Barnabas, A Good Man

Learning Objectives

By the close of this lesson the hearer should be able to:

1. Explain why the Holy Spirit's verdict "a good man" is high and rare praise.
2. Trace Barnabas's goodness through his generosity, his faith, and his service to others.
3. Resolve to be the kind of encouraging, self-effacing worker the Lord's church needs.

Thesis

The Holy Spirit called Barnabas "a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith," and his life shows what such goodness looks like — generous with his possessions, glad at others' blessing, and content to take second place for the cause of Christ.

Burden

The Bible is sparing with its compliments. It records men's sins without flinching and hands out praise with a careful hand, so when the Holy Spirit pauses to say of a man, "he was a good man," we ought to stop and look hard at him. Most of us would like to be called gifted, or successful, or strong. Here is a man God simply called good — and when we see what that meant in Barnabas, we may find it is the hardest and highest thing of all to be.

Introduction

Biography is a profitable way to study the Bible; God chose and used real men, and we do well to know them. Barnabas has been overshadowed by Paul — partly because Barnabas himself was glad to be overshadowed. Boles studies him under five heads: his name, his goodness, his generosity, his faith, and his relation to Paul.

I. His Name (Acts 4:36-37)

1. He was of the priestly tribe of Levi.
2. He was first named Joseph (Joses) — "may God add" (cf. Gen. 30:24).
3. The apostles gave him the name Barnabas, "son of exhortation" (or consolation). The name described the man: he was an encourager.
4. A good nickname often describes a character better than the original name — as with Abraham, Israel, and "the sons of thunder" (Mark 3:17). The apostles looked at Joseph the Levite and saw Encouragement walking among them.

II. A Good Man (Acts 11:24; Matt. 19:17)

1. The Bible does not deal in flattery or empty eulogy.
2. Very few men are ever called "good" in Scripture.
3. Jesus Himself said, "Why callest thou me good? none is good save one, even God" (Matt. 19:17) — reserving the word for its weightiest sense.
4. There must therefore have been something above the ordinary in Barnabas for the Holy Spirit to call him "a good man."
5. He was good not in the common sense but in the divine sense — good as God counts goodness, by the fruit of the Spirit in him (Gal. 5:22-23).

III. A Generous Man (Acts 4:37; Mark 12:42-44)

1. His generosity grew out of his goodness — it was fruit, not root.
2. He sold his field and gave the price to the apostles (Acts 4:37).
3. Generosity is measured not so much by what is given as by what is left: the poor man's penny may outweigh the rich man's dollar, as with the widow's mite (Mark 12:42-44).
4. His giving stands in deliberate contrast with Ananias (Acts 5) — the same opportunity, opposite hearts: Barnabas gave all and told the truth; Ananias kept back and lied.
5. He was generous also in honor, "in honor preferring one another" (Rom. 12:10) — as Jonathan yielded to David (1 Sam. 20) and as John the Baptist yielded to Christ: "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30).

IV. He Was Full of Faith (Acts 11:23-24)

1. He was spiritually minded — full of the Holy Spirit.
2. He was glad to learn that the Gentiles had received Christ (Acts 11:23, "he was glad; and he exhorted them all"). What gladdens a man reveals what kind of man he is — and Barnabas rejoiced at grace given to others.
3. He was chosen and sent to Antioch precisely because he could be trusted to rejoice in, not resent, this new work of God.
4. He labored to make Jew and Gentile one in Christ (Eph. 2:14-16).

V. His Relation to Paul (Acts 9:27; 11:25-26)

1. He first introduced Saul to the apostles when they feared him (Acts 9:27) — a fine thing, to bring brethren together in confidence and love.
2. He brought Paul to Antioch to teach (Acts 11:25-26).
3. He and Paul carried the relief contribution to Judea (Acts 11:30).
4. He, Paul, and Mark went out on the first missionary journey (Acts 13:2-3).
5. He stood for reconciliation at the question of circumcision (Acts 15).
6. Even when he and Paul separated over Mark (Acts 15:36-39), Barnabas was found doing what he always did — giving a man a second chance — and Paul later spoke kindly of them both (1 Cor. 9:5-6; 2 Tim. 4:11).

[Source aside: the 1949 outline notes a tradition that Barnabas "wrote the epistle of Barnabas, some say wrote Hebrews." This is church tradition, not Scripture; the "Epistle of Barnabas" is not an inspired book and the authorship of Hebrews is unknown. Reported here only as Boles' historical aside, not affirmed.]

Application

The church does not run short of gifted men nearly so often as it runs short of good ones — men full of the Spirit and of faith, glad at another's blessing, generous by what they keep back as much as by what they give, willing to introduce the newcomer, content to take second place. Barnabas never wrote a New Testament book that bears his name, never stood at the center; he simply encouraged, gave, reconciled, and rejoiced — and the Holy Spirit called him good. Be a Barnabas. Find the discouraged believer and exhort him; rejoice when God blesses someone else; prefer your brother in honor; give in a way that costs you something.

Conclusion

"He was a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith." It is the kind of epitaph no money can buy and no talent can earn — only the fruit of a Spirit-filled life can write it. Barnabas was content to decrease that Christ and his brethren might increase, and heaven recorded him as good. May the same be said of us.

Invitation

The goodness of Barnabas was not native to him; it was the fruit of the Holy Spirit in a man who belonged wholly to Christ. That life begins where every Christian life begins — in obedient faith. If you are not yet in Christ, believe, repent, confess Him, and be baptized for the remission of your sins (Acts 2:38; Gal. 3:27), and receive the Spirit whose fruit is goodness. If you are a Christian who has grown stingy, self-seeking, or grudging of others' blessings, turn back today and ask God to make you, like Barnabas, good. Come while we sing.

Word Study

• "Barnabas" (Acts 4:36): interpreted by Luke as "son of exhortation/consolation" (Gk. huios paraklēseōs) — the same root as paraklētos, the title of the Comforter; Barnabas was a small picture of an encouraging Spirit.
• "Good" (Acts 11:24, Gk. agathos): morally excellent, benevolent — goodness that acts for others' benefit, not mere harmlessness.

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