From Antioch to Everywhere: When God’s Spirit Calls

Introduction

I’ve talked about the dynamics of a symphony before. That it is a beautiful picture of the church. It is so rich with metaphor and meaning:

Plurality working together (different instruments)

The importance of listening (musicians must listen to conductor)

Each using their gifts (different instruments)

Creating space (the silence between notes)

Obedience (following the conductor's lead)

The result being something beautiful that none could create alone

Often times a church community can look to staff, leadership, or those in particular roles and think, “they need to do this.” We would be mistaken. It would be as if we say to the violin first chair saying you also need to get the cellos in line and do some of their part. Or to the first chair trumpet that they need to do the saxophone’s job.

But we’re all looking to the conductor (God), no matter what chair we are sitting in and saying what do you want me to play and when do you want me to play… there times we’re all in, other times where we’re in-between measures/movements and we’re resting, and other times we’re gearing up to get going.

I want to highlight our friend Father Rob Steinbach at Shalom Anglican. If you were here during our Advent series we heard his story. There are just a few things I would remind us of about his story.

For 10 years served as lead pastor of Seaside church, and ACTS29 affiliated church. Protestant in nature and reformed in theology.

God moved in Rob’s life calling him to a different expression of church in line with Anglican tradition… more high church and traditional than what we experience here at City Chapel.

Rob walked away (entrusting to faithful people) from the church he brought vitality, health, and stability. Many looked and went, bro… mid-life crisis much? But Rob heard the voice of God and stepped out in obedience to plant Shalom Anglican in Silverdale.

Rob honored God, honored Seaside (the elders, pastors, congregation), honored his wife and children, and honored his own calling and gifting that God put on him.

Rob being a friend of mine (meaning I’ve seen his character in good and difficult times), we’ve had the beautiful opportunity to walk with him as a church (City Chapel) and as we are aligned with healthy, Jesus-centered, gospel affirming, churches being planted, we’ve been able to partner and help support them financially and with necessary equipment to help them facilitate service.

Father Rob was kind enough to give us an update at their almost 1 year anniversary:

Dear friends at City Chapel, As we head into Lent we’ve enjoyed a rich season of Epiphany reflecting on how Christ was revealed to the world. It is truly amazing that the church through ages and into today has been entrusted with that same message as we participate in the kingdom by sharing the gospel of Jesus with our community.

A few updates for us. • We’ve seen 6 new adults join with us over the last few months.

• We’re having our second baptism this Sunday.

• We’re almost through with our second catechism class.

• We’ve seen our inside giving increase as folks grow in their commitment to the church.

Thanks for your continued prayers and partnership.

Shalom, Fr Rob Steinbach

As I’ve mentioned before… one of the reasons we need more churches is because we are not reaching who we are not reaching. We need all kinds. We are reaching who we are, praise God, and we will reach those that God sees fit to bring, praise be to God. But we are not reaching those who do not find connection, community, or for whatever reason don’t land here.

So we take a Sunday out of the year and look for ways to seek God corporately and highten the awareness of the need for more churches and as God gives us opportunity, we want to be apart of God doing that in Kitsap County and beyond. This is the Sunday that we are doing that.

At the end of service we will be passing around offering baskets. If God moves on you to contribute to our church planting fund above and beyond your regular tithes and offering, we want to encourage you to be obedient to that. It is not a requirement of faith, but it is true that God moves through human agency and we want to give ourselves an opportunity to respond to that moving of God among us. If you don’t carry cash or checks but God is moving, we do on our church have a giving portal where you can select church planting in the drop down menu and you can give that way.

Church planting maybe new to you, but it has been inaugurated by the the disciples shortly after the giving of the Holy Spirit during Pentecost.

If you have your Bibles or on your devices, would you stand with me as I read Acts 13:1-4. This is the word of the Lord. Let us pray. You may be seated.

A Work of the Spirit

People gifted by the Spirit

People from diverse backgrounds

Barnabas (Cyprus)

Simeon/Niger (most likely from N. Africa)

Lucius (Cyrene)

Manaen (Galilee)

Saul (Tarsus)

These backgrounds would serve to inform the way they saw the world, their experiences in the world, and how Christ meets them in their day to day. A healthy sign of the church is the unity in its diversity.

In the respective offices operating for the benefit for the church

They had prophets: more truth telling than fore telling, but not exempt from fore telling words of what would happen. Preaching as we know it is a very prophetic ministry.

Teachers: Those who explain the law of God, the scriptures, to the people.

People operating in their gifts heard the Spirit

As they were worshiping and fasting they heard the Holy Spirit speak.

John 10:27 “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”

Ezekiel 36:26–28 “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God.”

The work of the Spirit

Leading and guiding

John 14:26 “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”

Going out from them (new)

Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.””

Recognizing and releasing them into mission (not threatened) by the call of God on the life of Barnabas and Saul

Obedience of the Body

Walking in spiritual practices (worship, gathering, prayer, fasting, teaching)

"In the spiritual life, the word 'discipline' means 'the effort to create some space in which God can act.'" - Henri Nouwen

“The purpose of the disciplines is freedom. Our aim is the freedom, not the discipline.” - Richard Foster

“Worship is the strategy by which we interrupt our preoccupation with ourselves and attend to the presence of God.” - Eugene Peterson

For seldom if ever is fasting an end in itself. It is a negative action (abstention from food and other distractions) for the sake of a positive one (worshipping or praying) Stott, J. R. W. (1994). The message of Acts: the Spirit, the church & the world (p. 217). InterVarsity Press.

Discernment hearing God’s voice

They heard and then it seems they continued to fast and pray. We don’t know how the words of the Spirit were revealed in this instance. It is vague… and the nature that God was calling them was also generic and not specific (Not like the call of Abraham). God could have spoke through one of the prophets there (forthtelling/foretelling). The Spirit bearing witness in each of their hearts and minds (inward) and they discussing amongst each other collectively.

They were test the Spirit/the Voice or impression they had.

and then they stepped out.

They walked in obedience

1 Corinthians 4:2 “Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.”

Reimagination of the Work

Mission

Up to this point it was to check up on the work of God

Now it was to spread the good news of Jesus (arrows in vs. arrows out)

Here we have ‘the first piece of planned “overseas mission” carried out by representatives of a particular church, rather than by solitary individuals, and begun by a deliberate church decision, inspired by the Spirit, rather than somewhat more casually as a result of persecution Peterson, D. G. (2009). The Acts of the Apostles (p. 376). William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

People came to faith in Jesus at the preaching/declaring of God’s word, the churches were planted… they were supported by the church in Antioch

Churches grew

All rejoiced and were encouraged by the work of God

What can we control (we must be about)

Walking in our calling/gifting

Exercising our spiritual practices on a regular basis

Open to the moving of the Spirit

What can’t we control (we give to God)

The move of God (we can trust His timing is perfect)

Looking different than what we’ve known or expected (but we can trust He’s right)

Who God chooses (but we can trust He’s good and right)

Conclusion

What I love about our graphic that communicates these things are a few:

The church is people.

The life and vibrancy that God gives when we find our purpose in Him is unlike any other.

That we are all in process (young to old) and that God truly brings vibrancy, color, depth, and purpose to our lives

There is a transforming that takes place of the spaces we are in as God shapes us individually and collectively.

There is a real sense of hopelessness/despair apart from Christ and a new life in the Spirit when we give our hearts, lives, our allegiance to Him.

Just as those leaders in Antioch created space to hear God's voice through worship and fasting, we too are called to lean into our spiritual practices and listen. Like Father Rob and the early church planters, we may be called to step out in ways we never expected. The beautiful truth is that we don't have to control everything – we simply need to be faithful with what God has given us. When we walk in our gifts, stay open to the Spirit's leading, and trust God's timing, He will do what only He can do. The same Spirit that moved in Antioch is moving today, weaving together diverse people and gifts like instruments in a symphony, creating something more beautiful than any of us could accomplish alone. Our role is simple yet profound: to listen, to obey, and to trust that the Conductor knows exactly what He's doing.

And if we have yet to make this commitment to Jesus, surrendering our lives/all that we are, think about being born again, faith in Jesus and this new life He offers in terms of music. Before we know Christ, we're like instruments sitting silent in their cases - we have potential for music, but we're not yet playing. When we receive the gift of life through faith in Jesus, it's like the instrument being taken out, tuned, and played for the first time. We discover our true purpose. We find out what kind of instrument we are - maybe a violin, perhaps a trumpet, or possibly a drum. But more importantly, we discover we're meant to be part of something bigger.

But here's the beautiful part: Just as a newborn baby doesn't immediately walk and talk, a newly tuned instrument doesn't immediately play complex symphonies. There's a journey of growth, of learning to listen to the Conductor, of practicing those spiritual disciplines that help us stay in tune. And just like every person's journey to faith is unique, every instrument adds its own distinct voice to the symphony.

When we say "yes" to Jesus, we're not just being saved - we're being invited to join God's grand symphony, where every transformed life adds to the beautiful music of His kingdom being built, one church, one community at a time.

Let us pray