April 07, 2023 | Be On Mission
Barnabas & Saul Spend a Year in Antioch
Scripture: Acts 11:19-30(NIV)
19 Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. 20 Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. 21 The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.
22 News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. 24 He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.
25 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.
27 During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.) 29 The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. 30 This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.
Devotional
In Acts 8 we saw how persecution in Jerusalem scattered people into Samaria (see Week 11, Day 4). Here we see that the persecution exiled them much farther north. Each of these Gentile territories had a sizable Jewish community from various times when Jews were dispersed in Old Testament times. It is believed that there were more Jews living outside of Israel than inside during the life of Jesus.
So the “Jesus is Messiah” message was spread only to the Jews at first. All this week we have seen how the gospel of the resurrected Christ was beginning to be taken to Gentiles (non-Jews) as well. Here, a great number of Greeks (Gentiles) were becoming followers of Jesus. When the Christian leaders in Jerusalem heard this, they sent – who else – Barnabas the encourager! When he arrived, he – guess what – encouraged them! People were coming to Christ in droves.
Barnabas needed backup for the ministry task, and he could think of nobody better than the former persecutor and current believer, Saul. It had been as much as ten years since the apostles sent Saul to his hometown of Tarsus to save his life. He probably moved back home into his parents’ basement… er, upper room. There he most likely went about his business as a tent maker, while studying Scripture and working on his preaching craft. When Barnabas found Saul, he was fully prepared to go with him for the next year to Antioch where together they taught the new believers.
Saul could have looked at those ten years back home as a Decade of Disappointment. After all, Jesus Himself had appeared and given him his mission to take the gospel to both Jews and Gentiles. After a brief visit to Jerusalem, he was sent packing over 500 miles back home. Yes, it could have been a Decade of Disappointment. To the contrary, Saul looked at those ten years as a Decade of Development. His hours of prayer turned into months of study and years of witnessing to others. He prepared himself without knowing when or if he would ever be called away from his hometown.
What does God have in store for your future? What if you can’t do it until a decade from now? What will you do in the meantime? What is your Decade of Development plan?
Prayer
(Fill your name in the blank) Today is Good Friday and in 3 days, I will be celebrating the Good News of Your resurrection from the dead. Sunday is coming!
You came to earth; I, ________ receive new birth.
You bore the pain; eternal life I, ________ gain.
You died for me; I, ________ am free.
By Your death the ransom has been paid; I, ________ am no longer afraid.
Your love lights the way; I ________ live for you each day.
“Thank you Jesus, for the blood applied
Thank you Jesus, it has washed me white
Thank you Jesus, You have saved my life
Brought me from the darkness into glorious light” by Songwriter: Charity Gayle
Poem
Clique
Our little clique
So safe
Familiar
Is so comfortable
LORD
We like to feel
Like we belong
And others
We can
Avoid
“Your little clique
Is much
Too small
A breakup I demand
I AM
With compassion
Calls all to belong
The others
You cannot
Avoid”
