A Spirit Of Encouragement - Barnabas

When the church at Jerusalem heard what had happened, they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw this evidence of God’s blessing, he was filled with joy, and he encouraged the believers to stay true to the Lord.

Acts 11:22-23

You’ve heard it said that you can’t judge a book by its cover, but people who work in bookselling know that a great title or jacket design can spell the difference between a best seller and a pallet of books headed for the bargain bin.

The nickname Barnabas means “Son of Encouragement” in New Testament Greek, and it accurately expresses the kind of man he was.

Barnabas specialized in encouragement.

On one of his first missions, Barnabas persuaded the understandably cynical believers in Jerusalem to accept the violent Pharisee named Saul as one of their own. He convinced them that this man had genuinely converted to faith in Christ and that God had begun to prepare him for divine service (see Acts 9:26-28). Saul eventually became the apostle Paul.

Later, Barnabas encouraged the believers in Antioch to remain true to the Lord (see Acts 11:22-23). He encouraged Paul as they traveled together on their long missionary journeys (see Acts 13–14). He invested in a young believer named John Mark, who struggled at the beginning of his life of ministry (see Acts 15:36-39).

Obviously, the name Barnabas tells a story all its own!

Barnabas was drawn to those who needed a positive word. What made him such a great source of encouragement? Scripture answers that Barnabas was “a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and strong in faith” (Acts 11:24).

Could your friends and loved ones use the nickname “Barnabas” to describe you? Do they see you as a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and strong in faith? If they don’t, you can choose now to follow Barnabas’s splendid example.

The men and women around you need you to be a twenty-first-century Barnabas. No one ever gets too much encouragement! Walk daily in the power of the Holy Spirit so that God can do Barnabas-size miracles through you.