WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.320 Romans chapter 12, from verse 5, I'm coming in halfway through a sentence, but we read 00:00:07.320 --> 00:00:13.640 these words, so we though many are one body in Christ and individually members one of 00:00:13.640 --> 00:00:20.120 another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them. 00:00:20.120 --> 00:00:27.080 If prophecy in proportion to our faith, if service in our serving, the one who teaches 00:00:27.079 --> 00:00:33.479 in his teaching, the one who exhorts in his exhortation, the one who contributes in generosity, 00:00:33.479 --> 00:00:41.679 the one who leads with zeal, the one who does acts of mercy with cheerfulness. Now you may 00:00:41.679 --> 00:00:46.399 think, well, hang on, I didn't hear encouragement in there, but we'll come back to that. The 00:00:46.399 --> 00:00:52.799 word that we're thinking about there is actually exhortation. So this is one way of expressing 00:00:52.799 --> 00:00:58.239 that word, encouragement. Now, like I said, by way of just opening up the subject a bit 00:00:58.239 --> 00:01:04.399 and thinking about this as an introduction, if you're going to go through something in 00:01:04.399 --> 00:01:12.400 your life that's difficult, that's going to tax you, almost break you, you're going to 00:01:12.400 --> 00:01:17.439 need some encouragement, aren't you? You're going to need somebody or something that's 00:01:17.439 --> 00:01:24.679 going to give you hope and light in amongst whatever it is that you find really tough 00:01:24.679 --> 00:01:31.200 to keep going. That's just something about being human. We talk about chasing a lost 00:01:31.200 --> 00:01:40.200 cause. It's very difficult. It's no fun. Certainly something like enduring a prison camp. Now 00:01:40.200 --> 00:01:44.159 you may think, well, that's an extreme example, but I was reading a book this week. I'm reading 00:01:44.159 --> 00:01:50.959 a book called Wild Places, I think, and it's a guy who takes different locations across 00:01:50.959 --> 00:01:57.560 the UK. He loves the outdoors. So every chapter is about a different kind of terrain. He goes 00:01:57.560 --> 00:02:03.319 to the forests. He goes to the locks. He goes to the moors, and he just lives out and he 00:02:03.319 --> 00:02:10.519 goes out there into the wild places. And in the chapter on Moorland describes the wild 00:02:10.520 --> 00:02:16.000 places, he goes up to Rannach Moor. He takes the train up with his father, actually, and 00:02:16.000 --> 00:02:20.879 they trek across Rannach Moor and they camp out under the stars. It's freezing cold, and 00:02:20.879 --> 00:02:25.879 a lot of you would probably hate that, but anyway, he loves it. But as he was doing that, 00:02:25.879 --> 00:02:32.640 it reminded him of somebody he'd read about, a chap called Murray, who had fought in the 00:02:32.640 --> 00:02:37.719 First World War and had been taken into captivity and put in, well, a variety, actually, of 00:02:37.719 --> 00:02:44.319 prison camps. And he'd had to endure this for a number of years. And you know, the thing 00:02:44.319 --> 00:02:54.479 about this guy was that he lived to go walk in pre-war. He loved the wild open spaces, 00:02:54.479 --> 00:02:59.079 and specifically he loved the mountains. So it describes in this book how on the day that 00:02:59.079 --> 00:03:04.319 he heard about the war and he knew he had to sign up and go through the drafting process, 00:03:04.319 --> 00:03:07.680 he climbed for the last time. I can't remember the name of the mountain above the Moor, but 00:03:07.680 --> 00:03:14.800 he climbed and just sat there for ages, just soaking it in, soaking in the wonder, the joy, 00:03:14.800 --> 00:03:19.520 the loveliness, the wildness of that place, because that fed him, you know, it really 00:03:19.520 --> 00:03:28.159 filled him with a sense of life. And it was as, the point of this is that as he was going 00:03:28.159 --> 00:03:36.560 through his awful ordeal in the camps that he was kept in, he started to write on anything 00:03:36.560 --> 00:03:42.879 he could find, tissue paper, toilet paper, his recollections of the free spaces that 00:03:42.879 --> 00:03:49.560 existed in his mind. And in one of the camps in Northern Italy, I think, where he was transferred 00:03:49.560 --> 00:03:56.080 to, he was let out into the yard for occasions during the day, and he could just see one 00:03:56.080 --> 00:04:01.240 of the range, the Italian ranges, mountain ranges, and that kind of just fed this sense 00:04:01.240 --> 00:04:09.200 of hope, it fed his encouragement, his sense of keeping going with life. That for him, 00:04:09.200 --> 00:04:14.560 that for him was the encouragement. And so he effectively wrote a book during all this 00:04:14.560 --> 00:04:21.560 time, just of his recollections and love for and longing to see again the mountains. And 00:04:21.560 --> 00:04:27.720 he did, he made it through, he survived, and it goes on to describe how he, when he was 00:04:27.720 --> 00:04:36.040 freed, broken almost in his body, he got back up to Rannochmore and walked it again. So 00:04:36.040 --> 00:04:44.160 for him, that sense of looking inside, remembering and being encouraged, finding hope was absolutely 00:04:44.160 --> 00:04:48.680 vital and absolutely crucial. We all need that at different times in our lives. We all 00:04:48.680 --> 00:04:54.360 need that sense of hope and of encouragement to keep going. The difficulty is, I think, 00:04:54.360 --> 00:05:00.520 doing what he did is incredibly hard. Actually having something that you can take hold of 00:05:00.520 --> 00:05:05.879 and hang on to, kind of looking within, it's really, really hard. And so actually what 00:05:05.879 --> 00:05:11.000 we often need in the times of trouble that we face, and this applies to the Christian 00:05:11.000 --> 00:05:18.040 life of course, is somebody else, another who will come alongside you and encourage 00:05:18.040 --> 00:05:25.000 you, who will bring you encouragement, or somebody you can call out to and say, I need 00:05:25.000 --> 00:05:32.640 encouragement right now. I need you. I need you to come and help me. Because we struggle, 00:05:32.640 --> 00:05:38.600 even if we try to look within so very often, to find the encouragement there that we need. 00:05:38.600 --> 00:05:46.080 We need help, as it were, to see the wonderful, beautiful mountain range when the walls are 00:05:46.079 --> 00:05:51.680 closing in, or when the circumstances are pressing us that bit too tightly. But here's 00:05:51.680 --> 00:05:56.479 a question, just as we kind of get going into this theme, what is it that we look to as 00:05:56.479 --> 00:05:59.639 Christians? You know I said that sometimes even Christians can really struggle and need 00:05:59.639 --> 00:06:04.759 encouragement. For what? To see what? Well, that's the first thing, isn't it? Let me 00:06:04.759 --> 00:06:12.479 just read another verse in Colossians, keeping a sight of what is our hope, of what it is 00:06:12.480 --> 00:06:19.200 that encourages us, is so important. In Colossians chapter 2 we read this. Paul says these words 00:06:19.200 --> 00:06:24.920 to believers, who he wants to encourage. I want you to know how great a struggle I have 00:06:24.920 --> 00:06:30.840 for you, and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not seen me face to face, that 00:06:30.840 --> 00:06:37.080 their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches 00:06:37.079 --> 00:06:44.199 of full assurance, of understanding, and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, 00:06:44.199 --> 00:06:53.000 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. So Paul's saying to Christians, 00:06:53.000 --> 00:07:01.599 I really, really care for you, because I want you to know the wonderful richness of Jesus 00:07:01.600 --> 00:07:08.160 himself, where you are now in whatever you're facing now. That's if you like the glimpse 00:07:08.160 --> 00:07:13.640 that we long for, or need to long for, in the circumstances that hem us in, and press 00:07:13.640 --> 00:07:21.840 us around so tightly in life. Just to come back to the passage, encouragement, you'll 00:07:21.840 --> 00:07:27.800 have noticed that the way it translates it in the English Standard Version is exhortation. 00:07:27.800 --> 00:07:34.120 So the one who exhorts in his exhortation. So encouragement is more than just sort of 00:07:34.120 --> 00:07:41.280 being a bit of a cheerleader, isn't it? You can see here that it's rooted in being focused 00:07:41.280 --> 00:07:47.280 on God's kingdom and the gospel, and it almost has a sense of urging somebody. If an encourager 00:07:47.280 --> 00:07:53.720 comes, biblically speaking, they come alongside to urge somebody on to exhort them. Now, I 00:07:53.720 --> 00:08:00.560 don't know how you kind of think, what you feel when you hear that word. Somebody exhorting 00:08:00.560 --> 00:08:05.000 me, I may not even be that comfortable with that. It sounds like they may even be putting 00:08:05.000 --> 00:08:10.760 a bit of pressure on me, but it really carries the sense of somebody coming alongside and 00:08:10.760 --> 00:08:15.200 bating you along, really encouraging you, not just saying, hey, go on there, you're 00:08:15.200 --> 00:08:22.180 doing a good job. Yeah, you're doing fine. There's a strong strength to this word, okay? 00:08:22.180 --> 00:08:30.720 The word parakaleo, the Greek word, really has this sense of to call somebody near. So 00:08:30.720 --> 00:08:37.440 if I need encouragement, I don't want just somebody to say, yay, go you. I want to call 00:08:37.440 --> 00:08:45.480 somebody alongside to come near to me in my difficulty, in my struggle, my circumstances, 00:08:45.480 --> 00:08:54.159 in my wrestling with faith, in my knowing Jesus, I want somebody to come near. Parakaleo, 00:08:54.159 --> 00:09:00.399 so very similar of course to the word Jesus uses to talk about the Holy Spirit, a parakeet, 00:09:00.399 --> 00:09:06.639 okay? And what do we know of the Holy Spirit? The one who comes alongside the advocate, 00:09:06.639 --> 00:09:12.920 the counselor, the comforter, doesn't just stand on the sidelines, God sends His Spirit 00:09:12.919 --> 00:09:21.159 into every believer to exhort them, to encourage them, to bless them, to keep them going, to 00:09:21.159 --> 00:09:28.360 testify to them, to their heart and their mind about Jesus. So there's this real sense, 00:09:28.360 --> 00:09:34.079 the strength of the word, the closeness of coming alongside. Here's what it's not, okay? 00:09:34.079 --> 00:09:39.000 When we talk about encouragement from a biblical sense, here's what we're not really talking 00:09:39.000 --> 00:09:44.480 about. It's not personality based, so you might be a really encouraging person tonight, 00:09:44.480 --> 00:09:49.679 and that's good. We need encouraging people who are kind of effervescent and who give 00:09:49.679 --> 00:09:58.120 off good vibes and who generally encourage people, that's great. God may well use that 00:09:58.120 --> 00:10:02.440 to great effect, but it's not just that, okay? So you might be an encouraging person who 00:10:02.440 --> 00:10:08.600 has a great personality, who's very effervescent, but you may not encourage somebody else biblically. 00:10:08.600 --> 00:10:14.840 In terms of the gospel, in terms of exhorting them to keep going for the kingdom, there 00:10:14.840 --> 00:10:22.720 is a difference there. It's more than that. It's not rooted in your own charisma. It has 00:10:22.720 --> 00:10:27.080 to be more than that, because if it's rooted in your own charisma, if it's rooted in your 00:10:27.080 --> 00:10:32.440 ability to come alongside and build somebody up, then they'll come a day when you're at 00:10:32.440 --> 00:10:36.800 the end of yourself, you're tired and you don't really want to exhort or encourage somebody 00:10:36.799 --> 00:10:41.279 else, because you need encouragement, and you don't have it within yourself. If it's 00:10:41.279 --> 00:10:48.519 all about you, then you will come to the end of you. It has to be that you, as an encourager, 00:10:48.519 --> 00:10:54.079 are rooted in the gospel and in Jesus Christ. So the encouragement has to be about taking 00:10:54.079 --> 00:10:59.199 people and pointing them not to yourself or just giving them words of happiness, or even 00:10:59.199 --> 00:11:04.319 a bit more than that, but Christ Himself. Neil touched on this. I listened to Neil Sermon 00:11:04.320 --> 00:11:09.320 last week about leadership, and he said about leadership, it's not about kind of making 00:11:09.320 --> 00:11:13.800 people buy into my own personal program or your own personal program to get them to do 00:11:13.800 --> 00:11:21.120 what you want them to do. It's about enabling people to follow Jesus and to give a scent, 00:11:21.120 --> 00:11:25.920 if you like, to living under His Lordship, and in a very real way. It's the same with 00:11:25.920 --> 00:11:31.840 encouragement, but it's about coming alongside somebody and helping them to keep in step 00:11:31.840 --> 00:11:37.639 with the Spirit. It's kingdom focused. So it's not just personality based. It's not 00:11:37.639 --> 00:11:44.800 just about personal affirmation. I think that's a kind of hallmark of our culture nowadays. 00:11:44.800 --> 00:11:49.720 People want to be affirmed, of course we do. Affirmation is good. It's important to encourage 00:11:49.720 --> 00:11:55.160 one another in a general sense, again, in terms of life and what's going on with us. 00:11:55.160 --> 00:11:59.440 But it's much more than just getting alongside people and saying, yeah, go you, be yourself, 00:11:59.440 --> 00:12:07.040 again, another hallmark of our culture. Just you be yourself and stay true to your heart. 00:12:07.040 --> 00:12:12.600 Because Christianity is about being conformed to the likeness of Jesus, isn't it? It's about 00:12:12.600 --> 00:12:20.320 submitting our own will, our character, who we are, what we do to the Lordship of Jesus 00:12:20.320 --> 00:12:27.640 Christ, and sometimes we don't like that, or we don't know what it looks like, or we've 00:12:27.639 --> 00:12:35.559 lost our way. And so we need to say to somebody, we need to call out and say, come alongside, 00:12:35.559 --> 00:12:41.319 or if you see somebody who's drifting and struggling, you need to go alongside them 00:12:41.319 --> 00:12:48.439 and call them back again to submit to Jesus. So it's more than just giving personal affirmation. 00:12:48.439 --> 00:12:53.039 And finally, in this little sequence, it's more than just inspiration. So people can 00:12:53.039 --> 00:12:56.679 be a great inspiration, and that can be quite encouraging, can't it? We see somebody and 00:12:56.679 --> 00:13:01.399 they're like awesome at football or whatever. Wow, amazing. I'm going to be like that too. 00:13:01.399 --> 00:13:07.279 They've inspired me. But again, we get to the end of ourselves because our heroes fail, 00:13:07.279 --> 00:13:13.639 don't they? They fail us at different times. And sometimes we just can't be like our heroes, 00:13:13.639 --> 00:13:21.799 which is rubbish, but it's true. So it doesn't, that's not enough if it's just about inspiration. 00:13:21.799 --> 00:13:28.359 I Googled encouraging people. I got all kinds of things, of course. And one of the things 00:13:28.359 --> 00:13:31.919 I got, actually, do you know what, most of the things that came up, the first kind of 00:13:31.919 --> 00:13:38.039 10 searches, Google searches, of encouraging people, was really interesting. It was basically 00:13:38.039 --> 00:13:44.359 lists of famous people who are inspiring. So there was quite a few that did the same 00:13:44.359 --> 00:13:49.639 thing. They would list a bunch of celebrities whose lives started out really in difficult 00:13:49.639 --> 00:13:56.399 circumstances, but who punched on through and have made it, like Shania Twain, apparently, 00:13:56.399 --> 00:14:03.480 had a really, really tough start to life. Jim Carrey, all people like this. And again, 00:14:03.480 --> 00:14:07.360 the problem with that, I mean, good for them, but the problem with that, of course, is then 00:14:07.360 --> 00:14:12.720 it's up to me. Okay, so they've done really well. They've fought against the odds and 00:14:12.720 --> 00:14:19.519 they've made it, and they're mega celebrities and they're wealthy. Now I got to do the same. 00:14:19.519 --> 00:14:26.240 Or feel like I've not made it in the same way that they have. Good for them to have 00:14:26.240 --> 00:14:32.240 made it. But again, if it's just that, it's all up to me. So it's more than just inspiration. 00:14:32.240 --> 00:14:36.319 Biblical encouragement, the kind of encouragement that the Bible consistently points out, the 00:14:36.319 --> 00:14:41.240 kind of encouragement or exhortation that is mentioned in this passage in Romans here, 00:14:41.240 --> 00:14:48.679 just as we open it up in this first half of the sermon, is where an individual rooted 00:14:48.679 --> 00:14:55.679 in the gospel, rooted in Jesus Christ, comes alongside another and encourages and exhorts 00:14:55.679 --> 00:15:05.279 and counsels and comforts and challenges to further that discipleship. To further that 00:15:05.279 --> 00:15:12.399 discipleship. So that by way of introduction, that by way of opening up just the theme and 00:15:12.399 --> 00:15:18.439 what kind of thing we're talking about here. I think it's more than, I was thinking about 00:15:18.440 --> 00:15:22.120 a few ways that this might look. It's more again than just a cheerleader, somebody who 00:15:22.120 --> 00:15:25.920 comes alongside and says, yeah, you're doing a great job. You're fine. Just keep going. 00:15:25.920 --> 00:15:31.160 That's kind of shallow, isn't it? It's also more than the kind of encouragement to use 00:15:31.160 --> 00:15:36.380 a kind of sporting analogy where you get those, you know, the crowds who lie in the roads 00:15:36.380 --> 00:15:41.680 of the great Tour de France events, cycling events, people who shout and cut it out, really, 00:15:41.680 --> 00:15:46.880 really spurring them on. There's a real exhortation there, faster, gone. But they're gone in a 00:15:46.879 --> 00:15:53.759 flash. The cyclist just passes them once and then they're gone. And I think it's more like, 00:15:53.759 --> 00:15:58.120 this is kind of imperfect as an example, but it's more like somebody setting out for a 00:15:58.120 --> 00:16:06.039 really long, challenging, like a cross channel swim. And you know, there's that boat there, 00:16:06.039 --> 00:16:10.320 just over the shoulder in the background a little bit, always there to come alongside 00:16:10.320 --> 00:16:16.200 though, to give them the encouragement that they need and to help them remember that they're 00:16:16.200 --> 00:16:21.720 going to the shore on the other side to keep going and to keep focused. And then they maybe 00:16:21.720 --> 00:16:25.480 hold back a bit and then they come alongside again when the strength is flagging, somebody 00:16:25.480 --> 00:16:31.520 who's there consistently and when needed and who keeps the focal point as the focal point 00:16:31.520 --> 00:16:41.000 as a consistent help to finish the task. So now what we'll do is look at a few different 00:16:41.000 --> 00:16:45.680 passages because the Bible's great. It gives us one particular, probably a load of different 00:16:45.679 --> 00:16:52.279 examples, but one particular character study throughout the book of Acts, somebody who 00:16:52.279 --> 00:16:57.319 is a real encourager and his name is Barnabas. So what I want to do now is just the texts 00:16:57.319 --> 00:17:03.319 are going to come up on the screens. And this will help us to sort of see a character study 00:17:03.319 --> 00:17:07.440 is great because it puts us in real life situations. What does it look like then to be somebody 00:17:07.440 --> 00:17:13.359 who is a biblical encourager? There are a few different examples here. First one is from 00:17:13.359 --> 00:17:18.039 Acts chapter four. So if we could put the first one up here. I'm just going to read these 00:17:18.039 --> 00:17:22.759 through and then pick out one particular thing from each and we'll move through thinking 00:17:22.759 --> 00:17:28.799 about Barnabas a little bit in this way. So from Acts four, there was not a needy person 00:17:28.799 --> 00:17:34.319 among them talking about the early days, if you like, of the Christian church after Jesus 00:17:34.319 --> 00:17:38.199 has ascended and the church is really just getting going. There was not a needy person 00:17:38.200 --> 00:17:44.480 among them for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds 00:17:44.480 --> 00:17:50.360 of what was sold and laid it at the apostles feet. And it was distributed to each as any 00:17:50.360 --> 00:17:56.640 had need. Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas, which means son 00:17:56.640 --> 00:18:03.720 of encouragement, a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought 00:18:03.720 --> 00:18:12.120 the money and laid it at the apostles feet. So here we meet Barnabas. Here we find out 00:18:12.120 --> 00:18:17.839 that his nickname was Barnabas. He was so known for being encouragement and encourager that 00:18:17.839 --> 00:18:24.279 that's the way they nicknamed him. And what's the first thing that we find him doing? This 00:18:24.279 --> 00:18:28.720 may be quite a familiar passage to you if you've been a Christian for a while and if 00:18:28.720 --> 00:18:33.680 you've maybe read about the days of the early church and how great and radical they were. 00:18:33.680 --> 00:18:41.880 Well, he's somebody who seeing the need of others sold from his excess and brought and 00:18:41.880 --> 00:18:48.440 gave the proceeds to the apostles to be given as needed. So what does that tell us? Because 00:18:48.440 --> 00:18:53.680 this is a, this first of all, isn't it? It's not about speech, it's about action. How encouraging 00:18:53.680 --> 00:19:00.560 were his actions? It tells us that he's more interested in kingdom work and in people because 00:19:00.559 --> 00:19:06.720 the kingdom is all about people than he is in his own personal gain, okay? Because he 00:19:06.720 --> 00:19:14.119 was prepared to do this. So this, by way of introduction to Barnabas. Okay, second passage. 00:19:14.119 --> 00:19:24.559 Comes from Acts chapter nine. Now, this describes a time when Saul had been converted. Saul, 00:19:24.559 --> 00:19:32.799 of course, was somebody who terrorized Christians. He had murderous intent towards believers. 00:19:32.799 --> 00:19:38.639 And yet his life is completely transformed. But you imagine being a Christian and hearing 00:19:38.639 --> 00:19:44.079 about the change in Saul's life. The guy, you're telling me the guy who tried to kill 00:19:44.079 --> 00:19:52.720 us is one of us and he wants to be friends with us. So this is kind of the background 00:19:52.720 --> 00:19:59.200 to the situation here. When he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. 00:19:59.200 --> 00:20:05.759 And they were all afraid of him because they didn't believe he was a disciple. But Barnabas 00:20:05.759 --> 00:20:12.000 took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen 00:20:12.000 --> 00:20:18.000 the Lord who spoke to him and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. 00:20:18.000 --> 00:20:24.279 So he went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord. Now, 00:20:24.279 --> 00:20:31.240 Saul, of course, because of the Lord's will was to become such a great preacher of the 00:20:31.240 --> 00:20:39.880 gospel. But being there in that moment, Barnabas didn't necessarily know that, but he saw something 00:20:39.880 --> 00:20:47.400 of the way in which the Lord had been at work in this man. And he was willing, he was willing 00:20:47.400 --> 00:20:54.519 to come alongside Saul, Paul, the one who people were, people were looking a bit, I 00:20:54.519 --> 00:20:58.920 can't say that. And if you like, put his arm around him, I don't know whether he did put 00:20:58.920 --> 00:21:04.720 his arm around him and usher him in to the company of believers in that sense, almost 00:21:04.720 --> 00:21:10.680 risking his own standing or reputation. He was willing to get alongside this man whom 00:21:10.680 --> 00:21:16.120 God had been so powerfully at work in who people were still so afraid of and bring him 00:21:16.119 --> 00:21:23.599 in, bring him into the company of believers. So if you like, at one level, his reputation, 00:21:23.599 --> 00:21:28.919 his own sense of who he was was on the line here. 00:21:28.919 --> 00:21:36.959 Third reading, Acts chapter 11. The report of this came to the ears of the church in 00:21:36.959 --> 00:21:42.879 Jerusalem and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. So Barnabas is commissioned to do a particular 00:21:42.880 --> 00:21:49.240 job, in other words, he's trusted by the church. When he came and saw the grace of God, he 00:21:49.240 --> 00:21:55.440 was glad and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose, 00:21:55.440 --> 00:21:59.880 for he was a good man full of the Holy Spirit and of faith, and a great many people were 00:21:59.880 --> 00:22:06.920 added to the Lord. So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he had found him, 00:22:06.920 --> 00:22:12.600 he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great 00:22:12.599 --> 00:22:19.480 many people and in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians. Now you see what's 00:22:19.480 --> 00:22:24.599 happening here, we're moving through the book of Acts, we're reading about the development 00:22:24.599 --> 00:22:29.279 of the Christian church, people are becoming Christians, which is what Jesus wanted to 00:22:29.279 --> 00:22:35.599 happen when he left, he commissioned his disciples to go and make disciples, and the Gospel is 00:22:35.599 --> 00:22:41.000 spreading. Now Barnabas is commissioned to go and speak to this community of people, 00:22:41.000 --> 00:22:45.599 and see what, see what, if we can flick back just a minute, if that's possible, see what 00:22:45.599 --> 00:22:48.599 happens when he goes and hears the good news about the Gospel. Now you may think this is 00:22:48.599 --> 00:22:55.680 just obvious, but when he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, he's delighted 00:22:55.680 --> 00:23:01.160 by the spread of the Gospel. Just notice that, that again is all about being rooted, personally 00:23:01.160 --> 00:23:07.559 rooted in and rooting for the kingdom of God. It's what delights him, it's what he wants 00:23:07.559 --> 00:23:14.759 to happen. Obviously he's been commissioned by the church to go and do this work, so he's 00:23:14.759 --> 00:23:18.119 a bit of a pivotal figure at this moment, but do you see what he does next, if we flip 00:23:18.119 --> 00:23:24.559 over to the second slide? Then he goes and gets Saul, why does he do that? Because he 00:23:24.559 --> 00:23:29.200 knows the value that Saul has, he knows that he's a skilled and a powerful preacher, so 00:23:29.200 --> 00:23:33.399 he's not afraid to go and get somebody else who's maybe a more impressive preacher than 00:23:33.400 --> 00:23:40.880 he is, he senses God is going to use, so in other words, he's prepared to take a step 00:23:40.880 --> 00:23:46.480 back and bring somebody else in, and the two of them there continue in ministry for the 00:23:46.480 --> 00:23:51.920 building up of the fellowship for a year. And again, this ministry flourishes as they 00:23:51.920 --> 00:23:57.040 work together for the sake of the Gospel. He's not all about the limelight, he's not 00:23:57.039 --> 00:24:08.559 about himself and his own ego. A great example there again. Okay, next example. Now I'm 00:24:08.559 --> 00:24:12.960 actually going to mention one that I've actually not put in the slides, forgive me. In Acts 00:24:12.960 --> 00:24:17.279 chapter 14, I didn't put this in the slides, but there's a pretty extraordinary account 00:24:17.279 --> 00:24:22.799 of Paul and Barnabas because really it's the kind of middle section of Acts picks up speed, 00:24:22.799 --> 00:24:29.639 they minister together a lot. Well, there's this really interesting incident where people 00:24:29.639 --> 00:24:34.279 see Paul and Barnabas and they think, wow, these guys are so impressive. They've got 00:24:34.279 --> 00:24:38.919 so much to say. We're really taken with the message that they're bringing to us and what 00:24:38.919 --> 00:24:44.519 they want to say to us, to the extent that they think they must be descendants of the 00:24:44.519 --> 00:24:51.200 gods. And what they say to them is that they call Barnabas Zeus, who's the father of the 00:24:51.200 --> 00:24:58.880 gods, and they call Paul Hermes, who is the son of the gods, and the messenger. So notice 00:24:58.880 --> 00:25:04.840 still in Acts is that slight distinction in the Barnabas is maybe seen as the older, 00:25:04.840 --> 00:25:10.640 more reverent one, and Paul is the dynamic one, the messenger, the one who comes speaking. 00:25:10.640 --> 00:25:15.400 But the reaction is key. They're horrified. They're absolutely horrified. They've got 00:25:15.400 --> 00:25:20.440 a potential position of power. There's a potential for them to be swayed off the path, but they're 00:25:20.440 --> 00:25:26.480 horrified at the thought that people would misconstrue what they're trying to do and 00:25:26.480 --> 00:25:30.480 who they are. And what they do is they point the people back to Jesus, back to God and 00:25:30.480 --> 00:25:37.600 who He really is. They want to put off themselves and they want to magnify God. Again, a fundamental 00:25:37.600 --> 00:25:42.279 characteristic of an encourager, an exhorter, somebody who's able to get alongside another 00:25:42.279 --> 00:25:47.880 Christian and build them up is that they want the glory of God, not their own renown. 00:25:47.880 --> 00:25:56.280 Okay, so the next example I did add to the slides. We'll read these words. After some 00:25:56.280 --> 00:26:02.560 days Paul said to Barnabas, let us return and visit the brothers in every city where 00:26:02.560 --> 00:26:09.560 we proclaim the word of the Lord and see how they are. Now, Barnabas wanted to take with 00:26:09.560 --> 00:26:17.720 them John called Mark, but Paul thought best not to take with them one who had withdrawn 00:26:17.720 --> 00:26:24.440 from them in Panphilia and had not gone with them to the work. And there arose a sharp 00:26:24.440 --> 00:26:30.519 disagreement so that they separated from each other, Paul and Barnabas. Barnabas took Mark 00:26:30.519 --> 00:26:36.880 with him and sailed away to Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and departed, having been commended 00:26:36.880 --> 00:26:43.759 by the brothers to the grace of the Lord. And he went through Cyria and Silicia, strengthening 00:26:43.759 --> 00:26:52.200 the churches. Okay, this is the second last example. This is a bit different. You've got 00:26:52.200 --> 00:26:58.879 these men who've been brought together, who are engaged in Kingdom ministry in dramatically 00:26:58.879 --> 00:27:04.720 exciting times to the point where Paul says, hey, we've come to the end of this missionary 00:27:04.720 --> 00:27:08.279 journey, let's go back the way and meet again some of the people that we've been meeting 00:27:08.279 --> 00:27:15.639 and hear how things are going. But they have a dispute to the extent that they actually 00:27:15.639 --> 00:27:22.839 separate in this particular instance. And that's because Paul wasn't sure about Mark. 00:27:22.839 --> 00:27:29.920 Now, Mark previously had let them down. And Paul's thinking is, you know what, we need 00:27:29.920 --> 00:27:34.759 spot on people here, we need people we can rely on. I need to know that the people who 00:27:34.759 --> 00:27:39.599 are going to go with us are going to remain faithful. Mark, let us down. I don't think 00:27:39.599 --> 00:27:45.000 he's the right guy to go on this trip. But there's a pretty valid position that Paul's 00:27:45.000 --> 00:27:52.359 got there. And Mark, who happens to, Barnabas, who happens to be Mark's cousin, is willing 00:27:52.359 --> 00:27:59.559 to say, no, I want to give him another chance. I want to bring him with us and encourage 00:27:59.559 --> 00:28:05.559 him. I want him to come with us. He'll be useful. And they can't agree to the extent 00:28:05.559 --> 00:28:10.839 that they separate. Now, I'm not going to go into the separation. Suffice to say that 00:28:10.839 --> 00:28:16.779 both of them continued on different paths, if you like, of ministry. But it's really 00:28:16.779 --> 00:28:22.799 significant to see one final quote, which we're going to put up just now, later on in 00:28:22.799 --> 00:28:27.960 Paul's writing when he writes to Timothy, because he speaks later, further down the 00:28:27.960 --> 00:28:33.559 line, about Mark, who he had such reservations about. He really, really, really wasn't sure 00:28:33.559 --> 00:28:40.440 about Mark. And yet, later on in his ministry, he writes these words, do your best to come 00:28:40.440 --> 00:28:47.200 to me soon. For Dimas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. 00:28:47.200 --> 00:28:55.640 Christians has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. Luke alone is with me. Get Mark and bring 00:28:55.640 --> 00:29:01.160 him with you, for he is very useful for me in ministry. 00:29:01.160 --> 00:29:08.360 So here's the thing. The dispute that had arisen between Barnabas and Paul over Mark, 00:29:08.360 --> 00:29:13.780 because Paul really wasn't so sure about Mark, that Barnabas had come on and wanted to bring 00:29:13.780 --> 00:29:20.280 Mark with him. Maybe I'm reading between the lines here, but what happens is that Mark 00:29:20.279 --> 00:29:27.920 goes on in the faith, he's discipled, he's built up to the extent where the now renowned 00:29:27.920 --> 00:29:32.200 powerful preacher Paul says, you know what, bring Mark, because he'll be really, really 00:29:32.200 --> 00:29:37.200 useful. Now, is that the impact of Barnabas, the one who was willing, maybe again to put 00:29:37.200 --> 00:29:42.319 his reputation on the line, certainly to bring along and give a second chance to somebody 00:29:42.319 --> 00:29:51.039 who had previously failed. Barnabas, the encourager, is willing to see somebody imperfect, had 00:29:51.039 --> 00:29:56.279 let other folks down in the past, but he's willing to give him another chance. He's willing 00:29:56.279 --> 00:30:01.039 to spend time with him, to seek to bring him on again in the Lord. For Paul, it wasn't 00:30:01.039 --> 00:30:05.119 right. Paul needed people who were ready to go right in that moment, but Barnabas was 00:30:05.119 --> 00:30:14.559 prepared, I think, to be with him, to be alongside him and to encourage him. And praise God, 00:30:14.559 --> 00:30:20.519 because ultimately he's the one who works in his people. Mark grew in the faith and 00:30:20.519 --> 00:30:27.399 flourished and became so useful later on down the line in his life. So these are the examples 00:30:27.399 --> 00:30:30.639 I wanted to just bring out. I hope they've been useful. They're just something of what 00:30:30.640 --> 00:30:36.440 it looks like to be an encourager. That's what he was known for. Somebody asked me at 00:30:36.440 --> 00:30:43.160 a camp I was at last year, how can we encourage you ministers? How can I be a person in a church 00:30:43.160 --> 00:30:48.840 who's an encouragement? And I didn't give a very good answer actually at the time. I 00:30:48.840 --> 00:30:54.800 didn't really know what to say. But I think those kinds of characteristics and qualities 00:30:54.799 --> 00:31:01.480 in Barnabas, because of his, the depth of his faith in Jesus and because of his love 00:31:01.480 --> 00:31:09.279 for the name of Jesus and because of his concern for the kingdom of Jesus, are such a great 00:31:09.279 --> 00:31:19.000 starting point to be an encourager. The Christian path is a long haul for us, isn't it? If you're 00:31:19.000 --> 00:31:26.359 a believer today, you may be feeling that and you may be feel the need for encouragement. 00:31:26.359 --> 00:31:34.119 It's a long haul. And you know, God has left us not alone, but he's left us with his word 00:31:34.119 --> 00:31:41.279 and his spirit who indwells us and each other. Never forget that. You know, we're not, we 00:31:41.279 --> 00:31:47.559 don't just gather here on a Sunday for a wee while and then go off and do our thing again. 00:31:47.559 --> 00:31:55.720 He's given you the potential, he's given you the potential to be deeply spiritually encouraging 00:31:55.720 --> 00:32:03.599 by his grace, to the praise of his glory to another believer. And he's given you the potential 00:32:03.599 --> 00:32:09.359 to receive encouragement. Sometimes that's the hard part. Sometimes that's the part we 00:32:09.359 --> 00:32:16.119 don't like very much because it involves vulnerability and honesty. And we'd maybe rather keep somebody 00:32:16.119 --> 00:32:23.239 at a bit of a distance and say, we're fine. I'm called to give encouragement in different 00:32:23.239 --> 00:32:26.679 ways. We're all called to give encouragement to different people in different ways. And 00:32:26.679 --> 00:32:33.119 we're called to receive encouragement and not be proud when we need that. I'll leave 00:32:33.119 --> 00:32:40.279 you with a verse from Thessalonians. In 1 Thessalonians chapter five, again, this is 00:32:40.279 --> 00:32:45.000 just to kind of look up and see again the wonder of the calling that we have. It's like 00:32:45.000 --> 00:32:50.079 that vision of the mount, the kind of the snow top mountain range that the chap was 00:32:50.079 --> 00:32:55.359 looking at in captivity. What is the vision that we have, the vision that we have that 00:32:55.359 --> 00:33:01.279 keeps us going and which we use to encourage one another with, the calling that we have. 00:33:01.279 --> 00:33:07.400 In 1 Thessalonians, he died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep, we may live 00:33:07.400 --> 00:33:17.160 together with him. Isn't that astonishing? We may live together with him. Therefore, 00:33:17.160 --> 00:33:24.560 encourage one another and build each other up just as in fact you are doing. So may God 00:33:24.560 --> 00:33:33.560 help us do that because he wants us to. He's called us to do that. I'm going to pray. 00:33:33.559 --> 00:33:50.679 Father, we are so grateful tonight that our salvation is not based on our works that really 00:33:50.679 --> 00:33:56.279 would lead us to despair because we can't do that. We thank you that it's based on what 00:33:56.279 --> 00:34:04.920 Jesus has done. But we recognize that you, by your grace, you work in us by your spirit 00:34:04.920 --> 00:34:11.840 to keep us, to sustain us. But you also call us to be encouragers to one another and you 00:34:11.840 --> 00:34:19.159 charge us with this as well, that we should build one another up in the gospel. I pray 00:34:19.159 --> 00:34:23.440 that you would help us to do that, that we would take the opportunities we have to be 00:34:23.440 --> 00:34:32.840 more than just acquaintances passing on occasional Sundays and that we would be willing to receive 00:34:32.840 --> 00:34:41.559 encouragement or exhortation, challenge, counsel and comfort when we need it. And so Lord, we 00:34:41.559 --> 00:34:47.039 pray that you would build us up by being at work amongst us and making us into this kind 00:34:47.039 --> 00:34:55.360 of community for the glory of your name and the spread of your kingdom, we ask. In Jesus' 00:34:55.360 --> 00:35:17.840 name, amen.