Barnabas – The Encourager
Opener:
Good morning and welcome to Church! A place where we are growing together for the glory of God! This morning we are switching gears a bit and we are going to be talking about a character in the bible. This character was key to the writing of half the New Testament. No it was not the apostle Paul, but it was someone that knew him. While, this character may not be the most popular bible character, however, he was one of great value. His name was Barnabas.
Barnabas who was born known as Joseph was an early disciple. It is said that Barnabas was cousins to Mark the Evangelist. We are first introduced to Barnabas in the bible in the book of Acts. Barnabas may not get all the accolades or recognition, he was a key cog in the early church. He was a man that had a heart to do what was right. He was very generous with his finances as he sold some land and contributed to those that we struggling. Barnabas which is his nickname earned this name as a result of a special talent that he exhibited which was an encourager. In many cases, Barnabas was willing to stand with others when nobody else would. Barnabas life was cut short when he was martyred in Cyprus around the year 61 A. D.
I. Standing next to an apostle
A. Saul turned Paul
a. The first person that we see Barnabas standing by is none other than the person that wrote over half the New Testament, the apostle Paul.
b. At first, the disciples were very apprehensive of Paul. They had heard about Saul and all the way that he was persecuting believers all over. They heard about how he was there while Stephen was being stoned and how intent he was to bring the early church to it’s knees.
c. So when the disciples heard about Paul’s conversion to Christianity they were very apprehensive to accept him into the group.
d. Not that they did not want to accept him but as you can image they did not trust him.
e. We pick up the story in the book of Acts 9:26-28(NKJV) 26 And when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, and did not believe that he was a disciple. 27 But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. And he declared to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. 28 So he was with them at Jerusalem, coming in and going out.
f. Someone had to step up on Paul’s behalf and that person was Barnabas.
g. Barnabas put himself out there. He stood with Paul when no one else would.
h. Of coarse, we know the remainder of the story. Paul went on to do some great things for God.
i. Really these things would have never been achieved if Barnabas did not step up and speak on Paul’s behalf.
II. Another bible author
A. John Mark
a. After Paul’s conversion to Christianity, Paul went on to do several missionary trips.
b. Paul’s first missionary trip, he visited the city of Pamphylia.
c. This city was located in Asia minor and was about 20 miles long and 10 miles wide.
d. Civilization in this city was less developed than it’s neighbors.
e. This city was strongly influenced by paganism and their culture and coins reflect this.
B. Calling of John Mark
a. So on this missionary trip, Paul did not go alone. He took several fellow disciples with him.
b. Paul took Barnabas, and also a disciple named John Mark.
c. John Mark was known by the early church as a man that had a heart for evangelism.
d. John Mark would later become the first bishop of Alexandria and established the Christian church in Africa.
C. The disagreement
a. While on this missionary trip, we see that there was some sort of disagreement between John Mark and Paul
b. The bible does not go into the details regarding this disagreement between these two men.
c. We just know that as a result of this disagreement Paul and John Mark decided to go their separate ways.
D. Results
a. So as you can image John Mark was probably a little discourage as a result of this disagreement.
b. John Mark continued though in the ministry that God had called him to.
c. It was none other than Barnabas that encouraged John Mark not to give up.
d. Later on, Paul even recognized the importance of John Mark in 2 Timothy 4:11 (NKJV) 11 Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry.
e. So whatever the disagreement was, Paul later recognized the importance of John Mark.
III. Called to Build up others
A. Keys to encouraging other.
a. Like Barnabas, we are called to bless others, to build them in the Lord.
b. The bible says in Proverbs 11:25 (TPT) 25 Those who live to bless others will have blessings heaped upon them, and the one who pours out his life to pour out blessings will be saturated with favor.
c. It also says in 1 Thessalonians 5:11 (NIV) 11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.
B. Warm and inviting
a. We building others up by being warm and inviting to them. When we take time to be cheerful to others.
b. In fact, a cheerful heart is good medicine. It is healthy and good to laugh a little.
c. Some of the benefits of laughter include:
i. It relaxes your entire body
ii. It boosts the immune system
iii. It triggers the release of endorphins in your body which are the feel good chemicals.
iv. Laughter actually protects your heart and helps to burn calories.
d. A married couple were arguing who was going to make the coffee that day. The wife said “In the Bible, it says that men should make the coffee” and the husband asked her “Where does it say that?” The wife opened the Bible and said: "Right here in HEBREWS!"
e. Father O'Malley answers the phone. "Hello, is this Father O'Malley?"
"It is"
"This is the IRS. Can you help us?"
"I can"
"Do you know a Ted Houlihan?"
"I do"
"Is he a member of your congregation?"
"He is"
"Did he donate $10,000 to the church?"
"He will".
f. O.K. I just have one more for you.
i. As the storm raged, the captain realized his ship was sinking fast. He called out, "Anyone here know how to pray?" One man stepped forward. "Aye, Captain, I know how to pray." "Good," said the captain, "you pray while the rest of us put on our life jackets - we're one short."
C. Be a good listener
a. Another way we encourage others is to be a good listener. James 1:19 (NLT) says: 19 Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.
b. While we may think that we have the perfect answer to build someone up, we need not let our words get ahead of our ears.
c. Sometimes people are not looking for advice, but they are looking for a shoulder to cry on.
d. Some of our greatest encouragement comes just by being there and listening.
D. Be positive
a. The world is full of negative people. There are people in the church that are negative as well.
b. If you always find yourself thinking of others in a negative light or your always assuming the worse of someone.
c. Take time to work on being a more positive person. God has given you and I a wonderful hope. Regardless of our current hardship, God desires us to place our trust in Him and Him alone. After all, the tomb was empty, He is Alive!!!!!
E. Other ways to be an encourager
a. Barnabas encouraged others to use the gifts that God gave them.
b. He got others involved in the ministry. It was not a me and everyone else mentality. He had a team philosophy.
c. Barnabas was patient with others. This patience was not only for himself but was also for others around him.
Closing:
As we close here this morning, we recognize that Barnabas was not a perfect person. Yet, God used him to do great things from Him. While all of us are not perfect either, we can know that God uses imperfect people every single day to accomplish great things for Him. The apostle Paul was a great man. Yet, Paul would have never made it to the heights that he did, if he did not have Barnabas there to encourage him to do great things for God. Are you willing to be like Barnabas? Are you willing to take time to encourage others on their journey? I trust that you are!
