By Andrew Williams
Acts of the Apostles 11:24 NLT- Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and strong in faith. And many people were brought to the Lord.
Good morning fellow disciples.
In Acts Chapter 11, we see the disciples preaching the gospel to the Gentiles in Antioch. When the church in Jerusalem heard of their conversion, they decided to send Barnabas to minister and to serve there. Acts of the Apostles 11:24says that Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and strong in faith.
We first met Barnabas in Acts chapter 4, when he sold a plot of land and gave the disciples the money to help with the needs of the early church. Though his name was Joseph, he was nicknamed Barnabas, which means “son of encouragement.”
You might be wondering why Barnabas was chosen. The truth is, in the early Church, all persons who were chosen for any ministry had to be full of the Holy Spirit. The reason for this was that the Holy Spirit was the one who enabled them to be effective witnesses for God.
Are you like Barnabas, who is full of the Holy Spirit and strong in faith?
When people are to be discipled, trained, and encouraged, are you a candidate to be chosen to be sent to help these people?
Prayer: Father God, help us to be like Barnabas who was strong in faith and the full of the Holy Spirit. May we be chosen by our church to do the ministry, the service, that You need us to do, so that others can be strengthened and made into effective disciples. Amen.