SPEAKER_00 0:04

If you will look at Acts chapter 2. I think I gave him something else before I chapter 2. Verses 41 and 42. And then Acts chapter 4. Acts chapter 2. Verses 41 and 42. And it reads, then they they gladly received the word. His word were baptized. And the same day there were added unto them about 3,000 souls. Verse 42 says, and they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in the breaking of bread and in prayers. And then over in chapter 4, verse 36, it says, In Joseph, who by the apostles were surnamed Barnabas, which is being interpreted the son of consolation, a Levite, and of the country of Cyprus, having land, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet. And I just want to talk today about this thought. Barnabas, a Christian example. Barnabas, a Christian example. Amen. You may be seated. We are blessed by the word of God. And the praise team earlier talked about we invite the Holy Spirit to come on in and fill the house. The Bible says all scripture has been given by the inspiration of God, and it is profitable. It's the word of God that makes a difference in our lives. God said to Joshua after Moses is dead, he said, This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth. Joshua 1 and 8. But thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou may observe to do according to all that's written therein, for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and thou shalt have good success. And David picks it up in Psalms 1, said, Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law that he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the river of the water that bringeth forth his fruit in his season, his leaves shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. Can you imagine have two scriptures like that in the Word of God? One that says that you can have prosperity and good success just by taking heed to the word of God. And David said, and it says, and you be like a tree stable, planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth your suit, your fruit in your season. Your leaves shall not wither, and whatsoever you do shall prosper. Oh Lord and mercy, such glorious words. And that Bible we have today. And there are many personalities in the Bible. But one personality that's somewhat overlooked, his name is Barnabas. But Barnabas is a is a picture, a picture of what a Christian ought to be. Barnabas, Barnabas is like your theme. We gather, we grow, we give. Barnabas is that picture of that, of that word that the Holy Spirit has left on for us that we might be able to grow and be all that God would have us to be. The Bible says in Acts chapter 2, first the church was just getting underway. Many remember chapter 2 as being the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came. But Pentecost was a regular feast day for the Jews. And every year they gathered at Pentecost. Some 50 days after the Passover, they would gather together. The Passover is where Jesus died for our sins on the cross. Fifty days later was the feast of Pentecost. And Jerusalem was filled. And there their church was in the upper room. And the Bible said they were all together on one accord in one place. And the Holy Spirit came as a rushing, mighty wind, like a rushing mighty wind, and filled the house. And said those that were there began to speak in languages, language so that all the different people that were in the city actually heard the word in their own language. And the Bible said, they they said, look at these Galileans, look at them. They said they must be drunk or something. Peter said, No, no, we're not drunk. But this is what Joel talked about, the prophet. And Peter began to preach unto them about Jesus, how that Jesus died for the sins of the world, how Jesus was buried, and early Sunday morning rose with all power in his hand. And in the early church, they talked about the resurrection of Jesus. Talked about his death, his burial, and his resurrection. And Jesus said to Martha, and over in John chapter 11, when their brother Lazarus had died, Martha said, we know we'll see our brother again in the resurrection. Jesus said, I am the resurrection. I'm the resurrection. And he that liveth, he that that were dead, yet shall he live. But he that liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Because of the resurrection and because of our believing in Jesus, the word is, we shall never die. Paul talked about being absent from the body and present with the Lord. Paul talked about it was better. And I know it's it's it's it's it's it's beautiful here. Maybe you live here so so so long and regular that you overlook the beauty of coming here. But when you live in Buffalo, New York, where we get snow, that's little white stuff that comes down in the wintertime and just stack up and stack up and stack up, and it doesn't melt until the spring comes. And so you come here and it's so beautiful and so engaging. But we need to know that the Lord got something better for us. And that better for us is the other side by being with Jesus. Jesus said, In my father's house are many mansions. So to be with the Lord, to be with the Lord is far better, the Bible says. And that's the way Christians have lived. But the Bible makes it also clear that the Lord wants us to do something here right now, to live for Him right now. And Barnabas is that picture. Peter preached that day to non-believers, and the Bible said, they said, What should we do? Peter told them what they ought to do to believe and be baptized in the name of Jesus. To be built, and I just want to say a word about that because some people like to put a spin about in the name of Jesus. When you baptize in the Father, Son, Holy Spirit, you've been baptized in the name of Jesus. Don't let anybody fool you about that. And listen, listen, listen. Jesus said, Go ye therefore baptize them in the Father, Son, Holy Spirit. We are all connected with God and every and every part of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And the Bible said those that gladly received the word were baptized, and the same day was added unto them about 3,000 souls. The church grew in one day by 3,000 souls, and the church can grow today if we would just share with people the goodness of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. That he died, he was buried, and that he rode with all power, the church can still grow today. And the Bible said, then something happened. They continue steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and in fellowship and in prayer and in remembering the Lord and in prayer. Fellowship, the word, continue to grow in the word. We gather. We gather. We gather on Sunday and you gather other times during the week. You gather out other special events during the year. And in that gathering is where we continue in the word of God. We grow. And then in that we fellowship. You need to understand there's gonna be a big fellowship on tomorrow. The church is gonna be fellowshipping on tomorrow. We're here today. We're praising the Lord. We're growing in his word. And on tomorrow, we're gonna come and have fellowship, and it'll be another opportunity for us to grow, to grow stronger and stronger. Then we remember the Lord. They remembered, they remembered the Lord. They took part in the Lord's Supper, and you'll do it sometime this month. You'll remember the Lord. And then the Bible said, and then prayer, and then down in verse 47 said, in praise. So the church, the church is involved, and we gather, and it's important for you to be a part of every gathering that we have because that's what we do. Gathering, we come together. We come together to see each other, to be with each other, to hear the word of God, and in the midst of continuing in the apostles' doctrine and in and in fellowship and in the breaking of bread and in remembering the Lord, you begin to grow and become more and more and more and more. We gather, we gather, we gather, we gather, we come together, we gather. But the intent is that you will grow, that you will grow and begin to progress according to our theme, our theme. I've made it my theme also. We gather, we grow, and we give. I took it all the way from here, all the way back to Buffalo, New York. That'll be quick, somebody, and I've shared with the people of Greater Hope the theme. They sat here with us on that Sunday in April, and we all took it back to be a part because it's made out so beautiful that what you have, that's the progress of what's going on. And we have a picture of that in Barnabas. Barnabas is the one that that demonstrates us, that holds up to us the fact what can happen when you gather and you grow. Sometimes you give up on yourself, but don't give up on yourself. We're not, Pastor's not giving up on you. We don't give up on anybody. Listen, listen, I'm telling you, I had to call somebody yesterday early this morning and said, Listen, I'm not giving up on you, but I need you to do some things that need in order to enhance for you to continue to grow and be what God would have you to be. Because listen, the church will never become all that it could be and should be until all of us grow and all of us get more and more what we ought to be. Paul said, when I was a child, I acted like a child. But when I became a man, I put away childish things. Sometimes we're stuck on childhood, but but that time is past. It's time to live today. I was talking with this with Pastor Emeritus this morning. We were talking, and we were talking about AI and something, and he just said, you just gotta deal with it in a moral, more way of morality. You gotta deal with it that way. It is what it is. But you all of us need to realize that as you grow, as you grow, as you grow, you are more able to do the things that you ought to be. Look what it says about Barnabas. Barnabas is a Christian example. Barnabas having land, he sold him. The early church, when they started out, they they they many of them looked for the immediate return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. They looked for him to come, they stayed in Jerusalem. They came there from all the parts of the world. They came to Jerusalem, but then they wanted to stay there. And some of them they stayed there. And so need took place, and they had different things they needed. And the Bible talks about what they did. But then the Bible talks about there was a man there by the name of Barnabas. The Bible said, and Joshua in verse 36. And Joseph, who by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas, which is being interpreted the son of capsulation, a son of encouragement, a Levite, and of the country of Cyrus, and Cyrus having loathed land, sold it and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet. Barnabas is a Christian's example. And you you can't, you, you listen, listen, listen. This comes with the result of gathering. But we do, we get, don't miss any Sundays, don't miss any Sundays, don't miss any Sunday. Family come, try to bring your family to church on Sunday. I know they come from, you get visitors from all over the place. This this is a tourist island. They somebody's always wanting to come. Help me quick somebody. But when they come, then on Sunday morning, we gather. Help me quick. Get your clothes together. You ain't gotta have nothing special. I came here before, I had shirt and tie. I was knotted down, and I saw Pastor Mike. I took my tie off, threw it aside, and this time I came, help me quick somebody. They they see me on top. They said, Blackburn, you got on. Yeah, I got on that. And I'm in church and I'm praising God. You don't have to have no shooting tie to praise the Lord. You can praise the Lord. Because God is in the blessing business. And they named him, his mother named him Joseph, but they call him Barnabas, a son of encouragement. And we need encouragers in the church. And that, and that's you. You can be an encourager in your family. What did he do? Having land, he sold it. There was a need, and having land, he sold it. The Bible said, having land, he sold it. And you you can't you can't become a giver. We gather, we grow, we give. And you can't become a giver until you trust God. Oh you you gotta go from listen from from from from from from gathering and you begin to grow, and then one day you make up your mind, you're gonna become a giver. Oh, help me quick, somebody. In in Buffalo, New York, they know my story. They know my story. You that's all I got is my story. All you have is your story. The gospel according to Matthew, that's Matthew's story. The gospel according to Mark, that's Mark's story. The gospel according to Luke, that's Luke's story. The gospel according to John, it's John's story. And Jesus, John, I want you to write your story. Ah, listen, listen, listen. Matthew, Mark, and Luke, they wrote helping quick somebody. But I need somebody to talk about something else. I want you to tell your story. And you got a story. Your story is just here. What you were like before Christ saved you. How you became saved is the second part of it. And what you are today, how you have become, help me quick somebody. God is in the blessing business. And you ought to be on that track. I've been gathering, I've been growing, and now it's time for me to move over to being a giver. And you can't be a giver until you trust God. He trusted God. To tithe is to trust God. Giving God out of a dime out of every dollar you get, that's trusting God. And you can't tithe from the end. You can't wait to the end of the week to tithe. You can't wait to the end of the month to tithe. The Bible says on the first day of the week, need a layer side according as God has prospered you. You gotta trust God in order to be a tithe. And churches just talked about it. First lady talked about it. How many church? She said, she said, tithe and offering, tithe and offering. And that comes about from those who have growing and got to the place that now they're moving to be givers. Because that's how it needs to take place in the church. We operate, we operate by tithes and offering. God said, You rob me of tithes and offering. I made a decision in 1969, 21 years old. I was at a church meeting. I had been in the church as a child. My grandfather was a pastor, a preacher. I had been in around the church, but then in 1969, 21 years old, married with one child. And I'm telling you, listen, listen, I heard the pastor talk about, talk about tithing, and I changed my life that day, and I've been a tither ever since 1969, giving God a dime out of every dollar I got. And listen, I'm telling you, I need it, I needed it, I need it. And over the years, this I over there I needed it. I find I needed the tithe, but I trusted God, having land bondabus sold it. You gotta trust God. If you don't trust God, we might as well shut it down. We might as well shut it down. And no way, no way, Pastor Brother Benefit would be near the builders. It's tithing. This is tithers. How are you able to go forward and press on and do tithe? People who have grown to the point where they're willing to give God a dime out of every dollar they have. Having land, he sold them. The Bible says he sold it and brought the money. First of all, he trusted the Lord. The next thing it shows us that a Christian example is one that trusts the leadership that God has left in charge. He bought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet. That's true. Listen, listen, listen, listen, listen. Listen. I tithe, I've been tithing, and I long, and listen, I wasn't preaching then, I wasn't teaching Sunday school then, I wasn't doing anything then. I helped quick somebody. I started out, I grew, I started giving. I listen I tell people any when you give, don't you worry about what happens to the money when you give. Malachi 3, I don't I don't know if they can put it up on that boy for a minute. Malachi 3 and 10. He trusted God. I don't know if helping quick somebody. I'm not gonna be up here all night. I'm not all night at Greater Hope Baptist Church. I don't preach all night. So listen, I'm gonna move quickly to the end. You ain't gonna listen, you ain't gonna miss nothing. You're gonna have your dinner, everything gonna happen. But Malachi 3 and 10, if they can put it up there, if they can't, I'll do the same thing at home. I don't know if you can do it, but if you can, Malachi 3 and 10. Malachi in the Old Testament, third chapter, chapter 10. I'll be quick, somebody. And the Bible, the Bible said, the Bible said, God said, bring all the tithe in the storehouse. He said, He said, there it is, there it is. Bring ye all the tithe in the storehouse that there may be meat in my house. God wants meat in his house. And prove me, prove me now. God wants God wants you to prove him, put me to the test. Prove me, prove me. God said, I'm waiting for you to prove me. I haven't seen no casinos here. I got casinos here. Praise the Lord. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Help me quick, somebody. Help me real quick, somebody. Dominica done got a casino. And I'm so afraid. And they done put me up in the casino, but he didn't put me up. He asked me to stay at the casino because it's closer to Belleville. But I'm gonna quit somebody. Listen, listen. I listen, and they gambling in Buffalo left and right. They gambling on football games. They can gamble on their phone. But and they're going broke, get their check today, and three days later they broke. Three minutes later, they broke, trying to trying to get a bed through. God says, give me a test. Put it back up on the board one more time. I don't mind you. I'll take somebody. I'm a little slow, but I ain't I ain't gonna be here forever. I'm gonna take somebody and prove me, prove me now here what said the Lord. If I will not open you the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing, that there should not be room enough to receive it. God said, when you bring the tithe to me, then you hurry on on to your house. I'm gonna pour you out a blessing, you won't have room enough to receive it at your house. You bring it to this house, and then you hurry on on to your house, and God pours out a blessing, you won't have room enough to receive it, and I'm a living witness. Is it a him and him and my daddy living witness? And Mike's a living witness witness, what God can do when you do that. He trusted God. Then you gotta trust, you gotta trust the leadership. He brought it and laid the money at the apostles' feet. You see how this you see how this is laid out? You see where it's at? You saw where the basket was? That's what they did. They brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet. Oh Lord, have mercy. Oh Lord, have mercy. I was a great hope 42 years ago. And the Lord gave me this passage of scripture. And I told him, Listen, if you're not gonna trust God, we're not gonna go anywhere. If you're gonna not gonna trust me, leave me in Indianapolis. Don't bring me all the way to Buffalo and not gonna trust me. God knows how to take care of us, God knows how to whoop us when we need a whooping. God knows how to chastise us. God, Barnabas brought it and laid it at the apostles' feet. Oh Lord have mercy. He trusted God, He brought tithes and offerings, He trusted the leadership, laid it at the Apostles' feet. The Bible said, Most of all, he trusted Jesus Christ. He said, With Jesus, I can sell my house. I can sell my land. Because Jesus said, Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, I believe also in me. In my father's house are many mansions. But we're not sure I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself that where I am, that ye may be also. Oh Lord, have mercy. It works. It works. All you gotta do is make up in your mind. Make up in your mind. The change becoming your life. Feed my lamb. Feed my cheek. Feed my cheek. Come to war. You overcome the battle. What are you talking about? They put nails. I like it. I like it. I like the order of the thing. The order is pushed together. Then we grow. Then we get to me.