Acts 15:36-41 “The Barnabas Act”
Let me start with this anonymous story about anger management: A fellow one day is trying to dial a friend of his on his cell phone, but rather than a familiar friendly voice on the line, he hears a very angry and rude man tell him to get his numbers straight. He looks on the numbers dialed list on the phone and realizes that he had inverted the last two digits of the number. He didn’t think that his mistake warranted such an angry response from the guy he dialed by mistake, so he added his number to his speed dial function on his cell. As the weeks progressed, every time he felt angry, rather than taking it out on his co-workers or family, he speed-dialed this unknown man who had been rude to him and told him that he was a jerk—then quickly hung up on him. He always felt better afterwards.
Now, one day he was patiently waiting for a parking spot at the local supermarket when just as he was about to pull in, a black BMW zips by him and takes the spot. He rolled down his window and yelled at him. The driver just got out and went into the store. The man noticed however that there was a “for sale” sign on the back of his Beamer. He took down the number.
Later that evening, he called the man who had taken his parking space, placing his number on his cell’s speed dial two. He started the conversation congenially. He asked if he were the man selling the black Beamer. He asked if he could come over and see it. In doing this, he got the man’s name and address. After that he told the man, “Don Johnson,” that he was a jerk and hung up. He felt really good after that. Now he had two phone numbers on speed dial that he could use to get out his anger.
Not long after that he was feeling anger again and so called the first number and called the man a jerk. The man responded by saying that if he ever found out who he was that was calling and calling that he would punch his lights out. The fellow had a brilliant idea in that moment and gave the name and address of the other guy he had been calling to the first guy, saying “My name is Don Johnson and I live at this address and you can come over anytime if you want to fight me.” He told him that he would be right over.
Then he called the police and gave them the address so that both men might be arrested. Then, finally he felt all of his anger being released.
Today we get to talk about getting angry. The text for today tells us that there was a “disagreement” between Paul and Barnabas. I think that that is a carefully chosen word for what happened. The word in the Greek is actually παροξυσμός. If you are a doctor or a nurse you might hear in that word a similar English word “paroxysm.” That is when somebody has a high temperature and starts convulsing. It is also used to describe an active volcanic eruption in geology. It may also be used in everyday speech simply to mean convulsive or fit-like actions. For instance, one can have a paroxysm of laughter when hearing a joke.
I mention all of this because I think our translation has sweetened up the taste of the issue more than it should. Literally, Paul had a paroxysm. He erupted. He had a fit. He got really angry. Eugene Petersen’s translation, called The Message states “tempers flared.” That is still nicer than how I read it from the Greek.
What was Paul so angry about? Well, this other apostle named John Mark (Yes, this is the author of the Gospel of Mark) seemed to have disappointed Paul on a previous trip. John Mark had abandoned Paul and Barnabas on their journey to Pamphylia. John Mark had decided not to join in the mission work there, electing instead to head back to Jerusalem. He headed home in fact.
Okay, so John Mark took a little vacation from the ministry. That is no reason to get so upset. Added to the intrigue is the fact that he is a cousin to Barnabas. Of course, Barnabas is going to stand up to Paul in favor of his cousin John Mark. This then got so heated up that the two men, Paul and Barnabas decide not to continue to do ministry together. They separate. They have the first church “schism.”
Just last Sunday we read about the Pentecost. We heard about the miracle that everyone was so tuned into the Holy Spirit that they could understand one another even though they were speaking different languages! 5,000 people were gathered all together there. They all got along just fine. No problems. They all had the same vision and goal. So, we are left wondering what happened to the Holy Spirit later when Paul and Barnabas were trying to decide whether to take John Mark along with them again on their next mission trip. Here they were speaking the same language even, and yet they were not able to have understanding between them!
Even though we like to think that we have the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which include gentleness and kindness, if you will recall; there are times when we get angry as Christians. And, I want to affirm for you that anger is not necessarily un-Christian in and of itself. Jesus himself became angry at times. We must recall how he was angry with Peter in Mark 8. He was angry when he tipped the tables of the moneychangers in the Temple in Jerusalem. He was angry at that fig tree on the way to Jerusalem in fact! So, we should not say that anger is un-Christ-like. Christ got angry. Christians get angry.
The real question must be whether the anger serves some Godly purpose—as was certainly the case with Christ’s getting angry. When Jesus got angry, it was showing God’s anger. It was a righteous anger. Did the anger serve a purpose in the case of Paul and Barnabas? Did something godly come out of it?
The answer is of course “yes.” The mission effort doubled because of this split. In stead of one set of four people going out to the same places, two sets when out to different places. John Mark and Barnabas went back to Cyprus, while Paul and Silas go off towards Syria and eventually on to Macedonia, where they had never been before. If Paul and Barnabas had not separated, the mission would not have been as successful. The Holy Spirit had been working in this!
Again, I always like to point out when there is something that is particular to Christianity that I don’t think exists in other faith traditions, and this is another one of those things: We as Christians can have disagreements, even separate ourselves from one another, and still recognize that we are jointly doing the Will of God together! In Christianity this has come to be known as the “Barnabas Act.” It is simply the act of blessing the person that you are angry at, realizing that there is a greater good that needs to be served.
Yes, Paul was angry at John Mark. That is quite clear. Paul was so angry that Barnabas and John Mark split off from his mission. You would think then that this anger and animosity would turn the church in Antioch against Paul. Instead, we read at the end of the passage that the believers in Antioch commended Paul and Silas to the grace of the Lord before they left.
Later in Paul’s letter to the Church in Colossae, that is Colossians 4:10, we hear Paul actually commending John Mark. He tells the church in Colossae to welcome John Mark. In II Timothy 4:11 we read Paul asking Timothy to send John Mark to him, “as he is useful in ministry.” Yes, in spite of whatever anger he had towards John Mark, when it comes to ministry, it just doesn’t seem to matter anymore. They have reconciled for the sake of Christ’s ministry.
One of the arguments that non-Christians make against the church is that there are so many different denominations and even this “non-denominational” denomination. They argue that there should be just one church for all people. My response to that is that God would never want all of God’s churches to be exactly the same. God loves diversity. I think God is happy to see all of these different churches around the planet. I think it is part of God’s plan. Just as Paul and Barnabas separated and thusly created twice the mission out to unbelievers, so it is with the different churches in the world today. As long as we are reconciled in the end, what difference does it make that one church sprinkles in baptism and the other church dunks?!
You know, Jesus himself foretold that we would have arguments, and he gave us instructions in Matthew 18 on how to handle those arguments in good Christian fashion that we remain reconciled to one another, always guarding one another’s integrity. This is referred to today as “The Rule of Christ.” Always meet first with the person with whom you have a problem. Try to work it out one-on-one. If that doesn’t work, involve a few trusted people around you. Lastly, take it to the church. Then, after all that is done and no matter the outcome, forgive 7 times 70! In other words, reconcile once more for the sake of God. Amen to that!
Paul, Barnabas, and John Mark all reconciled. They forgave one another. Paul went on to become the greatest theologian of the early church. Barnabas became a bishop and a martyr for the faith. And Mark, he became the personal assistant to Peter, the first leader of the church, and in hearing the Gospel told by him wrote it down so that we have it still today. And, it was upon Mark’s writing that both Matthew and Luke based their writings.
Today we are left wondering: would all of this ministry come about if Paul had not gotten angry with Mark that day? Makes you wonder if the Spirit was not behind it all from the start after all. Amen.