Our church has been going through the book of Acts for our Sunday morning sermon series. A week ago last Sunday we covered this closing section of chapter four:
It's wonderful to read about Barnabas in the Bible. But it's even more exciting to see such generosity continue in the church of the Lord Jesus Christ to this very day. The Holy Spirit that moved the people of God to give generously to meet the needs of others then is the same Holy Spirit that moves in the hearts of God's people today. Praise God for each and every modern-day Barnabas!
Are you one of them? How might God use you to encourage his people and further the work of the gospel?
32 Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. 33 And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. 34 There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold 35 and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. 36 Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, 37 sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet.- Acts 4:32-37
"Great power" + "Great grace" = A Great Church!
The unity and generosity of the church as a whole was modeled beautifully in a man called Barnabas. His real name was Joseph, but everyone called him Barnabas, which means "son of encouragement." Nobody remembers Barnabas by his real name, but only by his nickname, because he was such an encourager! And Barnabas expressed his encouragement through generosity. He sold a piece of land and laid the proceeds at the apostles' feet, thereby indicating his desire for this money to be used to meet the needs of others in the church.
Exactly one week after we studied this beautiful passage, we got wind of a modern-day Barnabas! Let me explain. One of our young men, Andrew, is in pilot training school at Moody Bible Institute for the purpose of becoming a missions aviator. He was raised on the mission field in Papua New Guinea, where his parents continue to serve as missionaries. Recently they had shared a prayer request that God would provide for their son's tuition needs. Pilot school is expensive - about $4,000 per month.
Well, this past Sunday, this precious couple shared the following news:
God miraculously provided for Andrew’s first tuition payment due July 1st ON THE DAY with a love gift from a dear friend to cover that bill entirely and the next month’s as well. We stand in awe!! We know as God has done this… He will continue to provide step by step until Andrew completes his missionary aviation training. God has promised and continues to prove his hundred-fold blessing upon our family as we have put him first, and He continues to meet each and every need.As my wife and I had lunch with Andrew and his girlfriend the following day, he shared with me how this financial gift came about. A dear Christian lady who has been a long-time supporter ended up selling her house and gave thousands of dollars from the sale to meet Andrew's tuition need - on the very day that the first payment was due.
It's wonderful to read about Barnabas in the Bible. But it's even more exciting to see such generosity continue in the church of the Lord Jesus Christ to this very day. The Holy Spirit that moved the people of God to give generously to meet the needs of others then is the same Holy Spirit that moves in the hearts of God's people today. Praise God for each and every modern-day Barnabas!
Are you one of them? How might God use you to encourage his people and further the work of the gospel?
... remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive."- Acts 20:35