The church in Antioch was a community that was multiplying. There are two phases of quantitative growth in Acts 11:19-30, and in each case the Lord is the agent of growth.
Study questions
- What reason does the text give for why “a great number [of Gentiles] became believers and turned to the Lord” (v. 21, NRSV)?
- Verse 24 states that “a great many people were brought to the Lord” (NRSV). What factors led to this “second phase of numerical growth”?
- The text describes Barnabas as “a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith” (v. 24, NRSV). How does Barnabas exercise faith in this story? How is faith shown through the actions of those “men of Cyprus and Cyrene” (v. 20)? What does it mean to have faith, and why does it seem that faith leads to growth?
- What is your reaction to phrases like “numerical growth” or “church growth”? Do you see growth as an intentional effort of the church or a by-product of the church’s faithfulness to the way of Jesus — or a combination of these?
- If multiplication is the work of the Holy Spirit, what is needed for disciples of Jesus to become channels of God’s presence to others today?
