Enjoy these notes from our class discussion on Sunday night, January 4th. As we consider how to share our faith, we begin by studying the biblical example of those who did it well.

The Church in Antioch – Acts 11

  •      Scattered b/c persecution
  •      Telling the message
  •      They only told the Jews
  •      They began to speak to the Greeks
  •      They preached good news: Jesus
  •      The Lord’s hand was with them.
  •      Many people believed the good news.
  •      They believed & turned.
  •      News about the new church reached Jerusalem.
  •      They sent Barnabas to Antioch.
  •      He saw evidence of God’s grace: people were saved, growing, changing, sharing…
  •      Barnabas went to Tarsus and got Paul.
  •      Disciples were first called Christians here.

 

Why Grow?

1.               It’s God’s redemptive plan.

2.               It is God’s will to seek to draw all men unto Himself.

3.               God works through men.

4.               God works through His Son.

5.               God works through His Church.

 

What is the church?

False Ideas:

  •      God will take care of it all.
  •      Drift into religious relativism.
  •      Exclusivism.
  •      Institutionalism

 

Biblical Ideas

1.               The church is an outpost for God.
Eph 3:10

2.               The church is a fellowship with eternal implications. 1 Cor. 15:24

3.               The church is a place where God is active, and he testifies to his redemptive works.

4.               The church is a place where hope abides.

5.               The church is a place of spiritual people in fleshly garb.

6.               The church is an organism for action and reproduction.