory and praise to the Lord through the church, peace and grace come to us.  First of all, this is church behavior.  The church did not ask Barnabas to fight alone in Antioch, but sent several prophets to help.  This concept is very important, that is, don’t send a hero to the mission factory to be tempted.  A lot of money goes into one person’s account all of a sudden, and there is no monitoring system, which will inevitably leave a breach for Satan in the end.  The best way is the team worker system, where a group supervises each other.  In contrast,  a good sound system is far better than a person’s character test.  This point was noticed even by the early churches such as Jerusalem.  Thank God!

Second, this is a special operation.  Why do we say this is a special operation? Luke said:   One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.)  This Agabus was one of the prophets who came from the church in Jerusalem, and he did not appear many times afterwards.  Moreover, it is prophesied that there will be a great famine, which is also a very frequent event in the last days.  The prophecy he said has little to do with the theme of salvation in the Bible, and there is no need to connect it with the last judgment.  Therefore, what the Bible wants to express here is the participation of the church in the Antioch mission.  And those who participated were the condition of the church at that time, which still retained certain types of the Old Testament, such as the office of prophet.  Since then, the records in the Bible have gradually decreased.

Finally, this is Special Whereabouts.  At that time, the church had two types of believers:   one was local Hebrew-speaking believers, such as Peter, James, John, etc., and the other was Greek-speaking believers who had returned from other places.  Usually, the believers speaking the Greek language are relatively well-off financially, while the native believers are relatively poor.  I believe this is inspired by the Holy Spirit, the Church of Antioch decided through prayer,  “The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. (Acts 11:29)” At that time, the money between the churches was delivered by hand, so Barnabas and Saul were entrusted by the Antioch Church to deliver the various donations of the church to the elders of the Jerusalem Church.  Two people to deal with money issues is the basic principle of finance.

Conclusion

Thank God!  The vision the church has received is to preach the gospel to the Gentiles!  For this reason, the church must break free from the shackles of traditional legalism, and be transformed by renewing its mind.  The Holy Spirit inspired the church to send Barnabas, Saul, and several prophets to Antioch to establish the church and encourage believers.  From beginning to end, God’s constant strategy is to fulfill His great commission through the body of Christ, the church.

Let us pray……

 

Acts 11:19-30

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.

27 During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.) 29 The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. 30 This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.