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SUBJECT: Paul
and Barnabas
QUESTION: What
was the problem between Paul and Barnabas. Did they ever
reconcile?
ANSWER
The following was taken from a source on the Internet:
BIBLE REFERENCE EVENTS IN ACTS
·
4:36-37 First mention of
Barnabas.
·
9:27 Barnabas brings Saul to
the apostles.
·
11:22-29 Sent to Antioch and
Tarsus to look for Saul.
·
12:25 Returns to Jerusalem with
Saul and John Mark
·
13:1-3 Teacher and missionary
companion of Paul.
·
13:7 Proconsul sends for
Barnabas and Saul.
·
13:42-50 Paul and Barnabas
preach at
Pisidian Antioch.
·
14:1-3 Paul and Barnabas preach
at Iconium.
·
14:14-20 Paul and Barnabas
perform miracles in Lystra.
·
14:23 Paul and Barnabas appoint
church elders.
·
15:2-3 Paul and Barnabas debate
salvific nature of circumcision.
·
15:12 Paul and Barnabas report
miracles to council at Jerusalem.
·
15:22-35 Paul and Barnabas
choose men to join them in Antioch.
·
15:36-41 Paul and Barnabas
dispute over John Mark.
PAUL AND BARNABAS
The dispute over John Mark, in
Acts 15:36-41, has caused debate concerning the relationship
Paul and Barnabas might have had after this event. There is
not any Scriptural proof that Paul and Barnabas reconciled
to the point of continuing in active ministry together,
however, Scripture strongly suggests that there was favor
between Paul and Barnabas after the dispute. The dispute
involved the fact that John Mark returned home during the
first missionary journey and therefore Paul believed Mark
was unreliable. Barnabas did not think the issue was so
extreme as Paul thought, and Barnabas was willing to give
Mark another opportunity. It is also important to note that
John Mark is Barnabas' cousin (Colossians 4:10), and that
relation may have allowed Barnabas the understanding that
Paul did not seem to have. Was Paul being too hard on Mark?
Was this dispute really worth breaking fellowship in
ministry? In order to answer this question we must be
cognizant of the fact that Paul was attempting to spread the
gospel message with two major obstacles. The first obstacle
was that Paul was causing upheaval in the moral and social
orders of the lands, and secondly, Paul was having to deal
with disputes among the Christian converts. With these
issues looming over the mission of the gospel, it was no
wonder Paul did not look kindly upon Mark's sudden
departure. What Paul was looking for was reliability in his
mission team. Paul felt that if the Holy Spirit set apart
these men to accomplish a heavenly goal, then there should
not have been a problem amongst its members. To Paul, the
bond of Christian faith transcends the barriers of class.
Christian faith involved spreading the gospel message of
Jesus Christ as savior to sinners. All of this, however, is
scholarly speculation because neither Paul, nor any other
New Testament authors write about the underlying issues
surrounding Mark's departure, or Paul's reaction to that
departure.
The text does show that
whatever the tension might have been between Paul, Barnabas,
and Mark, the disagreement was not long lasting. In his
letter to the Corinthians Paul writes, "Don't we have the
right to take a believing wife along with us, as do the
other apostles and the Lord's brothers and Cephas? Or is it
only I and Barnabas who must work for a living" (1
Corinthians 9:6). In his letter to the Galatians, Paul
refers to Barnabas in 2:1-13. In this text Paul recounts his
acceptance by the apostles, and speaks of Barnabas as an
equal. However, he also writes that along with Peter "even
Barnabas was led astray" (v. 13) concerning circumcision. In
his final greetings to the Colossians and Philemon, Paul
sends greetings on behalf of Mark which leads one to believe
that Mark continued active ministry with Paul at some point
in time. If Paul ministered actively with Mark then the
assumption would be that Paul reconciliated with Barnabas.
It does not seem likely that Paul would maintain such a
relationship with Mark if there had not been some
understanding with Barnabas.
Early in
Paul's ministry, Barnabas was a vital link to the Jerusalem
church. According to Luke, Barnabas brought Paul together
with the church and probably acted as mediator. In much the
same way Paul had Ananias' friendship in Damascus, Barnabas
filled this important role in Jerusalem. Barnabas was an
important cohort to Paul at a time when Paul's former Jewish
friends treated him as a radical, and the apostles still
treated Paul like the persecutor he was. It was Barnabas who
brought Paul to the apostles (Acts 9:27), and it was
Barnabas who served as diplomat to the leaders at Jerusalem.
Barnabas also went to Tarsus to find Paul and sought his
assistance regarding the church at Antioch because the
population was flourishing. Barnabas was also a trusting
partner of Paul's when it came to monetary funds for the
famine in Judaea. Was Barnabas an apostle? Paul never
explicitly calls Barnabas an apostle; however, he tends to
use the title "apostle" in a wider sense than Luke. It
should also be noted that Paul calls himself an apostle
which is something Luke does not do. It is also evident from
Scripture that Barnabas was a gifted orator. It was common
for Paul and Barnabas to visit the synagogues of the cities
in which they were evangelizing. Both Paul and Barnabas
debated and argued with various religious groups concerning
the gospel. Luke also attributes leadership in his writings.
Luke refers to "Barnabas and Saul" throughout Acts until
Paul's name change, then referring to them as "Paul and
Barnabas". This name order was probably Luke's way of
illustrating leadership (see
above table for name order).
If this is true then it is clear that Paul, upon becoming a
Christian, lead the missionary journeys.
Bibliography
·
Bruce, F.F. Paul: Apostle
of the Heart Set Free. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans ,1977
·
Carson, D.A., Moo, Douglas J.,
Morris, Leon An Introduction to the New Testament.
Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992
·
Filson, Floyd V. Pioneers
of the Primitive Church. New York: Abingdon, 1940
·
Haenchen, Ernst The Acts
of the Apostles. Philadelphia: Westminster, 1971
·
Harrison, Everett F.
Interpreting Acts. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1986
·
Hiebert, D. Edmond
Personalities Around Paul. Chicago: Moody Press, 1973
·
Maddox, Robert Commentary
on Acts. Minneapolis: Fortress, 1989
·
Morris, Leon New
Testament Theology. Grand Rapid: Zondervan, 1986
·
Ridderbos, Herman Paul:
An Outline of His Theology. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,
1975
·
Shepard, J.W. The Life
and Letters of Saint Paul. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,
1950
·
Williams, David John Acts
San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1985 |