Acts 15:36-16:8

Today we are going to be looking at Paul’s second missionary journey as described, beginning in Acts 15:36. 

Like the first journey, we are going to learn about God’s missional priorities, we are going to be inspired by God’s faithfulness, and finally we are going to be invited once again to join Him on HIS mission, His agenda. 

So, as we continue walking through Acts, we should be asking along the way, “How are these missionary journeys supposed to shape me and my church as we seek to make much of Jesus in the River Region?”

We saw on the first missionary journey that walking in step with the Spirit on God’s mission involves loving the lost, being flexible with our plans, being persistent in sharing the gospel, receiving joy-filled power and endurance, having gospel influence, experiencing opposition, and having a for the local church.

Well today as we begin the second missionary journey with Paul, we are going to learn a few more characteristics of walking by the Spirit on God’s mission  Has God ever just messed your plans up? You thought His plan for you was one thing, and He did something completely different. In one sense, all Christians have experienced this. We were hell bent and God came in, yes to quote miley cyrus, he came in like a wrecking ball, and messed up EVERYTHING for the good. Well today one of the characteristics of walking by the Spirit on God’s mission is just that, God messing up our plans for our good His glory and the salvation of the lost. If we truly desire Christ above all else, then walking by the Spirit will require much sacrifice and plenty of unexpected changes.  Without going any further, Let’s hear from God’s word — Acts 15:36-16:8 Paul and Barnabas Separate36 And after some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us return and visit the brothers in every city where we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are.” 37 Now Barnabas wanted to take with them John called Mark. 38 But Paul thought best not to take with them one who had withdrawn from them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work. 39 And there arose a sharp disagreement, so that they separated from each other. Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and departed, having been commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord. 41 And he went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches. Timothy Joins Paul and Silas16 Paul[f] came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. 2 He was well spoken of by the brothers[g] at Lystra and Iconium. 3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4 As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. 5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily. The Macedonian Call6 And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7 And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. 8 So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. The five characteristics of walking in step with the Spirit on God’s mission that we see here in the initial phase the second missionary journey are as follows: 

An extralocal love for the church 

An expectation of conflict among believers

A pursuit of discipleship

A sacrificial love for the lost 

An acceptance that God closes doors for our good His glory and the salvation of the lost

The first characteristic of walking by the Spirit on God’s mission is 

1.  An extra local love for the church. In other words, a key characteristic of walking in the Spirit is NOT just loving your local church, but other local churches…

Look with me at chapter 15 starting at verse 36. 15:36 And after some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us return and visit the brothers in every city where we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are.” 15:41 And he went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches. 16:5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily. What we see here is that after the Jerusalem Council, Paul sensed a measure of responsibility to go back to the  churches that were previously planted to care for them and to inform them of the good news that Gentiles would NOT HAVE to be circumcised in order to follow Jesus.  And to be clear, Paul didn’t send himself on this journey. He was not a lone ranger going where he pleased. Paul was a man submitted to a specific community a specific local church that played a pivotal role in affirming, supporting, and sending him. As we saw back in Acts 13, these men were not going on personal solo missions, driven exclusively by personal agenda and passion. They were submitted to their local church carrying a unifying message from the Jerusalem Council.  Look at verse “40 but Paul chose Silas and departed, having been commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord.”  And what was the message they were bringing? Look with me at verse 4 As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. In other words, they were delivering a message that involved apostles and elders from multiple churches coming to agreement on foundational doctrinal principles. This was not about their personal agenda. This was about the churches agenda.  You see the Great Commission of Jesus is more than preaching the gospel, seeing conversions and planting churches. The Great Commission is about churches strengthening other churches.  Friends, when it comes to churches strengthening other churches, what we can do together far exceeds anything we could do alone. This is true of us individually. Left to ourselves, at best we become stagnant and occasionally see breakthroughs and at worst we wonder aimlessly in the dark…  We need the local church. We need brothers and sisters looking out for us speaking truth to us even or especially when we don’t want to hear it. Encouraging us as we following Jesus, and walking with us as we seek to make much of Jesus.  The same can be said about local churches. Local churches were never intended to function alone…  As a church we need other local churches to be what God has called us to be and other churches need us to be what God has called them to be… This is called interdependence. This is why we are so passionate about joining SGC. It’s not about the title SGC… Or that we think SGC has the corner on perfection… It is because SGC is a family of churches that take seriously the word of God, the Church of God, and the mission of God. SGC is serious about serving and being served by other churches. Even take for instance how we have been cared for. There has been money, time instruction and training poured into us as a church from multiple SGC churches. If your leadership ever were to be in a situation where counsel was needed, SGC pastors would be there to speak in… And the list goes on.  Why is this important? Strengthening churches promotes holiness and fuels mission. And so it was with Paul, Barnabas, John Mark, Silas and the entire Antioch church. The church was willing to send their best men and resources to advance the gospel through strengthening other churches. Corporate Application As a small church we have already been able to do this in Malawi Africa serving Antioch Baptist Church, other church leaders, as well as Mntendere.  We also seek to pray regularly for specific churches especially within SGC.  One mindset trap we can fall in to when going overseas is thinking that we are going over there to start an awakening/ a revival… That we are the solution to lost being saved and that we set the agenda. But the reality is, if we are going over to see a church or churches strengthened, then helping that church determine what their greatest need is, will be the most important element of planning for the trip. Pastor’s may need a break, the church may need to hear certain things from the team. An event may need to be hosted. Construction may be needed. All this to say, going over seas is not just about seeing lost souls saved on the trip. It’s about strengthening the church that is on the ground.  Individual Application Seek to be commended by the church… If you are making big decisions with your life, seek to be commended by the church. You church is a means of grace given to you to be safeguard and a fertilizing agent in your walk with the Lord.  And pray for other local churches… Begin with SGC churches. Ask for a list. But I would ask you to take it a step further and pray for the local churches in our area. Pray that we would grow in our relationships with other churches and become a strengthening agent in their church’s life as well as receive strength from local church care outside our normal circles.  May we love local churches with the heart of God and seek the heart of God for our lives through the local church. 

The next characteristic of walking by the Spirit on God’s mission is that

2. We are to expect conflict with other believers. This reality makes the first characteristic of loving extralocally quite difficult apart from the Spirit… 

Read w/me starting at verse 37 -  37 Now Barnabas wanted to take with them John called Mark. 38 But Paul thought best not to take with them one who had withdrawn from them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work. 39 And there arose a sharp disagreement, so that they separated from each other. Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and departed Barnabas likely felt like his cousin John Mark needed a second chance and was vouching for him on this trip. Barnabas likely argued that John Mark had matured and that whatever happened on the first trip would not happen again.  Whereas Paul viewed John Mark’s decision to leave during the first trip was a liability to be avoided on the second trip.  If you ever watched any survival show or movie, one of the key elements to survival is teamwork. Paul and Baranabas’ first trip was planned out. They brought this young man along, believing him to be an asset. But right before they began the ascent into the mountains toward Antioch of Pisidia, John Mark chickened out. Leaving them no choice but to send him back with resources planned for the trip, and one less person to help ensure the success of the mission.  Either way, the accent on the text is not on who was right and who was wrong. The accent is that they parted ways… And as sad as that was at the time, God had greater plans. This split ended up creating two teams which allowed for a covering of more territory, more people, more churches.  Friends, we do not live in a utopic society… where there is no conflict and where there will never be conflict. Conflict is an inevitability… If Paul the Apostle and Barnabas the encourager can experience relational conflict and disagreement… Then so can we… So will we… So have we… We are nearsighted sinners living and serving alongside other nearsighted sinners. This is why we must pray for grace, and plan to extend grace. We must not demand our own ways at the expense of those in our lives.  What do we learn from this conflict?

It’s not unusual - 

Isn’t it interesting how when we face regular conflict at work, in our marriage, or in parenting that we often can be shocked and frustrated at it’s presence in your life? We live in a fallen world… what did you expect?

Mom, Dad, it is totally normal for your kids to get on your nerves and for you to have to work though disagreements with your spouse on how to best care for your babies. Need help? reach out! There are several of us that get it and would love to walk through with you working out the struggle!

Married couple, if you look down on other couples because they are struggling, know that you are likely not struggling in your marriage because either you have not lived together long enough, you are not being honest with the struggles in your marriage OR you don’t deal with things honestly or readily. Two redeemed sinners this side of heaven will always be under constant attack from the flesh and from the enemy.  And because you are typically closest with your spouse you are likely to be hurt by them more frequently and more deeply than anyone else. 

AND if you are discouraged in your marriage, know that you are not alone. You have pastors and families that would love to intercede and care for you. That’s the beauty of being in a gospel community that cares for one another. And remember that God is at work in the pain and disappointment. 

All that to say, conflict with other believers is not unusual…

God uses our mess and others mess for our joy, His glory, and the advance of the gospel. In this case God created two mission teams covering double the ground. We will never see ALL that God is doing, but we can rest knowing that the cross is the only sign that we need to know that God is working in and through ours and others mess!

And finally we must not let bitterness take hold. Paul later requests to have John Mark to be sent to him for comfort. 

If bitterness takes control, God himself is no longer held in esteem. Selfishness reigns because forgiveness takes the back seat despite the measure Christ took to purchase you. We were all once enemies of God, yet Christ still came and died our death, received our punishment and embraces us as his own. 

All that to say, we should not be shocked when facing trials within the body of Christ … 

The third characteristic of walking by the Spirit on God’s mission is that

3. We are to pursue discipleship. We are to disciple and be discipled. Christians are not meant to walk alone… 

15:39b-40a, Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and departed 16:3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, 10 And when Paul[h] had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. As I said, believers were not meant to be alone. We are not called to be lone rangers doing our own thing. God has saved us to himself and to the body of Christ. To function in isolation with no accountability even in the name of Jesus and evangelism is to contradict a basic foundation of walking in obedience. Even though Paul and Baranabas were not at the Church of Antioch they always had believers with them. Men and women they were discipling. Quickly what does it mean to make disciples as the great commission says? 

Discipleship is leading others to Jesus… This includes sharing the gospel with someone and leading them to faith. 

And it includes teaching believers what God has taught you… This can be formal like going through a book, counseling sessions, teaching a class or preaching on Sunday. Sunday services are unique in that we all get the opportunity to be discipled at the same time together. 

It can also be informal like doing life with someone showing them Christ in the normal rhythms of life.

These three components are essential to the great commission.

So what does that mean for us?  We are to pursue discipleship — John Mark, Silas, Timothy, and Luke

If you are not seeking discipleship from someone, begin today… Don’t buy in to the excuse that someone has to come to you and say, “I will disciple you.” If we are hungry we go to fridge. Relentlessly seek out persons that you know are walking with Jesus because you want more of Jesus!

If you find yourself making big decisions without consulting people that God has placed in your life through your local church, its likely a clear sign you are going your own way. To avoid, disregard, or not prioritize godly counsel is to avoid disregard and not prioritize God himself. 

We are to pursue discipling others — Paul and Barnabas Also, Don’t buy into the lie that you are not worthy to disciple someone. It is arrogant to think that you could ever be worthy to disciple anyone. You are a unworthy beggar invited to the King’s feast, simply sharing with other beggars either where the feast is or where to find more food at the King’s feast.

Begin w/ sharing the gospel with the lost

Also begin moving toward a believer in the church that is a few paces behind you, invite them into your life! Start small. Phone calls, praying together, sharing what God is teaching you in your devotion, meeting to enjoy a movie and share common grace found in the movie. 

Mama’s and Daddy’s know that you are discipling your children already… The questions is, are you pointing them to Jesus? Not are you living perfectly in their sight? But are you pointing them to Jesus in your daily enjoyment of Jesus and daily repentance.

Husband, you are commanded by God to love your wife like Christ loved the church washing her in the water of the word… We have no excuse. He has given us everything we need for life and godliness. Kill the excuses and begin walking in faith loving and leading your wife tenderly. Take small steps… Invite others into your pursuit, seek counsel, be transparent about your struggles and need, and asking for prayer. 

God has united us in Christ and called us into sweet gospel partnerships let us not forsake such a means of grace.

The fourth characteristic of walking by the Spirit on God’s mission is that

4. We are to love the lost more than we love our comfort and rights. In other words, as one pastor put it, at times we are called to limit our liberties in order to expand our ministries among the lost.

16 Paul[f] came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. 2 He was well spoken of by the brothers[g] at Lystra and Iconium. 3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. Acts 15 says that the Jerusalem Council decided that they didn’t have to be circumcised. Yet, Timothy chose circumcision…  Now, Timothy is an important disciple of Paul and minister of the gospel in the NT. Two letters were written to him directly. According to our text, his dad was a Gentile, and according to 2Timothy his mother and grandmother raised him in the Lord. And because his dad was a gentile its likely that he would not allow circumcision. But either way, Timothy decided to join Paul and Silas on the journey and his first act of commitment was to be circumcised… Why?  Bc he loved the lost more than he loved his own comfort and rights.  He didn’t want to be accused of being against the law of Moses… He wanted a platform to tell the lost Jews about Jesus, the fulfillment of the law. So timothy limited his liberties in order expand his ministry to the Jews.  Ian McConnell says this about Christian Liberty,  Christian Liberty is not primarily about being free for ourselves, Christian liberty is about being free to make much of Jesus, to make Jesus known!  The Corinthians viewed Christian liberty as a reason to indulge in the flesh. It was to indulge rather than serve. It was selfish rather than selfless.  It would be like someone saying in a middle eastern country, “as a christian I am free to eat pork therefore, I am going to eat pork I don’t care who I offend…” This would greatly hinder their platform to preaching the gospel. Listen to what Paul says, 1Cor.9,19 For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them...” To the Jew I became a Jew that I might win them to Christ, to the one’s outside the law I became outside the law (not the law of Christ of course) His point? I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. 23 I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings. Jesus is our perfect example for limiting his liberties in order to expand his ministry… 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,[a] 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,[b] 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant,[c] being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.  An important practical note, limiting liberties looks different for each situation requiring a heart of love, the need for wisdom from above and discernment from the Spirit.  Case in point:  Titus wasn’t circumcised because it would’ve subvert the message of the gospel. Examples of believers loving the lost more than they love their own comfort and rights. :

Stay at home moms who could be getting a comfortable paycheck due to skill and education yet stay home to disciple their children

Working moms who sacrifice the time with their babies in order to put food on the table, clothes on their backs, and evangelize those in the workplace.

Those who regularly give sacrificially toward the ministry (The key word their is sacrificially). Technically this could be said about a person who gives any amount but the one who embodies this text is the one who regularly gives over and beyond , hints sacrificially, to the ministry rather than spending it on themselves. They are limiting their liberties in order to expand the ministry.

In various places of the world, ministers cover their tattoos in order avoid needless distraction from the gospel. Again case by case scenario. A tattoo could gain a hearing in other parts of the world. 

Before I move on to the last characteristic, a question for you to consider and ask of the Lord in this section is, “Are there any habits in my life that put an obstacle up before the lost to hear the gospel rather than gain a hearing?”

This could be your unrepentant attitude or lazy work ethic at work 

This could be your social media presence. Do you promote godly conversation or is social media your place to rant and tell people how wrong and dumb they are, and consequently how smart you are? 

Do you act like a sin police around your lost acquaintances, always getting offended by their lostness rather than caring for them where they are and sharing the gospel with them while not making everything about their offensive behavior?  They need a heart change not a habit or language change.  

May our lives produce the fragrance of Christ and not self entitled arrogance! May our hearts be so filled with love for the lost that we would do anything within our power to see them saved… That we would be so overcome by the love of Christ toward us that we would be compelled to tell others of His goodness and that we would fear deeply of ever being an unnecessary  stumbling block to the lost because of how we live!

The final characteristic of walking by the Spirit on God’s mission is that

5. We are to submit to the Spirit’s agenda even when He leads us away from the original and/or desired plan.

6:6 And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7 And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. 8 So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. I thought about titling this message Divine Delays because you begin with the delay w/ Barnabas, then the journey moves to Timothy’s circumcision initiation (which would have certainly been a delay), then we conclude now with the Holy Spirit forbidding this team from going to the places on their missionary agenda. Think about this for a second… Paul, Silas and Timothy are forbidden from speaking the word… This is not the point of the text, but I wanted to share this with you. When I read this, I was convicted that I don’t share enough of Jesus to even know what it’s like to prompted NOT to speak of Jesus in certain instances. It is easy to just to wait until everything is perfect including but not limited to, my comfort - the amount of time i think I have - my felt zeal  - etc. Rather, we should be speaking the gospel so much that the Holy Spirit needs to shut our mouths! He needs to forbid us from speaking only in certain circumstances.  But just know that there is a category for the HS telling us to close our lips and avoid certain places with the gospel..  Listen to Susannah Spurgeon pray about God leading in the unexpected, undesired places, “Dear Lord, it is not that your ways are ever crooked or deviating, but that my eyes are bent on seeing pleasant little bypaths, where the road is not so rough, or the walking so toilsome, as on the King’s highway! My way looks so enticing, so easy, so agreeable to the flesh. Your way means self-denial, taking up the cross, and the relinquishment of much that my heart desires… It is enough that you hold my hand, and guide me in the darkness; for walking with you in the gloom is far sweeter and safer than walking alone in the sunlight!” Susannah Spurgeon The Spirit’s agenda for our life, is likely NOT going to look exactly like what we think it should… For starters we, as Susannah so beautiful put it, prefer that which is easy and agreeable to the flesh.  BUT EVEN IF WE DIDN’T have our corrupt flesh to deal with, we are not God. Therefore, the only way His plans will look like ours is if He is writing His will into our hearts.  I think the reason why we don’t read God’s word as often as we should, why we don’t pray like we ought, why we don’t seek godly counsel like we are expressly told to do in the Scriptures is because we would rather not hear God tell us to do something we don’t want to do or to stop doing something we have enjoyed doing…  May we repent of our rebellious hearts and turn to Christ by faith and say with Susannah, I would rather walk with you in the darkness than walk alone in the sunlight. If you are currently experiencing discouragement because certain doors have been shut or certain doors have not been open for you, take heart. An article on desiring god entitled “Is God keeping something from you?” powerfully concluded this way,  God is going to withhold something from you — guaranteed. Whatever that tree looks like in your life, realize that that tree is a doorway for the grace of God through Jesus Christ. There is nothing better than to fully rely upon his word to sustain us in weakness. It is in those moments of desperate faith and dependence that Jesus is most magnified. Our God is a withholding God — and we should be very glad he is. As one person put it, “Every disappointment is a divine appointment.” And to that end I would say God is a God who closes doors and opens them in His own timing, in His own way, for our joy. So let us go through His doors on His timing in His Way and enjoy Him to the fullest rather than forcing doors open because we are impatient or complaining in the waiting room. Hebrews 122 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Think about that for a second… Think about all the opportunities Jesus had to circumvent the cross, but he didn’t. He had crowds wanting to make him king. He had Satan promising Him the world. The armies of heaven were and are at His command. When he was hanging brutally on the tree, he was praying for His father to forgive sinners…  If that be true of Jesus’ earthly ministry, it will certainly be true of our lives. That whatever He is withholding, he is storing up deep joy and satisfaction that won’t be fully realized in this life but will be consummated in eternity. Listen to Romans 8:31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be[i] against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 33 Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.[j] 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. So what does it look like to walk in step with the Spirit on God’s mission -  It looks like loving the extralocal church, expecting conflict w/ believers in this life, pursuing discipleship, loving the lost sacrificially, and accepting God’s closed doors.  Oh God, who is pleased to condescend to speak to us through Your Word,grant us all grace that we may not be mere hearers of Your Word, but doers also.Give us the grace of Your Holy Spirit that we may believe what has been proclaimed to us.May we bring glory and honor to Your name in all that we do, as You conform us to the image of Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. in whose name we pray amen.