Turn back with me over to Acts
chapter 15. I sincerely pray the Lord will bless us tonight.
I really do. I pray the Lord will really bless
us and help us. I don't know of a more needful
message for believers all over this world. Everywhere there's
a believer all over this world. I really don't know of a more
needful message than the message that our Lord has given us here
at the end of Acts chapter 15. This is his message and he recorded
this for us. Now I just asked you to go to
Acts 15 but I meant Acts 4. Turn with me over first to Acts
chapter 4 and what I want to do is build up to this text. I want to show you something.
We're going to turn quite a bit tonight. I want to prepare you
for that. Acts chapter 4. Look with me at verse 31. And when they had prayed, the place
was shaken where they were assembled together. And they were all filled
with the Holy Ghost and they spake the word of God with boldness. and the multitude of them that
believed were of one heart and of one soul. Neither said any
of them that aught of the things which he possessed was his own,
but they had all things common." Does that remind you of any place? Verse 36, And Joseph, who by
the apostles was surnamed Barnabas, given the last name Barnabas,
which is being interpreted the son of consolation, a Levite,
and of the country of Cyprus, having land, sold it, and brought
the money, and laid it at the apostles' feet. This man, Barnabas,
he was a dear believer. He really was. He was a sweet,
kind, dear believer. He was a supporter of God's gospel. That's what he was in God's ministry. He had the heart of a true believer. And the Lord God gives us that
heart, doesn't he? He was a dear man. He sold everything
that he had, and he laid it at the apostles' feet. Barnabas. Alright, now go with me to Acts
chapter 9. Saul of Tarsus, he was the enemy
of God. And he was the enemy of God's
people. And this is where God, in mercy,
revealed himself to Saul of Tarsus. Man, did he reveal himself and
he knocked him off of his high horse and he put him in the dirt. Verse 6 says, And he, trembling
and astonished, said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And
the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it
shall be told thee what thou must do. Verse 11 says, And the
Lord said unto him, Arise, he said to this man Ananias, Arise
and go into the street which is called Straight. and inquire
in the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus for behold
that man is praying now. He's praying. Verse 18 says,
and immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales
and he received sight forthwith and arose and he was baptized. A true disciple of Jesus Christ. From that point on he was made
to be a true disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, look
at verse 23. After that many days were fulfilled,
the Jews took counsel to kill Saul, and it's because of what
he was preaching. But their laying awake was known
of Saul, and they watched the gates day and night to kill him.
Then the disciples took him by night and let him down by the
wall in a basket. And when Saul was come to Jerusalem,
he assayed to join himself to the disciples. He wanted to go
meet with God's people. He assayed to join himself to
the disciples, but they were all afraid of him and believed
not that he was a disciple. Verse 27 says, But Barnabas,
this man Barnabas, took him and brought him to the apostles and
declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in the way and
that he had spoken to him and how he had preached boldly at
Damascus in the name of Jesus. Barnabas was the one who took
Saul in and vouched for him to all of the other believers that
were in Jerusalem. Saul was Hitler. And they didn't
want to have anything to do with Saul. And Barnabas is the one
who befriended him and took him in and said, he's one of God's
own. All right, now go to Acts chapter 11. Word has gotten out that now
the Gentiles have believed the gospel. Acts chapter 11, look
at verse 22. Then tidings of these things came unto the ears
of the church which was in Jerusalem, and they sent forth Barnabas
that he should go as far as Antioch, who when he came and had seen
the grace of God, was glad and exhorted them all that with purpose
of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. For Barnabas was a
good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith, and much
people was added unto the Lord. Then departed Barnabas to Tarsus
for to seek Saul. He went to find Saul. I wonder
how Saul's doing. Verse 26, And when he had found
him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass that a whole
year they assembled themselves with the church and taught much
people, and the disciples were called Christians first. in Antioch. Barnabas went looking for Saul.
They sent him out to go preach, and he went looking for Saul.
And these two men, they traveled together. They wanted to be in
each other's company. It was special. It was special. They spent a year together in
Antioch preaching, the two of them, preaching the Word. And
people were added to the Lord. side by side preaching the gospel
of God's grace. The end of verse 30 right here
is the first time we see the phrase Barnabas and Saul. Barnabas
and Saul. Chapter 12 verse 25. And Barnabas and Saul returned
from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their ministry. Barnabas
and Saul. Chapter 13 verse 2 says, As they
ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, That's God. God the Holy Ghost said, Separate
me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called
them. There was a deputy in the country,
Sergius Paulus, a prudent man who called for Barnabas and Saul
and desired to hear the word of God. I want to hear the word
of God. Would you please send me Barnabas
and Saul? These two men. And then in verse
nine, Saul in the Hebrew is called Paul in the Greek, okay? Saul was a Jew. He was a Hebrew.
That was his name. But then he was sent to the Gentiles.
And in the Greek, the name Saul is Paul. That's why they changed
it. All right, so Barnabas and Paul. Chapter 14, verse 14 says, which when the apostles Barnabas
and Paul heard of, they rent their clothes and ran in among
the people crying out. These people said, they're gods. Jupiter and Mercury, these men
are gods. And they heard that, and they
both rent their clothes. And they ran in together, side
by side. And they cried out together,
stop, don't do this. Do not do this. These two men
had one heart. They had one motivation, one
goal, and that was the glory of Jesus Christ. I mean, they
had given their all to preach in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now look at chapter 15 verse
2. When therefore Paul and Barnabas
had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that
Paul and Barnabas and certain other of them should go up to
Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question. We
just had a message from here a couple of weeks ago. This question,
this issue, Barnabas and Paul together stood up against this
issue of law and grace. Works or grace. And they said
this is not right and we're going up to the other apostles and
this is going to be settled. Verse 12. Then all the multitude
kept silence and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring
what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles
by them. They had that precious moment
of reflection. They said, let us tell you these
wonderful things that God is doing among the Gentiles through
us. Reflecting on all of God's mercy
and God's grace, Verse 25, all the apostles wrote this letter
and they said, it seemed good unto us. being assembled with
one accord to send chosen men unto you with our beloved Barnabas
and Paul, men that have hazarded their lives for the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ. Can you imagine the love and
the respect and the admiration because of the gospel, because
of the gospel of Christ? Can you imagine the love and
the respect that these two men had for each other? There are
some men that I'm telling you I love them and I respect them
and I admire them because they gave themselves to the gospel
of Jesus Christ. These two men loved each other.
Barnabas, I love you with all my heart. Paul, you are my dearest
friend in the world. Now look at our text, verse 36. And some days after, Paul said
unto Barnabas, let us 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. But Paul thought not good to
take him with them, who departed from them from Pamphylia and
went not with them to the works. And the contention was so sharp
between them that they departed asunder one from the other. And so Barnabas took Mark and
sailed unto Cyprus, and Paul chose Silas and departed being
recommended by the brethren unto the grace of God. And he went
through Syria and Cilicia confirming the churches. Split. Is that not heartbreaking? Does
that not break your heart? This is real. This happens. This has always happened. I remember the first time I heard
about it. I don't know how old I was. Somebody preached this
to me and I found out about this. Personally speaking, aside from
the crucifixion of the Lord of Glory, this has always been one
of the most heartbreaking accounts in the Word of God to me. I am
so for unity. I just can't tell you how... It's just heartbreaking. I've
thought on this, I've dwelt on this. These two men were called
by God's Holy Spirit to the work of the ministry, the work of
the ministry. These two men had just settled
the matter of law and grace, works and grace, the great issue
of salvation, the issue worth dividing over. dividing with somebody you love.
The issue. And now they've divided over
something that is not the issue at all. One wanted to take John
Mark and one didn't. Now, John Mark was Barnabas'
nephew, his sister's son. And Paul didn't want to take
John, Mark, and the reason was because John traveled with them
once before. And he deserted them. All right,
now look back with me at chapter 12, verse 25. Barnabas and Saul returned from
Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their ministry and took with
them John, whose surname was Mark. They took him with them. Chapter 13, verse 5, And when
they were at Salmus, they preached the word of God in the synagogues
of the Jews, and they had also John, John Mark, to their minister. Verse 13 says, Now when Paul
and his company loosed from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia,
And John, departing from them, returned to Jerusalem. He left
them. And it doesn't say why he left
them. It does not say why. It does not say exactly why Paul
didn't want him to go with them again. Maybe he felt like there
was no commitment to the ministry. It doesn't say why Barnabas wanted
him to go so badly. He was family, and maybe he felt
some pressure by that. But either way, that does not
matter. It does not matter. These two men should have never
separated over this. It was not the issue. It was not the issue of the blood
of Christ alone for salvation. And it's just heartbreaking. Now, this still happens today. I believe this is so important.
This has happened before. It happened to Abraham and Lot.
Our cows can't be on the same grass. And it'll happen again. And it's
such a shame. It's going to happen to believers
that you never thought it would happen to. And I'm telling you,
as I've been sitting in my study thinking about the faces on row
1, 2, 3, 4, 5. I don't know if you want to keep counting like
this. Thinking, oh Lord, let it not be so. Let it not be so. Now, it's a
big deal to two believers when they're at odds. It's a, oh,
it's my, I am at odds with this person. It's a big deal. At that exact moment in time,
it's a big issue. This is a big issue. But if it's
not the issue, if we are both still in agreement with the word
of God on the issue of Christ and Him crucified, then I am
going to spend eternity with you. If we're both still in agreement
on how God saves sinners, and it's only by the blood of Jesus
Christ alone, I'm going to spend eternity with you. I'm going
to spend sinless eternity with you. And I am going to love you
with every molecule that's in me. I'm going to love you with
the ability of God Almighty. As much as God loves you, that's
how much I'm going to love you. And I know it can be hard to
imagine, but it's so. So why on this earth would I
ever want to be separated from you? I don't want to be. I just don't want to be. I do
not want to be separated from you down here. It's heartbreaking. Now this happens often. This
happens very often. And when the pride of this flesh
sets in, this heart becomes so hard. It just becomes so hard. Sin starts to set up rain in
here. That's what happens. And anger
and hatred start to grow. And when that happens, there
is only one thing that will stop it. When that happens, There
is only one thing that will stop this, and I want to show you
what that is. This is the only remedy. This
is the only thing that will truly reunite two believers after separation. Go with me over to John 15. We've been going through Acts
15 on Wednesday and John 15 on Sunday, and tonight I'm combining
the two texts. John 15 verse 9 says, As the
Father hath loved me, so have I loved you. Continue ye in my
love." He said, as the Father has loved me. How has the Father
loved Christ? The answer is, as Christ has
loved us. He just said right here, so have
I loved you. Verse 12, he said, this is my
commandment that you love one another as I have loved you. Verse 13, he said, greater love
hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Now think about the word friends. Friends. Just think about that for a minute.
Friends. Our nature is enmity against
him. That means that that we're by
nature the enemy of God. That's what it means. And verse
16 says, John 15 verse 16, it says, you have not chosen me
but I have chosen you and ordained you that you should go and bring
forth fruit." It's not that he just beat us to the choice. Well,
you know, he chose us from the foundation of the world and I
wasn't there then, so he got to the choice before I did or
I would have chosen him. No. We would never have chosen Him. Never. We would never have chosen
Him. This flesh says, I will not choose
you. Is that not wretched? I will not have Jesus Christ
reign over me. It's not only that we cannot
come to Him, we won't. We won't. I will not come to you that I
might have life. We want Barabbas, not him. He is not my friend. You know what he says in return?
I have loved thee with an everlasting love. Fear not thou worm, Jacob, even though you want nothing
to do with me, even though you would rather
face the judgment of God without me, even though your natural flesh
cannot get far enough from me. I will never leave you and I'll
never forsake you. Even though you've spit in my
face, cursed my name, lied about me, I will be with you always, even
until the end of the world. I laid down my life for you. Verse 13 says, greater love hath
no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Oh, Lord, you have been a friend
to me, and I have not been a friend to you. I have not. Lord, you truly have died for
the ungodly. That's who you died for. the
unworthy, the unlovable. That's how Christ has loved us.
Verse 8 says, Herein is my Father glorified, that you bear much
fruit, so shall you be my disciples. As the Father hath loved me,
so have I loved you. Continue ye in my love. If you
keep my commandments, you shall abide in my love, even as I have
kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These
things have I spoken unto you that my joy might remain in you. I've spoken these things to you
that my joy might remain in you and that your joy might be full.
This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have
loved you. Greater love hath no man than
this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. You are
my friends, if you do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call
you not servants, for the servant knoweth not what his Lord doeth,
but I have called you friends. For all things that I have heard
of my Father I have made known unto you. You have not chosen
me, but I have chosen you and ordained you that you should
go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain,
that whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in my name, he
may give it you. These things I command you, that
you love one another. Now, let's turn to Ephesians
4, and I pray that we might read this verse of scripture like
we've never read it in our life. Ephesians 4 verse 31 says, let all bitterness and wrath
and anger and clamor, that means lashing out, and evil speaking
be put away from you with all malice, that means wickedness.
Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and evil
speaking be put away from you with all malice. Let all bitterness
and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away
from you with all malice. Let all bitterness and wrath
and anger, clamor, evil speaking, be put away with all malice. And be ye kind one to another,
tender hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's
sake has forgiven you. The sacrifice and the love of
Christ is the only thing that will soften a heart. You know
that? It's the only thing. Break down that middle wall of
partition. Bring forgiveness and unity back
to believers. There is literally nothing sweeter
on this earth than the rekindling between believers for Christ's
sake. Behold how good and how pleasant
it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. Is that not wonderful?
All right, now I'm gonna be, here's my close, you ready? What
happened to those three men? What's the end of the story?
Did God ever put love back in their heart for each other? Turn
with me over to 1 Corinthians chapter nine. 1st Corinthians 9 Paul says in
verse 6 or I only and Barnabas didn't our Lord say and Peter and Barnabas I only and my friend
Barnabas have we not power to forebear working y'all are back
together again Yes, we are. I love that man. Me and Barnabas. Turn over with me to 2 Timothy
4. The heading at the top of my
page for 2 Timothy 4 says, Paul's solemn charge to Timothy. Verse
11 says, Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, John Mark, and bring
him with thee, for he is profitable to me for the ministry." I want
Mark. I love him. You bring him with
you. I need him. I love that this is the most
precious one. Here is the last one. Go to Colossians 4. Colossians 4, look at verse 6. Paul says, let your speech be
always with grace. I'm telling you, Paul is saying
that from experience. Let your speech be always with
grace, seasoned with salt. That's Christ. That you may know
how you ought to answer every man. All my state shall Tychicus
declare unto you, who is a beloved brother and a faithful minister
and a fellow servant in the Lord, whom I have sent unto you for
the same purpose, that he might know your estate and comfort
your hearts. With Onesimus, man I love Onesimus,
a faithful and beloved brother who is one of you, they shall
make known unto you all things which are done here. Aristarchus,
My fellow prisoner, the guy who's in prison with me, he salutes
you, and Mark, Marcus, sister's son to Barnabas, he's right here
with me. He's right here by my side. He
wants to tell you how to. Touching whom you received commandments,
if he come unto you, receive him. Receive him. because he's profitable to the
ministry and because I love him. Receive him. Receive him like
you're receiving me. Do it for Christ's sake. It's
always for Christ's sake, isn't it? It's always for Christ's
sake. The truth of the matter is, of the story there in Acts
15, our Lord, he always works all things together for good.
Their flesh got in the way, but the Lord used that to go from
two men spreading the gospel to four men spreading the gospel.
They went to twice as many places spreading the gospel. Now the Lord, He's always good
in all these things. There's only one thing, though,
worth dividing over. There's just one thing worth
separating over, and that's the issue of the blood of Christ
for salvation. That's it. And if we don't disagree
on that, my prayer is that we never, ever separate. I don't want to ever separate
from you. We are not having it here. We're just not by God's
grace. By God's grace, we're not having
it here. We're just going to love each
other, and that settles it. Because I love you. I truly,
truly do. I'm out of the message now. The message is over. I'm just
telling you, I just love you. I love you with all my heart. And it's because of Christ. That's
why, for Christ's sake. All right, let's stand together.