Barnabas, a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith
For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord. Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to seek Saul. And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch (Acts 11:24-26).
In a few words, the Holy Spirit tells us so much about Barnabas:
He was a good man. Barnabas did not have mixed motives or self-interest; he genuinely sought the blessing of others. His goodness was a result of the work of God in his life. The early church prospered because those within it were transformed by the love of Christ into His likeness. Christ transformed Zaccheus, the tax collector, into the most generous of men. Paul said to the Philippian jailor, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31), and the heartless jailer was transformed into the gentlest of men. Barnabas was who he was because of Christ’s work in him.
He was full of the Holy Spirit. Paul writes in Ephesians 5:18: “And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit.” He compares the loss of control and damage caused by drunkenness with the fruitfulness and blessing of a life filled with the Holy Spirit of God. Being filled with the Holy Spirit is being like Jesus. Through the Holy Spirit, we are characterised by love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness and the other features of the fruit of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit’s ministry is to glorify Christ in and through us. Barnabas was filled with and empowered by the Spirit of God to minister Christ and to care for His people.
He was also full of faith. He had faith to sell his land; he had faith to befriend and encourage Saul, and he had faith to share the gospel and nurture the people of God in Jerusalem and Antioch. His faith in God was expressed in the reality of daily life. He walked with God and had complete confidence in what God could do. He encouraged the Lord’s people to “cleave to the Lord with purpose of heart”, because that’s how he lived. Like Peter, he became a shepherd of the flock of God because he knew the Good Shepherd and understood how important it was to be an example to the flock of God (1 Peter 5:3). And his ministry was also evangelistic. A large number of people were led to the Lord. A true shepherd always seeks to lead people to Christ for their salvation and their sanctification.
Barnabas also had a rare quality. He saw so clearly the grace of God in the lives of his fellow believers. Barnabas was a guileless man who discerned, encouraged and valued gift and ability in others. He left Antioch to seek, find and bring Saul to help in the work of God in the city. This is a description of a shepherd, not finding a lost sheep, but finding a valuable servant of God and bringing him to a place where he was needed. A faithful pastor not only ministers to the needs of God’s people but values and stimulates them to use their spiritual gift. Barnabas brought Saul into a place where his gift would be a blessing to others, and he rejoiced in working with him. Their harmonious Christ-centred ministry led to the disciples being called Christians for the first time. Barnabas’ simple appeal to his fellow believers to “stay close to the Lord” had a transforming influence. It still should.
