Some time later Paul
said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where
we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.” Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with
them, but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had
deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. They had such
a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed
for Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the
believers to the grace of the Lord. He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening
the churches. Acts 15:36-41
Yes, there
will be disagreements among Christians, as we see from Paul and Barnabas. The two had a long history with each other,
but when it came to choosing John-Mark to join them on a missionary, they
disagreed and split up their partnership.
Sadly,
they didn’t handle the disagreement well, but we know from scripture that they
still communicated with each other and worked with each other, ironing out
their differences at some point. They
probably saw that God used their split to double their efforts to reach twice
as many people.
Disagree? Yes, it will happen. Hold a grudge? No.