no unreasoning fanatic, unable to hold his tongue or
control his temper; no agitator, reckless as to circum-
stances, and anxious only to obtrude his views, deeming
still that he was doing his duty, though he only pro-
voked without convincing, and excited dislike to himself
and antipathy to his cause. He was indeed a man of one
idea the Messiahship and that idea filled him ; but it
was not with him as with many men of one idea ; it did
not so overmaster him that he knew not when, how, and
where to develope it. He might fail with the majority he
spoke to, but his labours could not be wholly without fruit.
2. His preaching took the form of disputation. He spoke
and disputed against the Grecians ; for it was no studied
oration which he had prepared and was able to deliver
with fluency and power, but, during its recitation, would
neither bear with interruption nor be annoyed with any
impertinent questions or exclamations. He did not come
forth simply with a "set speech," keen, argumentative,



28 SAUL AT JERUSALEM.

and weighty; but after he spoke he allowed the free
criticism of all his statements. He did not feel insulted
when his conclusions were denied, and his interpreta-
tions were tossed aside. He met his opponents openly
and fully, prepared to reply to their questions and to
respond to their challenge. He was not afraid of close
grappling, nor did he endeavour to elude the force of any
objections or inferences that might be brought against him.
The scene, though it began with preaching, became one
of discussion, and Saul did not shrink from it, either as
beneath his dignity or as unworthy of his commission.
There would be in his audience some that sneered and
some that scowled some that simply liked a display of
gladiatorial skill, others that were honestly seeking after
righteousness. Each as he arraigned the sermon would
get his answer as he merited the preacher never off
his guard or losing his temper at the folly or obstinacy
which wrested his words, and never reduced to hide the
weakness or inaptness of a reply by the sarcasm or
bitterness of a personal retort. One opponent might
question his interpretation of a portion of the law or
the prophets, and try to set aside its reference to the
Messiah ; or another would affirm some base thing about
our Lord's life, or some stupid and malignant thing
about his religion, while to the one and the other Saul
would speak with loving soul, reasoning out the validity
of his interpretation from the words or connection of the
paragraph, and teaching the truth as to the facts of the
Master's career and the nature and purposes of his atoning
death. And though another disputant, with a leer and a



FEARLESSNESS. 29

frown, should refer to his conversion, so strange and unex-
pected, the allusion could neither shame nor intimidate
one who " had seen that Just One, and heard the voice of
His mouth." Merely to silence and subdue them, and to
gain an intellectual mastery over them, was no part of his
aim; he loved them while he prostrated them, and his
heart bled for them while he showed them the sophistry
which entangled or the darkness which enveloped them.
3. His preaching was bold, for his convictions were
thorough, and he uttered them without hesitation or fear.
He was a stranger to faintheartedness. He believed,
therefore he spake. Had he felt any secret doubts or
misgivings ; had the scene of his conversion recurred as
some illusive phenomenon , had there been any suspicions
within him that possibly after all he might be in error
then his preaching might have been timid and faltering.
But Saul's mind could not admit the possibility of a
doubt; as soon should he question his own existence as
question that Jesus in glory had named him and spoken
to him. It was no hallucination, for it was at midday that
the voice had arrested him. The " light above the bright-
ness of the sun " had blinded him, and some time had
elapsed before he had recovered his vision nay, probably
at that moment he was labouring under defective eyesight.
So assured and fortified, he could neither be reasoned nor
terrified out of his belief. And the glorified Jesus being his
shield, he was not alarmed at. " what man shall do.' 7 The
want of the age was the proclamation of the Messiahship,
and Saul set himself bravely to the work as in Damascus
so in Jerusalem. He could not modify, and he would not



30 SAUL AT JERUSALEM.

recant. Pressed on every side by the Grecians, while
order and decorum were occasionally broken in upon by
the " strife of tongues," he was unmoved impervious alike
to execration and ridicule a mighty man of valour a
spiritual hero clad in "the whole armour of God."

4. And he was bold in the name of the Lord Jesus, that
is, he not only preached Christ, but he claimed His express
authority for so preaching Him. Christ had not only
seized him and yoked him to the work, but commissioned
him to do it. Whether, then, he looked to the authority
under which he acted, or the momentous nature of the
lessons proclaimed by him, or the pressing wants of men
around him, he could not but be bold. Timidity would
be treachery to his Master, cruelty to the world, and
unfaithfulness to his own convictions. And all this brave
outspokenness so early in his career, ere yet he had been
taught to " endure hardness," was not the arrogance of a
" novice," but the courage which one feels who has
resolved at all hazards to be true to his beliefs, who has
vowed fidelity both to God and to man, and who is sup-
ported by the grace which never fails in its sufficiency,
and the strength which perfects itself in weakness.

That Saul's appearance should impress some needs not
be doubted, but the multitude refused to believe. Nay, in
their vengeful excitement they went about to slay him tried
various and repeated plans, but failed. His short sojourn
had roused their passionate resentment, and they could not
bear that he of all men should so boldly defy and con-
found them. In the meantime he had enjoyed a remark-
able vision, which long" afterwards he described to the



THE MASTER'S ORDERS. 31

Jewish mob. In Jerusalem, in the temple, and when he
was engaged in devotion, he fell into an ecstacy ; the
operation of sense being suspended, his higher spiritual
nature was brought again into direct personal communica-
tion with Christ ; so that he " saw Him," and heard Him
utter these words " Make haste, and get thee quickly out
of Jerusalem, for they will not receive thy testimony con-
cerning Me." As Saul had been only two weeks there, he
wished to remain a little longer, and, probably with the
advice of Peter, thought of selecting Jerusalem as a field of
labour. It may have been one of the great feasts, and there
might be in Jerusalem " Jews and proselytes from every
nation under heaven." Another scene like Pentecost might
be anticipated, and Peter might be hoping much from the
ardour, erudition, and eloquence of his junior colleague ;
" James, the Lord's brother," being the only other apostle
resident at the time in the city. Man proposes, but
God disposes. Saul was at once ordered off the scene;
for so long as he was there, he was out of the sphere which
the Master intended for him. The outfield of heathenism
was his place, and he was not to spend precious time
among Hellenistic Jews in Jerusalem, since he would meet
them in every city in the Gentile world, as he went
about among the uncircumcised races. But as Saul did
nothing without a reason, he honestly tells the Lord why
he had come to labour in Jerusalem. He gives his own
view thus: "I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned
and beat in every synagogue them that believed on thee :
and when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I
also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and



32 SAUL AT JERUSALEM.

kept the raiment of them that slew him." The ground
taken by Saul is very intelligible. The population of
Jerusalem had known what he was, and he wished them
to know what he had become. They could not but inquire
into the nature and cause of the change which had come
over him, and they could not doubt the honesty of one
who by that change had so fully renounced all which the
world covets all the objects, indeed, of his own youthful
ambition. Nay, he had been so furious that he beat the
Christians savagely, or flayed them, as the word means ;
and at the martyrdom of Stephen he himself was standing
over the scene, approving of the deed, and guarding the
robes of them who acted the bloody part of executioners and
dispatched the protomartyr. Therefore he thought, that
on the spot where such points were notorious, and where
he had been a ringleader in a fanatical murder, he had a
special claim to be heard against himself and in favour of
that system which he had adopted from the best of all
reasons autoptic evidence, the appearance and glory of
the exalted Jesus. They could not imagine that he had
been duped, for they were aware of his mental acuteness
and vigour. Neither could they think that one of his aus-
tere honesty and straightforward disposition could deceive
others nor yet could they suppose that he had lightly or
recklessly abandoned that faith for which he had so gal-
lantly struggled. But his excuse is not even replied to by
the Master. The only response to his argument is
" Depart, for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles "
a distinct and peremptory intimation that admitted
neither of hesitation nor delay. Begone the order of



THE EIGHT MAN IN THE EIGHT PLACE. 33

high authority the majestic token of divine prerogative.
Thus in Jerusalem, and in the temple, the very centre and
citadel of Judaism, did he receive his express commis-
sion to be the apostle of the Gentiles. So commanded by
Jesus, and so advised, at the same time, of danger by the
brethren, Saul left Jerusalem, was " brought down " to
Coasarea, "came into the regions of Syria and Cilicia," and
arrived at Tarsus. Three years had elapsed since he had
"been commissioned to the Gentiles by divine authority,
and still he was reluctant to undertake the task for which
his education and temperament so well fitted him. Moses,
when summoned to go to Egypt and confront Pharaoh,
pleaded want of eloquence ; Gideon would not march till
the fleece had been wetted, nay, till the omen had been
reversed ; Jeremiah urged his youth and inexperience when
called to the prophetic office ; Jonah set sail for Tarshish,
instead of proceeding to Nineveh ; Ananias, when bidden
to seek out a stranger who had recently arrived at Damas-
cus, demurred and said, "Lord, I have heard by many
of this man how much evil he hath done to thy saints
at Jerusalem 5" and Saul, thinking himself possessed of
special qualifications for a sphere of labour which he pre-
ferred, was backward toward that very work for which he
had been born and called, and in which he so soon achieved
signal success, and won imperishable renown. "Who
art thou, man, that repliest against God?" " The right
man in the right place," has become a popular expression
for mutual adaptation. Saul did not verify the saying
either in Damascus or Jerusalem, but it might be truly
predicated of him through his whole subsequent career,

c



34 SAUL AT JERUSALEM.

when he spoke, travelled, toiled, and suffered, as one
" appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher of the
Gentiles in faith and verity."

Strange realms, wide waters o'er,

The conquering Cross he bore ;
In her own Isle the Love Queen he abash'd ;

Through Asian cities bright

He poured the sweet strange light;
Diana in her Ephesus he dashed.

Greece glowed beneath his golden tongue;
Full in Athenian ears their Unknown God he rung.

Each rich Corinthian shrine

Grew dim and undivine,
Philippi heard the captor- captive's song ;

! ne'er from Grecian soul

Such golden streams did roll ;
No Roman hand e'er smote, e'er built so strong.

Temples fell down where'er he trod,
And on from land to land stretched the one Church of God.

O bearer of all shame !

O Earth's most glorious name !
weakling, by whom mightiest deeds were done !

prisoner, whose firm stroke

Ten thousand fetters broke !
outcast, by whose word the world was won ;

bruised one, whose cheer ran o'ei
To make divinely glad all souls for evermore!



III. SAUL AT ANTIOCH IN SYRIA.



ACTS xi. 22-26.

THREATENED assassination and divine command had sent
Saul out of Jerusalem, and he went home to Tarsus. In
that city, under the shadow of Mount Taurus, he might
again recreate himself with Hellenic studies; and by
intercourse with the philosophers who paced the gym-
nasium by the green banks of the cold and rapid Cydnus,
he might learn what trains of thought were best adapted
to work on the hearts of those who were te aliens from the
commonwealth of Israel." The time was not lost, the
apostle could not be idle it was a season either of busy
preparation, or of active missionary duty. He had hitherto
come into conflict only with his own countrymen, whose
prejudices he could instinctively comprehend, for he read
them in his own past life. But he had been warned that
another and very different field was to be occupied by him,
and for which it behoved him, by every form of human
discipline, to equip himself. Experiments upon the gentile
population at Tarsus, either conducted by dialogue or more
formal addresses, must have shown him how he could best
serve the Master in making known His salvation to the
pagan world. Though Saul was taught of the Spirit, he
was also the pupil of experience ; and what he saw and
heard in his native province, either in its hilly regions or



36 SAUL AT ANTIOCH IN SYRIA.

level shores the feelings he encountered, the forms of
antagonism he met with, the prevailing type of objection
which the educated or uneducated heathen mind, Greek,
Roman, and aboriginal, presented must have been studied
by him, and must have afforded guidance in his subse-
quent evangelical labours. He could afterwards anticipate
hostile argument trace its origin, detect its fallacy, ay,
and counterwork it, ere it had time to express itself.

In the meantime, the gospel had been carried to different
regions by those who had fled into exile after the
martyrdom of Stephen. The blood of the martyr had
already become the seed of the church. They who sped
away for life carried with them the elements of a higher life.
The first persecution of the church led to its first mission-
ary enterprise. The death of Stephen occasioned obedience
to the parting command of the Master " Go ye into all
the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." Not
a few who "were scattered abroad," being probably Jews
born in Palestine, " preached the word to none but unto the
Jews only." But " men of Cyprus and Gyrene " had gone as
far as Antioch, and their preaching " to the Grecians " had
been attended with signal success. The inspired historian
tells us that " the hand of the Lord was with them "the
power of Him who was upon the throne was sent down to
crown and bless their labours. Throughout the Acts the
primary agency of the Lord Jesus is uniformly recognized.
What Christ did when among men, is told in the Gospels ;
what He still did when removed from men, is told in the
Acts. How He governed when present, is described in the
one group of narratives ; how He governs when absent, is



BARNABAS A DEPUTY. 37

rehearsed in this book. The Christ of the Gospels is a
present and tender friend the Christ of the Acts still
preserves the same character ; is near, though He is away ;
loves, though He has left ; and guides and controls, though
the heavens retain Him. The scenes of this history, in
which apostles preached, wrought miracles, or suffered,
belong to Christ as really as the synagogue at Nazareth
where He was rejected, the shores of Gennesaret where
He wandered and strewed deeds of mercy on His path,
the hamlet of Bethany where He enjoyed 'His friends, or
the garden of Gethsemane where He met His agony.

News of the immense success of the gospel at Antioch
had reached Jerusalem. The mother-church might not
claim a formal jurisdiction, but it was startled and per-
plexed, as well as delighted, by the intelligence. If the
heathen were admitted, it should like to know on what
conditions, and by what authority? The zealots for the
law desired to interfere, for they afterwards called Peter
to account, and " contended " with him, because he had
eaten with the uncircumcised. When the great results of
Philip's preaching were known at Jerusalem, Peter and
John were sent down to Samaria 5 and so Barnabas was
commissioned as a deputy to the northern city, to ascer-
tain from inspection how far the tidings were correct and
what farther information might be gathered: and he cheer-
fully undertook the embassy. He must have been high in
the confidence of the church in Jerusalem, for we have
seen, too, that his introduction was the voucher of Saul's
discipleship.

The benevolent and self-denied Cypriot came to Antioch,



38 SAUL AT ANTIOCH IN SYRIA.

and his mind, if it had been in any doubt, was at once
relieved. There was neither disorder nor unwarranted
innovation. When he had " seen the grace of God, he
was glad." Every feeling of embarrassment left him.
The noble spectacle filled his mind with unutterable
gladness. He saw the grace of God; that is, overlooking
the minor means and subordinate instrumentalities, he
detected the workings of divine power. For whatever
eloquence, zeal, and courage had been employed, God's
grace had effected the change, as it alone reaches and
renews the heart. The gospel is an embodiment of His
grace, and they who believe the gospel, get that grace for
their heritage. When Barnabas looked around on so
many converts, and knew what their convictions were ;
when he saw the synagogue forsaken and the groves of
Daphne deserted ; when he beheld the sanctified intelli-
gence and changed lives of the Christian multitudes he
could ascribe the phenomenon to nothing but the grace of
God. It is true that the inner workings of grace are
invisible, and that Barnabas could not see into the heart ;
but with the results before him, he at once recognized the
cause. There was indeed no opening of the heavens no
"rushing mighty wind" no "cloven tongues, like as of
fire" no scene of palpable visitation, such as at Pentecost ;
but the effect was not the less striking in the faith and
devotedness, the purity and unity, of the Antiochean
church. Were the grace of God implored, would it not
still descend, reviving the church, and conquering the
world ? The exalted Lord will not deny it He will bow
His heaven, and pour it down in rich effusion. Lord, let



POWER OF GRACE. 39

Thy grace come down in its majesty, so that Thy saints
may rejoice in it, and that sinners may feel its sweep.
Let the means of grace verify their name as vehicles of
divine and saving influence. Lead sinners to Thy " throne
of grace." Give " testimony to the word of Thy grace 5"
and bestow upon us " grace for grace," as Thou showest
the "riches" of Thy grace. Help us who "believe through
grace," by enabling us not only to " continue in the grace
of God," but to " grow in grace." Make " all grace to
abound toward us ;" yea, let " great grace be upon us all."
When Barnabas saw the spectacle, he sympathized with
it. Earth had nothing for him so rich in pleasure. The
power in gracious operation was divine ; the subjects
wrought upon were the noblest the souls of men
precious beyond computation ; and the results, partially
gained, and to be in the end fully realized, were the loftiest
and best that God can achieve, or man can experience.
Barnabas could look on neither with indifference nor
envy. He rejoiced, for he saw the cause of Christ so
prosperous after the dark season of persecution, and, after it
had bled at Jerusalem, achieving such conquests in one
of the prime strongholds of Eastern heathendom. That
cause was endeared the more to them who had suffered
for it ; and while it lay at home under the frown of the
priesthood and the ban of the Sanhedrim, it was rapidly
and surely, and without molestation, planting and spread-
ing itself in so renowned a spot as the third city of the
empire. When the deputy of the metropolitan church
had reflected on these circumstances, we may imagine
what a glowing despatch he would transmit to Jerusalem.



40 SAUL AT ANTIOCH IN SYRIA.

But Barnabas felt that there was duty laid upon him. He
was not only to report to the mother-church, but immediate
obligation also pressed upon him. He must improve the
opportunity, and preach ; and the burden of his preaching
was the duty or necessity of perseverance. " He exhorted
them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave
unto the Lord." This was the one grand lesson for the
time. He might be afraid that this outburst of enthusiasm
might not last, that among a giddy and susceptible people
such novel sensations might speedily subside. Therefore
he addressed himself to the one remedy. For continuous
faith alone is continuous safety. One must not only flee
to the refuge, but abide in it, that he may escape the
storm. The race must not only be begun, but the racer
must hold on, for he must grasp the goal ere he get the
garland. And the resolution to persevere was not to be
taken laxly and vaguely, but with "purpose of heart "-
with intelligent and cordial resolve. There needed such
decision among the Gentiles. Society was pervaded with
idolatrous usages, and the ordinary interchange of civilities
was tainted with them. The heathen was reminded at
every step of the religion which he had left its altars,
temples, and gods were on all hands. If he partook of a
friend's hospitality, he would witness a libation poured
out to Apollo; meats blessed in honour of an idol were
found on every table ; while urban pursuits and suburban
recreation brought him into contact with objects and scenes
of superstition and sensual indulgence. Nor was the Jew
less powerfully surrounded with seductions. Hallowed
associations mixed with all his memories of ancestral glory



A GOOD MAN. 41

and worship. Great names were inwoven into the history
of his ceremonial, and the archives of his country were, at
the same time, the records of his faith. God had spoken
to his fathers ; the sea had been divided for them ; angels'
food had been, day after day, rained down upon them ; the
cloud and pillar oi fire had been by turns the vanguard and
rearguard of their march. They had possessed the rod of
Moses and the sword of Joshua, the throne of David and
the lyre of Isaiah. What Barnabas therefore impressed on
the whole assembly was earnestness and tenacity, or reso-
lution, at all hazards, to cleave to the Lord. What beauty
and power in the thought to cleave to the Lord; not simply
to cling to their profession, or to adhere to an abstract or
historical Christianity, but to cleave to the Lord the living
personal Redeemer away from them, but yet with them
the one living source of blessing and object of fellowship.
Theirs was to be a personal attachment to Him whom the
gospel depicted as the centre of evangelical truth and the
occupant of their hearts Him to whom homage was paid
as being of all others the most worthy of it, and to whom
service was done as having a claim beyond all others upon
it. For, alas ! men may adhere to a denomination or to
visible membership, and yet fall short of cleaving to the
Lord. What folly lingering by the fountain without
tasting of its rill ; lounging in the porches of Bethesda,
but careless of the troubling of the waters !

One needs not to be surprised either at the joy of
Barnabas, or the practical course he pursued, when an
insight is gained into his character. The historian adds
He was a " good man." A noble eulogy, though a brief



42 SAUL AT ANTIOCH IN SYRIA.

and uncommon one. The ordinary panegyric is a " great
man," but the greatness of Barnabas was his goodness.
His goodness had been already seen in his sale of his
possession, when the first Christians kept free table in
Jerusalem. The vulgar strife is to be great, but the
Christian's ambition is to be good. Few can achieve great-
ness, but goodness is within the reach of all. Not to be
first, but to be best be this our heart's desire, for he who
is best on earth shall be " greatest in the kingdom of
heaven." The source of the goodness of Barnabas is laid
open " he was full of the Holy Ghost and of faith."
Full of the Holy Ghost so filled probably at Pentecost
not visited with occasional impulses, but like a vessel