Posted by Chester Morton / Tuesday, 24 January 2017 / No comments
How the Church spread to Antioch
After the death of Stephen, there arose a great persecution
of the Apostles, to the point where they had to leave Jerusalem. Some of them
went to Phoenicia, some to Cyprus and others to Antioch. In these areas, they
spoke to only the Jews about the Christ.
Some of the Apostles who came from Cyprus and Cyrene went to
Antioch and preached to the Greeks about Jesus. The grace of God was upon them
and many people turned to God.
This great news of the growth of the church in Antioch came
to the Apostles in Jerusalem; so they sent Barnabas to ascertain the veracity of
what they had been told. Indeed, when Barnabas came to Antioch and saw the grace of God on the
church, he told them to remain steadfast. After that more people were saved and
they joined the church.
After this Barnabas left for Tarsus to look for Paul and when
he found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year, Barnabas and Paul
taught the people the words of the Lord. It was here that the Apostles were for
the first time called Christians.
SAMPLE QUESTIONS
1. What circumstances led to the spread of the gospel to
Antioch.
