Sent Out

“Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” — Acts 13:2

The church in Antioch kept on growing. There were prophets and teachers there, people God had given special gifts to lead and teach the church.

There was Barnabas, the encourager. There was Simeon, who was called Niger, which means “black”, and Lucius from Cyrene in North Africa. There was Manaen, who had grown up with King Herod. And there was Saul.

What a mix of people! Different countries, different colours, different backgrounds. But all one family in Christ.

One day, while they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit spoke to them. “Set apart Barnabas and Saul for Me, for the work I have called them to do.”

What was that work? Jesus had said His followers would be His witnesses “to the ends of the earth”. So far, the good news had spread from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria, and as far as Antioch. Now it was time for it to go further. Much further.

So the church fasted and prayed some more. Then they placed their hands on Barnabas and Saul, and sent them off.

The two of them went down to the coast, and got on a ship. And they sailed away across the sea, to the island of Cyprus, where Barnabas had grown up.

It was the beginning of a great adventure, an adventure that would take them across seas and mountains, to cities and countries where nobody had ever heard of Jesus. There would be shipwrecks and storms, prisons and riots, earthquakes and narrow escapes. And in town after town, people would believe in Jesus, and new churches would begin.

On this journey, Luke starts calling Saul by his other name, Paul (Acts 13:9). And that is the name most people know him by today.

Look back at how far the story has come in this book. It started with about a hundred and twenty frightened people in one room in Jerusalem. Now there were thousands and thousands of Christians. There were churches in Jerusalem and Samaria and Damascus and Antioch. The good news had reached a Roman officer and an African treasurer. And now Barnabas and Paul were setting off to take it to the world.

Where would they go? What would happen to them? That is the story of the last book.

Read it in your Bible: Acts 13:1–4

Dear God, thank you for the people who went out to tell the world about Jesus. Thank you for missionaries today. Please show me how I can help the good news reach people who haven’t heard it. Amen.