The Word Made Plain

Guest (Male): Welcome to the Word Made Plain with Senior Pastor Tony Clark of Calvary Chapel Newport News in Virginia. Currently, Pastor Tony is teaching a study in the book of Acts. Please open your Bible to Acts chapter 11, verses 24 through 30.

Tony Clark: All right, let's dive into the Word of God together. Turn with me in your Bibles to the book of Acts chapter 11. As we continue our verse-by-verse study through the New Testament, we find ourselves in the book of Acts, chapter 11.

And as you know, on Wednesday nights, we're going through the Old Testament, and we are in the book of Judges and just about to embark in chapter 13 that starts the life of Samson. So, I am looking forward to a tremendous verse-by-verse study of the book of Judges, but especially that story dealing with Samson. I am looking forward to that.

Father, thank You so much, Lord, that You have brought us here to hear Your Word. We pray that Your Spirit would teach us, lead us, and guide us into all truth. Lord, that You would unclog our ears from this world so we can have ears to hear Your voice speaking to us. Do a work, we pray, in Jesus' name, Amen.

Acts chapter 11, looking at verses 24 to 30 as we're going to finish up this chapter. The title of this message is "Eyes of Grace, Part 2." Now, in part one of this study, we saw how the believers were scattered after the death of Stephen in chapter 7. They were scattered everywhere, preaching the word to the Jews only because word had not gotten to them that God had opened the door of salvation to the Gentiles, or non-Jews.

When they started preaching to the Gentiles, verse 21 says a great number believed and turned to the Lord. Once this happened, the church in Jerusalem sent out Barnabas in verse 22 to go and check things out in the city of Antioch. Verse 23 says when he came and had seen the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all that with purpose of heart, they should continue with the Lord.

The question is, who was Barnabas, and why did the church in Jerusalem send him to Antioch? What was it about him that made them send him? Well, look at verse 24. It says, "For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord." Sending the right person to Antioch to see what was happening there was crucial, so Barnabas was chosen.

But why? We know from Acts 4 and verse 36 that his name means Son of Encouragement. The leaders of the church in Jerusalem knew that these new believers in Antioch needed to be encouraged in their new-found faith in Jesus Christ, so Barnabas was chosen. I guess the question I want to pose to us today is: would the early church have chosen you for this task?

In other words, are you an encourager, or do you bring everyone down when you come around? Barnabas was also chosen because verse 24 says that he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit, which means that the fruit of the Spirit was flowing from his life. When you came around Barnabas, you felt the love of God, the joy of God, the peace of God, the gentleness of God. He was full of the Holy Spirit.

The fruit of the Spirit just flowed from his life. But not only was he full of the Holy Spirit, he was also full of faith. He trusted God. And because of who he was, the end of verse 24 says a great many people were added to the Lord. I wonder how many more people would be added to the Lord if we were more like Barnabas and encouraged people more than we criticized them.

I wonder how many more of our children would be added to the Lord instead of rebelling against the Lord if we encouraged them more than we constantly came down on them. This is why the early church sent Barnabas. What did he do next? Look at verses 25 and 26. "Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to seek Saul. And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch."

These are some amazing verses because verse 25 says Barnabas departed the city of Antioch to go to the city of Tarsus. Why would he do that? It says to seek Saul. See, God had called Saul to reach the Gentiles according to Acts 9 and verse 15. But he kept wanting to reach his own people, the Jews. Every time he tried to reach them, a riot broke out, or people tried to kill him.

The last time we saw Saul was in Acts chapter 9 and verses 26 to 30, where they had finally shipped Saul out and sent him back home to his hometown of Tarsus. Now he had been out of the picture for approximately 10 years. This is why Barnabas went to Tarsus, because he thought, "I know the perfect person for this unique ministry among the Gentiles: Saul of Tarsus."

However, the end of verse 25 says Barnabas had to seek Saul. It is this word I want to bring to your attention. The Greek word for seek is *anazeteo*, and it means to search up and down and high and low. That's what the prefix *ana* means. *Zeteo* means to seek, so *anazeteo* means to seek high and low, up and down for something or someone.

It is used one other time by Luke, who is the author of Acts as well as the Gospel of Luke. He uses it in the Gospel of Luke, in Luke 2, verse 48, when Mary and Joseph sought anxiously when Jesus had decided to stay back in Jerusalem when He was 12 years old. So, the idea of *anazeteo* is that of a parent frantically, desperately, energetically seeking for a lost child.

And that is what Barnabas, the son of encouragement, did in searching for Saul. Did you know that this is what God is doing and has done for us? In Luke chapter 19 and verse 10, it says Jesus came to seek and to save the lost. And can you imagine what the Greek word for seek is? *Zeteo*. It's a great word; it's the root of where we get *anazeteo*.

So, how long are we going to run from God, dear people? He is diligently searching and seeking for you, searching up and down, high and low, in order to save you from your lost sinful condition. Stop running today and surrender your life to the one who wants to save you from hell and a life of destruction. So, Barnabas sought Saul, and according to verse 26, he found him and brought him back with him to the city of Antioch.

They spent the whole year assembled with the church and taught a great many people. In these verses, we see the formula for a successful ministry. First, you preach the Lord Jesus Christ, like they did in verse 20. And once they understand the gospel, which is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, they turn to the Lord, like verse 21 says. Then they are encouraged to continue with the Lord, according to verse 23.

Then finally, they are taught how to live and walk with the Lord, according to verse 26. And the results? The end of verse 26 says the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch. I have to bring this word "Christian" to our attention. The ending of the word Christian, I-A-N, means "of the party of." And so the word Christian means "of the party of Christ," being like Christ.

It was a term of derision at first. They would say, "Look at them acting like Christ, like a little Jesus." It was a negative term that later became a badge of honor. The historian Eusebius relates the account of the martyr Sanctus, who replied to his torturers' questions simply by saying, "I am a Christian. I am a Christian. I am a Christian." And that's according to the *Ecclesiastical History*, Volume 5, page 172.

I'm amazed at how the ending of Christian is I-A-N, meaning "of the party of," and there are more of you out there, more concerned about what political party you associate yourself with instead of being of the party of Christ. Defending some political party without knowing the history of that political party, and I see it on your Facebook status: political views, "I'm this," and you put it like it's a badge of honor.

Well, they used to have a badge of honor to be a Christian. Now we boast about what political party we're of, and we wear that proud like it's Scripture or something. These folks were more concerned with being of the party of Christ, and that's what they were more concerned with. Now, once these believers were taught how to walk with Christ, they became Christ-like.

And this is why we teach you the Bible from Genesis to Revelation the way we do, so that those around you can call you a Christian by looking at your life. Can they say that about you today? If I were to say, "Hey, round up all of your closest relatives and friends," and then I say, "Are they a Christian?" and they'd be like, "Who? Them right there?"

Would they say that about you? Can your closest friends and relatives say this about you, that you're truly a Christian? We want to teach you God's Word so they will be able to say this about you. Teaching you chapter by chapter, verse by verse, and book by book from Genesis to Revelation so you can know how to walk with God. I believe many Christians today are not walking with God today.

You know why? They've never been taught how. They go to churches with a lot of pizzazz, a lot of noise, a lot of flipping and running, a lot of screaming, a lot of all the theatrics, but no substance, no food of how to walk. There's an old saying: it's not how high you jump in here, it's how straight you walk when you leave. That's what it comes down to.

And this is why we want to teach you how to walk with God. If all Scripture is given by inspiration of God, we need to teach you all of it so you can know how to walk with this God who saved us and saved our souls. This is why we do what we do. Jesus said something amazing on one occasion. He said you're easily deceived by not knowing the Scripture nor the power of God.

So, the power of God is in knowing the Scripture. So, this is why we will teach you the Scriptures from Genesis to Revelation so you're not deceived by someone knocking on your door or ringing your doorbell saying, "Have you heard about this book or this person or this individual?" Did you know that 80 percent of those involved in cults or false religions came out of mainline churches? Did you know that? 80 percent.

Because many churches are not teaching the Word of God, not teaching people how to walk with God, how to defend the faith, know what we believe and why we believe. This is why we do what we do here. Look at verses 27 to 30. "And in these days prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch. Then one of them, named Agabus, stood up and showed by the Spirit that there was going to be a great famine throughout all the world, which also happened in the days of Claudius Caesar. Then the disciples, each according to his ability, determined to send relief to the brethren dwelling in Judea. This they also did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul."

In these verses, we see the results of a group of God's people being taught and being Christ-like: they were very generous. Because verse 27 says that prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch bearing some disturbing news. One of these prophets, we have his name; his name is Agabus. In verse 28, he stood up and showed by the Spirit that there was going to be a great famine throughout the world.

His prophecy would come to pass during the days of Claudius Caesar, which happened to be between the years AD 41 through AD 54. According to history, the famine hit Israel between the years AD 45 and 46. Several historians, Roman and Jewish, wrote of this famine. Tacitus, Josephus, and Suetonius included it in their writings, showing that it was a significant event.

And because this was a crisis they had to prepare for, they started collecting money to send relief to the believers in Jerusalem. They gave how, according to verse 29? Notice: each according to his ability. Meaning, not everyone gave the same amount. Some gave more, some less, but each according to his ability. And this is the one area that shows us if we're truly Christians: in our giving.

You've heard me say many times: we are most like God when we give and when we forgive. Some of you would have said, "That famine is coming our way, too. He said in all the world, so I'm not giving to them in Judea. I need to prepare for my own famine and my own thing." No, not the Christians in Antioch. They said, "They are brothers; they are our brothers and sisters and they're struggling. The famine hasn't quite hit us here yet, but it hit already in Jerusalem. We need to send aid to help them. We need to help them out."

So, they gave according to their ability. I have to pause here because I have to ask us: do you give according to your ability? You say, "Well, yes, I do." Really? All you have to do is see how much you make, see what 10 percent is, and then look at what you give. And you'll see if you're giving according to your ability. See, there's some people who are giving less than what they should, some giving more.

But it's each one, it says here, according to their ability. Then they sent their financial gift by their two most trusted leaders: Barnabas and Saul. This is Christian love in operation. True love is always giving. John 3:16: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."

And like I said, this is always a sign that God has come into a person's life: they become generous. They become generous. Are you a tightwad? Or are you generous? Most mothers, y'all are very giving. Your kids, you just give, you eat, and you haven't eaten all day. They just finished eating, all of a sudden they want to eat off your plate now, and you're okay with that. Us fathers, we struggle with that.

"You just ate! Get out of here! Just ate!" So, but here's the thing: this is Christian love in operation. This is what they were doing here. There's a biblical example of this. When Jesus came into the life of a greedy tax collector named Zacchaeus, who worked for the IRS of Rome, he said in Luke 19, verses 8 and 9—remember the subject is: when Jesus comes into a person's life, they become generous.

Watch this. In Luke 19, verses 8 and 9, he says, "Look, Lord, I give half my goods to the poor. And if I've taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold." Jesus responded in verse 9 and said, "Today salvation has come to this house." I just wonder, has salvation come to your house? When it does, it will show up in your giving to the work and the things of God.

I didn't say in your giving to your recreation. I didn't say that. It will show in your giving to the things of God, to the things of the Lord. Isn't it something how we always cry broke when it's time to give to the Lord, but we miraculously find money when it's time for vacation? These folks, they gave generously because they heard about their brothers and sisters struggling, and they gave.

So when salvation truly comes to a person's life, they become very generous. That's just all to it; it's a simple thing. "Well, you know, the church ain't getting my money." First of all, you don't have much money anyway. Little piddly money you make, you don't have much anyway, so stop. It's not like you're giving so much. Our God was going to supply anyway.

We don't need you; you don't need to give anyway like that. The Bible says he who gives, let him not give grudgingly or out of necessity. "Here, take it!" God loves a cheerful giver. The Greek word for cheerful means hilarious. You just, "Hahaha! Here you go!" You're just excited. That's what happens when salvation has come to your house—the house of your life, the house of your heart.

When salvation comes, you become generous because you realize you're nothing without Him. Everything you have is because of Him. The least you can do is give to the one who's done so much for you. I'm amazed. Before I was a believer, I was real stingy. And then when the Lord saved me, and I saw what He required as far as me giving, I said, "I'm not going to give what's the minimum. I'm going to give above and beyond the call of duty because you cannot out-give God. You can't out-give Him. You can't at all."

For those of you who are here for the first time, we don't talk about money unless it naturally comes up in the flow of Scriptures. Don't think, "Here's another church after my money." First of all, we don't want your money. Don't want yours. "You're the first pastor I've ever seen say he didn't want our money." No, because I don't look for you to supply. I look to my God to supply.

This is what we do here. You notice we haven't passed the bucket or that cloth bag with the handles on the end of it. We haven't taken an offering in 24 years, and God has supplied exceedingly, abundantly above all we can ask or think. Now, this is not an indictment against churches that take an offering. It's just this is how God led us. It forces us to trust God. Trust Him and not trust some man with his piddly little money anyway. No, God just, we trust God, and God has opened up windows of heaven and poured out on us such blessings we don't have room to receive it all. Now I just need Him to open up so we can build out the real sanctuary over there. I need those heavens to open up a little bit further.

Let me conclude with this. We looked at the "Eyes of Grace, Part 2." In other words, when we are truly walking with Jesus Christ—watch this—when we are truly walking with Jesus Christ, our lives pass the eye test. That's what this means. It passes the eye test by those closest to us. They will call us Christians because they see that we're acting, living, walking, talking like we have a growing relationship with Jesus Christ.

Do you have a relationship with Him? Do you have a growing relationship with Him? You can. You can stop running and surrender your life to Him. Even if you try to run, you're not that fast because He's going to seek you. *Anazeteo*. He's going to search high and low, back and forth, frantically seeking a lost child. And some of you are lost today. But you can be found by Him if you come and surrender your life to Jesus Christ.

Ask Him to come into your heart and ask Him to change you from the inside out. That's what He specializes in. You'll still look the same tomorrow, but there'll be something about you on the inside that people start to say, "What's going on with you? There's something different about you." And you'll get a chance to say, "Jesus Christ saved me." Can you say that? Jesus Christ saved me. And the proof will be in your lifestyle. That's where the proof will be seen by those closest to you.

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