Acts 13:47 “For this is what the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”

Just where are the ends of the earth? This is no Bible claim for a flat earth. Actually, there are passages in Isaiah and Job that hint at a spherical understanding of our planet, much like the Greeks understood from before the time of Christ.

Paul and Barnabas may not have known there were whole new continents beyond the Atlantic Ocean. But if they did, they would have concluded that those, too, were part of the “ends of the earth.” Anywhere there were lands and people, the Lord wanted them to take the gospel light, until they ran out of both.

Although this is an Old Testament passage, it was a different way of thinking than Paul and Barnabas grew up with. They were accustomed to the idea that only Jewish people would believe in the God who reveals himself in the Bible. You might interest a stray non-Jew here and there, but for the most part talking about religion to them was a waste of breath.

Now, right here in the very Gentile city of Antioch in Pisidia, in central modern Turkey, Jews were rejecting God’s word about a Messiah and salvation by grace through faith, and Gentiles, non-Jews, were embracing it. The “ends of the earth” didn’t end at the city of Antioch. But on this day they started there.

Today we can see that the “ends of the earth” involves far more geography and population than Paul or Barnabas could have dreamed of. They were aware of three continents. We know seven. Their world population was less than 200 million. We have surpassed 8 billion. The distance and the numbers look daunting. We may fear there is too much to cover. Our time, our reach, our resources are limited.

It’s true, you or I or our little church can’t reach everyone ourselves. But the gospel light is seeing exciting growth in places like China, Pakistan, Nepal, Vietnam, Thailand, sub-Saharan Africa, all over Latin America. You and I are part of it through our offerings and our prayers.

And though the “ends of the earth” don’t end in your hometown, that is where they begin. Let’s not make the mistake of thinking the gospel is only for one particular kind of people: only people who already look and think a lot like us are going to believe it. My current hometown prides itself on its diversity. “Building an inclusive community” has become the city’s motto. The university here attracts people from all around the world. They may not be looking for Jesus now, but then, when have people who don’t know him ever been looking for him? Certainly not when Paul and Barnabas preached.

God has made you and me a light or the nations, starting where we live today. Let’s not be diverted from that mission by any artificial limits we perceive.