Them “Make the Congregations Dey Strong”

1-3. (a) Who be the new person wey go de follow Paul travel, and which kind person e be? (b) Wetin we go learn for this chapter?

AS THEM de waka for the rough roads wey dey the towns wey them de pass, apostle Paul de look and de think about the young man wey de waka with-am. Im name na Timothy. Timothy na young man wey power full im body, and e fit dey around 20 years. As them de waka de go, na so them de go far from Lystra and Iconium, the area wey Timothy come from. Wetin them go face for this journey? Paul know small about-am, because this na the second time wey e de travel as missionary. E know say them go face many problems and things go hard for them. Paul fit don de wonder, ‘This young man go fit cope?’

² The way Paul trust Timothy fit pass the way Timothy trust imself. Some things wey happen before this time, make Paul dey sure more-more say, e need person wey them go understand each other well to follow-am de travel. Paul know say the work wey them want go do, wey be to visit congregations and make them strong, go need people wey really ready to do the work and wey de think the same way. Wetin fit don make Paul feel like this? One thing fit be the quarrel wey happen before this time wey make Paul and Barnabas separate.

³ For this chapter, we go learn plenty things about the correct way to fit handle problem wey we get with person. We go still learn why Paul choose Timothy to follow-am de travel, and we go still understand the important work wey circuit overseers for our time de do.

“Make We Go Back Now and Visit the Brothers” (Acts 15:36)

4. Wetin make Paul want travel for the second time as missionary?

⁴ For chapter 14, we see how the four brothers wey them send​—Paul, Barnabas, Judas, and Silas, make the congregation for Antioch strong when them tell the brothers wetin the governing body decide for circumcision matter. Wetin Paul come do after this one? E meet Barnabas and tell-am about the new plan of where them go travel go. E talk say: “Make we go back now and visit the brothers for each of the cities wey we don preach the word of Jehovah, to see how them dey.” (Acts 15:36) Paul no de talk say make them just go visit this new Christians. The book of Acts tell us the reasons why Paul travel this second time as missionary. The first one be say as e de go, e go de tell the brothers wetin the governing body don decide. (Acts 16:4) The second one be say, as elder wey de travel de visit congregations, e decide say e go de help the congregations to make their friendship with Jehovah tight, and make their faith strong. (Rom. 1:​11, 12) Wetin Jehovah organization de do today to copy the way the governing body for the apostles time take make congregations dey strong?

5. How the Governing Body for our time de direct and encourage congregations?

⁵ For this our time, na the Governing Body of Jehovah Witness Jesus Christ de use direct im congregation. This anointed brothers wey we fit trust de use letters, books wey them print and the ones wey dey our website, meetings, and other ways de direct all the congregation for the whole world and de encourage them. Them still de try their best to dey close to each congregation. Na im make them de send circuit overseers go visit congregations. Governing Body don choose thousands of elders for the whole world wey fit do the work, to be circuit overseers.

6, 7. Wetin be some of the work wey circuit overseers de do?

⁶ As circuit overseers de visit congregations, them de try know people for congregation one by one and de encourage them. How them de do this one? Them de follow the example wey the Christians for the time of the apostles set, like apostle Paul example. Paul tell Timothy wey de do traveling overseer work like-am say: “Preach the word, no waste time do-am, whether for good time or for hard time. De correct people, de warn them, de encourage them, and as you de do this one, make you really dey patient and de really teach for better way. . . . Do the work of person wey de preach.”​—2 Tim. 4:​2, 5.

⁷ Just as apostle Paul talk, circuit overseer and im wife, if e don marry, de join the publishers for congregation de use different-different method preach. Because them de put body for the preaching work and sabi teach, this one de move the brothers and sisters to copy their example. (Rom. 12:11; 2 Tim. 2: 15) Wetin them take know circuit overseers be say, them de love people well-well and them no de think only about theirself. Them de use their time do things for people, and de travel even when weather no good and even when the area dey dangerous. (Phil. 2: 3,  4) Them still de use the talks wey them de give from Bible de encourage, de teach and de advice congregations. All of us for congregation de gain when we de think about and follow their example of faith.​—Heb. 13:7.

“Them Really Vex and Serious Quarrel Burst” (Acts 15:​37-41)

8. Wetin Barnabas do as Paul talk say make them go visit the brothers?

⁸ Barnabas really like as Paul talk say make them go “visit the brothers.” (Acts 15:36) The two of them don do this work together before, and them sabi the area and the brothers wey them want go visit. (Acts 13:2–14:28) So e make sense say, make two of them do this work together. But one problem come happen. Acts 15:37 tell us say: “Barnabas don decide say John wey them still de call Mark go follow them.” Barnabas no just de talk say maybe them fit take John. E don “decide” say im cousin wey be Mark must follow them travel for this missionary work.

9. Why Paul no gree for wetin Barnabas talk?

⁹ But Paul no gree. Why? Bible talk say: “But Paul no gree make [Mark] follow them, because e leave them for Pamphylia and e no follow them go do the work.” (Acts 15:38) Mark follow Paul and Barnabas the first time wey them travel as missionary but e no stay with them reach the end. (Acts 12:25; 13:13) When them never even go far, Mark leave them for Pamphylia, go Jerusalem, where im family house dey. Bible no talk why e go, but e be like say apostle Paul look Mark like person wey no dey serious because of wetin e do. E fit be say Paul no dey sure say Mark no go disappoint them again.

10. Wetin happen as Paul no gree make Mark follow them?

¹⁰ Even with this one, Barnabas say Mark must follow them go. But Paul no gree make Mark follow them. Acts 15:39 talk wetin come happen say: “So them really vex and serious quarrel burst wey make them separate from each other.” Barnabas enter ship with Mark and them go island of Cyprus, the place wey Barnabas come from. But Paul go the place wey e be de plan to go. Bible talk say: “Paul choose Silas and comot after the brothers don beg Jehovah to show Paul im special favor.” (Acts 15:40) Two of them travel go “Syria and Cilicia, de make the congregations dey strong.”​—Acts 15:41.

11. Which characters go help us continue to be friend with person wey make us vex?

¹¹ This story de remind us say we no dey perfect. Them choose Paul and Barnabas as people wey de represent the governing body. And e be like say Paul later be part of the governing body. But for this matter, Paul and Barnabas show say them no dey perfect. Them allow wetin happen spoil their friendship forever? No. Even though say them no dey perfect, them be people wey de carry body down, wey de copy Jesus Christ example. E clear say, them later forgive each other and treat each other as brothers. (Eph. 4:​1-3) After some time, Paul and Mark still work together again.a​—Col. 4:10.

12. Like Paul and Barnabas, which characters elders for our time suppose get?

¹² Even though say Paul and Barnabas really vex for each other for this matter, e no mean say na so their character be. The brothers know say Barnabas get good mind and e de help people well-well. Na im make them start to call-am Barnabas, instead of im name Joseph. And Barnabas mean “Person Wey De Encourage People.” (Acts 4:36) Them still know Paul as person wey dey kind, and wey love people. (1 Thess. 2:​7, 8) Just like Paul and Barnabas, make all elders and circuit overseers, de always try to put body down and treat other elders and people for congregation with love.​—1 Pet. 5:​2, 3.

‘The Brothers De Talk Well About-am’ (Acts 16:​1-3)

13, 14. (a) Who be Timothy, and how Paul meet-am? (b) Why Paul come like Timothy well-well? (c) Which work them give Timothy?

¹³ The second time wey Paul travel as missionary, e go Galatia and na Rome people de rule the place. E go visit congregations for there. Bible talk say: “So e reach Derbe and Lystra too. And one disciple wey im name na Timothy dey there, and na the son of one Jew woman wey don believe the good news, but im papa na Greek person.”​—Acts 16:1.b

¹⁴ E fit be say na around 47 C.E. when Paul first travel go the area, e meet Timothy family. But two or three years after that first time, e come like Timothy well-well wey dey young that time. Why? Because “the brothers de talk well about Timothy.” No be only people for Timothy congregation de talk about im better character, even people wey no dey im congregation de talk about-am. Bible tell us say brothers for Lystra and Iconium wey dey about 30 km from Lystra, still de talk good things about Timothy. (Acts 16:2) Holy spirit move the elders to give young Timothy big work to do. This one na to join Paul and Silas to de travel go de visit congregations.​—Acts 16:3.

15, 16. Wetin make people like Timothy?

¹⁵ Wetin make people like Timothy even though say e still be young man? Na because e sabi something, e fine, or e get talent? People de like this kind things well-well. E get one time wey Samuel want choose person just because of how the person be when e see-am. But Jehovah remind-am say: “The way man de see things no be how God de see things, because man de see only wetin eye fit see, but Jehovah de see wetin dey inside the heart.” (1 Sam. 16:7) So the brothers no talk good things about Timothy because of say e sabi something, or because of how e fine reach, or because say e get talent, but na because of the kind person wey e be for inside​—im better character.

¹⁶ After some years, apostle Paul talk about some of the better character wey Timothy get. E say Timothy get good mind, e no de think about only imself, and e de use all im heart work for the congregations. (Phil. 2:​20-22) E still talk say “the kind faith wey [Timothy] get no be the one wey de pretend.”​—2 Tim. 1:5.

17. How young people today fit copy Timothy example?

¹⁷ Today, many young people de copy Timothy example as them de do their best to get the kind character wey Jehovah like. This one de make them get better name with Jehovah and im people, as them still dey young. (Prov. 22:1; 1 Tim. 4:15) Their faith dey real, them no de pretend or de live fake life. (Ps. 26:4) Because of this one, many young people like Timothy fit do important work for congregation. Them really de make all the people around them wey love Jehovah de happy, when them qualify to be publishers, and later give Jehovah their life and baptize!

“The Congregations Continue to Stand Strong for the Faith” (Acts 16:​4, 5)

18. (a) Which work Paul and Timothy do to help the governing body? (b) How the congregations gain?

¹⁸ Paul and Timothy work together for many years. As elders wey de travel de encourage congregations, them do different-different work for the governing body. Bible talk say: “As them de travel from city to city, them go give them the laws wey the apostles and the elders for Jerusalem don decide, so that them go obey-am.” (Acts 16:4) E clear say, the congregations do wetin the apostles and elders for Jerusalem tell them. And because them obey, “the congregations continue to stand strong for the faith and them de plenty more-more everyday.”​—Acts 16:5.

19, 20. As Christians, why we suppose de obey the “people wey de guide us”?

¹⁹ For this our time, Jehovah Witness people de gain well-well because them de use all their heart obey direction from the “people wey de guide” them. (Heb. 13:17) As e be say the condition for this world de change everytime, e dey important make we de follow all the things wey Jehovah de use “the faithful and discreet slave” de teach us. (Matt. 24:45; 1 Cor. 7:​29-31) When we de do this one, e go make our faith strong and help us make we no get stain from this world.​—Jas. 1:27.

²⁰ Elders for this our time and Governing Body members no dey perfect just like Paul, Barnabas, Mark, and other anointed ones wey be elders that time. (Rom. 5:12; Jas. 3:2) But because Governing Body de follow exactly wetin dey the Word of God and the example wey the apostles set, them don show say we fit trust them. (2 Tim. 1:​13, 14) And because of this one, congregations dey strong and them stand strong for the faith.