Missions Paul

A good person 
Acts 11: 24

“He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.”
In every translation of the Bible you will read the words, ‘he was a good man.’ You see, there isn’t any other way to express it, Barnabas was a good guy.
A lot of the outcomes of your life are actually not dependent on your gifting and ability but whether or not you are a good man or a good woman. 
A good person isn’t a perfect person, they have just learnt how to apologise and they do this without hesitation.

A good person is loving towards God and loving towards people, out of their mouths are words of love, their actions are love and kindness.

A good person is reliable, can be trusted because they trust wholeheartedly in God who protects and guides them.

A good person speaks positively, smiles and doesn’t take themselves too seriously.

A good person puts the other first ahead of their own gain, they are the encouragers not discouragers or rebukers.
Lord make me good! 

Arrive
Acts 11: 23
“When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts.”
How did he know that God was moving in Antioch? How could Barnabas tell that the reports were accurate? 

He simply had to go there to see for himself.

Sometimes you just have to arrive. You have to be there in the middle of the situation to be able to ascertain for yourself what is actually happening.

Someone asked me yesterday if I thought that what was happening in a certain place in the world was actually true, was this God? I had to say I did not know because I had not visited. 

The leaders in Jerusalem heard and then they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 

The problem is that we are not people who arrive, we are pilgrims in this land, our arrival day is scheduled for heaven. As a result we often miss the works of God because we never stop to look for them. 

May God send you today into areas where He is doing something, where a person may already be drawing near to Him, so that you can encourage that person.

May God send you to find the evidence of His hand, His work. So that you can say ‘Yes this is God, I was there.’

Arrive, stop, listen and look.

Tell someone
Acts 11:22

“News of this reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch.”
Are you a gossiper of the good news?

Are you the messenger that runs to people far and wide to tell them of what is happening in a certain place?

Do you speak well of what God is doing in your church?

Today find something good that God is doing and go tell someone. 

Get on to Facebook, Twitter, or whatever else you want to use and tell the world. Pick up a phone, write a letter, go and see someone. But make sure you choose who you tell wisely. Find someone influential. 

Someone had gone to the leaders in Jerusalem and told them of what God was doing in Antioch. Those leaders then took up the story, they became part of the next chapter by sending Barnabas to go and encourage the new believers.

You don’t know what will happen next if you tell someone influential what God is doing. That person may engage with the story and take it to the next level. I was recently in an African conference where there were more preachers than the schedule supposedly would allow for and each one was introduced as someone who was going to take us to the next level. What this meant was that the schedule became not even a guide of what was going to happen but not worth the paper it had been written on. Whenever we heard ‘now we are going to go to another level’ we knew another preacher would preach. I must confess I was quite happy to remain on the level I was at but then I am not that holy!

However my African friends had a point, we do need people to take us and our story to the next level. But how can they if they do not know? What has been missed because we just did not speak up?

News reached the ears of the church in Jerusalem … Let us make sure the news reaches. 

Do you have someone to tell today?

Derren Brown proves what we already know!
Acts 11:21

“The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.”
Fevers leave when the Lord’s hand is with us. Matthew 8:15

Dead girls rise when the Lord’s hand stretches out. Matthew 9:25

Failing sea-walkers are rescued by the reach of the Lord’s hand. Matthew 14:31

And we could go on ….

Is the Lord’s hand with us?

If it is then things happen.

You don’t need the Lord’s hand to draw a crowd.

Nor to have a church service enjoyed by all.

You don’t need the Lord’s hand to manipulate and entertain.

You can have many committee meetings and other type of meetings titling them whatever you want. You can have these without the Lord’s hand.

You don’t need the Lord’s hand for prayer meetings asking God to move His hand.

You don’t need the Lord’s hand to plan all that is going to happen in the Church.

But now stay with me. You don’t need the Lord’s hand for fevers to leave, for healings and miracles.

Last night I switched off the channel I was watching because I couldn’t watch it anymore. Derren Brown mimicking healing by showing how he could heal people through manipulation or magic. Why? To prove that the Church isn’t using divine healing but manipulated healing. He successfully demonstrated his point. People were healed and they testified and he thanked the Holy Spirit having asked the Father to help him, his prayers said in mimicry. What did he prove? Nothing that we who believe in divine healing don’t already accept.

There has been in the world since day one of the Church and before its birth, healers who received their powers from a variety of ways. They healed through the demonic, through manipulation and also through the Lord’s hand. These ways are found in the Church and outside the Church. His form of atheism proved that manipulation can work. But we already know this. I could take him to the witchdoctors of Africa and Asia who could outdo his shows ten times over. But those of us who believe in the Lord’s hand know that people can be healed from witchdoctors.

So what am I saying? Look at the verse before us today.

You don’t need the Lord’s hand for healings, resurrections and rescues but you do need the Lord’s hand to see people turn to the Lord. Only his hand does this. No demonic or manipulation can bring people to the Lord.

And where is the Lord’s hand? 

It is with those who GO. Jesus promised to be with those who say YES to the Great Commission. If you GO I will be with you. The Lord’s hand is with them who go for the sole and most important purpose of seeing people turn to Him. Derren Browns show can heal, so can the witchdoctors, but no show on earth can bring people into a relationship with Jesus. Only the Lord’s hand can do this!

‘However’ people
Acts 11:20

“Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus.”
Have you ever thought about being an ‘however’ person?

To be one of those who buck the trend, who step out of what is culturally acceptable to further the kingdom of God. That’s what happened to some Jewish men from Cyprus and Cyrene who went to Antioch where the first mission to the Gentiles is recorded.

To be an ‘however’ person then you need to be someone:

1. Who doesn’t mind being an unknown hero.

2. Who will be part of the minority not the majority viewpoint.

3. Who is prepared to leave your comfort and go to a place not known.

4. Who begins to speak to a people very different to you but you manage to do this effectively. 

5. Who carries the good news, ‘however’ people are joyful people! 
Today try and say ‘however’ at some point. Then be that person who says it.

Details
Acts11:18

“When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life.”

When thy heard what?
After Peter had fully explained his vision, what God was saying, what he had seen the Spirit do, what he had remembered what Jesus said he would do, then they were relaxed and at peace about the Gentiles coming to God.

You see, sometimes people just need the details.

We have already seen in this book of Acts how Stephen gave a long detailed speech.

Throughout the Bible we see speeches being made from its leading characters. All said with the intention of proving, defending, changing the position and belief of the listener. 

Taking the time to go into detail. Slowing the pace down a little may be tiring but if you want to take people with you then you need to give them time to process what they are hearing and seeing. 
You may be 10 steps ahead of people and asking them to trust you while you give them the headlines, this won’t cut it. They need more. Everyone deserves the journey no matter how slow they may be. 

Maybe today you can make the effort to talk a bit more. Go into the story more. Explain. Make things clear. Maybe you’ll gain more followers if you do.