God work's through conflict
Scripture … Ac 15:36 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, 40 but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord. 41 He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.
Intro. We have here our first sharp contention between the Apostles. But does this imply anger or ill-will on either side? Certainly not. Here, these two apostles differed, and were zealous, each in support of their desired outcome.
"Paul being influenced only with the love of righteousness;
“Barnabas being actuated by love to his relative."
John Mark had been tried in trying circumstances, and he failed; Paul, therefore, would not trust him again. But the affection of Barnabas led him to hope the best, and he wanted to give him another chance.
Barnabas would not give up: Paul would not agree. They finally agreed to depart from each other, and take different parts of the work. Barnabas took John Mark, and sailed to Cyprus: Paul took Silas, and went into Syria.
In order to try to understand this difficulty, we need to look into why John Mark decided to leave them in Pamphylia in the first place. And remember we are only making educated guesses..
1. John objected to Paul's itinerary. Obviously Cypress was Barnabas' home territory and John was related to Barnabas. So we might assume that he too had roots in this island or at least friendly family connections. When the trip went beyond this familiar territory John might have balked.
2. John got homesick.
3. John was frightened. The area they were headed was known to be full of bandits. John may have been frightened by the prospect of getting beat up. Paul's track record is conflict..
5. John may have objected to Paul's leadership. In the beginning of their journeys Barnabas was clearly the leader. He introduced Paul to the Apostles in Jerusalem. He verified the work in Antioch. He recruited Paul to help with the work. He gets top billing both on their mission of mercy in Jerusalem (chp 11) and their evangelistic tour on Cyprus (chp 13). Suddenly, Paul not only changes his name but takes the lead over Barnabas. John Mark may have been jealous for his kinsman when he took a back seat to Paul.
6. John may have objected to Paul's preaching. As Paul's message of grace turns toward Gentile audiences, it becomes clear that he will not require them to be circumcised. John may object to Paul's views as other from Jerusalem did.
John Mark … is a fascinating character, in many ways unexceptional. We don’t hear of him performing great miracles, preaching great sermons or founding new churches in remote places. Nevertheless he played a solid and effective part in the life of the early New Testament Church. He was called both John, and Mark. John was his Jewish name, and his Roman name was Mark. He was the son of Mary, who owned a house in Jerusalem where the church often prayed. Peter referred to Mark as his "son." His family was wealthy enough to own a large home with at least one servant. They frequently hosted gatherings of believers.
We must also try to understand Paul … John Mark leaving in the middle of the first missionary tour was evidently a "big deal" to Paul. In fact, he says that John Mark "abandoned" them on the trip. Clearly for Paul there was more than this one missionary journey at stake in John's "breach of contract." His entire integrity in ministry was jeopardized.
Paul was persistent: It is calculated that Paul’s earthly life and labors spanned some thirty-three years.
National Geographic Magazine, estimates that Paul’s missionary endeavors consumed some twelve thousand miles, some by ship. Hundreds of miles were traversed by land. He visited approximately fifty cities.
Yet within the thirteen epistles known to have been written by Paul, there is no complaint of fatigue, no whimpering at the hardships, no disappointment expressed of having been “crucified with Christ,” or of wasted years, or lack of family, wealth, or fame—just the joy of serving his Lord, and for the blessed hope of life to come.
Paul was not only persistent; Paul was Patient; Paul was Courageous
It is scarcely necessary to argue the case for Paul’s courage. It is unrealistic to imagine that Paul was never afraid. In Corinth the Lord spoke to his apostle in a night vision, cautioning: “Be not afraid” (Acts 18:9). The force of the Greek expression is: “Stop being afraid.” Courage is not the absence of fear; it is doing what is right even when you are afraid!
Paul was Humble; but he was no pushover. Far from it! He was uncompromising.
Paul would not have the truth compromised and the cause of Christ endangered by weak church members who gave in to social pressure. And all he could see was that John Mark was a quitter, and not to be trusted.
Now let us look at Barnabus
We first meet Barnabas in Acts 4:36-37; "And Joseph, a Levite of Cyprian birth, who was also called Barnabas by the apostles (which translated means, Son of Encouragement), and who owned a tract of land, sold it and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet." The name he was given by the Apostles was a great compliment, and was truly representative of his character.
And when Paul had come to Jerusalem, he was trying to associate with the disciples; and they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took hold of him and brought him to the apostles and described to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had talked to him, and how at Damascus he had spoken out boldly in the name of Jesus. Acts 9:26-27:
"It was Barnabas who broke the deadlock, listening to Paul’s testimony, throwing around him his own high reputation, and standing up for Paul’s good faith.
Like Paul and Stephen, Barnabas was a Hellenistic Jew, one who was brought up outside Jerusalem within the Greek culture. It was this spiritual and cultural commonality that probably led to his support for Paul, as noted from Acts 9. 35
Barnabas, like any of us, was not perfect. Paul told the Galatians that he had need to rebuke Peter over his holding back from fellowship with Gentile Christians, and added "so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray."(Galatians 2:13 NASB).
Barnabas started out as a prophet and teacher in Antioch (Acts 13:1), before he was called out by the Holy Spirit to accompany Paul on the first missionary journey. In fact Barnabas is given the preeminence in the partnership initially, as his name is listed first (Acts 13:2, 7). He seems to have taken a supportive role as time progressed (v.42-43, 46).
After the martyrdom of Stephen, and the subsequent persecution of the church, many members from Jerusalem moved away, a good number to Antioch. We read of the role Barnabas played, in Acts 11:22-26:
News of this reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord. Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 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.
Here again we see Barnabas building up and encouraging, and using the gifts of others.
A little later on the growth of the Gentile churches led to a number of issues and contentions over what should be required of Gentile converts regarding Jewish laws and customs. We again see Barnabas involved in the process of seeking understanding and agreement between those of divergent backgrounds and views.
It is not known if the rift between Barnabas and Paul was ever fully healed. Although Paul's linking himself with Barnabas in I Corinthians 9:6, would seem to indicate there were no lasting hard feelings.
It would seem Barnabas saw the potential in Mark and wanted to help him become all he could be in the service of the gospel. Mark’s subsequent success proved Barnabas to be correct.
Consequently, both Paul and Barnabas pursued separate activities, each achieving great success in the service of their Saviour.
Here we have 3 men with different personalities, who all love the Lord Jesus, but differing in the way they perceive God’s will to be carried out.
Mark authored the Book of Mark in order to ensure Peter’s words would not be lost. He founded the church in Alexandria, and Paul later asks for him.
Col 4:10 My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you his greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. (You have received instructions about him; if he comes to you, welcome him.)
2Ti 4:11 Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry.
A rare compliment is given to Barnabas in Acts 11:24, where he is called, "a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith."
We are all familiar with the accomplishments of Paul through his ministry.
Whatever John's motives, I’m happy to report that he was eventually reconciled to Paul and became quite helpful to him once again. There is a clear lesson here that both personal failure and fractured relationships are redeemable in Christian ministry.
Let us all learn a valuable lesson from this event. We are meant to be different from each other. God works through those differences to achieve his will in the lives of others. There are times when these differences will cause conflict among us.
Conflict is a necessary part of the learning process that we all will go through in our lives. Yet we must not allow conflict to defeat the will of God in our lives. Sometimes God causes the conflict in order to open our minds to what He is trying to show, as His way to achieve His will.
