The Setting Apart of Paul and Barnabas

Michael Howard

Acts: The Mission of God • Sermon • Submitted 3 months ago • Presented 3 months ago

Acts 13:1–3

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INTRODUCTION

Lottie Moon, from Albemarle County, VA, was spiritually awakened under the preaching of John Broadus, who was leading a revival meeting on her college campus in 1858.

She was highly educated, becoming one of the first women to receive a Masters degree in the South and she knew Latin, Greek, French and Italian.

Lottie spent the Civil War helping her mother maintain the family farm, but after that, she became an educator.

She taught at female academies throughout the Southeast and in 1871, she worked with a friend to start their own high school for girls in Cartersville, GA.

But there were changes afoot on the mission field that would greatly impact her life.

Most mission work at the time was done by married men.

But the wives of two missionaries to China discovered that the women of China could not be reached by men. They could only be reached by women.

In light of this, the Foreign Mission Board—what we now know as the Southern Baptist “International Mission Board,” relaxed their policies about single women going to the field.

In 1872, Lottie’s little sister, Edmonia Moon, became the first single female missionary of the Foreign Mission Board.

One year later, Lottie committed to the same work.

On July 7th, 1873, the Foreign Mission Board set apart Lottie Moon for the work of reaching women in China with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

CONTEXT

This morning, we find a similar scene in Acts 13.

We have missionaries being set apart for the work of reaching the nations.

We have missionaries being sent out to the lost on distant shores.

We have CALLED missionaries being COMMISSIONED.

Just like Edmonia and Lottie 150 years ago.

As we turn to Acts 13, understand that the chapter represents a major shift in the book of Acts.

Up until now, we have mainly been focused on Jerusalem.

We have had a few forays into the Gentile world with the Ethiopian eunuch and Cornelius’ family and the establishment of the church in Antioch, but Acts 1-12 was mainly focused on the church in Jerusalem reaching the Jewish world with the Gospel.

However, as we arrive at Acts 13, the attention is fully on Antioch and for the rest of Acts, other than a brief detour in chapter 15, Luke’s focus is on the mission to the Gentiles.

In the first twelve chapters, Peter was the main character of leadership in Acts.

But now in chapters 13-28, Paul will take over that role.

In the first twelve chapters, the Gospel was going from Jerusalem to Judea to Samaria.

But now, Luke is showing us how the Gospel is penetrating the nations—the ends of the earth—the Roman Empire.

Paul famously takes three missionary journeys as the Apostle to the Gentiles.

This morning, we see the beginnings of the first journey.

Paul and Barnabas are being set apart.

I am going to read the passage.

Then we will have two teaching points this morning:

1. Missionaries are called by God.

2. Missionaries are commissioned by the church.

And then we will have some application questions for us to consider.

Acts 13:1–3 ESV

Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

CALLED BY GOD (v. 2)

We begin with out first teaching point this morning:

1. Missionaries are called by God (v. 2).

We see this clearly in Acts 13:2.

As the church is worshiping and fasting, who is it that calls Saul and Barnabas to the mission field?

It is the Holy Spirit.

It is not man, but God.

This is not necessarily a new calling—at least not for Saul. It is a calling that had been upon his life from the beginning of his conversion.

Remember what the Lord said to Ananias about Saul when Ananias was hesitant to go to him:

Acts 9:15 ESV

But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.

THE SPIRIT IS CONFIRMING A CALLING (v. 2)

So as the Holy Spirit sets Saul and Barnabas apart here, He is confirming a calling.

Paul talks about this in Galatians 1:15-16

Galatians 1:15–16 ESV

But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone;

The Holy Spirit had plans for Paul.

He set Paul apart before he was born.

He set him apart for salvation.

He set him apart for the work that he would do for the name of Jesus.

And then in His time, God’s Spirit revealed salvation in the Son to Paul and Paul’s calling to minister to the Gentiles.

All of this setting apart and revealing—this confirmation of the call on the life of Saul of Tarsus—it shows how gracious the Lord is from beginning to end.

It shows that He is the true hero of Paul’s story.

Paul is simply a willing instrument in the hands of a gracious, calling God—as we all are.

You also see in this passage that the Lord is not sending Saul out alone, but with Barnabas.

THE SPIRIT IS CRAFTING A TEAM (v. 2)

So just as the Holy Spirit confirmed Saul’s calling, He is also crafting a team.

This is not by accident.

As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, he said these words about the members of the body of Christ:

1 Corinthians 12:18 ESV

But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose.

The Lord, in His sovereign wisdom, places people where He wants them.

He calls them and sets them in positions where He will use their gifting for specific purposes that He has in mind.

In Acts 13, He wants Saul and Barnabas together on this mission.

They are not strangers.

When the church in Jerusalem was apprehensive about accepting Saul after his conversion, Barnabas vouched for him.

When this church in Antioch began and Barnabas was sent by the leaders in Jerusalem to check it out, it was Barnabas who went and got Saul to help him teach and establish the young church.

And now, God will use them together in this first missionary journey that is launching out from Antioch—the center for Gentile mission work.

Just as God is gracious to confirm a calling, God is gracious to craft a team to accomplish the work He calls his people to.

As Saul and Barnabas headed off to Cyprus, it is not hard to imagine why God may have put the two of them together.

Barnabas was from Cyprus. He would have been very familiar with the Hellenistic, Greek culture of Cyprus, as well as other cities on the Phoenician coast.

If you remember Acts 11:19, there was already mission work that occurred in the areas after the martyrdom of Stephen.

Acts 11:19 ESV

Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews.

Barnabas is a very natural missionary partner for Saul as he goes through these areas preaching the Gospel and leading people to Christ.

And yet, their team won’t stay together forever.

In Acts 15, the two will separate over a disagreement about John-Mark.

He had abandoned mission work at some point in Pamphylia and Saul did not want to give him a second chance, while Barnabas did.

This brought their partnership to an end.

And that happens.

When Lottie Moon was on the mission field in China, she ministered alongside her sister, Edmonia, for five years. But Edmonia became afflicted with illness and had to leave and the mission landscape changed for Lottie.

Just as God crafts teams and arranges the members of the body to start new work, He will also bring teams to an end in His time.

In His brilliant wisdom, He has his reasons for the timing and the circumstances of changes in mission work and ministry.

Our job is not to be bitter about it, but to be fluid.

We want to be like water in ministry—flowing along whatever path His sovereign hand directs us to take.

Because as the end of the day, this is not our mission.

This is God’s mission.

We are set apart by Him for HIS work—not OUR work.

And we see that all throughout the book of Acts.

THE SPIRIT IS CARRYING THE MISSION (v. 2)

The Spirit is confirming and calling and crafting a team, but He is also carrying the mission.

If you look at the beginning of the Book of Acts, you will see that its title is “ the Acts of the Apostles.”

This is a fine title for the book.

But many have argued that it should be called, “Acts of the Holy Spirit,” because as you read Luke’s narrative, it is clearly the Spirit of God in charge and in control.

in Acts 1, Jesus tells the Apostles they must go to Jerusalem and wait for THE SPIRIT before they embark on their mission.

In Acts 2, THE SPIRIT falls on the church and only then is Peter empowered to preach the expository sermon that leads thousands to Christ.

In Acts 4, as Peter stands before the rulers and elders and scribes in Jerusalem, it is the Holy Spirit who fills him before he speaks.

In Acts 8, it is the Spirit of the Lord carrying Philip away to Azotus, where he continues to preach the Gospel, all the way to Caesarea.

In Acts 9, it is after Saul is filled with the Spirit that he can see again and then he is baptized.

In Acts 10, the Holy Spirit falls on Cornelius’ family in a sort of Gentile Pentecost.

In Acts 16, the Spirit changes the travel plans on Paul’s team, seemingly for the purpose of calling Paul to Macedonia.

Acts 16:6–9 ESV

And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”

In Acts 19, when Paul meets the disciples of John the Baptist and he tells them about Jesus, he lays hands on them and once more, it is the Holy Spirit that comes upon them.

All of this is evidence that the mission of God is carried along by the Spirit of God from the start.

And it is no different today.

It is the Spirit of God that leads us to embark on new mission work as a church.

It is the Spirit of God that empowers missionaries on the field.

Whether it is Evelyn and Steve Biles in Malaysia and Uganda...

Or Brian and Jerilyn White in Uganda...

Or our Orphan Helpers teachers in Central America...

Or Sergei Vashkevich reaching Ukranian refugees in Europe and the Middle East...

Or Melody Warford and Pioneer Bible translators getting the Scriptures translated into every heart language around the globe...

Or Daniel and Abigail Chambers reaching North African and Middle Eastern people with the IMB...

Or North American Mission Board church planters...

Or the work we do locally, right here on the Peninsula...

This work is empowered by the Spirit.

This work is effective by the Spirit.

This work is executed by the Spirit.

We are His vessels.

We are His representatives.

We are His tools.

The mission belongs to Him. He is the agent at work.

Any success—any fruit—any ground gained for the Kingdom—is owed to the Spirit, who is opening eyes to see the salvation of Christ to the glory of God the Father.

Missionaries are set apart by God.

His Spirit confirms their calling.

He crafts the teams that go out into the fields of harvest.

He is carrying the mission along by His power.

COMMISSIONED BY THE CHURCH (v. 1- 3)

Our second teaching point this morning moves us from focusing on the Spirit of God to the church of God:

2. Missionaries are commissioned by the church (v. 1- 3).

What we are seeing in this passage is that the mission work to the Gentiles is launching from the local church.

We do not have two men receiving a calling a striking out on their own like a couple of itinerant mavericks.

Instead, we have two men being sent out by a local body of believers.

And this is because missionaries do not exist in a vacuum.

True mission work is done through the context of the local church.

There are a few things we can point out about this local church in Antioch:

THE CHURCH IS STRENGTHENED BY LEADERSHIP (v. 1)

First of all, they are strengthened by leadership.

In verse 1, we see that there are prophets and teachers in the church.

Five names are listed:

Barnabas and Saul, who we know and have already talked about.

Simeon who is called Niger (NY-GER)

Niger is a word that means “dark-complexioned” most likely indicating that he is a black man of African origin.

Lucius of Cyrene

Cyrene is modern-day Libya in North Africa

Kevin DeYoung points out in his guide to the book of Acts, that these may have been two of the first black missionaries and leaders of the church of Jesus Christ.

And then there is Manaen.

Luke tells us that he was a lifelong friend of Herod the Tetrarch, meaning he was raised in the same circles as the Herod who participated in the trial of Christ and the death of John the Baptist.

Eckhardt Schnabel tells us more about this Jewish nobleman:

Manaen evidently belonged to a noble Jewish family with connections to Herod’s court. Since Herod I made sure his sons had a good Greek education, the same can be assumed for Manaen. Since “brought up” was used as a title, Manaen, before his conversion, may have held an influential position at the court of Herod Antipas.

Eckhardt Schnabel

That is a pretty dramatic conversion—to go from the service in the courts of Herod to service in the church of Christ.

Regardless, it is clear that Manaen was probably a well-educated man who was a great benefit to the church in Antioch.

Wherever you find strong missionary churches, you will find strong leadership.

Churches with weak and anemic leadership tend to be ingrown, focused on dramatic squabbles in their own navel, as opposed to being outwardly focused on divinely-ordained salvation in the nations.

Three of the strongest mission-sending churches I know of are Old Powhatan Baptist, Nansemond River Baptist and Poquoson Baptist.

In each case, those churches are led by strong senior leaders and a board of non-staff, lay pastors who are striving to build up the body of Christ and then send out the Good News into the world.

They are leading their churches to look beyond themselves to God’s global disciple-making plan and they are joining in on it.

I consider them a model for us, just as Antioch is a model for us.

The fact that this church in Antioch is focused on the nations is obvious in the fact that they do not send the Gentile world their leftovers...

THE CHURCH IS SENDING THEIR BEST (v. 3)

Instead, the church is sending their best.

They don’t look in the church’s refrigerator and send whatever they find in the spiritual tupperware.

They send Saul and Barnabas—two men who have been crucial to the spiritual life and growth of the church from the start.

They lay hands on them and send them out (v. 3).

They laying on of hands is an act of commissioning to show that there is approval in the people of God.

It is a public recognition that God is at work—an acknowledgement and agreement that God is setting members of His body apart for a specific task.

While the power is in God and not in the laying on of hands, the act of laying on hands demonstrates that the church is asking God to bless and anoint those being set apart.

It is a humble request for His power to work through these servants.

The practice finds its roots in the Old Testament, in the scene of Moses and Joshua:

Numbers 27:18–23 ESV

So the Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him. Make him stand before Eleazar the priest and all the congregation, and you shall commission him in their sight. You shall invest him with some of your authority, that all the congregation of the people of Israel may obey. And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before the Lord. At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he and all the people of Israel with him, the whole congregation.” And Moses did as the Lord commanded him. He took Joshua and made him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole congregation, and he laid his hands on him and commissioned him as the Lord directed through Moses.

We saw it in Acts 6 when the deacon prototypes were set apart for their work in the widow controversy:

Acts 6:5–6 ESV

And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them.

Later in Paul’s first letter to Timothy, Paul refers to the laying on of hands that Timothy received from a council of pastor-elders:

1 Timothy 4:14 ESV

Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you.

And then one chapter later, he urges him not to lay hands on other men for this work of pastoring too quickly:

1 Timothy 5:22 ESV

Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, nor take part in the sins of others; keep yourself pure.

We have done the laying on of hands here with deacons.

We have done it with elders/pastors (I was ordained here in 2011).

We have sent out missionaries and mission teams.

Here in Acts 13, the church lays hands on two of their absolute best leaders and they commission them.

They send them out as missionaries to the Gentiles.

WE DO NOT EXIST FOR OURSELVES

The fact that they do this shows how the church looks beyond themselves.

If we are to be like Antioch, we have to realize that Seaford Baptist Church does not exist to perpetuate her own existence.

A church that exists simply to sustain herself won’t have a heart for the nations or the neighborhood.

We must realize that God has placed us in our context and in our time, in order that we would be a lighthouse—a beacon—to the world around us.

And the only way for us to be a beacon is to send out the light.

Here is the reality right now—we have been out of debt for a year.

And in that year, God has been really good to us financially.

He has continued to motivate you all to give faithfully to the general budget, as well as to special offerings.

We have given to Lottie Moon and met our goal this past year.

We have given to Care Net Peninsula.

And you have given to our Campus Improvement Fund, which exists to make sure we have a plan to care for our campus long-term.

We’ve been able to save money and go from being in debt to being firmly planted in a place a stability.

But we must be faithful now as we go forward.

We cannot allow financial stability or the long-term care of our campus to eclipse the Great Commission.

We must be intentional about investing in mission work around the world—not just with our money, but with our time and with our people.

We must outwardly focused and care about lost souls from the neighborhood to the nations—and send our best to do hands-on work as God calls them.

I’m certainly talking short-term mission trips.

And we have to recognize that if we start giving our time to having boots on the ground, some of our most wise and gifted people might be giving less to things they have typically done because God grows their hearts for unreached peoples on the other side of the world.

And I am also talking about longer-term calling.

What if God were to call some of our best and brightest to step out of their life and their career and He called them to go to some far-off country to take the Gospel to an unreached place and people?

Do we want that? Are we kingdom-minded enough to even desire to see that sort of thing happen in our midst? Is it even on our radar?

THE CHURCH IS SPIRITUALLY-FOCUSED (v. 2, 3)

If we want these sort of things on our radar, we must take another clue from Antioch.

The church in Antioch is spiritually-focused (v. 2-3).

Two things jump out about this church—they are worshipping the Lord and fasting in v. 2.

They are praying and fasting in v. 3.

In fact, it is in the context of worshipping and fasting that they receive the call to commission Saul and Barnabas for the work among the Gentiles.

The worship spoken about is likely Lord’s Day worship.

It would have included teaching.

It would have included prayer.

If it were not a period of fasting, it would have included the Lord’s Supper and a communal meal of love.

It is the sort of worship we see described in Acts 2.

But you see there is also fasting. The fasting is something we certainly talk less about in the Western/American church.

And that isn’t because it has less merit than other spiritual disciplines, like prayer and gathering for worship.

It is because we have less motivation.

It is a spiritual discipline that intimidates many because by nature, it comes with sacrifice.

And yet, it is a spiritual discipline we should give attention to because it is mentioned 77 times in Scripture.

That is more than baptism.

FASTING

Fasting is abstaining from something that beings enjoyment—usually food, but not always—because we want to be less focused on temporal things and more focused on eternal matters.

Even the perfect Son of God—the Lord of Glory in the flesh—practiced this discipline.

In fact, before launching His public ministry, He fasted from food for forty days.

Luke 4:1–2 ESV

And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry.

So that is one type of fast in the Scriptures.

There are also fasts from certain foods, like Daniel in Babylon, only eating vegetables and water.

There are absolute fasts from food and water, like all of the Jews in Susa who fasted for Esther for three days.

Or like Ezra fasting from food and water as he mourned the sin of the exiled community in Ezra 10.

There are supernatural fasts from food AND water for forty days and forty nights like the ones taken on by Moses and Elijah.

I say they are supernatural because only God could sustain a person miraculously if they do not have water for that entire time

There are national fasts. There is the fast on the Day of Atonement.

And there is the sort of fasting we see here in Acts 13—a congregational fast.

We should understand that fasting is not just for some Christians who seem to be extra-spiritual.

Jesus expects fasting just as much as He expects prayer.

Consider the wording in the Sermon on the Mount.

Here is Jesus on prayer:

Matthew 6:5–7 ESV

“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.

Here is Jesus on fasting—notice the similarity in language and presentation:

Matthew 6:16–17 ESV

“And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,

His instructions are parallel because the disciplines are both assumed and expected by our Lord.

Furthermore, in Matthew 9, when Jesus is asked why His disciples don’t fast, Jesus says it is because He is with them. But after He is gone, He is adamant that they will fast then:

Matthew 9:14–15 ESV

Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.

Jesus wants and expects fasting for us because fasting has important spiritual purposes. Throughout the Scriptures, we see a number of them:

To strengthen prayer

To seek God’s guidance

To express grief

To seek protection

to express repentance

To express humility before God

To express concern for the work of God

In the first fast in Acts 13, it seems to me that they are fasting to strengthen prayer.

It is likely a fast to focus their worshipful petitions to the throne of God.

Fasting is prayer’s best friend.

Donald Whitney

It is not that by fasting we are twisting God’s arm and forcing Him to do what we want Him to do.

A God who could be manipulated by my choice not to eat would be a very weak God.

Instead, the fasting intensifies our spiritual desires.

It helps us to forget about transient things that come and go.

It reminds the compass of our hearts where the True North is and points us to Him as we pray and worship.

It helps us heed Paul’s command in Colossians 3:1-2

Colossians 3:1–2 ESV

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.

In the second fast that is mentioned after the prophetic word from the Spirit, it seems that there could be a host of reasons as to why the church is fasting.

They are about to commission Saul and Barnabas.

They could be fasting for guidance to ensure they are doing what God wants them to do.

They could be fasting to seek protection for these brothers on their journey.

They could be fasting to express humility before God before they sent them out.

They could be fasting to show God how passionate they are about His work

It could be all of the above.

But again—before they sent these men on mission, they are demonstrating to God their dependence upon Him.

APPLICATION QUESTIONS

As I read and studied this passage this week, I found myself wanting to check my own heart.

I also found myself wanting to check the heart of our congregation.

This is one of those heart cath passages.

A heart catheterization is when they take a thin, hollow tube and guide it through a blood vessel to the heart and check on the health of the organ.

This passage is a heart cath passage.

You read of this church and its strong leadership.

You read of its laser-like spiritual focus.

You read of her sending out her best.

You see a church yielded to the confirming, crafting, carrying Spirit of God.

And it leaves you wondering, “Is that us? Can it be us? How are we like Antioch? What would need to change for us to be more like Antioch?”

Recently, I sat down with a friend who leads a global mission agency that works to train up evangelists and pastors in unreached places and plant churches.

He said, “Mission work is this: starting churches where there are not churches. Getting the Bible translated into languages that don’t have it. Training up pastors to shepherd those churches and teach from those Bibles.”

And as he said that to me over fish and chips at The Chipper—my heart leapt.

I thought, “I want us to be ABOUT that work.”

I want us to be obsessed with it and consumed with it.

Seaford Baptist is one of the greatest concentrations of talent and resources that I have ever seen.

It is a joy to pastor here.

Let’s take it to the world like Saul and Barnabas.

Let’s send like Antioch.

AS THE BAND RETURNS...

I have three questions I want to leave you with.

They are questions of application.

I won’t even say much about them.

They are for you to consider.

1. Would you pray daily and fast as God calls you for mission work?

On this one, I have a tool for you.

Look in your worship guide and there is a QR code. It will take you to the Operation World website, whee you can pray daily for an unreached people group.

Simple and free.

2. Do you give sacrificially to mission work?

Above and beyond your tithe, is there mission work that you would commit yourself to give toward?

You can give to the International Mission Board.

You could give to one of our church plants that we support.

There is no shortage of mission work to give to that is connected to this local church.

We have one of our career missionaries building a house in the country they serve in as we speak and they are close to being fully-funded. You could help them.

One thing that your pastors want to see in the near future is for Seaford to get serious about sending our own people to the mission field.

We want to have a mission fund at this church that our people can give to that would fund 50% of each member’s first mission trip in a calendar year.

3. Would you go on an international trip?

Would you give up vacation time to go?

Would you give up the comfort of home to go?

Is God calling you to go? Has he been for a while?

If you are interested in going on a trip, email us at connect@seafordbaptist.com.

In 1872, God sent a 4’3 Virginian woman to China and she became one of the most important missionaries of Christian history.