As we read the gospel records, we read eyewitness accounts of the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus.

In a sense, the gospels are just the beginning of Christ's work. The adventure continues in the

Book of Acts. In this study with

Scott Pauli, we consider the continuing work of Christ through the Holy Spirit, who works

through the apostles in the New Testament Church. Now, let's get in on the adventure.

We've come today to one of the hardest assignments and one of the greatest test of your

spirituality.

And it is this, not how you treat those who are over you, and not how you treat those

who are alongside you, but how you treat those who have fallen.

We're studying from the life of Barnabas here in the book of Acts, this ministry of

encouragement. What a helpry was. Do you remember in Acts chapter four, helping the needy?

In Acts chapter number nine, helping the new believer. In Acts chapter 11, helping the whole church.

In Acts chapter 13, helping and encouraging the preacher.

And then we find him once again in Acts chapter number 15,

and here he is encouraging a young man who has failed.

Aren't you glad that failure is not final with our God, that God forgives,

he cleanses, and gives new beginning? The Bible says that a just man falleth seven times and

riseeth again. Praise God for mercy. Friends, if it wasn't for the mercy and grace of God,

he wasn't a God of second chances, we'd all been a mess. Well, the truth is,

we know God forgives, but sometimes we have a hard time doing it. We want everybody else to do it,

but we don't always do it. Barnabas, not that way. We come to the story in Acts 15, beginning in

verse 36. And some days after, Paul said into Barnabas, let us go again and visit our brethren in every city

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