Acts 11:20-30
11:20 But there were some men from Cyprus
and Cyrene
among them who came
to Antioch
and began to speak to the Greeks
too, proclaiming the good news of the Lord Jesus.
11:21 The
hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed
turned
to the Lord.
11:22 A report
about them came to the attention
of the church in Jerusalem,
and they sent Barnabas
to Antioch.
11:23 When
he came and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced and encouraged them all to remain true
to the Lord with devoted hearts,
11:24 because he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith, and a significant number of people
were brought to the Lord.
11:25 Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to look for Saul,
11:26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch.
So
for a whole year Barnabas and Saul
met with the church and taught a significant number of people.
Now it was in Antioch
that the disciples were first called Christians.
Famine Relief for Judea
11:27 At that time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch.
11:28 One of them, named Agabus, got up and predicted by the Spirit that a severe famine was about to come over the whole inhabited world. (This took place during the reign of Claudius.)
11:29 So the disciples, each in accordance with his financial ability, decided to send relief to the brothers living in Judea.
11:30 They did so, sending their financial aid to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.