The One Year Bible Club with Teaching
Commentary by Nick Boork
June 17
Acts 11:1-30
Commentary by Nick Boork
June 17
Acts 11:1-30
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June 17 ~ Acts 11:1-30
Now the apostles and brethren who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God. 2 And when Peter came up to Jerusalem, those of the circumcision contended with him, 3 saying, “You went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them!” 4 But Peter explained it to them in order from the beginning, saying: 5 “I was in the city of Joppa praying; and in a trance I saw a vision, an object descending like a great sheet, let down from heaven by four corners; and it came to me. 6 When I observed it intently and considered, I saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air. 7 And I heard a voice saying to me, ‘Rise, Peter; kill and eat.’ 8 But I said, ‘Not so, Lord! For nothing common or unclean has at any time entered my mouth.’ 9 But the voice answered me again from heaven, ‘What God has cleansed you must not call common.’ 10 Now this was done three times, and all were drawn up again into heaven.
11 At that very moment, three men stood before the house where I was, having been sent to me from Caesarea. 12 Then the Spirit told me to go with them, doubting nothing. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered the man’s house. 13 And he told us how he had seen an angel standing in his house, who said to him, ‘Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon whose surname is Peter, 14 who will tell you words by which you and all your household will be saved.’ 15 And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, as upon us at the beginning. 16 Then I remembered the word of the Lord, how He said, ‘John indeed baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 If therefore God gave them the same gift as He gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?” 18 When they heard these things they became silent; and they glorified God, saying, “Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life.”
19 Now those who were scattered after the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to no one but the Jews only. 20 But some of them were men from Cyprus and Cyrene, who, when they had come to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists, preaching the Lord Jesus. 21 And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord. 22 Then news of these things came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch. 23 When he came and had seen the grace of God, he was glad, and encouraged them all that with purpose of heart they should continue with the Lord. 24 For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord.
25 Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to seek Saul. 26 And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch. 27 And in these days prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 Then one of them, named Agabus, stood up and showed by the Spirit that there was going to be a great famine throughout all the world, which also happened in the days of Claudius Caesar. 29 Then the disciples, each according to his ability, determined to send relief to the brethren dwelling in Judea. 30 This they also did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.
OKAY, HERE'S MY TEACHING COMMENTARY
A new church birthed among the Gentiles by the simple preaching of the Gospel
These men were not apostles nor are they recognized as any of the original seven that were ordained to serve in Acts chapter 6. No, the Bible says that these were just “men”. No special degrees, diplomas, apostolic credentials or ordinations by any denominational group. This was the Gospel in its purest form being lived out, communicated and preached by those that knew Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
The Bible says that the hand of the Lord was with them and a great many people were added to the Lord. So here we have the moving of the Holy Spirit through these men as they preached bringing many Greeks to faith in Jesus Christ and the formation of a brand-new church! When the apostles in Jerusalem heard these people had received the Word of God they sent Barnabas to investigate. When Barnabas saw what was going on and the obvious grace of God moving among this people group he encouraged them to follow after the Lord with all their hearts. The number one gift in Barnabas was encouragement. So what did he do? He encouraged and motivated them. The Bible says Barnabas was a good man full of the Holy Spirit and faith. Through his ministry even more people were added to the Lord when he visited Antioch. Here is where things get really exciting. Barnabas knew he could not lead this movement alone. This is a common mistake that men make today when they try to start a new church, they try to do it alone without building a team first.
Barnabas goes off to the city of Tarsus to look for Saul who changed his name to Paul. Why did he go look for Paul? Because Paul had communicated to Barnabas the call of God on his life and specifically how Jesus had said that he would be used to be a witness to the Gentiles. You know there is a perfect timing for all of our ministries. I have learned that the Lord is faithful to open the right doors for me to go through in his timing. It seems like nothing is happening and then suddenly God opens the door for me to preach and minister and the grace of His Spirit seems to flow almost effortlessly getting people saved and ministering to them!
The Holy Spirit puts leaders together to form teams according to his purposes. The immediate purpose of God for this group of new believers at Antioch was for them to become rooted and grounded in their faith. Paul and Barnabas stayed with them for an entire year teaching them the Word of God and making many disciples. It was at Antioch, that the disciples were nicknamed Christians and the name stuck. What is a Christian? One who believes and follows Jesus Christ as the Son of God and Savior of the world. This new church at Antioch with the leadership of Barnabas and Paul became a very strong spiritual center for the propagation of the Gospel into the entire Gentile world.
During my time living overseas, serving as a missionary in both the Dominican Republic and Singapore, I can say that I have had both crop failures and harvests as a result of my preaching and teaching ministry but I always ministered in the context of a team. Sometimes we would labor for a year meeting with a small group of people doing a home Bible study and teaching them about the faith in Jesus Christ. Some of these groups would fizzle out but others took off and grew out of the living rooms into full-blown churches meeting in rented buildings with pastors being raised up which continue to this day. Never despise the day of small beginnings. Just keep preaching the gospel and look for the grace of God moving among people that your ministering to. It’s the grace of God, His power and ability that causes people to become born-again Christians and then we use our gifts to teach and build up these new believers into new churches which can reach their communities and fulfill the great commission of Jesus Christ.
WHAT'S THE BOTTOM LINE?
1) The Gospel can be preached by men with no ministerial credentials.
2) New churches are started as the gospel is preached.
3) Barnabas used his gift to encourage and buildup these new believers.
4) Barnabas recruited Paul to form the leadership team of this gentile church.
5) You have to have the right leaders with the right gifts at the right time in the right place.
6) The believers were first called Christians at Antioch because they became like Jesus.
7) Never underestimate how God can use average Christian’s sharing their faith in Jesus Christ to get people saved and launch new churches because it’s the work of the Holy Spirit.
Now the apostles and brethren who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God. 2 And when Peter came up to Jerusalem, those of the circumcision contended with him, 3 saying, “You went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them!” 4 But Peter explained it to them in order from the beginning, saying: 5 “I was in the city of Joppa praying; and in a trance I saw a vision, an object descending like a great sheet, let down from heaven by four corners; and it came to me. 6 When I observed it intently and considered, I saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air. 7 And I heard a voice saying to me, ‘Rise, Peter; kill and eat.’ 8 But I said, ‘Not so, Lord! For nothing common or unclean has at any time entered my mouth.’ 9 But the voice answered me again from heaven, ‘What God has cleansed you must not call common.’ 10 Now this was done three times, and all were drawn up again into heaven.
11 At that very moment, three men stood before the house where I was, having been sent to me from Caesarea. 12 Then the Spirit told me to go with them, doubting nothing. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered the man’s house. 13 And he told us how he had seen an angel standing in his house, who said to him, ‘Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon whose surname is Peter, 14 who will tell you words by which you and all your household will be saved.’ 15 And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, as upon us at the beginning. 16 Then I remembered the word of the Lord, how He said, ‘John indeed baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 If therefore God gave them the same gift as He gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?” 18 When they heard these things they became silent; and they glorified God, saying, “Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life.”
19 Now those who were scattered after the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to no one but the Jews only. 20 But some of them were men from Cyprus and Cyrene, who, when they had come to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists, preaching the Lord Jesus. 21 And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord. 22 Then news of these things came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch. 23 When he came and had seen the grace of God, he was glad, and encouraged them all that with purpose of heart they should continue with the Lord. 24 For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord.
25 Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to seek Saul. 26 And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch. 27 And in these days prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 Then one of them, named Agabus, stood up and showed by the Spirit that there was going to be a great famine throughout all the world, which also happened in the days of Claudius Caesar. 29 Then the disciples, each according to his ability, determined to send relief to the brethren dwelling in Judea. 30 This they also did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.
OKAY, HERE'S MY TEACHING COMMENTARY
A new church birthed among the Gentiles by the simple preaching of the Gospel
These men were not apostles nor are they recognized as any of the original seven that were ordained to serve in Acts chapter 6. No, the Bible says that these were just “men”. No special degrees, diplomas, apostolic credentials or ordinations by any denominational group. This was the Gospel in its purest form being lived out, communicated and preached by those that knew Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
The Bible says that the hand of the Lord was with them and a great many people were added to the Lord. So here we have the moving of the Holy Spirit through these men as they preached bringing many Greeks to faith in Jesus Christ and the formation of a brand-new church! When the apostles in Jerusalem heard these people had received the Word of God they sent Barnabas to investigate. When Barnabas saw what was going on and the obvious grace of God moving among this people group he encouraged them to follow after the Lord with all their hearts. The number one gift in Barnabas was encouragement. So what did he do? He encouraged and motivated them. The Bible says Barnabas was a good man full of the Holy Spirit and faith. Through his ministry even more people were added to the Lord when he visited Antioch. Here is where things get really exciting. Barnabas knew he could not lead this movement alone. This is a common mistake that men make today when they try to start a new church, they try to do it alone without building a team first.
Barnabas goes off to the city of Tarsus to look for Saul who changed his name to Paul. Why did he go look for Paul? Because Paul had communicated to Barnabas the call of God on his life and specifically how Jesus had said that he would be used to be a witness to the Gentiles. You know there is a perfect timing for all of our ministries. I have learned that the Lord is faithful to open the right doors for me to go through in his timing. It seems like nothing is happening and then suddenly God opens the door for me to preach and minister and the grace of His Spirit seems to flow almost effortlessly getting people saved and ministering to them!
The Holy Spirit puts leaders together to form teams according to his purposes. The immediate purpose of God for this group of new believers at Antioch was for them to become rooted and grounded in their faith. Paul and Barnabas stayed with them for an entire year teaching them the Word of God and making many disciples. It was at Antioch, that the disciples were nicknamed Christians and the name stuck. What is a Christian? One who believes and follows Jesus Christ as the Son of God and Savior of the world. This new church at Antioch with the leadership of Barnabas and Paul became a very strong spiritual center for the propagation of the Gospel into the entire Gentile world.
During my time living overseas, serving as a missionary in both the Dominican Republic and Singapore, I can say that I have had both crop failures and harvests as a result of my preaching and teaching ministry but I always ministered in the context of a team. Sometimes we would labor for a year meeting with a small group of people doing a home Bible study and teaching them about the faith in Jesus Christ. Some of these groups would fizzle out but others took off and grew out of the living rooms into full-blown churches meeting in rented buildings with pastors being raised up which continue to this day. Never despise the day of small beginnings. Just keep preaching the gospel and look for the grace of God moving among people that your ministering to. It’s the grace of God, His power and ability that causes people to become born-again Christians and then we use our gifts to teach and build up these new believers into new churches which can reach their communities and fulfill the great commission of Jesus Christ.
WHAT'S THE BOTTOM LINE?
1) The Gospel can be preached by men with no ministerial credentials.
2) New churches are started as the gospel is preached.
3) Barnabas used his gift to encourage and buildup these new believers.
4) Barnabas recruited Paul to form the leadership team of this gentile church.
5) You have to have the right leaders with the right gifts at the right time in the right place.
6) The believers were first called Christians at Antioch because they became like Jesus.
7) Never underestimate how God can use average Christian’s sharing their faith in Jesus Christ to get people saved and launch new churches because it’s the work of the Holy Spirit.
ORDINATION
We provide Ministry Credentials and Ordination through Diamond Ministerial Association. Click to learn more and apply! http://www.diamondinstitute.org/ordination
ONLINE COURSES
For Bible courses and ministry resources see our online school Diamond Institute. Enroll free today and get access to our free and pay as you go courses. http://www.diamondinstitute.org/enroll
We provide Ministry Credentials and Ordination through Diamond Ministerial Association. Click to learn more and apply! http://www.diamondinstitute.org/ordination
ONLINE COURSES
For Bible courses and ministry resources see our online school Diamond Institute. Enroll free today and get access to our free and pay as you go courses. http://www.diamondinstitute.org/enroll
