The Daily Fountain Daily Devotional of the Church Of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) 1 July 2020 – TOPIC: LEADERS ARE GOERS
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READ: ACTS 13:1-12 (NKJV)1. Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.2. As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”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. Now when they had gone through the island to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew whose name [was] Bar-Jesus,7. who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man called for Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God.8. But Elymas the sorcerer (for so his name is translated) withstood them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.9. Then Saul, who also [is called] Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him10. and said, “O full of all deceit and all fraud, [you] son of the devil, [you] enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?11. “And now, indeed, the hand of the Lord [is] upon you, and you shall be blind, not seeing the sun for a time.” And immediately a dark mist fell on him, and he went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand.12. Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had been done, being astonished at the teaching of the Lord.THE MESSAGE:It is amazing how the Holy Spirit works! In today’s passage, He (the Holy Spirit) came to the Church in Antioch to commission some disciples for a certain mission – that of preaching Christ to a lost world; He wanted them to go to places where Christ had not been known. The persons He chose for this mission is an instruction for us and this experience is full of lessons for the believer in Christ: He chose Barnabas and Saul. In verse 1, we were informed that these two were among the “certain prophets and teachers”, apparently, they were among the leaders in the Church. Why would God choose leaders for a foreign mission? Why not let them continue to teach in Antioch? Why remove the “cream”, the “stars” of the Church?In our experience today this is hardly possible. We are more likely to send younger, less experienced people, while the “big men” sit to “eat the fruit of a blossoming ministry.” But that is apparently not God’s way. In God’s mission agenda, leaders are the goers. Untested, unproved, inexperienced men should not be sent; people who have not proved their callings should not be sent to the mission field. Maybe this is one of the reasons we sometimes have high casualties in the mission field. Experienced men, those who know and can adequately teach the Word, should be the goers. They go to conquer hard territories and like Paul will do, leave “a Timothy” “a Titus”, and go further. Leaders in Church should be leaders of missions.PRAYER: Father, help me use all my experiences in You and Your ways to reach out to the lost.*WELCOME TO JULY AND HAPPY NEW MONTH!*