Grace Bible Church Gillette, Wyoming

1. [25] It appears obvious that since a “large number believed” (Ac 11:21) and “considerable numbers were brought to the Lord” (Ac 11:24), Barnabas needed aid in discipling the Gentile believers at Antioch.

2. Whether through his own idea or a suggestion from the Jerusalem leaders who sent him to Antioch (Ac 11:22), Barnabas went to look for Saul in Tarsus. This was understandable since it was known among the apostles that Saul was “entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised (Gentiles)” (Gal 2:7-8 cf. Gal 2:2 cf. Ac 9:15). Therefore, Saul was the perfect colleague for the first Gentile church in Antioch.

3. Saul, having already established an aggressive ministry ethic (Ac 9:20), would have caused Barnabas to “search” (anazāteō - seek carefully, investigate) for him in Tarsus (cf. Ac 9:30). When Barnabas finally found Saul, he brought him back to Antioch (Ac 11:26a).

B. The Teaching Ministry (Ac 11:26b)

1. [26] There is little doubt that Saul and Barnabas proclaimed the gospel to both Jew and Gentile in Antioch. But what Luke specifically mentioned was that Saul and Barnabas began to meet regularly with the Gentile church. In so doing, they established a “teaching “(from didaskō - to teach) ministry in the church, which by this time was of “considerable numbers.”

2. The importance of a teaching ministry that taught the truth of the Scriptures of the early church cannot be overemphasized.

a) The church devoted itself to the apostles teaching (Ac 2:42).

b) The apostles were persecuted for teaching in the name of Jesus (Ac 4:2, 18; 5:25, 28, 42).

c) The apostles continued their teaching ministry in every church (Ac 15:35; 18:25; 20:20; 28:31).

d) Teaching was a spiritual gift (Ro 12:7; 1Co 12:28; Ep 4:11) and there were designated teachers in the church (Ac 13:1 cf. Ep 4:11d).

e) The ministry of the Holy Spirit is described as a teaching ministry (Jn 14:26; 1Co 2:13).

3. Of what did their teaching ministry consist?

a) Devotion to the Lord (Ac 11:23)

b) Apostles’’ kerygma (death and resurrection of Christ from the Scriptures cf. Ac 2:23-24, 31-36; 3:15)

c) The gospel of God (cf. Romans)

d) Defense of the faith (Ac 5:29-31; 1Pe 3:15)

e) Against false teaching - See Galatians

C. The Name Christian (Ac 11:26c)

1. It was there in Antioch where the name “Christian” (Christianos) was applied to the church. There are several significant traits to this name.

a) It is believed that the name was given as an appellation of ridicule. Unbelievers saw this group as “belonging to the party” of (suffix “-ian”) Christ and as followers of Christ. Since believers do belong to Christ (Ro 8:9; 1Co 3:23), the name was accepted and used by believers in the early church (Ac 26:28; 1Pe 4:16).

b) In a good ecclesiastical sense, Christianity was no longer considered a variant of Judaism. Rather, it included the two groups, Jews and Gentiles, under the name of “Christians.”

c) In many cases, it was a name for the early church that, being followers of Christ, were marked for persecution (1Pe 4:16. Note Josephus Ant. 18:64).

II. THE PROPHECY AT ANTIOCH

A. Prophets in the Early Church (Ac 11:27-28)

1. [27] Luke recorded that some prophets came down to Antioch. The Scriptures teach that the gift of prophecy was essential for providing revelation to the early church (Ep 4:11).

2. It was a spiritual gift present in the first century (1Co 12:28). The gift of prophesy was comprised of both foretelling (predicting future events - Ac 11:28; 21:10-11) and forth-telling (proclaiming of divine truth - Ac 15:32).

3. Like other sign gifts, the gift of prophesy is no longer fulfilling the aspect of foretelling because of the completion of canon.

4. The aspect of foretelling, which demanded 100% accuracy of future events, was the same for the NT prophets as it was for OT prophets (Dt 18:20-22).

B. Agabus’ Prophecy (Ac 11:28)

1. [28] One of these prophets was named, Agabus. This same prophet, will prophecy of Paul’s chains by the Jews in Ac 21:10-11.

2. It was revealed to him by the Holy Spirit of a “great famine” that would come upon the “inhabited world” (oikoumenā - inhabited world, i.e. Roman empire).

3. With the idea of 100% accuracy for NT and OT prophets, the historian Luke, recorded that this famine indeed took place during the reign of Claudius (AD 41-54 cf. Ac 11:28). The historian Josephus told of a severe famine that in Palestine in AD 45-47. Other Roman historians wrote of famine and harvest failures during the reign of Claudius, which also confirm the 100% accuracy of Agabus.

C. The Test of Today’s Prophets

1. Today’s Charismatics disagree that NT prophets were under OT 100% accuracy demand. The obvious reason is not so much Scriptural as it is the realization that there have been no present day prophets who have been 100% accurate. Rather than see this as a support for the cessation of foretelling, they readily admit their false prophecies.

2. Jack Deere, the esteemed Charismatic scholar, wrote in “Surprised by the Voice of God,” ...prophecy in ordinary New Testament churches was not equal to Scripture in authority, but was simply a very human - and sometimes partially mistaken - report of something the Holy Spirit brought to someone's mind.

3. This however, is a far cry from the Scriptural depiction of the two succinct prophecies in Acts by Agabus. So careful was the early church against false prophecies that Scripture states that the other prophets were to test the prophecies, and not allow for mistaken prophecies (1Co 14:29; 32).

III. THE CONTRIBUTION FROM ANTIOCH

A. Preparation for Christian Giving (Ac 11:29)

1. [29] The point of Agabus’ prophecy was to prepare the church for a Christian response to the coming famine.

2. The Gentile church at Antioch was now ready to put their Christianity in action. They were not called to sell all their possessions as we see in Ac 4:36-37 (Barnabas) and Ac 5:1-5 (Ananias). Rather, as any had or would have “means” (imperfect of euporeō - prosper, i.e. “were having financial ability”), they would send a “contribution” (diakonia - service, aid, support) to those in need living in Judea.

3. The early church presented a strong testimony of giving to those in need. Such would have associated the derogatory term “Christian” with those who not only followed Christ, but followed Christ’s example in brotherly love (1Co 16:13; 1Jn 3:17).

B. Administration of Christian Giving (Ac 11:30)

1. [30] The administration of these contributions was given to the leadership of elders in Judea to distribute.

2. The contribution was sent along by the hand Barnabas and Saul. These could not only amply give direction to the elders on distribution, but also let the Jewish churches know that such contributions came from the Gentiles church at Antioch.

IV. OBSERVATIONS AND APPLICATIONS

A. The Importance of Teaching

B. The Significance of the Term “Christian”

C. Knowledge of Christian Response through Revelation

D. The Christian Response in Giving

Grace Bible Church · 4000 E. Collins Rd · PO Box #3762 · Gillette, WY · (307) 686-1516