thle? Ho might hl\vo done eo (1) by the direct inspiration of his Holy Spirit; or (2) by mnnifesting himself to somo one of the _apostles and conveying through him hi~ mind on tho matter. But he chose to do th1e (3) by the tea.chin"' of bis providenre. "Somo of them "-we do not know who, some whose names are "1ost and will never be discovcrod-eome men from Cyprus a.nd Cyrene, "when they were come to Antioch, spake unto the Greeks [not' Grecians'], preachini? the Lord Jesus." And this unpre- meditated, irregular work proved to be marvellously successful (see ver. 21). When the Church nt Jerusalem heard of these unauthorized proceedings, they dcspatche,l Barna.bas to inquire into the matter (eee ver. 22). The nobility of his character and excellency of his spirit triumphed over the narrowness of his views, and instead of disowning and discouraging the work, he acknowledged its Divine origin and furthered iL to the height of his power. And thus the seal of apostolic sanction was set to the broader aim and the larger hope. 'l'hus God leads us into bis kingdom of truth. He places u-1 in such circumstances that we take right steps without realizing all the consequences therein involved, and then our convictions rise to the height of our actions. 3. How God uses his servants. "Then departed Barnabas . . . to seek Saul" (ver. 25). Ba.ma.bas served God and his race in one way, Saul in another. Barnabas was not the man to do what Paul afterwards did. He had not the evangelizing, organizing, literary faculty in anythini like the same degree in which his illustrious colleague possessed it. But he served the Church and the world in his own way. It was a valuable contribution to the cause of Christ and of the kingdom of God to introduce the distrusted convert to the confidence of the Church (eh. ix. 27), and to give him such an opening for the exercise and training of his varied powers as that he now enjoyed at Antioch; it was an eminent and precious service thus to place on a firm footing and to bring into the foreground the man who was to be the means of doing such work as Paul accomplished for mankind. What immeasurable service have the fathers and mothers and teachers of our great reformers, evangelists, preachers, etc., rendered their race! Other men have other spheres to fill; that of Paul was the sphere of abounding activity. We may be sure that he had a. great deal to do during those twelve months at Antioch, in " teaching many people" (ver. 26). Some in quieter, others in more active scenes ; some in virtue of intellectual, others by means of moral and spiritual gifts; some by their influence on a. few influential men, others by their action on the multitude; some by impressing their convictions on men by direct personal appeal, others by organizing and arranging ; all in the way chosen of God a.nd pleasing to him, play their part and do their work in their hour of opportunity. II. THE ONE WORK OF Goo. At Antioch it became convenient to distinguish the converts to the new faith by some name which marked them off from the Jews; they were called" Christians." It is a mark which speaks of the rising tide of truth. It reminds us that God was working out a grand design, far, far beyond the elevation of a favoured nation, viz. the redemption of the whole race of man by faith in Jesus Christ; he was and is engaged in" reconciling the world unto himself in Cbrist."---0.
Vers. 27-30.-God's bounty and our well-being. The reference, in these verses, to "a. great dearth throughout all the world" (ver. 28), and to the sending of relief by the disciples, according to their several ability, to the brethren in Judrea (ver. 29), may suggest to us thoughts concerning the provision which God has ma.de for us in bis Divine goodness and also in his Divine wisdom. We look at- I. His PROVISION FOR OUR TEMPORAL WELL-BEING. The great multitudes of mankind, the hundreds of thousands of millions are fed, year after year, age after age ; and many hundreds of millions more might be sustained if all the use were made that might be of the Jpportunities open to us. God, in his bounty, provides what we want in (1) fruit- ful and extensive soil, (2) multiplying seed, (3) agricultural knowledge (Isa. x:x:viii. 26), (4) materials for implements of husbandry, (5) all nourishing and ripening agencies. II. His CONSIDERATION OF OUR PIETY. God gives us our bread, our maintenance, in such a way that we are almost compelled to acknowledge his band iu the harvest. Evidently we did not produce the soil nor make the seed; evidently we cannot c,1use it to fertilize and grow; evidently it is his sun that shines and his rair,. that falls on our fields. The ordinary processes as by which the seed i_s multiplied ~re such as direct our eyes to heaven. Amtd often, in his wisdom, he holds his hand, he withdraws the sunshine 3G! THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLE~. [en. u. 1-30.