Be
“set free” in your journey
3 Then, having fasted and prayed,
and laid hands on them, they sent them away. 4 So, being sent out by
the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to
Cyprus. 5 And when they arrived in Salamis, they preached the word
of God in the synagogues of the Jews. They also had John as their assistant. 6
And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain
sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus:
Acts
13:3-6
Cyprus is an island in the
eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea, some 60 miles off of the coast of Syria
and Turkey. Being a distant yet reachable island was a target for Barnabas and
Paul for another reason other than its close proximity: Barnabas was from there
(see Acts 4:36). The trio, along with John Mark, went from the port of Seleucia
near Antioch to Salamis, on the northeast side of the island. While not much
information was given in Acts about the first stop of the first missionary
journey and to what extent they traversed the island. Acts 13:6 says they went
through the “whole island” (NIV, CSB, “town to town”, NLT) ending their journey
on the southwest side, the exact opposite of where they landed. As a result of
the stoning of Stephen, Jewish believers were dispersed to the island from
Jerusalem but only shared the gospel to their fellow Jews.
Acts 13:3 describes the departure of
Barnabas, Paul and John Mark as being released or “set them free for this
work” (Phillips translation) to spread the gospel. The same word was
used when Paul was released from the Philippian jail in Acts 16:35. The Holy
Spirit set them apart; the church commissioned them by laying on of hands; but
in their going, they were released and “set free”.
It was as though they were bound
up, much like Jeremiah said in Jeremiah 20:9 “But His word was in my
heart like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back,
and I could not.” Or again the early apostles said in Acts 4:20, “We
cannot stop speaking that which we have seen and heard.” Paul would
later write to the Corinthians, “For if I preach the gospel, I have
nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not
preach the gospel!” (See 1 Corinthians 9:16).
Your calling may not be to go
to the ends of the earth, but you do have a reason for living and being saved.
All believers have at least one spiritual gift that when they walk in it, they
are liberated. We may not be feet to go or voices to proclaim to audiences, but
we all can be used by God for a purpose. When you find that purpose and fulfill
it, it is like being freed.
For Barnabas, he went back
home to Cypress where he was raised, and where he would later die. Like Christ,
he went to his own people, but they did not receive him. Four hundred years
after his death, his bones were found, buried under a tree by his beloved
cousin, John Mark, with a gospel of Matthew on his chest. Your missionary
journey does not have to be to some foreign land; it may be like Barnabas, back
to your home. Search the Holy Spirit for Him to set you apart, then walk in
freedom as you serve the Lord.
What is your journey?
What is your purpose that God “sets you free” to do, your very essence that God
created you to be? Read Ephesians 2:10 – “For we are His workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we
should walk in them.” Find that your passion that was given to you by
God. Seek out your desires which were placed in your heart “beforehand” and you
will experience true freedom when you walk in your purpose.
