Antioch of Syria was founded around 300 BC by Seleucus I Nicator and, according to ancient accounts, became the third largest city in the Roman Empire, behind only Rome and Alexandria.
After the death of Stephen, Christians scattered by persecution arrived in Antioch and began preaching to Greeks as well, not only to Jews. It was there, and not in Jerusalem, that the gospel first crossed that boundary in an organized way.
Barnabas was sent to see what God was doing there, went to find Saul in Tarsus, and the two of them taught the church for a whole year. It was in this city that, for the first time, the disciples came to be called Christians.
From Antioch, Paul and Barnabas set out on the first missionary journey, and it was there they returned to report on what God had done among the Gentiles. The city was also the scene of a serious clash: Paul publicly rebuked Peter for hypocrisy toward the Gentiles.
Antioch is a reminder that the gospel was never meant to be the project of a single people. It was born to cross borders, and the name “Christian” arose precisely where Jews and Gentiles learned to eat at the same table.
