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Antioch, a Faithful Church (Rev. Erik Veerman)

Antioch, a Faithful Church (Rev. Erik Veerman)

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 Antioch – A Faithful Church A couple of you have asked what are studying next. Well, I have answers. The next few weeks will be a little out of the ordinary. Since we just celebrated the 5th anniversary of our launch, we’re going to take some time to focus on who we are. We’ll cover the foundations of what we believe as well as how we work that out in ministry. This morning is kind of like our ministry heart. So that will take us through September. Then after that, we’re going to go back to the Old Testament. We do a short series through Malachi. Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament. And we’re going to do that as a lead in to the Gospel of John. We haven’t gone chapter by chapter through a Gospel yet, so we are going to tackle John. So, that is the plan. Tucker Pres, Malachi, and John’s Gospel. As you know, sometimes plans change. I don’t anticipate that they will, but will let you know. As far as who we are as a church, we’ll be basing each of these sermons on a Scripture text or two or three. This morning, we’re going to be looking at the church in Antioch as a case study. If you look in your bulletin, you will see that we are covering selections from the book of Acts – several passages from Acts 11-15. We’re going to begin with chapter 11 verses 19-26, then as we go, I will direct you to the next passage. Acts 11 is found on page 1093 Stand. Reading of Acts 11:19-26; 13:1-3; 14:24-28; 15:1-2, 22, 30-35 Prayer Let me ask, what would you say if someone asked you about Tucker Pres? What are the things that define who we are at Tucker Pres? Would you say that we are a church that loves one another? Would you say that we are a church that loves God and the Gospel? Would you say that our primary thing is pursuing the truth of God’s Word? Or are we a church that emphasizes mercy and outreach? Or is the most important thing for us knowing God intimately and praying? Is our number 1 thing Gospel centered worship? I could ask more, but I simply want to stir your minds with those questions. The reason I ask is because every church has an identity. Every church has things that are important to them. Churches have vibes and churches emphasize different things. Well, what defines us Tucker Pres? There is a word that comes to my mind. It’s a word that I believe defines us well. It’s also a word that is aspirational. So what is it? Well, the word that comes to my mind is the word “faithful.” I believe we are stiving to be faithful. Now, I know what some of you are thinking. The word faithful is not that helpful because what church doesn’t want to be faithful. And that’s true. What I mean by faithful is faithful to God’s mission for his church. Faithful to what God has called his church to be and to do. Faithful in our worship. Faithful in our ministry and our mission. Faithful to be a light of the Gospel. Faithful to care for one another. Faithful to grow in our faith. Faithful to the Gospel and to God’s Word. Faithful. This morning, I want us to consider what it means for a church to be faithful. A church that has a heart to be faithful. There’s a reason I picked Antioch as an example. I think of all the churches mentioned in the New Testament, Antioch stands out as a model of a faithful church. The other day, I was driving home from a day trip out to the Covington area – taking the back roads. And I passed by a church named Corinth. It kind of made me laugh. Given all the internal struggles that the church in Corith had, some of what we just studied, I’m not sure why a church would want that name. But nonetheless there are churches named Corinth. On the other hand, there are hundreds of churches in the United States named Antioch. There are many many Antioch Baptist churches. There are several named Antioch Methodist. A few named Antioch Christian Church, and even a couple of them are named Antioch Presbyterian. I think it’s a good name because Antioch modelled what it means to be a faithful church. By the way, the city of Antioch was located on the Mediterranean Sea about 200 miles north of Israel. It was right in the corner of the Mediterranean where the coast of modern-day Turkey turns south and Syria begins. As we read, the church was started when the Christians were scattered because of the persecution and martyrdom of Stephen. In Acts 7, Stephen, one of the early church leaders was preaching and he was stoned to death by the Jews. Well, several Christians ended up in Antioch and they formed a church, there. Flip back to Acts 11. Look down at verse 23. Barnabas was sent from Jerusalem to survey the situation. And look what he found. Verse 23 says, “When he [Barnabas] came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose.” And that is exactly what Antioch did. They remained faithful! …faithful to the Lord with the purpose to which God had called them. They modelled ...
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