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Acts 13:1-5 – The Beginning of “Being witnesses…to the uttermost parts of the earth.” Pt.1

An Inspiring Description of the Church God Uses to Reach the World!

We begin this Bible study at the long-awaited moment where God encouraged the expansion of the Church! Building upon the Church’s miraculous inauguration on the Day of Pentecost approximately 15 years before, the Church was now about to experience something it had never yet experienced, a massive escalation and swift expansion to areas that had never been touched by the Gospel of Jesus Christ! The situations were different than what they experienced in Acts chapters 1-12. The level of attack came from more angles. The spiritual debates were more complex since the attacks did not primarily come from one theological vein of Judaism, but rather from Greek Philosophy, Roman superstitions, cults of mythical gods, centers of worship of angelic beings, undefinable philosophical teachings, and the all-too-familiar persistence of Jewish antagonists. Unlike the early days of the Church, when it was possible to get far enough away from Jerusalem to be safe from a singular passionate persecutor, the vitriolic opponents followed believers from town to town, only providing the believers, in some cases, a few days to sow spiritual seeds before they were forced to flee to the next town. At times, believers evaded physical persecution, but at other times it became unavoidable as they experienced the full wrath of angry mobs. Believers at every turn had to keep aware of many who looked to do them harm and who restricted many opportunities the believers had to present the clear message of the Gospel.

Yet, through it all, God provided divinely open windows of opportunity for these believers to share the Gospel that was nothing short of miraculous. They witnessed God hold back the attacks long enough for the Gospel to be clearly presented, for follow-up to occur, and for many conversions to take place. They even saw how God providentially orchestrated the actions of the ones attacking the believers to be the very ones who unknowingly facilitated their protection in the city. They took them to court only to see that the magistrates found no fault in them. They spread lies and caused them to be put in prison, only to see God shake the bars loose and bring about the conversion of the prison guard. They paid lawyers to present their case before three of the highest regional leaders, only to hear all three leaders, in unison, declare that they were innocent of committing any crimes. And they even saw God providentially use the words and actions of a demon to bring about the conversion of an entire city from the worship of demonic magic!

The acts of the Holy Spirit presented in Acts 13-28 that afforded the believers to spread the Gospel of the Risen Lord Jesus Christ across the known world and for His Church to expand at exponential levels were nothing short of miraculous. Every situation at the beginning of this section of Acts was novel for the church. They worked together to determine how to approach various scenarios they had never experienced before. But the unity of the believers was beautiful as they worked towards one mission and one vision given to them by the Lord Jesus Christ, “Be witnesses...to the uttermost parts of the earth” (Acts 1:8b NKJV) and “Go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20 NKJV).

Acts chapter 13 begins approximately 15 years after the death, burial, resurrection (Luke 23-24), ascension of Jesus (Acts 1), and the arrival of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-41). It is approximately 10 years after Paul’s conversion experience (Acts 9:1-22). And the global expansion phase of the Church addressed in Acts 13-28 covers approximately 20 years and specifically focuses upon the efforts of Paul and those with whom he engaged.

This new phase of expansion of the Church started in a city called Antioch. The regions of Judea, Samaria, and Galilee served as significant locations whose citizens saw firsthand the miracles and messages of Jesus during His earthly ministry. The city of Jerusalem in Judea hosted significant events like the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ, along with the coming of the Holy Spirit, to begin establishing the Christian Church. But Antioch was God’s appointed city to serve as a home base and was the common gathering place for the majority of Christian leaders and Gospel messengers. Here they connected, refreshed, regrouped, and launched meaningful travel efforts to spread the Gospel to the known world. But why Antioch? What was so special about this city?

There were characteristics of this city that made it conducive to serving as the home base for the launch of this final phase of expanding the Church to the ends of the earth. But it must always be remembered that God will use the Church to reach the world, and the Church is the collection of believers in the world. So, while God providentially orchestrated the development of the city of Antioch to provide believers with all they needed to launch successful min- istry outreach efforts, it has been and will always be the Church, comprised of believers who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ, through whom God uses to change the world to the “uttermost parts of the earth” (Acts 1:8b NKJV)!

But let’s take a look at the city that God developed, over time, to serve as a home base in this final phase of God’s mission to reach the world with the Gospel that was preached to the “uttermost parts of the earth” (Acts 1:8b)! The Gospel is clearly presented in Scripture! Read in order: Romans 3:10a, Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23, John 3:16, Ephesians 2:8-9, Titus 3:5, Romans 5:8, Romans 10:9, 13 Romans 5:1, Romans 8:1, Romans 8:38-39, and I Peter 1:3-4 Gospel. Antioch (specifically, Antioch of Syria) was positioned approximately 200 miles north of the most northern Galilean region and approximately 300 miles north of Jerusalem in the region of Judea. It was the third most populated city in the Roman world (third only to Rome in Italy and Alexandria in Egypt). Its citizens were diverse. They were multicultural, multi-religious, and only had a moderate Jewish influence. It was a city whose citizens reflected a good cross-section of the Roman world as a whole. Thus, this expansion of the Gospel was not just to spread the gospel geographically but also to spread the Gospel beyond the Jewish people to people of all backgrounds and nations.

In addition, the believers in Antioch were time-tested and trial-tested. Meaning, the believers in Antioch had experienced persecution for their faith before Acts 13. The church in Antioch was established approximately three to five years prior to Acts 13 by believers who had fled violent persecution against them while in Jerusalem (Acts chapters 7-9). They scattered from the Jerusalem area and went to Antioch and beyond (Acts 11:19a). They were passionate about their faith. They did not recant their Christian faith in persecution but rather chose to continue spreading the Gospel as they fled (Acts 11:19-21)! And their faith remained strong over this time, leading up to Acts 13. As a result, these convicted believers in Antioch were strong in their faith, good students of the Word of God, and spirit-controlled (Acts 11:19-25). They were known for their belief that Jesus Christ was the incarnate God come to earth and the Savior offered to all people. So much so that local citizens had begun referring to them as “Christians” (i.e., “Little Christs”). This nickname had never been used before to describe believers in Jesus Christ (Acts 11:26). It was an excellent home base for Christians to meet, fellowship, be edified, to share the Gospel with both Jews and Gentiles (i.e., non-Jewish people), and to gather to review how the Gospel message was spreading (Acts 15 NKJV).

Let’s reflect upon the characteristics of the church that God used to launch into this new and final phase of outreach (we will look further into the people who embraced these characteristics with conviction in our next devotional). The church was 1) solid in the foundational doctrines of Christianity, 2) practiced spiritual disciplines that focused their hearts and minds on God’s will and not their own, and they were 3) filled with the Holy Spirit. As we do, we also reflect upon our home churches and how we have the privilege of worshiping, serving, and supporting a church that embraces these same characteristics! Then, take a moment to offer up a word of thanksgiving to the Lord for what He has done in the life of your church to make it this way!

The church in Antioch had a solid doctrinal foundation. The believers received sound teaching and clear declarations of how to apply God’s truth (Acts 13:1). They had proven spiritual teachers who were spiritual practitioners. Meaning, they did not just teach spiritual doctrine; they based their own actions and behaviors on the doctrine and practiced what they preached (Acts 13:1). The church in Antioch practiced spiritual disciplines that focused their hearts and minds on God’s Will and not their own. Notice the first two spiritual activities listed in Acts 13:2, “[T]hey ministered to the Lord and fasted” (Acts 13:2). While the act of “ministering to the Lord” will be covered in length in our next devotional, “fasting” in the New Testament was to focus one’s mind for a spiritual reason (Acts 13:2, 14:23 NKJV) and is often linked in the New Testament to prayer (Luke 2:37, 5:33). And while it is ok for believers to inform people they are fasting, they should not bring attention to it for self-centered purposes (Matthew 6:16-18). Lastly, and most significantly, the believers and their leaders in Antioch were “filled” with the Holy Spirit (Acts 13:2, 4, 9; and 11:24 NKJV). Continually through the Book of Acts and in its description of the church in Antioch, the Bible describes the believers as being “filled” (or better, “controlled”) by the Holy Spirit (If you cannot wait to learn more about what it means to be “filled” with the Spirit, see our forthcoming Devotional on Acts 19:1-7!). Because they instilled sound doctrine and focused their minds on God’s purpose and will for them, the Holy Spirit was able to guide their prayers, thinking, and their very actions because they were so in tune with the heart and mind of God.

The church of Antioch was grounded on God’s truth, pure in its worship, controlled by the Holy Spirit, committed to Jesus Christ’s mission, and selfless in service. It is no wonder that God was able to work so freely through this church to reach the world. And as a result, the church was able to get a front row seat to the power and providence of God in reaching the world with the Gospel (Acts 11:24, 12:24, 13:49, 14:1, 21, 16:5, 17:4, 12, 18:8). And a front row seat is available for any church that commits to do the same!

Ponder & Pray Today...

Reflect on how greatly the Lord was able to use the people in the church at Antioch to fulfill the final phase of His mission to reach the world with the Gospel, not because of fame, fortune, or reputation, but simply because they remained controlled by the Holy Spirit and remained pure vessels that the Holy Spirit is able to use with ease. Think about how amazing it must have been for them to receive reports of how so many people, from all types of backgrounds and locations, put their faith in Jesus Christ. Think about how they celebrated these exciting moments, knowing this was what they had been praying and preparing their hearts for since they congregated in Antioch. Now, reflect on moments that you experienced first-hand. How God brought about spiritual growth or salvation in someone’s life you have been praying for. Review how it made an indelible impression upon you, even up to today.

Pray for our precious church members and our leaders at Thomas Road Baptist Church. Thank Him for all He has done and is doing through our church as a result of standing upon the truth of the Word of God, preparing our hearts to be pure and singularly focused upon God’s will to be accomplished, and striving to be controlled by the Holy Spirit every day. Devote this week to lifting up your church in prayer.