PLAYING MY POSITION TO BENEFIT THE TEAM
Doing Life Together—Part 4
The Barnabas File
One of the first to sell possessions to help the Christians in Jerusalem
First to travel with Paul as a missionary team
One of the most quietly influential people in the early days of Christianity
Called an apostle, although not one of the original 12
HOW BARNABAS TEACHES ME TO BENEFIT THE TEAM
1. I AM AT RISK
When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. [27] But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. Acts 9:26-27 (NIV)
When Saul returned to Jerusalem, he was in a tight spot. His old associates knew all about his defection, and he could expect no friendly welcome from them. On the other hand, the disciples of Jesus, with whom he now wished to join, had not forgotten his campaign of persecution. One can scarcely feel surprise at their suspicion and fear. I’m sure they suspected that this was perhaps a scheme of Saul’s to gain their confidence in order to betray them.
Barnabas, true to his name, took the risk to reach out and encourage Saul. He risked his own neck and his relationship with his friends to build a bridge between Saul and the Christians in Jerusalem. Saul desperately needed a friend and Barnabas stepped up. Barnabas’ laid his reputation with the apostles and other Christians on the line when he gave Saul his bonafides.
Barnabas is sent to Antioch as the representative of the mother-church in Jerusalem. When he gets there his overwhelmed with joy at what he finds. The grace of God was in action, bringing blessing to the local Jews and also to the Gentile population as they had heard and accepted the good news. True to his name, he gave them all the encouragement that he could. Missionaries and converts had started well. The number of converts grew rapidly. Soon the scale of Barnabas’ responsibility was such that he couldn’t discharge his duties single-handedly. He had to find a partner in the ministry.
Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, [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 great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch. Acts 11:25-26 (NIV)
A high school football coach recently asked me to come and speak to his team. The first thing I said to them was, “Thank you for sticking your neck out. Thanks for taking a risk to represent your school and community on the field. It’s much safer to sit in the stands and watch.”
2. I OBEY MY COACH
In the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. [2] While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." [3] So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off. Acts 13:1-3 (NIV)
God spoke through a divine message given to the church leaders at Antioch, and directed the leaders of the church to set Barnabas and Saul apart for a special work. It’s probably worth noting that the two men who were being released for missionary work overseas were the two most eminent and gifted leaders in the church.
Spiritual Direction Time Here: Silent Prayer “Holy Spirit, here I am, what do you want me to do?” (Penny: We need an insert for the bulletin that will be used at this point in the sermon. The insert is simply a blank sheet of paper with the following appearing at the top of the sheet—Name_____________________________
Phone_____________________________
Email_____________________________
We’re going to circle up into prayer triplets now.
3. I KEEP MY EGO ON A TIGHT LEASH
Back to Barnabas and Saul, they leave for their missionary work and the first place they visit is the island of Cyprus. The first place they preached was Salamis, a Greek city on the east coast of the island. From Salamis the two missionaries traversed the island from east to west until the reached Paphos on the southwest coast.
Having evangelized part of Cyprus, the missionaries now sailed to the south coast of Asia Minor…modern Turkey.
As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue,… Acts 13:42 (NIV)
Roll Video “We Are Marshall—Assistant Coach” Here
4. I CONTRIBUTE DESPITE MY INJURIES
Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, "Let us go back and visit the brothers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing." [37] Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, [38] but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. [39] They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, Acts 15:36-39 (NIV)
The story of the disagreement between Paul and Barnabas does not make pleasant reading. Luke in writing this section doesn’t try to assign blame. Paul was injured by Barnabas’ prejudice when he joined Peter in withdrawing from the Gentile Christians in Galatia. Now Barnabas is hurt by Paul’s rejection of his protégé and young cousin, John Mark.
Roll Video “We Are Marshall—Captain From The Sidelines”
Roll Video Interview with local football player who was too injured to play, but wanted to continue helping the team. He became the equipment manager just so he could make a contribution.
5. I DON’T ALWAYS GET IT RIGHT
The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray. Galatians 2:13 (NIV)
6. FAILURE NEVER NEEDS TO BE FINAL
Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 2 Timothy. 4:11 (NIV)
Closing Prayer
Roll Video “We Are Marshall—Where To Begin”
Send Out Song
