#church sends Barnabas and Saul on First Missionary Journey

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

The Gentiles Ask to Hear the Gospel

24 For whose coming John made ready the way by preaching to all the people of Israel the baptism which goes with a change of heart. 25 And when John was completing his work, he said, What do I seem to you to be? I am not he; but one is coming after me, whose shoes I am not good enough to undo. 26 My brothers, children of the family of Abraham, and those among you who have the fear of God, to us the word of this salvation is sent. 27 For the men of Jerusalem and their rulers, having no knowledge of him, or of the sayings of the prophets which come to their ears every Sabbath day, gave effect to them by judging him. 28 And though no cause of death was seen in him, they made a request to Pilate that he might be put to death. 29 And when they had done all the things said in the Writings about him, they took him down from the tree, and put him in the place of the dead. 30 But God gave him back from the dead: 31 And for a number of days he was seen by those who came with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses before the people. 32 And we are giving you the good news of the undertaking made to the fathers, 33 Which God has now put into effect for our children, by sending Jesus; as it says in the second Psalm, You are my Son; this day I have given you being. 34 And about his coming back from the dead, never again to go to destruction, he has said these words, I will give you the holy and certain mercies of David. 35 Because he says in another Psalm, You will not let your Holy One see destruction. 36 Now David, having done God's work for his generation, went to sleep, and was put with his fathers, and his body came to destruction: 37 But he, who was lifted up by God, did not see destruction. 38 And so, let it be clear to you, my brothers, that through this man forgiveness of sins is offered to you: 39 And through him everyone who has faith is made free from all those things, from which the law of Moses was not able to make you free. 40 So take care that these words of the prophets do not come true for you; 41 See, you doubters, have wonder and come to your end; for I will do a thing in your days to which you will not give belief, even if it is made clear to you. 42 And when they went out, they made a request that these words might be said to them again on the Sabbath after. 43 Now when the meeting was ended, a number of the Jews and of the God-fearing Gentiles who had become Jews, went after Paul and Barnabas: who put before them how important it was to keep on in the grace of God. 44 And on the Sabbath after, almost all the town came together to give hearing to the word of God. 45 But when the Jews saw such a great number of people, they were full of envy and said evil words against Paul's preaching. 46 Then Paul and Barnabas without fear said, It was necessary for the word of God to be given to you first; but because you will have nothing to do with it, and have no desire for eternal life, it will now be offered to the Gentiles. 47 For so the Lord has given us orders, saying, I have given you for a light to the Gentiles so that you may be for salvation to the ends of the earth. 48 And the Gentiles, hearing this, were glad and gave glory to the word of God: and those marked out by God for eternal life had faith. 49 And the word of the Lord went through all the country. 50 But the Jews, working up the feelings of the God-fearing women of high position and of the chief men of the town, got an attack started against Paul and Barnabas, driving them out of those parts. 51 But they, shaking off the dust of that place from their feet, came to Iconium. 52 And the disciples were full of joy and of the Holy Spirit. — Acts 13:24-52 | Bible in Basic English (BBE) The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain. Cross References: 2 Samuel 7:12; Psalm 2:7; Psalm 16:10; Isaiah 55:3; Ezekiel 2:5; Ezekiel 33:9; Habakkuk 1:5; Matthew 3:9; Matthew 3:11; Matthew 9:18; Matthew 9:31; Matthew 27:22; Matthew 27:57; Mark 1:1; Mark 6:11; Luke 2:32; Luke 23:13; Luke 24:48; Acts 2:24; Acts 2:27; Acts 5:42; Acts 10:43; Acts 11:23; Acts 13:14; Acts 13:45; 2 Corinthians 11:26; Ephesians 1:4-5; 1 Thessalonians 1:6; 1 John 2:12

[orthodoxydaily]

Saints&Reading: Sat., May, 17, 2020

Apostle Andronicus and Junia of the 17

The holy, glorious, all-laudable Apostle Junia of the Seventy is commemorated by the Church on May 17 with Apostle Andronicus, and on January 4 with the Seventy. The Seventy Apostles were chosen and sent forth to preach by Christ (Luke 10:1).

Ss. Junia and Andronicus were relatives of the holy Apostle Paul. St Paul mentions them an Epistle: Salute Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen and fellow prisoners, who are of note among the Apostles, who also were in Christ, before me (Romans 16:7). The service in honor of these saints states that they suffered martyrdom for Christ.

Junia is the subject of debate within the academic world concerning the implications of a female apostle leading within the early Church, that it might suggest the ordination of women. In Orthodox tradition, however, the title of apostle does not necessarily confer the kind of position that the Twelve had from Christ. Rather, especially when used in reference to the Seventy, it designates someone who served as a missionary for the Church, especially in its first generation.  Apostle (from Greek apostolos) literally refers to one who is "sent out," and its origin is in military usage. Subsequent centuries' saints who significantly spread the Orthodox faith are often referred to as equal to the Apostles, and this title is given without reference to gender...Source OrthodoxWiki

St Eudoxia of Moscow

Saint Euphrosyne, in the world Eudocia, was the daughter of the Suzdal prince Demetrius Constantovich (+ 1383), and from 1367 was the wife of the Moscow Great Prince Demetrius of the Don. Their happy union was for Russia a pledge of unity and peace between Moscow and Suzdal.

Saint Alexis, Metropolitan of Moscow, and even Saint Sergius of Radonezh, who baptized one of the sons of Demetrius and Eudocia, had a great influence upon the spiritual life of Princess Eudocia. Saint Demetrius of Priluki (February 11) was the godfather of another son.

The holy princess was a builder of churches. In 1387 she founded the Ascension women’s monastery in the Moscow Kremlin. In 1395, during Tamerlane’s invasion into the southern regions of Russia, the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God was transferred to Moscow upon her advice, miraculously defending the Russian land. During Lent, the princess secretly wore chains beneath her splendid royal garb. By her patronage the famous icon of the Archangel Michael was painted, and later became the patronal icon of the Kremlin’s Archangel Cathedral.

After raising five sons (a sixth died in infancy), the princess was tonsured as a nun with the name Euphrosyne. She completed her earthly journey on July 7, 1407 and was buried in the Ascension monastery she founded.

An old Russian church poem has survived, the lament of the princess for her husband, who had died at the age of thirty-nine.

Saint Euphrosyne is also commemorated on July 7. 

Source Orthodox Church of America

Acts 11: 19-26, 29-30 NKJV

Barnabas and Saul at Antioch

19 Now those who were scattered after the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to no one but the Jews only. 20 But some of them were men from Cyprus and Cyrene, who, when they had come to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists, preaching the Lord Jesus. 21 And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord.

22 Then news of these things came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch. 23 When he came and had seen the grace of God, he was glad, and encouraged them all that with purpose of heart they should continue with the Lord. 24 For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord.

25 Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to seek Saul. 26 And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.

Relief to Judea

27 And in these days prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 Then one of them, named Agabus, stood up and showed by the Spirit that there was going to be a great famine throughout all the world, which also happened in the days of Claudius Caesar. 29 Then the disciples, each according to his ability, determined to send relief to the brethren dwelling in Judea. 30 This they also did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.

John 4:5-42 NKJV

5 So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

7 A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.

9 Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.

10 Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”

11 The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? 12 Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?”

13 Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, 14 butwhoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”

15 The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw.”

16 Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.”

17 The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.”

Jesus said to her, “You have well said, ‘I have no husband,’ 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly.”

19 The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.”

21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

25 The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us all things.”

26 Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”

The Whitened Harvest

27 And at this point His disciples came, and they marveled that He talked with a woman; yet no one said, “What do You seek?” or, “Why are You talking with her?”

28 The woman then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, 29 “Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” 30 Then they went out of the city and came to Him.

31 In the meantime His disciples urged Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.”

32 But He said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.”

33 Therefore the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?”

34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.35 Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! 36 And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. 37 For in this the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’ 38 I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors.”

The Savior of the World

39 And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all that I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. 41 And many more believed because of His own word.

42 Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed [a]the Christ, the Savior of the world.”

Footnotes:

John 4:42 NU omits the Christ

New King James Version (NKJV) Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. 

Source Biblegateway

[troybeecham]

St. Barnabas

The Church remembers St. Barnabas, Apostle and Martyr.

Ora pro nobis.

Barnabas, born Joseph, was according to tradition an early Christian, one of the prominent Christian disciples in Jerusalem. According to Acts 4:36, Barnabas was a Cypriot Jew, and a Levite. Named an apostle in Acts 14:14, he and Paul the Apostle undertook missionary journeys together and defended Gentile converts against the requirement of first being circumcised. They traveled together making more converts (c. AD 45–47), and participated in the Council of Jerusalem (c. AD 50). Barnabas and Paul successfully evangelized among the "God-fearing" Gentiles who attended synagogues in various Hellenized cities of Anatolia.

Barnabas' story appears in the Acts of the Apostles, and Paul mentions him in some of his epistles. Tertullian named him as the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, but this and other attributions are conjecture. Clement of Alexandria and some scholars have ascribed the Epistle of Barnabas to him, but his authorship is disputed. Although the date, place, and circumstances of his death are historically unverifiable, Christian tradition holds that Barnabas was martyred at Salamis, Cyprus, in 61 AD. He is traditionally identified as the founder of the Cypriot Orthodox Church. The feast day of Barnabas is celebrated on June 11.

Barnabas is usually identified as the cousin of Mark the Evangelist on the basis of the term "anepsios" used in Colossians 4, which carries the connotation of "cousin." Some traditions hold that Aristobulus of Britannia, one of the Seventy Disciples, was the brother of Barnabas. Acts 11:24 describes Barnabas as "a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith".

Barnabas appears mainly in Acts, a history of the early Christian church. He also appears in several of Paul's epistles.

Barnabas, a native of Cyprus and a Levite, is first mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles as a member of the early Christian community in Jerusalem, who sold some land that he owned and gave the proceeds to the community (Acts 4:36-37). When the future Apostle Paul returned to Jerusalem after his conversion, Barnabas introduced him to the apostles (9:27). Easton, in his Bible Dictionary, supposes that they had been fellow students in the school of Gamaliel.

The successful preaching of Christianity at Antioch to non-Jews led the church at Jerusalem to send Barnabas there to oversee the movement (Acts 11:20–22). He found the work so extensive and weighty that he went to Tarsus in search of Paul (still referred to as Saul), "an admirable colleague", to assist him. Paul returned with him to Antioch and labored with him for a whole year (Acts 11:25–26). At the end of this period, the two were sent up to Jerusalem (44 AD) with contributions from the church at Antioch for the relief of the poorer Christians in Judea.

They returned to Antioch taking John Mark with them, the cousin or nephew of Barnabas. Later, they went to Cyprus and some of the principal cities of Pamphylia, Pisidia, and Lycaonia (Acts 13:14). After recounting what the governor of Cyprus Sergius Paulus believed, Acts 13:9 speaks of Barnabas's companion no longer as Saul, but as Paul, his Roman name, and generally refers to the two no longer as "Barnabas and Saul" as heretofore (11:30; 12:25; 13:2, 7), but as "Paul and Barnabas" (13:43, 46, 50; 14:20; 15:2, 22, 35). Only in 14:14 and 15:12-25 does Barnabas again occupy the first place, in the first passage with recollection of 14:12, in the last 2, because Barnabas stood in closer relation to the Jerusalem church than Paul. Paul appears as the more eloquent missionary (13:16; 14:8-9; 19-20), whence the Lystrans regarded him as Hermes and Barnabas as Zeus.

Returning from this first missionary journey to Antioch, they were again sent up to Jerusalem to consult with the church there regarding the relation of Gentiles to the church (Acts 15:2; Galatians 2:1). According to Galatians 2:9-10, Barnabas was included with Paul in the agreement made between them, on the one hand, and James, Peter, and John, on the other, that the two former should in the future preach to the pagans, not forgetting the poor at Jerusalem. This matter having been settled, they returned again to Antioch, bringing the agreement of the council that Gentiles were to be admitted into the church without having to adopt Jewish practices.

After they had returned to Antioch from the Jerusalem council, they spent some time there (15:35). Peter came and associated freely there with the Gentiles, eating with them, until criticized for this by some disciples of James, as against Mosaic law. Upon their remonstrances, Peter yielded apparently through fear of displeasing them, and refused to eat any longer with the Gentiles. Barnabas followed his example. Paul considered that they "walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel" and upbraided them before the whole church (Galatians 2:11-15).

Paul then asked Barnabas to accompany him on another journey (15:36). Barnabas wished to take John Mark along, but Paul did not, as he had left them on the earlier journey (15:37-38). The dispute ended by Paul and Barnabas taking separate routes. Paul took Silas as his companion, and journeyed through Syria and Cilicia; while Barnabas took John Mark to visit Cyprus (15:36-41). John Francis Fenlon suggests that Paul may have been somewhat influenced by the attitude recently taken by Barnabas, which might have proven prejudicial to their work.

Barnabas is not mentioned again in the Acts of the Apostles. However, Galatians 2:11-13 says, "And when Kephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face because he clearly was wrong. For, until some people came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he began to draw back and separated himself, because he was afraid of the circumcised. And the rest of the Jews (also) acted hypocritically along with him, with the result that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy." Barnabas is also mentioned in the First Epistle to the Corinthians, in which it is mentioned that he and Paul funded their missions by working side jobs and (it is implied) went without wives and other benefits other apostles received (1 Corinthians 9:6); Paul states that he and Barnabas forsook those benefits "that we may cause no hindrance to the Good News of Christ" (1 Corinthians 9:12).

Church tradition developed outside of the canon of the New Testament describes the martyrdom of many saints, including the legend of the martyrdom of Barnabas. It relates that certain Judeans coming to Syria and Salamis on Cyprus, where Barnabas was then preaching the gospel c. AD 61, being highly exasperated at his extraordinary success, fell upon him as he was disputing in the synagogue, dragged him out, and, after the most inhumane tortures, stoned him to death. His kinsman, John Mark, who was a spectator of this barbarous action, privately interred his body there in Salamis. His tomb became a shrine and later the cathedral church of the Orthodox Church of Cyprus.

Grant, O God, that we may follow the example of your faithful servant Barnabas, who, seeking not his own renown but the well-being of your Church, gave generously of his life and substance for the relief of the poor and the spread of the Gospel; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

[the-christian-walk]

ENTITLED?

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not the result of my work in the Lord? Even though I may not be an apostle to others, surely I am to you! For you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.

This is my defense to those who sit in judgment on me. Don’t we have the right to food and drink? Don’t we have the right to take a believing wife along with us, as do the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Cephas? Or is it only I and Barnabas who lack the right to not work for a living?

Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its grapes? Who tends a flock and does not drink the milk? Do I say this merely on human authority? Doesn’t the Law say the same thing? For it is written in the Law of Moses: “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.” Is it about oxen that God is concerned? Surely He says this for us, doesn’t He? Yes, this was written for us, because whoever plows and threshes should be able to do so in the hope of sharing in the harvest. If we have sown spiritual seed among you, is it too much if we reap a material harvest from you? If others have this right of support from you, shouldn’t we have it all the more?

But we did not use this right. On the contrary, we put up with anything rather than hinder the gospel of Christ.

Don’t you know that those who serve in the temple get their food from the temple, and that those who serve at the altar share in what is offered on the altar? In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel. But I have not used any of these rights. And I am not writing this in the hope that you will do such things for me, for I would rather die than allow anyone to deprive me of this boast.

1 Corinthians 9:1-15

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Should someone feel entitled if they are doing ministry work?

In my opinion, it seems like it shouldn’t even be a point of discussion but as we see in our passage for today, it was definitely a point of interest in biblical times so it warrants our attention. I think we’ll see that there are modern day applications.

Before we get into the opening verses of chapter 9, it’s important to gain our bearings. We are looking at Paul’s first letter to the church in Corinth which today is considered south central Greece. The people of Corinth were known as the Corinthians and therefore the title of this letter, 1 Corinthians.

Paul was an Apostle and you can think of him as a traveling missionary in every sense of the word since he made four missionary journeys to share the Gospel with parts of the world outside of Israel. Paul visited Corinth for eighteen months around 50AD during his second missionary journey. He was integral to establishing the Christian church there.

Later, during his third missionary journey, Paul received word of issues occurring in the Corinthian church and felt compelled to write two letters to the believers there. Our study over the last several months has been of the first of these two letters.

So Paul was an Apostle and he had a very personal connection to Jesus, personal in that Jesus literally came to Paul on the road to Damascus and confronted him for the persecution of Christian believers. At that time, you will remember that Paul bore the name Saul and was a fervent Jewish Pharisee. After his encounter with Jesus, Saul converted to Christianity and gained a new name to go ahead with his new identity in Christ, the name Paul.

From that point on, Paul was on the road constantly, moving from place to place to share the good news of Jesus. He wasn’t rich nor did he seek to profit from his ministry work. Like Jesus, his focus was on helping others find salvation.

Still, people need supported, right? A person needs shelter, even if it’s only temporary. Food, drink, and a means to take care of personal hygiene are also critical. And even if these things are provided, money is still needed in order to cover expenses, in Paul’s case, ministry expenses, especially as he was traveling from place to place. It did cost people to travel in biblical times just as it does today.

Paul didn’t have a job outside of answering Jesus’ call to make disciples of all nations and so he needed help from those He ministered to. But as we see in the opening fifteen verses of 1 Corinthians 9, Paul was also humble to his core and was never going to demand that anyone do anything for him. I feel there are a lot of pastors today who are the same whether currently serving or retired.

As the passage opens, Paul reminds the Corinthian church of his credentials. He was an apostle who had actually encountered Jesus. Not everyone credited Paul with these credentials but the Corinthian church couldn’t be counted in that number because Paul had actually established the church there and so the Christians were a seal of his “apostleship in the Lord”.

Now, it appears that some people were griping about the fact that Paul (and even Barnabas) wasn’t working for a living which really means Paul relied on the generosity of others for his sustenance. Paul made the point that there were others who provided service and in turn were compensated for that service.

Soldiers don’t serve at their own expense. They are provided for in exchange for the defense they provide.

People who labor in on farms enjoy the fruits of their labors, whether the grapes of the vineyard or the milk of the flock.

Paul was driving home the assertion that those who sow, should reap from the harvest. Using a physical case, he connected it to the spiritual. He was helping others come to know and believe in Jesus. In turn, he should receive material benefit to meet his physical needs. Paul felt this was his right as it was the right of any apostle and he made sure the Corinthian Christians knew that “the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel”. In other words, it wasn’t just Paul feeling he should have support. The Lord had demanded it happen and if the Lord demands something, His people need to make it come to be.

But note that here’s where Paul stops pushing the envelope. He makes his case that support should be granted but stops short of insisting it.

Why?

Because the attention would have been diverted from where it should have been.

You see, the main focus of Paul’s work was spreading the gospel of Christ and he wasn’t about to do anything that would have hindered that work.

Paul felt he had the right to be entitled in exchange for the Gospel work he was doing. He just didn’t think anyone should be compelled to give him anything. Rather, he hoped the Corinthian Christians would honor the Lord by sharing a portion of the blessings He provided with those He called to represent and serve Him in ministry.

Your Pastor works hard, laboring for their Lord and the flock He has given them.

Missionaries are willing to leave their homes to go and plant churches or bring the Gospel to people in faraway lands.

All Christians benefit from the great work that their Lord-appointed leaders are doing for their spiritual benefit while advancing the cause of Jesus. The least believers can do is make sure that these leaders are provided for while they carry out the Great Commission. They are entitled to our care and provision, even if they never ask for it.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

[bibledictionary]

New Testament Timeline

37 B.C. to c. 4 B.C. Period when Herod the Great, who would order males up to 2 years old killed when Jesus is born, rules as Roman-appointed King of Judea (King of the Jews).

27 B.C. to 14 A.D. Period when Augustus, the first true Roman emperor, rules the empire.

20 B.C. Herod the Great begins rebuilding Jerusalem's temple.

5 B.C. to 30 A.D. Jesus is born in the fall of 5 B.C., likely on the Feast of Trumpets, which occurs this year on Saturday, September 2. Jesus' life begins the period ot the New Testament. His life ends in 30 A.D. when he willing sacrifices his life for the sins of mankind.

c. 4 B.C. to 39 A.D. After Herod the Great's death, his son Herod Antipas becomes the new Roman tetrarch of Galilee and Perea.

26 A.D. - 29A.D. Period of John the Baptist's ministry.

Fall 26 A.D. to Spring 30 A.D. Period of Jesus' earthly ministry. Jesus is murdered by the Romans, at the behest of the Jewish religious leaders, on Wednesday, April 5th in 30 A.D. After spending three days and three nights in the grave, He is resurrected from the dead near sunset on Saturday, April 8th.

30 A.D. On Sunday, May 28, the birth of the Christian church occurs on the day of Pentecost.

32 A.D. Stephen is martyred (Acts 6 - 7), the first person, after the resurrection of Christ, to die for his faith (John the Baptist also was killed for following God). Persecution against the early church arises (Acts 8). Christians leave Jerusalem and begin to spread the gospel far and wide. Peter confronts Simon Magus (Simon the Magician) in Samaria. Philip preaches the gospel to the Ethiopian eunuch.

33 A.D. Saul, on his way to Damascus, is converted and becomes the apostle Paul (Acts 9). He soon flees the city to Arabia, where he is taught personally by Christ for three years (Galatians 1:15 - 18).

33 - 44 A.D. Paul's travels before his Missionary Journeys (Galatians 1, Acts 9 - 12).

35 A.D. Matthew completes the first Gospel writing.

36 A.D. Paul travels to Jerusalem for the first time after his conversion and stays for fifteen days (Acts 9:26 - 30, Galatians 1:18 - 20).

37 A.D. The apostle Peter preaches the gospel in Lydda and Joppa (Acts 9:32 - 41). Peter also stays in Joppa with Simon the Tanner for many days (verses 42 - 43).

38 A.D. Peter baptizes Cornelius, the first Gentile (non-Jew) believer to be converted (Acts 10).

39 - 40 A.D. Believers fleeing Saul's persecution take the gospel message to Jews in Antioch, the island of Cyprus and elsewhere (Acts 11:19). The apostles in Jerusalem send Barnabas to Syrian Antioch in order to ministry to the city's growing Christian population (verse 22 to 24).

39 - 44 A.D. After Herod Antipas' death his son, Herod Agrippa I, becomes new ruler of Galilee and Perea.

41 A.D. Paul and Barnabas teach in Syrian Antioch for a year.

42 A.D. A prophet by the name of Agabus foretells a famine will soon occur that will last for three years (Acts 11:27 - 28).

44 A.D. In the spring, food and relief are sent to Jerusalem by the hands of Paul and Barnabas (Acts 11:30). Herod Agrippa I, in the Spring of 44 near Passover, persecutes the early church and beheads the apostle James (brother of John). He also has the Apostle Peter arrested. Soon after these events God strikes Herod dead while he is visiting Tyre and Sidon (Acts 12). In late spring Paul and Barnabas are ordained as apostles (Acts 13:1 - 3).

44 - 46 A.D. Apostle Paul conducts his first Missionary Journey (Acts 13 - 14).

49 A.D. The Jerusalem Conference, which will discuss the role of circumcision in regard to salvation, takes place in the Fall (Acts 15). The conference is headed up by James, the half-brother of Jesus and the author of the book of James.

49 - 52 A.D. Apostle Paul conducts his second Missionary Journey (Acts 15 - 18). In Lystra Paul meets Timothy, who will become his traveling companion and best friend (1Timothy 1:2, 4:14).

50 A.D. Apostle Paul writes 1Thessalonians, the first of fourteen books he will write that will be included in the Bible.

52 - 53 A.D. Peter comes to Syrian Antioch during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. He is strongly rebuked by Paul for not eating with Gentiles during the Spring Holy Days (Galatians 2:11 - 20).

53 - 58 A.D. Apostle Paul conducts his third Missionary Journey (Acts 18 - 21).

54 - 68 A.D. Emperor Nero rules the Roman Empire. The apostles Paul and Peter, along with others, become martyrs under his reign.

60 - 63 A.D. The apostle Paul travels on his fourth Missionary Journey (Acts 21 - 28).

62 A.D. In Jerusalem, religious zealots martyr James, the half-brother of Jesus and leader of the Jerusalem church, around the time of Passover.

63 - 67 A.D. Apostle Paul conducts his fifth and final Missionary Journey (Acts 28; Titus 1, 3; Romans 15).

64 - 67 A.D. The apostle John must address a heresy, spreading is some New Testament Asian churches, that denies Jesus' humanity. He writes 1, 2 and 3John to refute these false teachings.

65 A.D. The rebuilding of Jerusalem's temple, begun by Herod the Great, completes.

67 A.D. The apostle Paul is back in prison in Rome, where he writes his last New Testament book (2Timothy).

67 - 68 A.D. Roman Emperor Nero carries out the Roman Empire's first of ten state-sponsored persecutions against Christians. The Apostle Peter is believed to have been put to death by Nero during this period, although his martyrdom in Rome is open to debate.

68 A.D. The Apostle Paul suffers a martyrs' death in the city of Rome just before Emperor Nero commits suicide on June 9.

70 A.D. The Romans destroy Jerusalem and its temple on the 9th day of the Hebrew month of Ab.

94 - 96 A.D. Roman Emperor Domitian, who ruled from 81 to 96 A.D., begins Rome's second wave of persecutions against Christians. In 95 - 96 the apostle John is exiled to the island of Patmos "because of the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ" (Revelation 1:9, HBFV). He soon receives visions from God that ultimately become the book of Revelation, which he writes while on the island.

96 A.D. Emperor Domitian dies in September 96 and is succeeded by Emperor Nerva. The apostle John is released from Patmos and makes his way back to Ephesus. His last task, before his death, is to canonize not only the New Testament but also the entire Bible.

98 - 100 A.D. Emperor Nerva dies in January of 98 A.D. and is succeeded by Trajan. John, the last living apostle, completes his canonization of the Scriptures and dies, of natural causes, in Ephesus c. 98 - 100.

[johnchiarello]

Acts 13

ACTS 13 Acts 13:38 Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins:Acts 13:39 And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses. https://youtu.be/qwLxk3nbTYQ Acts 13 https://ccoutreach87.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/5-25-17-acts-13.zip https://ccoutreach87.com/5-25-17-acts-13/ ON VIDEO- .Gentile church .Apostles sent out [Missionaries] .5- fold operating .Land and Sea .Demonic showdown .Son of Jesus? .Now your blind! .God’s power= doctrine .Paul’s sermon .Justification by faith- not law .Grace and sovereignty message .Predestination .Son of David .God raised him

PAST POSTS- [Past teaching I did that relates to today’s post- Acts 13- Verses below] https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/28/isaiah-42/ https://ccoutreach87.com/galatians-links/ https://ccoutreach87.com/romans-updated-2015/ https://ccoutreach87.com/protestant-reformation-luther/ https://ccoutreach87.com/further-talks-on-church-and-ministry/ https://ccoutreach87.com/judges-ruth-video-links-included/ https://ccoutreach87.com/1st-2nd-samuel/ https://ccoutreach87.com/1st-2nd-corinthians/ https://ccoutreach87.com/john-complete-links-added/ ACTS- https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/01/18/acts-1/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/01/26/acts-2/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/02/02/acts-3/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/02/09/acts-4/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/23/acts-5/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/31/acts-6/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/06/acts-7/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/14/acts-8/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/18/acts-9/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/07/acts-10/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/16/acts-11/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/22/acts-12/

(739)ACTS 13- The believers at Antioch were praying and fasting and the Holy Spirit said ‘separate me Paul and Barnabas unto the work which I have called them’. Then the whole group laid their hands on them and sent them out. Notice, there was not a singular authority figure who was the overseer of this church [community of believers]. It is important to see this, because when you share the oversight of a body of people with a plural team [Elders/Pastors- the title you use is insignificant] then there is less of a chance of one person becoming too elevated in the minds of the group. There is also a dynamic of the group coming to maturity as they see themselves as being able to ‘ordain-lay hands’ and send out. Now Paul and Barnabas begin their missionary journeys. At Paphos Paul casts blindness on a sorcerer and the chief deputy believes. At Antioch [Pisidia] they preach in the synagogue. Paul does a good Old Testament survey and mentions ‘Saul from the tribe of Benjamin’ as being part of Gods plan. I always wondered if Paul saw himself in this image [Saul from Benjamin]. Jesus did tell Ananias that Paul was a chosen vessel to bear his name. Notice also that Paul’s message saw the promise to David in Psalms ‘the sure mercies of David’ as being fulfilled thru Christ’s resurrection. The theme of the message was not ‘Jesus rule is delayed’ [dispensational teaching] but that thru Jesus the promises to the fathers have come to fruition. While it is true that the Jewish hearers will reject their Messiah as a people, yet this did not mean that the Kingdom was delayed or that the ‘church age’ was a parenthetical time until the ‘Kingdom age’ reconvenes. The whole tenor of Paul’s message is the reality that Jesus resurrection and being seated at Gods right hand is the promise being fulfilled that God made to the fathers. It is important to see his theme all thru out the Apostolic writings. The following week after Paul delivers his message, many gentiles come back to hear the word again. The leaders get jealous and Paul rebukes them. He tells them it was necessary for the Jews to have heard the word first, but then in fulfillment of the prophets, Jesus will be a light to the gentiles also. Paul and Barnabas sail off to Iconium next. An important theme in all the sermons in Acts is how the main message is that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Prophets. Paul tells them that they heard the readings from the prophets [Old Testament] every Sabbath day, but they also fulfilled the prophetic word by not being able to understand what the prophets were saying. So they crucified Jesus because of their blindness to the meaning of scripture. We need to see Jesus as the fulfillment of the prophets. The ultimate end of our purpose. To become like him in every way. In today’s church world it is so easy to see the word and ‘church attendance’ as a means to self fulfillment. But we need to re focus on becoming more like him. I am sure it was a shock to Paul when he realized all the time and study he did as a Pharisee was missing the main intent of scripture. It was humiliating to find out that the simple men who became these followers of Christ were closer to the truth than the theological doctors of the day. Jesus said we must become like little children again in order to see Gods kingdom.

VERSES- [These are verses I taught or quoted on today’s video- Acts 13] Acts 13:1 Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. Acts 13:2 As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. Acts 13:3 And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. Acts 13:4 So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus. Acts 13:5 And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister. Acts 13:6 And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus: Acts 13:7 Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God. Acts 13:8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. Acts 13:9 Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him. Acts 13:10 And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? Acts 13:11 And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand. Acts 13:12 Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord. Acts 13:13 Now when Paul and his company loosed from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia: and John departing from them returned to Jerusalem. Acts 13:14 But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and sat down. Acts 13:15 And after the reading of the law and the prophets the rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, saying, Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people, say on. Acts 13:16 Then Paul stood up, and beckoning with his hand said, Men of Israel, and ye that fear God, give audience. Acts 13:17 The God of this people of Israel chose our fathers, and exalted the people when they dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt, and with an high arm brought he them out of it. Acts 13:18 And about the time of forty years suffered he their manners in the wilderness. Acts 13:19 And when he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Chanaan, he divided their land to them by lot. Acts 13:20 And after that he gave unto them judges about the space of four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet. Acts 13:21 And afterward they desired a king: and God gave unto them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, by the space of forty years. Acts 13:22 And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave their testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will. Acts 13:23 Of this man’s seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus: Acts 13:24 When John had first preached before his coming the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. Acts 13:25 And as John fulfilled his course, he said, Whom think ye that I am? I am not he. But, behold, there cometh one after me, whose shoes of his feet I am not worthy to loose. Acts 13:26 Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent. Acts 13:27 For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him. Acts 13:28 And though they found no cause of death in him, yet desired they Pilate that he should be slain. Acts 13:29 And when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree, and laid him in a sepulchre. Acts 13:30 But God raised him from the dead: Acts 13:31 And he was seen many days of them which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses unto the people. Acts 13:32 And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, Acts 13:33 God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. Acts 13:34 And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of David. Acts 13:35 Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Acts 13:36 For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption: Acts 13:37 But he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption. Acts 13:38 Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: Acts 13:39 And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses. Acts 13:40 Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets; Acts 13:41 Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you. Acts 13:42 And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath. Acts 13:43 Now when the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. Acts 13:44 And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God. Acts 13:45 But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming. Acts 13:46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. Acts 13:47 For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth. Acts 13:48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. Acts 13:49 And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region. Acts 13:50 But the Jews stirred up the devout and honourable women, and the chief men of the city, and raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts. Acts 13:51 But they shook off the dust of their feet against them, and came unto Iconium. Acts 13:52 And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost. Psalm 2:1 Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? Psalm 2:2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, Psalm 2:3 Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. Psalm 2:4 He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the LORD shall have them in derision. Psalm 2:5 Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure. Psalm 2:6 Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. Psalm 2:7 I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Psalm 2:8 Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Psalm 2:9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel. Psalm 2:10 Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Psalm 2:11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Psalm 2:12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him. Habakkuk 1:5 Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvelously: for I will work a work in your days which ye will not believe, though it be told you. Revelation 1:5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations Psalm 16:1 Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust. Psalm 16:2 O my soul, thou hast said unto the LORD, Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to thee; Psalm 16:3 But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all my delight. Psalm 16:4 Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another god: their drink offerings of blood will I not offer, nor take up their names into my lips. Psalm 16:5 The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot. Psalm 16:6 The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage. Psalm 16:7 I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons. Psalm 16:8 I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Psalm 16:9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. Psalm 16:10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Psalm 16:11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. John 15:16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. 1 Corinthians 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations

http://www.corpuschristioutreachministries.blogspot.com https://www.facebook.com/john.chiarello.5?ref=bookmarks https://ccoutreach87.wordpress.com/ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZ4GsqTEVWRm0HxQTLsifvg

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Note- Please do me a favor, those who read/like the posts- re-post them on other sites as well as the site you read them on- Thanks- John.#

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Acts 11

Sunday sermon 7-8-18

Ephesians 6

[frmartinshomiliesandreflections]

11th June >> Fr. Martin’s Gospel Reflections / Homilies on Matthew 10:7-13 for The Feast of Saint Barnabas, Apostle: ‘Proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is close at hand’.

Feast of Saint Barnabas

Gospel (Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia & Canada)

Matthew 10:7-13

You received without charge: give without charge

Jesus said to his apostles, ‘As you go, proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is close at hand. Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out devils. You received without charge, give without charge. Provide yourselves with no gold or silver, not even with a few coppers for your purses, with no haversack for the journey or spare tunic or footwear or a staff, for the workman deserves his keep.

‘Whatever town or village you go into, ask for someone trustworthy and stay with him until you leave. As you enter his house, salute it, and if the house deserves it, let your peace descend upon it; if it does not, let your peace come back to you.’

Gospel (USA)

Matthew 10:7-13

Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.

Jesus said to the Twelve: “As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, drive out demons. Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give. Do not take gold or silver or copper for your belts; no sack for the journey, or a second tunic, or sandals, or walking stick. The laborer deserves his keep. Whatever town or village you enter, look for a worthy person in it, and stay there until you leave. As you enter a house, wish it peace. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; if not, let your peace return to you.”

Reflections (5)

(i) Feast of Saint Barnabas, Apostle

In the gospel reading, Jesus sends out the twelve apostles on mission within Galilee, to proclaim the good news that the kingdom of heaven was at hand. In the first reading, the church of Antioch send out Paul and Barnabas on mission to places far beyond Antioch, to Cyprus and parts of modern-day Turkey. Paul and Barnabas were leading lights of the church in Antioch and yet the members of the church were happy to share these two leaders with others, far beyond their shores. Of the two, Paul is better known to us because of his extraordinary missionary journeys and the many letters that have come down to us from him. Yet, Barnabas was very significant in another way. It was Barnabas who created an opening in the early church for Paul, when others were still suspicious of him because of his past persecution of the church. As today’s first reading says, it was Barnabas who went looking for Paul in Tarsus, his native city, and brought him to Antioch because Barnabas saw that there was a great opening for Paul’s gifts in this city where the gospel had been preached to pagans for the first time. Barnabas was what we can today an ‘enabler’. It is not surprising that his nickname in the early church, according to the Acts of the Apostles, was ‘son of encouragement’. That role of enabler or encourager remains a vital role in the church today. We all have the capacity to create openings where the gifts of someone else can flourish for the service of the whole church. It takes a certain humility to create a space where others can flourish to their potential in the service of the Lord. It is the attitude of John the Baptist expressed in his comment with regard to Jesus, ‘He must increase, but I must decrease’. The feast of Barnabas invites us to ask, ‘What can I do for someone so that Jesus may increase today?’

And/Or

(ii) Feast of Saint Barnabas, Apostle

Barnabas was known in the early church as the ‘son of encouragement’, according to the Acts of the Apostles. As nicknames go, it is one of the nicer ones. It was clearly a term that reflected the nature of the man. He had that marvelous ability to recognize the good qualities in people and to draw them out so that they could be placed at the service of the church. We find two examples of this in this morning’s first reading. The first community of believers was all Jewish, but in Antioch there emerged a community of believers that comprised Jews and non-Jews. When Barnabas was sent from Jerusalem to investigate this new development, he was delighted with what he saw and ‘he urged them all to remain faithful to the Lord with heartfelt devotion’. Then, sometime later Barnabas recognized that Saul, the former persecutor of the church, could make a wonderful contribution to this mixed church in Antioch and so he set out all the way to Tarsus to find Paul and bring him to Antioch. Paul went on to become a leading member of the church in Antioch. Recognizing the gifts of others, and creating openings for those gifts to flourish – this was the strength of Barnabas. We all have it in us to be a Barnabas within the church and within the wider community. We may not have the gift for a particular task, but we can have the ability to recognize that gift in others and to create a space for their gift to flourish. This is one of the ways that we can all respond to the Lord’s call in today’s gospel reading to go out and proclaim that the kingdom of God is close at hand.

 And/Or

(iii) Feast of St Barnabas, Apostle

Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Barnabas. He was born in Cyprus and became a leading member of the church in Jerusalem. He had a reputation in the early church for giving encouragement to others. Indeed Barnabas is a kind of nickname which means ‘son of encouragement’. We see him engaged in that ministry of encouragement in this morning’s first reading. There was something new happening in the church of Antioch. The gospel had been preached to pagans as well as Jews for the first time. A new kind of church was emerging there, a church which was a mixture of Jews and non-Jews. Barnabas was sent down to take a look at what was happening and he immediately recognized it as the work of the Lord and gave great encouragement to this new development. He was right; it was the work of the Lord. The Lord is always at work in new and creative ways among us and it is a great gift to be able to recognize the work of the Lord wherever it is to be found, and to celebrate and encourage that work. Barnabas had this gift of noticing where the Lord was a work because as that first reading says he was filled with the Holy Spirit. We need to be open to the Spirit, to be filled with the Spirit, to recognize the work of the Spirit. As Saint Paul says in one of his letter, spiritual things are discerned spiritually.

 And/Or

(iv) Feast of St Barnabas, Apostle 

According to an earlier verse in the Acts of the Apostles, Barnabas’ real name was Joseph, but he was given the name Barnabas, which means ‘son of encouragement’, as a kind of a nick name by the apostles. In this morning’s first reading we can see Barnabas living up to his nick name. News reached Jerusalem of a new development in Antioch. The gospel had been preached to non-Jews for the first time, resulting in the formation of a mixed church of Jewish and Gentile Christians. When the church in Jerusalem sent Barnabas to Antioch to check on this, he saw immediately that this new development was God’s doing and he encouraged all involved. He went further and he encouraged Paul to come from Tarsus and to get involved in this new departure. As a result, Paul made a great contribution to the life of this mixed church of Antioch, and this church, in turn, became a spiritual home for Paul and a base for his missionary work. You could say that Barnabas was a facilitator, an enabler; he supported the good that people were doing and he opened doors for people’s gifts. We always need people like Barnabas around and we can all become a Barnabas for others. The ministry of encouragement is one in which we can all share, and it is one of the most needed ministries today. On this his feast day, we pray for something of the spirit of Barnabas in our own lives and in the life of our church.

 And/Or

(v) Feast of Saint Barnabas, Apostle 

Barnabas does not feature in the gospels but he is a significant presence in the Acts of the Apostles, Luke’s story of the early years of the church. He was originally a leading member of the church in Jerusalem. According to this morning’s first reading he was instrumental in encouraging a new development that took place in the city of Antioch, where the gospel was preached to pagans for the first time. He clearly saw the hand of the Lord in this new phenomenon. According to our reading, Barnabas encouraged Saul or Paul to leave the church in Tarsus, Paul’s home city, and to come to the church in Antioch because he recognized that Antioch would be an ideal location for this great apostle to the pagans. Barnabas himself seems to have become a leading member of the church of Antioch. He worked alongside Paul there and together they were sent out on mission by the church of Antioch, travelling to Cyprus and beyond. Barnabas is portrayed in the Acts of the Apostles as an enabler, an encourager. What he enabled and encouraged others to do turned out to be just as significant as what he did himself. In the gospel reading, Jesus says to his followers, ‘You received without charge, give without charge’. One of the ways we give is by creating a space for others to give and to grow. This is where Barnabas comes into his own. He recognized and encouraged the workings of the Spirit in the lives of others. He didn’t try to do everything himself; he stepped back and allowed the Lord to work through others. That takes a certain generosity of spirit, a willingness to rejoice in the gifts of others and allow them to find expression. We can all learn from Barnabas that delicate art of creating space for others to flourish.

Fr. Martin Hogan, Saint John the Baptist Parish, Clontarf, Dublin, D03 AO62, Ireland.

Email: sjtbclontarf@eircom.net or  revmartinhogan@gmail.com

Parish Website: www.stjohnsclontarf.ie  Please join us via our webcam.

Twitter: @SJtBClontarfRC.

Facebook: St John the Baptist RC Parish, Clontarf.

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[romancatholicreflections]

10th May >> 'His Mission Goes On' ~ Daily Reflection on Today's Gospel Reading for Roman Catholic on Wednesday, Fourth Week of Eastertide.

Today's texts offer a glimpse of the community of life between Jesus and his heavenly Father, and between the members of the church in Antioch among themselves and with God. "For I have not spoken on my own; no, the Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to speak." Jesus' personality is formed by this obedient regard to the Father, this receptivity to the Father's will and wisdom, this total community of life with the Father. In the church at Antioch, the community gathers for liturgy while fasting from food and drink. This would remind them that their strength comes from God, not from themselves. Fasting also induces a bond of compassion, a willingness to suffer together, a sense of being one with all the world's poor and oppressed. As such, they are thoroughly open to God for guidance and for strength. That was when the Holy Spirit inspired a prophecy: "Set apart Barnabas and Saul." The language reminds us of great prophets, like Jeremiah, called and set apart from his mother's womb, or the Suffering Servant of Isaiah, called from birth to be a light to the nations (Jer 1:5; Is 49:6). Through Barnabas and Paul a new and wider community is to be established. The bond of Jesus' disciples is to spread across the Roman empire, during this first missionary journey to the island of Cyprus. The Holy Spirit did not give precise, detailed instructions, only a call to proceed forward on the journey. At first they proclaim the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. Yet, all the while God's main purpose was to attract more and more gentiles so that Christianity can bring the message of Moses, the prophets and Jesus to all the world. Just as Jesus and the Father formed one intimate life and as the disciples were united among themselves through the Holy Spirit, so the church at Antioch was to reach outward toward the world to unite people as one family in Christ. At the heart of this growing and increasing family was the word of life from the heavenly Father. It is this outreach toward others in love that keeps us from over-controlling the word of God. As we share this word with others, it always seems to become something new, fresh, demanding, upsetting, as whenever new life is added to any family. Yet, this life is in continuity with the word of the Father to Jesus. This mystery of God's hidden message, spoken in Jesus and heard through the prophets within our midst, is the most deepest, truest voice we will ever hear. It comes from the Father, and sends us on a missionary journey of kindness and love to others.

[nolimitsongrace]

Restoration of that Which is God’s Heart! Your New Life in the New YearDecember 26, 2018As you begin the new year, are you ready for a change, a new direction in life? Get four steps to help you start your new life in the new year.Do you want to live the life that up until now you’ve only dreamed of, yet haven’t been sure where to start? While many New Year’s resolutions fail, it is possible to make changes to your life that will stick. Below are four steps to help you begin doing just that.1. Give the Word First Place in the New YearIf you want to make big changes in your life, then the first place you need to start is with God’s Word. Hebrews 4:12 tells us just how powerful the Word of God is: “For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.”If you are on the cusp of making an important decision—a new job, a healthier lifestyle, a different address, a new church—what better place to begin than with the tool that God has given that “exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.” God knows you better than you know yourself. He knows the decision you are about to make and what the outcome will be. He knows what will bring joy into your life and what will bring sadness. And through His Word, He wants to reveal His will for you.Before you make any life-changing decision, consult His Word. Spend time in it, meditating on it, and trust that your heavenly Father will use it to help you make the best possible decision.2. Pray and Fast in the New YearJust as you will want to seek the Lord in His Word, you also want to seek Him in prayer and fasting. Several times in the Old and New Testaments, God’s people sought His wisdom and direction through prayer and fasting. Consider these verses:“So we fasted and earnestly prayed that our God would take care of us, and he heard our prayer.” –Ezra 8:23“When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven.” –Nehemiah 1:4“One day as these men were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Appoint Barnabas and Saul for the special work to which I have called them.’ So after more fasting and prayer, the men laid their hands on them and sent them on their way.” –Acts 13:2-3In each of these examples, God worked through His people as they fasted and prayed. Ezra and Nehemiah were asking God for direction and help as they led the Israelites back to Israel and rebuilt the wall around the city of Jerusalem. In Acts, the leaders of the Church came together to send Barnabas and Saul out for one of the first historic missionary journeys. All three of these examples (and there are more throughout Scripture) point to the importance of prayer and fasting in the face of monumental decisions and plans.God wants to bring restoration in 2019 to what has been lost! Watch this teaching with Kenneth Copeland and Keith Moore.Want to get notified the next time we upload videos like the one above? It’s easy, simply subscribe to our YouTube channel3. Start Small in the New YearWhile some decisions require immediate, grand steps like moving across the country or changing jobs, other decisions can take a slower approach. Changes like a healthier lifestyle, with a new exercise routine or eating plan, require small steps to help the habits stick. For example, if you want to give up caffeine in the new year, you might need to cut back before you completely eliminate it from your diet. And nothing sabotages an exercise program faster than overdoing it at first. Instead, start small. If regular exercise hasn’t been part of your life at all, then begin with a walk before breakfast (outside or at your local indoor mall) or after dinner with your spouse, children or neighbor.Small changes can also help kick-start larger endeavors, like starting a new business or finishing your education. Completely upending your life may not be possible with family commitments and bills to pay, but you can probably carve out some time to network, learn about e-commerce or take your first online class. Over time, these small steps add up to great changes.4. Study, Learn, Prepare in the New Year“Lazy people want much but get little, but those who work hard will prosper” (Proverbs 13:4). Often, there’s no easy shortcut to the things that really matter. Do you want to write a book? Change careers? Improve your marriage? These are all things that require diligence. You cannot continue doing the same things day in and day out and expect different results. Instead, you must apply yourself. You must make the decision every day to act on your dreams.Want to write a book? Then find a writers’ group in your area or attend a writers’ conference. Read a book on writing or sign up for an online mentorship program.Want to change careers? Study what that would require. Certification? Networking? Retraining? Discover the process and then make it happen.Want to improve your marriage? Attend a marriage seminar. Read a marriage book. Make an appointment with a counselor.Find out what you need to do to have the life you dream of. Make a list, schedule it on your planner, and then diligently work to fulfill those plans.This can be your year—the year for a new life. Begin implementing these steps today: Study the Word, pray and fast, start small, and remain diligent. Then trust the Lord to lead you in exactly what you should do. If you need someone to agree in faith with you during this season of transition, we’re here for you! Call the KCM Prayer Line at 1-817-852-6000, or click here to submit your prayer request online. One of our prayer ministers would be excited to pray with you as you stand for your new life in the new year!Related Articles:10 Confessions for Finances in the New YearPlanning Your New Year Prayer Retreat© 1997 - 2020 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. Aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries. All Rights Reserved.Category: FaithBuilders

[woodworkingpastor]

The Surprise of the Spirit Acts 13:1-3; 14:8-18 Fourth Sunday of Easter May 12, 2019

Call to Worship

God has been gracious to us, God has blessed us,

          God has made his face to shine upon us.

God reveals his way to all peoples,

          God guides all the nations on the earth.

God judges everyone with equity.

          God shows his saving power everywhere.

Let all the nations praise you, O God,

          Let us, your people, praise you!

Prayer of Invocation

Wonderful God, so indiscriminate is your love, so heedless of color and nationality and class, falling like sun and rain on all your children, the righteous and the unrighteous, the just and the unjust. For your lavish, gracious care we give you thanks and praise.

Come now and sow in our hearts the seed of your word. Come and knead into our spirit the leaven of your Spirit. And may your seed and leaven transform our words and deeds, so that others might come to know your love, and give you praise. Amen.

Hymn, For the beauty of the earth (vs. 1, 4, 5) 

The Surprise of the Spirit, Acts 13:1-3; 14:8-18 

The Annual Conference of 1907 received four queries asking that a bicentennial committee be appointed to help the church celebrate its 200th anniversary in 1908.  The Brethren were quite favorably inclined to this idea, the committee was appointed, and at the Annual Meeting of 1908 in Des Moines, Iowa, Brethren gathered to hear 22 different sermons and speeches covering a wide variety of Brethren life and thought—everything from history and polity, to faith and practice, to engagement with the issues of the day.  

Sunday June 7, 1908 was Pentecost.  On that day Edward Frantz of Kansas spoke on his assigned topic: The Growth to the Pacific. He began his talk by describing the first Brethren congregation planted west of the Mississippi River:

“It was in the year 1818 that there was organized the first Church of the Brethren west of the Mississippi River.  At least the evidence points strongly to this conclusion. What is certainly known, is that, on that day, on Whitewater Creek, Cape Girardeau County, Missouri, James Hendricks was ordained to the eldership, by Elder George Wolfe of Union County, Illinois. As this was the first ordination on this side of the river, the presumption is that the first church was organized at this time. How many there were in that little company is not known, but six years later, in 1824, there were fifty members in that county” (Two Centuries of the Church of the Brethren, 87).

Brother Frantz goes on to chronicle the growth of the Brethren west of the Mississippi.  It should really come as no surprise that Brethren were migrating to the west in similar patterns to everyone else in the country at that time, settling the American West from the edges in. So while churches were being established in Missouri, Kansas, Iowa and the Dakotas, Brethren also got to the west coast reasonably quickly, establishing a congregation in the Willamette Valley of Oregon in 1871 (somewhere near Interstate 5, a bit east of Corvalis, OR, the home of Oregon State University.)

Brother Frantz brings the Brethren a challenge that day. Noting that there were currently 15,000 Brethren living west of the Mississippi, he then turns his thoughts from the past to the future and he wonders about the 300th anniversary of the church in 2008.  How many Brethren will be living west of the Mississippi River in 2008? Imagining a 300th Anniversary celebration (which happened in Richmond, VA), Brother Frantz wonders how many of his congregation’s great-grandchildren will be in attendance at that Conference, or will be Brethren, or will even be Christian.

He was challenging the church to make mission a priority, and his vision of mission was understood in both pastoral and congregational terms: the Brethren should call out leaders from existing congregations and equip them to start new congregations in these western counties that were now their home.  This is not mission in the sense of social ministry that we often think of today.  Make no mistake, Brethren were concerned about these things in 1908 as well, and there were speeches on those topics as well. ��But Brother Frantz’ concern is with evangelism and church planting, recognizing that no matter how many Brethren there are in a certain region, and no matter how many churches there are in that same region, there will be thousands of persons in the area who are not yet following Jesus.

The growth of the church requires apostles and pastors being sent out.

This missional, pastoral, and congregational focus is the subject of our Scripture text this morning. Acts 13:1-3 gives us a peek into a board meeting in the church at Antioch.  It must have been a fascinating community, as the pastoral team consists of “a Levite from Cyprus, a black man, a North African from Cyrene, a boyhood friend of Herod Antipas, and a Pharisee educated under Gamaliel.” These were people from remarkably different social, religious, and ethnic backgrounds who have brought into positions of leadership, perhaps because the church recognized that life experiences shape how we see and hear and interact with the Gospel.  The different sets of experiences that people bring to our relationships help us together accomplish the mission God has for us.

At the moment we look in upon them, it would appear that the only item on the agenda was praying and fasting.  There is a valuable lesson for us here.  We have access to so much stuff—money, opportunities, persons in positions of power, entertainment, you name it—that we might overlook the significant need to make prayer and other spiritual disciples our top priority. Just the past 2 Sundays in our congregation has demonstrated how easy it is for us to take our concerns and get something done: with just a few emails we were able to get Sam Rasoul, Joe Cobb, and Jeanine Underwood to come to our church and help us understand our world a bit better.  Don’t get me wrong, I am grateful to each of them for their time helping us understand how our congregation might help other people.  But let’s not forget that our concerns with guns and drugs and healthcare are ultimately spiritual issues.

And so we see the church leaders in Antioch taking time to pray and to fast. Their commitment to Christ and to the position they held in the congregation led them to seek ways to allow God’s Spirit to continue shaping them into leaders equipped to do God’s will.  That’s when the Spirit surprises them.  God’s vision for their ministry was broader than just this congregation.  This is a Great Commission focus that emphasizes the “into all the world” instruction for the church. The Holy Spirit “makes a motion” at this meeting to send Barnabas and Saul out on a special mission.  Apparently someone else seconded that motion—always a good idea if God is bringing the recommendation—and the vote passed without opposition!

The growth of the church requires evangelism leading to changed lives.

So Barnabas and Saul set out, preaching in Cyprus, Pisidian Antioch, and Iconium, before arriving in the city of Lystra. If we were to read these accounts in Acts 13:4-14:7, we’d find that their work yielded mixed results: some believed, some opposed them, they left one town out of frustration for their having rejected the Gospel, and they were almost stoned.

But they kept on. Called forth and led by the Holy Spirit, they would not turn away from their task too quickly.  So they came to Lystra, where they encounter one of the more comical scenes in Scripture.  They preach the Gospel and a man is healed—a result solidly in character with Jesus’ experience. And then things start to get weird; the good citizens of Lystra reach back into their own spiritual experience and community history and say “We recognize what this is! It’s Zeus and Hermes!”

It turns out that there was a legend in Lystra that Zeus and Hermes had visited their town once before and had not been welcomed.  The people are determined not to make that mistake again, so here comes oxen on a cart with garlands of flowers for everybody!

Paul and Barnabas have a tradition of their own here—they tear their clothes to show they aren’t gods, because no god would do such a thing as tear his or her own clothes.  But then they tell the story.  They don’t threaten them with hell, telling them to “Repent or perish!” or “Turn or burn!”  They tell them the story of God’s love for them: how God has given rain and harvest, allowing them to have full stomachs and joyful hearts.  They tell them that idols created by men and women have no lasting value because they were made by men and women.  But the living God in heaven who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them loves them and wants them to leave behind worthless things and find true life in Jesus.

It’s a compassionate message, but one that yielded uncertain fruit.  Paul and Barnabas are run out of town before they can finish their work.  They move on to the city of Derbe before backtracking and heading home to Antioch.

Along the way on this first missionary journey, Paul and Barnabas have met a lot of people. Some have been interested in the Gospel, some were ambivalent, some were opposed.  But they proclaimed the gospel anyway, inviting people to reevaluate their lives in light of the fact that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead and is seated at the right hand of God in heaven, inviting us to be his disciple.

They met a lot of people.  And because they had the faith to venture out, we might safely imagine that some broken marriages were healed and some persons caught in the depths of addiction found hope and a path to healing.   We know that later in Acts, Paul would go to Ephesus and so many people would leave behind their old commitments to the local gods that it would tank the local economy.  Paul met a slave girl and set her free. He met the director of public works in the city of Corinth who was a believer, alongside a lot of people who were formerly adulterers and thieves and alcoholics but now whose lives reflected God’s grace.  All because of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

It’s the kind of thing Edward Frantz had in mind for the Brethren in 1908. In dreaming of a Church of the Brethren that numbered 1.5 million west of the Mississippi by 2008, he finished this message by asking

“[Is this] idle dreaming? I tell you, my brethren, it’s the serious task we ought to lay upon our hearts. Not that we may glory in mere numbers, but because human souls are of such priceless worth. Why, even so, we shall not have used but one-tenth of our opportunity, for there are a thousand, not a hundred, for every one of us, waiting to be gathered in. Nay, more; for this thousand is here on the ground right now, and who would dare to guess the millions in this western empire at the end of another century? Can we do this much? We can, because we must.  We can? I mean that God can do even much more than we are able to ask or think, if only he can find good tools to work with. Yes, by his grace, it will be done. With praise to God for what he hath already wrought among us, and with hope and faith in what he will yet do, we’ll forget the things which are behind, and stretch forward to the things which are before.”

[mhsctb]

Acts 13 part 1

“As they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ Then, after they had fasted, prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them off.”

Ok, so chapter 13 is really important.  In fact, so much is going on here that I couldn’t just pick one verse.  More than likely, I’ll need at least 3 entries to cover this chapter.  And that’s just scratching the surface!

The verse I picked is all about missionary selection and sending.  Here, in an intentional and God-driven way, Saul and Barnabas are sent out on the very first missionary journey.  This is a massive shift as the church embraces mission, not merely because of persecution, but from Spirit directed purpose.  So, several important things just in these first verses:

1. The church was functioning before God called the missionaries out: I think this is hugely important here.  Nobody was waiting around for the next assignment.  They quickly got to work, being the church!  The first verse talks about prophets and teachers; meaning that the church was doing what the church does!   2. God is the One who initiates the missionary call: Often times we place a huge importance on the individual call.  But, as it was in Acts 13, and should still be today, God is the initiator of missions.  It was the Holy Spirit who told the church to set apart Barnabas and Saul for the work.  Notice that the Spirit tells them to set them apart for the “work to which I have called them.”  God initiates, we respond. 3. God’s call happens in the context of worship (and fasting): The church is worshipping and fasting and being sensitive to the Spirit and that’s why they hear the Spirit’s direction.  Now, isn’t this fascinating.  It doesn’t say that only Paul heard the call.  Or just Barnabas.  They (the church) were worshipping the Lord and fasting when the Holy Spirit spoke to all of them.  Wow! 4. God’s call is confirmed by the church: Notice what happens after the Holy Spirit speaks!  The church fasted some more, they prayed some more and then they laid hands on them and sent them out.  This is massive!  The church isn’t doubting the Spirit’s word, but they confirm the Spirit’s direction by fasting (focusing their worship on God by denying bodily appetite), by praying (communicating directly with God and listening to His voice) and then responding in obedience to the Spirit’s direction (by laying hands on them and sending them out).   A few thoughts on this for us today:

1. God calls us those who are faithfully serving in the church 2. God calls missionaries out in the context of the local church 3. God is the great initiator of the missionary call, not us.  If my missionary calling is all about me, then perhaps I wasn’t called.  But if it’s about God initiating and me responding in obedience, then it seems to me like it follows the right pattern (I could go on and on about biblical calling and prove this) 4. God’s call is specific and directed by the Spirit  5. The Church’s responsibility is two fold in the missionary call: first, these men were faithfully serving the church (so there is a screening process) and second, the church is responsible for sending (commissioning and physically sending)

I do realize that these points could be developed further and my intent is not to throw out a statement and not follow up with biblical support.  But, I’m convinced that biblical calling is important and we need to go back to Acts 13 to find out why.  More soon....

[northlandoviedodevo-blog]

June 1st    Acts 13

The leaders of the church in Antioch were gathered for worship, prayer, and fasting when they heard from the Holy Spirit. God wanted Saul and Barnabas to be set aside for the spread of the Gospel to other nations. This was not a decision that Saul and Barnabas decided on by themselves. Rather it was a joint decision of the leadership of the church. They had already established working together as a team and following the example of the Apostles in Jerusalem they devoted themselves to teaching the Word of God and prayer. In doing this they were helping to establish the New Testament practice of collaborative leadership.

In the Old Testament leadership was most often exercised when one person was called by God to lead. This was true of Moses, the Judges, as well as kings like David and Solomon. The Holy Spirit would be bestowed on that person so they could lead. The change in the New Testament is that all believers are gifted with the Holy Spirit and multiple people have a part to play in the leadership of the church. It required them to be open with one another, listen to one another, and sometimes even challenge one another. We will see a practical example of this in Acts 15 when the leaders from Antioch and Jerusalem gather to decide the best way to integrate the Gentiles into the church.

The result of the collaborative leadership in Antioch was that they agreed God would have them send two of their best to take the Gospel to others. It becomes the first missionary journey in the New Testament. It is significant that the leadership was so committed to the spread of the Gospel and reaching others for Jesus, that they sent some of their best. There was no discussion of how that might negatively impact the church in Antioch. They were willing to sacrifice their best for the sake of others.

Their sacrifice paid off when Saul, who is also known as Paul, along with Barnabas, preached the Gospel on the island of Cyprus. Many people came to faith in Christ. But this also set something of a pattern when the Jews became jealous over the Gentiles who put their trust in Jesus as the Messiah. As a result Paul and Barnabas were run out of town. Rather than quit and go home, they continued on to many other places, preaching the Gospel and having people come to faith.

Something to Think About: 1) When have you experienced leadership that was collaborative and united like the Church in Antioch? What key factors made that possible? 2) So often in service to others we give out of our excess or from what we do not need. The Church in Antioch gave their best. What would motivate you to give of your best for others? How big a sacrifice would you be willing to make?

[frmartinshomiliesandreflections]

11th June >> Fr. Martin’s Gospel Reflections / Homilies on  Matthew 10:7-13 for the Feast of Saint Barnabas

And on 

Matthew 5:13-16 for Tuesday, Tenth Week in Ordinary Time.

Feast of Saint Barnabas

Gospel (Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia & Canada)

Matthew 10:7-13

You received without charge: give without charge

Jesus said to his apostles, ‘As you go, proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is close at hand. Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out devils. You received without charge, give without charge. Provide yourselves with no gold or silver, not even with a few coppers for your purses, with no haversack for the journey or spare tunic or footwear or a staff, for the workman deserves his keep.

‘Whatever town or village you go into, ask for someone trustworthy and stay with him until you leave. As you enter his house, salute it, and if the house deserves it, let your peace descend upon it; if it does not, let your peace come back to you.’

Gospel (USA)

Matthew 10:7-13

Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.

Jesus said to the Twelve: “As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, drive out demons. Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give. Do not take gold or silver or copper for your belts; no sack for the journey, or a second tunic, or sandals, or walking stick. The laborer deserves his keep. Whatever town or village you enter, look for a worthy person in it, and stay there until you leave. As you enter a house, wish it peace. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; if not, let your peace return to you.”

Reflections (5)

(i) Feast of Saint Barnabas

In the gospel reading, Jesus sends out the twelve apostles on mission within Galilee, to proclaim the good news that the kingdom of heaven was at hand. In the first reading, the church of Antioch send out Paul and Barnabas on mission to places far beyond Antioch, to Cyprus and parts of modern-day Turkey. Paul and Barnabas were leading lights of the church in Antioch and yet the members of the church were happy to share these two leaders with others, far beyond their shores. Of the two, Paul is better known to us because of his extraordinary missionary journeys and the many letters that have come down to us from him. Yet, Barnabas was very significant in another way. It was Barnabas who created an opening in the early church for Paul, when others were still suspicious of him because of his past persecution of the church. As today’s first reading says, it was Barnabas who went looking for Paul in Tarsus, his native city, and brought him to Antioch because Barnabas saw that there was a great opening for Paul’s gifts in this city where the gospel had been preached to pagans for the first time. Barnabas was what we can today an ‘enabler’. It is not surprising that his nickname in the early church, according to the Acts of the Apostles, was ‘son of encouragement’. That role of enabler or encourager remains a vital role in the church today. We all have the capacity to create openings where the gifts of someone else can flourish for the service of the whole church. It takes a certain humility to create a space where others can flourish to their potential in the service of the Lord. It is the attitude of John the Baptist expressed in his comment with regard to Jesus, ‘He must increase, but I must decrease’. The feast of Barnabas invites us to ask, ‘What can I do for someone so that Jesus may increase today?’

And/Or

(ii) Feast of Saint Barnabas

Barnabas was known in the early church as the ‘son of encouragement’, according to the Acts of the Apostles. As nicknames go, it is one of the nicer ones. It was clearly a term that reflected the nature of the man. He had that marvelous ability to recognize the good qualities in people and to draw them out so that they could be placed at the service of the church. We find two examples of this in this morning’s first reading. The first community of believers was all Jewish, but in Antioch there emerged a community of believers that comprised Jews and non-Jews. When Barnabas was sent from Jerusalem to investigate this new development, he was delighted with what he saw and ‘he urged them all to remain faithful to the Lord with heartfelt devotion’. Then, sometime later Barnabas recognized that Saul, the former persecutor of the church, could make a wonderful contribution to this mixed church in Antioch and so he set out all the way to Tarsus to find Paul and bring him to Antioch. Paul went on to become a leading member of the church in Antioch. Recognizing the gifts of others, and creating openings for those gifts to flourish – this was the strength of Barnabas. We all have it in us to be a Barnabas within the church and within the wider community. We may not have the gift for a particular task, but we can have the ability to recognize that gift in others and to create a space for their gift to flourish. This is one of the ways that we can all respond to the Lord’s call in today’s gospel reading to go out and proclaim that the kingdom of God is close at hand.

And/Or

(iii) Feast of St Barnabas

Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Barnabas. He was born in Cyprus and became a leading member of the church in Jerusalem. He had a reputation in the early church for giving encouragement to others. Indeed Barnabas is a kind of nickname which means ‘son of encouragement’. We see him engaged in that ministry of encouragement in this morning’s first reading. There was something new happening in the church of Antioch. The gospel had been preached to pagans as well as Jews for the first time. A new kind of church was emerging there, a church which was a mixture of Jews and non-Jews. Barnabas was sent down to take a look at what was happening and he immediately recognized it as the work of the Lord and gave great encouragement to this new development. He was right; it was the work of the Lord. The Lord is always at work in new and creative ways among us and it is a great gift to be able to recognize the work of the Lord wherever it is to be found, and to celebrate and encourage that work. Barnabas had this gift of noticing where the Lord was a work because as that first reading says he was filled with the Holy Spirit. We need to be open to the Spirit, to be filled with the Spirit, to recognize the work of the Spirit. As Saint Paul says in one of his letter, spiritual things are discerned spiritually.

And/Or

(iv) Feast of St Barnabas

According to an earlier verse in the Acts of the Apostles, Barnabas’ real name was Joseph, but he was given the name Barnabas, which means ‘son of encouragement’, as a kind of a nick name by the apostles. In this morning’s first reading we can see Barnabas living up to his nick name. News reached Jerusalem of a new development in Antioch. The gospel had been preached to non-Jews for the first time, resulting in the formation of a mixed church of Jewish and Gentile Christians. When the church in Jerusalem sent Barnabas to Antioch to check on this, he saw immediately that this new development was God’s doing and he encouraged all involved. He went further and he encouraged Paul to come from Tarsus and to get involved in this new departure. As a result, Paul made a great contribution to the life of this mixed church of Antioch, and this church, in turn, became a spiritual home for Paul and a base for his missionary work. You could say that Barnabas was a facilitator, an enabler; he supported the good that people were doing and he opened doors for people’s gifts. We always need people like Barnabas around and we can all become a Barnabas for others. The ministry of encouragement is one in which we can all share, and it is one of the most needed ministries today. On this his feast day, we pray for something of the spirit of Barnabas in our own lives and in the life of our church.

And/Or

(v) Feast of Saint Barnabas

Barnabas does not feature in the gospels but he is a significant presence in the Acts of the Apostles, Luke’s story of the early years of the church. He was originally a leading member of the church in Jerusalem. According to this morning’s first reading he was instrumental in encouraging a new development that took place in the city of Antioch, where the gospel was preached to pagans for the first time. He clearly saw the hand of the Lord in this new phenomenon. According to our reading, Barnabas encouraged Saul or Paul to leave the church in Tarsus, Paul’s home city, and to come to the church in Antioch because he recognized that Antioch would be an ideal location for this great apostle to the pagans. Barnabas himself seems to have become a leading member of the church of Antioch. He worked alongside Paul there and together they were sent out on mission by the church of Antioch, travelling to Cyprus and beyond. Barnabas is portrayed in the Acts of the Apostles as an enabler, an encourager. What he enabled and encouraged others to do turned out to be just as significant as what he did himself. In the gospel reading, Jesus says to his followers, ‘You received without charge, give without charge’. One of the ways we give is by creating a space for others to give and to grow. This is where Barnabas comes into his own. He recognized and encouraged the workings of the Spirit in the lives of others. He didn’t try to do everything himself; he stepped back and allowed the Lord to work through others. That takes a certain generosity of spirit, a willingness to rejoice in the gifts of others and allow them to find expression. We can all learn from Barnabas that delicate art of creating space for others to flourish.

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Tuesday, Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel (Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia & Canada)

Matthew 5:13-16

Your light must shine in the sight of men

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You are the salt of the earth. But if salt becomes tasteless, what can make it salty again? It is good for nothing, and can only be thrown out to be trampled underfoot by men.

‘You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill-top cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp to put it under a tub; they put it on the lamp-stand where it shines for everyone in the house. In the same way your light must shine in the sight of men, so that, seeing your good works, they may give the praise to your Father in heaven.’

Gospel (USA)

Matthew 5:13-16

You are the light of the world.

Jesus said to his disciples: “You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.”

Reflections (4)

(i) Tuesday, Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

This morning’s gospel reading follows on immediately from the account of the beatitudes, which was yesterday’s gospel reading. Jesus is saying that those who live out the attitudes and values portrayed in the beatitudes are, in reality, salt of the earth and light of the world. The way of life to which Jesus calls us is with a view to the whole earth, to the whole world. Jesus always had the world in view when he called his first disciples, and when he calls us. He calls us to follow in his way, to live by his values and attitudes, not just for our own sakes but for the sake of all humanity. To the extent that we live the gospel, others will benefit, whether we are aware of that or not. To the extent that we fail to live the gospel, others are being deprived. When we allow ourselves to be led by the Lord’s Spirit, we become a light for others. Indeed, Jesus says in the gospel reading that we have a responsibility to be a light for others. ‘Your light must shine in the sight of all’. Jesus is saying, ‘if you have a light – and you do – you must let it shine’. To let our light shine is to do what the gospel reading calls ‘good works’, those works that give expression to the gospel values and attitudes that are found in the Beatitudes. It is these good works that will bring God’s light into a darkened world. These good works are not with a view to drawing people’s attention to ourselves, but, rather, to God who inspires them. We do them so that, in the words of the gospel reading, people ‘may give praise to your Father in heaven’. 

And/Or

(ii) Tuesday, Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

In Ireland, wherever the land is mountainous or hilly, towns and villages tend to be built in the valleys where there is shelter from the wind and the rain of Winter. In Italy and, also in Palestine, where Jesus lived, towns and villages in hilly or mountainous areas tend to be built on top of the hills rather than in the valleys because in the heat of Summer the hill-top is a much more pleasant place to be than the valley. The saying of Jesus in the gospel reading reflects that practice; Jesus speaks of a city or a town built on a hill-top. Such a city cannot be hidden; it is visible for all to see. Nazareth, where Jesus grew up was such a hill-top town which was visible from the valley below and the hills around. Jesus was saying to his disciples, and to us, ‘like a city on a hill-top you cannot be hidden’. The light of Christ has shone in our hearts; we are to let that light shine, rather than try to hide it. Jesus identifies letting our light shine with the doing of good works, the kind of works that the values of the beatitudes inspire, the works that tend to be performed by the gentle, those who hunger and thirst for what is right, the merciful, the pure of heart, the peacemakers. Such good works typified the life of Saint Columba. Within the circumstances of our own particular lives, we too are called to do the good words inspired by the values of the beatitudes, so that the light of Christ may continue to shine through us today. 

And/Or

(iii) Tuesday, Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

Salt has something of a negative press at the moment. Some of our foods have too much salt in them, more salt that is healthy. Yet, in the time of Jesus, salt had a very positive profile. It was used to preserve and also to flavour food. When Jesus said to his disciples, ‘you are the salt of the earth’, he was reminding them of their identity and of their calling as his disciples. Jesus does not spell out what he means by the image of salt when he applies it to his disciples. He may be implying that as salt enhances the flavour of food, they are to enhance the lives of others by the values that they proclaim and live by. As disciples we are called to be present to our world in a way that helps to preserve what is best there and that adds a dimension, a flavour, that would not otherwise be there. We are called to make a difference for the better. That saying about salt comes immediately after the beatitudes. Jesus seems to be saying that in so far as we are people of the beatitudes, in so far as we live by the values proclaimed in the beatitudes, we will make a difference for the better in our world; we will enhance the lives of those who come within our sphere of influence. 

And/Or

(iv) Tuesday, Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

Today’s gospel reading follows on immediately from the gospel of the beatitudes. Jesus is declaring that it is those who live by the values proclaimed in the beatitudes who are salt of the earth and light of the world. The horizon of both these images is very wide, ‘earth’ and ‘world’. The way of life that Jesus describes in the beatitudes, the way of life for his disciples, is with a view to the earth and the world. Jesus envisages that those who live by the values of the beatitudes will have an impact for good far beyond their own circle. The images of salt and light capture something of this impact for good. Salt was a very important commodity in the world of Jesus. It was used to preserve food and to enhance its flavour. Jesus’ disciples, by living the beatitudes, are called to preserve what is best in the world and to enhance the lives of others. In a culture without electricity, the flickering light of a lamp or torch was essential when darkness fell. It allowed people to find their way without damaging themselves or others. Jesus is declaring that when his followers live by the beatitudes, their resultant good works are like a light in a dark world, showing people the way. This is not with a view to Jesus’ followers drawing attention to themselves but so as to lead people to give glory and praise to God who has inspired such a way of life. The gospel reading reminds us that individually and as a community of faith we have been entrusted with a world-wide mission as disciples of the Lord.

Fr. Martin Hogan, Saint John the Baptist Parish, Clontarf, Dublin, D03 AO62, Ireland.

Email: sjtbclontarf@eircom.net or  frmartinhogan@gmail.com

Parish Website: www.stjohnsclontarf.ie  Please join us via our webcam.

Twitter: @SJtBClontarfRC.

Facebook: St John the Baptist RC Parish, Clontarf.

Tumblr: Saint John the Baptist Parish, Clontarf, Dublin.

[the-christian-walk]

SET APART AND SENT

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com In Christ, Mark

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** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

But the word of God continued to spread and flourish.

When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission, they returned from Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.

Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”

So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.

Acts 12:24-25, 13:1-3

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Yesterday’s devotion from some of the final verses of Acts 12 found King Herod Agrippa struck down by the Lord after allowing people to proclaim him a god (small “g”). He perished on the spot and the scriptures tell us that he was devoured by worms. Not a pretty sight.

You’ll remember that Herod has restarted a persecution campaign and he began by beheading James, one of Jesus’ first disciples before arresting and imprisoning Peter. Much to the delight of the Jews, Herod was trying to kill Christianity but in the end, he was the one who ended up dead.

As for the word of the Lord, we read today how it continued to spread and flourish as Barnabas and Saul finished their mission in Jerusalem and traveled north, returning to Antioch with another disciple named Mark (also known as John). Mark was the son of Mary and we saw in Acts 12 how Peter went to Mary’s home after his divine escape from Herod’s captivity. Now, Mark would accompany Barnabas and Saul on their missionary journey and later would write a Gospel that would bear his own name.

As chapter 13 opens, we are given a roll call of the prophets and teachers which included the following:

Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul

We can obviously see that there was no shortage of people the Lord could use for His purposes. We also see where He’s the One who makes the call, setting apart who He so chooses to carry out what He wants done.

We know this because the scriptures tell us that while the Christian leaders and believers were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit came upon them demanding that Barnabas and Saul be set apart “for the work to which I have called them.”

Notice that this work wasn’t made known immediately. Barnabas and Saul didn’t know their destination or anything else about what was ahead. They only knew that they had been set apart for special purposes and were willing to go where the Lord sent them to do what He wanted them to do. That’s all that really mattered and after a period of fasting and prayer, the Christians in Antioch laid hands on the Lord’s two chosen apostles and sent them on their way to answer the Lord’s calling.

Friends, as Christians, we need to be prepared to be set apart ourselves. For the Great Commission given to all believers by Jesus is not a call to just sit around. Rather, it is a call to get busy, to actively go and make disciples, baptizing them and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commanded. This is our purpose in life through our Savior.

The question is…Are we ready to go when He calls us?

Barnabas and Saul didn’t hesitate, even when they didn’t know where they were going or what their work would entail. They went in obedience and with faith in their Lord.

We need to be willing to follow their lead and do likewise.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

[the-christian-walk]

A BLESSED SCATTERING

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. 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. The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.

Acts 11:19-21

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Philip, Saul, and Peter. These three men, each used by Jesus in different ways but toward a common purpose, dominate the narrative in the Book of Acts between chapter 8 and the early part of chapter 11. But as we see later in Acts 11, starting at verse 19, there was lot more people engaged in the work of the Gospel.

We don’t know how many people but it had to be significant because thousands upon thousands of people had converted to Christianity because of the work of the apostles after receiving the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem. These new believers were the ones who fled Jerusalem after Stephen’s stoning as widespread persecution broke out in Jerusalem, causing a blessed scattering to occur.

So where did these Christians go?

Well, you’ll remember Jesus predicting it well before it happened when He said this just before ascending into heaven to sit at God’s right hand:

“…you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8

So after Jerusalem, the progression would have the Gospel go to Judea and Samaria, and then to the ends of the earth. Peter and Philip had been working Judea and Samaria. Now we see where other believers were branching out even more. Let’s look closer at the places mentioned in our passage today.

1. Phoenicia.

We read about Tyre and Sidon a lot in the scriptures and both those cities were port cities in the region of Phoenicia. Known for its trade, the region was located largely to the north of Samaria and west of Galilee, ranging north to south along the Mediterranean coast. Today, we know this area as Lebanon.

2. Cyprus.

The home of Barnabas, Cyprus was a large island in the Eastern Mediterranean located about 50 miles to the south of Turkey and 60 miles west of Syria. Today it is owned by both Turkey (the north) and Greece (the south).

3. Antioch.

In New Testament times, Antioch was a city located in ancient Syria and today it is a part of south central Turkey. It played a prominent role in the growth of the early church and as we’ll see later in this chapter, the disciples were first called Christians in this city.

As you can see, the Gospel was well on its way outside of Judea and Samaria, and Paul had not even started his first missionary journey yet. The Jerusalem persecution had not stopped the Gospel. Rather, it served as the catalyst for a blessed scattering of Christian believers who not only shared the good news of Jesus with the Jews but also the Greeks. The scriptures tell us that this occurred because “the Lord’s hand was with them” and this resulted in “a great number of people” believing in and turning to the Lord Jesus for their salvation.

Tomorrow, we shift our attention to the aforementioned Antioch as Barnabas is dispatched from Jerusalem to pay the city a visit.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

[johnchiarello]

Acts 13

ACTS 13 Acts 13:38 Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins:Acts 13:39 And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses. https://youtu.be/qwLxk3nbTYQ Acts 13 https://ccoutreach87.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/5-25-17-acts-13.zip https://ccoutreach87.com/5-25-17-acts-13/ ON VIDEO- .Gentile church .Apostles sent out [Missionaries] .5- fold operating .Land and Sea .Demonic showdown .Son of Jesus? .Now your blind! .God’s power= doctrine .Paul’s sermon .Justification by faith- not law .Grace and sovereignty message .Predestination .Son of David .God raised him

PAST POSTS- [Past teaching I did that relates to today’s post- Acts 13- Verses below] https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/28/isaiah-42/ https://ccoutreach87.com/galatians-links/ https://ccoutreach87.com/romans-updated-2015/ https://ccoutreach87.com/protestant-reformation-luther/ https://ccoutreach87.com/further-talks-on-church-and-ministry/ https://ccoutreach87.com/judges-ruth-video-links-included/ https://ccoutreach87.com/1st-2nd-samuel/ https://ccoutreach87.com/1st-2nd-corinthians/ https://ccoutreach87.com/john-complete-links-added/ ACTS- https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/01/18/acts-1/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/01/26/acts-2/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/02/02/acts-3/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/02/09/acts-4/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/23/acts-5/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/03/31/acts-6/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/06/acts-7/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/14/acts-8/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/04/18/acts-9/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/07/acts-10/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/16/acts-11/ https://ccoutreach87.com/2017/05/22/acts-12/

(739)ACTS 13- The believers at Antioch were praying and fasting and the Holy Spirit said ‘separate me Paul and Barnabas unto the work which I have called them’. Then the whole group laid their hands on them and sent them out. Notice, there was not a singular authority figure who was the overseer of this church [community of believers]. It is important to see this, because when you share the oversight of a body of people with a plural team [Elders/Pastors- the title you use is insignificant] then there is less of a chance of one person becoming too elevated in the minds of the group. There is also a dynamic of the group coming to maturity as they see themselves as being able to ‘ordain-lay hands’ and send out. Now Paul and Barnabas begin their missionary journeys. At Paphos Paul casts blindness on a sorcerer and the chief deputy believes. At Antioch [Pisidia] they preach in the synagogue. Paul does a good Old Testament survey and mentions ‘Saul from the tribe of Benjamin’ as being part of Gods plan. I always wondered if Paul saw himself in this image [Saul from Benjamin]. Jesus did tell Ananias that Paul was a chosen vessel to bear his name. Notice also that Paul’s message saw the promise to David in Psalms ‘the sure mercies of David’ as being fulfilled thru Christ’s resurrection. The theme of the message was not ‘Jesus rule is delayed’ [dispensational teaching] but that thru Jesus the promises to the fathers have come to fruition. While it is true that the Jewish hearers will reject their Messiah as a people, yet this did not mean that the Kingdom was delayed or that the ‘church age’ was a parenthetical time until the ‘Kingdom age’ reconvenes. The whole tenor of Paul’s message is the reality that Jesus resurrection and being seated at Gods right hand is the promise being fulfilled that God made to the fathers. It is important to see his theme all thru out the Apostolic writings. The following week after Paul delivers his message, many gentiles come back to hear the word again. The leaders get jealous and Paul rebukes them. He tells them it was necessary for the Jews to have heard the word first, but then in fulfillment of the prophets, Jesus will be a light to the gentiles also. Paul and Barnabas sail off to Iconium next. An important theme in all the sermons in Acts is how the main message is that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Prophets. Paul tells them that they heard the readings from the prophets [Old Testament] every Sabbath day, but they also fulfilled the prophetic word by not being able to understand what the prophets were saying. So they crucified Jesus because of their blindness to the meaning of scripture. We need to see Jesus as the fulfillment of the prophets. The ultimate end of our purpose. To become like him in every way. In today’s church world it is so easy to see the word and ‘church attendance’ as a means to self fulfillment. But we need to re focus on becoming more like him. I am sure it was a shock to Paul when he realized all the time and study he did as a Pharisee was missing the main intent of scripture. It was humiliating to find out that the simple men who became these followers of Christ were closer to the truth than the theological doctors of the day. Jesus said we must become like little children again in order to see Gods kingdom.

VERSES- [These are verses I taught or quoted on today’s video- Acts 13] Acts 13:1 Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. Acts 13:2 As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. Acts 13:3 And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. Acts 13:4 So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus. Acts 13:5 And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister. Acts 13:6 And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus: Acts 13:7 Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God. Acts 13:8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. Acts 13:9 Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him. Acts 13:10 And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? Acts 13:11 And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand. Acts 13:12 Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord. Acts 13:13 Now when Paul and his company loosed from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia: and John departing from them returned to Jerusalem. Acts 13:14 But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and sat down. Acts 13:15 And after the reading of the law and the prophets the rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, saying, Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people, say on. Acts 13:16 Then Paul stood up, and beckoning with his hand said, Men of Israel, and ye that fear God, give audience. Acts 13:17 The God of this people of Israel chose our fathers, and exalted the people when they dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt, and with an high arm brought he them out of it. Acts 13:18 And about the time of forty years suffered he their manners in the wilderness. Acts 13:19 And when he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Chanaan, he divided their land to them by lot. Acts 13:20 And after that he gave unto them judges about the space of four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet. Acts 13:21 And afterward they desired a king: and God gave unto them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, by the space of forty years. Acts 13:22 And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave their testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will. Acts 13:23 Of this man’s seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus: Acts 13:24 When John had first preached before his coming the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. Acts 13:25 And as John fulfilled his course, he said, Whom think ye that I am? I am not he. But, behold, there cometh one after me, whose shoes of his feet I am not worthy to loose. Acts 13:26 Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent. Acts 13:27 For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him. Acts 13:28 And though they found no cause of death in him, yet desired they Pilate that he should be slain. Acts 13:29 And when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree, and laid him in a sepulchre. Acts 13:30 But God raised him from the dead: Acts 13:31 And he was seen many days of them which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses unto the people. Acts 13:32 And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, Acts 13:33 God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. Acts 13:34 And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of David. Acts 13:35 Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Acts 13:36 For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption: Acts 13:37 But he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption. Acts 13:38 Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: Acts 13:39 And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses. Acts 13:40 Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets; Acts 13:41 Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you. Acts 13:42 And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath. Acts 13:43 Now when the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. Acts 13:44 And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God. Acts 13:45 But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming. Acts 13:46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. Acts 13:47 For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth. Acts 13:48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. Acts 13:49 And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region. Acts 13:50 But the Jews stirred up the devout and honourable women, and the chief men of the city, and raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts. Acts 13:51 But they shook off the dust of their feet against them, and came unto Iconium. Acts 13:52 And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost. Psalm 2:1 Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? Psalm 2:2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, Psalm 2:3 Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. Psalm 2:4 He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the LORD shall have them in derision. Psalm 2:5 Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure. Psalm 2:6 Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. Psalm 2:7 I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Psalm 2:8 Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Psalm 2:9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel. Psalm 2:10 Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Psalm 2:11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Psalm 2:12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him. Habakkuk 1:5 Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvelously: for I will work a work in your days which ye will not believe, though it be told you. Revelation 1:5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations Psalm 16:1 Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust. Psalm 16:2 O my soul, thou hast said unto the LORD, Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to thee; Psalm 16:3 But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all my delight. Psalm 16:4 Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another god: their drink offerings of blood will I not offer, nor take up their names into my lips. Psalm 16:5 The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot. Psalm 16:6 The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage. Psalm 16:7 I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons. Psalm 16:8 I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Psalm 16:9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. Psalm 16:10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Psalm 16:11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. John 15:16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. 1 Corinthians 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations

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Acts 11

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Acts 8