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Although Jesus never traveled to Antioch, no doubt he had heard of it. In his day, Antioch was not only the capital of the Roman province of Syria, but the third largest city in the whole Empire. A commercial crossroads, Antioch had a diverse population of Macedonians, Greeks, Syrians, and Jews....

    Antioch did not hear of Jesus, however, until after the martyrdom of Stephen, when the disciples scattered for fear of persecution. Luke tells us in the Acts of the Apostles that when some of the believers arrived in Antioch they not only preached to the Jews, as was their custom, but also to the Greeks, "and a great number became believers."  When news of the conversions reached the church in Jerusalem, they sent Barnabas the Levite to Antioch, where "he rejoiced, and exhorted the people to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast devotion." (Acts 11:23) Indeed, so many people responded to his preaching that Barnabas summoned the Apostle Paul to his side, and so it was, Luke says, "that for an entire year they met with the church and taught a great many people, and it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called 'Christians.'" (11:26)

    What the Holy Spirit accomplished through Barnabas and Paul at Antioch has never been surpassed. From that congregation--the first Gentile church--Paul was inspired to launch his miraculous ministry to the Greeks throughout Asia Minor. Is it any wonder, then, that the missionaries who have followed in his footsteps ever since have so often felt inadequate? 

    But wait a minute. Try to find Antioch on any map today. It's not there. In its place is the Turkish city of Antakya. What happened?  With the fall of the Roman Empire, Antioch went into decline. Later, Christians and Muslims fought over the city for centuries until it fell to the Ottomans in 1516. 

    The Apostle Paul was only human: even he could not expect the church at Antioch to last forever. Or could he? To be sure, Paul wouldn't recognize the city he knew almost two thousand years ago. Its population is less than half of what it was. Long ago earthquakes, fires, and wars destroyed most of what the Romans built. And, of course, there were no mosques or minarets when Paul lived there.

    But on the main street of Antakya there stands today a Roman Catholic church, and near-by an Orthodox church.  The gospel is inextinguishable after all.  Praise be to the stillspeaking triune God.