Welcome

Welcome to Barnabas Notes. The title of this site comes from the Biblical character of that name who was a companion of the apostle Paul on his first missionary journey and whose name was actually Joseph. He was called "Barnabas," which means "son of encouragement," because of his ability to bless the lives of others. We hope that this blog will be such a blessing in your life!

A peaceful spring on the Macedonian side of Lake Ochrid in the Balkan Mountains

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Open the Gates

There is reason to be encouraged. God really is in control. The earth is the Lord’s and all it contains (Psalm 24:1). I look at my life and it does not seem as though God has had the kind of influence on me that He should have; maybe I should say the kind of influence I should have let Him have. It is discouraging to look at myself in the spiritual mirror of self-examination (2 Corinthians 13:5). Then, I read Psalm 24 and I am encouraged.

David asks a question of us: Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? And who may stand in His holy place? (Psalm 24:3). The answer is in the next verse: He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood and has not sworn deceitfully (Psalm 24:4). So, as long as I have not done anything wrong I am acceptable to God. But, wait a minute! I have done something wrong – many somethings!! In the words of Isaiah the prophet, “Woe is me, for I am ruined!” (Isaiah 6:5).

I am glad you brought Isaiah up (oh, I brought him up, didn’t I?). God had a job that Isaiah was going to volunteer to do, but first he had to be made ready. Isaiah recognized that he was a sinner and unworthy to be in the presence of Jehovah, but that problem was rectified by the angel touching a burning coal to his lips and taking away his iniquity (Isaiah 6:6, 7). So, even though he was guilty of dirty hands and an impure heart (to use the figure of Psalm 24) he was able to be purified and made ready for the task at hand.

A similar example is Joshua, the high priest during the time the remnant of Judah was rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem. In Zechariah 3:1 Joshua (who seems to represent all the people of God) is standing before the angel of the Lord and Satan is standing by to accuse him. In other words, he is guilty. In verse 3 the prophet says Joshua was dressed in filthy garments. However, before Satan can win the victory, the angel of the Lord spoke: “Remove those filthy garments from him” (Zechariah 3:4). So, like Isaiah, Joshua was cleansed of his guilt and our enemy had nothing to say.

David continued his encouragement: Lift up your heads, O gates, and be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in! Who is the King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle (Psalm 24:7, 8). When we see our lives in a mess we need help. That help is God. We have to let Him have control of our lives. That means that we have to live according to His will, which He has graciously given us in His Word (the Bible). I am thankful that God is in control. When I sinned, I gave up any hope of salvation. I was ruined. Thanks be to God that He has provided a way for me to be cleansed. He provided that Way because He loves me. He loves you, too...and so do I.

Donnie Bates

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Go, Stand on a Mountain

Elijah was having a bad day; a bad several days, as a matter of fact. After perhaps his greatest victory, in which he won a major contest over the prophets of Baal and the Asherah (1 Kings 18:20-40) and prayed that a three and one half year drought would end that stands still today as an example of the prayer of faith (1 Kings 18:41-45; James 5:17, 18), he was running for his life. The queen had promised to kill him within twenty-four hours. You see, those were her prophets of Baal and the Asherah and she was none too happy that Elijah had killed them! So, he ran.

First, he ran over one hundred miles to Beersheba, which is in the southern part of Judah. He left his servant there and went another day’s journey into the wilderness. He ran a long way to get away from Queen Jezebel. After eating food provided by an angel, Elijah wound up at Mount Horeb (Sinai), which was another 150 miles from Beersheba. And there he hid in a cave.
It was in that cave that God came to him and asked him what he was doing there. It was a fair question. Elijah’s ministry was over two hundred miles away and when you travel by foot, that is a long way to commute. And not only that, but Elijah did not really have a good reason to fear. God had just shown him that He could handle a challenge. If He could defeat the god Baal and his prophets, He should be able to handle a threat from Jezebel. Elijah gives us a great example of what happens when we start walking by sight and not by faith (2 Corinthians 5:7).
God’s counsel to Elijah is something we should take to heart. Elijah poured his heart out to God and explained that he was the only one left in all Israel who was faithful to God (he thought). He did not see any reason to continue. He had already prayed to be allowed to die. God told him, “Go, stand on the mountain!” Actually, His words were: “Go forth and stand on the mountain before the Lord” (1 Kings 19:11). You see, it was not the mountain; it was the “before the Lord” part that was important.

Scripture says the Lord was passing by when Elijah stood on the mountain. That would be impressive to anyone, even to someone who had seen what Elijah had already seen. Now, here is where we need to pay close attention. The Lord was passing by Elijah on that mountain. There was a great and strong wind; so great and strong that the rocks on the mountain were being broken, but God was not in the wind. Then, there was an earthquake, but God was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake, there was a fire, but God was not in the fire, either. After the fire there was a “still, small voice” (KJV). It was in this still, small voice where God could be found.

Very often when things go wrong in our lives, we want a great, big sign from God that He still loves us. When we feel threatened, we may be tempted to believe that God has abandoned us. I have heard enough people tell me they felt He had left them to know that this is a real temptation. And so, we look for God in a mighty wind, or an earthquake, or a fire, but He is not there. His voice speaks to us from the gentle blowing of His Word that He has already given us. Before the calamity that you and I deal with ever happened, He had already given us what we needed to be able to endure it.

That still small Voice speaks to you and me today and says, “Trust in the Lord and do good” no matter what happens (Psalm 37:1-3). It says that no matter how bad things get we can still say, “I will exult in the Lord, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation” (Habakkuk 3:16-19). It says that nothing can ever be so bad that the temptation to leave my Lord will be greater than I can bear, but that God Himself will provide a way of escape for me (1 Corinthians 10:13). Do not be discouraged! Look for God in the “gentle blowing” and hear His still, small Voice in His Word. It is speaking to you now! God loves you and so do I.

Donnie Bates

Monday, June 11, 2007

On the Front

Several years ago, I wrote the following story. It is a fictional account of the Good Fight that all Christians are fighting. It was originally written to call attention to the fact that all of us are in a fight. It is the story of one old soldier, doing his very best to remain faithful to his King, fight the Good Fight and help as many of his fellow soldiers as possible.

The old soldier groaned as he lowered himself to the ground and leaned back against the rock. It had been a hard campaign. There had been victories, as well as defeats for his company. Some of his men were becoming stronger and better soldiers with each battle. Others were beginning to lose heart. Sadly, the old soldier realized that unless he was able to help these regain their spirits, they would likely be the first ones lost in the next battle.

Suddenly, there was a shout and the King rode up on His beautiful white horse. All the men stood and cheered their King. Even the old soldier joined in the exultation. As the cheering died down, the King spoke words of encouragement that were soon drowned out by renewed cheering.

Afterward, the King walked over to the old soldier and bade him make himself comfortable. Together King and King’s man sat more like brothers than Liege and minion.

“How goes the struggle?” asked the King, although He knew full well the strategic situation.

“The men are tired, my Prince,” replied the old soldier. “Some of them want to rest. Others, I think would as soon flee. Still others are eager to advance the cause of their Lord. Your presence here today has given them all new life. Even I feel a surge of loyalty and fealty where I had thought none was lacking.”

The King looked at His servant with eyes at once loving and sad. “Would that I could convince them that I am always with them,” He said sadly. “I never leave them. Not one falls without my tears. If they would see, the power they feel today will be at their side in tomorrow’s battle and every battle until the end.”

As he listened to his King’s words, a single tear made its way down the dirty face of the old warrior. “Forgive me, Master,” he said softly, his voice quivering with emotion.

His own eyes growing moist, the King smiled and laid a hand on the shoulder of His faithful servant and replied, “Done! And never forget that I am with you and will never forsake you, and victory is ours!”

It is my strongest prayer that this story will help you find the strength and courage to continue fighting the Good Fight. All the problems that assail us are flaming arrows of our enemy and they threaten to destroy us, but we have One on our side Who cannot be overcome. He is fighting alongside you and for you and you cannot be overcome with Him on your side. Do not give up; keep the faith; fight the Good Fight and enter into the joy of your Master. He loves you and so do I.

Donnie Bates

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Who is There to Harm You?

In the last article we discussed the encouragement we can find in passages like Jeremiah 20:9-11. How encouraging it is to know that enthusiasm for the truth can help us overcome the negative side of criticism; the encouragement that comes from knowing that our God is a Dread Champion for us against our enemies. I would like to continue on that subject this week.

Would it not be great if every conflict that might arise between people would be resolved by both parties sitting down to a logical exchange of ideas with both parties being willing to admit defeat when and if the facts proved their position to be wrong? Would it not have been nice for those men in the government of King Darius who were jealous of the prophet Daniel to have challenged Daniel to some kind of discussion to see if, in fact, he was deserving of so much positive attention from the king? Yes, it would have been nice, but they did not do that, did they? They tried to find some dirt on Daniel and when they could not find any, they initiated a plot to use his strength (faith) against him. God took care of Daniel, but sometimes the care that God gives His faithful comes after death. Sometimes good people suffer and even die because bad people are treacherous.

Check out 1 Peter 3:13-17. The first question is key: Who is there to harm you if you prove zealous for what is good? What a question! There really is no one who can harm the faithful Christian (see Romans 8:31-37). He does not say you will not or cannot suffer. If you are faithful, you will suffer, believe me. If you suffer for righteousness’ sake (for doing the right thing), you are blessed. You do not have to be afraid of anyone’s intimidation; you do not have to be troubled by anything, concerning your position before God. Of course, it is troubling if the source of your suffering for the sake of righteousness is from a fellow Christian, but in this situation, you stand justified before God.

We usually apply 1 Peter 3:15 to the need to study the Bible well enough so that if our friends or acquaintances ask us a Bible question we can answer with a Bible answer. Well, that is a good thing to be ready for, but Peter is really telling us here that in situations where there is conflict (whether it be conflict in the church, or with those outside the body of Christ) we had better be prepared. If we are going to suffer for the sake of righteousness, we must make sure that our cause is righteous; make sure that we are proving zealous for what is good. That is what it means to always to be ready to make a defense. This means constant self-examination on our part to see if we really have that ole’ log out of our eye (Matthew 7:1-5). We must keep a good conscience. That does not just happen on its own. It takes much effort, much prayer and much penitent action on our part. If we will work hard at making sure we line up correctly with the will of God as revealed in Scripture, we do not have to worry and those who slander us (i.e. call us “troublemakers,” “wolves in sheep’s clothing,” etc.) will be put to shame.

There is no question that it is much better to suffer for doing right than to suffer for doing wrong. Someone might disagree and say that suffering is suffering. Well, the person who says that is ignorant of the blessings associated with this passage. If you suffer for doing right, even if your suffering is fatal, you are blessed (see Revelation 2:10). If you suffer for doing what is wrong (and that can be fatal, too) that suffering leads to eternal suffering.

One more thing before I let you go and have a wonderful week. What happens when we suffer for doing right, are slandered and our good behavior is reviled, and those who slander us and do the reviling are not put to shame? You know it happens that way sometimes. People in the right, faithful Christians who stand up for what is right, are “shot down,” sometimes by brethren in Christ, and no one ever knows the truth. The “Christians” who are on the wrong side of the question go on and “build their church” and seem to enjoy all the blessings of God and suffer none of the negative consequences of having stood against the truth and having opposed a faithful brother or sister. How is it that they are not put to shame? Let me assure you: the game (if I can call it that) is not over yet. There is still coming a time when the “shame” of such actions will be meted out. However, we must be careful here. I do not at all want to say all of this so that anyone can read it and start planning for the vengeance dance when the Lord brings down an enemy, either in this life or on Judgment Day. The Holy Spirit did not have Peter write this to have anyone gleefully plan the “shaming” of their enemies. He said it, and I have written this, merely to give the faithful who suffer for being faithful the encouragement of knowing that God sees your suffering and will take care of you.

Let me encourage you to go out this week and prove zealous for what is good! After all, who is there to harm you if you do? No one! That is because God is on your side. He loves you and so do I.

Donnie Bates