Barnabas, his real name was Joseph, but the other disciples nick-named him Barnabas in Acts 4:35. Barnabas was the guy that sold his property and brought all the proceeds and laid it at the feet of the Disciples. This led into the story of Ananias and Sapphira selling their property and withholding a portion of the proceeds.

The name Barnabas means “son of encouragement”. And the name fit him very well. We can see this through a few examples. Paul or Saul of Tarsus as he was known, after his Damascus Road experience went to Jerusalem to join the believers there and they would have nothing to do with him, as they were afraid of him. “But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus (Acts 9:27).” Barnabas was a very fitting name as he saw the best in others when nobody else did.

In Acts Chapter 11 the Church heard of a great number of “Hellenists”, or Greek speaking non-Jews, had believed and turned to the Lord they sent Barnabas to Antioch. “²³ When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted (encouraged) them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose, ²⁴ for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord (Acts 11:23-24).” He was a man filled with joy, faith, and the Holy spirit. He wasn’t just a good man, he was a great encourager.

If it wasn’t for Barnabas, we might not have half of the New Testament. Barnabas played a key role in mentoring two key figures in the Bible – John Mark and Saul of Tarsus who became the Apostle Paul. We have already seen how Paul was taken under the wing of Barnabas in Acts 11, but we can also see how he took John Mark under his wing.

John Mark abandoned Paul and Barnabas on their 1^st missionary journey. (Acts 13:13) Paul was ready to write him off for this and refused to take him on an ensuing trip. (Acts 15:38) Paul and Barnabas separated Paul took Silas and Barnabas took John Mark. Barnabas took him under his wing, and John Mark went on to write the gospel of Mark.

So, this one encourager changed the course of Christian history. Paul went on to write much of the N.T. and probably was the greatest evangelist of all time thanks to the encouragement of Barnabas.

So, Barnabas’ gift wasn’t preaching to thousands, or writing, it was encouragement. He saw potential where others saw problems. It doesn’t require any special training; it doesn’t require a degree. We can all be encouragers like Barnabas. Are you a Barnabas?