How to be an Encourager - Various Texts from Acts

1:25But we're just glad that we're here. I retired from the federal government. After 35 years and some time in the Air Force as well, and this is now our new home, not only here in Bryan, but here at Emmanuel Baptist Church. And we're just glad to be a part of all that's going on here at Emmanuel. So, thank you for bringing us into your home and making us feel welcome. And you have been indeed an encouraging church to us, and that's what we were looking for as we came to this area: a place not only where we would be welcomed, but where God's word would be honored and preached, but also to find a church family. And that's so very important to us: to have folks around us that can encourage us and that would allow us to encourage them as well.

2:13Let's have a word of prayer as we start this morning. Father, thank you for today. Thank you for the beautiful weather outside, and God, for just the warm and friendly atmosphere here. Lord, thank you for these individuals that have come together, these brothers and sisters in Christ, to worship you. Father, we love you and we thank you for sending Jesus to die on a cross for our sins. And if there's one here today who does not know Jesus as Lord and Savior, I pray that even before they would leave today, they would reach out and talk with one of us and we can show them from the Bible how they can know for sure their sins can be forgiven and have a home in heaven for all eternity. Father, we do ask that you would watch over Daniel and Pastor Tom. Is there a way? And Lord, give them a blessing and be a blessing as they continue to minister in El Salvador. And Lord, just bring them back safely here to be with us. So, again, bless us this morning as we look into your word. May you be lifted up in all that we do. And we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

3:20How many of you have ever heard or quoted this old adage? Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never. Oh, yes, you've all heard of this one. That might sound good, but the truth is, words have power. Words can help heal, but they can also hurt and destroy. Over the years, psychologists have studied words and found that they have a profound effect on the human brain. Words can either build up or they can tear down. Words either encourage or discourage. There really is no middle ground. Research has also proven that our brains function at their best when we're processing positive rather than negative words. And the Bible echoes these statements in a paraphrase of Proverbs 15:4, which says, Kind words bring life, but cruel words crush your spirit.

4:28And when you read about The lives of great men and women in history, you will often find that there is some person or group who encouraged them. And that encouragement was a key factor in all that they achieved. And the Bible is filled with stories about people who encouraged others. One of the oldest stories in the Bible is about a man whose name was Job. And if you've read his story, he certainly had some problems, didn't he? His animals had been stolen, his servants had been murdered, his home had been destroyed, and even his children had been killed. And to make matters even worse, Job's own body began to break out and boils. And who came to encourage Job? His three friends. One of the things a friend can do is to encourage you when you're down. And we find another story in the Old Testament about David and King Saul's son, Jonathan. They were the best of friends, even though Jonathan's father tried to kill David. Jonathan loved David and warned him about his father's plans. And Jonathan encouraged David when he was down. This morning, I'd like to look at the life of another man, another encourager, a man whose name was Joseph. And I like that name. That's a good name for a person.

6:01Now, some of you may be thinking, well, this is the Joseph in the book of Genesis. No, it's not. It's not the father of Jesus. This man was a key leader in the early church in Jerusalem. He was a Jew from the tribe of Levi. Actually, he's the only Levite mentioned by name in the New Testament. And Joseph was raised on the island of Cyprus, and his family had considerable wealth and social status. And Joseph became a follower of Jesus Christ sometime around Pentecost in Jerusalem. He was related to a woman whose name was Mary, who opened her home for many of the believers in Jerusalem there to meet. Have you heard of this man? Does Joseph the Levite sound familiar to you?

6:53Perhaps you know him better by his nickname, that of Barnabas, which means the son of encouragement. And if the apostles called this guy the encourager, I really wanted to know why. So this morning, we're going to be looking at some snapshots from the book of Acts and discover five things that Barnabas did to demonstrate what it means to be an encourager and why Joseph the Levite from Cyprus earned the nickname of encourager. The first illustration about Barnabas is found in the passage that we read earlier in the service, Acts chapter 4. If you'd like to turn there with me, Acts chapter 4, and we'll read verses 32 through 37 again.

7:48Acts chapter 4, verses 32 through 37. And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and one soul, and neither said of any of them, about the things which he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common. And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. Neither was there any among them that lacked. For as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of these things that were sold, and laid them down at the apostles' feet, and distribution was made to every man according as he had need. And Joseph, who was by the apostles surnamed Barnabas, which is being interpreted or translated the son of encouragement, a Levite and of the country of Cyprus, having land, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet. In this first illustration, About Barnabas, we will discover that an encourager sacrifices for others.

9:08An encourager is one who sacrifices for others. In this passage, Luke characterizes the community of believers by four things: first, their unity in mind and in heart in verse 32. Also, in verse 32, we see their sharing of their possessions. In verse 33, we see the power and the witness of the apostles. And four, the grace of God which rested on all of them. The major focus was their unity and their fellowship in the Holy Spirit. And this served as the basis of the sharing of their possessions with one another. So that it says there were no needy people among them.

10:00Verses 34 and 35 explain again how this was done. Those who had lands or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds and lay them at the apostles' feet. And then the money was distributed by the apostles to those who had need. So I guess they didn't have PayPal or Venmo at this time. If you're not into the technology stuff, that's how we transfer money now. I still write checks. Anybody see? Still write checks. We do too. Yeah, that's okay.

10:34But they would sell things that were precious to them, homes, lands, and they bring them to the assembly and they would lay them at the apostles' feet. I don't know if they actually had a pot or a bucket down there in front of them, but they basically gave it to the group and said, Apostles, send this around to the people who have need. We don't want to see any of our brothers and sisters in need. So give it away. Luke provides two specific examples of Christian sharing: one to be followed, that of Barnabas, and one to be avoided by Ananias and Sapphira. Barnabas was a positive example of the community's sharing, and the story of Ananias and Sapphira provides a sharp contrast. However, we're not going to be looking at Ananias and Sapphira this morning. It is here that Luke introduces us to Joseph, the Levite from Cyprus, who the apostles called Barnabas, the son of encouragement. Barnabas sold some of his land and brought the money to the apostles. And we're not told where this field was located, whether it was in Judea or whether it was in Cyprus. But Barnabas took something of very great value to himself and simply gave it away to be used to support the believers in Jerusalem. And this act of kindness was just one of the things that earned Barnabas his nickname. Sacrificing something of great value puts action to your words. And it's the foundation of what it means to be a Christian. An encourager is one who helps another, even when it comes at great personal cost.

12:30The United States Congress designates March 25th each year, which is this Friday, as National Medal of Honor Day. Anyone here like Texas AM? There you go. Eight Aggie servicemen hold the Medal of Honor, the highest and most prestigious United States military decoration given for valor in action against an enemy force. Clarence Sasser, Texas AM class of 1973, was the eighth Aggie to be awarded the Medal of Honor. Sasser briefly attended the University of Houston as a chemistry major, but was forced to drop out due to lack of funds. He was immediately drafted into the Army after giving up his college deferment and served as a combat medic during the Vietnam War. On January 10th, 1968, Sasser's company was making An air assault when suddenly they came under heavy fire from well-fortified enemy positions on three sides of their landing zone. During the first few minutes, over 30 casualties were sustained. And without hesitation, Specialist Sasser ran across an open rice paddy through a hail of fire to assist the wounded. After helping one man to safety, Sasser was painfully wounded in his left shoulder by fragments of an exploding rocket. Refusing medical attention, he ran through a barrage of rocket and automatic weapons fire to aid casualties from the initial attack. After giving them urgently needed treatment, he continued to search for other wounded. Despite two additional wounds immobilizing his legs, he dragged himself through the mud toward another soldier 100 meters away. Although in agonizing pain and faint from loss of blood, Sasser reached the man, treated him, and proceeded to encourage another group of soldiers to crawl 200 meters to relative safety. There he attended their wounds for five hours until they were all evacuated. On that day in 1968, Clarence Sasser sacrificed his own well-being for that of his fellow soldiers.

14:56Can you think of another man who sacrificed Everything for us in John 15:13, Jesus said, There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for his friends. And that's what Jesus did for us on the cross. An encourager is one who sacrifices for others. Secondly, an encourager is one who seeks the best in others. An encourager seeks the best in others. In Acts chapter 9, we meet up with Barnabas again. A man whose name was Saul had experienced a radical conversion. This man who once had persecuted and executed Christians had now become a Christian himself. But he was having a little trouble gaining acceptance from his former enemies. Can you blame them?

16:01Look in Acts chapter 6, and we'll be reading verses, or excuse me, Acts chapter 9. We'll look at verses 26 and 27. Acts chapter 9, verses 26 and 27. And when Saul was come to Jerusalem, he tried to join himself with the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, believing not that he was a disciple. But who shows up? Barnabas. And took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how he had seen the Lord in the way and how he had spoken to him and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. Barnabas again shows us that an encourager seeks the best in others. When Saul came to Jerusalem, he was trying to hang out with the disciples. He thought, hey, this will be a cool thing. I'd like to hang out with you guys and see what's going on. Oh no, we don't trust you. You might say that you're a Christian, but you're just trying to get into our circle. You're trying to hurt us.

17:07But Barnabas came. Barnabas the encourager took him and brought him to the apostles. And he told them how Saul on his journey to Damascus had seen the Lord and that Jesus had spoken to him. And how in Damascus that Saul had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. Saul, the former Christian killer, was being shunned by the church, but Barnabas the encourager takes him and brings him by the arm to the leaders of the church and said, Let me tell you about the change in my brother Saul.

17:46An encourager sees the good that others can't. They encourage others by saying, I believe in you. Have you ever had anybody do that to you? Before. Maybe you messed up and somebody came around and put their arm next to you or beside you and said, Hey, we can do this. You can succeed. You just have to try again because I believe in you. That was Barnabas. That was Barnabas. That's what he loved to do. Anyone like baseball? One or two?

18:26Have you ever heard of Jackie Robinson? Jackie Robinson was the first African-American to play baseball in the major league. Breaking baseball's color barrier, he faced hostile crowds at every stadium. And while playing one day at his home stadium in Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, he made, of all things, an error. Ooh. And the fans began to jeer him. And as he stood at second base, humiliated, and while the crowd continued to boo, and without saying a word, shortstop, Pee-Wee Reese went over and stood next to Jackie. And he put his arm around him, and together they looked up and they faced the crowd. And suddenly the fans grew quiet. Robinson later said that that arm around his shoulder saved his career. Pee Wee Reese was an encourager that day.

19:31He stood up and said, I believe in this man. So, if we're going to be an encouragement to others, we need to look for the best in others and stand with them when the rest of the world jeers. Because once again, an encourager seeks the best in others. In the next episode of Barnabas's life, we see that an encourager is a spiritual influence on others. An encourager is a spiritual influence on others. You're in Acts chapter 9. Let's go over to Acts chapter 11.

20:13News has come to the church leaders that revival has broken out in Antioch. The Gentiles are now becoming Christians. And the apostles in Jerusalem knew just the guy to send down to Antioch to encourage these new believers. In Acts chapter 11, verses 22 through 24, Acts 11, verses 22 through 24, news of this revival had reached the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. And when he arrived, he saw the evidence of the grace of God. He was glad, and he exhorted or encouraged them all to cleave unto the Lord with all of their hearts. For he was a good man and full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and many people were added to the Lord. Barnabas encouraged the new believers in Antioch. He was a strong spiritual example. And this is an important aspect of encouragement that's often overlooked. The most important part of us as human beings is really not our bodies, it's our spirits.

21:34The encourager who helps you physically but doesn't offer you any spiritual help, like sharing the good news of Jesus Christ, encouraging others to follow the Lord, isn't really much of an encourager. An encourager brings spiritual aspects into daily life. When a friend is sharing about a struggle they're facing, what stops us from offering a prayer right then and there? Have you ever had anybody call you on the phone and they say, Would you please pray for me? And you're like, Sure, I will, and hang up.

22:14I think what they're looking for is maybe for you to do something a little more positive. Or you see somebody in the hall, hey, I'm really struggling today. You know, yeah, I'll pray for you this week. And promptly we just let that go out of our head. Pray for you. Them right then and there. Just go off into a quiet place and pray. I've done that so many times on the phone. Folks will call and they'll tell me something that's going on in their life. And you know, would you pray for me? I'll pray right then. Let's pray. Bring it before the Lord and show them that you care about them.

22:50Actions, actions sometimes speak so much more loudly than our words. Somebody out here has got a need, help them. Don't add them to your prayer list. That's a wonderful thing, but if you don't ever get your prayer list out, it doesn't do a lot. We need to be that spiritual influence on others. My mom was like that, too. My mom was one, when we were little, maybe some of you had this too. We had this little white kid's Bible, and it had all the stories about Adam and Eve and Noah and Moses and Samson. And mom would get that thing out every night for us, and she would read us a story before we would go to bed. Actually, it's not a story. I learned that in Sunday school. Russell, it's not a story. We learn the truth about God's word, about all these individuals.

23:46And mom would pray with us every night before we would go to bed. And she would want to know, all of us, all eight kids, did anybody want to accept Jesus as their Savior? My mom was a spiritual influence on me. My mom also was a babysitter. Anybody ever do that? My mom would babysit as a ministry to her community. She charged, believe it or not, this extraordinary rate of $1 an hour per family. And that included food for your kids all day long. Mom knew that these teachers, these workers, these single moms that were trying to make ends meet really didn't have a lot of money. So that was her ministry to them.

24:38And my mom did the same thing with those little kids that came through her house. She prayed with them. She read them stories from the Bible. And she took them to vacation Bible school every year. Her van was full of kids. I remember one day we were home, and mom was counting on a piece of paper how many kids she'd watched. After she got over 100 children that names she could remember, she stopped counting. That was my mom. My mom was like Barnabas. She was that spiritual influence on others. And that encouraged me to be the same way.

25:20The very next verse, we see something else about Barnabas. We see that an encourager works for the success of others. An encourager. Works for the success in others. In Acts chapter 11, verses 25 and 26, then departed Barnabas to Tarsus to seek for Saul. And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. And then for an entire year, they met with the church and taught many people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. And that kind of stood out to me the first time I saw that. It wasn't in Jerusalem where they were first called Christians, where Christianity basically started. It was in this Gentile town called Antioch, where they were first called Christians.

26:12Saul now had been out of the picture for almost nine years. And Barnabas needed help leading that new church in Antioch. So he went to look for Saul. He knew that Saul was trained in the scriptures. And Barnabas needed to train him to be a church leader. And at the end of that year, after working there, the pair was sent by the church at Antioch on their very first missionary journey. Look over in Acts chapter 13.

26:44Start in verse 1. Now there were in the church that was in Antioch certain prophets and teachers. The chief among them was who? Who was the first name? Barnabas. And Simeon, that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene. And Meneon, that brought. Up with Herod the Tetrarch and Saul. And as they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, Separate unto me Barnabas and Saul for the work wherein I have called them. And when they had prayed and fasted and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. And so they began their very first missionary journey. Now, the scriptures refer to them as Barnabas and Saul.

27:27And typically, when you see that pattern of names, the one that's listed first is usually the one that's in charge. If you look back at that list of names of the pastors in Antioch, who's listed first? Barnabas. So he would be like the lead pastor there. And Saul's kind of way down on that list, which is not a bad thing. He's still on the list. But Barnabas was the one that was leading. And it was time to go on the missionary journey. They sent out Barnabas and Saul. But at some point along the way, Acts chapter 13, verse 9, we see a name change. It says, then Saul, who was also now called Paul, was filled with the Holy Ghost and set his eyes upon him. And it continues on. Here's a change of a name. And where can you think of another name change? One of the disciples, one of the apostles. Simon, right? Who was then called Peter, which was the rock. He had a name changed based on. On characteristics, based on something that was seen in his life. Barnabas also has a nickname, and now we see Saul now called Paul.

28:43But at some point along the way, after Saul gets his name, something changes. As this missionary journey is continuing, look at Acts chapter 13, verse 13. Now, what's the mission journey called? Who's the leader here? It says, Now, when Paul and his company loose from Paphos, they came to Perga and Pemphilia. Where's Barnabas? He's still there, but who's now leading the charge? It's Paul. Because an encourager works for the success of others. He wants to see people move forward and do great things for God. He doesn't want to be the person that always says, hey, it's my ministry and mine alone, and nobody's ever going to share in this thing because I started it and it's all mine.

29:35That's a rather selfish attitude. And you're never willing to go anywhere in ministry if you have that kind of attitude. You want to be willing to share and to develop and to let people grow in their life and walk with the Lord. It's just like little kids. We love little Joseph being a little kid, but we can't wait for the time when he can walk and move and eat on his own. Grow up. Same thing with little Christians. We want to see them grow up in the Lord too, so they can do great things. Do you remember the first time you were able to do some ministry here in the church? You had a starting point, right? Somebody gave you an opportunity to do something, and you might not have done that great, but they encouraged you to come back and do it again. Do you ever have any of those in the music ministry, Pat? A few. But you encourage them, right? To come back and do it again and again. And after a while, they might be leading the praise teams. That's what we want to see happen. We want to see people encouraged in ministry so that they can go and do great things too. And that's what Barnabas did. Barnabas trained Paul so well that he surpassed him in leadership. And Barnabas cheers him on. As encouragers, we should be overjoyed when our help and support play a part in the success of others. Former President Ronald Reagan once said, There's no limit to what we can accomplish if we don't care who gets the credit. That's worth repeating. There's no limit to what we can accomplish if we don't care who gets the credit. So work for the success of others. Barnabas also encouraged another young person.

31:30His name was John, whose surname was Mark. Acts chapter 12, verse 12, you'll see him introduced there. Acts 12, 12 says, And when he had considered a thing, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John, whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. Colossians 4:10 says that John, Mark, was either a cousin or a nephew of Barnabas, so there was some family tie there. And Barnabas brought John along with them to their ministry in Antioch. In Acts chapter 12, verse 25, we see that Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem, and when they had fulfilled their ministry, they took with them John, whose surname was Mark. And Barnabas wanted to take him on this very first missionary journey with him and Paul as their minister. It says in Acts chapter 13, verse 5, and when they were at Salmas, they preached the word of God in the synagogues, and they had John as their minister. But for some reason, John departed. He left them and returned to Jerusalem. It says in Acts chapter 13, and when Paul and company loose from Pephos, they came to Perga and Pemphilia, and John departed from them and returned to Jerusalem. It doesn't say why he left.

33:00But he quit. And Paul never forgot that. Not everyone will succeed, but we should always work towards that end. Therefore, we should never ever give up on anyone. Which brings us to the final events in Scripture recorded about Barnabas's life. The fifth thing that we see about an encourager is that they are slow to judge others. An encourager is slow to judge others. Acts chapter 15 is where we're going to be next. Acts chapter 15, verses 35 through 39.

33:48Paul also and Barnabas continued at Antioch. Who's listed first now again? Paul. And Barnabas the encourager, right there. They continued in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord with many others also. And sometime after this, Paul said to Barnabas, Let's go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord and see how they do. And Barnabas determined to take with them John, whose surname was Mark. Verse 38, but Paul thought it not good to take with them who had departed from them in Pemphilia and went not with them. Them to the work. And the contention was so sharp between them that they departed asunder, one from the other. And Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus, and Paul chose Silas and departed, being recommended by the brethren to the grace of God.

34:49Paul and Barnabas, it said, continued to minister in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord with many others also. And now, after some time, it doesn't say how long, but Paul says to Barnabas, hey, let's go and check out the churches that we got started here on that last trip and just see how they do. And Barnabas was like, that's a great idea, Paul. Let's do that. And we're taking John Mark with us. That didn't set so well with Paul.

35:21And they had a little conversation. And the conversation got a lot more heated. Now, here we see two basically spiritual giants in this church, spiritual leaders, that just could not come to an agreement on this one issue. And if you will, we see one of the first church splits right here where they couldn't understand one another. And I kind of get Paul's position. You don't want to put a guy in a position where he's going to fail again. So let's just not do this. But I could see Barnabas going, no, man, he's got. Potential. He can do this. He's a good guy. He really is. I think we can see great things from John Mark if we give him some help and encouragement. But in your mind, who's right?

36:14Who was really right in this issue? Paul or Barnabas? They agreed to disagree, and they went their separate ways. Kind of a mess. But do you think God can still use our messes? Yeah, he can. Even when we mess up in life, God can still use us. If you think about it, how many missionary trips we're going to be let out on? One. How many do we see now? Two. Silas has now been brought into the ministry and is working alongside Paul. He will train him. And John Mark is also being trained by Barnabas. And they went their special ways.

37:08Barnabas again sees potential in someone despite their past failure. And rather than labeling John Mark a quitter, Barnabas gives him a second chance. And anyone who has ever read the second gospel, according to Mark, In the Bible, you should be glad that Barnabas was that encourager. I had never thought about that for the longest time. That this guy, this quitter who was being pushed aside, would never amount to anything. But yet, God chose to bring Barnabas into his life, to encourage him and say, you can do this. I believe in you, John Mark. And because of that encouragement, God used Mark to write this wonderful gospel about Jesus Christ. That's what can happen when encouragers are involved in people's lives.

38:16In fact, Paul himself later decides that Barnabas was right about Mark. And shortly before his death, in his second letter to Timothy, Paul wrote, Take Mark and bring him with you, for he is valuable to me in the ministry. In 2 Timothy 4, 11. An encourager is slow to judge others. Now, we're not told in the scriptures really what happened to Barnabas after this. Luke in his writings in Acts follows Paul and Silas and many others as they continue on through the rest of this book.

39:00We have some hints in history that Barnabas may have been martyred for his faith. Like many of the other apostles, he was either stoned or burned to death in his homeland of Cyprus. But I really like this guy, don't you? Barnabas, with all of his failures, all of his faults, was still a wonderful individual to learn about and to learn from. To me, he's a great example of what an encourager should be and someone you'd want for a friend. Others looked at people's past lives and said, How awful. But Barnabas looked at their future and said, How awesome.

39:48So may God help us to be more like Barnabas, to be the encouragers in people's lives. Just look around here today. The people that are next to you, they may need encouragement. Pastor Tom has mentioned that he'd like to see us learn how to be counselors. It all starts with making friends and encouraging one another just like Barnabas. In 1 Thessalonians 5:11, I think even Paul was picking up on this fact. When he wrote these words, encourage one another and build up one another just as you are doing.

40:42So today, encourage one another and build up one another just as you're doing now. Let's close in prayer. Our Father, thank you for your servant Barnabas. God, we know that he had faults. We know that he was a sinner and he needed your Son Jesus Christ in his life. But God, he chose to be an encourager. He was one who would look past people's faults and see the good in them and say to them, I believe in you.

41:31God, there may be some here today who just need that little touch from someone. Someone to come alongside of them and put their arm around them and say, Can I pray with you? Can I help you? How can I be an encouragement for you today? Lord, may we look for those opportunities where we can encourage people, where we can pray with them right where they are or over the phone. Lord, give us those moments, give us those opportunities to share the love that we have for Jesus Christ. Father, thank you for all that you do for us, and we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.