When the message of Jesus arrived in the important city of Antioch, a great number of the Gentiles there became believers. Barnabas was thrilled when he saw this evidence of God’s grace, and he sent for Saul to help him teach these new believers. Soon these disciples of Jesus came to be known by a new name because of their devotion to Jesus and his kingdom.

Because of the death and resurrection of Jesus, the world is being transformed. The risen Christ is the world’s true king, and he will see to it that justice is done for all. Everyone who wants to share in the saving realities of his kingdom is invited to join in the work of his kingdom.

Coming to faith in Jesus is a drastic transformational event: those who encounter Jesus are no longer the same. And the change from death to life demands a change from passivity to activity – to take action to proclaim that Jesus is the Son of God, no matter the place or the cost, trusting the Spirit of God, the power of God, and the wisdom of God – not our own.

When Saul of Tarsus travelled to Damascus to arrest any Christians he could find there, he experienced something that would radically transform his life forever. Somehow, he came to believe that Jesus of Nazareth was raised from the dead and was, in fact, the Messiah. In these defining moments of his life, Saul of Tarsus finally began to understand the message he had been given to proclaim all over the world.

After a successful ministry in Samaria, God led Philip into contact with a very unique person from Ethiopia. This man had a lot going for him, but he knew that something was missing, and he hoped that he might find what he was looking for in the worship of Israel’s God. When Philip told him about Jesus, everything began to make sense, and the Ethiopian returned to his homeland filled with joy.

After a successful ministry in Samaria, God led Philip into contact with a very unique person from Ethiopia. This man had a lot going for him, but he knew that something was missing, and he hoped that he might find what he was looking for in the worship of Israel’s God. When Philip told him about Jesus, everything began to make sense, and the Ethiopian returned to his homeland filled with joy.

When the Christians in Jerusalem were scattered by persecution, Philip went to Samaria and “proclaimed to them the Christ.” Astonishingly, many of the Samaritans believed and were baptized. When they received the Holy Spirit, even the most elite among them recognized the presence of a superior power to any other they had known before.

Christians can easily forget that what Jesus has done for them is to bring them into the realization of the great Jewish hope. By tearing down the barrier between Jew and Gentile, Jesus has made God accessible to everyone on equal terms. Those who approach God through Jesus are now being joined together as God’s eternal dwelling place and a sign of hope to the world.

Just as Jesus appears to have reached the climactic moment of his life, he tells his disciples that he is going to leave. Where could he possibly be going at such a crucial moment? Jesus explains that he is going to the true temple of God where he will make preparations for them to join him when he later returns for them.

God will never give up on his creation. He promises to renew it in such a way that all of its past glories as well as its past pains will be forgotten. And God has begun that work of new creation with the incarnation of Jesus who has overcome all that threatens the world from reaching its intended goal.