Word + Walk: Plant Where You’ve Been Sown
✝️ Sermon Recap: Plant Where You’ve Been Sown
Text: Acts 11:19–30
Big Idea: God plants His people where He wants His gospel to grow. Our calling is to plant faithfully where we’ve been sown.
I. Boundless Spreading (Acts 11:19–21)
Persecution scattered believers into Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch. Some spoke only to Jews, but others from Cyprus and Cyrene preached to Gentiles. And “the hand of the Lord was with them”, a great number believed and turned to the Lord.
Reflection: Where has God planted you to sow gospel seed?
II. Responding to Good News (Acts 11:22–26)
News reached Jerusalem, and instead of rejecting Antioch as “not like us,” they sent Barnabas. When he arrived, “he saw the grace of God and was glad.” Barnabas was full of the Spirit and faith, an encourager who built up the church instead of tearing it down. He even went 100 miles to Tarsus to bring Saul to Antioch. Together they discipled believers for a year.
Here, disciples were first called Christians—Christ-people.
Reflection: If people renamed you by your lifestyle and words, what would they call you?
III. Confirmation & Providence (Acts 11:27–30)
Agabus prophesied a famine during Claudius’ reign (confirmed by historians). The disciples responded by giving “each according to his ability.” The Jerusalem need became the Antioch need. Like a living body, the church felt each other’s pain and acted together.
Reflection: How can we better share one another’s burdens as the body of Christ?
🙏 Walk It Out: 5-Day Devotional
Day 1 – Plant Where You’re Sown
📖 Acts 11:19–21; Acts 1:8
Believers planted the gospel wherever persecution scattered them.
Walk It Out: Where has God planted you right now to be a witness?
Day 2 – Encouragers See Grace
📖 Acts 11:23–24; Philippians 1:3–6
Barnabas saw the grace of God and rejoiced.
Walk It Out: Who can you encourage this week by pointing out God’s grace at work?
Day 3 – First Called Christians
📖 Acts 11:26; 1 Peter 4:16
Their Christ-centered lives gave them a new name: Christians.
Walk It Out: If people named you by your habits and words, what name would they give you?
Day 4 – Giving According to Ability
📖 Acts 11:29; 2 Corinthians 9:7–8
The disciples gave what they could, not what they couldn’t.
Walk It Out: How can you give—money, time, prayer, or service—according to your ability this week?
Day 5 – One Body, Many Members
📖 Acts 11:30; 1 Corinthians 12:26
Antioch felt Jerusalem’s need as their own.
Walk It Out: How can you bear another believer’s burden today?
🗣️ Adult Bible Class and Family Discussion Questions (12)
Why did some believers only speak to Jews while others preached to Gentiles?
→ Follow up: Where might fear or tradition keep us from sharing the gospel with people different from us?
📖 Acts 11:19–20; Galatians 2:11–12Why does Luke emphasize that “the hand of the Lord was with them”?
→ Follow up: How can we trust God’s power instead of our own methods in planting the gospel?
📖 Acts 11:21; 1 Corinthians 3:6–7Why did Jerusalem send Barnabas instead of dismissing Antioch as “not like us”?
→ Follow up: How can we test new works of God without being quick to criticize?
📖 Acts 11:22; Acts 15:6–11Why did Barnabas rejoice when he saw the grace of God in Antioch?
→ Follow up: How can we practice seeing grace instead of flaws in other believers?
📖 Acts 11:23; Philippians 1:3–6What does it mean that Barnabas was “full of the Holy Spirit and of faith”?
→ Follow up: How can we make ourselves more available for God’s Spirit to use us today?
📖 Acts 11:24; Ephesians 5:18Why did Barnabas go get Saul from Tarsus instead of keeping leadership to himself?
→ Follow up: How can we humble ourselves to let others lead where they are better equipped?
📖 Acts 11:25–26; 2 Timothy 2:2Why were disciples first called “Christians” in Antioch?
→ Follow up: If people named us by our speech and lifestyle, what would they call us?
📖 Acts 11:26; John 13:34–35; 1 Peter 4:16Why does Luke record Agabus’ prophecy about the famine under Claudius?
→ Follow up: How should we respond when God’s Word calls us to prepare for trials?
📖 Acts 11:27–28; 1 Thessalonians 5:19–21Why did the disciples give “each according to his ability”?
→ Follow up: How can we practice proportional, cheerful generosity in our giving?
📖 Acts 11:29; 2 Corinthians 9:7–8Why did Antioch feel Jerusalem’s need as their own?
→ Follow up: How can we live more like one body, bearing each other’s burdens?
📖 Acts 11:29–30; 1 Corinthians 12:26Why did Antioch entrust the gift to Barnabas and Saul to deliver?
→ Follow up: How can we build trustworthy leaders in the church today?
📖 Acts 11:30; 2 Timothy 2:2Why is Antioch such a turning point in Acts?
→ Follow up: How can we as a church embrace God’s mission that crosses cultural, economic, and social boundaries?
📖 Acts 11:19–30; Matthew 28:18–20
🧾 Quick Scripture Reference List
Acts 11:19–30 – The Antioch church: first called Christians
Acts 1:8 – Witnesses to the ends of the earth
Galatians 2:11–12 – Fear of Gentile fellowship
1 Corinthians 3:6–7 – God gives the growth
Acts 15:6–11 – The Jerusalem council confirms Gentile inclusion
Philippians 1:3–6 – God’s grace at work until completion
Ephesians 5:18 – Be filled with the Spirit
2 Timothy 2:2 – Entrust to faithful people
John 13:34–35 – By this all people will know you are my disciples
1 Peter 4:16 – Suffer as a Christian
1 Thessalonians 5:19–21 – Test everything, hold fast to what is good
2 Corinthians 9:7–8 – God loves a cheerful giver
1 Corinthians 12:26 – If one suffers, all suffer together
Matthew 28:18–20 – Make disciples of all nations