How will Paul react? Remember the situation?
In the previous post, we learned that in Acts chapters 13-14, Barnabas the Encourager and Paul embark on the first missionary trip of the early church, and they take John Mark with them. But mid-trip, John leaves them to return to Jerusalem, where his mother lives. Time passes, and Paul and Barnabas are ready to begin their second trip. We learned in Acts 15, verses 36-37, that Barnabas wants to bring John Mark on this second trip. How will Paul react?
Look at verses 38-40,
“Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. [Paul and Barnabas] had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord.”
We see the encourager in Barnabas here. And frankly, my personal opinion is that I believe Barnabas is right in this case, and Paul is wrong. God is gracious and forgiving. I have a feeling that Paul, later in life, would have reflected on this situation and agreed that Barnabas was right in encouraging Mark by giving him another shot.
But perhaps Paul, super intense in his younger days, is unwilling to give Mark a second chance.
And yet, Paul is not totally wrong either. Paul helps us realize that being encouraging and being nice are not the same thing. Being nice can actually be damaging to people. One author writes, “Religious institutions are the worst offenders at encouraging immaturity and irresponsibility.” Why? Because we can say that we are being encouraging, and we can never get around to being truthful. When we encourage without truth, we are not actually being encouraging, because genuine encouragement is based in truth.
This is very difficult for me, to a point. I find it much easier to speak boldly and bluntly in my sermons or teachings because I am in front of a group of people, and I know that my sermons are not directed to any one person. I feel much more free to say what I believe is truthful.
But put me in my office, one-on-one, and I can really struggle. In a conversation with one person or a very small group, I just want to encourage them, even if I know that there is a potentially difficult truth the people would do well to hear and face. If I say something confrontational, even if it is truth, I am fearful of what will happen next. The person might have a bad reaction, might gaslight, might leave the church, you name it. In those one-on-one situations, then, I can default to kindness. But I’m not really encouraging them if I am not grounding my kindness in the truth, and directing them toward growth in Jesus.
So how do we practice encouragement that is grounded in the truth? We want to encourage people. That means we do not overlook the truth about them or a situation. To best encourage them, we need to know the truth and they need to know the truth. As Paul writes in Ephesians 4:15 speak the truth in love. Encouragement is more than being kind or nice. Encouragement means we push people towards growth in Jesus, as we walk alongside them, support them, speaking the truth in love in a sacrificial way.
The story of Barnabas, Paul and John Mark comes full circle, as learn some very interesting information in Paul’s letters of Colossians and Philemon, which were written about 12 years after the incident in Acts 15. At the conclusion of each of those letters, Paul communicates greetings on behalf of Mark to the people in the church Paul is writing to. That means Mark is with Paul, serving with Paul. Paul eventually did give Mark another chance!
Mark seemed to thrive under the encouragement he received from Barnabas and eventually Paul. Mark would go on to serve as a missionary with Peter, and write the story of Jesus we call the Gospel of Mark. Mark’s path to maturity started with Barnabas, the encourager, truthfully, graciously, sacrificially walking alongside a fellow believer in a hopeful way.
It really seems that Barnabas not only wanted to be an encourager, he seems to have the spiritual gift of encouragement. Some of you might have that gift too. As Paul writes in Romans 12:4-8,
“For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.”
But that doesn’t mean that if you don’t have the gift of encouragement, you are off the hook and don’t have to encourage others. We are all called to be encouragers. For example, Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 14:31, “For you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged.”
Paul also writes in 2 Corinthians 13:11, “Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.”
In 1 Thessalonians chapters 4 & 5, Paul says three different times that we are to encourage one another.
The writer of Hebrews, likewise, makes a point of teaching us to encourage one another:
Hebrews 3:13, “But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.”
Hebrews 10:25, “Do not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
When we encourage, we lift one another up. When we encourage, we are on the lookout for people who are struggling. When we encourage, we build each other up. We are hopeful. We are rooted in the love of Jesus for one another. And we act on that, speaking to one another in gracious truthful love.
I saw this kind of encouragement in action recently. This past Sunday my wife drove from Lancaster to Pittsburgh to be with our son, daughter-in-law, and grandson, as their new baby girl was about to be born. Testing revealed the baby to have an under-developed heart, so once born she would need immediate treatment. She was born yesterday, is doing well, and that treatment is in process. It is, as you can imagine, a very intense, emotional situation. My wife went there to help care for our two-year old grandson, so our son and daughter-in-law could focus on their new baby.
On Saturday, the day before my wife left, two dear friends came and surprised her with a care package filled with all sorts of really thoughtful, helpful gifts. Do you see what that means? These friends knew about the situation, cared, took time to think about how to be sacrificially generous, and then they fulfilled their plan. It was a major encouragement to my wife, pointing her to the love of Jesus.
Even if you don’t have the gift of encouragement, what steps will you take to encourage the people around you? What words of gracious, truthful love can you speak to them? What actions of uplift can you take?
Photo by Anastasia Vityukova on Unsplash
Engaging Scripture 