Acts (The Church Gets Messy): Fractured Yet Faithful
In Acts 15, two spiritual giants, Paul and Barnabas, face a disagreement so sharp it splits their ministry team in two. On the surface, it’s messy, painful, and human, yet as Rev. Joash Thomas unpacks, God uses it to expand the mission, restore broken relationships, and show that His Spirit can work through even our sharpest differences.
This is a story about power and perspective, about standing up for the marginalized, and about the rare beauty of a church that can disagree deeply yet still stay rooted in love.
Because when our eyes stay fixed on Jesus, conflict doesn’t have to break us, it can grow us.
Discussion Questions:
Our church holds unity amid political, theological, and cultural diversity. What practices help you personally keep that unity with people you disagree with?
Where in your life right now might God be calling you to step toward someone you’ve been in conflict with — to listen, to reconcile, or to bless them in their calling?
How can you make sure that when disagreements happen in your home, with friends, school, workplace, or church, they are handled in a Christlike, non-violent, peace-seeking way?
When you’re in conflict, do you tend to take the side of the more powerful voice, or do you seek out the perspective of the one with less power? Why?
Which role do you naturally lean toward in disagreements — the Paul type (mission-focused, decisive, maybe blunt) or the Barnabas type (relational, loyal, restorative)?
Have you ever been “John Mark” — someone others lost trust in — and later experienced restoration? How did that shape you?
How does the later reconciliation between Paul and Mark (Colossians 4:10, 2 Timothy 4:11, Philemon 1:24) reshape our reading of this sharp disagreement?