The Church and The Great Commission
The Church and the Great Commission
Acts 11:19-30
Have you ever stood at the edge of a still lake and thrown a big rock off the shore? The initial impact creates a big splash, but then the ripples extend far beyond the initial impact. Beloved, Acts 11:19-30 is about the ripples of God’s providence. God allows the evil one at times to make a big splash but all the ripples it creates serves his ultimate purpose.
Romans 8:28, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
And
Isaiah 55:10-11, “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there, but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”
The nations may rage and make a big splash but the ripples belong to God for our God is the Ancient of Days and all things serve his word. In Acts 11:19-30, God helps us remember the evil splash but here he shows us his God-ordained purposeful, providential ripples.
A Strong Church Strengthens the Church through Proclamation
The Lord Jesus told the disciples in Acts 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth.” The gathered church was in Jerusalem devoted to the apostles teaching, to fellowship and to the breaking of bread and prayer. Peter and John were leading the disciples to go to the Temple daily to share the gospel of Christ with the Jewish people. But it wasn’t until intense persecution arrived until the church was pushed outside the comfortable boundary of Jerusalem. Acts 8:1;4, “And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered through the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles…Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.” God expanded the mission of the church through persecution.
The death of Stephen was a giant rock dropped into a lake making a big splash but creating many God-ordained ripples. The first ripples pushed the disciples to Samaria and then on to Cesearea and the conversion of the first Gentiles. The ripples continued all the way to Antioch. Acts 11:19–20 writes,
[19] Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews. [20] But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists also, preaching the Lord Jesus.
Antioch is about 300 miles from Jerusalem. It was about a two week walk to travel. And while they traveled, they were looking for opportunities to speak to people about the events in Jerusalem. They went about “speaking the word.” They would have shared about the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Day of Pentecost, the healing of the lame man at the Gate called Beautiful. They would have shared how there was salvation in no other name but Jesus Christ. They would have preached repentance towards God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Once you come to Christ, “speaking the word,” becomes normal in the life of a Christian.
Luke highlights two groups, he mentions, in verse 19, “those who were scattered” and in verse 20, “But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene.” Who were these people? We don’t know their names, but we know their faithfulness. Beloved, we live for the Name of Jesus and to make his name known. The Lord will build his church through the faithfulness of everyday people who scatter throughout city and town preaching the Word. You have no idea how one conversation will create a ripple in someone’s life that may change families for generations and cities for centuries. The heartbeat of the Great Commission is when everyday, ordinary Christians share the word with others. Will you commit to be an everyday, ordinary Christians who goes about through gospel rocks in the lakes of people’s lives?
Luke highlights two groups, the first speaking only to Jews and the second group, speaking to Hellenists, “preaching the Lord Jesus.” Friend, if you are not a Christian, let me encourage you today to consider Jesus Christ. Our message today is the same message of the early church. We preach the Lord Jesus. By preaching the Lord Jesus, we are saying he is Lord and we are not. We are sinners and deserve God’s just wrath because of our sin. We are saying that he is the only one who can save us by paying for our sins on the cross. We are saying he is able to do so, because he is Lord. And he is Lord because he was raised from the dead. My encouragement to you is to consider why so many people are willing to give up their lives to serve and share the Lord Jesus Christ. You will see every person when they hear about Jesus will have one of two responses: belief or disbelief. If you believe, you will be saved from your sin. If you do not believe, you will stay in your sins and perish. We do not preach the Lord Jesus to condemn, but in the hopes you will be saved through him. I urge you to repent of your sins and turn to Christ.
It is interesting how normal, everyday Christians were the ones preaching Jesus and the ones who crossed ethnic and religious lines to share Jesus. Luke is showing how God is moving the church to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth and places this narrative right after the conversion of the Gentiles. The church is beginning to expand to all the families of the earth, but the faithfulness of everyday, ordinary Christians. God used the boldness of “some of them,” to share Christ to the Greeks at Antioch. And as we will see, the seeds sown will reap into a strong, sending church that will serve as a model for centuries.
Over the last few weeks, I have had the privilege of doing several new member interviews of those who have decided to covenant with our congregation. It has been such a joy to hear how God has worked in their lives to bring about his saving grace for them and how he has used different circumstances to bring them to Park. I get excited when new people are added to our number because I get to see how God will use them in the life of our body. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 11:14;18-21,
For the body does not consist of one member but of many…God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.”
God has chosen to give individual members to be part of our body because we have “need of them.” God wants our church to be stronger so he sends individuals parts to join with our body. As I sit through membership interviews and hear people’s stories, I pray for God to use these new individual members to help strengthen the saints for the common good. For me, it is exciting to see how God is going to use these new members to serve his purposes in the body of Christ. God is telling me and our elders, we need them because God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose.
When you join a church, you are obeying Scripture and saying, “I need you.” And I would say when you don’t join or covenant with a local body of believers, you are saying, “I don’t need you.” Friends, I would challenge you to consider how God wants to use you in this body to strengthen the church so that the church may be a better reflection of Christ. “The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” I am saying to you, “We need you.” We would be delighted to have you a part of us because God delights to use everyday, ordinary Christians to fulfill the Great Commission.
The church at Antioch was established through the proclamation of the word of God. God uses his Word to create his people. We see this throughout Scripture but most fundamentally in Ezekiel 37:1-14,
[1] The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the LORD and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. [2] And he led me around among them, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley, and behold, they were very dry. [3] And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord GOD, you know.” [4] Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. [5] Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. [6] And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the LORD.”
[7] So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. [8] And I looked, and behold, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them. But there was no breath in them. [9] Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord GOD: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.” [10] So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.
[11] Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are indeed cut off.’ [12] Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will open your graves and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will bring you into the land of Israel. [13] And you shall know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people. [14] And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the LORD; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the LORD.”
God builds his church through the proclamation of his word. The disciples left Jerusalem because of the persecution and spoke the word, preaching the Lord Jesus and God created a church. We still believe the Word of God will grow and establish his church. We believe the Word will grow and establish his church at Park and around the world. If we are going to be a church that believes in the Great Commission, then we must be a church that believes in the proclamation of the word of God and the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. And a strong church will work to strengthen the church as we help other churches be more faithful in proclaiming the gospel of the Lord Jesus.
A Strong Church Strengthens the Church through Providence
I deeply desire for God to use our church to be a blessing to other churches. I want God to grow our congregation here and use us to grow and strengthen the church in Rock Hill, in South Carolina, and to the ends of the earth. But the fruitfulness of our ministry is not up to us. Acts 11:21, “And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.” Salvation belongs to the Lord. The fruitfulness of our congregation is up to the Lord. The hand of the Lord was with them. Psalm 127:1,
[1] Unless the LORD builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the LORD watches over the city,
the watchman stays awake in vain.
The doctrine of God’s providence is foundational to our joy and peace. God works as He sees fit. “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.” Now, we know God has promised to build his church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. He has given us the keys of his kingdom to bind and to lose through Word and sacrament. We have been given the task to make disciples by baptizing unbelievers who repent and believe and to teach everyone to obey Jesus’ teachings.
Our job is to plant and water the seed of the gospel, but only God determines the growth. Only God will determine the impact and the influence of our lives and our church. We are called to be faithful in our responsibilities to preach the Word and live in accordance with godliness and to leave the results to God. That doesn’t mean we are slothful in our zeal for the Lord. We should give our lives for the calling for Christ. There is no greater calling than to live for the King of kings and the Lord of lords in the fellowship of the church. And we must pray for God’s favor and his grace in our congregation. For our fruitfulness is determined by the hand of the Lord. How precious are those words, “The hand of the Lord was with them.” If God is for us, who can be against us. If God is with us, who cares who stands against us. Beloved, God is good, sovereign and wise. Let us trust him in our congregation. Let us be faithful and leave the results to God.
A Strong Church Strengthens the Church through Encouragement
A strong church should care about other churches. Churches were never meant to be silos. The church in the New Testament is interdependent. They lean on each other to fulfill the great commission. Acts 11:22-4,
The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose, for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord.
In early stages of the church, doctrine and oversight was centered in Jerusalem because the apostles were in Jerusalem. They heard of the report of a Gentile church in Antioch so they sent Barnabas. They SENT Barnbas. The church in Jerusalem invested dollars and one of the best leaders in Barnabas to serve the church in Antioch. Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. How many churches would love to have men who are good, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith? The church in Jerusalem sent Barnabas, a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith, to Antioch. Why? Because they needed him. God arranges each member in the body as he chooses. He came and saw the grace of God and was glad, and exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose.
The church of Antioch was established by everyday, ordinary Christians sharing about the Lord Jesus. The church of Antioch was strengthened by the church of Jerusalem in sending a faithful and Spirit-filled servant to exhort them to stay faithful to the Lord. Barnabas saw the grace of God. He saw people believing, serving one another, teaching the Word and loving each other. He saw the fruit of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church and was glad. Seeing the fruit of the Spirit in another church should make us joyful, not jealous. What is the first reaction when you hear another church experiencing the blessing of God? Is it praise to God for his kindness to that church or discontentment with his providence to our church? The church is at her best when she is caring for one another. A strong church should care for other churches. We are not in competition but part of the same family. We should care about the health and the witness of other churches.
The book of Acts shares several missionary journeys of the Apostle Paul and his companions. As we study these journeys over the next several months, we will see a pattern of sharing the gospel in a new place, a congregation formed, elders established and encouragement to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose. After establishing the church, Paul would circle back and spend time encouraging the church to continue to press on in Christ. The church does not only encourage but equips other churches.
A Strong Church Strengthens the Church through Equipping
After Barnabas encouraged the church, he realized the church needed more than he was able to offer so he went and found Saul. Acts 11:25-26,
So Barnbas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.
Saul and Barnabas spent a year with the church teaching them the Word of God. We know they did more than teaching, but they certainly did not do less. The church needed to be equipped to better understand the Word of God. Barnbas knew where Saul was so he went and brought him to serve the church at Antioch.
Beloved, the church should desire to encourage and to equip other churches. This is one way we fulfill the Great Commission. The local church is God’s plan A to reach the nations with the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The church displays the manifold wisdom of God to the nations as people from all different backgrounds and ages all come together as one family in Christ believing in and sharing the gospel.
Our elders are leading our church to care about other churches by encouraging them and equipping them to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose. Over last year, we have brought in several of our mission partners to share about their ministries and for us to get to know them. We have invited Samuel Bopurri from India, Tiago Oliviera from Portugal, Binoi Samuel and Benjamin George from India, Juan Hernandez from Reaching and Teaching,Ryan Robertson from Reaching and Teaching and Marcos Reversat from Paraguay. We have Casey Howell and Addie Musheff to serve with Marcos to help plant Iglesia Baustista Cuidad de Dios. Lord willing, we will be sending out Hayley Potter and Jennifer Baker to strengthen the church in the Congo and Indonesia.We are in the process of helping to plant Bangkok City Baptist Church in Bangkok Thailand. We are taking mission trips to serve other churches in Charlotte - Kings Church, Boston - Beacon Community Church, Pittsburgh - Remnant Valley Church, and Miami - Providence Road Church. I am going to serve and encourage churches in Utah and Cuba next month. Last week I was on a call encouraging churches in South Carolina. I met with a group of Pillar Network pastors once a month for encouragement and equipping. One of those pastors, Ian Kitchen, who is planting Risen Church, will be with us this coming Wednesday. We recently put on a one-day pastor’s conference to encourage and equip Spanish speaking pastors. We sent 17 of our members and Trell Ross, a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, to plant Pioneer Church. We are training Thomas Broom to be sent out to plant or revitalize a church in Western York County. We are establishing a Send Espanol Church Planting Residency in August. We are hosting a 9marks Weekender to train and equip pastors throughout the Carolinas on sound biblical ecclesiology in July.
And beloved, that is only a snapshot of all that the Lord is doing in and through our congregation. That doesn’t include the week in and week out teaching of our children in our Sunday School and Wednesday night classes, the weekly prayers offered for other churches, the gospel conversations shared throughout the week by our membership and the weekly preaching of God’s Word to exhort you to remain faithful to Jesus Christ with steadfast purpose. We want to see the Lord Jesus Christ honored in this congregation and every congregation across the World and where the name of Jesus is not yet known. And to do this, we have to send our best. We have to give generously and sacrificially. We have to be willing to open our homes to house interns and pastoral residents and their families so we can equip and train them and send them out to encourage and equip other churches.
(Everytime I meet a young man or woman who is considering full-time Christian service, I can easily say, “Why don’t you come here and be trained by us and we will help send you?” I can say it because I know families will open up their home to house people. I pray that I will soon be able to say the same thing for a family with children. I am also praying we will be able to build houses and be given houses to house future pastors and missionaries. If we can figure out how to house couples with kids for a year, I can see a far greater impact to plant and revitalize churches. There is a need, I am praying the Lord will allow us to meet it.)
All of this is to say, we are trying to be a faithful New Testament church. A strong church should equip and encourage other churches. We want to be an Antioch-type church. It will not be easy but if we all work together and use the gifts God has given us for the common good, we will be able to continue being faithful with the little influence the Lord gives us for his glory. I am excited about what the Lord is doing in us and through us.
A Strong Church Strengthens the Church through Service
So we see the church in Jerusalem send Barnabas to encourage and equip the church and now we see the church in Antioch return the favor. Acts 11:27-30,
Now in these days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. And one of them named Agabus stood up and foretold by the Spirit that there would be a great famine over all the world (this took place in the days of Claudius). So the disciples determined, every one according to his ability, to send relief to the brothers living in Judea. And they did so, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul.
So the disciples determined, i.e., the congregation decided together that each one according to his ability would send relief or “diaconia” service to the brothers in Judea. And notice, they did so by sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul. Barnabas and Saul were sent back to encourage and exhort the church in Jerusalem through their gifts to remain faithful to the Lord Jesus with steadfast purpose.
I love how the Lord brings Barnabas full circle. Barnabas did not have an easy life as he was sent from one place to the next, but how encouraging it was for him to be the hands and feet of blessings. How beautiful are the feet who bring good news. And he was only able to be a blessing to the church in Judea because of the generosity of all the saints in Antioch. And he was only able to be a blessing to the church in Antioch because of the generosity of all the saints in Judea. We need each other.
Russia invaded Ukraine a few weeks ago. Our brothers and sisters in both those nations are going through intense hardships. One of my pastor friends in Russia who was recently asked to leave shared this with me:
1. Pray for supernatural generosity from those who will have stable jobs and for God’s provision for those who don’t. My Russian brothers and sisters are bracing for very hard economic times. We are already seeing how businesses and companies are on the verge of shutting down and people will soon be out of the job. I was talking to a church member today who will have to shut down a company, not because of sanctions but because his European counterparts told him, “Since you are Russians, we don’t want to do business with you any longer.” Stores already are limiting people on the staples like flour, sugar, etc. However, I see how the people of the Russian Bible Church are collecting resources to send to faithful pastors serving in Ukraine as well as serving refugees coming into Russia.
2. Pray for Pastors to be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves, so that true and lasting changes can be made in Russia. Many are already at risk of persecution for how they are teaching and shepherding their people, praying against the war, and pointing out the injustice.
3. Pray for Christians to be filled with compassion for their brothers and sisters in Ukraine and Russia. On one hand, some Christians truly believe the Russian propaganda. Some pastors are beginning to hold grudges against co-pastors and members of their flock for supporting Putin. Other pastors are coming under great ridicule and being cursed by both Russia and Ukraine brethren for either not supporting Putin or not resorting to radical (and futile) political methods against the authorities. Many feel stuck between a rock and a hard place. In either case, I want my Russian brothers to courageously turn the other cheek, be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to get angry, and look at those suffering with Christlike compassion as they wield the Word.
4. Pray that the church will truly be a light to the world and not lose their focus on the church’s mission (making disciples, training leaders, revitalizing and planting churches). To this point pray for the weekender next week and pastoral intensive next week. May these events fill pastors with faith and assurance that their work is not in vain. I’m very encouraged by our church and
5. Pray for God’s intervention and the war to cease. (Personally, I find myself asking for God to humble Putin in the way he did to King Nebuchadnezzar.)
6. Pray for Missionaries. My colleagues and I were all on visas provided by religious organizations. Russia will no longer process visas for those invited by a religious org. So, we haven’t figured out what that means for us who have visas already. Also, some have already had their visas annulled. Others may face the same if trying to return at this time. For now, everyone is just waiting to see what will develop in the days ahead. IMB has pulled us out of the country due to the many logistical matters which we weren’t ready for once the West began to isolate Russia from the world. No one, including the US embassy, expected the social response to be quite like this.
I’d also ask that you pray for us as we are in Europe. I’m in a hotel full of Ukr refugees. All seem to be speaking Ru which is giving some of us opportunities to interact. Pray that we can find people here open to the gospel.
I was texting with him this morning as I was thinking about our text and praying that because of the invasion people would be scattered preaching the Lord Jesus and churches like Antioch would be established all throughout Russia and Europe. And praying that one the needs arise, our church would be willing like the church at Antioch to send relief for they are our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Beloved, the nations will rage, but Christ will use it all to bring about his sovereign purposes. We can get overwhelmed by the splash or we can look at the ripples and celebrate how the Lord will redeem and use all things for his glory. May he use Park Baptist Church as one of those ripples to bring about his good purposes in the lives of many saints and churches spread throughout the world.