What did the first Christians in Antioch believe about Jesus?
The first Christians at Antioch believed Jesus had died for them, that His blood had been shed for their sin, and that He had been raised from the dead. They received Paul's Gospel, which was distinct from earlier revelation and had been a secret held in God's mind until revealed.
Les explains that Barnabas brought Saul to Antioch, and for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught much people. The disciples there, primarily Gentiles, were first called Christians at Antioch. Unlike the Jewish believers at Jerusalem, who had only believed Jesus was Israel's Messiah and remained under the Judaistic umbrella, these Christians believed He had died for them, His blood had been shed for their sin, and He had been raised from the dead. Antioch was being presented with Paul's Gospel, which Les says was a secret held in the mind of God until it was revealed, something totally different from what had gone before.