The Outreach of the Church

Acts 11:21-30; 12:24; 13:4

GOLDEN TEXT: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations.”—Matthew 28:19

THE true spirit of Christianity is revealed in the attitude of Barnabas, as related in today’s lesson. Following the death of Stephen, the first Christian martyr, persecution against the church continued, causing a scattering of the disciples and also a turning of their efforts in the direction of the Gentiles. In Antioch quite a number of Greeks believed and turned to the Lord. A report of this reached the church at Jerusalem, and Barnabas was sent to Antioch to investigate. The account states that upon reaching Antioch and seeing “the grace of God,” Barnabas “was glad.” Would that all of the Lord’s people might have this broadness of vision and largeness of heart!

The heart of Barnabas had been enlarged by the Gospel, and he rejoiced to learn that it was reaching some who at one time were outside the circle of God’s special favor. A knowledge of God’s plan should always have this effect upon those to whom it is given. While for a time [until the end of the seventy weeks of special favor (Dan. 9:25-27)] the message was confined to the natural seed of Abraham, after that the commission was widened to include all nations—the whole world. It has never been restricted by God since, and any one who has a knowledge of the plan of God and by human philosophy wants to keep it to himself, has failed to appreciate the real spirit of the message. In such a case the seed has not fallen on good ground.

The original statement of the Gospel, in the promise made to Abraham, reveals its true spirit. It called for the blessing of “all the families of the earth.” Anything less than a worldwide vision of responsibility in connection with the Gospel indicates a failure properly to appreciate the truth, a shrunken condition of heart and soul that causes one to imagine himself to be an almost exclusive favorite of heaven, and inclined to look with disfavor upon those who have a wider vision of the truth and its service.

Barnabas was glad when he learned that the Greeks were embracing the truth. Are we glad when we hear of others today who are coming to a knowledge of the truth? If we are like Barnabas, we will be glad, otherwise we may be among those who criticize and condemn those who try to interest others, and may attempt to relegate to an inferior position in God’s plan those who do “come into the truth” at this time. It is well to remember that God will count worthy to share in the blessing of all the families of the earth in the Millennium those who lay down their lives in an endeavor to carry the blessings of the truth to as many as possible now.

Our lesson states that Barnabas was “a good man,” and full of the Holy Spirit. He was good because he was filled with the Holy Spirit, and it was because he was a “good man” that he rejoiced to find so many in Antioch accepting the truth. Nor did he in any way try to discourage the newly interested, but on the contrary exhorted them to faithfulness. “that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord.”

From Antioch, Barnabas went to Tarsus to seek Paul. Finding him, they returned to Antioch together, and remained there laboring with the ecclesia for an entire year, and “taught much people.” Then these two were sent to Jerusalem as messengers to carry material aid to their famine-stricken brethren in Judea.

When they returned to Antioch the church had developed so well that it had a number of local brethren who were able to carry on with the ministry in that district. So by vote of the congregation Paul and Barnabas were sent out into wider fields of service. Here again we find manifested the true spirit of Christianity—the spirit which prompts consecrated believers to think of those outside their immediate fellowship.

There is a lesson here for the larger ecclesias of today. An ecclesia which has a number of elders should be glad to share these servants with others. Not only should they be willing to part with their services for a time, but they should be glad for the privilege of helping to defray their expenses in traveling to other fields of service. That was the spirit of the early church, and it should be the spirit of the brethren today.

Brethren who are capable of serving might well seek the fields where they are most needed, rather than seek the fellowship of ecclesias which are already well supplied with elders. We believe that brethren qualified for eldership, and who need to “make tents” part of the time, would be blessed by the Lord in seeking employment in districts where their spare time could be used in assisting smaller groups of the consecrated which need their help. This is the example set before us by the church at Antioch.

QUESTIONS:

Why did Jesus at one time limit the preaching of the Gospel to the “lost sheep of the house of Israel”?

Is the spirit of Christ and the Gospel ever a restricted one?

What lessons may we draw from the example of the church at Antioch?

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