THE KING’ S BUSINESS
1143
proof that the Gentiles believed was that they “turned to the Lord.” Just what turn ing to the Lord means is made clear in 1 Thess. 5:9,. 10. It is giving up the wor ship o f idols and surrendering our hearts to the Lord Jesus to trust and obey Him and to wait for His coming again. This twenty-first verse shows the relation between faith and repentance, believing the truth about Jesus leads to repentance As soon as tidings o f the Gentile revival at~Antioch reached Jerusalem there was a great interest there. The church there had been brought by Peter’s experience out o f some o f its narrowness. They . selected one o f their best men and sent him to investigate and co-operate. It was a happy choice o f a delegate; for Barnabas was a big-hearted man and full o f the Holy Spirit and faith, just the man to see that the work was realKeven if it were along new lines. As soon as Barnabas' reached Antioch he saw that it was indeed a work o f God’s grace. There was no jealousy in his heart, “He was glad.” But Barnabas had a message for them, a message that they greatly needed and that we also greatly need, and that was that, beginning the Christian life is not all there is to it, but “that with purpose o f heart’ they must will to “cleave unto the Lord.” Just this “purpose o f heart,” and “cleaving unto the Lord” is what is needed today. There is . too much mere transient emotion in too many so-called, conversions. The visit o f Barnabas proved very helpful, “much peo ple was added unto the Lord.” They were not added to Barnabas or to the Barnabasian denomination, but “ to the Lord." but“ to the Lord.” Friday, December 29 . Acts 1 1 : 25 - 30 . Here Barnabas showed his largeness o f spirit in still another way. He said to himself, “ This is just the place for Saul. I will go and get him.” In this Barnabas had not only the welfare o f the young believers in Antioch in view but also from sin unto Himself. Thursday, December 28 . Acts it : 22 - 24 .
Saul’s growth and development in view. “ For a whole year” Barnabas and Saul ‘ worked together in Antioch and their work was greatly blessed. Here in Antioch the disciples were first called “ Christians,” o. e., those who belong to Christ. The self-sacrificing love o f this rapidly growing Gentile church in Antioch to their Jewish brethren in Judea is very touching. No sooner did they hear o f the hard times coming than they determined to send relief “unto the brethren that dwelt in all Judea.” They regarded hard times not as times for retrenchment, but as times for expan- ! sion. They chose the most useful men they had among them to carry their bene factions to Judea. Saturday, December 30 . Acts 12 : 1 - 4 . There had been, a lull in the persecution o f the church (ch. 9:31), but it had proved only temporary. No lull in the persecu tion o f the chufch will be permanent until the Lord Himself comes. In this case, when the persecution began again it began with great fierceness: James, one o f the fir§t Apostles called^ and one o f those nearest to the Lord, was killed. The James who appears so prominently in the story o f the early church after this, was, o f course, not James the brother o f John, but James the brother o f Jesus. James had been killed and now Peter is arrested in order that he may be killed also. The actual slaying o f Peter was postponed because o f the Jewish holy week; for while the Jews were perfectly willing to kill a good man, they were not willing to défile their feast days. They were like ihany today who care more for days and ceremonies than they do for a just and right treatment o f their fellowmen. Peter seemed to be in a perilous position, indeed in a hopeless position, securely locked and chained in a Roman prison, guarded by sixteen soldiers, bound by each wrist to a soldier, Peter’s enemies seemed to have calculated wisely and their plans seemed to be sure. o f successful execution. But they had left one factor out o f their cal culations, and .that one factor was the all-
Made with FlippingBook - Online Brochure Maker