Good morning to you my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
I’m excited about today, for we are starting a new journey together. But this journey begins unlike most others we’ve walked together.
I imagine we’ve all had the experience of a normal conversation going array and before long two friends are finding themselves in a disagreement which was totally unexpected. Has that ever happened to you? That’s how this new journey begins, today.
Come with me to the great city of Syrian Antioch, toward the end of the year 49ad. Exciting things have been happening in this multicultural city, for the Gospel of Jesus Christ has found very receptive people here. A large group of Christians, both Jewish and Gentile Christians, from many different ethnic backgrounds, have formed a vibrant and growing church with Barnabas and the apostle Paul as two of their leaders. (Acts 11:19-30)
Paul and Barnabas had been commissioned from this group more than two years before, to take the Gospel west, to cities and towns none of the apostles had ever visited. It was quite an adventure and is recorded in Acts 13 & 14 which we studied in detail several months ago. (28 July – 16 August, 2022)
Paul and Barnabas have just recently returned from being summoned to Jerusalem where they gave the report of their missionary journey to Peter and John and the other apostles who had been those special disciples who had walked with Jesus. (Acts 15:1-21) While their report was exciting it was also disturbing to the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem who struggled imagining that God would allow Gentiles, from Asia and beyond, to become part of this Jesus movement which had begun in Jerusalem primarily with Jews.
Jesus had never traveled outside Israel, spending His time between the Judean region around Jerusalem and the Galilee region up north. But Paul and Barnabas had gone hundreds of miles west into Asia and were delighted to find the Holy Spirit drawing Gentiles to God in cities such as Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe. (Acts 13:13-14:25)
This meeting in Jerusalem was historic and vital for the apostles met to debate the legitimacy of the salvation of those Gentiles far from Jerusalem. In the end, after much discussion and prayer, they came to agreement that Gentiles, regardless of their ethnicity or their geography, are loved by God, and the atonement death and resurrection of Jesus Christ was just as valid for their salvation from their sin as it was for any Jewish or Samaritan or Gentile person in Jerusalem!
The door to inclusion in the body of Christ, what Jesus had called His Church, was thrust open to any and all who would repent of their sin and fully trust in Jesus Christ to be their Savior!
Paul and Barnabas returned from that important Jerusalem meeting with great joy, excited to share this news with the church in Antioch who had sent them out. Traveling with them were two leaders from the Jerusalem church, Barsabbas and Silas.
Dr. Luke who recorded these events tells us in Acts 15:32 “Barsabbas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the believers in Antioch.” It appears for some time Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch continuing to preach the Gospel and teach the believers there. It was a wonderful time of spiritual growth for the Jesus movement in Antioch.
Acts 15:36 tells us “Sometime later Paul said to Barnabas, ‘Let’s go back and visit the believers in all the towns where you and I preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.” Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, but Paul did not think it wise to take John Mark because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company…” There it is, can you see it, my friends? A wonderful conversation between two friends, starting to envision a new missionary journey together, planning about going back to places where they had seen God do amazing things as they had brought the Gospel of Jesus to places where Jesus was unknown! There, they’d seen many people respond and little churches were birthed in all of these towns.
But that first journey these two men took together had not been easy. While they had been welcomed and received by some people, they had been maligned and persecuted by others. (Acts 13:49-52) In fact in one town, Lystra, a celebrating crowd turned violent and picked up stones, throwing them at Paul and it almost killed him! (Acts 14:19)
But do you notice my friends, Paul and Barnabas did not have a disagreement about how they were treated or persecuted, their disagreement was about a young man named John Mark whom Barnabas wanted to invite along on this second trip.
Why their disagreement? Well, John Mark was evidently a young relative to Barnabas, and they’d taken him along on their first journey. (Acts 13:4,5) Barnabas, it seems, was wanting to pour some training and wisdom into young John Mark but sadly, after a short while John Mark had decided to return home to Jerusalem, so he left Paul and Barnabas in Perga. (Acts 13:13)
While we have no record of how disturbed Paul had been at the time John Mark left them, now perhaps 3 years later, when Barnabas suggests they give John Mark another chance, emotions and memories rise up in Paul and we see he has perhaps held a grudge all this time and Paul is not willing to even consider a second chance for John Mark.
Now watch that my friends. Have you ever been the victim of a long-held grudge? Have you found yourself holding a grudge, unwilling to forgive and give a person another chance? Do you understand the magnitude, the deep foothold of the devil holding a grudge can nurture? Do you understand the power and pain of unforgiveness? Do you remember the teachings of Jesus about the importance of forgiveness recorded for us in Matthew 18:21-35?
This disagreement between Paul and Barnabas escalated quite quickly, it appears, and reached such a point of conflict, they actually decided to terminate their partnership and go their separate ways that day! Oh my, what a sad day. They had been working together, side by side, as evangelists and disciplers, helping many other people find new life in Jesus Christ.
Yet on this day their emotions got the better of them and they evidently agreed to disagree and walked away from each other. I would imagine both of their stomachs were churning. Barnabas, angry that Paul wouldn’t forgive John Mark and give him another try, Paul, frustrated that Barnabas didn’t learn from the bad experience they had once before with John Mark.
Now watch my friends to see what God did in this mess: “Barnabas took John Mark and sailed for Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord. He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.” (Acts 15:39-41) What does this show you, my friends? Yes, it’s unfortunate that neither Paul nor Barnabas evidently made any serious effort to repair the fracture of their ministry partnership that day, but do you see God was able to guide both of them in taking necessary steps to continue in their efforts to advance the movement of the Gospel?
Years later as Paul was writing his letter to the Christians in Ephesus, I wonder if he was reflecting on this day of disagreement when he wrote: “In Him [Christ] we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of God who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will, in order that we, who were the first to put our trust in Christ, might be for the praise of His glory.” (Eph. 1:11,12)
While clearly unforgiveness is abhorrent to God and God cannot bless sin, in this case God led both Paul and Barnabas forward, even in their unresolved disagreement, to each form a new team and continue the work with even greater achievement than if they had remained together. And God led Paul at some point to reconciliation with John Mark, for shortly before Paul’s death, in his final letter to Timothy, Paul writes: “Do your best to come to me quickly…Get John Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. “ (2 Tim. 4:9-11)
So, let’s pause right here my friends, as we reflect on how God used the disagreement between Paul and Barnabas to birth two new teams, while continuing to work in both their hearts to accomplish God’s greater purposes. Tomorrow, we’ll pick up the story right here.
For today, has any unforgiveness found fertile soil in your heart? Why not talk with Jesus about that and take the steps necessary for you and Jesus to deal with that unforgiveness so it doesn’t disrupt the good work God is trying to do IN you and THROUGH you.
Today’s Scripture is Acts 15:30-41.
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Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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