One Accord

Sunday Sermons

Mark Dunagan
10/14/07 - Sunday Evening

One Accord

On the night before His crucifixion, Jesus prayed for the apostles and for all future disciples, that they would be united (John 17:20-21). One of the characteristics of early Christians was the unity that so often prevailed among them. In the book of Acts it is said that they were of “one accord” or of “one mind” (Acts 1:14). One writer says this expression denotes, “The entire harmony of views and feelings. There were no schisms, no divided interests, no discordant purposes” (Acts. Gareth L. Reese, p. 19). The same stress on unity is equally found in other passages (1 Corinthians 1:10; Ephesians 4:1-3). There were, however, matters that tested this unity, including the complaint in Acts 6:1 and the conversion of the first Gentiles (Acts 11:1ff). In this lesson I want to specifically look at one situation that tested the unity between Christians, and how they handled it.

Acts 15:36-40

“After some days Paul said to Barnabas, ‘Let us return and visit the brethren in every city in which we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are’. Barnabas wanted to take John, called Mark, along with them also. But Paul kept insisting that they should not take him along who had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work. And there occurred such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another, and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus. But Paul chose Silas and left, being committed by the brethren to the grace of the Lord”

An Area of Judgment

The very first thing that should be observed is that whether Mark goes or not is a matter of opinion or a judgment-call. Yet, even in matters of judgment, brethren can have strong feelings or convictions. The text says that Paul “kept insisting”. The same is true with Barnabas, “Barnabas wanted to take John” (imperfect tense) (15:37). “He willed, wished and stuck to it”(Robertson p. 240). Hence, neither man is backing down and both are pressing their point of view. In addition, both of them probably had good points to make, for example:

Paul’s Point of View:

“I cannot afford to have a quitter on my hands, this is really an important work and I need someone that I can depend on.”

Barnabas’ Point of View (might have been):

“We need to give him a second chance. It would be damaging to him, spiritually, if we did not let him come.”

Very Strong Feelings

The text says, “there occurred such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another” (15:39). The Greek term rendered “sharp disagreement” was used by medical writers in the ancient world when a disease took a turn for the worse, flared up, and then broke out in its severest form. Added to this information is the fact that Barnabas and Mark were related (Colossians 4:10), which made Barnabas’ loyalty to Mark all that much stronger, and Paul’s refusal to take him, all the more painful. At this point the situation looks discouraging and yet, consider what happens afterward.

Afterwards

The Holy Spirit does not vindicate Paul over Barnabas. There is no apology and neither is any condemnation issued.
Some claim that the church in Antioch sided with Paul because 15:40 reads, “Being committed by the brethren to the grace of the Lord”. Yet there is no indication in the rest of the book, or the epistles, that Christians took definite sides on this issue.
Even after such a sharp disagreement, Paul and Barnabas continued to remain not just friends, but extremely close friends. In the years that followed, Paul will speak of Barnabas with words of praise (1 Corinthians 9:6), and specifically mentions that Barnabas, like himself, was worthy of economic support.
There is equal evidence that neither Paul nor Mark let this incident affect their relationship. Paul will speak of Mark as being “useful to me for service” (2 Timothy 4:11).

Lessons for Us

Disagreements will surface:

Disagreements can be very discouraging, but Christians can weather them. In Barnabas and Paul we see two knowledgeable and seasoned teachers who had strong differing views in a matter of opinion. We should not be shocked or discouraged when this happens in our lives.

Disagreements often involve someone else:

In my limited experience, I have found that many disagreements involve a situation which neither party started. Paul did not abandon the work, and neither had Barnabas, yet they are confronted with what to do with Mark, who had abandoned it (15:38). Hopefully we can remember this. Paul had not accused Barnabas of being unfaithful or of being less than faithful for wanting to take Mark. It looks like Paul kept the focus on Mark’s actions and not on the actions or loyalty of Barnabas.

Disagreements can come from unexpected places:

As we read the book of Acts, this sharp disagreement over Mark seems to blindside the reader. It is interesting that persecution could not separate Barnabas and Paul (Acts 13-14), yet this matter made it necessary for them to go in separate companies.

Disagreements often happen after great success:

The first trip had been successful in reaching many people with the gospel (Acts 14:27 “They began to report all things that God had done with them and how He had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles”, and the council at Jerusalem (Acts 15) had ended with the truth being presented and error being defeated; then this disagreement comes up.

No one had to give in:

One of the questions that preachers are asked is, “Do I always have to give in when someone has a problem with what I am doing in a matter of judgment?” In the above example, we have a matter of judgment, strong feelings, and definitive convictions, and neither man had to compromise.

There was an acceptable third choice:

One great point I see in this example is that there is often a third choice that can satisfy the needs of both parties. Paul was not forced to yield to the view of Barnabas nor was Barnabas forced to yield to Paul, rather, they found a third choice. They would form two teams, one with Barnabas and Mark and another with Paul and Silas. Hopefully we can learn to look for such a third choice when we have a difference of opinion with another brother or sister.

They were still of one accord:

Even though they strongly disagreed over the decision of what to do with Mark on this trip, they were still in complete agreement on what they should be doing, that is, spreading the gospel and strengthening churches. Paul and Silas strengthened the churches established on the first journey (Acts 15:41) in Syria and Cilicia. Barnabas went with Mark to the island of Cyprus, not for the purpose of pouting, rather, probably, because the first missionary journey had started with evangelism on Cyprus. If you look at a map, it looks like Paul and Barnabas decided to strengthen the churches established on the first journey by revisiting this trip, but both starting from opposite directions. Barnabas and Mark would tackle the first leg of the trip and Paul and Silas would tackle the inland portion.

Even in the midst of a disagreement, they both remembered the big picture, that is, souls needed to be saved and the work of preaching could not be put on hold. The prime objective is to spread the gospel (Mark 16:15; 1 Corinthians 3:6 “I planted”) and build up Christians (Ephesians 4:11-13). So no matter what disagreements Christians have had in the past or will have in the future, we cannot get sidetracked. Souls still need to be saved. We cannot allow our differences to get in the way of the gospel being spread, “Finally, brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord will spread rapidly and be glorified” (2 Thessalonians 3:1).
God needs to be glorified, honored, and obeyed - even when we disagree, “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Colossians 3:17). What this means is that even after a disagreement, we need to part in such a way that other brethren and the world can say, “Yes, I still see the mind of Christ in them”.

Good resulted and more was accomplished:

Even though they parted ways, they parted as two teams of preachers instead of one. The gospel continued to be spread, churches were strengthened at a quicker pace, and Mark developed into a good worker.

Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church of Christ/503-644-9017