“Encouragers in a dangerous time”

Texts: Acts 4.32-37; 9.26-31; 11.19-26

The only constant is change

     Isn’t it nice when things are calm, predictable, comfortable, when there is no anxiety in our hearts, no unknown factors to worry about, no changes to deal with?  Sounds nice, right?  Of course, life is rarely like that – indeed, the life of most congregations is rarely like that.  Most of the time, life is chaotic – full of often unwanted or unexpected changes and various crises, and we often feel woefully ill-equipped to deal with the unrelenting stream of complicated situations that insist on coming our way.  And yet, even though this is what “normal” life is like, we often react as if things shouldn’t be this way.  When chaos erupts, we often respond with shock, fear, hostility and resentment.  We try desperately to hang on to what is familiar and comfortable, to what makes us feel secure and confident in who we are and in what we are doing – to what makes sense.

     It gets worse.  The God we read about in the Bible seems to be a God who has an annoying habit of disrupting our nice, quiet routines.  In the Bible, no one encounters God and goes on their way unchanged.  To be a member of the people of the biblical God is to be the partner of the most unpredictable and “wild” divinity anyone has ever heard of.  The Creator is on a mission – to save his world.  That means that God is working to change the world, and is calling us to join him on his mission of salvation.  We have to keep these two ideas together.  Salvation means change, and change is always uncomfortable.  We must get rid of the idea that salvation simply changes what we do on Sunday morning.  If we have been saved, we no longer belong to ourselves, but to the One who has saved and redeemed us.

     The most intrusive, disruptive and inconvenient thing that God ever did was to send his Son into the world as a human being.  The incarnation of the Word of God was an invasion, an intrusion that changed everything.  There’s no stopping the God of the Bible – and there’s no use trying to keep him at a safe distance.  The Creator God insists on confronting his world with his love, his healing presence and his truth.  He will not leave us alone.  God will not leave the world to its own devices, nor will he leave his people in a complacent “peace”.  God insists on loving and saving – on changing – the world he created.  And it is precisely through his people that the Creator does all this.

People of a wild God

     The people of God have a tough assignment.  To work hand-in-hand with the untameable Creator of heaven and earth is no easy thing.  God’s people must never get comfortable, must never think that they’ve got everything figured out, that they could ever build a system that would always produce results that are pleasing to God.  Rather, the people of God must constantly be attentive to God’s leading, to God’s voice, to God’s challenge to truly be his people at any given time and place.  This is why God sent prophets to his people.  Yeah, nobody likes a prophet.  That is to say, nobody likes an authentic prophet who obediently proclaims God’s message.  Just ask Jesus.

The times, they are A-changin

     As the New Testament begins, the people of God undergo some profound changes.  That the Messiah had been murdered by God’s people – and then resurrected and exalted to the right hand of God – had been surprising enough.  But that was only the beginning.  During his ministry, Jesus had re-interpreted the Law of Moses and had relativized some of the most cherished Jewish traditions.  He had “declared all foods clean” (cf. Mk. 7.19) and had dared proclaim that the Sabbath had been made for mankind, and not mankind for the Sabbath (Mk. 2.27).  Jesus, in true prophetic fashion, had called Israel to return to her true calling to be the people of the Creator in a dangerous and hostile world.  Jesus challenged the people of God to let go of their prideful sense of being “God’s favourite”, a nation of “spiritual elites” among all the filthy pagans.  Jesus called his contemporaries to live a life of love – love of God, neighbour…and even enemies.  This was how the people of God would be the light of the world and the salt of the earth.  Because of all this, Jesus had been condemned as a false prophet, a heretic, as a dangerous person who threatened the very identity of God’s people.

     In the book of Acts, this process of re-defining both the identity and role of the people of God continues.  One now becomes a member of the-people-of-God-re-organized-around-the-Messiah by being baptized in the name of Jesus.  Loyalty to Jesus has become the most important thing, the defining factor – in and of itself, something quite controversial.  In the opening chapters of Acts, everyone who is baptized in the name of Jesus shares a common Jewish identity, culture and religious assumptions.  That is to say, everyone knows the rules of the game.  At the beginning of Acts, no one seems to be asking the question: “What happens if a non-Jew, a pagan believes in Jesus?”  How is that going to work?

     The early Jesus community faced several different pressures.  From the get-go, the community loyal to Jesus faced outside pressure from the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem who were flabbergasted to find that the Jesus movement refused to die.  The early church had to deal with outward pressure from those who considered them to be heretics.  What is more, the followers of Jesus had to face pressure from within their community – the pressure that inevitably results when people who are very different from each other have to learn to treat each other like family, to work together to accomplish a common mission.  The community of early disciples lived in a pressure-cooker!  They were in constant danger, and they had to navigate constant friction arising from the realities of sharing life together as a community.  There were innumerable opportunities for misunderstanding and conflict.  The early church was attempting nothing less than the re-invention of society – they saw themselves as the new humanity.  The Creator was reclaiming his world and they were his servants, his messengers, his witnesses, his people and they were on the front line of God’s saving purpose.  To be a member of the people of God – then as now – means learning to live in a high-tension atmosphere.  Among other things, this is why we pray!

The Son of Encouragement

     So, how to wisely live and serve in the midst of the disruptive work of God?  What strategy should one adopt in order to serve God’s purpose in a time of dangerous – and promising – change?  There is someone in the book of Acts who provides us with an answer.  This character, at first glance, seems to play a rather minor role; however, everything that happens in the second half of the book happens because of him.  His name was Joseph, and he was a Levite from Cyprus (cf. Ac. 4.36).  The Levites were the tribe of Israel which had always been responsible for keeping things running smoothly in the Jerusalem Temple.  They were musicians, teachers, maintenance men, and butchers (they sacrificed animals and cooked the meat). 

     As often happens in the Bible, Joseph was given a nickname by the apostles.  They called him “Barnabas”, which means “son of encouragement”.  The first thing we are told about him is that he sold one of his fields and donated the proceeds to the common fund of the Jesus community in Jerusalem.  When you’re living in a dangerous, high-tension situation, who better to have around than someone who is an encourager, someone who gives courage to those around them?  As it turns out, it takes a lot of courage to be a member of the people of the Creator!  It takes a lot of courage to be a disciple of Jesus!  Barnabas was there, in the Jersualem community, encouraging people to keep on with the mission and offering support.  We are told later that Barnabas was “a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith” (Ac. 11.24).  We are also informed that Barnabas is a prophet and teacher (Ac. 13.1), but he seems to keep a pretty low profile most of the time.

     Barnabas was in Jerusalem when Saul of Tarsus got back from Damascus, claiming to have become a follower of Jesus.  Everyone else gave Saul a chilly reception, refusing to believe that someone who had so recently been persecuting them so ruthlessly could have done such an about-face and decide to become a disciple.  However, Barnabas didn’t hesitate to embrace Saul as a brother, and took the trouble to listen to his story of meeting Jesus on the Damascus Road.  Barnabas took Saul under his wing and helped him integrate the community of disciples.  Eventually, Saul’s efforts of proclaiming the gospel in Jerusalem had the same effect they had had in Damascus – a plot was formed to kill him.  In response, the disciples sent him home to Tarsus, and, we are told, “the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria had peace and was built up”. 

     Barnabas had the ability to not react in fear when Saul returned to Jerusalem.  Barnabas was able to patiently discern was God was doing in Saul’s life, and became convinced that Saul had indeed experienced a true conversion.  Not only that, but Barnabas befriended Saul and, as we shall see, had a deep respect for Saul’s ability to communicate the gospel.  When others could not see beyond Saul’s previous identity as a hater of Jesus and murderer of disciples, Barnabas saw a changed heart and a brother in Christ.  I’m sure many heads turned the first Sunday morning that Barnabas and Saul arrived at church together!

     What about us?  In the midst of the often-chaotic circumstances of our lives and our congregation, are we looking out for those people who have a hard time becoming part of a Christian community?  Are we spending time with people who aren’t comfortable in a church environment?  Are we befriending those people who are alone, whom other people may gossip about?  Are we willing to take the risk of being known as “the friend of sinners” (cf. Lk. 7.34)?

     After the story of Peter’s visit to Cornelius, we are told that some disciples from Cyprus went to the city of Antioch in Syria, and they started to evangelize non-Jews, Gentiles.  When the Jerusalem community heard that pagans were becoming disciples, they sent Barnabas to Antioch to investigate (Ac. 11.19-22).  Barnabas quickly discerned that what was happening was indeed an authentic move of God, and he decided to spend some time in Antioch building up the new community of believers.  However, the first thing that Barnabas did was to go to Tarsus to look for Saul.  He had not forgotten about his friend, who had been sent back to his hometown years before.  Apparently, Barnabas didn’t have Saul’s address, so he simply went to Tarsus, and searched the city until he found him.  This was a major turning-point in Saul’s life.  If it hadn’t had been for Barnabas’ determination to find him, Saul may well have lived out his days in Tarsus in total obscurity.  If we know about Saul/Paul, it’s thanks to Barnabas’ “search-and-rescue” mission.  Barnabas recruited Saul to the work of the Antioch community, and for a year, they laboured together to form the Antioch church into a hub of missionary operations in the Eastern end of the Roman empire.  It is in Antioch that Saul will be prepared for his task as a missionary, church-planter and apostle who would pastor numerous congregations through his visits and his letters.  Thanks Barnabas, for encouraging Saul!

     What about us?  Are we overly preoccupied with what’s happening inside the four walls of our church?  Have we become so caught up with the routines of our community that we have become unaware or uninterested with what’s going on outside?  Are we willing to go out of our way in order to “find” people who, for whatever reason, find themselves isolated and far from the community?  Are we willing to give people opportunities to develop their gifts and serve the Lord in our congregation?  Are we investing time and energy in building people up and encouraging them?  Barnabas seems to have loved the often-hidden work of building people up so they could fully respond to the call of God on their lives.

The source of the power to encourage

     Acts chapter 13 begins with the leaders of the church in Antioch having a time of prayer and fasting.  While they are seeking God, the Holy Spirit tells them to “set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them” (Ac. 13.1-3).  And so, Paul’s apostolic adventures begin, as he sets sail along with Barnabas and a young man named John Mark.  The first place that this missionary team goes to is, not surprisingly, Barnabas’ native island of Cyprus.  They preach in the Jewish synagogues – a strategy that Paul always uses, the gospel is for the Jews first – before arriving at the headquarters of the Roman proconsul, the imperial magistrate of the island.  It is here that something significant happens to the apostolic team.  Barnabas steps out of the spotlight and Paul takes centre stage and becomes the main character of the story; indeed, peoples’ impression of Paul is that he is the “chief speaker” of the team (Ac. 14.12). 

     This is fascinating.  Here we see Barnabas’ quality as an encourager and mentor on full display.  We also realize that Barnabas is a man of humility.  He had poured time and energy into encouraging Paul and giving him opportunities to develop his gifts.  Now, Barnabas realizes that Paul is ready – he has the talent and the courage to step fully into his calling.  And – this is the key element – Barnabas lets him.  There is no jealousy, no competition, no insecurity – just two coworkers for the gospel labouring in unity and complimenting each other’s strengths.  Sounds almost too good to be true, eh?

     We have so much to learn from Barnabas.  I believe that Barnabas was able to allow Paul to take the lead because he didn’t find his identity in what he did.  This is hugely important.  Most of us, most of the time, identify ourselves by what we do.  What’s one of the first questions we ask when we meet someone for the first time?  “What do you do?”  “What’s your job?”  It is probably unintentional, but by placing so much importance on what people do for a living, we dehumanize them.  We reduce people to their function in society, as if people were machines.  This is why western society has so much difficulty knowing how to feel about and how to treat those who make no economic contribution to society – the unborn, the chronically ill, the handicapped, the elderly.  We must recapture a vision of the intrinsic value of each and every human being.  Peoples’ value comes from the fact that they are created in the image of God, not in the image of the current ideology or economic model.  The incarnation of the Son of God removes all doubt about the inestimable, built-in value of each and every boy and girl, woman and man.

     Back to Barnabas.  Barnabas was able to take a back seat to Paul because he was secure in his identity, which did not come from what he did, but rather from who he knew himself to be.  Barnabas knew himself to be a beloved child of God, who had been loved into existence and who was safe and secure in the eternal love of his heavenly Father.  It must have taken many years for Barnabas to fully embrace this identity.  It remains the case that this is the very foundation of the Christian life.  Until we are able to fully accept that fact that God loves us totally and unconditionally, we will always be motivated by a toxic mix of fear and pride.  Fear of not being enough, which will drive us to try and prove our worth and then pride in whatever we manage to accomplish.  Believe me, I know.  When we are operating out of a place of fear and pride, other people become threats.  It is impossible to truly love others until we know ourselves to be fully loved by God.  Once we are secure in our identity as God’s beloved children, we are free, free to give ourselves away in service to others, not to prove anything to anyone, but rather because we have become channels through which the love of God can flow.  May God grant us a deeper understanding of just who we are in Christ, as God’s children.  May God set us free from the need to prove our worth.

     Barnabas was someone who knew who he was, and this was the source of his ability to encourage those around him.  Barnabas seems to have genuinely desired that everyone he knew would play their role in the service of God.  He did everything he could to help them do just that.  May God grant us the grace to be sources of courage for others.  May we allow ourselves to be loved by God.  May we encourage and build each other up in this time of change.  Amen.