Take your Bibles and turn to Acts 9:27-31. Two weeks ago we camped-out on 9:26. We learned that after being saved and engaged in gospel ministry for 3 years Saul returned to Jerusalem and tried to join the church but was rejected because the Jerusalem Christians did not believe he was a true Christian. They may have thought that he was a wolf in sheep’s attempting to gain access so he could destroy the church from within. Saul had a nasty reputation as a cruel dude (Eagles plug) because he was a persecutor of the church. But that was three years prior to this. Saul was now a changed man and many-many people were aware of that. They witnessed how he turned from persecution of the gospel to proclamation of the gospel.

I believe the Jerusalem Christians had been informed of these things but their past experiences with Saul kept them in a state of fear. In other words, they were afraid of what Saul could do to them. One man however decided to take a chance on Saul. His name was Barnabas. We were first introduced to Barnabas back in Acts 4:36-37. It reads, “Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet.”

Barnabas was highly respected by the apostles. He had proven himself as a genuine and authentic man of Christ. Barnabas was generous and encouraging. Barnabas was the type of man that people took seriously. He was trustworthy, wise, and compassionate. He was sincere. When he spoke, he meant what he said. His yes was yes and his no was no. He wasn’t wishy-washy. Wishy-washy people usually do not make good encouragers. Barnabas was solid. He was so solid that the apostles changed his name from Joseph to Barnabas which means “son of encouragement” in Greek. Let’s read our main passage, pray, and examine/apply it together.

Read Acts 9:27-31

Pray

Examine/apply

Verse

27 But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus.

Commentary

Luke begins with, “But Barnabas”. The first thing we see here is a point of contrast. Luke does this all the time. We’re becoming more and more accustomed to his writing style. Saul had been denied acceptance into the fellowship at Jerusalem because they feared him. And then Luke writes, “But Barnabas”. It’s as if Luke is saying, “One man did something different, one man stepped up.” Now who else was present here when these things happened? There were regular believers present. Not all of them fled to Samaria, Damascus, and Antioch of Syria when the persecution broke out. Men like Barnabas stayed behind. Who else was there? The twelve apostles were present. They remained in Jerusalem after the persecution broke out. It’s incredible to think that the apostles feared Saul. Especially when you consider how bold and fearless they had been in the past. They preached the gospel in front of the Sanhedrin telling them to repent!

But the truth is all men are subject to fear and weakness. It doesn’t matter who they are. And because of this we shouldn’t get destroyed when they fail us. We shouldn’t get destroyed when they don’t come through or meet our expectations. Flesh is weak. Our expectations should be seasoned with the knowledge that flesh is weak. The greatest men of the Bible, the heroes of faith, displayed fleshly weakness. Listen to these examples:

Noah was a blameless upright man who and displayed extraordinary faith by obeying God and building an ark to preserve his family. When the water receded he constructed an altar and worshiped the Lord. He became a farmer and specialized in wine production. One night he and got completely drunk. His drunkenness led to nakedness (as it often does especially on college campuses). Noah was so drunk he passed out. While lying naked and passed out in his tent his son Ham came in and looked him over or did something else. What he did, when Noah came to, he was infuriated. My point is: Noah may have been a hero of the faith but he was also week, imperfect, and fallible.

Abraham displayed extraordinary faith. He left his homeland to pursue the Promised Land. When God tested him by commanding him to sacrifice his son Isaac he obeyed and tried to do it. But God provided the sacrifice. Abraham is the father of the Jewish people. And yet, out of weakness, fear and distrust, he lied to kings about his beautiful wife and gave her to them. The covenant that God made with Abraham included his wife which means that when he attempted to give her to other men he was trying dispose of God’s covenant promises. Abraham may have been a hero of the faith but he was also weak, imperfect, and fallible.

Moses is regarded by the Jews to be the cornerstone of their faith. He is held in highest esteem. He was an extraordinary man of faith. He brought the Israelites out of Egypt.

He parted the Red Sea. He met with God several times at Mount Sinai. He was given the Ten Commandments by God and commanded to make a covenant with the Israelites on God’s behalf. He led the Israelites in the wilderness for 40 years. There was no one like Moses. And yet, he disobeyed God by performing a miracle in a way that was contrary to the way God commanded him. And because of this he was forbidden to cross the Jordan River to enter into the land that he had spent nearly half of his life leading the Israelites towards. Moses was a hero of the faith but he was also weak, imperfect, and fallible.

David is regarded as Israel’s all-time greatest “earthly” king. Under his reign the land prospered in unprecedented ways. No enemy nation could stand against David and his army. David’s efforts and achievements lent to the peace and prosperity of his predecessors kingdom. David possessed the type of faith we all long to have. His faith was bold, courageous, compassionate, patient, empathetic, and even tender. His faith produced radical obedience. David was called “A man after God’s own heart”. He wrote half the Psalms. And yet, David lusted after a married woman, had an affair with her, got her pregnant, and killed her husband in an effort to cover it up. David’s sin with Bathsheba caused the glory of the Lord to leave his kingdom. Glory, honor, and blessings were exchanged for judgment, death, tragedy, disorder, and rebellion. David was a hero of the faith but he was also weak, imperfect, and fallible.

Out of all the people of the Bible, out of all the heroes of the faith, there stands only one man who never succumbed to weakness, fear, and sin. Only one man who was completely unwavering, steadfast, resolute, unshakable, obedient, and perfect. He is the God/Man, the Lord Jesus Christ. All of the imperfect heroes of the faith point to the ultimate hero of the faith, the Perfect One, Jesus Christ. He is the only one that we can truly bank on. He is the only one that will never fail us. I love what Driscoll wrote in his book entitled “Doctrine”.

“Jesus is the better Noah who brings judgment of sin, salvation by grace to the family of God, and a new world free of sin and its effects. Jesus is a better Abraham, the blessing to the nations of the earth. Jesus is the better Moses as God’s prophet who fulfilled the law for us, allows God’s wrath to pass over us because of his shed blood, conquered our pharaoh of Satan, redeemed us from sin, and journeys with us toward home despite our sin and grumbling. And Jesus is a better David who is seated on a throne ruling as the King of kings and is coming again to establish His eternal and global kingdom of peace and prosperity.”

Now out of this entire group of apostles and Christians there was only one man that was truly like the Lord Jesus at that particular moment in that he had no fear. And that was Barnabas. I Barnabas’ sense of security, value, and identity were drawn from the Lord and that enabled him to live a risky life without fear.

Barnabas knew that if Saul was a wolf in sheep’s clothing the most he could take from him was his physical freedom and maybe even his physical life. He knew that Saul could never take away what the Lord had died and resurrected to secure for him. He knew that the salvation of the Lord was imperishable, incorruptible, and out of the reach of every enemy and principality. Barnabas showed that he valued his salvation more than his own safety, life, health, and freedom. While the others were fearful and guarded, Luke writes, “But Barnabas”. And what did Barnabas do? He met with Saul. The two of them had a conversation. Saul testified about his encounter with the Lord Jesus on the Damascus Road. He told him that the Lord spoke to him and changed him.

Saul told Barnabas about how he went from persecuting the cause of Christ to boldly proclaiming the cause of Christ in Damascus. Barnabas believed him. He believed that he was sincere. He could tell by the way Saul spoke. Three years prior Saul was breathing out threats against the church and now he was breathing out praises to the Lord! Interestingly, one of the first things we notice about a new believer is their speech.

- Their profanity usually ceases or is reduced.

- They talk about church.

- They talk about the Lord.

- They talk about the Bible.

- They talk about ministry experiences.

- They talk about theology.

- They talk about important cultural issues and hot-topics.

- They talk about their faith and the gospel.

Barnabas could tell that Saul was different by his speech. After meeting with Saul he became convinced and took him before the apostles. While before them it says he “declared”. Barnabas didn’t sheepishly present Saul as a true believer. He didn’t hem-haw around. He didn’t make suggestions about the legitimacy of Saul’s faith. He “declared” that Saul was good to go. The text seems to imply that he valiantly asserted that Saul was legit and that he based his assertion on his own reputation, authority and trustworthiness. In other words, Barnabas put his neck on the line for Saul. Well the apostles believed Barnabas and they welcomed Saul at once. Look at verse 28:

Verse

28 So he went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord.

Commentary

Saul was welcomed in. He came and went as he pleased. Where were they stationed? We’re not absolutely certain but I suspect that they were still using the Upper Room.

When Saul was out and about what was he doing? It says that he was boldly preaching the name of the Lord. Saul was now doing in Jerusalem what he had done in Damascus. Where in Jerusalem was he preaching the name of Christ? Was is at the place where Peter and John preached, Solomon’s Portico? No, that place had been shut down by the Sanhedrin. Look at verse 29.

Verse

29 And he spoke and disputed against the Hellenists.

Commentary

Saul preached Christ at the same Hellenistic synagogues that Stephen preached at. Saul had literally taken up the preaching mantle of the one whom he had previously executed. He also became an apologist like Stephen. It says he, “disputed against the Hellenists.”

Saul basically went right into the very synagogues he used to hang out in and argued for the name of Christ against his old colleagues and comrades. Saul probably admitted before them that he had been wrong and that they needed to follow his example and repent. They had to be perplexed. They must have thought to themselves, “What! Has this guy lost his mind?! The same demon that possessed Jesus has possessed our old colleague, it must be Beelzebub!” Now I suspect that these Hellenists could not withstand Saul just as they could not withstand Stephen. The question then becomes did he persuade them? We’re they converted? Did they repent of their rejection and give themselves wholeheartedly to Jesus Christ? Look at the rest of verse 29. It says, “They repented and heaven rejoiced!” Wait, it doesn’t say that. It says, “But they were seeking to kill him.”

They didn’t repent. Instead, they hardened their hearts and made it their goal to kill their old colleague. They basically said, “Oh you want to be like Stephen and come in here and try to make us look like fools as he did, we’ll guess what, we’ll kill you too!” Notice how it says “seeking”. Seeking means on-going. While Saul was in the community they were perpetually looking for an opportunity to put him to death. The Jerusalem Hellenists had become like the Damascus Hellenists. Their mission was to stamp out Saul any way possible. We read a few weeks ago that Saul narrowly escaped from Damascus. A handful of Christians devised a plan to lower him down in a basket though a hole in the perimeter wall in the middle of the night. Check out verse 30 to see how the believers at Jerusalem dealt with the threat. Look at it with me:

Verse

30 And when the brothers learned this, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.

Commentary

Saul was headed for the same fate as Stephen and it wouldn’t have taken long for them to find, capture, and kill him. But a handful of Christian brothers determined that the best way to protect Saul was to get him out of there. They took Saul and traveled 60 miles north to the port city of Caesarea. From Caesarea they sent him another 300 miles north to Tarsus which was his hometown. Interestingly, Saul spent only 15 days in Jerusalem (Gal 1:18).

In a 15 day period He:

- Entered Jerusalem

- Got rejected

- Met with Barnabas

- Got accepted

- Went in and out amongst the church members

- Preached the gospel to the Hellenists and his old comrades

- Left Jerusalem

Galatians 1:19 says that over those 15 days he spent time with the Apostle Peter and with James the brother of Jesus who became the pastor of the Jerusalem church. For whatever reason Saul did not interact with the other apostles. They might have been busy ministering to others or something, we don’t know. What did Saul do after arriving at Tarsus? Some say that he stepped away from ministry and laid low as a tent maker. MacArthur wrote,

“Thus did Saul disappear from the scene for a few years. During that period, however, he was far from idle. Between this time and the time Barnabas found him in Tarsus and brought him to Antioch (Acts 11:25-26), he was aggressively doing what the Lord called him to do. According to Galatians 1:21, he “went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia.” At least some of the churches of that region mentioned in Acts 15:23 must have been founded by him in those years.”

Let’s look to see what happened next in our last verse, verse 31.

Verse

31 So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.

Commentary

Luke tells us that after Saul departed the church throughout the entire region experienced a time of peace (unity), growth, and multiplication. What contributed to these things? I’ve got 5 contributors:

1. Saul was no longer a persecutor of the church.

2. Saul was no longer present stirring things up with the Hellenists.

3. There were political changes that made a difference.

The compliant Pilate was removed and replaced by a new governor who put additional restrictions on the Jews which limited their actions against the church. Herod Agrippa’s territory was expanded and he partnered with the new governor.

These three things made a difference. But the church can make progress without them because they’re external things. The primary contributors are found in the second half of verse 31. A church cannot experience peace (unity), growth, and multiplication without them.

4. The believers walked in the fear of the Lord.

According to the Scriptures, what is the beginning of wisdom? Proverbs 9:10 says, “It is the fear of the Lord.” So what we see here is a wise and knowledgeable church because they feared the Lord. A church that walks in the fear of the Lord, in wisdom, and in knowledge is a blessed church and it will be a blessing to their community. A church that does not walk in the fear the Lord, in wisdom and in knowledge is a hindrance to their community. How did these scattered Christians and small churches learn to fear the Lord? What were they doing back in Jerusalem before being scattered? They were devoted to the apostle’s teachings, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread (communion), and to prayer. These believers had an amazing foundation laid by the apostles.

Their devotion to the important things helped them to mature and become doctrinally sound, gospel-centered, theological, and missional. And this was during a time when illiteracy was rampant! What’s out excuse? We have insane technology, endless resources, schools, classes, studies, and so on. And yet:

- Biblical ignorance is rampant

- Gospel ignorance is rampant

- Health and wealth is rampant

- Self-help is rampant

- Self-worship is rampant

- Moral Therapeutic Deism is rampant

- Consumerism is rampant

In comparison to first century Christians, the majority of US Christians could not hold a candle to them. How do we get there? Is it even possible? Certainly. Restoration or reformation begins with the fear of the Lord. And next we must diligently devote ourselves to the very Word of God and to the fellowship of believers, to the sacraments, and to prayer. There is one more thing that led to the early church’s peace (unity), growth, and multiplication. We must devote ourselves to it as well.

5. The believers walked in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.

Walking in the comfort of the Holy Spirit basically means to rely the Holy Spirit. Comfort from the Holy Spirit can only come if you’re relying on the Holy Spirit. It can only come if you’re interacting with the Spirit regularly. Seeking Him daily. Seeking His power. Seeking His guidance and leadership. We rely on food, water, and air for our physical survival. We should rely on the Holy Spirit for our spiritual survival. God the Father gave us the Holy Spirit as gracious gift.

Listen to some of the things the Holy Spirit does for us:

1. The Holy Spirit dwells in us (Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 3:16; 2 Tim. 1:14; John 14:17).

2. The Holy Spirit guides us into all truth (John 16:13).

3. The Holy Spirit leads us (Rom. 8:14; Gal. 5:18; Matt. 4:1; Luke 4:1).

4. The Holy Spirit sanctifies us (2 Thess. 2:13; 1 Pet. 1:2; Rom. 5:16).

5. The Holy Spirit empowers us (Luke 4:14; 24:49; Rom. 15:19; Acts 1:8).

6. The Holy Spirit bears witness in us that we are children of God (Rom. 8:16).

7. The Holy Spirit washes and renews us (Titus 3:5).

8. The Holy Spirit seals us unto the day of redemption (Eph. 1:13; 4:30).

9. The Holy Spirit reveals the deep things of God to us (1 Cor. 2:10).

10. The Holy Spirit strengthens our spirits (Eph. 3:16).

11. The Holy Spirit enables us to obey the truth (1 Pet. 1:22).

12. The Holy Spirit comforts us (Acts 9:31).

If we are to be a church that experiences peace (unity), growth, and multiplication we must rely on the Holy Spirit. Fully. And we must fear the Lord. Only then will we begin to have the necessary wisdom and knowledge to make right biblical choices that honor God and advance His kingdom. Only then. May we, as a local body, continue to commit ourselves, in a greater way, to the Word of God, to one another in fellowship, to the sacraments, to prayer, to the fear of the Lord, and to reliance on the Holy Spirit. And may we marvel at the goodness of our God as He blesses our church with great peace and unity, growth, and multiplication.

Amen