Sat.’s Devo - The Motley Crew Expands

Read: Acts 13-14
I got stuck in the first verse as I read the list of names. I decided to do some research on them. Barnabas means “one who encourages or son of peace”. It also means “son of a prophet”. He was from a Jewish-Cypriot priestly family and John Mark was his cousin. Luke described him as full of the holy Spirit and of faith in Acts 11:24. It was Barnabas who embraced Saul when he was first converted and introduced him to the apostles and welcomed him into the body of Christ.
The next on the list was Simeon or Niger. Simeon means “hearkening or hearing.” He was a disciple at Antioch with prophetic and teaching gifts. His surname was Niger which means “black” suggesting he was from Africa.
Lucius means “illuminated”. He was also a prophet and a teacher. He is from Cyrene which is in north Africa. Cyrene encouraged Jewish settlement so the Jews formed one of the four classes in Cyrene. Simon, who carried the cross for Jesus, was from Cyrene.
Manaen is the forth mentioned. His name means “comforter”. He was the foster brother of Herod the tetrarch. He was one of the Christian leaders in Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. According to Josephus, he was a friend of Herod the Great. I would love to hear his story!
The last one was Saul and we know his story. What a motley crew! This is what the church should look like.
As Saul and Barnabas set out on their missionary journey one of the first people they come to is a sorcerer. I’m sure they didn’t feel equipped to take on this false prophet…they hadn’t even been in Deliverance 101 yet. They had more than a class under their belt, they had the power of the Holy Spirit and he had faced many a false prophet. They left him blind, but the deputy he was trying to lead astray was left seeing. I would love to know the rest of the story.
Paul and Barnabas went to the Gentiles to tell them they were invited into a Jewish story because the Jews had rejected their invitation. This news excited the Gentiles but incited the Jews. Their own brothers became their greatest enemies. Their lives were often threatened and they had to have thick skins to stand against the opposition they faced, but God was faithful and many were saved and filled with the Holy Spirit. In Lystra they were mistaken to be reincarnations of the gods Jupiter and Mercury. They brought out their priests to sacrifice to them but instead stoned Paul and Barabas. They miraculously rose up and left to go to on to the next town.
Somewhere in this journey Saul (requested) became Paul (little). We have to lose our popularity to become effective in the kingdom. Paul gave it all up for something that could not be take away.
Lord, may we be Paul’s in the kingdom today. Thank you that one day we will hear the rest of these stories.