Through The Bible in a Year - August 31, 2026

“Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus.” - Acts 13:3-4

Verse 3 says the church sent them. Verse 4 says the Holy Spirit sent them.

Both are true. Because the church was worshipping, praying, and fasting – depending on God in humble devotion – they were doing the work of the Spirit. So, ultimately, when they laid hands on Paul and Barnabas, that commission was the mission of the Spirit. The institutional act and the spiritual act were the same act.

In the Spirit’s plan, the first place they went was Cyprus. Barnabas’s home. He knew the culture. That was a positive. But the people also knew him, knew his weaknesses, knew his history. That must have been a mixed blessing.

Who do we most resist sharing the gospel with? Often it’s the people who know us best. Our family. Our hometown. Our old friends. The people who remember exactly who we used to be and have every reason to be skeptical about who we say we’ve become because of our faith in Jesus.

Still, Paul and Barnabas went first to Cyprus – and also first to the synagogue there, where Jewish leaders would know Paul. Their first witness was not to the strangers, but to the people who would already have an opinion about them, and would be most aware of gospel changes in them. The Spirit sent Paul and Barnabas—not to the easy places, but to the necessary ones.

Often, the Spirit still sends people where they wouldn’t naturally choose to go. But He does so to make the gospel most apparent to those who may be most likely to oppose it. When there is opposition to your witness, remember the Holy Spirit who sent you is also interceding for you “with groanings too deep to utter” (Paul would later write) so that God’s will is made apparent by your witness.

Whether you’re sent to Cyprus or to China or to your home town, remember that whether you are at your family’s table or in a workplace conversation that feels dangerous—the Spirit who sent you remains with you. So also does God’s promise: “Not by might, not by power, but by My Spirit” shall my will be done.

Respond: Where is the Spirit sending you that you’ve been resisting? What conversation, what relationship, what context feels too familiar or too dangerous for the gospel?

The Spirit sent Paul and Barnabas to Cyprus—home—first. He often sends us to the people closest to us before He sends us farther.

Consider one person in your closest circle—family, friend, coworker—with whom you need to share something true about Jesus. Then remember to ask the Spirit to intercede for you according to God’s will so that God’s purposes would be accomplished not by your might or power, but by His Spirit.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, as I think about my family and friends, I know You are sending me somewhere or to someone that makes me uncomfortable. I’m afraid of what they’ll think—they know me too well. They know my past. They have every reason to doubt or question me. But You sent Paul and Barnabas home first, and You went with them. Send me where You desire, and go with me there. Equip me to speak for you not by my reputation, not in my strength, but by Your Spirit. In Jesus’ name, Amen.