Acts 11:19-30 Be a Paraklete
Good morning! Turn with me once again to the book of Acts. Today we are going to look at chapter 11, verse 19-30, and that’s on page 920 in the pew Bibles.
As I have said before, the book of Acts is not just a Description of events in the early church but rather it is the Prescription of principles and patterns for the current church to follow.
This morning, we are going to take a look at a pretty important individual in the life of the early church, a man that stands as a pattern of the principles that we are to follow, and a man certainly worth emulating ourselves as we seek to navigate the Christian life in this world.
His name is Joe. Let’s look at our text and then we’ll pray.
19 Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews. 20 But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists also, preaching the Lord Jesus. 21 And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord. 22 The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose, 24 for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord. 25 So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.
27 Now in these days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 And one of them named Agabus stood up and foretold by the Spirit that there would be a great famine over all the world (this took place in the days of Claudius). 29 So the disciples determined, every one according to his ability, to send relief to the brothers living in Judea. 30 And they did so, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul.
Let’s pray.
So who is Joe? And what principle is he patterning?
You may know Joe by his nickname, Barnabas. And knowing the meaning of his nickname will also inform us of the principle that he patterns so well. “Barnabas,” means, “son of encouragement.” The principle that he is patterning is encouragement.
The Greek word for encouragement is, “parakaleo,” sometimes translated as exhort as well as encourage. It means literally “to call alongside.” One who does this work is called a paraklete.
Jesus used this same word to describe the Holy Spirit in John 14:15.
15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, [a paraklete] to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.
Hebrews 3:13, which may very well have been authored by Luke, the same as Acts, though we don’t know for sure, says, “…exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”
The purpose of encouragement, according to Hebrews, is to keep us soft, unhardened by the deceitfulness of sin. This is what Barnabas was like, constantly encouraging those around him.
Barnabas was first mentioned in Acts 4:32-37 where he was doing this very thing.
32 Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. 33 And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. 34 There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold 35 and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. 36 Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, 37 sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
Barnabas encouraged the church by sharing what he had to help those in need. He had some land that he decided to sell and give the money to the church to benefit everyone. Not because he was looking for accolades or anything, but because he wanted to help.
Later in Acts chapter nine, verse twenty-six, he comes on the scene again when it came time to introduce the newly converted Saul to the church in Jerusalem.
26 And when [Saul] had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. 27 But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. 28 So he went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord.
Barnabas listened to Saul, heard his story, and believed him. And because he believed that he had truly been converted to Christ he took him personally to meet the Apostle Peter and James the brother of Jesus.
This is the work of an encourager! He came alongside him.
And now, here in chapter 11 Barnabas is entrusted to do the same with the growing work in the city of Antioch, the metropolis of Syria and capitol of the province of Asia, some three hundred miles north of Jerusalem.
Antioch was known as “the First City of the East,” ranking third in importance of Roman cities only behind Rome itself and Alexandria.
19 Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews. 20 But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists also, preaching the Lord Jesus. 21 And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord. 22 The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch.
This is not insignificant, that people were preaching the Lord Jesus, not to the Jewish people only in that city, but to the pagans there as well. And when news of the advance of the gospel had reached that key city the church in Jerusalem needed to check it out so they sent none other than our friend Barnabas to investigate and encourage the believers there. And that’s exactly what he did.
23 When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose, 24 for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord.
Now when Barnabas came and saw the grace of God at work there in that city, he didn’t just give them the old, “you’re good enough, you’re smart enough, and doggonit, people like you,” kind of encouragement.
He exhorted them, encouraged them to remain faithful to the Lord. He encouraged them, according to Alistair Begg, “to love him, to walk in His ways, to obey His Word, and serve Him wholeheartedly.”
For what purpose would he encourage them to do this, to be like this? He was being an example of Hebrews 3:13, “…exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”
Barnabas, a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, came alongside them to encourage them to Love the Lord, to walk in His ways, to obey His Word, and serve Him wholeheartedly so that their hearts would remain soft and not be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
But his work of encouraging the growing church in Antioch didn’t stop there.
Verse 24 says, “a great many people were added to the Lord.”
Nowhere in Scripture will you see the principle of having to figure it out on your own. You will not see any pattern of aloneness when it comes to following Jesus. The pattern is that of discipleship, of teaching and teachers, of mentors, and parakletes like Barnabas coming alongside people.
So now, in verse 25, Barnabas goes about killing two birds with one stone.
The growing church in Antioch needed teachers, just as the lost needed preachers. There was also a particular preacher and teacher that Barnabas knew that needed to get into the game, Saul of Tarsus.
25 So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.
Barnabas was a great teacher, but we don’t have any books that he wrote or papers that he published. What we do have is his instruction through his example. We have the definition of a paraklete in the person of Joseph, the son of encouragement.
Barnabas continued that work of coming alongside the church as well as coming alongside individuals. Later on in the book of Acts we’ll see another disciple he came alongside named John Mark who ended up writing the Gospel of Mark.
The work of encouragement is powerful and important work.
Think of who your encouragers are or have been in the past, those who not only made you feel seen and heard, but who encouraged you to love the Lord Jesus, to walk in His ways, to obey His Word, and serve Him wholeheartedly so that your hearts would remain soft and not be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
And even if you can’t remember anybody who did that for you, go do it for somebody else! The church needs more parakletes!
Amen.
