LIMAVADY INDEPENDENT METHODIST CHURCH
SERMON NOTES FROM SUNDAY 5 MARCH 2023
ACTS 4 VERSES 32 – 37
Over the past 4 Sundays we have been considering the thoughts of church membership. What it means, what we can give and receive. How important church membership is. It is important to every one of us. We read in this passage of a man called Barnabas. Think of him as a member of the local fellowship. He is highlighted here for certain qualities he possessed and the many activities he was involved in. He was given a name by the apostles – Barnabas – which means one who consoles. He was an exhorter. Isn’t that what we need in these days? Someone who is there to encourage, exhort, to build up? The bible says of him that he was “a good man, full of faith and full of the Holy Ghost and much people were added to the Lord.” That is the qualification of a church member – a man or woman who is good, full of faith and the Holy Ghost. Proverbs 22 verse 1 says “a good name is rather to be chosen than great riches.” This man was simply an encourager. He stepped forward when others stepped back. He was there when people slipped into the background. He was there to lift up the morale of the church. The church at this time was going through persecution. They needed encouragement and Barnabas gave it.
A distinguished man. The disciples called him the son of consolation. He stood out to them. A man who brought comfort. When he walked into the room something happened. There is no doubt he was one of the multitude that believed, were set apart. Why? Because he was born again of the Spirit of God. We know people who are “good” people but they are not born again, have a personal relationship with God. This man was saved by the grace of God. He came under the convicting hand of God, he closed in with God’s offer of mercy. The distinguishing feature of this man was the presence of God within him. That is what we strive for. Not that we have any goodness of ourselves but that God is within us, the hope of glory. When we look at Joseph and his life we see he had his ups and downs. At 17 years of age he was rejected by his brothers, thrown into a pit and sold to traders going to Egypt. Then in Egypt he was sold again into Potiphar’s house. He was bought into a good home. Potiphar knew there was something different about him. Then when things went wrong again Joseph was marched off to prison. He had hit rock bottom again but there was something about him that the prison keeper recognised. The Lord was with him. (Genesis 39 verse 21) Think of the prophet Elisha and the testimony he bore. As he walked past the woman’ house she said “I perceive that this is a holy man of God.” (2 Kings 4 verse 9) What a testimony to have. Thank of Daniel. He was carried away into Babylon at 12/13 years of age. In Babylon he made his stand. He told them he could not eat the kings food nor drink the wine. Why? Because it had been offered to idols. He asked to be tested with different food. Daniel and his 3 friends proved themselves to be men of God. We see him much later when Belshazzar ate and a hand started to write on the wall. Belshazzar brought in the scribes and wise men but no-one could interpret the writing. Belshazzar’s grandmother remembered a young man. She referred to him in this way “I know a man in whom the Holy Spirit of God rests.” (Daniel 5 verse 11) What a testimony. Distinguished by a testimony. You and I need that same experience just as Barnabas had. He was a Levite, living among the Gentile nation. He came from that family which handled the things of God, could have thought himself to be someone but he cast it all aside. Thomas Watson, Puritan Preacher of the 1600’s said “the right manner of growth is to grow less in ones own eyes.” Yes it is good to grow in grace as a Christian but we can get puffed up too.
A dependable man. Think of Jonah, one of the minor prophets. He wasn’t very dependable - when asked to go and preach in Nineveh he went out and fled from the presence of the Lord. But previously we read that God used him in the days of Jeroboam. We read of Dorcas in Acts – she was very dependable. When she died the widow woman came carrying the garments she had made for them. In Acts 18 we read of a man and woman who had to flee because of persecution. They gave up their homes and livelihood. They were the couple who took Paul under their wing when he came to Corinth. When things happen sometimes it means God is going to use us in a mighty way (Acts 18 verses 1 to 3). That same couple heard a man in the synagogue one day preaching the word of God. They realised something was missing in his preaching. They didn’t ridicule him but rather took him to one side and explained the gospel to him more fully. Think of Joshua and Caleb, 2 of the spies sent to Canaan. They could be depended upon and sure enough they brought back a good report. Moses was told by God to tell the people to teach their children the things of God. We are to be dependable in the home but also in the work place too. In Acts 13 we see a little fellowship in Antioch to whom God told them to “separate unto him Paul and Barnabas for the work whereunto I have called them”. God had a work specifically for Barnabas to do and only he could do it. God has a work plan only you are asked to do. Can he depend on you? Every member of the church has to be like that – dependable. Samuel was a little boy but he got up every day to open up the doors of the temple and then closed them at night.
A discerning man. In Acts 11 we see a door to the Gentiles was being opened. The believers in Jerusalem needed someone to go down to Antioch. They chose Barnabas to go. When Barnabas arrived he could see the grace of God. He took back a great report. He had worked with them, comforted and encouraged them. Then he went and found Paul because he knew they needed to be taught the word of God. He didn’t judge people. He recognised a work of God. In 2 Timothy 1 verse 17 we read of a man called Onesiphorus. He went and sought Paul out very diligently even when he was in prison.
A man of devotion. Verse 37 – “having land sold it, brought the
money and laid it at the apostles feet.”
He was devoted to the work of God, to the people of God. He was willing to give up everything just to
meet their needs. He wanted the money from
the sale of this land to be used as the need arose. The cost that came as a result of being a
follower of Jesus. It should cost us
something to be a disciple.
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