Acts 11:19-26

            {Prayer}

            If you have ever walked through a house before the drywall is installed, everything that is important is exposed. The studs, the beams, the joists, the wiring, the plumbing. But once the house is finished, no one notices the structural parts. Your family and friends may admire the kitchen, the fireplace, or the different paint colors. But the thing is, if one of those load-bearing beams were removed … everything else would eventually collapse.

            Every healthy church has people like that … not because they are unusually gifted, but because Christ chooses to strengthen His Church through ordinary believers. Barnabas wasn’t the source of the church’s strength. He was one of the instruments Christ used.

            In our reading from Acts 11, we pick up where Barnabas is sent by the church in Jerusalem to Antioch. Luke tells us here something remarkable before Barnabas ever arrives. “The Lord’s hand was with them and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord” (Acts 11:21). That’s the key to understanding this passage. The church at Antioch wasn’t growing because of Barnabas. It was growing because the risen Jesus was already at work among them.

            Notice that Luke says Barnabas “saw the grace of God.” This means that God was already working there, working in and through the people of Antioch. God was working before Barnabas even showed up.

            Before Barnabas preached … Jesus was already at work. Before Barnabas encouraged … Jesus was already at work. Before Barnabas organized anything … Jesus was already at work. Why? Because Jesus had already promised, “I will build My church” (Matthew 16:18).

Barnabas didn’t go to Antioch to look for problems. He arrived there looking for evidence that Christ was already at work. And He saw it.

            One of the ways Jesus strengthens His Church is by giving His people the ability to recognize God’s grace. It’s easier to see problems. Some people are really good at seeing the flaws. Flaws in people, in leaders, in the way things are being done. But Barnabas saw grace.

            Now don’t take that as Barnabas ignored sin or ignored all the problems that were going on. He didn’t. However … his first instinct was not to search for them and to criticize. His first instinct was that of gratitude. He was thankful for the work the Holy Spirit was doing and that he witnessed it in that place. 

            A support beam in a house doesn’t draw attention to itself. It quietly does it thing of strengthening everything around it. Barnabas wasn’t interested in being the center of attention. Nor is he trying to draw attention to himself. Barnabas quietly strengthens the church because He recognized where Christ was already working.

            As we look at this, I want you to ask yourself … do I notice God’s grace in other believers or am I quick to criticize and slow to encourage? When visitors come into our church … do they encounter people who see evidence of God’s work, or do they see a place that judges others?

            As Barnabas arrived in Antioch, he saw God’s grace and encouraged them. He encourages them “to remain faithful, to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts” (Acts 11:23). But why? Because Christ strengthens His people through His Word. Barnabas is “a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith” (11:24). These aren’t merely personality traits. They were proof of Jesus’ work in Barnabas’ own life. Before Jesus used Barnabas to strengthen others, Christ had already been strengthening him. The same Lord who was building the church in Antioch was also shaping the man He sent there.

That’s why Barnabas isn’t offering motivational speeches. He’s calling the believers “to remain faithful, to remain true to the Lord”.Everything Barnabas says and does revolves around Christ. Biblical encouragement isn’t simply making people feel better. It’s helping people keep their eyes fixed on Jesus and remain faithful to Him in every season of life. …

            What kind of encouragement do we usually offer? “It’ll all work out.” “Hang in there, it’ll be okay.” “Things will get better.”

            Barnabas’ encouragement was different. “Remain true to the Lord.” He didn’t simply point people toward better circumstances. He pointed them toward Christ.

            You see, the strongest Christians are often not the loudest Christians. The strongest are often the ones who consistently strengthen others. These people may include parents, Sunday School teachers, Elders, Bible Study leaders. They may be faithful members who send cards, who make visits, who pray and encourage others. These are the kind of people who are the hidden beams of the Church that Christ uses.

            While heavily depended upon, nobody thanks a support beam every day.

            After seeing God working in Antioch, Barnabas leaves. Barnabas leaves to go find Saul, who only a few chapters early has a life altering encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. Following that event, Saul went from being a persecutor of the church to being the greatest advocate for non-believers to follow Jesus.

            So, Barnabas goes, finds Saul, and brings him back to Antioch. Now, why is this important? Why did Barnabas leave only to bring someone else back? Well … Barnabas could have stayed in Antioch and enjoyed being the primary leader. But that isn’t who he is. He’s a behind the scenes support kind of guy.

Instead, he recognizes that Christ wasn’t done building Antioch. Barnabas realizes the church needed more teaching. And whom had Christ already been preparing in Tarsus? This guy who we know better as Paul.

We see Barnabas as a support guy who works behind the scenes, but even more involved behind the scenes is Jesus. You see, before Antioch needed a teacher, Jesus had already met and converted Saul. Years before Barnabas went looking, Jesus had already been preparing him.

Barnabas didn’t discover Saul by accident. Christ had already been preparing His servant for this very moment.

            Christ continues to strengthen His Church today. He does it through Spirit-filled believers who are secure enough to share the ministry. When it comes to Christ’s Church today, we need to ask ourselves … who is Christ calling me to encourage? Who am I helping grow in the faith? If I stepped away tomorrow, would someone else be ready to continue the work?

            The Church at large and even our congregation grows stronger when ministry is multiplied rather than being monopolized.

            Think about this way … even though they’re hidden … one beam rarely supports an entire house. The load is distributed among other beams. The ministry of the Church is spread out among other people. It doesn’t rely on one or two or three people. It doesn’t rely on the same volunteers stepping up every time. Barnabas understood this. This is why he went and got the help of Paul. With Paul’s help, with his leadership skills … the church in Antioch grew. The Antioch people were the first to be called Christians. The first to be called those belonging to Christ.

            Let’s go back to the house being built before the drywall is put up. With the studs, beams, electrical wires and plumbing still showing, the place is a mess. Once the drywall goes up and paint goes on, no one sees the support beams.

            That is except the Builder. The Builder sees everything about house. Everything that has gone into it to make it what it is.

            You see … Christ knows everything about you and His Church. Jesus knows the number of hairs on your head. He knows every prayer that is prayed. He knows every visit made. Every conversation spoken. Every lesson taught. Every meal delivered. He knows every quiet act of faithfulness. Those things may never receive recognition, but they are a part of how Christ continues to strengthen His Church.

            The Builder never forgets where He placed each beam. Christ hasn’t overlooked one unseen act of faithfulness offered in His name. A support beam never receives the glory. But without it, the Builder’s work is weakened. Jesus is still placing men and women exactly where His Church needs them. …

            The good news of this passage isn’t that Barnabas was an extraordinary man. The good news is that Christ is an extraordinary Savior who delights in using ordinary people.

            Barnabas wasn’t the foundation. He wasn’t the Builder. He wasn’t even the source of the church’s strength. Jesus was.

            And the same Jesus who strengthened the church in Antioch is still strengthening His Church today.  He still opens hearts. He still gives grace. He still calls sinners to Himself. He still raises up encouragers. He still equips teachers. He still strengthens His Church. Because He is still the risen and victorious Lord.

            The question isn’t whether Christ will continue His work. He has promised that He will.  And because He is faithful to His promise, we can joyfully take the place He has prepared for us in the house He is building. For the Church does not rest on Barnabas. It doesn’t rest on us. It rests on the Cornerstone, on the risen Jesus, who even now continues to strengthen His Church. Amen.