Barnabas

Mohler:

Barnabas “was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith” (11:24). Once he arrived in Antioch, he “saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose” (v 23). Barnabas’ actions serve as an example to us. Do we rejoice when we see the grace of God poured out on others? Are we quick to encourage others to remain steadfast? Too often we are so self-focused that we fail to see the grace of God all around us displayed in the lives of other people. Yet the Bible calls us, like Barnabas, to “rejoice with those who rejoice” (Romans 12:15). We should be quick to point out evidence of grace in the lives of others and to celebrate the grace of God.

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I found the following really helpful as different strategies and techniques come in and out of fashion on the field. Acts 11 is such a helpful chapter as we think through what is good in them and what is not so helpful:

After Barnabas finds Saul, he brings him back to Antioch where, “for a whole year,” they meet with the church and teach “a great many people.” Once again, Barnabas serves as a great example for us. Barnabas is not satisfied merely with seeing conversions; he wants to see the converted becoming disciples. Jesus, after all, commissioned all believers to “make disciples”—not merely converts—by "teaching them to observe all that I have commanded" (Matthew 28.19-20).

Barnabas sought out qualified teachers to disciple the congregation at Antioch. Barnabas did not leave the important task of discipleship to a new convert. He did not merely pass out a curriculum and ask any random Christian to lead a discussion. Barnabas traveled to Antioch to find Paul because he knew the church needed a learned, godly, mature Christian to lead them and to teach them how to walk faithfully in the gospel.

Paul and Barnabas were patient, teaching over the course of an entire year. The Christian life and our primary doctrinal convictions cannot be mastered overnight. Discipleship takes time. Paul and Barnabas did not try to give the church at Antioch the bare minimum so that they could move on and do more evangelism. They valued discipleship enough to invest a significant amount of time into the church in Antioch.

We also find in Paul and Barnabas’ actions an example for teachers. Anyone who teaches the word must realize that faithful teaching and discipleship takes time. We cannot expect immediate change in those we are discipling. Just as in evangelism, we are entirely dependent on the work of the Spirit in the task of discipling. Sanctification is often a slow and arduous process. We must patiently instruct those we are discipling and not lose heart when the work seems slow and difficult. And we must seek to locate the main weight of the discipling of others (and ourselves) in the local church, as we are taught by mature and gifted leaders.