A Widening Field of Service

Acts 13:1-5, 13, 14, 44-46, 48, 49; 14:26, 27

GOLDEN TEXT: “It pleased God … to reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen.”—Galatians 1:15,16

TODAY’S lesson covers incidents in the first of Paul’s three great missionary journeys, of which we have the record in The Acts. In our previous lesson we have noted Barnabas and Paul meeting with the brethren at Antioch for some time, in the worship of God and the study of his Word. The result of these studies was to develop the church, and to bring it to the point of considering and praying about means for the service of the truth—the spread of the Gospel.

There were a number of prophets (public orators) and teachers in the church, and evidently they began to think how they might be used to the glory of God and the blessing of others, as they themselves had been blessed with the truth. This is always the case with those who receive the truth into good and honest hearts. Properly enough, they desire to feed thereon themselves and to grow strong in the Lord; but just so surely as the truth is received, with its spirit, it gives strength and a desire to use that strength and knowledge of the truth for the blessing and benefit of others.

The church at Antioch was evidently liberally supplied with teachers. Evidently, too, they had no disposition to hold down or curtail the endeavors of any who manifested ability in the Lord’s service. On the contrary, they began to look about them for larger fields of usefulness. We are told that they “ministered to the Lord, and fasted”—and we may be sure that they prayed. We are told that the Holy Spirit directed them to set apart “Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.”

It is worthy of note that the Holy Spirit sought out the best in the church at Antioch for this missionary service, thus letting the spirit of self-sacrifice prevail. Probably none of the teachers remaining were the equals in ability of Barnabas and Paul. This does not mean that we are to be careless of the interests of the home congregation in serving others, so as to leave ourselves unprovided for in spiritual matters; but in making our sacrifices to the Lord and his service we are to seek to give the best we have. In all probability the other members of the Antioch church were all the more energized, stimulated, and became the more useful.

Then we read that, “When they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.” In our haste some of us may pay too little heed to incidentals of this kind; there might be today a disposition to take a vote on what we believe to be the Lord’s will, to shake hands and bid the brethren farewell, without the fasting, and praying, and “laying on of hands.”

We may be inclined to ask, What good would these things do? Undoubtedly they would do good: they would serve to impress upon all—the missionaries going forth and the brethren who remained—the importance of the Lord’s service, and the fact that those who remained were having a share with those who went.

The laying on of hands by the congregation, or perhaps through their representatives or the elders, would not, of course, constitute an ordination to preach. These two brethren had been for some time among the recognized teachers and prophets of the Antioch church. It evidently meant a recognition by all concerned that Barnabas and Paul were going forth as representatives of the church on their missionary tour, as well as, primarily, the representatives of the Lord.

It probably indicated that the brethren of the church accepted responsibility for their financial needs, and would thus be co-laborers with them—sharing as well, through sympathy and prayers, in their hardship, necessities, persecutions, and also in their joys. Accordingly, we find that after this missionary tour the two brethren returned to Antioch and made their report to the church.

This first missionary tour of Paul may have occupied about one year. The record is given in Acts, chapters thirteen and fourteen. It was a comparatively short journey, and did not include any cities of Europe. As those pilgrims started their tour they could little imagine what it would hold for them: how much joy as they found the Lord had “opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles”; how much of hatred their message would arouse among the professed followers of God; how much suffering they would be called upon to endure.

On their return journey Paul and Barnabas visited the places where they had recently proclaimed the Gospel, “Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.” (Acts 14:21,22) Evangelists on their outward journey, they were also pastors. They had faithfully proclaimed the message and had no expectation of converting all the people, at those cities. God was adding “to the church daily such as should be saved,” and now they contented themselves on the return journey with the work of upbuilding the believers, encouraging them to make their calling and election sure.—Acts 2:47

QUESTIONS:

Under what circumstances did Paul undertake his first missionary journey, and who accompanied him?

What were the results of the trip, to himself and in the cities he visited?

What kind of ministry received special attention on the return journey?

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