No Smooth Sailing
They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. Acts 13:50
Have you ever felt like God led you to start a ministry or participate in one, but then faced one obstacle after another?
In Acts 13, Luke records that while the Christians at Antioch “were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them’” (v. 2). Your call to ministry may not have been that dramatic, but you probably sensed God’s leading in your spirit. Other Christians and mentors you respected may have affirmed that call too. Or maybe God’s peace confirmed you were heading in the right direction—that’s often what happens to me.
So Paul, Barnabas, and John Mark left on their first missionary trip. All smooth sailing, right? No. They soon received pushback from two sorcerers and some false prophets (vv. 6–11). In Paphos, John Mark returned to Jerusalem (v. 13). In another city, the Jewish leaders were jealous of the crowds who gathered to hear Paul speak, so they “heaped abuse on him” (v. 45), then later incited community leaders to expel Paul and Barnabas from their region (v. 50).
All the opposition, all the setbacks. Had Paul and Barnabas misunderstood God’s leading? Were they following their own plans instead of God’s? The circumstances may have tempted them to doubt; the obstacles most likely prompted John Mark to return to Jerusalem.
But Paul and Barnabas did not turn back. Paul clung to the revelation a man named Ananias had received from God years previous, a few days after Paul had seen the vision of Jesus on the road to Damascus. God told Ananias that Paul was “his chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and the people of Israel” (Acts 9:13, cp. Acts 13:47). Instead of letting the opposition discourage them, Paul and Silas focused on the good results: “The word of the Lord spread through the whole region” (v. 49).
Obstacles are opportunities to get alone with God to affirm that we are following his plans, not our own. Sometimes Satan has engineered adversity, and sometimes God has allowed it to refine us or reorient us. That’s one reason prayer is an essential part of ministry—to reaffirm and maybe realign us with God’s will.
What setbacks or hardships are you facing at this point in your faith journey? Before you turn back as John Mark did, turn to God’s Word and prayer. I have often prayed, “Lord, if I’m headed in the wrong direction, make it impossible for me to continue. Slam doors and erect insurmountable barriers. I want to be aligned with your best for me.” Slow your pace. Give God time to confirm or to redirect. But remain confident that he will guide you just as he led Paul and Barnabas on their journey.
Dig Deeper
Can you think of other people in the Bible who faced many obstacles after God had chosen them for a task? Take time this week to review the stories of Joseph (Genesis 37, 39–40) and David (1 Samuel 19, 24–26). How do their stories encourage you?
We don’t know when David wrote Psalm 40, but he was certainly in a bad place. According to the psalm, what helped him during this time?
What did Paul write to the church in Corinth in 2 Corinthians 4:8–18? How well does your perspective on obstacles line up with his?
Denise K. Loock
This devotion is part of our series on the book of Acts.