For thought and meditation

[rl69]

"Then Barnabas brought him to the apostles and told them how Saul had seen the Lord on the way to Damascus and how the Lord had spoken to Saul. He also told them that Saul had preached boldly in the name of Jesus in Damascus."

—Acts 9:27

When I gave my life to Christ during a meeting on my high school campus, I didn’t know any Christians. I was starting to hang out with my old friends again when a guy named Mark walked up to me one day and introduced himself. He said, “I saw you go forward at the meeting the other day, and I’m going to take you to church.”

“I don’t really want to go to church,” I said.

But Mark wouldn’t let me off the hook. He took me to church, and he took me under his wing. He introduced me to his parents, who also were Christians and helped me become familiar with the Bible. I needed someone like that to help me out.

That is what we need to do with new believers, because the greatest danger new believers face after making a commitment to Christ is falling through the cracks and going back to their old friends and to their old ways. They need a brother or a sister in the Lord.

Saul had someone like that in the form of an unsung hero named Barnabas. When Saul returned to Jerusalem after his encounter with Christ on the Damascus road, the apostles didn’t believe he was converted. But in Acts 9 we read, “Then Barnabas brought him to the apostles and told them how Saul had seen the Lord on the way to Damascus and how the Lord had spoken to Saul. He also told them that Saul had preached boldly in the name of Jesus in Damascus” (verse 27). Barnabas put it on the line and backed up Saul’s story.

Everyone wants to be an apostle Paul, but who will be a Barnabas? God has a place for every one of us to be used for His glory

[Pine Baron]

"God has a place for every one of us to be used for His glory."
Thank you rl69.

[buckwheatpaul]

Ronnie, What a great study today.....Our minister is always encouraging us to invite someone to church and we do as we find a friend or new acquaintance that does not have a church; or looking for a church; or floundering in their Christian beliefs.

[Boaz]

Thank you rl69 .

[Blackwater]

PB has it right. Every one of us has a plate at the Lord's table. Each one of us has something to contribute to His church. Some are good at bringing others into the fold. Some are best at maintaining the building, keeping the money straight, helping landscape the church, and all sorts of other things incidental to maintaining the place where we go to worship. And ALL of it MATTERS! Every bit of it. One person at my church simply takes care of ensuring there's always the right amount of tea at any meals we have there. He also takes care of the shrubery and flowers on the grounds. My neighbor is the church treasurer, and is so reliable as to make me wonder if she's human. She just takes care of every tiny detail, because it's the church's, and she values the church more than any other thing she works with. She just retired, finally, from her job as an accountant and general utility person at an oil company here. She also sings in the choir, and does occasional duets. And what church doesn't need a bunch of really good followers???? A mass of followers, standing ready and willing to do whatever they're asked to, that they know how to do, is one of a church's richest blessings. Not everyone is nor ought to be another apostle Paul. But the church DOES need each and every one of us. We think of positions as being "high" or "low" in the church, but I've come to think that Christ ONLY sees loving Christian and self-obsessed pretenders. Those of the first type are a true blessing to any church, or any other group, they come in contact with. The later type always drag the people surrounding them down. And they always show which type they are, and it usually doesn't take very long to do that.

Churches are established for a REASON. That reason is just lost on some folks, unfortunately. Would that it were not so, but .... there it is. A good many folks are simply "developing believers," and need to take time to think about the messages that come from the pulpit. But in any vitally active church, there's plenty there to get what needs to be done, done reliably and in a timely manner. And really good churches tend to grow, and maintain their flock. Churches that divide themselves, reflect a preacher who hasn't fully developed his ministry yet, I think. However, there ARE instances where willful members in the flock CAN cause breaches of the church's peace, and get others so involved and emotional that they'll split off and form another church. All sorts of things can happen in a church, and good pastors have my utmost respect! They have a very delicate balancing act to perform very regularly, and though that's not why they went into the ministry, and most dread, the really good ones simply stick with what they devoutly believe Christ wants them to do, and let the rest go as it may. That's their job, ultimately, in times like those. And God bless them all for their efforts! It takes an awful lot to be a good preacher! An AWFUL lot! It even takes a good bit to be a good follower! My hat's off to all who follow Christ, for he never promised us an easy path to tread. Just that He'd be with us whatever presents itself to us. Praised be His holy name, forever!