God’s Word Says….

Acts 15:36-40 (NCV)
36 After some time, Paul said to Barnabas, “We should go back to all those towns where we preached the message of the Lord. Let’s visit the believers and see how they are doing.”
37 Barnabas wanted to take John Mark with them, 38 but he had left them at Pamphylia; he did not continue with them in the work. So Paul did not think it was a good idea to take him. 39 Paul and Barnabas had such a serious argument about this that they separated and went different ways. Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and left.

My Thoughts…..

Often in the lives of individuals, and yes even in the lives of Christians and our churches, disagreements will arise, and sometimes the decision is made to separate. Way too often though, enough is not done to reach the state of mutual decision before one party flies off in a rage and promises the world and all of Satan’s demons that they will never darken the doors of a church again, or they will do all within their power to bring revenge on the other person or group. As in every case with scripture, we can find the answers to life’s challenges right within the pages of the Bible and, as Christians, we are obligated to follow its instruction, whether it is in our favor or not. Paul and Barnabas, these saints that did such awesome work for the Lord, had a disagreement about Barnabas wanting to bring a family member along who, at one point earlier, had abandoned their ministry. Although some translations indicate that this was a very serious argument, it is clear that they separated. Yet they multiplied their efforts by sending out two teams, instead of just the one team of Paul and Barnabas. With the help of later scripture, it is believed that both teams had effective ministry opportunities and successes. Effective ministry will only happen when God has free reign in the effort and that there are no wedges placed there by us that will cause God to turn His holy face away from us.

Challenge……

I’m sure that each one meditating on this devotional will agree that at one point in your lives you have either been involved in, or part of a church or group that had been involved in some type of disagreement or split at some point. It is not something that any of us could be proud of, because God’s Word teaches unity and reconciliation. This particular story teaches us that we can agree to disagree, and yes, we may even have to separate at times to effectively continue ministry for our Lord. But we should always bear in mind that our sole purpose as a Christian is to: a). Worship and adore the Savior we recognize as Lord of our lives; and b). to grow each day to be more like Jesus in every way, and this involves living humble loving lives like He did, and loving our neighbor as ourselves, as He commanded. There is an old chorus that Christians once sang, “They will know us by our love”. To fulfill either of these Christian duties, we must be willing to give and take. It’s not all about us! Jesus is the One that we live for, love, adore and strive to imitate every day. Can we commit today to be more like Him in ALL walks of life, so that the world will know us by our love? We know that He is with us at all times, and that we are never alone, so with His help we can do ALL things! Let’s fill this world with true Jesus followers and imitators of Christ friend!

Prayer……

Lord Jesus, I am sure that You must look at us, sometimes utterly ashamed of the people that You created specifically to worship and honor You. Often we allow such an influence by Satan in our lives and subsequently in our churches, that You are excluded, and I am convinced that You will refuses to force Yourself upon us. Lord, we are ashamed of our weaknesses and our defeated lives, while family and friends all around us are dying and going to Hell. Please forgive our littleness and ineffectiveness. Lord I know that it is only You who can fill us and make us more like You in all of life’s situations, so I humbly ask You for a fresh filling of Your Holy Spirit so that I may have power to overcome sin and its awful effect on my life. I know that with Your help, I can be more than a conqueror of anything that Satan throws at me. Please fill me with Your power and Your love so that I may share it with all those that I come into contact with. You overcame death on that glorious day after your crucifixion, oh that You may fill me, and my friends meditating on this, with Your power to overcome evil and to be a reflection of our risen Lord! For it is in that name that I humbly pray and ask all this, AMEN!

Action…..

In response to God leading You through this devotional today, please get with a Bible teaching Pastor you may know and allow him to guide you. Otherwise feel free to reply to my post online, or you may email me directly at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. I will gladly add you to my prayer list, and/or respond to your request(s) ASAP.