10.1 Key themes⤒🔗

• Believers were called “Christians” for the first time in the city of Antioch.
• The name “Christian” means “Christ’s one”.
• There were five things that made the believers in Antioch different from the people around them:
  1. Trust in the Lord Jesus
  2. The work of the Holy Spirit in them
  3. Growth in knowledge
  4. Transformed lives
  5. Infectious faith

10.2 Acts 11:19-30←⤒🔗

^11:19 Now those who had been scattered because of the persecution that took place over Stephen went as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, speaking the message to no one but Jews.

^11:20 But there were some men from Cyprus and Cyrene among them who came to Antioch and began to speak to the Greeks too, proclaiming the good news of the Lord Jesus.

^11:21 The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.

^11:22 A report about them came to the attention of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch.

^11:23 When he came and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with devoted hearts,

^11:24 because he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith, and a significant number of people were brought to the Lord.

^11:25 Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to look for Saul,

^11:26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught a significant number of people. Now it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians.

^11:27 At that time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch.

^11:28 One of them, named Agabus, got up and predicted by the Spirit that a severe famine was about to come over the whole inhabited world. (This took place during the reign of Claudius.)

^11:29 So the disciples, each in accordance with his financial ability, decided to send relief to the brothers living in Judea.

^11:30 They did so, sending their financial aid to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.

© NET Bible

10.3 The name “Christian”←⤒🔗

In this Bible Study we looked at many names for a Christian. For example: A Christian is a believer. A Christian is a child. A Christian is a disciple.

But why are believers called “Christians” today? Our passage from Acts 11 gives us the answer. Here we read about the first time that the followers of Jesus Christ were called “Christians”. This is not a name that they gave to themselves. It is a name that was given to them by other people. It happened for the first time in the city of Antioch.

There are only two other places in the New Testament where people who follow Jesus Christ are called “Christians”. The one place is in Acts 26:28. Here Paul is speaking to King Agrippa about the gospel. King Agrippa asks him: "Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?"

The other place is 1 Peter 4:16. There Peter speaks to people who are suffering because they “bear that name” of Christian. In both these places, it is clear that the word “Christian” was used in a negative way. It was used by unbelievers when they spoke about believers.

Antioch was a city full of sin and wickedness. The only thing they knew about the people who followed Jesus was that these people were “Christ’s ones”. That is what the word “Christian” means. Christians were people whose lives were all about Jesus Christ.

That is something to think about! How do people look at us today? When they look at us, can they see that our lives are all about Jesus Christ? Is that the reason why they call us “Christians”?

The believers in Antioch were given this name, because they were so different from the people around them. In the rest of this lesson, we will look at five things which made these believers different from the people around them. These five things should still be true of Christians today.

10.4 Trust in the Lord Jesus←⤒🔗

First of all, these believers trusted in Jesus as their Saviour and Lord. Verse 20 says: “Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus.”

Remember that the name “Jesus” means Saviour (Matthew 1:2). And the word “Lord” means “Master.” Christians trust in Jesus as their Saviour and Master.

That is the first thing which makes a Christian different. The foundation of the Christian life is faith in the Lord Jesus. To have faith in the Lord Jesus means that you receive him as your Saviour and obey him as your Master. He becomes everything to you. You live for him. You love him.

10.5 The work of the Holy Spirit in them←⤒🔗

These believers also experienced the hand of the Lord in their lives (verse 21). Many times when the Bible speaks of the hand of the Lord, it is a way of speaking about the Holy Spirit. Verse 24 also says that people were “brought to the Lord”. Who brought them to the Lord? It was the Holy Spirit. He is the one who gave them faith and new hearts.

The Holy Spirit leads people to faith in different ways. Some people become Christians in a clear and sudden way. Other people become Christians in a slow and quiet way. But when a person becomes a Christian, it is always through the work of the Holy Spirit.

10.6 Growth in knowledge←⤒🔗

These believers also began to grow in their knowledge of the Lord. When many people were brought to the Lord, Barnabas saw that they were hungry to learn more about the Lord.

So, Barnabas went back to Tarsus to find Saul. (“Saul” is another name for “Paul”.) He knew that Saul could help him teach these new believers. For a whole year they worked together to teach many people (verse 26).

This is a good test for your spiritual life. To be hungry for food is a sign of life. If you never get hungry, it is a sign of sickness. So, ask yourself: Am I hungry to learn more about my Lord?

10.7 Transformed lives←⤒🔗

Fourthly, the believers’ lives were transformed. When Barnabas came to Antioch, he could see the “grace of God” (verse 23) in these new believers. Grace itself is not something that can be seen. But when there is grace in someone’s life, that person’s life will change. The change will be clear for everyone to see.

At the end of the passage, we find one example of how the lives of these Christians were transformed. When they heard that the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem were suffering, they helped them! They did not care that these people were not from the same nation as they. They loved the Jewish Christians as their brothers and sisters.

10.8 Infectious faith←⤒🔗

Lastly, the Christians in Antioch had an infectious faith. Verse 21 says: “The Lord's hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.” Verse 26 says: “So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people.”

We sometimes wonder why our churches are not growing. There may be many answers to that question. But sometimes, the answer may be that we are not really like the believers in Antioch. These believers were trusting in Christ and walking by the Spirit. They were growing in knowledge. Their lives were transformed. And so, their faith was infectious. People who saw them wanted to become like them.

Now you know why believers today are called “Christians”. It should be clear to everyone that we are “Christ’s ones”!