24 He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.
Barnabas was a person who could be trusted to carry out a very important task. Great things were happening among the non-Jews. The believers in headquarters, Jerusalem, wanted to send a representative to check out what was happening to make sure everything was OK. They sent Barnabas. He was a good man. But what did that mean to be a good man? In this context the most important traits were the presence of the Spirit and active faith. They didn’t send someone who was not living an active faith in Jesus. They chose him precisely because of his active faith. They could see that he was trusting Jesus. His life showed evidence of that active faith. He also showed the presence of the Holy Spirit working in and through him. This was not a faith that lacked the stamp of God’s approval. The Spirit was there demonstrating that God approved of his actions on His behalf. It was very important for proof of the Spirit’s presence. There were some who had not received the Spirit, but only believed the message about Jesus’ life and resurrection. Barnabas was sent so that they would receive the full gospel message. He knew who the Spirit was and was able to discern His working in the lives of others. For the early Church the presence of the Spirit was not optional. Even among non-Jews, the evidence of the Spirit showed the Jews that they had the same experience with God that they had, even though they were non-Jews. This surprised the Jews. They thought they had something special. So Barnabas goes and finds God working mightily and he joins in that work. He jumps in with both feet. And God continues to show up and change lives.
The Arnold Journey 