Agreeing to Disagree

Sometimes conflict between parties can be resolved; sometimes they can’t be

The conflict over practices/doctrine that Antioch saw has now been resolved, the Church is again moving forward, and another issue comes up

This is not a matter of faith, doctrine or practice

It’s a difference of opinion between the two men who had once gone out as missionaries, and were getting ready to go out again

Suggestions for the Future

Go and Revisit the Churches

It had been some time, they’d left the churches with a good bit of teaching but then had moved on...

A return for some encouragement would be a good idea

It’s a healthy thing to do follow-up work among those to whom you have preached, where you have seen conversions and growth

Let’s Bring Mark Again

…and that, as they say, is when the fight started

Some Sanctified Speculation

Mark had bailed out on the previous missionary journey—and we have no great understanding of his reasoning

Scholars express a multitude of theories; essentially that Paul was mission driven, and didn’t want the interruption of losing a team member again; and Barnabas more people driven

Paul’s the evangelist and preacher—spreading the Gospel; not wanting to have another failure

Barnabas, the encourager, looking to give his cousin another chance (xr: Col. 4:20)

Severing of a Partnership

Our text tells us there was a “sharp disagreement”

Though the underlying word could mean irritation, from the KJV to the modern, all of the translations agree (based on the context), that it was not pleasant; The Message renders it “...tempers flared...”

Barnabas took Mark and went to Cyprus—it appears that their work there went on for some time

Paul took Silas and went overland through Cilicia to Galatia

Interesting observation: the church at Antioch commended Paul and Silas to the grace of God, but then only tells us that Paul went to Cilicia and Galatia

Does this show that they had taken sides, judging Paul to have been right?

…the text does not clearly tell us that

A couple scholars have made the same thought, “our heads say Paul was right; our heart side with Barnabas

Setting the Record Straight

Let’s recall first that this was a dispute not over doctrine, not about the nature of Scripture or the application of the Biblical principles

It was not a dispute over the deity of Christ, or the work of the Holy Spirit or the trinitarian nature of God

It was about choice of a ministry partner

It was handled between the two of them without any record of it having adverse impact on the church

Both were among the “heavy hitters” of the church…they certainly could have turned the problem into a church-splitting problem…but they did not

Neither one quit ministry; both continue, though in different directions—but fulfilling the intent of the first suggestion—do a return trip to check on the work

At this point, we lose track of Barnabas and Mark; they went to Cyprus… Acts records nothing further from them

The “rest of the story” is that Mark would go on to become the companion of Peter, would write the Gospel that bears his name—arguably, Peter’s Gospel by Mark’s hand

All problems between him and Paul have been resolved by the time we last hear of him

Writing his 2nd letter to Timothy, 4:11 ff., Paul asks for only a few things: Come to me, bring Mark as

English Standard Version Chapter 4

for he is very useful to me for ministry

…and he wants his cloak, books and parchments

We don’t have an ironclad history regarding what became of Barnabas.

Paul makes reference to him in 1 Cor. 9:6, so it’s likely there was some connection between the two that was known to the Corinthian church…that would be a bit after their separation here

As early as Tertullian (2nd-3rd century) it was suggested that he was the author of Hebrews

There are varying traditions about his later life and his death; one tradition

There is a Monastery of St. Barnabas near what is reported as his tomb near Salamis, Cyprus

There are several works of pseudepigrapha (a polite word for forgery) that bear his name, or claim to record his history

WITFM?

First, a look at Rom 12 18

Romans 12:18 ESV

If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.

Paul and Barnabas had hit an impasse, they could no longer live at peace with one another and chose to part company

We may find times when we hit a similar point in ministry—or even in our church membership/association...and it’s time to take different directions…and be distant, but at least not in conflict

Like the example here, it can be done without destroying each other’s work and each other’s future

A famous missionary, writing to her mission board, referenced this passage while discussing discord in the ranks wrote:

Cases of incompatibility are of constant occurrence on the mission field & are usually settled by one of the parties removing elsewhere. Such differences frequently are settled by the quiet withdrawal of one of the parties.… People out here are very tolerant. I suppose we must make allowances for troubles between missionaries by remembering that the very strength of character which impels them to the mission work is apt to manifest itself in sharp angles (Lottie Moon 1876).

Followup is Critical

Being a new believer amidst a hostile culture was tough on Christians in that day…and it is yet today

Leaving a new believer without a spiritual support system is never an ideal thing

If you bring someone to Christ, stay with him/her; continue to nurture, support, encourage....

Don’t live an infant believer to be devoured—Satan would love it

No Sugar-coated Heroes

It is reassuring to see that even among the heroes of the faith there are disagreements and differences of opinion

The Cause of the Gospel is Big Enough for Differences of Opinion

Opinions regarding style, personalities, preferences, church polity, even personal convictions

We must understand the difference between these and matters of doctrine and theology---in these matters we are serving different causes

This time of year, we’ll be dealing with many believers who hold to different opinions regarding celebrating Christmas

On one extreme are those who go full-on commercialism—the lights…and the electric bills; the trees, the elaborate meals, the parties....all the while keeping the true understanding of the birth of Jesus at the forefront of their minds

On the other are those who see it as, at best, a pagan festival draped in Christian terminology and almost let it go past unnoticed

To follow the counsel of Paul in the passage from Romans, and looking at our morning text, we recognize that we will not come to terms on this matter

We may not need to separate and end our friendship; but we need to focus on the common ground of our friendship: our faith in Christ