“Some marks of surpassing greatness”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Saturday, June 11, 2022
Acts 11:19-30; 13:1-3 (Forward, p. 445) CEV pp. 1148, 1149
The early Christian apostle, Barnabas, has long been one of my favourites, and not just because I once pastored a church by that name. Earlier in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 4:36-37), we learned that his given first name was Joseph and that Barnabas was actually his nickname, a nickname given to him by the other apostles. It means ‘the son of encouragement’ or ‘the one who encourages others’ and how very fitting it is. A Levite from Cyprus, he had helped fund the common treasury, and promote the common welfare, of the Jerusalem church, by selling a piece of property and giving the money to his fellow apostles (Acts 4:32-36). This, in itself, was surely rather encouraging for a newly formed, struggling fledging little church that tried very hard to assist with the needs of all its members.
But there is more: when Saul, the onetime persecutor of the church, suddenly, in midcourse as it were, changed tunes and become a Christian, many of the disciples were understandably cautious and dubious, and not a wee bit afraid. After all, could a ‘leopard change his spots’ as Paul seemingly had? But here came Barnabas to the rescue: when no one else was sure about Paul, Barnabas interceded for him by relating the story to others of Paul’s conversion and how the Lord had spoken to him, how Paul had preached boldly and with power there in Damascus and how God had used Paul’s spoken witness to confound and confuse the non-Christians in that city.
Barnabas then went on to introduce Paul to the apostles in Jerusalem, which meant that he was accepted and given the freedom of the city to come and go and preach the gospel. But alas, his testimony and his exposition of the gospel were so compelling, that he was forced to move on, first to Caesarea and then to Tarsus (see Acts 9:26-30).
So, here is where we pick up today’s part of the story. After the death of Stephen many of the believers had been scattered over the general area surrounding Jerusalem, Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch. Their actions were akin to ‘sparks in a stubble field’, they simply couldn’t keep it to themselves, and ended up telling the good news of the Gospel not just to their fellow Jews but to Greek-speaking Gentiles as well. This initiative had just happened spontaneously, without any direction or authorization from the mother church in Jerusalem, so the elders there decided to investigate.
And who did they send? You guessed it: Barnabas. It was a logical choice if there ever was one. Here was a man who was naturally open to new things and new possibilities, and with his encouraging ways would be quite supportive of these new happenings. Would he be concerned or upset because it didn’t have ‘the official sanction’ or because neither he nor any of the other apostles had played a part in it? No, not in the least. He saw that God was most truly at work there, and so he rejoiced, gave it his blessing and assisted in its growth.
But this was not all. Not only did he recognize that God was most surely at work here, he also saw a need and an opportunity. With all these new converts, especially with so many coming from a non-Jewish background, there was a need for follow-up and for a proper instruction in the faith. Barnabas, the great man that he was, knew that he could not do this by himself, but rather, needed some help—and so he sought it out. (Only a great man, a man with both a confidence in himself and a basic humility and a realistic self-appraisal his own abilities and strength, could have done this.)
And, who does he send for (and does so in person) but that neophyte, that newly changed believer by the name of Paul? Barnabas recognized that, for all his newness in the faith, Paul had what it takes. Paul knew the Hebrew Scriptures backwards and forwards—especially as they pertained to the Christ--was conversant in several languages and was exactly the man for the job. And so Paul came on board and the two of them worked as team there with the infant church in Antioch. And, when it came time for a missionary team to be sent out to take the gospel elsewhere in the Roman Empire it was only natural, and appropriate, that the two of them would be chosen. (And what a splendid enterprise that was, as Paul was basically the spokesperson and the spearhead for the miraculous spread of the gospel all through the Roman world.) And to think that it might not have ever happened had it not been for that solitary person, Barnabas, a person that, in my estimation, is certainly of ‘surpassing greatness.’ My prayer is this, that each of us, in our own particular ways and means, in our own particular situations, might be a kind of Barnabas to those around us. Amen.
Forward notes: “While they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off (chapter 13, verses 2-3).
“A few years ago, I participated in ‘The Barnabas Project,’ a series encouraging shared leadership between laity and clergy, inspired by the relationship between Paul and Barnabas as they traveled together, building up the church. My priest wryly predicted that the webinar would not mention that Paul and Barnabas’s friendship came to an unhappy end. She was right.
“In planning one of their trips, Barnabas wanted to take John Mark, who had proven unreliable on a previous journey. Paul was set against it, and their disagreement was so bitter, the two parted ways. Paul’s letters suggest the rift between them never healed.
“Their split shows that even the saints stand in need of God’s grace. Even in their brokenness, God continued to use them for greater purposes, as each continued their missionary work in unwavering devotion to the gospel.”
MOVING FORWARD: “Are you mourning a painful division from a friend? Spend time in prayer and ask God for direction for the next steps.”
A concluding note: The author of today’s meditation, rather unfortunately, has not only jumped ahead to a rather nasty and unfortunate episode in the relationship between Paul and Barnabas, but has also left out ‘the rest of the story.’ There is, as that priest suggested, no indication in Paul’s letters that the rift was never healed. However, we certainly do know that Paul’s attitude toward John Mark changed over time, and that the rift between the two of them was mended.
So, it turns out, Barnabas was dead on, absolutely correct, in giving John Mark a second chance—which, to me, is yet another indication of the greatness of the man. I pin the problem down to the hard-headedness, the stubbornness, the all or nothing attitude, that seems to mark the life and ministry of Paul. And surely, after welcoming John Mark back as his friend and associate (‘he is useful to me’—2 Timothy 4:11), he had to admit, albeit grudgingly perhaps, that Barnabas had been correct after all.